The Royals announced that right-hander Hunter Harvey has been placed on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to August 7) due to mid-back tightness. Right-hander Carlos Hernandez was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move.
The back problem has kept Harvey from pitching since August 4, so he’ll get the maximum three days of backdated IL placement time factored into a longer stint on the sidelines. Clearly Harvey and the Royals were hopeful that some rest would allow for Harvey to heal without the need for a trip to the injured list, but today’s news continues that has been a shaky beginning to the reliever’s tenure in Kansas City.
Acquired from the Nationals just under a month ago, K.C. paid a hefty price to land the righty, giving up both notable infield prospect Cayden Wallace as well as the 39th overall pick in the 2024 draft (the Royals’ Competitive Balance Round selection, which are the only types of draft picks that can be traded). The Royals were hoping that Harvey could help solidify their bullpen, but he has thus far posted a 6.35 ERA in 5 2/3 innings over four appearances, with four walks and five strikeouts.
These numbers are starkly different from the 4.20 ERA, 26.3% strikeout rate, and 6.3% walk rate Harvey posted in 45 innings for Washington prior to the trade. The small sample size of Harvey’s time with the Royals must be considered, of course, plus some extra misfortune in the form of a .389 BABIP since he went from D.C. to K.C. However, while most secondary metrics indicated that Harvey pitched better with the Nats than his 4.20 ERA indicated, he is near the bottom of the league with a 48.3% hard-hit ball rate.
It could be that all of that hard contact was bound to catch up with Harvey eventually, and it surely hasn’t helped that he might’ve been nursing a bad back during some of this time. Harvey has a long injury history mostly related to arm problems rather than back issues, so hopefully a 15-day absence will fully correct the problem.
Harvey joins a few other Royals relievers on the IL, as John Schreiber and Dan Altavilla are expected back roughly around the end of August and the team is hopeful Josh Taylor can return at some point in September. The injuries haven’t helped the Royals’ efforts to both improve their bullpen results or their broader goal of reaching the playoffs, and with Harvey out, it puts more pressure on James McArthur and new arrival Lucas Erceg to hold the fort in high-leverage situations.
Nationals had a lemon and traded it for lemonade. Still, Royals look good for post-season, so one poor trade will not damper their shine.
Just because the bozo got hurt doesn’t mean it’s a “poor trade” u cannot predict injuries
Chem
I saw him pitch for the Nationals this summer, he wasn’t the Hunter, he was the prey.
I bet Nationals would have taken either Wallace or the Competitive Balance pick, there was no need to offer both.
Orioles reliever haul at deadline is not doing all that well; in particular Soto.
It was a no brainer to see the Orioles not trade for former Os Harvey; … and Tanner Scott. Not surprised to see both struggling … and now Hunter on DL. Not surprised at all.
Oh BS. The royals didn’t just come at them out of nowhere with all that. Harvey was really good for a third of the season as a setup man (I had him in fantasy), so there were obviously other teams interested and negotiating
The sample sizes for relievers are always so small. He’s pitched less than 6 innings for his new team. And you can’t predict injuries. I thought at the time the Royals gave up a bit too much but nothing that has happened since has changed my opinion.
I agree with that. My comment is based on Harvey pitching poorly this summer, not based on a possible injury. If anything, an injury could be good news that he is not just bad.
Pretty much everything going at the deadline was going for too much save maybe Chisholm or Arozerana
Royals could have got Flaherty for just a little more, although I agree with your point more generally.
Jack Flaherty is injured
It’s unfortunate to see Hunter not do so well and land on the DL. I was hoping he would do well, I’m hoping he could recover from this early bad news. The royals cannot afford for these trades to turn out to be lemons because they are not excessively rich and are a small market ball club. Hunter’s numbers are decent so I believe he will redeem himself barring any injuries.