The Royals have signed 27-year old lefty reliever Jose Mijares to a 1-year deal. He pitched in 58 games (0 starts) for the Twins last year and he was 0-2 with a 4.59 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. Mijares pitched in 186 games (0 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 3-6 with a 3.16 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Mijares will team with Tim Collins in the bullpen in 2012, giving the Royals a nice pairing of power lefty arms.

The Royals have signed 29-year old righty swinging shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to a 1-year deal. He played in 152 games for the Brewers last year and he was 140 of 556 (.252 avg, .652 OPS) with 51 runs scored, 13 homers, 68 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Betancourt played for the Royals back in 2009 and 2010 before being dealt along with Zack Greinke in the huge deal with the Brewers last winter. Betancourt has played in 222 games in his career with the Royals so far and he is 203 of 802 (.253 avg, .676 OPS) with 85 runs scored, 20 homers, 105 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Betancourt will be the Royals’ top utility infielder in 2012 as he will play some at 2B, SS and 3B. It was a good idea to bring Betancourt back for 2012.

The Royals have released 26-year old righty reliever/starter Mario Santiago so that he could pitch in Korea in 2012. Santiago pitched in 35 games (11 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 8-4 with 2 saves, a 3.70 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. He pitched in 156 games (116 starts) in 7 years in the minors for the Royals and he was 36-51 with 4 saves, a 4.04 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. The Royals essentially did Santiago a favor by letting him go.

The Royals have signed 30-year old lefty starting pitcher Francisley Bueno to a minor league deal. He pitched in 15 games (all starts) in Mexico last year and he was 7-5 with a 4.15 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. He has pitched in 1 game (0 starts) in his major league career (2008 with the Braves) and he is 0-0 with a 7.71 ERA and a 2.57 WHIP. I think the Royals will give Bueno a shot to win a job in the bullpen next spring.

26-year old righty swinging outfielder Greg Golson has signed a minor league deal with the Royals. He played in 9 games for the Yankees last year and he was 2 for 11 (.182 avg, .432 OPS) with 1 run scored and 1 stolen base. Golson has now played in 40 games in his four years in the majors and he is 8 for 41 (.195 avg, .458 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Golson will get a shot to compete for a bench spot on the Royals this spring.