Kansas City Royals 2017 Payroll Still Extremely High
By Joel Wagler
OFFSEASON MOVES
One of the earliest moves Moore mad was to not tender Kendrys Morales a $17.2 million qualifying offer. The Royals just had to let their slugger move on. Morales was a bargain at $9 million last year, but he was going to cost more in 2017. He ended up inking a three-year deal for $33 million with Toronto.
The second big move was to trade Wade Davis to the Chicago Cubs for Jorge Soler. Davis was slated to earn $10 million this season, and if healthy, is worth that total, but for a team with franchise depth, Davis was a luxury.
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Plus, in the past, Moore held onto closers Joakim Soria and Greg Holland too long and watched them get hurt.
With Kelvin Herrera available to step into the breach, the Royals can save money and add a young outfielder with the potential to be a cornerstone to the Royals’ long-term success.
Then Moore traded Jarrod Dyson for pitcher Nathan Karns. While this wasn’t a big money saver (approximately $2.4 million), it traded from a position of depth to fill a position of need.
Moore recently signed Brandon Moss to a two-year deal, and backloaded it heavily, paying the slugger just $3.75 million 2017. The Royals also just landed Jason Hammel, and they might try a similar tact there as well.