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Royals KCR

201858–104 (0.358)
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GM: Dayton Moore

Overview

Ranks vs the 30 teams in 2018, or a custom range (defaults to every team-season since 1985, when our data starts).

to

Front Office

PoorAverageGreat
Value
Payroll $M
$106M
Surplus $M
-56
Win %
0.358
TAB
-16.9
WAB
-21.3
Roster composition
Roster fWAR
14.9
Dead money %
30%
Depth Players
3.0
Dead WAR
-9.3

Offense

PoorAverageGreat

Pitching & Defense

PoorAverageGreat

Roster

2018 depth chart — stacked by playing time

C

RSalvador Perez96
RDrew Butera⇄50
RCam Gallagher20
LMeibrys Viloria10

1B

LLucas Duda⇄63
RHunter Dozier51
LRyan O'Hearn31
RCheslor Cuthbert10
RWhit Merrifield5
LMike Moustakas⇄4
RSalvador Perez3

2B

RWhit Merrifield108
LRyan Goins28
BRosell Herrera⇄18
BAdalberto Mondesi12
RAlcides Escobar3
BRamón Torres3

3B

LMike Moustakas⇄77
RHunter Dozier37
RAlcides Escobar29
RCheslor Cuthbert12
BRamón Torres6
BRosell Herrera⇄5
LRyan Goins5

SS

RAlcides Escobar104
BAdalberto Mondesi61
LRyan Goins4

LF

LAlex Gordon125
LBrian Goodwin⇄7
RJorge Bonifacio7
RPaulo Orlando3
LBrett Phillips⇄2
BAbraham Almonte1
LRyan O'Hearn1
RWhit Merrifield1

CF

BAbraham Almonte35
RWhit Merrifield30
LBrett Phillips⇄21
LBrian Goodwin⇄20
RPaulo Orlando16
BRosell Herrera⇄12
LAlex Gordon11
RAlcides Escobar6

RF

RJorge Bonifacio55
RJorge Soler52
BRosell Herrera⇄29
LBrett Phillips⇄12
RWhit Merrifield8
BAbraham Almonte3
RHunter Dozier2
RPaulo Orlando2
LAlex Gordon1

DH

RSalvador Perez30
LLucas Duda⇄24
LMike Moustakas⇄17
LRyan O'Hearn11
RWhit Merrifield11
RJorge Soler9
BRosell Herrera⇄9
RCheslor Cuthbert8
RHunter Dozier8
LJon Jay⇄7
RJorge Bonifacio6
LAlex Gordon5
RPaulo Orlando4
BAbraham Almonte3
BAdalberto Mondesi2
RCam Gallagher2
RDrew Butera⇄1
LBrett Phillips⇄1

Starters

RBrad Keller2.7 WAR
RJakob Junis1.5 WAR
LDanny Duffy1.2 WAR
RIan Kennedy1.1 WAR
RJason Hammel0.9 WAR
RHeath Fillmyer0.6 WAR
RGlenn Sparkman0.3 WAR
RJorge Lopez⇄0.3 WAR
LEric Skoglund0.2 WAR
RTrevor Oaks0.2 WAR
RBurch Smith-0.5 WAR

Bullpen

★ RWily Peralta14 sv
RKevin McCarthy15 h
LTim Hill13 h
LBrian Flynn4 h
RBrandon Maurer3 h
RJason Adam2 h
RBlaine Boyer2 h
RKelvin Herrera⇄0 h

Each position shows its top 3 by games (top = starter) — click "+more" for the rest. The letter is bats/throws; ⇄ marks a player traded mid-season. Starters are ranked by WAR, bullpen by holds; ★ marks the closer (most save chances). MLB Stats API.

