Royals Off-season acquisition review

The Royals have made 4 off-season transactions. Time for a quick analysis

1. Trade Relief Pitcher Leo Nunez to Florida for 1B Mike Jacobs

The Royals gave up part of their solid relief core last year to acquire a big bat that can slide in at the 4 or 5 slot of the lineup. Last year, Jacobs hit .247 with 32 home runs and 93 RBI's with the Marlins; however, his .299 on-base percentage was downright pitiful and something that is going to have to improve. Jacobs played in a bigger ballpark in Florida and comes to a ballpark with similar dimensions in Kansas City. He definitely has the potential to break the single season home run record held by Steve Balboni (36). Former Royal Kevin Seitzer was brought in to serve as the team's hitting coach and hopefully he can improve the OBP for not only Jacobs, but Jose Guillen, Mark Teahan, and Co.

2. Trade Relief Pitcher Ramon Ramirez to Boston for OF Coco Crisp

The Royals gave up yet another part of their solid relief core last year to acquire a true leadoff hitter in Crisp. General Manager Dayton Moore is hoping Crisp will provide the spark at the top of the lineup which will help the Royals improve on their 12th place finish in the American League in total runs. In 118 games for the Sox last year, Crisp hit .283 with an OBP of .344 with 7 homers, 43 RBI's and 20 stolen base. Look for the Royals to run Crisp a lot and you will see that stolen base total go up.

KEY ANALYSIS OF THE HITTING ACQUISITIONS: The Royals added two fresh bats to their lineup for about $9-$10 million in payroll. They likely would not have gotten the caliber of players in Jacobs and Crisp in the free agent market. Crisp, David DeJesus, and Mark Teahan will likely makeup the outfield this year with Jose Guillen serving as designated hitter. Oddman out? Perhaps Billy Butler, who will probably be a bench player/part time starter for the Royals.

3. Acquisition of Relief Pitcher Kyle Farnsworth for 2 years, $9.25 million.

Now, I understand what Dayton Moore is doing. He traded away two key components of his team, in order to acquire what he called cheap, quality hitters. He could then use some money to pay what some consider as "good money" to a top reliever in the marketplace. But Kyle Farnsworth? This guy may be one of the most overrated players in the history of baseball. I mean, the guy can throw 100 MPH, but his pitches have about as much movement on them as Joe Paterno on one leg. Farnsworth has a life-time 4.47 ERA in ten major league seasons, with his best season coming in 2005, when he had a 2.19 ERA splitting time with Detroit and Atlanta. Hopefully Farnsworth can rekindle the magic he had in 2005.

4. Acquisition of Relief Pitcher Horacio Ramirez for 1 year.

Dayton Moore traded Ramirez to the White Sox at the trade deadline last year but ended up getting him back in the free agent market. Ramirez was effective for the Royals last year in limited action as a reliever; however, Dayton Moore has said that Ramirez would compete for the fifth spot in the Kansas City rotation.

WHAT IS LEFT TO DO

The Royals missed out on Rafael Furcal, who elected to sign with the Dodgers. Had Furcal signed with the Royals, Mike Aviles would have moved from shortstop to second base; however, it now appears that Alberto Callaspo will be on the opening day second baseman next year. There are still a lot of free agents out on the market, don't expect the Royals to sit through the rest of the offseason in a quiet mode. After all, you never know when the next Mark Teahan trade rumor may pop up agai