The Kansas City Royals hope to re-sign outfielder Alex Gordon, but the MLB free agent market simply may not allow them to do so. And now rumors suggest an AL Central rival - the Chicago White Sox - may present another obstacle for the defending World Series champs.
FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the White Sox are "showing interest" in Gordon, whose market has been relatively quiet up until this point in the offseason. However, he's not alone - Justin Upton, Yoenis Cespedes and other top outfielders still remain unsigned and their market is largely undefined as well.
Rosenthal weighed in on the situation regarding the Royals and Gordon on Monday and noted the team is "leaving the proverbial light on for Gordon, hoping that no other team will pay him enough to abandon the comfort he enjoys in Kansas City."
Last week ESPN's Jim Bowden reported that the Royals were "lowballing" Gordon with four-year offers in the $50 million range after many MLB experts predicted the veteran would get between $90-$100 million. The latter figure would likely handicap the Royals down the road as they have to focus on two years from now when Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Alcides Escobar, Lorenzo Cain and Wade Davis can hit free agency.
Does this mean the White Sox have the advantage since they have over $35 million coming off the books after 2016? That depends on how Chicago would structure their roster if they were to sign Gordon since their outfield is full and their DH position is occupied by Adam LaRoche.
Question is whether #WhiteSox could pay Gordon enough to pry him from #Royals. Team would be left with Melky, LaRoche, Garcia at RF/DH.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 22, 2015
#WhiteSox could trade one of those players - preferably LaRoche, who will earn $13M in '16. Wouldn't be easy with Alvarez, Carter among FAs.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 22, 2015
However, previous rumors suggested the White Sox were looking to trade Avisail Garcia, which would free up a spot in the outfield if that were to happen. Additionally, general manager Rick Hahn told Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com the team is not ready to pump the brakes even after the deal that netted them third baseman Todd Frazier.
"We're going to continue to be aggressive on numerous fronts and certainly continue to talk to various free agents as well as other clubs about trades, and we'll have to see how the coming weeks unfold."
Hahn also said the team plans to address the loss of their best defensive outfielder, Trayce Thompson, who was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Frazier deal. That could indicate their sights are set on Gordon, who is regarded as the best defensive left fielder in the MLB.
"GM Rick Hahn suggested they could make another big move after landing Frazier, and the belief is that move could be in the outfield," adds Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
After a failed experiment in 2015, the White Sox are surely looking to rebound in an AL Central division that may not be as strong in 2016 as it has been in recent years. The Royals already lost Johnny Cueto, Ben Zobrist and Ryan Madson and it remains to be seen if the Detroit Tigers can rebound after their horrid campaign last year.
Chicago has a chance to capitalize. Signing Gordon could be a crucial move that shifts the balance of power in the division.
