Veteran right-hander Jeremy Guthrie found new life when he was traded from the Rockies to the Royals on July 20, posting a 3.16 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP in his final 14 starts. He’s set to hit the open market five days after the conclusion of the 2012 World Series, so the Kansas City front office is scrambling to put together a proposal in the hope that he’ll re-sign before even getting a whiff of free agency.
“There’s always a chance (of working out a deal before other teams get a shot at him),” Royals general manager Dayton Moore told reporters this weekend. “These negotiations seem to go much better and smoother for everybody when you keep it between the two parties.”
Guthrie earned $8.2 million this summer in his third and final year of arbitration. He seems likely to settle for a cut in pay given how poorly he pitched for the Rockies in the first half (6.35 ERA in 90 2/3 innings), but the Royals will risk losing him for good if their offer is too low in either length or salary.
Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star suspects that the Royals won’t do anything longer than two years.
