Royals make full court press on Carlos Beltran

Whether the Yankees  still have an interest in St. Louis Cardinals free agent outfielder Carlos Beltran after signing Jacoby Ellsbury to a seven-year contract Tuesday is unknown, but one thing is for sure- the Kansas City Royals are serious about the veteran outfielder who started his career with the Royals:

Beltran acknowledged the meeting after he left late in the afternoon after a lengthy session with team president Dan Glass, general manager Dayton Moore and other team officials.

"I met with Dayton and ownership, and everything was good," Beltran texted.

Moore confirmed the meeting with Beltran and his representatives through team spokesman Mike Swanson, but said he'd have no further comment.

The New York Post first reported the Beltran visit, part of a tour that he's making that will include other clubs. Several teams have expressed strong interest in him, and things are heating up with the approach of the Winter Meetings, which open Monday in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

At the same time, ESPN's Buster Olney reported that an unidentified club has made a three-year, $48 million offer, but there's no indication that it was the Royals.

New York sources, however, believe the Royals are willing to go three years in an effort to out-do the Yankees in terms of contract length.