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Royals To Acquire Yuli Gurriel

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4:49pm: While Gurriel has been on the minor league injured list with the Braves for just over a week now, Romero reports that the veteran is en route to Houston to report to the big league Royals amid their series against the Astros. The Royals did not need to add Gurriel to their 40-man roster upon acquiring him today due to the fact that he was on a minor league deal, but they’ll need to make corresponding moves to add him to the 40-man and active rosters in order to promote him to the majors.

4:19pm: The Royals are acquiring first baseman Yuli Gurriel, according to a report from Francys Romero. Gurriel, 40, has been with the Braves on a minor league contract this year. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Braves are receiving cash considerations in return for Gurriel’s services. Despite the trade deadline having passed last month, Gurriel was still eligible to be traded because he hasn’t played in the major leagues yet this season. The Royals subsequently announced the move.

Gurriel, 40, has played in the majors each of the last eight seasons after coming over following 15 years in Cuba’s Serie Nacional. Most of the veteran’s time in the majors was spent in Houston, for whom he played first base with occasional cameos at second and third. In seven years with the Astros, Gurriel slashed a solid .284/.328/.448 with a wRC+ of 111. That includes an excellent 2021 season with the club where he hit .319 en route to the AL batting title and earned his only career Gold Glove award. After a down 2022 season, Gurriel departed the Astros (who replaced him at first base with an ill-fated contract for Jose Abreu) but found a roster spot in Miami as a part-time first baseman and DH.

The veteran’s time in Miami did not produce the bounceback season he was surely hoping for, as Gurriel slashed just .245/.304/.359 (76 wRC+) with a career-high 13.4% strikeout rate and a career-worst .114 isolated slugging percentage. A second straight difficult season left Gurriel unable to find a roster spot ahead of his age-40 season, leaving him to catch on with Atlanta back in April. With the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Gwinnett, Gurriel has looked impressive with a .292/.378/.495 slash line with 12 homers, 18 doubles, and a triple in just 333 trips to the plate this year.

Amid injuries around the Braves infield to Austin Riley and Ozzie Albies and that strong performance, the Braves even began to experiment with Gurriel at second and third base as they seemingly toyed with the possibility of a big league call-up for the veteran, though big league deals for Whit Merrifield and Gio Urshela closed the doors to joining the major league club in fairly short order. While Gurriel won’t make the majors with the Braves this year, another door has now opened up for the veteran as he searches for an opening to participate in his ninth major league season. Much like the Braves, the Royals also lost a key piece of their infield mix to injury recently when first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino suffered a broken thumb that Kansas City announced yesterday will sideline him for six to eight weeks.

That leaves a young Royals club that’s surging toward what would be their first playoff appearance since their World Series championship back in 2015 without one of their top hitters, and while the team added veterans Tommy Pham and Robbie Grossman to their outfield mix earlier today those moves did little to shore up first base. Gurriel does just that by adding a longtime veteran at the position to the fold, offering them additional depth and a contact-oriented bat at the position down the stretch. The Royals have been relying on a combination of Nick Loftin and veteran backstop Salvador Perez on days where he isn’t behind the plate to take over for Pasquantino since he went on the shelf.

Vinnie Pasquantino To Miss Six To Eight Weeks With Broken Thumb

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3:30pm: The Royals announced that Pasquantino has been placed on the 10-day injured list with Loftin recalled as the corresponding move.

10:30am: The Royals announced that first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino has a broken right thumb. He is scheduled for further testing today but the club says he won’t be able to return for six to eight weeks. Given that timeline, he’ll miss the remainder of the regular season and would need the club to put together a deep postseason run to be a factor late in October.

During last night’s game against the Astros, Yainer Diaz hit a comebacker to right-hander Lucas Erceg, who attempted to field the ball with his bare hand. Erceg knocked the ball down, picked it up and fired to first. The ball arrived at the bag around the same time as Diaz, who made contact with Pasquantino as the first baseman attempted to field the throw (Video link from MLB.com). Both Erceg and Pasquantino were visibly injured and removed from the game after the play. Manager Matt Quatraro told reporters after the game that both players would undergo X-rays, per broadcaster Joel Goldberg on X.

