When Torii Hunter gave the Kansas City Royals four bottles of champagne this weekend, he was fulfilling a promise he made after the Royals swept the Detroit Tigers last September, helping the Twins win the division title. But with that gesture, Hunter also violated little-known MLB rule 21-b. The rule states, "Any player or person connected with a Club who shall offer or give any gift or reward to a player or person connected with another Club for services rendered ... in defeating or attempting to defeat a competing Club ... shall be declared ineligible for not less than three years." The violation was first reported by "The Cheater's Guide to Baseball Blog." Monday afternoon, the Twins received a telephone call from the commissioner's office. The Twins contacted the Royals, who agreed to send all four bottles of Dom Perignon back to Minnesota. Yes, Twins General Manager Terry Ryan said, those bottles are still unopened. "I'm to blame as much as anybody because I didn't know the rule," Ryan said. "We'll end up righting the wrong. We've already contacted the Royals. They're going to return the goods, and hopefully that'll be the end of it." A suspension for Hunter seems unlikely, but he still could be fined. The Royals also could face penalties for accepting the gift, under the same rule. Ryan called Hunter's gesture "an honest mistake."