Daily Clips
January 13, 2018
LOCAL
Royals avoid arbitration with Herrera, Karns
January 12, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Kelvin Herrera, Nathan Karns agree to contracts with Royals, avoiding arbitration
January 12, 2018By Rustin Dodd/KC Star
Former major-league manager Gene Lamont to join Royals in special assistant role
January 12, 2018By Rustin Dodd/KC Star
George Brett says he was almost traded to Reds in 1974, but a deal was never close
January 12, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
‘No bully zone’: Royals mascot Sluggerrr helps educate Elmont students about how to stop bullying
January 12, 2018By Tim Hrenchir/Topeka Capital Journal
NATIONAL
Top players reach deals before arbitration deadline
Donaldson gets record $23M; Machado, Blackmon, Bryant also sign
January 12, 2018By David Adler/MLB.com
MLB TRANSACTIONS
January 13, 2018 •.CBSSports.com
LOCAL
Royals avoid arbitration with Herrera, Karns
January 12, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Royals general manager Dayton Moore never has had one of his players go to arbitration since he took over the job in 2006.
That impressive streak again will be on the line this year as the Royals now have just one arbitration-eligible player: right-hander Brandon Maurer, who filed a $3.5 million offer, while the club countered with $2.95 million on Friday.
The arbitration hearings are scheduled to run from Jan. 29-Feb. 16, though teams are free to sign deals before the hearing dates. The Royals have settled with right-hander Nate Karns for $1.375 million and right-hander Kelvin Herrera for $7,937,500, according to a source. The club does not disclose terms of agreements.
Both players will have incentives. Karns will receive $12,500 if he starts 15 games and $25,000 if he starts 20. Herrera will earn a $50,000 bonus for making the All-Star Game.
The closest call in terms of going to an arbitration hearing for Moore came in 2015, when first baseman Eric Hosmer was within a couple of hours of boarding a flight to his hearing when the sides settled on a two-year deal.
Karns, who made $571,000 last season, was in his first year of arbitration. Karns was 2-2 with a 4.17 ERA in nine games, eight of them starts, before his season was shelved in May. He later had thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and he is expected to be ready for Spring Training, where he'll compete for a rotation spot.
Herrera, who had a base salary of $5.325 million in 2017, was in his final year of arbitration. Herrera was 3-3 with a 4.25 ERA last season and was 26 of 31 in save opportunities before losing his closer's role in September. He also has been the subject of numerous trade rumors as the Royals engage in a rebuild.
Maurer, acquired at the non-waiver Trade Deadline from the Padres, is in his second year of arbitration and had a base salary of $1.9 million in 2017. In 26 games for the Royals, Maurer had an 8.10 ERA with a 2.25 WHIP.
Kelvin Herrera, Nathan Karns agree to contracts with Royals, avoiding arbitration
January 12, 2018By Rustin Dodd/KC Star
The Royals avoided salary arbitration with two pitchers on Friday, agreeing to one-year contracts with reliever Kelvin Herrera and starter Nathan Karns. Yet they were not able to come to an agreement with a third, instead exchanging salary figures with reliever Brandon Maurer in advance of a scheduled arbitration hearing in February.
Maurer filed at $3.5 million, nearly double his $1.9 million salary in 2017. The Royals countered at $2.95 million. Both parties can still come to a settlement agreement at any time before the hearing, in which each side will argue in front of a third-party arbitrator.
The Royals have never gone to a hearing since general manager Dayton Moore took over in 2006. The team had just three arbitration-eligible players on the roster on Friday, the deadline to come to a settlement or exchange figures.
Before the club hit a stalemate in negotiations with Maurer, it settled with Herrera at $7,937,500. The contract also includes a $50,000 bonus for an All-Star appearance.
Herrera, a 28-year-old reliever and two-time All-Star, made $5.325 million last season. He’ll be a free agent following this season.
Karns, meanwhile, agreed to a $1.375 million deal entering his first season as an arbitration-eligible player. He will also receive a $50,000 bonus if he makes the All-Star Game and could make up to $25,000 in bonuses if he makes 20 starts. Acquired from Seattle before last season, Karns, 30, made just eight starts last season before undergoing season-ending surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome. He is expected to be healthy for spring training and take up a slot in the starting rotation.
In many ways, Friday’s moves were procedural. Yet they could set up more maneuvers this offseason. The Royals’ deal for Herrera ensures some financial certainty heading into spring training. But it will likely do little to slow trade rumors as the club enters a rebuilding phase.
One of baseball’s best relievers from 2014 to 2016, Herrera is positioned as a possible trade asset for a club seeking to trim payroll and replenish its farm system. At a shade just below $8 million, he will make a reasonable salary in 2018. Yet there do remain questions about his performance after a 2017 season in which he posted a 4.25 ERA and struggled in his first season as Kansas City’s primary closer.