The Royals haven’t yet provided an update on Erceg, but the news on Pasquantino is devastating. He’s been a key bat for the club this year, hitting 19 home runs while limiting his strikeout rate to 12.8%. His .262/.315/.446 batting line translates to a wRC+ of 106.

That’s only six percent better than league average but the Royals have had a fairly top-heavy offense this year. Bobby Witt Jr. has been elite and Salvador Perez has been great, but there’s a big drop-off without Pasquantino in the mix. The only others players on the team with an above-average wRC+ this year are Freddy Fermin, Michael Massey and Paul DeJong. Fermin’s output is fuelled by a .344 batting average on balls in play that he will struggle to maintain while DeJong has been a boom-and-bust players for years, alternating between home run surges and big strikeout woes.

The lineup looks a lot less imposing without Pasquantino in it and the Royals will now have to proceed in his absence. Despite that fairly middling offense, the club has been able to ride Witt’s amazing season and a strong rotation to a record of 75-60. They are in the middle of a three-way battle for the Central division, currently 1.5 games back of the Guardians but two ahead of the Twins. Both the Royals and Twins currently hold Wild Card spots, with Boston 3.5 games back of Minnesota for the final slot.

The club will now have to navigate the remainder of the regular season and at least the beginning of the playoffs while figuring out a solution at first base. Perez has gotten into 35 games there, including 31 starts, usually with Pasquantino slotting in as the designated hitter. Perhaps Perez will play first more often but Fermin won’t be able to catch every day, so Perez will have to be behind the plate from time to time.

Perhaps the club will turn to one of Nick Loftin or CJ Alexander, as both are multi-positional guys capable of playing first and each is having a good season in Triple-A. Loftin is slashing .331/.422/.509 for the Storm Chasers while Alexander is hitting .303/.352/.554. But neither player has hit in the majors yet, as Loftin has a line of .236/.316/.305 in 232 big league plate appearances while Alexander slashed .125/.125/.125 through his eight trips to the major league plate.

The Royals could look outside the organization for more offense, though their options will be limited now that the trade deadline has passed. Players like Tommy Pham and Robbie Grossman have reportedly been put on waivers this week. Neither is a real first base solution but they could conceivably help with the DH spot. It’s likely there are other names on the wire that haven’t been reported. Any player claimed prior to September 1 is playoff-eligible with his new team.

The next few days should shed some light on how the Royals respond. For Pasquantino, it’ll be a second consecutive season marked by injury. His 2023 campaign was ended in June by shoulder surgery, limiting him to just 61 games. He got into 131 contests this year but he won’t be able to increase that number now. He is slated to qualify for arbitration after 2025 and free agency after 2028.

Royals Place Michael Lorenzen On Injured List

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The Royals have placed right-hander Michael Lorenzen on the 15-day injured list due to a strained left hamstring, per a team announcement. Righty Steven Cruz has been recalled from Triple-A Omaha in his place. Lorenzen sustained the injury yesterday when covering first base on a grounder.

Acquired in a deadline swap that sent lefty reliever Walter Pennington to the Rangers, Lorenzen has been a boon to the Kansas City rotation. In five starts, he’s pitched 24 1/3 innings of 1.85 ERA ball, striking out 17% of his opponents against a 10% walk rate. Metrics like FIP (4.20) and SIERA (5.11) aren’t nearly as bullish, given the righty’s pedestrian strikeout, walk and ground-ball rates.

Even if Lorenzen can’t be reasonably expected to continue producing a sub-2.00 ERA, the results thus far have been an unequivocal jolt for a team that had been struggling to get production from fifth starter Alec Marsh. Kansas City has won each of Lorenzen’s last three starts, and there’s little blame to be placed on him for the team’s loss in his Royals debut; he tossed 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball in a game the Royals eventually lost by a score of 6-5.

The Royals didn’t provide a timetable for Lorenzen’s return, but he’ll be down for at least two weeks. The aforementioned Marsh is the likeliest candidate to step back into the rotation in his stead. In 20 starts this season (plus one relief appearance), the 26-year-old Marsh has tossed 106 innings with a 4.67 earned run average.

