Well, this isn't exactly the news that saber-friendly Royals fans were hoping for ...
#Royals have acquired OF Josh Willingham from the Twins for minor league RHP Jason Adam.
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) August 11, 2014
Yes, the Royals need a hitter. Need one pretty bad, actually; just the other day, ERIK KRATZ was penciled into the lineup as the club's Designated Hitter, even though he's got the bat of a replacement-level catcher.
There are only two problems with Willingham: He bats right-handed, and he hasn't actually been an impressive hitter since 2011.
He's also a terrible hitter for average, batting just .209 in his last 613 at-bats. But it's actually sort of encouraging, that management looked past Willingham's low batting average and (presumably) saw his high walk rate.
More good news: Willingham's better than whomever he replaces in the lineup. Essentially, though, this means the Royals are committed to a Willingham/Ibañez platoon, and hoping at least one of them drinks from a Fountain of Youth.
Unless Daniel Nava's still in play. There's a platoon we can get behind.
