Its clear that the Kansas City Royals have a major focus on getting their pitching right for their 2012 campaign. After trading outfielder Melky Cabrera to the San Francisco Giants for the hard throwing Jonathan Sanchez, reports are out that the Royals could be targeting all-star right hander Jair Jurrjens from Atlanta.
Per SB Nation's MLB Daily Dish:
We have already seen earlier this month the Kansas City Royals turn down an offer that included stud prospect Wil Meyers. Of course the Royals would never bite on this deal, but while looking at numbers, the Braves do have plenty of money to play with come 2012, especially on their outfield. Now enter, Nick Swisher and the New York Yankees.
Today, reports rose that the Yankees may have some interest in Jurrjens. Atlanta sees Eduardo Nunez as a prospect that can spell the Alex Gonzalez problem, or possibly play some OF. The asking price is clearly a problem; I think some people have a higher opinion of Jurrjens than teams outside of Atlanta. Although Kansas City is still in pursuit of Jurrjens according to Jim Bowden of ESPN, the Yankees may be driving the price up according to Jon Heyman. Joel Sherman thinks the Yankees may balk on any deal all together because of their history with ex Braves (Javier Vazquez).
I'm not saying that adding Jurrjens would make the Royals a lock to win the AL Central in 2012, but I would say that it might finally make the Royals competitive. This is all speculation, but its got to be encouraging to see your organization being aggressive.
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