Royals Rumors: Kendrys Morales Signs Two-Year Deal With KC Royals
By Joel Wagler
Royals rumors may actually have hit pay dirt. The KC Royals have signed designated hitter/ first baseman Kendrys Morales to a two-year contract, in an effort to fill some serious holes in the batting line up.
Accord to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com and the MLB Netowrk, via Twitter, the deal is worth up to $18.5 million.
kendrys morales gets $17M for 2 years plus 750 incentives each year. $18.5M max. #royals
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 11, 2014
This cannot be seen as good signing for the Royals. His stats were worse in 2014 than the departed Billy Butler, pretty much across the board. Take a peak a Butler’s season with the Kansas City Royals.
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | GDP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 28 | KCR | AL | 151 | 603 | 549 | 57 | 149 | 32 | 0 | 9 | 66 | 41 | 96 | .271 | .323 | .379 | .702 | 21 |
| 8 Yrs | 1166 | 4811 | 4317 | 502 | 1273 | 276 | 4 | 127 | 628 | 427 | 697 | .295 | .359 | .449 | .808 | 168 | |||
| 162 Game Avg. | 162 | 668 | 600 | 70 | 177 | 38 | 1 | 18 | 87 | 59 | 97 | .295 | .359 | .449 | .808 | 23 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/11/2014.
Now, Morales’ with the Twins and the Mariners. Keep in mind he was a late signee for the Twins.
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | GDP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 31 | TOT | AL | 98 | 401 | 367 | 28 | 80 | 20 | 0 | 8 | 42 | 27 | 68 | .218 | .274 | .338 | .612 | 12 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/11/2014.
Kendrys Morales hardly looks to be an upgrade. Of course, the Royals are getting Morales for an average of $8.75 million a year instead of the $12.5 million they would have paid Butler in 2015. On top of all this, remember the Royals paid Butler $1 million to buy out that final year.
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Overall, this doesn’t seem like money well spent. Morales is a risky signing.
Morales has shown some great power in the past. He banged out 34 home runs and 108 Runs Batted In 2009. He hit 22 home runs in 2012, and 23 in 2013. In those two seasons, he drove in an average of 76.5 runs a year. If Morales matches his 2012-2013 production over the next two years, this signing will look better than it does now.
Now, it looks like a lot of money for a player who may be on the downward slope of his career. Morales is only 31, but the drop in power and average last season seems like a huge warning sign.
Still, Morales is young enough to be a productive major league hitter for several seasons. If last year was the aberration, then the KC Royals will probably have a bargain on their hands. This is a big risk to take for a team with a limited payroll.
If he can return to his former statistical self, Morales can be a nice bat for the middle of the Royals offense. He is a switch hitter, which gives Ned Yost some flexibility as to where the manager may choose to slot him on any given day in the line up as protection for Eric Hosmer and Alex Gordon.
Morales has been on the Royals’ radar for a few weeks now, and when nothing better presented itself, Dayton Moore evidently jumped in.
If Kendrys Morales’ hitting trends established in 2014 continue in 2015, this will be an awful signing for the Royals. There is no doubt the offense needed some help. Maybe Morales was the best available option. Let’s hope this deal works in the Royals favor. They will only be better for it.