The MLB winter meetings are now over and while there wasn't a big splash at the actual event, there has been plenty of talking between teams and one deal that could be going down later in the offseason is a Billy Butler trade between the Kansas City Royals and the Toronto Blue Jays and one name that could be involved is Jose Bautista.
The first news of the trade talks between the two teams was reported by Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail in Toronto and while he said that it has only been in "discussions", Fox Sports tweeted out that it's possible the team could try and move Jose Bautista alongside this deal. The Blue Jays have been linked to the Phillies in a trade from earlier in the season and now they look like a prime option to snag Butler if the Royals are willing to part with the very solid hitter. The report said that prospects "Gibbons/Seitzer" could be involved in the deal with Butler, who comes in with $8 million on his contract and an option for the season after in 2015 for over $10 million.
The contract is not too crazy for a player like Butler, who has been one of the best hitters for the Royals and he is a great doubles hitter, average guy and RBI man and he is just 27 years old and is coming off of a season with 15 home runs and a .289 batting average and he had nearly 30 doubles. The past few seasons he has been racking up doubles and he has only missed 11 games over the past five seasons and has averaged over 15 home runs and 40 doubles, which not too many players can say and he has hit over .300 during that span.
The Blue Jays are ready to move on from Adam Lind at first base and this type of deal could signal that and while Bautista's name hasn't come up, the Blue Jays could look to deal him as well. The Royals had a great season in 2013 by their standards over the past decade and they look to be on the cusp of things and while losing Butler would be a massive thing to deal with fro fans, after making the James Shield trade last season the team could be a couple moves from a wild card spot after competing for it this past season.
Last season Butler played in all 162 games and he had 82 RBIs on the year with just over 100 Ks and he could be a great middle of the order guy for the Jays. Butler is one of the most underrated players in the game and he is part of that crop of young Royals players that are really starting to blossom and he could net the team a nice haul this offseason.
