Kansas City Royals Rumors: Recapping first day of Winter Meetings
It turned out to be a quiet opening day of the Winter Meetings. There were still plenty of interesting things to happen surrounding the Kansas City Royals.
Huge moves were in short supply on the first day of the 2017 Winter Meetings. After big decisions by Shohei Ohtani and Giancarlo Stanton in the days leading up to the annual gathering, Monday seemed like a letdown. That being said, the Kansas City Royals remained busy. Here’s a recap of their day in Orlando, Florida.
Fielding offers
The biggest development of the first day seemed to be a clear path for the Kansas City Royals. A rebuild — likely to the extent of a full-blown teardown — seems imminent. Officials reportedly spent the day fielding inquiries about virtually every player with major league experience. According to MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan, the main objective for the organization this week appears to be rebuilding the farm system. Failing to re-sign Eric Hosmer will almost certainly lead to wholesale changes:
That tweet would scare even the most even-keeled Kansas City Royals fans. Part of the trepidation is the unknown about who exactly the offers were made in reference to. Here’s another tweet from Flanagan — this one provides a little clarity on specific names mentioned:
It would seem to suggest that all top players could be traded for the right price. The biggest question is whether Salvador Perez falls into that group. His name is the only clear omission from Flanagan’s tweet. That doesn’t mean the team is necessarily unwilling to listen to offers on the franchise cornerstone. It could just mean none came in for him on Monday.
Moustakas meets with Angels
In news that should confirm nothing but the obvious, Mike Moustakas reportedly has had contacts with the Angels. A match made in heaven (no pun intended), Moustakas and the Angels have apparently not advanced their talks to any significant level. But beat writer Jeff Fletcher did confirm discussions have taken place:
A native of Southern California, it would make sense for Moustakas to want to return home. The Angels also have a need at third base. Based on their deals for Justin Upton and Ohtani, the team clearly is going all in to make sure the Mike Trout era doesn’t end with a whimper.
Royals still interested in Bradley
In what continues to be the strangest rumor surrounding the Kansas City Royals, the team reportedly still has interest in trading for Jackie Bradley. The Boston center fielder appears to be on the trading block. According to WEEI’s Rob Bradford, the Royals continue to express interest despite a farm system devoid of top-level talent:
It makes sense for the Red Sox to look for trade partners for Bradley. The team has a great internal replacement in Andrew Benintendi. Such a move would also signal a strong push for J.D. Martinez to fill in at right field. Boston could also look to add Hosmer, as Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald argued this weekend. However, there would seem to be no chance the Royals — even forgetting the likelihood of a rebuild for a second — have enough assets to pull off a deal for Bradley.
KC among suitors for Adams?
With Hosmer possibly on his way to realms unknown (maybe even San Diego), the Kansas City Royals have three options for dealing with first base in 2018.
- Brandon Moss
- Minor leaguer
- Outside free agent
Those options are not in any particular order. To be sure, it would make a lot more sense to go with No. 1 or No. 2 if the team completely blows things up this offseason. However, attempting to compete with a decent, cheap Hosmer replacement would be much more palatable for the fanbase.
One player who fits that mold who hasn’t been mentioned much is Matt Adams. After being non-tendered by Atlanta, Adams became a free agent. It’s possible the team just did due diligence, but ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick did report the Royals have expressed interest in Adams:
His age (29), relative to other replacement options, would appear to be a plus. At this point, though, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where the Kansas City Royals are rebuffed by Hosmer and turn around to sign another free agent first baseman.
Soria and Hammel on the block
Along with mentioning Adams as a possible addition, Crasnick also mentioned a couple of players the Royals could offload — namely Joakim Soria and Jason Hammel:
Few fans would miss the aging right-handers. Both could be of use to teams with intention to contend in 2018. Soria has proven he can still be a serviceable — if sometimes frustrating — setup man. Hammel could easily slot into the back of any rotation. He also has the ability to succeed as a long reliever.
Finding teams to take on $9 million for each of them could be tough. It more than likely would be a move that occurs at the trade deadline, assuming neither player completely implodes over the first half of the year.
Yost continues recovery from fall
One notable absence from the Winter Meetings not named Derek Jeter is Royals skipper Ned Yost. The long-time manager continues to recover from a serious fall in early November on his Georgia property.
Despite making progress “every day,” according to Flanagan, Yost remains far from healed enough to make the trip down to Orlando. Flanagan even said it’s unlikely Yost will attend fan fest next month, but he could be healed up and ready to go when Spring Training begins in February.
Lopez honored for fall league display
In a bit of Royals news that has nothing to do with the Winter Meetings, minor league infielder Nicky Lopez capped a sensational Arizona Fall League campaign with a deserved spot on the all-prospect team. The Kansas City Royals announced the honor on their official Twitter account:
Since being drafted in the fifth round of the 2016 draft, Lopez has been a shining light in an otherwise dark and gloomy farm system. The former Creighton Blue Jay dominated with Burlington in his debut season. This past summer he excelled with Wilmington before earning a promotion to Northwest Arkansas. Things didn’t go so well at the Double-A level for the 22-year-old, but Lopez seemed to get back on track in the AFL.
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The left-handed hitting shortstop slashed .383/.433/.568 for an OPS of 1.001 in 20 games. He didn’t showcase a ton of power with only nine of his 31 hits going for extra bases. However, Lopez succeeded at manufacturing runs, scoring 15 times and driving in 10. After recording an even 1:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio over the summer, Lopez struck out 14 times to seven walks in the AFL.
The hope is that his form carries over into next season. Lopez’s progression and the possibility of a rebuild mean Whit Merrifield could be a legitimate trade piece this winter.
Maybe it will even happen this week. Or maybe nothing of substance will occur. That’s the beauty of the Winter Meetings, though. Even when nothing concrete happens, the future ramifications from the discussions will reverberate through the remainder of the offseason.
Next: Goals to accomplish in 2018
What do you think, fans? Will the Kansas City Royals make any major trades this week? Will Hosmer or any of the other main free agents sign? Let us know your thoughts and predictions.