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MLB Free Agency: 5 potential landing spots for Justin Upton

By Dave Stevenson

Jul 30, 2015; New York City, NY, USA; San Diego Padres left fielder Justin Upton (10) hits three run home run in the ninth inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 30, 2015; New York City, NY, USA; San Diego Padres left fielder Justin Upton (10) hits three run home run in the ninth inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 1, 2015; New York City, NY, USA; Kansas City Royals players celebrate on the field after defeating the New York Mets in game five of the World Series at Citi Field. The Royals won the World Series four games to one. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports /

Kansas City Royals

The Kansas City Royals would like to re-sign Alex Gordon. If they can’t get him, they might open their checkbooks to sign Jason Heyward. Should they lose out on Heyward and Gordon, the Royals could be a good fit for Justin Upton.

The World Series champions will likely need two outfielder if they can’t re-sign Alex Gordon since Alex Rios is also a free agent. They’d likely prefer to have a more defensively-gifted outfielder than Justin Upton, but they might not have much of a choice unless they’d like to take a chance of someone like Colby Rasmus.

The Royals lineup doesn’t have much power in it, which has worked for them the past two seasons because they make a lot of contact. Justin Upton is not the kind of hitter who makes a ton of contact, but the Royals could probably stand to use some power in their lineup. They can afford to have Justin Upton strike out over 20% of the time if it means that they have a guy who can consistently hit over 25 homers a season.

Upton isn’t the greatest defensive outfielder, but it might not matter. Lorenzo Cain in center field can cover a ton of ground. Cain can probably help to offset the defensive deficiencies of Justin Upton. The Royals would be a good fit for Upton. Being in a winning environment could help Upton realize his true potential and maybe even become that superstar that everyone expected him to be.

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