Marsh’s 21.3% strikeout rate and 7.4% walk rate are both better than Lorenzen’s season-long marks between Texas and Kansas City, but he also faded significantly following a strong start to the season. Over his past eight trips to the mound, he’s been rocked for a 6.46 ERA and surrendered seven homers in 39 innings (1.62 HR/9). Marsh was sharp in four Triple-A starts this month after being optioned (1.80 ERA, 19-to-5 K/BB ratio in 15 innings), and the Royals will now need to hope for more of that type of output while Lorenzen mends.

As for the 25-year-old Cruz, this’ll be his first look with the Royals in 2024. He made his big league debut last year, pitching 12 2/3 innings with a 4.97 ERA and a 15-to-11 K/BB ratio in that short time. Kansas City acquired the hard-throwing righty in the 2022-23 offseason trade that sent Michael A. Taylor to the division-rival Twins. He’s pitched exclusively out of the Omaha bullpen this season and recorded a 3.35 ERA with a 26.6% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate in 48 1/3 innings. Cruz’s four-seamer has averaged 96.9 mph in Triple-A this season, and he’s primarily paired that pitch with a slider that sits at 89.4 mph.

Royals Place Hunter Renfroe On 10-Day Injured List

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The Royals announced that outfielder Hunter Renfroe was placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain.  Outfielder Tyler Gentry was called up from Triple-A Omaha to take Renfroe’s spot on the active roster.

Renfroe was subbed out in the ninth inning of yesterday’s 11-2 Royals loss to the Phillies, and the early exit didn’t seem unusual given the game’s lopsided nature.  However, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anne Rogers) today that Renfroe had a minor tweak of the hamstring that led the team to put him on the IL as something of a precautionary measure.  Bringing Gentry up also keeps the Royals at full roster strength during a crowded section of the schedule — today is the third game in a stretch of 14 games in 13 days for Kansas City, counting tomorrow’s double-header with the Guardians.

This is the second time Renfroe has been on the IL this season, as he previously had a minimal 10-game absence after suffering a bone bruise on his left foot in June.  Since returning from that prior IL stint, Renfroe has hit a respectable .274/.351/.433 with six home runs over 185 plate appearances, helping get himself on track after an ice-cold start in the first two-plus months of the season.  That rough start is still dragging down Renfroe’s overall numbers, as he has a below-average 97 wRC+ from a .237/.312/.398 slash line over 372 PA.

Given how much better Renfroe has been swinging the bat over the last two months, the Royals can ill-afford to lose their starting right fielder for any lengthy amount of time as the club competes for a playoff spot.  The left-handed hitting Adam Frazier has gotten the next highest amount of right-field playing time as a complement to Renfroe’s righty bat, and K.C. could opt to give Dairon Blanco more time in right along with Frazier.

Gentry also figures to be part of the mix in his first taste of Major League action.  Gentry was a third-round pick for the Royals in the 2020 draft and he has spent the last two seasons at Triple-A, hitting .254/.360/.424 with 29 homers and 19 steals (out of 23 attempts) over 995 plate appearances with Omaha.  Kansas City added him to the 40-man roster last November in advance of the Rule 5 Draft.

MLB Pipeline ranks the 25-year-old Gentry 15th on their list of Royals prospects, with a 60-grade throwing arm that has resulted in most of his minor league career spent in the right field position.  Gentry has had a tendency to hit better later in the season during his time in the minors, so he could be peaking at the right time for his debut in the Show, or he might naturally need another adjustment period as he sees Major League pitching for the first time.  Gentry is considered more of a contact hitter than a power bat, which doesn’t entirely fit the profile of a slugging corner outfield type.

Royals Place Hunter Harvey On 15-Day Injured List

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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.

Royals Release Tyler Duffey

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The Royals have released right-hander Tyler Duffey, according to a report from Robert Murray of FanSided this afternoon. Duffey pitched out of the club’s bullpen earlier this year but was outrighted off the 40-man roster back in May.

The 31-year-old is a veteran of 10 big league seasons who first made his debut with the Twins back in 2015. A starting pitcher back then, Duffey impressed in ten starts with Minnesota in his rookie season as he posted a 3.10 ERA and 3.24 FIP in 58 innings of work down the stretch. Unfortunately for Duffey, he struggled badly in his first full season in a rotation role as a big leaguer. The righty made 26 starts for the Twins in 2016, but he posted an atrocious 6.43 ERA with a lackluster 4.73 FIP in his 133 innings of work. That performance ended his days as a starter pitcher, but after some mixed results early in his move to the bullpen he emerged as a steady contributor in the Twins’ relief corps.

