MOUSTAKAS BACK WITH K.C. FOR FAR LESS
Mike Moustakas is staying with the Kansas City Royals in a surprising turn dictated by a historically slow free-agent market.
Kansas City agreed Thursday to a one-year contract that guarantees the third baseman $6.5 million, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. The deal could be worth up to $22.7 million over two seasons, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the agreement was subject to a successful physical.
Moustakas gets a $5.5 million salary this year and has the chance to earn $2.2 million in performance bonuses based on plate appearances. The agreement, reached exactly three weeks before opening day, includes a $15 million mutual option for 2019 with a $1 million buyout.
The 29-year-old infielder turned down a $17.4 million, one-year qualifying offer from the Royals in November. But he found the interest of many other teams dimmed because a deal would have required compensation such as a loss of draft picks and/or international signing bonus allotment.
Judge probably skipping Home Run Derby.
Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is strongly leaning toward not taking part in the Home Run Derby at this year’s All-Star Game.
Judge won the derby last season in Miami, went on to hit 52 homers with 114 RBIs in his first full major-league season and was a unanimous pick as American League rookie of the year.
“A cool experience,” Judge said Thursday. “I enjoyed it all, but I don’t think I really needed to go out there and do it again.”
Nuñez likely Pedroia’s sub.
Eduardo Nuñez is likely to be the openingday second baseman for the Red Sox while Dustin Pedroia recovers from offseason knee surgery.
Pedroia had left knee surgery on Oct. 25 in which Dr. Riley Williams restored cartilage, and the Red Sox said then he was expected to miss more than the first month of the season.
Footnotes.
The Astros renewed the contract of shortstop Carlos Correa for the second straight year and also renewed third baseman Alex Bregman. Correa was given a $1 million salary after earning the $535,000 major-league minimum last year. Bregman was renewed at $599,000. … Allstar pitcher Jose Fernandez and Hall of Fame radio announcer Rafael “Felo” Ramirez will be honored by the Marlins with plaques on the plaza at Marlins Park in Miami. Fernandez died in a boat crash in September 2016. Ramirez died at age 94 in August. … YouTube TV has started carrying the MLB Network as part of a deal that makes the company the presenting sponsor of the next two World Series.