I’m sure a lot of great stuff calls Kansas City home, but two things reign supreme in the Midwest city in the eyes of New Englanders: barbecue and Royals pitcher Zack Greinke.
But there’s a chance Greinke will be on the move this offseason as the Royals are going to listen to trade offers for the 2009 Cy Young award winner, according to The Kansas City Star.
“We know it’s going to make sense, at some point in time, to do something if we can’t sign him beyond 2012,” general manager Dayton Moore told the newspaper. “We’ve just got to measure how [any deal] fits in today and long term.”
The righty is signed through 2012 and at $13.5 million per year until then, so the club will want a lot of MLB-ready prospects in return. Although the club still has him for two seasons, this offseason may be the best to unload him as the free-agent pitching class behind Cliff Lee is extremely thin.
“I don’t know when the right time is,” Moore told the paper. “Is there a right time this winter? I guess there could be if you get the right deal. Is the right time in July 2011? I don’t know. Is the right time in the offseason after 2011? Or is it at the trade deadline in 2012 if there’s nothing in place?”
As per his partial trade clause, Greinke will hand the Royals a list of eight to 10 teams after the 2010 World Series to which he will not approve a trade.
“I suspect there will be a lot of proposals and what have you,” Moore said. “It’s a matter of getting what you need.”
The ace went 10-14 with a 4.17 ERA in 2010 — a far cry from his 16-8 record and league-best 2.16 ERA that he posted during his Cy Young season just two summers ago. But based on his potential and 3.82 career ERA, the Royals’ phones will likely be ringing off the hook. Thanks to the Red Sox’ and Yankees’ abundance of both money and prospects, the AL East titans are — in typical hot stove fashion — likely to show plenty of interest in the soon-to-be 27-year-old hurler.
If the Red Sox could acquire one starting pitcher this offseason, who should it be?survey software
