Billy Butler rubbed some people here in Charm City the wrong way when he drilled Brad Bergesen in the shin back in 2009. Bergy had earned a 3.43 ERA in 123.1 innings pitched up to that point and would never be same.
I’ll forgive him if he comes to Baltimore.
According to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star, the Baltimore Orioles are showing “strong interest” in the Royals slugger. As are the Seattle Mariners.
Butler hit .313/.373/.510 last season with 29 homers and 107 RBI. He’s a 26 year old true power hitter with six years of big league experience.
He’s also got one of the coolest nicknames in baseball — Country Breakfast.
Butler won’t come cheap, but Dan Duquette seems to think that the O’s have a surplus of pitching. Would the Orioles part ways with Chris Tillman, Zach Britton or Brian Matusz to bring in Butler? Would they throw in a young prospect like Jonathan Schoop, Xavier Avery or L.J. Hoes?
It would probably take at least a couple of those guys to get the deal done.
Well, we can move on now. The Royals big trade clearly indicates they want to win now. Butler will be the centerpiece of that effort. They are not interested in prospects. No trade there.