KC Royals: Making the case, Atlanta Braves free agents

The Braves have big names hitting the free agent market.  Can the KC Royals afford any and if so, should they pursue them?

Welcome back to Kings of Kauffman’s continuing series analyzing the major league free agent market and projecting who might, or might not, fit the KC Royals’ needs. Today we take a look at the Atlanta Braves’ free agents. 

The Braves have come back nicely from their lean years of 2014-2017 – roughly the same period the Royals were playing their best ball since the 1980s.  Atlanta has now reeled off three straight division titles, being bumped twice in the National League Divisional Series.

This year “Hotlanta” made it to the Championship Series and had leads of two games to none and three games to one against the Dodgers.  Los Angeles came roaring back to win the pennant on their way to their first World Series trophy since 1988.

Atlanta accomplished this with a modest payroll prorated to $63.6 million, just above the league average.  That was only the 16th highest in the majors so if they choose they could dish out money on new players or on keeping those who have reached free agency.

With the team accomplishments, it would be likely that good players from the Braves would be hitting the market.  There are, in fact, 10 free agents that will be shopping their services to other clubs.  Many are household names with several years of quality performances and others could be good role players on the right team.

We will explore who the players are and if they would be a good fit for the KC Royals.  Of course, the main question that is always hanging over the franchise is how much will they spend.

They say you can never have too much pitching and the KC Royals still need a decent backup for their star catcher.

As a starter, Josh Tomlin did not turn too many heads in his career.  Recently, he has turned into a swingman-type of role starting a handful of games and making the most of his appearances out of the bullpen.

He has great control and the Royals still need to improve on handing out free passes.  Tomlin could play a long relief role and be an emergency starter if the situation arises.  Not a priority signing but someone to consider depending on how the team fairs with their own free agents.

Perhaps the most intriguing pitcher is Darren O’Day.  He is the oldest having just turned 38 but his career stats of a 2.51 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and striking out more batters than innings he has pitched are fantastic.

The one issue – besides age – is the fact he often pitches less than an inning per appearance.  With the new baseball rules about facing a minimum amount of batters that could be an issue.  Gut instinct is to not go after this one.

Another old American League Central foe

For the first seven years of his career, Tyler Flowers was a member of the Chicago White Sox.  His seven home runs against the Royals are still the most he has hit against any one team.

Joining the Braves in 2016 Flowers had the best two seasons of his career as he settled more into a platoon role.  His average and on-base percentage have slipped recently again but he still managed to club 11 homers in 2019.

The main reason a move to the Royals does not make sense is his defense.  He led the league with 19 passed balls in ’19 and in the last two years has only thrown out 19 and 12 percent of base stealers.  Whoever is going to spell Salvador Perez needs to be a rock for the young pitchers.

The two infielders that will be available are not positive additions the KC Royals should waste time on.

We will not spend too much time on Adeiny Hechavarria who has not played a full year since 2016 and at this point in his career is utility man.  Kansas City is committed to their young infielders for at least another year and has plenty of others to fill the bench roles.

Likewise with Pablo Sandoval.  It seems like he has been around for longer than 13 seasons and it may be time for him to recognize the career is over.

It looked like he tapped back into his former All-Star self in his second go-round with the San Francisco Giants in 2019.  However, this year was brutal with a .546 OPS in 90 at-bats leading to his departure.  He then played one regular season game with the Braves and had three at-bats in playoffs.  Nothing to see here for the Royals.

The outfielders show more promise

After initially opting out of the 2020 season, Nick Markakis had a change of heart and appeared in 37 games for Atlanta.  His veteran presence was important to the club throughout the playoff run.

Although he will be 37 going into next season, the KC Royals could take advantage of his leadership in the outfield, a position that is still in flux for them.  His career .357 OBP is much needed on a club that struggles to get on base.

He will not make highlight reels with his play in right or left field but he does not hurt you with errors.  He only made $4 million this year and this could be a nice under the radar pickup that would be valuable to Kansas City.

Lastly, we have what could be the National League MVP on the market.  The case was made Marcell Ozuna would be a good fit for the Royals to sign last year but he ended up with the Braves for $18 million on a one-year deal.

Now that he led the NL in home runs, RBIs, and total bases, even in a depressed market it is predicted he could go for over $20 million per year.  Chances are he would be out of the price range of John Sherman at that rate.

Possibly a longer contract could drive that price down but anything more than a five-year offer would be unwise.  Should the Royals pursue him? Absolutely.  Is there a chance he would sign with them?  Not likely.

That wraps up the free agents from the Atlanta Braves.  Again, some intriguing and well-established names but only a couple of them would make sense for the KC Royals to consider inking into a deal.