Johnny Giavotella is no Longer the Royals Enigma

We all had to know that this day would eventually come. Some day, at some point, Johnny Giavotella would be exiled from the Kansas City Royals, a team that truly seemed inclined to give him that much of a chance. That time came yesterday, as Giavotella was designated for assignment to make room on the 40 man roster for the recently signed Kris Medlen.

Giavotella was quite the cause celebre during his tenure with the Royals, mainly because of his minor league numbers. In his 1840 AAA plate appearances, Giavotella produced a .315/.384/.451 batting line with 33 home runs. With numbers like that, it would have seemed as though the one time second round pick would have had a chance at the major league level to claim second base as his own.

Instead, when given his opportunities, Johnny Giavotella failed. In his 465 major league plate appearances, enough to be considered approximately a full major league season, Giavotella produced a .238/.277/.334 batting line with all of four home runs. When options such as Chris Getz and Miguel Tejeda are considered preferable, then that really says all that is needed about Giavotella’s major league prospects.

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At one time, it was hoped that Giavotella, like Mike Aviles before and Christian Colon after, would produce to the point to force his way into the lineup. That this player, who kept getting buried, would make the Royals give him that long awaited chance, whereupon he would set the stat sheet ablaze. Unfortunately for Giavotella, those days have not yet come.

If that type of performance is to happen for Johnny Giavotella, it will likely happen in another team’s uniform. It would seem likely that Giavotella would get that chance, as teams tend to be attracted to former prospects in hopes of being able to extract that potentially dormant talent. Giavotella, on a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training, could be a nice lottery ticket for a team in need of a second baseman or a bench piece.

If Johnny Giavotella is to finally tap into that talent, one thing appears to be certain – it will not happen in Kansas City. In the end, this really does not seem like a surprise.

Next: Kris Medlen Signs Two Year Deal With Royals