Kansas City inking two-year deals with former Atlanta pitchers coming back from arm surgeries is a thing now, apparently.
Last year the Royals added right-hander Kris Medlen on a two-year deal and now they’ve added his former rotation-mate, left-hander Mike Minor, on an incentive-laden two-year contract.
Minor will begin the season on the disabled list as he comes back from shoulder surgery, but the hope is that he’ll be healthy in time to potentially make a second-half impact and then be a full-time member of the rotation in 2017.
It’s a gamble, certainly, but the Royals are only putting $7.5 million up front and will be happy to pay Minor the many built-in incentives if he’s able to reach them. The contract also includes a $10 million mutual option for 2018.
Minor was non-tendered by the Braves, but prior to tearing his shoulder he was a very solid mid-rotation starter with a 3.97 ERA in 612 innings from 2011-2014.