The only question the Royals have at 3B is which future star is going to start there…..will it be Mark Teahan who exploded last season after an early year demotion to the minors OR will it be fast rising 23 year old Alex Gordon with Teahan moving to the outfield?  The early money is on Teahan starting at 3B and Gordon starting the season in AAA ball.  The 25 year old lefty swinging Mark Teahan put up big time numbers until he injured his shoulder and required surgery.  He hit .290 with 70 runs scored, 18 homers, 69 RBIs and a .874 OPS in only 109 games last season.  He also displayed great range on defense, but he made 14 errors which was just a tad too many.  Still, look for Teahan to have a great year no matter where he is playing on defense.

23 year old lefty swinging Alex Gordon had a monster season in AA (his first season as a professional) as he played in 130 games and hit .325 with 111 runs scored, 29 homers, 101 RBIs, 22 steals and a 1.015 OPS!  Those numbers are mind boggling for a first year pro.  It might be hard for the Royals to leave him in AAA if he has a good Spring Training.  Most project him to be a cross between David Wright of the Mets and Albert Pujols of the Cardinals.  The sky is the limit for Gordon and he could start proving it this April.  Even if he doesn’t go to KC on Opening Day…..it won’t be long before he’s there.

Look for Alex S. Gonzalez to be the likely back up at third base for the Royals.

29 year old Angel Berroa has been a huge disappointment after having a breakout season in 2003 where he exhibited both speed and power.  Berroa had a horrible season last year as he only hit .234 with 9 homers, 54 RBIs and a .592 OPS.  He went up the plate swinging the bat as he only walked 14 times in 132 games last season!  If he doesn’t quit swinging at so many bad pitches he will soon be a back up player and that could happen as early as this season if he doesn’t get his act together.  Berroa has about average range but he made 18 errors in 132 games and he needs to cut down that number a bit.

33 year old Alex S. Gonzalez has been brought in to battle Berroa for the starting job.  He only played in 20 games for the Phillies last season before he retired after only hitting .111 in 36 at bats.  In 2005, Gonzalez hit .269 with a .733 OPS for the Devil Rays and if he can hit that well for the Royals he could beat out Berroa for the starting job.  Gonzalez has been a solid defensive shortstop over his career and look for his hitting to bounce back this season.  It should be interesting to see how the shortstop situation evolves for the Royals this season.

23 year old switch hitter Andres Blanco will also be in the shortstop battle this Spring.  He has a reputation of being a good field no hit player, but that won’t be good enough to win the starting job.  He only hit .237 with a .627 OPS in 88 AAA games last season and that won’t get it done.  He also hit .241 with a .601 OPS in 33 games for the Royals last season.  He showed great range at shortstop for the Royals, but, he made 5 errors in 200 innings there and that’s way too many.  Look for him to start the year in AAA unless he learns to hit.

23 year old Angel Sanchez is the wildcard in the Royals shortstop competition.  He hit .282 and scored 105 runs in 133 games in AA ball for the Royals.  He did make 26 errors there so he will need to improve on that if he wants to make it in the majors.  He played in 8 games last September and hit .222 for the Royals.  Look for him to start at AAA for the Royals but he could get an early call to the majors if they have problems at short.

36 year old Mark Grudzielanek has proven that he was money well spent by the Royals when they signed him as a free agent last season.  Gruzielanek hit .297 with 85 runs, 7 homers, 52 RBIs and a .740 OPS in 2006.  Grudzielanek also won his first Gold Glove of his career as he showed good range and only made 4 errors in 132 games at 2B.  Look for Grudzielanek to have another good season for the Royals this year.

29 year old Esteban German will be Grudzielanek’s back up again this season.  German had his breakout season in the majors as he hit .326 with 3 homers, 34 RBIs, stole 7 bases and had a .880 OPS in 106 games for the Royals.  German only made 1 error in 164 innings at 2B, but he didn’t show much range.  He also played a lot at 3B and in the outfield last season.  Look for German to continue to move all over the field and get a lot of playing time.  He should hit well this season and look for him to steal more bases this season.

Last season the Royals made Sweeney the full-time DH to keep him healthy and he still hurt his back and missed more than half of the season.  Sweeney hit .258 last season with a .787 OPS, 8 homers and 33 RBIs in only 217 at bats.  The Royals will have to give Sweeney more time off to try to keep him healthy because he’s still a fine hitter when he plays.  Over the last three seasons Sweeney has a .287 batting average and he averages a homer every 21.5 at bats and an RBI every 5.63 at bats.  Those project to great power numbers if they can keep him in one piece….which is easier said than done.

To provide insurance the Royals traded for lefty swinging Ross Gload from the White Sox.  He has a good stick but he’s not much of a power hitter.  The Royals could also use Reggie Sanders some at DH to keep him healthy too.

27 year old Ryan Shealy will get his big chance this season to prove himself.  The Royals stole him from the Rockies at the trade deadline last season for a couple of underachieving pitchers.  Finally out of Todd Helton’s shadow, Shealy swung a good bat for the Royals after he got to town.  Shealy hit .277 with 7 homers, 37 RBIs and a .783 OPS in only 202 at bats.  Those numbers project into big numbers if he can keep up the pace he set last season.  He does need to work on his defense a little as he made three errors in only 463 innings in the field.

31 year old lefty swinging Ross Gload was added in a trade with the White Sox in the off season.  He hit .327 with 3 homers, 18 RBIs and a .816 OPS in only 156 at bats.  Gload will be the back up to Shealy and at both of the outfield corners.  He’s not a very good defensive player as he made 4 errors in only 247.1 innings at first base last season.  The Royals brought him in just in case Shealy isn’t the real deal or to have in case he’s injured.  And that is because they don’t want Mike Sweeney playing the field because they want to keep him healthy.