The Royals created an additional space on their 40-man roster Monday afternoon by sending right-handed pitcher John Bannister to Class AAA Omaha on an outright assignment after he cleared waivers.</p><p>Bannister, 25, chose to stay with the organization by agreeing to a minor-league contract. He was 1-0 with a 5.02 ERA in eight relief appearances at Class AA Northwest Arkansas after his Aug. 11 arrival from Texas in a waiver claim.</p><p>The outright assignment offered Bannister the chance to become a free agent because of previous minor-league service. He is 26-33 with a 4.75 ERA in 154 games over six professional seasons spent entirely in the Texas system before his eight games at Northwest Arkansas.</p><p>The Royals now have three openings on their 40-man roster, which means Monday&rsquo;s move effectively cleared space for the anticipated Nov. 20 return of outfielder Jos&eacute; Guillen, shortstop Mike Aviles and reliever Doug Waechter from the 60-day disabled list. </p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Elias rankings</span></strong></p><p>Catcher Miguel Olivo is the only one of the Royals&rsquo; four free agents who merit compensation under the new Elias rankings, released Monday, if he signs elsewhere.</p><p>The catch: The Royals must offer arbitration to Olivo before Dec. 1 unless he signs with another team before that deadline. Such an offer is unlikely since the club just paid $100,000 to void a $3.3 million mutual option for 2010. </p><p>The good news: There is no reason for other teams to wait in pursuing Olivo because he is a Type B free agent, which doesn&rsquo;t require a new team to surrender a draft pick. Teams that sign a Type A free agent lose a first- or second-round pick.</p><p>Type A players are ranked among the top 20 percent at their position; Type B players are ranked between 21 and 40 percent. Teams that lose a Type B player gain a supplemental draft pick between the first and second rounds.</p><p>Clubs do not receive compensation for the loss of players ranked below the top 40 percent at their position. The Royals&rsquo; three other free agents &mdash; outfielder Coco Crisp and relievers Jamey Wright and Bruce Chen &mdash; all fell below 40 percent.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Crisp files</span></strong></p><p>Crisp was one of 31 players who filed Monday for free-agency. He became eligible to file Friday when the Royals voided an $8 million option for next season by exercising a $500,000 buyout.</p><p>Crisp is the last of four eligible Royals to file for free-agency.