33-year-old outfielder Alex Rios is headed to the Kansas City Royals on a 1-year, $11-million dollar contract, per Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Rios played for the Texas Rangers last year, batting .280 in 131 games. The signing of Rios seems to indicate the end of Norichika Aoki experiment in Kansas City, as well as Jarrod Dyson‘s return to being a defensive replacement/pinch-runner. Rios will fit nicely in the Royal lineup in the 6th spot behind Salvador Perez and Eric Hosmer, offering plus speed and decent average. Rios only hit four home runs in 2014, but has the potential to bounce back, he hit 18 in 2013 and 25 in 2012.
The Royals struggled to get steady offensive production from the right field position last year between Aoki and Dyson, but Rios is slightly a level above those two players, so the Royals should enjoy a bit more production from right field in 2015. The 31 games missed is a bit concerning, but either way the Royals just strengthened their lineup and got a little bit better than they were in 2015.
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