Royals Rumors: Royals Interested in Yoenis Cespedes
Royals rumors have the team interested in slugging free agent outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. Should theRoyals take a look at bringing him in to replace Alex Gordon in 2016?
Outfielder Yoenis Cespedes has been rumored to be on the market, and the Kansas City Royals could be interested. Alex Gordon is evidently chasing the big bucks in free agency, and likely won’t return.
The Royals have two holes to fill in their starting outfield and signing someone like Cespedes would make a big splash around the Majors.
Joel Sherman of the NY Post wrote Tuesday:
"The Angels, Giants and Tigers have been expected to bid aggressively for corner outfielders. But the fourth club is a shock – the World Series champion Royals.Both of Kansas City’s 2015 corner outfielders – Alex Gordon and Alex Rios – are free agents. The Royals are trying to retain Gordon.But that did not preclude the Royals from inquiring on Cespedes, as well. However, Kansas City has come to a rather quick conclusion that Cespedes’ price tag will almost certainly be beyond its comfort zone.Gordon will cost a lesser, more tolerable amount. Royals GM Dayton Moore has acknowledged the team will try to save money by giving Jarrod Dyson a chance to be one of their regular corner outfielders."
Cespedes was a member of the 2015 New York Mets squad that lost to the Royals in the World Series this past season. Cespedes was pretty underwhelming in the postseason last year after having a pretty solid regular season. He hit just .150 in the World Series against the Royals and also tallied six strikeouts in the five games.
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Cespedes, who just turned 30 years old in October, has averaged 26.5 home runs and nearly 92 Runs Batted In over his four-year career. He has played on four teams over the last two seasons.
It would be hard to imagine the KC Royals actually making a serious offer to Cespedes. He does not fit their mold in that he swings and misses – a lot. In his four-year career, he has averaged 127 strikeouts a season, including 141 whiffs in 2015.
The Royals have no issues with players who swing at just about anything thrown by a pitcher, but they want players who can put the ball in play.
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While it would be nice to have that power in the lineup, the trade off would be that he won’t put the ball in play as often as other Royals hitters.
It also seems unlikely the Royals would be willing to pay the premium price for power, as they have not shown any inclination to do that in their franchise history.
Next: Ben Zobrist Signs Four-Year Deal With Cubs
What do you think? Should the Royals pursue trading for Yoenis Cespedes? Would Royals fans accept him as a good Alex Gordon replacement? Let me know what you think in the comments section below!