Key additions (new vs 2017)

PlayerfWAR
Brad Keller2.7
Ryan O'Hearn1.0
Heath Fillmyer0.6
Tim Hill0.5
Jon Jay0.5
Brett Phillips0.4

Key subtractions (gone from 2017)

Player2017 fWAR
Lorenzo Cain4.8
Eric Hosmer3.7
Jason Vargas1.8
Scott Alexander1.2
Peter Moylan0.4
Sam Gaviglio0.2

Contract Value

WAR translated into tier-adjusted market value, then compared with what the player was paid by Royals. Guaranteed contracts from the 2015-present contract-data period use the known contract period through 2018; everyone else is shown as a 2018 season snapshot.

PlayerPeriodfWARTier Market $MPaid $MSurplus $M$ / WARTierContract
Whit Merrifield 2018 +5.0 +48.1 0.6 +47.5 $0.1M 1.20× –
Brad Keller 2018 +2.7 +27.3 0.5 +26.7 $0.2M 1.28× Free Agent · 2026–2027 · $11.0M AAV
Adalberto Mondesi 2018 +2.8 +25.9 0.3 +25.6 $0.1M 1.18× –
Jakob Junis 2018 +1.5 +11.8 0.6 +11.3 $0.4M 1.02× –
Heath Fillmyer 2018 +0.6 +5.0 0.3 +4.7 $0.5M 1.02× –
Ryan O'Hearn 2018 +1.0 +4.4 0.2 +4.2 $0.2M 0.56× Free Agent · 2026–2027 · $14.5M AAV
Mike Moustakas↔ 2018 +1.2 +6.9 3.5 +3.3 $2.9M 0.69× –
Brett Phillips↔ 2018 +0.4 +2.6 0.1 +2.4 $0.3M 0.83× –
Brian Goodwin↔ 2018 +0.4 +2.5 0.2 +2.3 $0.5M 0.83× –
Tim Hill 2018 +0.5 +2.8 0.5 +2.3 $1.0M 0.67× Free Agent · 2025–2026 · $2.9M AAV
Jorge López↔ 2018 +0.3 +2.1 0.1 +2.0 $0.2M 1.02× –
Jon Jay↔ 2018 +0.5 +2.7 1.2 +1.5 $2.5M 0.69× –
Trevor Oaks 2018 +0.2 +1.5 0.1 +1.3 $0.7M 1.02× –
Glenn Sparkman 2018 +0.3 +1.4 0.2 +1.2 $0.8M 0.67× –
Kevin McCarthy 2018 +0.3 +1.5 0.5 +1.0 $1.9M 0.67× –
Cam Gallagher 2018 +0.2 +1.0 0.2 +0.9 $0.7M 0.52× –
Eric Skoglund 2018 +0.2 +1.4 0.5 +0.8 $3.3M 1.02× –
Scott Barlow 2018 +0.2 +1.2 0.7 +0.6 $2.8M 0.67× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $2.0M AAV
Brian Flynn 2018 +0.1 +0.4 0.6 -0.2 $8.5M 0.67× –
Jerry Vasto↔ 2018 -0.1 -0.3 0.1 -0.4 – 0.67× –
Meibrys Viloria 2018 -0.1 -0.3 0.1 -0.4 – 0.52× –
Jorge Soler 2018 +0.6 +4.1 4.7 -0.6 $7.6M 0.83× Free Agent · 2024–2026 · $14.0M AAV
Kelvin Herrera↔ 2018 +0.7 +3.9 4.5 -0.6 $6.1M 0.67× –
Ryan Goins 2018 -0.1 -0.3 0.5 -0.8 – 0.56× –
Ramón Torres 2018 -0.2 -0.9 0.1 -1.0 – 0.58× –
Eric Stout 2018 -0.2 -1.1 0.0 -1.1 – 0.67× –
Rosell Herrera↔ 2018 -0.1 -1.0 0.3 -1.3 – 0.83× –
Cheslor Cuthbert 2018 -0.2 -1.0 0.6 -1.5 – 0.58× –
Jake Newberry 2018 -0.3 -1.8 0.1 -1.9 – 0.67× –
Jason Adam 2018 -0.3 -1.8 0.3 -2.0 – 0.67× Arbitration · 2026–2026 · $6.7M AAV
Enny Romero↔ 2018 -0.3 -1.9 0.3 -2.1 – 0.67× –
Jorge Bonifacio 2018 -0.2 -1.5 0.6 -2.1 – 0.83× –
Wily Peralta 2018 -0.1 -1.3 1.5 -2.8 – 1.34× –
Burch Smith 2018 -0.5 -2.7 0.6 -3.3 – 0.67× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $1.5M AAV
Justin Grimm↔ 2018 -0.5 -2.7 1.0 -3.6 – 0.67× –
Danny Duffy 2018 +1.2 +10.2 14.0 -3.8 $11.2M 1.02× –
Jason Hammel 2018 +0.9 +4.9 9.0 -4.1 $9.8M 0.67× –
Lucas Duda↔ 2018 -0.2 -1.3 2.8 -4.1 – 0.69× –
Hunter Dozier 2018 -0.9 -4.1 0.4 -4.6 – 0.56× –
Blaine Boyer 2018 -0.8 -4.4 1.0 -5.4 – 0.67× –
Abraham Almonte 2018 -0.8 -5.3 0.3 -5.6 – 0.83× –
Drew Butera↔ 2018 -0.7 -3.9 1.9 -5.8 – 0.69× –
Paulo Orlando 2018 -0.8 -5.5 0.6 -6.1 – 0.83× –
Ian Kennedy 2018 +1.1 +9.2 16.0 -6.8 $14.1M 1.02× –
Alcides Escobar 2018 -0.9 -4.4 2.5 -6.9 – 0.61× –
Salvador Perez 2018 +0.2 +0.6 8.7 -8.1 $57.2M 0.52× Extension · 2026–2027 · $12.5M AAV
Brandon Maurer 2018 -0.8 -8.1 3.0 -11.0 – 1.34× –
Alex Gordon 2018 +1.2 +8.0 20.0 -12.0 $16.7M 0.83× –
Ben Lively↔ 2018 +0.1 +0.3 0.2 +0.0 $4.9M 0.67× –
Total—+15.3+136.1106.6+29.6—

