The Royals have signed 27-year old righty reliever/starter Josh Rupe to a minor league deal. Rupe pitched in 24 games (14 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 5-7 with 1 save, a 6.67 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP. He also worked in 4 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last season and he was 0-0 with a 15.43 ERA and a 3.64 WHIP. While it’s true that Rupe was pathetic everywhere he pitched last season he has had some success in the majors in his career. He has pitched in 70 games (1 start) in the majors and he is 4-2 with a 4.95 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. Rupe will get a chance in the spring to earn a spot on the Royals’ pitching staff.

27-year old lefty swinging outfielder Buck Coats has signed a minor league deal with the Royals. Coats played in 117 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 151 for 500 (.302 avg, .777 OPS) with 82 runs scored, 6 homers, 56 RBIs and 25 stolen bases. Coats has also played in 46 games in his major league career and he is 11 for 57 (.193 avg, .575 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer, 3 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Coats will get a shot to earn a job on the Royals’ bench this spring.

The Royals have signed 29-year old righty starter/reliever Bryan Bullington to a minor league deal. Bullington pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Blue Jays last season and he was 0-0 with a 3.00 ERA and a 2.17 WHIP. He also pitched in 28 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball in which he was 3-1 with 3 saves, a 3.52 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Bullington has now pitched in 13 games (5 starts) in his major league career and he is 0-5 with a 5.08 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. The Royals continue to stockpile depth type guys for the 2010 season and that’s a good thing.

26-year old lefty reliever Devon Lowery has refused a minor league assignment thus becoming a free agent. Lowery did not pitch at all last season. He pitched in 40 games (0 starts) in AA+AAA ball in 2008 and he was 2-1 with 7 saves, a 1.87 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He also pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Royals in 2008 and he was 0-0 with a 10.38 ERA and a 1.85 WHIP. The Royals won’t likely miss Lowery much but he will get a shot with someone next spring because he’s young and left handed.

UPDATE: The Royals have re-signed Devon Lowery to a minor league deal.

28-year old righty reliever/starter Doug Waechter has refused a minor league assignment thus becoming a free agent. He was hurt most of last season working in only 5 games (0 starts) for the Royals last season in which he was 0-0 with a 8.44 ERA and a 2.25 WHIP. Waechter has now pitched in 145 games (113 starts) in his major league career and he is 18-27 with 1 save, a 5.34 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. The Royals shouldn’t miss him much as he didn’t do anything for them last season.