The Kansas City Royals are believed to be interested in acquiring Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard this MLB offseason, believing him to be a perfect fit at DH.
Are the Kansas City Royals about to give up Country Breakfasts for Subway? The Royals declined a team option on DH Billy Butler, and believe that the Philadelphia Phillies’ Ryan Howard could be the perfect replacement for the club’s designated hitter.
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Howard has one of the worst contracts in MLB, and is guaranteed at least $60 million over the next two years ($25 million salary in 2015 and 2016, with a $23-million team option for 2017 or a $10 million buyout), but has provided little value over the past few years, and last season was his first full season without injury since 2011. Howard’s main calling card is power, and in an era of MLB where offense is down across the game, replacing an imperfect player such as Butler with another imperfect player such as Howard could actually be an upgrade for Kansas City.
But one huge caveat here will be Howard’s salary, which basically negates any value Howard has as a player; the Phillies will need to eat nearly all of the salary for most teams, let alone the Royals, to have any interest, and the Phillies aren’t always the most reasonable team in trade demands. Howard is also strictly a DH at this point in his career, as he hemorrhages runs away at first base (-10 Defensive Runs Saved in 2014).
Royals GM Dayton Moore isn’t afraid to make a push, and for the right price (i.e., basically nothing), Howard could surprise some clubs.
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