11/19/08

KC Royals have a lot of outfielders

The Kansas City Royals traded for Coco Crisp from the Boston Red Sox. Another man in the Royals outfield? It was crowded before, but now someone will almost have to be traded.

The Royals have seven outfielders on their active roster now. Shane Costa, David DeJesus, Joey Gathright, Jose Guillen, Mitch Maier, Mark Teahen and now Crisp.

Before the trade deadline, Guillen was rumored to want out of KC, and the Mets showed interest. He's a bit of a hot head, but he would have helped, and still could. Guillen hit .264, hit 20 home runs and drove in 97 runs in 153 games in 2008 with the Royals. A career .273 hitter with a .323 OBP. He's a natural left fielder and shouldn't cost too much in terms of a trade.

The player that would be the best fit, I feel, is DeJesus. He's the best player on their team, in my opinion, so he's going to cost a bundle if he's even available. He's a Jersey boy who moved to Brooklyn and attended Rutgers, so he has roots in the area. A career .287/.360/.422 hitter, who can play anywhere in the outfield. He's 28, and had four seasons of MLB under his belt.

I would absolutely love to see DeJesus on this team. It may not be their top priority, but I'm worried Fernando Tatis won't put together anywhere near what he did last year and Daniel Murphy might still need some seasoning, or will be the starting second baseman if I had my wish. Pitching is the issue now, though, so I don't expect any position player talk to come up any time soon.