Kansas City Royals: Three Minor League Deals Inked

On Monday, the Kansas City Royals announced they had agreed to minor league contracts with three players who had become free agents after not securing major league deals before the deadline.

Jason Adam, Samir Duenez, and Bubba Starling have once again found their homes in the Kansas City Royals organization. All three players spent their 2018 seasons somewhere within the Royals minor league system.

Jason Adam

Spending his 2018 season with both the Northwest Arkansas Naturals and the Omaha Storm Chasers, right handed pitcher Jason Adam yielded an overall ERA of 1.50 in the minors.

The 27-year old former fifth round draft pick of the Royals also debuted in the Major League during 2018, where he went 0-3 and tallied an ERA of 6.12 through 31 appearances.

Samir Duenez

The youngest of the bunch, Samir Duenez began his 2018 season with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals before an injury forced him into a rehab stint with the Arizona League Royals.

In the 80 games the first baseman took the field for the Naturals, he slashed .282/.352/.464. He notched ten home runs on the season and knocked in 60 runs.

As of December 17, the Macuto, Venezuela native has been assigned to the Omaha Storm Chasers after signing his deal.

Bubba Starling

The biggest concern with Bubba Starling has been his health. It seems like every time he recovers from an injury, it isn’t long before he is plagued by another.

Starling has also been assigned to the Omaha Storm Chasers as of the 17th. The centerfielder was a former first round draft pick for the Royals, but he hasn’t yet been able to find a way to contribute at the major league level.

During the 2018 season, he served rehabilitation stints in the Arizona League and in Idaho Falls with the Chukars. He spent the rest of his season with Omaha where he slashed .257/.350/.214 through 11 games.

Although all three of these young players elected free agency at the end of November when they were not issued a major league contract, they have returned to the Kansas City Royals organization. They all pose the potential to see major league time during the 2019 season, but only time will tell.