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SANTA CLARA, Calif. Demarcus Robinson Jersey . -- Blake Costanzo had been keeping busy re-tiling his bathroom back home in New Jersey and doing regular yard work. He remained optimistic he would land himself a job, even as free agency lingered into its fourth month. The linebacker and special teams standout rejoined the San Francisco 49ers on Tuesday, signing 2 1/2 years after leaving the organization to play for the Chicago Bears. He signed a one-year contract for the veteran minimum of $855,000 for players with seven to nine years of experience. "The biggest thing is this stadium right behind here," Costanzo said of what has changed, looking toward $1.2 billion Levis Stadium. "There are a lot of new faces, but there are also a lot of guys I played with. Its a good opportunity to come out here and play some football again. I was doing too much yard work at home." The 30-year-old Costanzo played 16 games for Chicago last season and finished with nine tackles and a forced fumble while also contributing on special teams. After flying cross country Monday, Costanzo participated in Tuesdays organized team activity, and was one of the last players to return to the locker room after a session in the weight room. He said he spoke to a couple of other teams, but "the timing was right here." "This was a good opportunity for me to come here, compete and maybe help some younger guys they have on the roster," Costanzo said. "My only competition is myself. Im going to try to find a way, whatever it may be." Costanzo is also learning some new aspects of the playbook from special teams coach Brad Seely, who also coached him in Cleveland and brought him to the Bay Area for the turnaround 2011 season, coach Jim Harbaughs first year. "Blake was here with us a few years ago. Hes a great guy -- a guy who comes to work every day and a great team player," linebacker Patrick Willis said. "The guy is going to go out there on game day -- or even practice -- and gives it everything hes got. Were very fortunate to have a guy like that on our special teams. We lost some guys who had been some key special teams players for us, so to add Blake back is really going to help us out big time." San Francisco will count on the depth at linebacker that Costanzo helps provide given All-Pro NaVorro Bowman is recovering from a left knee injury sustained in the NFC championship game. Bowman could miss at least half the season. In addition, linebacker Aldon Smith might face a multiple-game suspension from the NFL for his off-field legal issues over the past two years. Last month, Smith pleaded no contest to three felony weapons charges and two misdemeanour counts of driving under the influence. He faces a sentence ranging from spending no time in custody to a maximum of four years and four months in jail. Smith is scheduled to be sentenced July 25, two days after the 49ers open training camp in Santa Clara. He left the facility Tuesday offering a thumbs-up. "For us, its not something we worry about. Hes out here working. Hes practicing every day," Willis said. "Hes working out every day. Hes been a great teammate. Thats our focus right now: worrying about the present. When that time comes, whatever is decided, thats what it will be. Well have to get better as a football team. If hes not out there, then as with last year, some of the guys will have to step into his place and play big time." Nose tackle Ian Williams believes he will be full strength or close to it by the start of training camp next month. A first-year starter, Williams 2013 season ended with a broken leg and torn ligaments in his left ankle in Week 2 at Seattle. He has had four surgeries since, the most recent in February to have a metal plate removed. "It took a lot out of me," Williams said. "Things happen for a reason. Im back, though, Im back." NOTES: Not on the field during team drills Tuesday: WRs Stevie Johnson, Michael Crabtree and Anquan Boldin, TE Vernon Davis and RG Alex Boone. The teams mandatory minicamp is June 17-19. ... New T Jonathan Martin worked out on the side and in the weight room as he recovers from mononucleosis. ... The Niners waived guard Al Netter on Tuesday. Kendall Fuller Chiefs Jersey . -- Two out of three aint bad. Kansas City Chiefs Jerseys . 1. Did the Senators trade the wrong goalie? Lets make one thing clear: The Ottawa Senators acquired Ben Bishop from the St. Louis Blues for one reason and one reason alone. http://www.chiefsstoreauthentic.com/authentic-anthony-hitchens-chiefs-jersey/ . Millsap will miss Wednesday nights game against the Chicago Bulls. The Hawks say Millsap also will be held out on Thursday at Boston.KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The recipe for small-market success in baseball generally goes something like this: Develop talent through your farm system, strike on a couple reclamation projects, uncover a few diamonds in the rough and then make one or two big trades to put you over the top. The Kansas City Royals have followed that blueprint to near-perfection, a big reason why the long-downtrodden franchise is leading the AL Central and on the cusp of its first playoff appearance in nearly 30 years. "Its hard. Theres very little room for error when youre a small-market club," general manager Dayton Moore said in an interview with The Associated Press. Indeed, the notoriously frugal