Trades

Every graded 2018 deal involving the Royals — best expected value first. Surplus is realized value in $M; 9 total.

2018 · MIL / KCR
MIL · David Stearns +$12.0M
Mike Moustakas
KCR · Dayton Moore −$12.0M
Brett Phillips, Jorge López
MIL came out ahead by $12.0M
2018 · OAK / KCR
OAK · Billy Beane +$1.6M
Ryan Buchter, Brandon Moss
KCR · Dayton Moore −$1.6M
Jesse Hahn, Heath Fillmyer
OAK came out ahead by $1.6M
2018 · KCR / WSN
KCR · Dayton Moore +$2.4M
Brian Goodwin
WSN · Michael Rizzo −$2.4M
Jacob Condra-Bogan
KCR came out ahead by $2.4M
2018 · TOR / KCR
TOR · Mark Shapiro +$6.4M
Sam Gaviglio
KCR · Dayton Moore −$6.4M
cash / PTBNL
TOR came out ahead by $6.4M
2018 · KCR / ANA
KCR · Dayton Moore +$0.0M
cash / PTBNL
ANA · Billy Eppler +$0.0M
Miguel Almonte
Even trade
2018 · KCR / COL
KCR · Dayton Moore +$4.8M
Jerry Vasto
COL · Jeff Bridich −$4.8M
Drew Butera
KCR came out ahead by $4.8M
2018 · KCR / ARI
KCR · Dayton Moore +$7.2M
Gabe Speier, Elvis Luciano
ARI · Mike Hazen −$7.2M
Jon Jay
KCR came out ahead by $7.2M
2018 · KCR / WSN
KCR · Dayton Moore +$1.6M
Blake Perkins, Kelvin Gutiérrez, Yohanse Morel
WSN · Michael Rizzo −$1.6M
Kelvin Herrera
KCR came out ahead by $1.6M
2018 · CHW / KCR / LAD
CHW · Kenny Williams +$10.4M
Joakim Soria, Luis Avilán
KCR · Dayton Moore −$3.2M
Trevor Oaks, Erick Mejia
LAD · Andrew Friedman −$7.2M
Scott Alexander, Jake Peter
CHW came out ahead by $10.4M 3-team

