Kansas City Royals

Royals add three to 40-man roster

Published Nov. 20, 2017 6:24 p.m. ET

Matt Moreno

The Kansas City Royals added three players to their 40-man roster on Monday, selecting the contracts of left-handed pitchers Tim Hill and Eric Stout as well as catcher Meibrys Viloria.

Hill, 27, was a 32nd-round selection in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft. He spent a majority of the 2017 season at Northwest Arkansas (AA), going 1-2 with a 4.17 ERA, recording 75 strikeouts compared to 19 walks. He also made four appearances at Wilmington (A).

Stout, 24, spent the entire year at Omaha (AAA), going 5-2 with a 2.99 ERA, also collecting five saves in 45 appearances (one start). He was the Royals’ 13th-round selection in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft.

Viloria, 20, is a left-handed hitting catcher, who was signed as a non-drafted free agent on July 2, 2013 out of Cartagena, Colombia. In his first season with Lexington (A), Viloria hit .259 with 25 doubles, eight homers and 52 RBI in 101 games in 2017. He was named the Pioneer League’s (Rookie) Most Valuable Player in 2016, also earning mid-season and postseason All-Star honors while playing with Idaho Falls.

Following today’s transactions, the Royals have 38 players on their 40-man roster.

Players on the 40-man roster are protected from the Rule 5 draft, which will be held next month at the Baseball Winter Meetings in Orlando, Fla.

The deadline to set rosters is 7 p.m. Central time Monday.