Kansas City Royals All-Time Worst 25 Man Roster

Sep 26, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals take batting practice before the game against the Cleveland Indians at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

Juan Cruz – Relief Pitcher

Encouraged by a “strong” 75-85 season in 2008, KC Royals general manager Dayton Moore made an ill-fated attempt to win in 2009. One of those moves was to get a setup man for closer Joakim Soria in the person of free-agent Juan Cruz, who’d had an excellent season in 2008 for the Diamondbacks.

Cruz landed a two-year, $5 million deal. The Kansas City Royals very quickly found out why he was available. The guy was just looking for a paycheck.

Like the rest of the 2009 KC Royals, (with the notable exception of Zack Greinke who won the Cy Young award), Cruz was terrible. In 46 games, Juan Cruz went 3-4, with a 5.72 ERA in 50.1 innings pitched. Cruz followed that season with a solid start to 2010 in which he contributed a 3.38 ERA in 5.1 innings pitched, but his clubhouse attitude was so toxic the Royals axed him in April—despite the more than $3 million in guaranteed money remaining on his contract.

Juan Cruz had such a crummy personality that the KC Royals didn’t even want him around when he was getting decent results.

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