Kansas City Royals All-Time Worst 25 Man Roster

Oct 14, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals fans celebrate after the win over the Houston Astros in game five of the ALDS at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Yasuhiko Yabuta – Relief Pitcher

One of the “benefits” of hiring Trey Hillman, who had won the NPL World Series with the Nippon Ham Fighters, was that he could help persuade Japanese players to come to Kansas City. One such “find” was 35-year-old Yasuhiko Yabuta, who signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the KC Royals—a healthy salary for a middle reliever at the time.

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Yabuta was so good that he spent most of his time pitching for AAA Omaha rather than Kansas City. In the limited time that Yabuta managed to play for the KC Royals, he sucked.

In 2008, Yabuta went 1-3 with a 4.78 ERA in 37.2 innings, followed by a 2-1 record and 13.50 ERA in 14.0 innings in 2009. To reach such a lofty number, Yasuhiko Yabuta gave up 21 runs in 14 innings. In the end, the KC Royals got a 3-4 record with 7.14 ERA in 51.2 innings for their $8 million.

To put Yabuta’s contract in perspective, the Kansas City Royals had a $58 million opening day payroll in 2008, and $70 million in 2009. Those weren’t teams that could afford to waste $4 million a season on a risky NPL relief pitcher that turned out to be a bust.

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