SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Faced with thin outfield depth because of injuries early in Spring Training, the Royals signed Jackie Bradley Jr. to a Minor League deal with an invite to big league camp on Wednesday.

The former All-Star will join the team later this week and begin competing for a roster spot. Bradley, who turns 33 next month, played eight seasons with Boston and won a World Series as the Red Sox¡¯s starting center fielder in 2018. He played for the Brewers in ¡¯21 and went back to Boston for the start of ¡¯22 before finishing the year with Toronto.

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Bradley has a career .227/.306/.386 slash line, and while he¡¯s never been a consistent offensive threat, he can play Gold Glove-caliber center field. His 74 defensive runs saved and 58 outs above average place Bradley in the top 10 among outfielders dating to his 2013 debut (Statcast was introduced in ¡®15).

That¡¯s exactly what the Royals need.

The club had two unfortunate injuries happen at the start of spring when outfielders Drew Waters and Diego Hernandez went down with a left oblique strain and dislocated right shoulder, respectively.

Waters was competing for the everyday center-field job this spring, which now is Kyle Isbel¡¯s job to lose. Hern¨¢ndez, 21, hasn¡¯t yet played above Double-A, but he is on the 40-man roster and would have been able to play center field in the Majors if the Royals got in a bind. Brewer Hicklen, who played center field in Triple-A last year, is also out with a right elbow strain.

Behind Isbel, the Royals have Nate Eaton and Samad Taylor on the 40-man who both can play center field, and while Eaton¡¯s versatility might earn him a roster spot, Taylor likely needs more time developing in Triple-A. Kansas City is also comfortable putting Dairon Blanco and Tyler Tolbert out there, but they¡¯re not on the roster and likely wouldn¡¯t be viable everyday options in the Majors if another injury occurred.

Once Hernandez went down, the Royals began exploring options to bring outfield depth to camp. Bradley is a solid veteran fallback and will compete for a spot on the Opening Day roster with right field currently up for grabs, as well as a bench spot.

Because Bradley was an XX(B) Major League free agent, he gets one opt out per the Basic Agreement. That will be on March 25, according to a source, which is five days before Opening Day.