The Royals added more punch to their lineup Oct. 30 when they acquired first baseman Mike Jacobs from the Marlins for right-hander Leo Nunez.
Jacobs, a left-handed hitter who turned 28 on the day he was dealt, hit .247 with a career-high 32 home runs and 93 RBIs this year. He also stroked 27 doubles, two triples and scored 67 runs in 141 games. "I heard the rumors," Jacobs said. "The Marlins have a lot of guys coming up for arbitration, me included, so I thought it was inevitable I was going to get moved this offseason. I didn't think I was going to get moved this soon."
Jacobs will compliment Jose Guillen, a right-handed hitter who led the Royals with 20 homers and 97 RBIs last season.
"We think he's a middle of the order presence," Royals general manager Dayton Moore said of Jacobs. "He pretty much hit fourth the entire year with Florida. (Manager) Trey (Hillman) will probably hit him anywhere from fourth to sixth with us."
Moore does not believe the large Kauffman Stadium dimensions should diminish Jacobs' power.
"He plays in a very big ballpark," Moore said of Dolphin Stadium. "Where he plays is not real kind to left-handed hitters. I don't know if his power numbers will play out at Kauffman Stadium, but he's a legitimate power threat."
Nunez, 25, was 4-1 with a 2.98 ERA in 45 relief appearances in 2008 with Kansas City. He and Ramon Ramirez were the Royals' top right-handed setup men for closer Joakim Soria.
