Both Ryan Dempster and Scott Feldman battled injuries in 2012, but that has not deterred the Kansas City Royals one bit.  The Royals were previously interested in signing Dempster, but now they have apparently turned their focus to Feldman.  Neither pitcher suffered severe injury in 2012, but they both missed time.

Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star says the Royals, who have made it clear they want to upgrade their starting pitching for 2013, have given up on their pursuit of Ryan Dempster now that his price tag has risen.  The Royals had offered Dempster a $26 million deal, but bidding for the aging pitcher escalated beyond Kansas City's comfort level and they pulled out of the negotiations.  Dutton also says the Royals tried to land Feldman before he ultimately signed with Chicago Cubs.  The Cubs gave Feldman $1.5 million more thane the $4.5 million the Royals were willing to pay him.



Neither pitcher would have been game-changing for Kansas City, but either could have helped improve the team marginally.  The Royals will have to pick a player they want and go after him aggressively.  They lost out on Dempster because they underestimated his demand.  They lost out on Feldman because they weren't willing to pay an extra $1.5 million.  These are the types of snags the team can't afford to have going forward if they really do want to land a front-line starter.

Dempster was 12-8 with a 3.38 ERA in 2012.  He split time between the Chicago Cubs and the Texas Rangers.  After moving over to Texas, Dempster struggled a bit, posting a 5.09 ERA with them.  Feldman was 6-11 with a 5.09 ERA in Texas in 2012.  He isn't exactly a front-line starter like the Royals are looking for.
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