Billy Butler (photo/MLB)
First reported by MLB.com, the Oakland A’s, looking for a right handed bat after trading Yoenis Cespedes to Boston, have landed Royals DH Billy Butler. Pending a physical, the deal is for $30 million over three years. Butler made $8 million the last three years of his contract in Kansas City, and the club exercised it’s $1 million buyout days after the World Series.
Butler, who will turn 29 in April, went 2 for 4 with two RBIs in the Royals Wild Card win over the A’s. He is a career .295 hitter and has a lifetime .316 average against lefties.
According to the MLB.com article, if Butler is paid evenly at $10 million per year of the contract, he’ll be the third highest A’s player on their payroll for 2015, behind Coco Crisp and pitcher Scott Kazmir, who each will make $11 million.
Whether or not the Royals hunt for a “true” DH is still up for debate. One plan could be to rotate everyday players in that DH slot to give a workhorse like Salvador Perez, for example, a break behind the plate. Ned Yost loves his defense, but another 158 games of squatting will be a grind on Perez.
