The Kansas City Royals announced today that they have agreed to a two-year contract with outfielder Lorenzo Cain, avoiding arbitration. Consistent with club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Cain, 29, is coming off a banner year, where he was selected to his first All-Star Game and finished third in the American League Most Valuable Player voting, while helping the Royals win their first World Series title in 30 years. The right-handed hitting outfielder batted .307 with 34 doubles, six triples, 16 homers with a career-best 101 runs scored, becoming the first KC player to score at least 100 runs in a season since 2011. He also ranked second in the A.L. in stolen bases (28), while he was fifth in batting average and runs scored. He led the Junior Circuit, batting .372 with two outs, which was the third-highest two-out average in franchise history.
Cain started all 16 postseason games in center field, batting .258 with two doubles, a homer, 11 RBI, 11 runs scored and a Major League-best 11 walks. He hit safely in his first nine postseason games this year to extend his hitting streak to 13, which is the second-longest in franchise history, behind teammate Alcides Escobar's 15-game streak. Cain recorded a franchise-best six steals during the 2015 postseason, including four during the World Series. He scored the winning run from first base in the series-clinching Game #6 of the ALCS vs. Toronto, while he also capped a five-run 12th inning with a bases-clearing double in the deciding fifth game of the World Series.
The signing of Cain today leaves the Royals with just one unsigned arbitration-eligible player: third baseman Mike Moustakas.