The club seek to shop him during spring training or wait until closer to the trade deadline in the summer. But financial considerations could come into play, much as they did in the decision to deal reliever Joakim Soria to the Chicago White Sox.
Maurer, 27, is also positioned as a possible trade chip, though he will likely need to display improved performance to rebuild his value. Acquired along with pitchers Ryan Buchter and Trevor Cahill before the trade deadline last season in a deal that sent Matt Strahm, Travis Wood and infield prospect Esteury Ruiz to San Diego, Maurer struggled out of the bullpen, logging a 8.10 ERA in 26 appearances and walking five batters per nine innings. He is under club control for two more seasons, becoming a free agent following the 2019 season.
Players are eligible for the salary-arbitration process once they accumulate three years of service time on the major-league roster or have earned “Super Two” status, meaning they rank among the top 22 percent of players with more than two years of service time. Players reach full free agency after surpassing six years of major-league service time. All players with fewer than three years of service time must accept a salary at or near the league minimum of $545,000.
Former major-league manager Gene Lamont to join Royals in special assistant role
January 12, 2018By Rustin Dodd/KC Star
Former major-league manager Gene Lamont is set to join the Royals as a special assistant to general manger Dayton Moore.
Lamont, 71, has served as a coach for the Detroit Tigers since 2006. He previously managed the Chicago White Sox from 1992-95 and the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1997-2000.
The move was first reported by the Detroit Free Press.
Lamont has a history with the Royals. He managed in the organization’s minor-league system in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including a stint at Class AAA Omaha. He’s also spent the last decade competing against the Royals in the American League Central Division.
A former major-league catcher, Lamont left the Tigers following the firing of manager Brad Ausmus and the subsequent hiring of manager Ron Gardenhire. The Royals previously announced the hiring of Mike Rojas, son of Royals Hall of Famer Cookie Rojas, to manage Class AA Northwest Arkansas. Rojas managed the Tigers’ Class AAA affiliate in 2017.
George Brett says he was almost traded to Reds in 1974, but a deal was never close
January 12, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
If you are into “what if” scenarios in history, this one is particularly intriguing for Royals fans.
While Royals Hall of Famer George Brett was opening a pack of baseball cards from 1985 as part of a Yahoo Sports series, he revealed an interesting tidbit.
Brett found a Tony Perez card, and in 1985, Perez was back with Cincinnati, where he began and finished his career. There were stops in Montreal, Boston and Philadelphia in between Perez’s time with the Reds.
Perez also almost played for the Royals, Brett noted.
“In 1974, I almost got traded for him. I was living in Los Angeles and going to junior college for one year,” Brett told Yahoo’s Mike Oz. “Thought I’d try school and see if I was any better at it in junior college than I was in high school. I wasn’t.
“But there was an article in the Daily Breeze, the local newspaper, saying at the winter meetings that the Royals and the Reds were going to make a trade: George Brett for Tony Perez. Never happened. And now we’re both in the Hall of Fame.”
It may have just been a rumor in 1974, but had the trade happened, things likely would have been much different for the Royals.
Brett was just 21 at that time. He went on to be the cornerstone for a Royals team that won seven division titles, two AL pennants and a World Series championship in an 10-year span. He finished with 3,154 hits, 665 doubles, 317 home runs and an .857 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. Brett was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1999.
Perez was 32 at the time, playing first base and coming off his fifth All-Star Game appearance, but the Reds had missed the playoffs after being in the 1970 and 1972 World Series.
Cincinnati didn’t trade Perez that winter and he hit four home runs in the playoffs in 1975 as the Reds won an epic World Series against the Red Sox. Perez again started for the Reds when they won the 1976 World Series against the Yankees.
In 2000, Perez was voted into the Hall of Fame.
How might things have changed had the Royals and Reds swung that trade in 1974? It’s impossible to know, except for one thing: A lot fewer kids born in and around Kansas City would have been named Brett.
UPDATE: The Star’s Rustin Dodd unearthed a report from the Cincinnati Enquirer, which says the Royals were never interested in dealing Brett.
‘No bully zone’: Royals mascot Sluggerrr helps educate Elmont students about how to stop bullying
January 12, 2018By Tim Hrenchir/Topeka Capital Journal
Kansas City Royals mascot Sluggerrr set out to strike out bullying Friday at Elmont Elementary School.
Tyler Banks, spokesman for the lovable lion, declared the school a “no bully zone” during an all-school assembly that afternoon.
The gathering featured the showing of anti-bullying videos by Royals players Alex Gordon, Danny Duffy, Ian Kennedy and Matt Strahm.
There were also games, including a competition between students to see who could most effectively cover two teachers with toilet paper in a short period of time.
“Did we have fun today?” Banks asked at the end. “Did we learn something today?”
Hundreds of young voices responded with an enthusiastic “Yes!”
Organizers said Friday’s event marked the 10th or 12th time Sluggerrr and the Royals organization have presented their school show, “Let’s Strike-Out Bullying,” which the team is offering this offseason for the first time.
