Kansas City has finalized their initial 25-man roster as we get ever closer to the beginning of the new baseball season. In a somewhat surprising move, second year reliever Louis Coleman was optioned to Omaha. This means the bullpen will go with not just one, but three left-handed relievers. The trio of lefties in the bullpen are holdovers Everett Teaford and Tim Collins, while newcomer Jose Mijares will also join the mix.
As noted previously, the starting rotation will consist of Bruce Chen, Luke Hochevar, Jonathan Sanchez, Luis Mendoza, and Danny Duffy. Felipe Paulino was also vying for a starting spot before it was announced that he would be heading to the disabled list to begin the season.
The full 25-man roster consists of:
Catchers - Brayan Pena and Humberto Quintero
Infielders - Yuniesky Betancourt, Billy Butler, Alcides Escobar, Chris Getz, Eric Hosmer, and Mike Moustakas
Outfielders - Jason Bourgeuis, Lorenzo Cain, Jeff Francoeur, Alex Gordon, and Mitch Maier
Starting Pitchers - Bruce Chen, Danny Duffy, Luke Hochevar, Luis Mendoza, and Jonathan Sanchez
Bullpen - Jonathan Broxton, Tim Collins, Aaron Crow, Kelvin Herrera, Greg Holland, Jose Mijares, and Everett Teaford.
The squad features five players who are brand new to the Royals organization, Betancourt who returns to the Royals after a year with the Milwaukee Brewers, and two others who had little more than a cup of coffee previously with Kansas City (Cain and Herrera).
Among the notable names filling out the minor league rosters will include-
Nathan Adcock, Louis Coleman, Jeremy Jeffress, Vin Mazzaro, Mike Montgomery, and Will Smith on the Omaha pitching staff. Johnny Giavotella, Clint Robinson, and Jarrod Dyson will be among the position players for the Storm Chasers.
Among the notable names on the pitching staff at AA Northwest Arkansas will be Noel Arguelles and Jake Odorizzi. Top prospects Christian Colon and Wil Myers will be on the squad as well.
Class A Wilmington will feature names such as Jason Adam, Yordano Ventura, and Cheslor Cuthbert.
Meanwhile Low A Kane County will have names like Brooks Pounders, Michael Antonio, and Jorge Bonifacio.
Sean O`Sullivan is one of the last players that is in limbo at the moment as he is technically still with the big league squad, but will be placed on waivers after the spring training game against the Chicago White Sox. If O'Sullivan clears waivers (which many think he will), he'd likely be headed to Omaha.
You can view all the rosters in detail courtesy of Bob Dutton in the Kansas City Star.
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