Miner opts for fresh start with Royals

Miner opts for fresh start with Royals
Tigers had hoped to re-sign rehabbing right-hander
By Jason Beck / MLB.com | 12/31/10 3:14 PM EST

Zach Miner is taking his comeback from Tommy John surgery elsewhere in the AL Central. The former Tigers reliever, a valuable swingman in Detroit for four seasons, agreed to a Minor League contract with Kansas City, the Royals announced on Friday.

Though Detroit designated Miner for assignment last month to make room for Victor Martinez on the 40-man roster and avoid arbitration, the Tigers had every intent to re-sign him, and they pursued him aggressively. Likewise, Miner had obvious interest in re-signing with Detroit and picking up his rehab process with the only organization he has known since breaking into the big leagues in 2006.

In the end, however, he liked the chance he sees in Kansas City.

"There were a few teams that checked in, and the Tigers and the Royals were the most aggressive," Miner wrote in an e-mail to MLB.com. "But in the end, we just felt like K.C. was going to be a very good opportunity going forward, not only for this year, but for a few years down the road."

Thus ends Miner's Tigers tenure, with a 25-20 record and a 4.24 ERA in 157 games. He was a midseason find in 2006, going 7-6 as a rotation replacement for injured Mike Maroth. He did a little bit of everything for the next three years, filling needs from spot starter to groundball specialist to occasional setup man.

Miner, who went 15-10 and pitched 210 1/3 innings combined in 2008 and 2009, was expected to be a big part of Detroit's bullpen last year. But a Spring Training injury eventually was diagnosed as a torn elbow ligament, leading to surgery at the end of May.

He's expected to be ready to pitch in games in the opening weeks of this coming season, if not out of Spring Training. The precise timetable still isn't clear, though Miner said on Friday he continues making good progress in his rehab.

The expectation was that Miner would continue his progress in Spring Training with the Tigers, who presumably valued him more than any other club. But the Tigers, who had made it clear that they envision Miner as a reliever, not a starter, go into 2011 with potentially few openings in their bullpen, between the addition of Joaquin Benoit and the development of their young relievers.

Kansas City, on the other hand, has no shortage of openings on its pitching staff and offers a potential role for Miner as a starter, if he fits there. It wasn't an easy decision for Miner, who lives in Florida in the offseason and will trek to Arizona in February for Royals camp, but it was arguably the best decision for his career.

"I really enjoyed being a Tiger," Miner said, "and loved playing for Jim Leyland."

The Royals have seen enough of Miner to know what they're getting, if he's healthy. He has pitched more innings against Kansas City (49) in his career than against any other opponent, going 5-4 with a 4.22 ERA in seven starts and 10 relief appearances.

The Tigers acquired Miner and fellow right-hander Roman Colon in the trade that sent Kyle Farnsworth to the Braves in 2005. All three have now been with the Royals organization.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. Read Beck's Blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.