Royals 2004 Star Series: Benito Santiago


Santiago's time in Kansas City can almost be completely forgotten due to his poor stats with the team. Just two years before joining the Royals, he was an all-star as a member of the Giants. The Royals choice to bring in Santiago at the time didn't seem like a bad idea for a team that was looking for a catcher that could produce at the plate. Unfortunately, the 39-year old couldn't hit to save his life for Kansas City, but that doesn't mean he wasn't a good signing for Kansas City. According to bleacherreport.com: "Santiago hit .300/.324/.467 with 33 doubles, 18 home runs, 79 RBI and 21 steals to win 1987 NL Rookie of the Year honors. Over his first six full MLB seasons, he was a four-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger and three-time Gold Glove winner." Based on those stats from his first six seasons in the majors, he showed he belonged in the show, but the Royals just signed him at the tail end of his fantastic playing career. The team did unfortunately overpay for a 39-year old catcher. Even though it was only a two-year deal, Kansas City signed the backstop to a two-year deal worth $4.3 million dollars. Nowadays, the Royals would have most likely signed him to a minor league contract as would many other teams at that point of his career. Santiago only played in 49 games for the Royals due to injuries. During a game against the Phillies, the 39-year-old was hit by a pitch from pitcher Geoff Geary. Following the injury, Santiago told reporters: "It cracked pretty good," Santiago said. "It's a hard thingto go through right now, but there's nothing I can do." The Royals in many ways had the right idea to sign Santiago based on his past track record. The team's catching depth in the minor leagues also caused the organization to sign a veteran backstop. The team's top affiliate catching depth was weak as well, giving the team no other option but to sign a veteran catcher.  Bleacher Report unfortunately gives Santiago a bad rap in an article from 2011, especially not mentioning his hand injury. In the article, Santiago ranked 12th of the 40. The article goes on to say: "However, Santiago would never again approach that .300 mark, and though he would win Gold Glove Awards and hit 30 HR for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1996, the potential that Santiago showed in his rookie season was never really seen again, as he ended his career with a .262 batting average." Although the article is accurate, it never mentioned the injury that greatly impacted the remainder of his career. Unfortunately, the injuries he battled during his time with San Francisco before coming to Kansas City, impacted his numbers while in a Royals uniform. Kansas City made the decision to sign him with the hopes he could bounce back from the injuries he had battled from the past few seasons; and his age certainly didn't help his numbers while he was in a Royals uniform. 

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