The surging Kansas City Royals are looking for every little boost they can get to help them either chase down the Tigers in the AL Central or to snag one of the two Wild Card spots. Earlier this week they acquired infielder Jamey Carroll to help fill their season-long struggle to find a capable second baseman and now they've doubled down on that effort by acquiring utilityman Emilio Bonifacio from the Toronto Blue Jays for a player to be named later or cash, per Jon Morosi:
Blue Jays trade Emilio Bonifacio to Royals for cash or a player to be named. Like the move for KC. Good buy low.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) August 14, 2013
As Morosi states, this is a savvy buy low move for Dayton Moore. Bonifacio has been a disaster in Toronto this year going .218/.258/.321 with 12 stolen bases. But it was only back in 2011 when Bonifacio posted .296/.360/.393 with 40 steals. He wasn't too shabby in 2012 either with a .645 OPS and 30 steals. It also seems that Bonifacio might be emerging from his season long slump as he has hit for a .753 OPS since the All-Star break.
Make no mistake, Bonifacio isn't a difference maker but he does give the Royals another option at second base, which is great for them because anything that involves less Chris Getz in the lineup can only be a positive thing. In fact, anybody with a pulse playing second base for KC figures to be a help as they have gotten a pathetic slash line of .228/.276/.301 from the various assortment of players they have tried there this season.
While Bonifacio figures to see most of his time at second base, his ability to play almost every position on the diamond provides value too as Kansas City recently placed Miguel Tejada and Lorenzo Cain on the disabled list in addition to Mike Moustakas now hobbled by a calf injury, so their overall depth has quickly become a problem. With Bonifacio able to fill-in wherever needed, it should help the Royals weather these injuries and help keep their recent hot streak going.
Bonifacio will be entering his final year of arbitration in 2014 after making $2.6 million this year. This move saves Toronto from either having to pay Bonifacio a few million bucks next year or being forced to non-tender him based on his wretched 2013 season.
