Lucas Erceg got his first legitimate run as a closer after the Royals acquired him from the A’s at last year’s deadline. The flamethrowing righty took to that role, working to a 2.88 earned run average while striking out 32% of opponents over 25 regular season innings. Erceg recorded 11 saves and six holds while only surrendering two leads. He went 3-3 on postseason save opportunities while tossing six innings of two-run ball in his first playoff action.
Despite Erceg’s excellent finish, the Royals made a significant move at the back of their bullpen this winter. They signed All-Star righty Carlos Estévez to a two-year, $22MM free agent deal. That appeared to be a fallback after the Royals missed in a couple bigger swings at an outfield acquisition. Estévez has been a closer between the Angels and Phillies over the past two seasons. His 57 saves since the start of 2023 ranks ninth in MLB.
The Royals haven’t made an official decision about who’ll take the ninth inning this year. It doesn’t seem there’ll be any animosity on Erceg’s part if the team defers to Estévez’s experience. “I don’t really care what my role is going to be,” Erceg told Anne Rogers of MLB.com. He praised GM J.J. Picollo and manager Matt Quatraro for giving him a heads-up that the organization was closing in on a deal with Estévez before the signing was announced. Erceg said his primary focus is on helping K.C. return to the postseason whether as a closer or in a leverage role in the seventh and eighth innings.
Kansas City has thrown a decent amount of resources at fixing a bullpen that was a major weakness in the first half of last season. They acquired Hunter Harvey from the Nationals last summer, but a back injury essentially tanked his second half. Harvey has battled myriad injuries over his career, but he’s currently healthy and ticketed for a setup role. Erceg could join him as a bridge to Estévez at the back end. They’re still a little light from the left side. Angel Zerpa and Sam Long are coming off productive seasons but don’t have huge bat-missing upside. It’s nevertheless a far stronger group than they carried into 2024.
Along with Estévez, Jonathan India was Kansas City’s other significant offseason acquisition. He’ll slot atop the lineup while potentially moving around the diamond defensively. Both India and incumbent second baseman Michael Massey are likely to get reps at third base and in left field in addition to their work at the keystone. They’ve each gotten starts in left field and at second base in the first week of camp, with India picking up an appearance at third base as well. Jaylon Thompson of the Kansas City Star writes that they’re likely to continue alternating positions every few games this spring.
In one injury development, depth outfielder Dairon Blanco has been sidelined by soreness in his right Achilles. An MRI this week revealed calcification in the tendon, Quatraro told reporters (via the MLB.com injury tracker). That’ll shut Blanco down for a few days but shouldn’t be a major concern. The speedster stole 31 bases in 38 attempts over 88 games last season.
The AL Central is going to be wild this year. Detroit has a strong roster, as does Cleveland and KC. You can’t count out Minnesota either. It’s going to come down to who can stay the healthiest and which team makes the best moves at the trade deadline to improve some of their shortcomings.
If KC is still in at the trade deadline, they’ll most likely be looking for OF help. OF is KC’s biggest weakness right now. The AL East should be very competitive too this year. There’s a chance that all AL East teams finish at .500 or better this year.
Seems you forgot the mention the White Sox.
At this point, they might be better off starting Rave and Gentry. Hopefully Gavin Cross keeps improving as well.