The Royals have signed right-handed pitcher Jason Hammel to a two-year deal with a mutual option for a third year, according to Fox Sports reporter Ken Rosenthal. The two-year deal is worth $16 million, according to ESPN’s Jim Bowden. The Royals had been reportedly been looking to add a pitcher ever since the unfortunate death of Yordano Ventura.
The 34-year old Hammel won 15 games for the Cubs last year with a 3.83 ERA, but had a 4.48 FIP and was shut down in late September with elbow tightness. He has 84 wins and a 4.35 ERA in eleven Major League season with the Rays, Rockies, Orioles, Athletics, and Cubs. Hammel had a solid 2015 season where he was a 2.4 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) pitcher according to Fangraphs, with over a strikeout per inning, and a 3.74 ERA in 31 starts. Hammel is not much of a workhorse, averaging just 5.5 innings-per-start over the last two seasons.
Hammel joins a rotation that likely includes Danny Duffy, Ian Kennedy, Jason Vargas, and Nate Karns, with Chris Young, Mike Minor, and Matt Strahm as possibilities to contribute.