The Kansas City Royals brought Ervin Santana in from the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday afternoon with the hopes that Santana will become a key starter for the team in 2013.
Santana, 29, struggled quite a bit in 2012, posting a 9-13 record with an ERA north of five. However, the Dominican has also shown he can be dominant, throwing a no-hitter in 2011 against the Cleveland Indians.
When asked how he felt about being a potential No. 1 starter, Santana says he relishes the challenge, according to mlblogs.com:
"If they give me the opportunity, I’ll be ready for it. I’ll be 100 percent ready for it. … I have the tools for it. So I if they give me a chance, I just have to go out there and do the job."
Some would think that Santana would be disappointed to leave a perennial contender to join the rebuilding Royals, but the hurler says that isn't the case:
"It’s not because the Royals have a very good team. They’ve got very good young talent and they’ve got a good defense and it’s very exciting."
It will be interesting to see if Kansas City retains Santana beyond this year if he pitches well for the Royals.