The Royals have signed 35-year old righty swinging outfielder Brian Buchanan to a minor league deal. Buchanan played in 64 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 53 for 232 (.228 avg, .671 OPS) with 36 runs scored, 8 homers and 34 RBIs. He has also played in 346 games in his major league career in which he is 198 for 767 (.258 avg, .767 OPS) with 105 runs scored, 32 homers, 103 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Buchanan is a very long shot of making the Royals at any point of the 2009 season.

The Royals have signed 31-year old righty infielder/outfielder Willie Bloomquist to a 2-year, $3 million dollar contract. Bloomquist played in 71 games for the Mariners last season and he was 46 for 165 (.279 avg, .662 OPS) with 32 runs scored, 9 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. He has now played in 540 games in his major league career and he is 330 for 1,255 (.263 avg, .646 OPS) with 191 runs scored, 6 homers, 98 RBIs and 71 stolen bases. This was a good move for the Royals as Bloomquist can handle any position except catcher and pitcher defensively and he adds speed to the bench.

The Royals have signed 35-year old righty swinging catcher Vance Wilson to a minor league contract. Wilson did not play last season as he was recovering from elbow surgery. He has now played in 403 games in his major league career and he is 238 for 953 (.250 avg, .679 OPS) with 104 runs scored, 25 homers and 129 RBIs. Wilson will likely start the season in AAA if he’s healthy and get a call to the majors if either Miguel Olivo or John Buck are injured.

The Royals have re-signed 29-year old righty reliever/starter Roman Colon to a minor league contract. Colon pitched in 33 games (10 starts) in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 7-5 with 2 saves, a 4.74 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. He has also pitched in 73 games (8 starts) in his major league career and he is 6-7 with 1 save, a 5.03 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP. Colon has a really good pitching arm so it was smart of the Royals to bring him back into the fold.

The Royals have signed pitchers Heath Phillips, Lenny DiNardo and Oscar Villarreal as well as outfielder Tommy Murphy to minor league deals. The 26-year old Phillips was 7-9 with a 5.06 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP in the minors last season. He has also pitched in 6 games (0 starts) in his major league career and he is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA and a 1.91 WHIP. 29-year old lefty Lenny DiNardo can pitch in either relief or as a starter. He pitched in 11 games (2 starts) last season for the A’s and he was 1-2 with a 7.43 ERA and a 1.91 WHIP. He has now pitched in 89 games (29 starts) in his major league career in which he is 10-15 with a 4.93 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. 27-year old Oscar Villarreal is a talented relief pitcher who will have a good chance of making the Royals’ bullpen this spring. He pitched in 35 games (0 starts) for the Astros last season and he was 1-3 with a 5.02 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. He has now pitched in 258 games (5 starts) in his major league career and he is 24-15 with 1 save, a 3.86 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. 29-year old switch hitting outfielder Tommy Murphy might get caught in a numbers game in Kansas City. He played in 115 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 136 for 453 (.300 avg, .781 OPS) with 84 runs scored, 6 homers, 37 RBIs and 42 stolen bases. He has also played in 68 games in his major league career in which he is 23 for 108 (.213 avg, .558 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 1 homer, 8 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. These were good signings for the Royals as at least one of these guys will likely make the Opening Day Roster in 2009.