The Royals have designated 25-year old righty swinging 2B/SS Jeff Bianchi for assignment. Bianchi played in 119 games in AA-ball for the Royals last year and he was 115 of 444 (.259 avg, .654 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 2 homers, 48 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He has now played in 490 games in his first six years in the minors and he is 516 of 1,838 (.281 avg, .744 OPS) with 279 runs scored, 31 homers, 251 RBIs and 76 stolen bases. Bianchi has yet to play over AA-ball and that is likely what cost him his roster spot.

UPDATE: (12/9/2011) - The Chicago Cubs have claimed Jeff Bianchi off waivers.

The Royals have signed 27-year old righty reliever Jonathan Broxton to a 1-year, $4 million dollar deal with another $1 million bucks he can earn in incentives. Broxton pitched in only 14 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last year and he was 1-2 with 7 saves, a 5.68 ERA and a 1.90 WHIP. He has now pitched in 386 games (0 starts) in his first seven years in the majors and he is 25-20 with 84 saves, a 3.19 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. Broxton will serve as Joakim Soria’s set-up man in 2011 and if he’s completely healthy…..the Royals are going to be very hard to beat if they take a lead late into games.

The Royals have signed 34-year old lefty starting pitcher Bruce Chen to a 2-year, $9 million dollar deal. Chen pitched in 25 games (all starts) for the Royals last year and he was 12-8 with a 3.77 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. He has now pitched in 75 games (57 starts) in his first three years with the Royals and he is 25-21 with 1 save, a 4.28 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Chen has pitched in 317 games (169 starts) in his first 13 years in the majors and he is 60-58 with 1 save, a 4.52 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. Pitching doesn’t come cheap these days but I still like this move for the Royals as Chen has pitched well for them the last three years.

The Royals have signed 30-year old lefty reliever Tommy Hottovy to a minor league deal. Hottovy pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Red Sox last year in his first taste of the majors and he was 0-0 with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP. He also pitched in 32 games (0 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 2-0 with 2 saves, a 2.47 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. Hottovy will get a shot to compete to be the second lefty in the pen next spring.

The Kansas City Royals are pretty well stocked in position players, but they could use rotation help even after trading for Jonathan Sanchez recently. Here is who I would go after if I were running the Royals:

1. Edwin Jackson - Righty starting pitcher Edwin Jackson still has breakout potential, so I think a gamble on him would be a good one for the Royals. He could be the type of the rotation type starter that the Royals really need.

2. George Sherrill - The Royals could use another lefty reliever to team with Tim Collins in the bullpen. Sherrill is coming off a nice season with the Braves last year, so he would be a good fit with the Royals.

3. Jerry Hairston - Jerry Hairston is a very versatile player who can play almost everywhere. He could even win the starting job at 2B with the Royals.