Sluggerrr and the Royals also offer a presentation for schools about teamwork. For more information, call the team’s mascot coordination office at (816) 504-4332.
Joel Wells, principal of Elmont Elementary at 6432 N.W. Elmont Road, said the decision to bring in Sluggerrr had proven to be a “very popular idea” among the school’s approximately 350 youngsters in grades kindergarten through six.
Many students and teachers wore Royals gear to Friday’s assembly, as did Wells and Seaman Unified School District 345 superintendent Steve Noble.
The students sat cross-legged in the gym as Banks kicked things off by telling them, “You guys are in for a real treat today.”
Banks then showed a video in which Gordon said no one likes to be bullied, and told the students they would learn more that day about what to do when bullying happens around them.
The youngsters then cheered as Sluggerrr entered the room. He didn’t speak, instead communicating nonverbally.
Sluggerrr and Banks alternated Friday between showing videos and leading the students and teachers in playing games.
The videos featured:
— Duffy identifying different types of bullying, including physical bullying, social bullying, verbal bullying and cyber bullYing.
— Kennedy talking about things youngsters can do when they see someone being bullied, including telling a trusted adult about it, standing up for the child being bullied or telling the bully to “back off.”
— Strahm discussing things youngsters can say when they see someone being bullied, including “Cut it out,” “Knock it off,” “Not cool,” “That’s bullying,” “Friends don’t do that to friends” and “That sounds like a rumor.”
Between videos, Sluggerrr and Banks led participants in playing games that involved stacking cups, wrapping teachers in toilet paper and passing a hula hoop through a group of people standing in a row holding hands.
Before the games began, Banks had warned that Sluggerrr might pretend at times to be a bully, and asked the students to let Banks know if they saw Sluggerrr doing that.
Sluggerrr then simulated bullying behaviors during each of the three games played Friday.
After the third time, Sluggerrr was told he’d had his “third strike” and would have to leave the room.
Still, Banks allowed Sluggerrr to return afterward for one final activity, in which the mascot danced with the teachers.
Just before inviting Sluggerrr back, Banks asked the students a final question: “We have now deemed this school a what?”
They replied loudly, “No bully zone!”
NATIONAL
Top players reach deals before arbitration deadline
Donaldson gets record $23M; Machado, Blackmon, Bryant also sign
January 12, 2018By David Adler/MLB.com
Major League Baseball's arbitration deadline passed at 1 p.m. ET today. Teams and their arbitration-eligible players now need to exchange proposed salaries for the 2018 season in preparation for a potential hearing, in which a panel of arbitrators decides between the two figures.
But most scheduled hearings will never happen, as players and their teams can continue negotiating and often settle on one-year contracts prior to sitting down in front of the arbitrators. Several big names have already reached deals and avoided arbitration, including Orioles third baseman Manny Machado, Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant, Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon and Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson, who agreed today to a one-year, $23 million deal, a record settlement involving an arbitration-eligible player.
Generally, players gain arbitration eligibility after logging three years of Major League service. They then go through the process until signing a long-term deal or reaching free agency after six years of service. A select group of Super Two players, who meet certain criteria, gain eligibility after two-plus years of service and then have arbitration rights for four years instead of the usual three.
As the settlements come in, MLB.com is tracking the players who avoid arbitration. All contracts are for one year unless otherwise noted. Some of these deals are based on sources or reports and have not been confirmed by the clubs. Click through on the "More" links for details.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Angels
• RHP Garrett Richards: $7.3 million
• RHP Matt Shoemaker: $4.125
• C Martin Maldonado (final year): $3.9 million
• RHP Blake Parker (first year): $1.8 million
• LHP Andrew Heaney (Super Two): $800,000
• RHP Blake Wood (final year): $1.45 million
• 1B C.J. Cron (first year): $2.3 million
• LHP Tyler Skaggs (first year); $1.875 million
Remaining eligibles: Jose Alvarez, Cam Bedrosian, JC Ramirez
Astros
• OF Jake Marisnick (first year): $1.9 million
• C Evan Gattis (final year): Amount undisclosed
• LHP Dallas Keuchel (final year): Amount undisclosed
• RHP Lance McCullers Jr. (Super Two): Amount undisclosed
• RHP Brad Peacock (first year): Amount undisclosed
Remaining eligibles: Ken Giles, Collin McHugh, George Springer
Athletics
• OF Khris Davis (second year): $10.5 million
• RHP Chris Hatcher (second year): $2.15 million
• RHP Liam Hendriks (second year): Undisclosed amount
• C Josh Phegley (first year): Undisclosed amount
• SS Marcus Semien (first year): Undisclosed amount
• OF Jake Smolinski (first year): $750,000
• RHP Blake Treinen (first year): Undisclosed amount
Remaining eligibles: Kendall Graveman
Blue Jays
• OF Ezequiel Carrera (second year): $1.9 million