Current & Historical Payroll

2018 payroll
$106.4M
2019 guaranteed
$0M

What the front office was committed to as of 2018, 2018–2024. Guaranteed $ are contract commitments signed by 2018; arbitration & free-agent years are projected from service time. Hover a figure for its luxury-tax (CBT) & actual-cash values.

current $ guaranteed $ arbitration (proj) pre-arb (proj) free agent club option player option mutual option vesting option

Guaranteed / signed (11)

PlayerAgeSvc2018201920202021202220232024
Alex Gordon3410.092$20.0MFREE AGENT
Ian Kennedy338.124$16.0MFREE AGENT
Danny Duffy296.085$14.0MFREE AGENT
Jason Hammel3510.153$9.0MFREE AGENT
Salvador Perez286.050$8.7MFREE AGENT
Mike Moustakas296.111$3.5MFREE AGENT
Lucas Duda326.137$2.8MFREE AGENT
Alcides Escobar318.082$2.5MFREE AGENT
Drew Butera347.018$1.9MFREE AGENT
Jon Jay337.134$1.2MFREE AGENT
Blaine Boyer3613.000$1.0MFREE AGENT

Arbitration-eligible (7)

PlayerAgeSvc2018201920202021202220232024
Kelvin Herrera285.157$4.5MFREE AGENT
Brandon Maurer274.089$3.0MARB 3FREE AGENT
Wily Peralta294.112$1.5MARB 3FREE AGENT
Justin Grimm294.153$952kARB 3FREE AGENT
Ryan Goins303.106$489kARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Abraham Almonte293.052$297kARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Enny Romero275.000$282kFREE AGENT

Pre-arbitration (31)

PlayerAgeSvc2018201920202021202220232024
Jorge Soler262.142$4.7MARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Scott Barlow250.000$650kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brian Flynn282.086$574kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Cheslor Cuthbert252.030$574kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Whit Merrifield291.096$570kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Paulo Orlando322.099$568kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jorge Bonifacio250.164$562kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Burch Smith281.051$554kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jakob Junis251.000$554kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Tim Hill280.000$545kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Eric Skoglund250.068$545kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brad Keller220.000$545kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Kevin McCarthy260.124$510kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Hunter Dozier260.092$410kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Adalberto Mondesi220.121$311kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Heath Fillmyer240.000$305kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jason Adam260.000$275kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Rosell Herrera250.000$271kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Ben Lively260.083$250kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Glenn Sparkman260.001$214kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brian Goodwin271.019$199kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Ryan O'Hearn240.000$182kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Cam Gallagher250.048$170kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brett Phillips240.053$134kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Trevor Oaks250.000$132kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jake Newberry230.000$129kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Ramón Torres250.090$94kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Meibrys Viloria210.000$88kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jerry Vasto26–$66k
Jorge López250.015$57kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Eric Stout250.000$21kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Graphs

How each 2018 acquisition stacked onto Royals's playoff-odds curve. The side table is ranked by PPA.

Rosternomics — front-office performance, roster value, and transaction history. Follow @rosternomics on X.
Decision-maker records extend to 1933; resource-controlled WAR and payroll metrics cover 1985–2026. Data sources include FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference, the Chadwick Bureau register, the Lahman Database, prospect rankings from Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, and FanGraphs, and public payroll records. Transaction and trade data was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Executive birth/death data via Wikidata (CC0).
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