Dayton Moore Misread Billy Butler Market
By John Viril
After former Kansas City Royals designated hitter Billy Butler signed a 3-year, $30 million contract with the Oakland A’s, Royals GM Dayton Moore admitted to MLBTradeRumors.com that he misread the market for the former Royals designated hitter:
"That’s something talked about but the timing of it really didn’t allow us to do that,” Moore said. “There was nobody really willing to do that at the time. We just finished playing [in the World Series] and three days later we had to make a decision. If we would have found a viable trade partner it’s something we would have done, or looked at. I don’t know if we would have done it because I’m not sure what the package would have been, but it’s something we certainly looked at.”"
Billy Butler also called the Royals before signing with Oakland to give his former team the chance to match the contract. The Royals passed.
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Now the Royals have clear need for a middle-of-the order bat that hits from the right side, plus a pitcher to replace James Shields in the rotation.
Jon Heyman from CBSports.com reports that the Royals are considering Ervin Santana, Francisco Liriano, Jason Hammel, Edinson Volquez, and Brandon McCarthy as well as trade options such as Ian Kennedy, Tyson Ross, and Andrew Cashner from the Padres and Johnny Cueto, Mike Leake, and Mat Latos from the Reds.
For the right-handed bat, Heyman thinks the Royals consider Torii Hunter the no. 1 option.
Further, Moore told MLB Trade Rumors that the Royals had:
"“Plenty of room to add a free agent or two.”"
It certainly appears that the Royals missed a chance to capture value by picking up Butler’s offer and then pursing a trade, but Moore and the Royals can’t think about that right now. Instead, they need to move on and fill in the roster holes for 2015.
While I like the idea of trading for Ian Kennedy or Johnny Cueto, the Royals don’t seem to match up well with the Reds or the Padres. Both teams need hitting and the Royals can’t afford to give up offense.
MLB Trade Rumors has also reported that the Royals have held internal discussions about committing to OF Carlos Peguero in at least a platoon capacity after the minor league slugger hit 30 home runs last season at AAA Omaha. Pairing the left-handed Peguero with the right-handed Hunter might make some sense to help out in the outfield and at DH.
That would leave the Royals in need of a pitcher. In that case, I favor a return engagement with Ervin Santana, whom we already know has succeeded in Kansas City and we know he fits in the clubhouse.
Stay tuned for more Royals rumors as they unfold.