From 2019 to 2021, Duffey posted an excellent 2.69 ERA with a 3.16 FIP while striking out an excellent 29.8% of batters in 144 innings of work. Those impressive numbers led the Twins to bring Duffey back in 2022 on a one-year, $3.8MM contract signed just before the non-tender deadline, but that move did not end up working out well for Minnesota. Duffey wound up regressing significantly as his ERA ballooned to 4.91 in 44 innings of work while his strikeout rate plummeted to just 21.1%. Duffey’s struggles eventually proved significant enough that the Twins opted to part ways with the righty entirely, designating him for assignment in early August of that year.

The righty briefly caught on with the Yankees and Rangers late in the year after being cut loose by the Twins but wouldn’t appear in the big leagues again until October of the following year when he was briefly brought up by the Cubs nearly eight months after he signed a minor league deal to pitch in the organization. While he managed just two innings of work in Chicago, Duffey posted a respectable 3.77 ERA in 45 1/3 innings of work at Triple-A for the club’s Iowa affiliate last year. That performance was enough to earn Duffey another minor league deal last winter, this time in the Royals organization.

Since signing with the Royals, 2024 has proven to be a rollercoaster year for Duffey. The right-hander underwent a procedure to treat melanoma during Spring Training after a cancerous mole was discovered during his physical after signing with Kansas City, and while he didn’t make the Opening Day roster he did get selected to the big leagues in late April. Unfortunately, the right-hander’s brief stay in the majors did not go well as he surrendered a 5.00 ERA in nine appearances and walked 19% of the batters he faced. Duffey was outrighted to the minors in late May and has pitched to an excellent 2.01 ERA in 22 1/3 innings of work since his demotion.

He’ll now head back into free agency in search of an opportunity to crack a big league roster elsewhere. Given the righty’s track record and success in the minors this year, it’s certainly feasible to imagine a team being interested in bringing Duffey into the fold at least as a non-roster depth option, and it’s possible a team could even be willing to give him a shot at the big league level in fairly short order.

Marlins Claim John McMillon

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The Marlins have claimed right-hander John McMillon off waivers from the Royals, according to announcements from both clubs. The righty was designated for assignment when Kansas City acquired infielder Paul DeJong. Miami had open roster spots after its deadline selloff and their 40-man roster count goes to 39.

McMillon, now 26, wasn’t selected in the shortened five-round 2020 draft and then signed with the Royals as an undrafted free agent. He is a pitcher who was been considered to have a wide range of potential outcomes because he can regularly send batters back to the dugout but also to first base. He has 129 2/3 innings on his minor league résumé with a 4.79 earned run average. He has struck out 35.2% of batters faced in that time but also given out walks at a massive 17.7% clip.

He was selected to the Royals’ roster in August of last year and pitched four major league innings for them. He allowed one earned run and struck out eight opponents without issuing a walk. But he’s been on optional assignment for all of this year, pitching 30 1/3 innings of the minor league total mentioned above. He’s still walking 17.7% of batters that step into the box but his 23.8% strikeout rate is a bit of a dip from previous seasons, leading to a 6.53 ERA.

It’s understandable that the Royals gave up on a pitcher that clearly still needs some fine tuning, while he’s a sensible flier for the Fish. McMillon can still be optioned for the rest of this season and two more campaigns. They just traded away A.J. Puk, Tanner Scott, Bryan Hoeing, JT Chargois and Huascar Brazobán in the past few days, blowing a huge hole in their bullpen. McMillon is an upside flier with plenty of time for the Marlins to unlock it.

