Kansas City placed 3B-R Joe Randa on the disabled list on June 29th. Randa had been playing with torn cartilage in his right knee since early in the season and finally decided the condition him was impeding him to an extent that he should address the problem without further delay. The 34-year-old underwent arthroscopic surgery on the 29th and hopes to be able to rejoin the Royals in early August.

Tampa Bay dealt 3B-R Jose Bautista to Kansas City for cash on June 28th, and the Rule 5 pick took the roster spot opened by Randa's trip to the disabled list. Since the Royals are out of the race for the playoffs, Kansas City does not need to worry about maximizing production from their roster spots so adding a Rule 5 pick makes sense. Once the 23-year-old completes his Rule 5 season, the Royals will have another third base prospect for their system, though until Bautista tackles the upper minors we really won't have a clear picture of his upside.

Bautista and UT-S Desi Relaford have been sharing the starting duties at third base in Randa's absence. All of Kansas City's pending free agents should be on the trading block, including Relaford. Consequently, Relaford should receive the majority of the playing time at third in order to build up his value until the Royals find a buyer. In light of his injury, I do not expect Randa to be dealt before the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline, though someone might snag him before August 31st.

On July 2nd, Kansas City sent cash to the Pirates for OF-R Ruben Mateo. Mateo's history contains hints of prodigious power skills, but bouncing between AAA and the majors over the last six seasons, he has yet to sufficiently solidify his hitting skills to the point to where his power is relevant. However, he's demonstrated substantial improvement in his plate discipline in the last year, and the 26-year-old may blossom impressively if given a starting job. Despite the Pirates multitude of outfielders, I fail to understand why Pittsburgh chose to part with Mateo in exchange for mere cash when the club could have discarded someone lacking his upside.

1B-R Mike Sweeney's absence has allowed Mateo to start while CR-L Matt Stairs serves as the Royals' designated hitter. Sweeney injured his back while sliding into home plate in the first inning of Kansas City's July 1st game against Baltimore and has not played a game since that date. The 30-year-old probably will sit out the rest of the Royals' current series in Minnesota rather than deal with the playing on turf, and even though Kansas City does not consider his condition serious, I would not be surprised if Sweeney remained out through the All-Star Break, since there's little reason to risk aggravating the injury with the three-day vacation so near.

Mateo should continue to start as long as Sweeney remains out, and whenever the Royals find a buyer for Stairs, Mateo's playing time should be secure. However, if Sweeney recovers before Stairs is traded, Kansas City may push Mateo into a platoon with OF-L Dee Brown until the roster thins.