The Royals’ offseason kicks into gear, and Alcides Escobar is a free agent again
As a slider wrestled with his back foot, Dodgers shortstop Manny Machado swung his bat through nothing except air, and Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez rushed the mound to celebrate in the arms of his pitcher, left-hander Chris Sale.
In Sunday night’s fifth game of the World Series, this was the final image of the 2018 season for two teams.
It put in motion the commencement of the 2019 campaign for 28 others.
The Royals included.
As of 8 a.m. Monday, Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar became a free agent for the second straight year. In what’s likely to be a quiet offseason in Kansas City, per general manager Dayton Moore, Escobar was joined in free agency by pitcher Jason Hammel on Tuesday.
Escobar’s return is unlikely, with the Royals set to hand over the shortstop position to Adalberto Mondesi on a full-time basis. A year ago, a dry market prompted Escobar and the Royals to extend their union into an eighth season, unsure if Mondesi’s body was ready for the rigors of a 162-game schedule. But Kansas City is ready to offer Mondesi that opportunity in 2019. Even if the market for Escobar doesn’t take flight — other teams can begin negotiating with him on Saturday — a spot in Kansas City is doubtful to be waiting on him.
One more decision looms in the meantime. On Tuesday, the Royals declined a $12 million option on right-hander Hammel, paying him a $2 million buyout. They have until until Wednesday to decide whether to exercise a more manageable $3 million option on right-hander Wily Peralta.
In his second year in Kansas City, Hammel lost his spot in the starting rotation. He finished the year with a 6.02 ERA, the worst mark on his resume in more than a decade. He turned 36 in September.
After joining the Royals in the middle of the season, Peralta eventually took over the closer’s role. He recorded 14 saves and posted a 3.67 earned run average across 37 appearances.
That’s the lone impending internal move. As of Saturday, the Royals have the option to explore external options toward improving their roster, when full-fledged free agency begins.
But don’t expect the Royals to rush to make a significant move of that sort. Moore said the club also needs to “get our major-league payroll under control (and) more manageable so we’re in a better position in 2020 and 2021 and beyond to do some things that we believe will impact our major league team in a more positive way and win more games.”
He added: “That doesn’t mean we won’t sign a free agent or two, but if we do, it will probably be in a bullpen-type role. It would probably be later in the winter. Don’t expect us to jump out there and get in a bidding war and try to win negotiations for some impact relievers. We’ll see who’s available there in December, January and February and look to improve that way.”
Sam McDowell
Sam McDowell covers Sporting Kansas City, the Royals, Chiefs and sports enterprise for The Star
This story was originally published October 29, 2018 at 4:55 PM.