PT TOMORROW: AL Central—2017 outlook: Position players

 

Kansas City Royals

In the Royals infield, Alcides Escobar (SS, KC) has a $6.5 Mclub option for 2017, and exercising it could come down to whether the team sees the player who batted .242 (343 AB) at leadoff in 2016 or .311 (211 AB) in the other spots of the batting order.

As Mike Moustakas (3B, KC) returns to the field with a reconstructed ACL, Cheslor Cuthbert (3B, KC; pictured above) could move to 2B if Raul Mondesi (2B/SS, KC) either shifts back to his natural SS position or falters in his present September trial. Cuthbert has fared well at the plate with a career high in HRs (17 between KC and Triple-A Omaha), but as Dave Adler warned in the June 29 Facts / Flukes, his hit rate has been running a bit high (now a 35% h%), and his...

Almost!

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