Royals: Making the correct free agent gambles can make all the difference

There are talented free agents out there that will be signed to reasonable contracts this season. The Royals could use a few of those.

I think we all agree that there will be no big-ticket free-agent signings from the Royals this offseason. But, we do still need some players. Our roster was downright embarrassing through most of the season in 2019.

One way to avoid embarrassing ourselves again would be to avoid making the same mistakes in free agency that we made last season. The signings of Chris Owings and Billy Hamilton and Lucas Duda (which also led to the release of Brian Goodwin) were terrible signings. They were bad at the time we signed them and not one of them even lasted through the season or had enough value to bring back a bag of balls in a trade.

Those decisions all fall on Dayton Moore. And since we can assume there will be no moves like the signing of Gil Meche this offseason, we will, once again, be looking for free agents that are willing to play at a discounted salary. And, most likely, on a short-term deal.

The good news is that there will be some signings this offseason that will not break the bank but will still add significant value to their teams. Signings like the deal the Yankees have D.J. LeMahieu on. Or the contract the Rays signed Charlie Morton to last season. Here are some possibilities for similar candidates in 2020.