Royals play in a market a fraction of the size of Los Angeles or New York. They draw smaller crowds that pay a pittance compared to Angels and Yankees fans. And the result is a much thinner checkbook than most of their big league brethren. The Royals opening-day payroll? Just over $91 million, a record for the club. But midway through last week, the five other division leaders — the Orioles, Angels, Nationals, Brewers and Dodgers — had an average payroll of nearly $147 million. And the Tigers, who are chasing the division-leading Royals, were shelling out more than $163 million. Its the same struggle that has taken place in Tampa Bay, Minnesota, Colorado and elsewhere in recent years: the haves versus the have-nots, the well-heeled against the wishful thinkers. Yet the Royals, just like others have done in the past, are defying the odds. And with a finishing stretch filled with last-place teams, there is genuine optimism that a team that hasnt made the playoffs since 1985 might end the longest post-season drought in major pro sports. "Theres a lot of confidence," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "We knew we were capable as a group of doing special things. They had that confidence, and now that confidence level has even increased knowing they have what it takes to take this thing all the way through." So, how have the Royals done it? How have they turned around an entire franchise accustomed to losing given the financial situation inherent in the game? Well, Moore provided a step-by-step look at the recipe, and it all started with: DEVELOPING THEIR OWN PLAYERS: The Royals had one of the worst farm systems in baseball when Moore arrived in 2006. But several years of high draft picks — thank you very much, 100-loss seasons — gave him a chance to replenish. First baseman Eric Hosmer, third baseman Mike Moustakas and catcher Salvador Perez are all homegrown players who are regular starters. "We knew we had to build a strong farm system and graduate players to the major leagues, and we knew it would take some time," Moore said. "History tells us its three or four years of producing at the minor league level if everything goes right, and two to four years of playing at the major league level. We had to have patience." Thats not always easy to have, especially for a long-suffering fan base. Developing talent from within merely forms the foundation for a championship team, though. Dorian ODaniel Chiefs Jersey. Even the best GMs will occasionally miss on the draft. No, success also takes: STRIKING ON RECLAMATION PROJECTS: The Royals gave away virtually nothing a couple years ago for Jeremy Guthrie, and hes proven to be a reliable starter. They gave Jason Vargas a $32 million contract this past off-season, even though he was merely mediocre with the Angels last season, and hes outperformed the deal in almost every way. Vargas is 10-6 with a career-best 3.17 ERA. "Our scouts have made some great recommendations," Moore said, "and I do my best to weigh the information and make good decisions. And you expect them all to work, but know they wont." When they dont, poor decisions can be costly. The Royals gave forgettable pitcher Gil Meche a $55 million contract early in Moores tenure, and it set the rebuilding process back years. In other words, striking on reclamation projects takes a little of luck. So does: FINDING DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH: Small-market franchises rarely outbid big-market clubs for top international talent. The Royals cant match the Yankees when they dole out $155 million to Masahiro Tanaka, or the Rangers when they spend lavishly to bring Yu Davish over from Japan. Instead, theyve had to scour the globe for relative bargains. The Royals signed Perez as a 16-year-old from Venezuela, and now the 24-year-old catcher is a two-time All-Star. Yordano Ventura signed for a $28,000 bonus in 2008 and the rookie flamethrower is 10-9 with a 3.40 ERA. All-Star closer Greg Holland was drafted in the 10th round out of Western Carolina, and speedy outfielder Jarrod Dyson in the 50th round from a Mississippi junior college. "We all come from different places," Dyson said. "I think thats one of our strengths." The draft, the player development, the reclamation projects and diamonds in the rough — that might be enough to be competitive. But to get over the top, to truly contend, it still takes: ONE OR TWO BIG MOVES: The Royals have made two blockbuster trades since Moores arrival, and both of them have proven to be critical in establishing their winning roster. The first happened in 2010, the Royals traded Cy Young winner Zack Greinke to Milwaukee for a package of prospects that included outfielder Lorenzo Cain and shortstop Alcides Escobar, both of them now starters. The second deal happened prior to last season, when the Royals sent several top prospects to Tampa Bay for James Shields, their ace, and Wade Davis, their setup man. Whether thats enough to put the Royals over the top will be born out the final month of the regular season. But at least for now, the Royals are back to playing meaningful baseball. "Weve got a long way to go, as you know. We certainly believe in our players. We have from Day 1," Moore said. "But its still such a long, long way to go. We have a month left. We have a lot of baseball to play. We just have to keep pushing." 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