Kansas City Royals: 3 Most Intriguing Spring Position Battles

The Kansas City Royals are one of the most intriguing teams in Major League Baseball right now. For years, the Royals have tried several rebuilding efforts only to see them fail. However, it now seems like they have a great nucleus to work with.

With that being said, there aren't too many roster battles to be had in camp as most of the positions are locked up with young players.

Yet, there are still wrinkles on this team that are still needing to be filled including the recent news that Salvy Perez will miss 12-to-14 weeks with a torn meniscus.

There are still three weeks to go until the Royals begin the 2012 season, but there are a couple of battles to keep your eye on before they open at the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on April 6.

Backup Catcher

Just when it seemed like the Royals had their backstop combination set for 2012, the injury bug bit them pretty hard.

As mentioned on the last slide, Salvy Perez will miss at least three months recovering from torn knee cartilage. The good news is that the Royals do have a suitable backup catcher who can slide into Perez's spot in Brayan Pena.

The bad news is that Pena can't catch every game, so the question becomes who will be Pena's backup come April 6?

The Royals are starting to look at their options within and outside of the organization. There have been whispers that the Royals will turn their attention to free-agent catcher Ivan Rodriguez, but it remains to be seen what Rodriguez is looking for in a one-year contract.

The other solution could have been Manny Pina, but Pina also tore cartilage in his knee and is not expected back until mid-June as well.

That could really leave the Royals looking deep if they have to promote non-roster invitee Max Ramirez to the major league team.

Don't rule out a trade as well if the Royals see something available, but with Perez just 21 and the Royals signing him to a five-year contract last offseason, it's not very likely that a big trade will be made.

The Back of the Starting Rotation

For a long time, the Royals had a competition at the back of their rotation simply because they didn't have enough quality arms to fill out a Major League rotation. Now, the Royals may have competition because they have too many good arms.

Of course this isn't a bad thing, but it means that tough decisions will have to be made. The front-runners for the back-of-the-rotation starters are the inconsistent Felipe Paulino and the left-handed Danny Duffy, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't be looking over their shoulder.

Aaron Crow has been rumored to be a part of the Royals rotation, but it seems like the club is going to opt to use him as a long reliever/spot starter at the beginning of the year.

The Royals also have super prospect Mike Montgomery in the minor leagues. Last year was the worst season of Montgomery's major league career, but he should be able to rebound as he's had a year to adjust to Triple-A hitting.

If you ask me, I think that Crow will eventually replace Paulino in the starting lineup, and if Jonathan Sanchez can't live up to his expectations, we could see Mike Montgomery in June.

Closer

For now, there isn't a battle for the closer position as it belongs to Joakim Soria.

However, if Soria starts the 2012 season like he did in 2011, there's a possibility it could be opened up to Jonathan Broxton or the previously mentioned Aaron Crow.

Since we're playing "What if?", it's probably more likely that Broxton would get first crack to replace Soria if he fails. The Royals paid Broxton to be their eighth inning setup man, but it could wind up to be a situation similar to the one that played out for the Minnesota Twins.

The Twins had Joe Nathan and Matt Capps in what they called their "double-barrelled shotgun" approach to ending games. Nathan, who was coming off Tommy John surgery, struggled at the beginning of the year and handed the reigns to Capps. (Nathan would reclaim the closer role later in the year.)

While Soria is not injured, a repeat of early-season struggles could open a debate for the closer role in Kansas City.