"Money talks, and today's topic is the Royals' roster.

All clubs face a deadline of 11 tonight to offer contracts to players under their control. It's commonly called the tender date, and those players who don't receive an offer — those who are "nontendered" — become free agents.

"There could be some guys (who are nontendered)," general manager Dayton Moore said, "but we'll try to get deals done with all of those guys."

The hook here centers on those players eligible for arbitration — and the Royals have eight of them. A formal contract offer to such players binds the club to arbitration if the two sides fail to reach an agreement."