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Royals Rumors: Kansas City Royals could re-sign key free agents

By Leigh Oleszczak

Jun 28, 2017; Detroit, MI, USA; Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) receives congratulations from first baseman Eric Hosmer (35) after he hits a two run home run in the fourth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 28, 2017; Detroit, MI, USA; Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) receives congratulations from first baseman Eric Hosmer (35) after he hits a two run home run in the fourth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /
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It’s Royals rumors season and next to whether or not the Kansas City Royals will be buyers or sellers, the biggest storyline is if the team will be able to keep some of their key free agents after this season.

The storyline this entire season has been that the band formerly known as the Kansas City Royals will be headlining their final tour. After the 2017 season, it’s unlikely that all four of the big name free agents such Lorenzo Cain, Alcides Escobar, Eric Hosmer, and Mike Moustakas will be donning Royals uniforms next season.

When the Royals got off to their sluggish start this season, it seemed bleak that any of those guys would even be on the team come August. Instead, the boys in blue turned things around just like they did two and three years ago, and now the tides have changed for the Royals.

Not only could the Kansas City Royals become buyers at the deadline, but general manager Dayton Moore seems optimistic about being able to re-sign some of those key guys. He told Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com on Wednesday that he isn’t giving up on bringing those players back.

"“We’ll compete to sign free agents just like any other team will,” Moore said. “In my mind, we have the best opportunity to sign them because we know them better than anyone else. Our track record is pretty good.”"

As a Royals fan, seeing that in print fired me up! It’ll be tough inking both Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas to contracts, but if Dayton Moore has confidence that it can be done, who am I to doubt him?

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It might not be necessary to re-sign Escobar, as the Royals have Raul Mondesi Jr. as the shortstop-in-waiting for 2018 and beyond. Lorenzo Cain would be a great luxury to have back, but he’s 31 years old and I’m not sure giving him a big contract would be the best idea.

While Moore is optimistic, I’m not so sure that the Royals will bring anyone back. My hope is that they can at least keep Hosmer and Moustakas, or at the very least just one of them, but both guys are going to demand big money.

Moustakas especially has beefed up his free agency resumé this season, crushing 20 home runs before the All-Star Game has taken place. Hosmer has had a nice season too, but his power numbers are still lower than we all expected.

At the end of the day, Major League Baseball is a business. If the Kansas City Royals can re-sign these players, then awesome! If they all go their separate ways, however, fans need to realize that it’s not a vendetta against the Royals, but simply how sports work.

Will some of the big Royals rumors hitting the news cycle in the coming weeks be that the Royals have re-signed one of, or several of, these players? We can only hope!

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