I’d be fine with giving him the chance to prove whether he can or can’t handle 3b and letting Gordon try to hack it in one of the COF positions. Gordon’s value will take a hit, but at least it wouldn’t force Butler into being a full-time DH, and it would leave room on the 25-man roster for Kila (assuming GMDM is smart and cuts bait on Jacobs).

Plus, if we move Bert over to 3b, it gives the Royals the chance to sign a second baseman with legit range to help cover for the giant ball of suck that is Yuniesky Betancourt (and third basemen don’t need quite the range that second basemen do, so Bert’s poor defense might be mitigated somewhat).

Retro, I haven’t looked at his data, such as LD%, etc. – but just looking at it from a primitive point of view, he’s 26, has very good plate discipline, and showed some legitimate improvement in the power department.

Now I suppose there could be a “sophomore slump” to worry about, since this will be essentially his 2nd year of full-time duty – but shouldn’t we expect a 26 year old to, at the very least, maintain where he’s at?

The sad part of this is that Hochevar, Bannister, and Davies are basically dismissable without even giving it serious thought.

Nothing against DeJesus, but for a team that is supposedly rebuilding through a process that should be emphasizing young, cheap talent, it speaks volumes (negative volumes) that DDJ legitamitely makes this list at his age.