MLBTR Podcast: Trade Deadline Recap

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams and Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

  • Were the prospect prices high in this year’s trades? Is this a new normal due to the expanded playoffs creating a seller’s market? (2:15)
  • The three-team trade involving the Dodgers, White Sox, Cardinals, Erick Fedde, Miguel Vargas and others (15:40)
  • The Rays and Cubs, the buy-sell tightrope and the trade involving Isaac Paredes and Christopher Morel (29:30)
  • The Astros acquire Yusei Kikuchi from the Blue Jays for a three-player package and the connection to the the Dodgers acquiring Jack Flaherty from the Tigers but the Yankees reportedly being scared off by his medicals (48:00)
  • The Guardians acquire Alex Cobb from the Giants and acquire Lane Thomas from the Nationals (58:35)
  • The Orioles acquire Trevor Rogers from the Marlins and acquire Zach Eflin from the Rays (1:09:10)
  • Will teams have to be more aggressive in the offseason going forward if the expanded playoffs will make less good players available at the deadline? (1:20:35)
  • The Rockies and Angels held onto a lot of trade candidates (1:23:35)
  • The Marlins leaned in hard to seller status (1:31:40)
  • The Padres built a super bullpen (1:44:50)
  • The Braves acquire Jorge Soler from the Giants (1:47:40)
  • The Royals acquire Lucas Erceg from the Athletics (1:54:40)

Check out our past episodes!

  • Trade Deadline Preview – listen here
  • Top Trade Candidates, Hunter Harvey To KC And The Current State Of The Rays And Mets – listen here
  • Brewers’ Pitching Needs, Marlins Rumors And The Nats Prepare To Sell – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Royals Acquire Paul DeJong

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4:01PM: The trade has been officially announced, and the Royals have designated righty John McMillon for assignment to create roster space for DeJong.  McMillon made his MLB debut with four innings of 2.25 ERA ball with K.C. in 2023, but has struggled in posting a 6.53 ERA across 30 1/3 innings with Triple-A Omaha this year.

2:51PM: The Royals have bolstered their infield depth by acquiring shortstop Paul DeJong from the White Sox, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (via X).  Right-handed pitching prospect Jarold Rosado is headed to the Sox in return, as per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times.  The deal will become official after a medical review.  Since the Royals and White Sox are playing each other tonight in Chicago, DeJong might be able to make a quick debut for his new club against his old club.

In a dismal White Sox season, DeJong has been a relatively bright spot, hitting .228/.275/.430 with a team-leading 18 homers in 363 plate appearances.  While his 95 wRC+ is still below the league average, it still represents a significant step up from the 73 wRC+ DeJong posted over the 2020-23 seasons, while hitting .200/.273/.352 in 1213 PA for the Cardinals, Blue Jays, and Giants.

DeJong’s strikeout and walk rates are among the worst in baseball, but he still makes a decent amount of hard contact and can generate power when he does square up.  Beyond the power-centric offensive profile, DeJong doesn’t offer much in the field, as his glovework has sharply declined after once being one of the sport’s better defensive shortstops.

While the Royals are more than set already at shortstop with Bobby Witt Jr., DeJong brings some extra pop to a K.C. team that ranks 19th of 30 teams in homers.  Witt and Salvador Perez (each with 19 round-trippers) are the only Royals players with more home runs than DeJong, so he could bring some power off the bench, or in a part-time capacity at second or third base.

The right-handed hitting DeJong could pair with the left-handed hitting Michael Massey for a natural platoon at the keystone, or DeJong could get some at-bats ahead of the offensively-struggling Maikel Garcia at third base.  DeJong hasn’t played much second base in his career and had never played any third before this season, but another infield position might be the better option given the decline in his shortstop work.

DeJong is a free agent after the season, making him one of the more clear-cut players to be dealt by the rebuilding White Sox.  The infielder (who turns 31 later this week) signed a one-year, $1.75MM deal with Chicago last winter, so the remaining $580K or so on his deal represents a pretty small financial burden for Kansas City to assume.

Rosado just turned 22 earlier this month, and the former international signing has a 1.85 ERA, 29.4% strikeout rate, and 7.2% walk rate over 39 relief innings for A-level Columbia this season.  Injuries cost Rosado the entire 2022 season and limited him to 10 innings in 2021 and 26 innings last year, but he has looked much sharper and reduced his walk rate significantly in his first healthy pro season.

Royals Acquire Lucas Erceg

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The Royals have acquired right-hander Lucas Erceg from the Athletics, per announcements from both clubs. The A’s receive right-handers Mason Barnett and Will Klein as well as outfielder Jared Dickey.

