The Royals have signed 26-year old lefty Andrew Lerew.  Lerew pitched in 14 games (13 starts) in Rookie + AAA-ball last season in which he was 1-5 with a 4.44 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP.  Lerew has also pitched in 11 games (3 starts) in his major league career in which he is 0-2 with a 8.31 ERA and a 1.98 WHIP.  GM Drayton Moore keeps his pipeline from the Braves running as Lerew was once one of the top prospects in their system before suffering Tommy John Surgery. 

The Royals have released 27-year old lefty reliever Jimmy Gobble.  Gobble appeared in 4 games this spring for the Royals and he was 0-0 with a 4.91 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP.  Gobble really struggled in 2008 for the Royals as he pitched in 39 games (0 starts) and he was 0-2 with 1 save, a 8.81 ERA and a 1.96 WHIP.  Gobble finished up his career with the Royals having pitched in 235 games (43 starts) in which he was 22-23 with 4 saves, a 5.23 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP.  With Gobble’s performance in 2008 it’s no surprise that the Royals let him go.

32-year old righty Sidney Ponson has been signed to a minor league contract and he will get a chance to compete for the #5 starting job on the Royals.  He pitched very well in the WBC for the Netherlands which spurred the Royals to give him a chance in 2009.  Ponson pitched in 25 games (24 starts) with the Rangers and Yankees last season in which he was 8-5 with a 5.04 ERA and a 1.61 WHIP.  He has now pitched in 284 games (269 starts) in his major league career in which he is 90-106 with 1 save, a 4.95 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP.  This was a low risk move for the Royals that could result in a nice reward.

The Royals sent a message to 22-year old righty swinging DH Billy Butler last season by sending him to the minors. It appeared to work as he hit much better upon his recall. The Royals hope they don’t need to use the threat of the minor leagues to have a focused Butler all season in 2009. Butler played in 124 games for the Royals last season and he was 122 for 443 (.275 avg, .724 OPS) with 44 runs scored, 11 homers and 55 RBIs. Look for this to be the breakout season that many projected Butler to have in 2008. If it’s not Ryan Shealy, Ross Gload or Mark Teahan could get some time at DH in 2009.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: B

The Kansas City Royals have been waited patiently for 25-year old lefty swinging Alex Gordon to live up to his supposed potential. He played in 134 games for the Royals last season and he was 128 for 493 (.260 avg, .783 OPS) with 72 runs scored, 16 homers, 59 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Those numbers just won’t cut it for a starting 3B in the majors. He also wasn’t that good in the field either making 16 errors in 133 games at the hot corner while showing slightly below average range. This is a big season for Gordon as the Royals can’t wait forever for him to turn into the player they hoped he would be by now.

Mark Teahan and Willie Bloomquist will likely back up Gordon in 2009. Teahan lost his starting job in the outfield to Coco Crisp but the Royals will likely still look to get him a good chunk of playing time in 2009. He played in 19 games at 3B last season for the Royals and he made 3 errors there while showing poor range. Bloomquist only played 1 game at 3B for the Mariners last season but he would likely be at least average defensively.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: C