What Mike Moustakas' return to the Royals means for Cheslor Cuthbert

Sitting in his office on Friday morning, Royals manager Ned Yost would not be swayed by hypothetical situations.

He was aware of the reports. He knew Royals general manager Dayton Moore had pursued a reunion with All-Star third baseman Mike Moustakas.

But as long as the I’s weren’t dotted and the T’s weren’t crossed on a reported one-year contract, Yost would not comment on the Royals’ impending transaction.

When asked if anything was going on, Yost said, “Nothing."

Yost did, however, address the importance of making sure Cheslor Cuthbert gets as many at-bats as the Royals can give him. Moustaskas’ expected return makes it unlikely for Cuthbert to get the 500-550 at-bats Yost had envisioned for this season.

Cuthbert entered spring-training camp figuring to become the Royals starting third baseman — and his teammates thought the same about Cuthbert.

"I think a lot of us were set on Cheslor being over there,” pitcher Ian Kennedy said after his second spring start on Friday. “They're probably just going to work around where they can have him DH. We have a lot of young guys who can play anywhere and mix around, so I think it'll be good.”

Cuthbert should see enough pitching as one part of a revolving designated hitter’s spot in the lineup. Jorge Bonifacio, Jorge Soler and even newly-signed outfielder Jon Jay are also expected to spend time as designated hitters this season.

Yost will have to be creative in getting Cuthbert to at least 400 turns at the plate.

“We’ve got to find ways to continue to keep him playing,” Yost said. “We’ve gotta figure this one out. It’s going to be a little bit challenging.”

Moustakas, whose wife gave birth to their second child on March 3, is expected to arrive in Arizona either late Friday or early Saturday for a physical examination this weekend.

Until that hurdle is crossed, Yost will not entertain further speculation about the Royals’ lineup or about the corresponding roster move required to add Moustakas.

But Yost will admit that his team, which in just over a week signed Jay and first baseman Lucas Duda to major-league contracts, looks a lot better than it did even two weeks ago.

“Mr. (David) Glass, he likes to compete, and he likes to win and he likes to provide us with everything that we need to try to be successful,” Yost said.

This story was originally published March 9, 2018 at 7:01 PM with the headline "What Mike Moustakas' return to the Royals means for Cheslor Cuthbert."