January 05, 2004
Juan Royal Slugger?
Darren Viola points out to me that the KC Royals are close to signing Juan Gonzalez.
Other clubs, however, still are in the bidding, agent Alan Nero said from Chicago.
"We actually started with about six, and we've got about three left," Nero said. "But I would clearly say that Kansas City is the front-runner at the moment."
Again, so much for collusion. Seems like this is a fairly healthy persuit of a good free agent.
I think it's a good pickup for the Royals. When healthy, Juan is a tremendous power hitter. He's 14th all time in AB per HR (14.98), and had 24 HR in 1/2 a season last year. If you bat him behind Beltran and Sweeney, he's going to have a lot of RBI, if he stays healthy. He's played 1/2 seasons two years in a row now, so I'd want an excellent result from a physical. Pena may also want to take the Barry Bonds approach with Juan, where you give him as much rest as possible. (It's better to have him for 130 games healthy than try for 162 and lose him for the season.)
It's nice to see the Royals are not resting on a good 2003 season; they look like they are trying to win in 2004. That should continue to bring fans back. Good for them.
