KANSAS CITY -- As expected, the Royals declined to exercise a 2015 option on designated hitter Billy Butler's contract for $12.5 million, but general manager Dayton Moore said the club wants him to return.The club announced the move on Saturday, making Butler -- who broke in with Kansas City in 2007 -- a free agent.
"Billy's been a huge part of our success, and we're going to stay engaged with him and do everything we can to bring him back," Moore said. 
Butler, 28, was an American League All-Star in 2012, and he ranks third in club history with a .295 career average. He also ranks sixth in doubles (276) and RBIs (628), and seventh in hits (1,273) and home runs (128).This past season, Butler had a career-low .271 average in 151 games. His nine home runs and 66 RBIs were the lowest totals in his six full seasons with the Royals. He peaked in 2012, when he hit .313 with 29 homers and 107 RBIs while winning the Edgar Martinez Award as the AL's most outstanding DH.In this postseason, Butler batted .262 (11-for-42) with three doubles and eight RBIs in 13 games. He sat out two of the World Series games at San Francisco where the DH wasn't used.Butler battled through what was, for him, an unusually inconsistent season. It began with a .195 average, no homers and six RBIs in his first 21 games through April 24. Then he got more Butler-like through the end of May, batting .290 with seven doubles and 15 RBIs, but just one homer.An uptick in June yielded a .313 average, nine doubles and 13 RBIs in 27 games, but again just one homer. There was another sag in early July, but Butler seemed to catch fire when he took over at first base for an injured Eric Hosmer. Playing most of 39 games in the field, Butler hit .284 with six homers, eight doubles and 21 RBIs, with an on-base percentage of .344.In September, though, Hosmer returned, and Butler's playing time diminished, with others -- including Nori Aoki and Josh Willingham -- spending time as the DH.Butler was the Royals' first-round pick in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft, and he rose up the Minor League ladder with high averages and big RBI totals. He made his Major League debut at age 21 -- as a left fielder, oddly enough -- on May 1, 2007.After a temporary demotion to Triple-A Omaha in 2008, Butler became a Kansas City fixture, playing some first base but used primarily as the DH, especially after Hosmer's arrival in 2011.
Dick Kaegel/MLB.com
Butler, 28, was an American League All-Star in 2012, and he ranks third in club history with a .295 career average. He also ranks sixth in doubles (276) and RBIs (628), and seventh in hits (1,273) and home runs (128).This past season, Butler had a career-low .271 average in 151 games. His nine home runs and 66 RBIs were the lowest totals in his six full seasons with the Royals. He peaked in 2012, when he hit .313 with 29 homers and 107 RBIs while winning the Edgar Martinez Award as the AL's most outstanding DH.In this postseason, Butler batted .262 (11-for-42) with three doubles and eight RBIs in 13 games. He sat out two of the World Series games at San Francisco where the DH wasn't used.Butler battled through what was, for him, an unusually inconsistent season. It began with a .195 average, no homers and six RBIs in his first 21 games through April 24. Then he got more Butler-like through the end of May, batting .290 with seven doubles and 15 RBIs, but just one homer.An uptick in June yielded a .313 average, nine doubles and 13 RBIs in 27 games, but again just one homer. There was another sag in early July, but Butler seemed to catch fire when he took over at first base for an injured Eric Hosmer. Playing most of 39 games in the field, Butler hit .284 with six homers, eight doubles and 21 RBIs, with an on-base percentage of .344.In September, though, Hosmer returned, and Butler's playing time diminished, with others -- including Nori Aoki and Josh Willingham -- spending time as the DH.Butler was the Royals' first-round pick in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft, and he rose up the Minor League ladder with high averages and big RBI totals. He made his Major League debut at age 21 -- as a left fielder, oddly enough -- on May 1, 2007.After a temporary demotion to Triple-A Omaha in 2008, Butler became a Kansas City fixture, playing some first base but used primarily as the DH, especially after Hosmer's arrival in 2011.
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