Erceg took an unusual path to being a midseason trade target. He was drafted by the Brewers as a third baseman back in 2016 but flamed out as a hitter and eventually moved to the mound. In 2021, he tossed 47 2/3 innings at the Double-A level, allowing 5.29 earned runs per nine. As you might expect for a new convert to pitching, control was an issue at first. Erceg gave out walks to 16.4% of batters faced that year but he also got strikeouts at a decent 21.1% clip and grounders at a strong 56.8% rate.

He has generally made positive progress in each season since as he has become more accustomed to his new career path. In 2022, he logged 61 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A with a 4.55 ERA, a decent step forward from the prior season. His strikeout and walk rates also improved to 24.4% and 13.1%, respectively.

In 2023, he started the year back at Triple-A before he was traded from Milwaukee to Oakland in a cash deal, with the A’s adding him to their roster shortly thereafter. He tossed his first 55 major league innings last year with a 4.75 ERA, 27.1% strikeout rate, 14.3% walk rate and 46.1% ground ball rate. The control was still an issue but it was an encouraging debut nonetheless, especially for a guy with such a limited track record on the mound. He averaged 98 miles per hour with both his four-seam fastball and his sinker while also throwing a changeup, slider and cutter.

His second major league season has seen him continue to grow. His 26.3% strikeout rate is a slight drop from last year but he has cut his walk rate all the way down to 8.3%, with his ground ball rate also creeping up to 50.5%. That’s resulted in a 3.68 ERA in 36 2/3 innings, with Erceg racking up three saves and 12 holds on the year.

The A’s didn’t necessarily have to trade Erceg now. He came into this season with less than a year of service time, meaning he can still be retained for five seasons after the current campaign, but there are also logical reasons why they were tempted to make him available.

Due to his unusual trajectory, Erceg is now 29 years old. With the A’s deep in a rebuild, he will be in his early 30s and into his arbitration seasons by the time they are likely to be competitive again. Relievers are generally considered pretty volatile in general and that might be even more true with Erceg, who has such limited experience relative to most of his peers. Rather than hold him and take the risk that his performance takes a downturn or he suffers an injury, the A’s decided to make him available at this deadline, while the industry consensus has generally been that the acquisition costs for pitching have been quite high.

The Royals have surged back into contention after many years of struggles and have been aggressive in bolstering their roster for a playoff push. The bullpen has naturally been a target area for the club this year, as their relievers have a collective 4.30 ERA that places them 24th in the majors. Their 18.6% strikeout rate is actually second to last, ahead of only the Rockies.

They acquired Hunter Harvey from the Nationals recently and this trade for Erceg will give them a couple of fresh arms who both have big punchout potential. They also added Michael Lorenzen as a swingman to bolster the group in general, as he can help them in multiple ways.

Considering the A’s just got Erceg in a cash deal last May, they are likely quite happy to cash him in for three younger players barely over a year later. Barnett, 23, was a third-round pick of the Royals in 2022. He made 23 starts last year between High-A and Double-A with a 3.30 ERA, 28.8% strikeout rate and 10.5% walk rate. His ERA has jumped to 4.91 at Double-A this year but with similar peripherals. His .336 batting average on balls in play and 64.2% strand rate are probably masking those underlying metrics, as he has a 27.4% strikeout rate and 9% walk rate. Baseball America currently lists him as the #11 prospect in the Royals’ system while FanGraphs has him slightly higher at #7.

Klein, 24, is a reliever who made his major league debut this year. He has 5 2/3 innings in the show so far with a 6.35 ERA. Command appears to be the biggest issue with him. Since being selected in the fifth-round of the 2020 draft, he has tossed 216 minor league innings with a 5.17 ERA. His 30.7% strikeout rate is quite impressive but he’s also given free passes to 16.1% of batters that have come to the plate. BA and FG both put him at #16 in the system.

Dickey, 22, was just drafted in the 11th round last year. He’s slashing .269/.360/.424 in High-A this year for a wRC+ of 127 and has also stolen eight bases. Neither BA nor FG have him on their KC prospect lists.

Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported on X that Erceg was headed to the Royals. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported the return on X.

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