Kansas City Royals: Free Agent Signings In 2015

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Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Joe Blanton (49) – Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

Not only were these players great additions to an already impressive Royals roster, but there’s also some extra guys that were signed to extend that historically great bullpen from last season. There were five relief pitchers signed and all but one have made an impact so far (the one who hasn’t just started an assignment with Northwest Arkansas).

Joe Blanton started his major league career in 2004 as a member of the Oakland Athletics, where he spent five seasons before being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Blanton saw success as a member of the Phillies, going 34-25 in in 100 starts.

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After winning a World Series with Philadelphia in 2008, Blanton stayed with the Phillies for several more seasons before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Blanton only started 10 games for the Dodgers and soon signed with the Angels, where he continued to struggle and after attempting to play for the Athletics again, announced his retirement from the MLB.

Blanton obviously didn’t stay retired and wound up right here in Kansas City, after the Royals signed him to a minor-league deal in February.

He recently had his first start as a Royal (and his first since July 2013) and straight up dealt. He went five innings, throwing 73 pitches while only allowing one run and striking out four. Blanton’s job was to go out and give the Royals five innings of good pitching and he did just that. His offense took care of the rest, putting up six runs during his time on the mound and giving Blanton a nice cushion to work with.

Blanton was great in his Royals starting pitcher debut, but it was against the Milwaukee Brewers, who are one of the worst teams in baseball. Blanton has, however, looked sharp in the bullpen as well, which is where his role will predominantly be barring an injury to someone in the rotation.

This is yet another signing that could have been risky for Moore, but it has paid off so far.

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