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The Royals moved one step closer to concluding their off-season shopping Wednesday by signing veteran catcher Kelly Stinnett to a one-year contract for $500,000.
Stinnett, 33, batted .237 last season while splitting time with Cincinnati and
Philadelphia. He was signed to be a backup to Benito Santiago.
"Benito is going to need a break every now and then," Stinnett said. "This is a good fit. They wanted me. That always helps."
Stinnett always has been a backup in his 10-year career with the Mets, Brewers,
Diamondbacks, Reds and Phillies. He has a .236 career average in 588 games but
is regarded as a solid defensive player.
"He's a catch-and-throw guy," general manager Allard Baird said. "We
feel we've upgraded our catching over last season and we did it for less money."
Last year, the Royals paid $3.375 for Brent Mayne and Mike DiFelice. This year,
they'll play $2.65 million for Stinnett and Benito Santiago.
Stinnett became a free agent when he exercised his option to void a $750,000
deal to remain next season with the Phillies. He received a $250,000 buyout.
"This is a team that can win," Stinnett said. "The Royals showed
last year that they could be a team that only needed a few more pieces. Hopefully,
they have gotten those pieces."
The Royals now have 39 players on their 40-man roster and 13 players under contract
for next season at a combined $28.1 million.
The club's only remaining off-season target is a power-hitting corner outfielder.
Negotiations are ongoing with free-agents Juan Gonzalez and Raul Mondesi but
neither player appears close to an agreement.
Stinnett, 5 feet 11 and 195 pounds, was selected by Cleveland in the 11th round
of the 1989 amateur draft after being selected as the junior-college player
of the year at Seminole Junior College in Oklahoma.
The Mets acquired Stinnett in the Rule 5 draft after the 1993 season. He was
traded to the Brewers before the 1996 season for pitcher Cory Lidle and selected
by Arizona in the 1997 expansion draft.
He signed a one-year contract last January with the Reds as a free agent for
$1.3 million and was traded to the Phillies on Aug. 31 for outfielder Eric Valent.
Stinnett has never played more than 92 games in a season. That was in 1998,
when he batted a career-high .259 at Arizona. A year later, he set career highs
with 14 homers and 38 RBIs for the Diamondbacks.
"We think he's a nice complement to Santiago," Baird said. "He's
well above average at blocking pitches. We like his defense."
• WINTER UPDATES: Outfielder Dee Brown opened his winter-ball season this
week by going one for five in his first game at Azucareros in the Dominican
Republic.
Brown, 25, faces an uphill battle next spring to make the roster because the
Royals don't figure to carry more than five outfielders — counting free-agent
signee Matt Stairs, who can also play first base.
One spot is reserved for center fielder Carlos Beltran, and Aaron Guiel is a
near-lock for a starting job in either left or right field. Rich Thompson, selected
Monday in the Rule 5 draft, is a good bet to make the team because of his speed
and defensive skills.
That leaves just one opening, which is tentatively ticketed for an as-yet unsigned
free agent — Juan Gonzalez or Raul Mondesi — or rookie David DeJesus.
Brown, who batted .227 last season in 50 games, is out of options and must be
traded or released if he fails to make the team.
Third baseman Jarrod Patterson and first baseman/DH Calvin Pickering face similarly
long odds. Both are left-handed hitters like Brown, but the addition of Stairs
minimizes the need for a lefty bat off the bench.
Pickering is batting .268 for Mochis in the Mexican Pacific League with 13 homers
and 27 RBIs in 39 games. He also has 31 walks for a .491 on-base percentage.
Patterson is batting .312 at Azucareros in 24 games.
Other winter numbers:
• Reliever Nate Field got a victory in his first outing at Aguilas in
the Dominican by pitching one scoreless inning.
• Infielder Mendy Lopez still is hitting just .205 through 32 games at
Aguilas. He also has 37 strikeouts in 127 at-bats.
• Outfielder Alexis Gomez is batting .272 in 36 games at Aguilas and ranks
among the league leaders with 22 runs.
• Lefty Dennys Reyes, a swingman candidate, is 1-1 with a 1.59 ERA in
four games at Mochis. But he has nine walks in 17 innings.
• Ruben Gotay, a second-base prospect, is batting .300 in 28 games at
Carolina in Puerto Rico. He also has 14 walks for a .398 on-base percentage.
Gotay is likely to start next season at Class AA Wichita.
• LEVINE TO DETROIT: The exodus of ex-Royals to Detroit continued Wednesday
when reliever Al Levine signed a one-year contract with a club option for 2005.
Levine, an eight-year veteran, joins outfielder Rondell White, whose two-year
deal for $6 million became official when he passed a physical examination.
Levine is guaranteed $925,000 — $825,000 next season and a $100,000 buyout
for 2005 if the Tigers choose not to keep him for $1.1 million.
Catcher Mike DiFelice soon could join White and Levine in Detroit. He appears
close to a one-year deal for $650,000. Second baseman Brent Abernathy, released
after the season, also has signed a minor-league deal with the Tigers.
Levine, 35, was 0-1 with a 2.53 ERA last season for the Royals in 18 outings
last season after arriving July 31 from Tampa Bay. He was 3-6 overall with a
2.79 ERA in 54 games for the Royals and Devil Rays.
DiFelice, 34, is an eight-year veteran who batted .254 with three homers and
25 RBIs last season in 62 games. He would be the seventh player who ended last
season on the Royals' roster to sign elsewhere.
The others are outfielder Raul Ibanez with Seattle for three years and $13.25
million, outfielder Michael Tucker with San Francisco for two years at $3.5
million, catcher Brent Mayne with Arizona for one year at $800,000, pitcher
Paul Abbott with Tampa Bay for one year at $600,000, White and Levine.
Four other free agents who ended last season on the Royals' roster remain unsigned:
pitcher Jose Lima, pitcher Graeme Lloyd, catcher Tom Prince and pitcher Jamey
Wright. None is allowed to negotiate with the Royals until May 1.