KC Royals: Dayton Moore’s Free Agent Strategy Changes

By John Viril | Dec 24, 2014

With KC Royals general manager Dayton Moore filling out most of his off-season shopping list, it’s now clear that his thinking about free-agents has shifted over the last season.

This winter, Moore has signed Kendrys Morales, Alex Rios, Edinson Volquez, and Kris Medlen to free agent deals. All of these players come with significant questions about their future production, but all carry significant upside. Second, none of the four got more than a 2-year contract.

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For the most part, Moore went after buy-low veteran free-agents with upside and limited the risk with short-term deals. Also, none of the four carry draft pick compensation. That way, the Kansas City Royals did not compromise their prospect pipeline.

This strategy is a sharp contrast to last season when Moore filled holes at second base and in the starting rotation by signing second baseman Omar Infante and starting pitcher Jason Vargas to 4-year $32 million deals.

Moore, in fact, has a history of signing players to long-term deals going back to the winter of 2007, when he brought in pitcher Gil Meche on a 5-year, $55 million contract.

In the past, Moore attracted free agents to the KC Royals by offering more years than other clubs to such players as Jose Guillen and Omar Infante.

While one off-season does not make a pattern, this year’s winter crop seems to indicate a shift in Dayton Moore’s strategy. By focusing on short-term deals, Moore is avoiding albatross contracts that end up paying over-aged stars for past performance.

If 34-year-old Alex Rios doesn’t hit next season, his contract will cause no long-term damage because he is only has a 1-year, $11 million deal. Kris Medlen has a 2-year contract, but that actually works to the Royals advantage since pitchers coming off Tommy John surgery typically don’t make a full recovery until their second season after the surgery.

Meanwhile, the 2-year deals for Edinson Volquez ($20 million) and Kendrys Morales ($17 million) do bring longer commitments, but shouldn’t be payroll busters if either fail.

Part of the reason for the shift is that players now see the Kansas City Royals as a team that can win. Alex Rios, in particular, cited that as a reason he picked Kansas City. In short, the Royals are much more attractive destination after winning the American League pennant in 2014.

Further, the KC Royals also put their league-best defense on full display during the 2014 playoffs. As a team, the Royals posted the highest defensive team Wins Above Replacement (dWAR), and best team Ultimate Zone Rating (UZR), according to Fangraphs.

That factor had to weigh heavily in the decision to sign with KC for a pitcher like Kris Medlen, who is looking to re-establish his market value after missing the 2014 season with his second Tommy John surgery.

Nothing will improve a pitcher’s value more than having Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain, and Jarrod Dyson running down every fly ball in creation for you, while Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, and Alcides Escobar field grounders.

In short, Dayton Moore had more bargaining leverage than ever before to bring quality players to the KC Royals.

Will that bargaining power yield better results? We’ll have to wait until next year to find out.

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