The San Diego Padres have added a former Royals starter to their training camp roster with a minor league invite that could be worth a reported $950K if he makes the Padres roster, according to Jon Heyman. Suppan sat in the Royals' Triple-A affiliate last season with a 4.78 ERA. However over the course of 16 seasons in the major leagues, Suppan has 138 career wins.
For the Padres, it's the usual last-second, low risk signing for Petco Park which will actually make a veteran pitcher, who can be smart with what he offers a batter, look good. The Padres were recently named the best overall farm system in the Major Leagues according to Keith Law, but they are also void of solid options on the major league roster. The Royals likely would have kept Suppan if they thought he had any real value to their ML team himself.
In five previous season with the Royals, Suppan had a 39-51 record with a 4.73 ERA.