- Bobby Witt Jr. is day-to-day with right hamstring tightness, as the Royals made what the club described as a “precautionary” removal of the star rookie after the first inning of today’s game. Tests didn’t reveal any significant damage, Witt told the Kansas City Star’s Lynn Worthy and other reporters, but it would seem likely that the Royals will give Witt a game or two off to heal up. Heralded as one of baseball’s top prospects, Witt has hit .258/.301/.459 over his first 379 PA in the big leagues.
Royals Rumors
Yankees “Serious Contenders” For Andrew Benintendi
While we know the Yankees have significant interest in superstar Juan Soto, the odds of a deal are long enough that New York has to explore other potential upgrades as well. The latest report pegs the Yankees to be “serious contenders” for Royals’ outfielder Andrew Benintendi, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter).
The Yankees currently have the highest-producing outfield in the Majors by the measure of fWAR, but the group has been buoyed by Aaron Judge’s MVP-type season. An addition could help secure the club against the possibility of injury heading into the postseason. A left-handed outfielder bat would also help to balance a lineup that leans to the right.
Given the struggles of Joey Gallo (88 wRC+), acquiring Benintendi wouldn’t necessarily take the Yankees out of the running for Soto, though that situation is hardly worth a consideration until the Yankees have at least one of the outfielders in hand. Furthermore, the Yankees could simply stick with Aaron Hicks, who has turned it around to post a 110 wRC+ on the year. Hicks has struggled to stay healthy throughout his career, so the Yankees might simply be seeking further depth in the outfield to protect against the worst-case scenario.
With the Royals out of the race and Benintendi heading towards free agency, he should be a relatively low-cost addition for some contender this trade season. Even considering his strong season (128 wRC+), acquiring Benintendi would cost only a shade of what it would take to acquire Soto.
Of course, it wasn’t long ago that reports had the Yankees out on Benintendi because of his vaccination status. The Yankees only have three games remaining in Toronto, however, so it wouldn’t necessarily become an issue until possibly the postseason.
Royals, First-Rounder Gavin Cross Agree To Terms
The Royals have agreed to terms with #9 overall pick Gavin Cross, reports Jim Callis of MLB.com (Twitter link). He’ll receive a bonus of $5.2029MM, the slot value associated with the selection.
Cross, an outfielder from Virginia Tech, was always expected to go right in the range with which he was actually selected. Each of Baseball America, ESPN, The Athletic and MLB Pipeline placed him as the #10 player in the class on their pre-draft rankings. FanGraphs rated Cross as the draft’s #15 talent. Evaluators were generally aligned on his projection, praising his combination of bat-to-ball skills and power upside. Regarded as a possible above-average hitter with above-average or plus power, Cross is one of the safer offensive prospects in the class.
The 21-year-old played center field during his junior season in Blacksburg. Evaluators suggest his average speed means he’s likelier to move to right field as a professional, but the general belief is he’s a good enough offensive player to withstand a move down the defensive spectrum. Cross hit .340/.412/.609 through three seasons with the Hokies, including a .328/.411/.660 line as a junior to help Virginia Tech to superregionals.
Jake Brentz Undergoes UCL Reconstruction Surgery
The Royals announced that left-hander Jake Brentz had successful left elbow UCL reconstruction surgery.
The club hasn’t yet provided any further details about the surgery or the expected recovery timeline for Brentz. Although “Tommy John surgery” is the colloquial name for surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament, the club didn’t use that terminology in their announcement. Tommy John usually comes with a recovery period of 12 to 18 months, but there are other procedures that deal with damaged UCLs. For instance, Sean Doolittle of the Nationals just underwent an internal brace procedure that has a recovery timeline of five-to-six months.
Regardless of how long Brentz is out, it seems like 2022 will go down as a lost season at the very least. The timing is unfortunate for Brentz, as he was looking to build off a strong debut in 2021. He threw 64 innings out of the Royals’ bullpen last year with a 3.66 ERA, 49% ground ball rate and 27.3% strikeout rate, though a high 13.3% walk rate.
This year, he was able to throw 5 1/3 innings for the club before landing on the injured list in late April. He was shelled to the tune of 14 earned runs in that time, leading to an unsightly 23.63 ERA, though it seems fair to surmise that his damaged ligament deserves some of the blame for that. He is already on the 60-day injured list, having been transferred there in June, meaning this won’t have an impact on roster construction for Kansas City.
Best Fits For A Whit Merrifield Trade
For the past few seasons, there’s been loose deadline speculation around the possibility of the Royals dealing Whit Merrifield. To this point, Kansas City has resisted that possibility. A career-long member of an organization that is generally among the game’s most loyal, Merrifield was a late-bloomer who signed an affordable early-career extension. That allowed the Royals to keep him at little cost through his prime seasons, which included consecutive MLB-leading hit totals in 2018-19 and a pair of All-Star appearances.
As recently as last season, Merrifield participated in the Midsummer Classic. He went on to appear in all 162 games, led baseball with 42 doubles and swiped an AL-best 40 bases. The Royals hoped he’d be a top-of-the-order sparkplug for a more competitive team in 2022, but that hasn’t panned out. Not only has the team found itself 20 games below .500 at the All-Star Break, Merrrifield is having a career-worst season. He owns a .240/.292/.343 line through 373 plate appearances, offense that checks in 22 percentage points below league average by measure of wRC+.
Merrifield is signed through the end of next season. The Royals restructured his deal during Spring Training, so he’s making $7MM this year (about $2.73MM of which will be paid out after the August 2 deadline) and $6.75MM next season. The deal also contains a $500K buyout on a 2024 mutual option. With the affordable control and Merrifield’s trade value at a low ebb, the Royals don’t have to force a trade over the next two weeks. Nevertheless, Jon Heyman of the New York Post wrote last month the club was more amenable to dealing him than they’ve been in years past.
Even during a down year, Merrifield should draw attention from other clubs. He remains a high-contact bat and an excellent baserunner, having stolen 14 more bags while being caught just twice. He’s typically a solid defender at both second base and in the corner outfield, although public metrics are down a bit on his first-half performance in that regard. Merrifield has also looked more like himself of late, hitting .269/.322/.392 with 15 doubles and 11 steals in 65 games since the start of May. His April was abysmal, but he’s been productive for the past two and a half months and has a quality career body of work.
If the Royals were to seriously market Merrifield over the next two weeks, which teams stand out as the best fits? With a season and a half of remaining control, it’ll have to be a team that realistically feels it can compete by 2023. The Pirates, Reds, A’s, Cubs, Diamondbacks and Nationals can probably be ruled out on that alone. The Rockies and Rangers have their sights set on competing next year, but neither is likely to preemptively acquire a second baseman this summer. The Tigers are perhaps a bit more plausible given the tough season they’ve gotten from Jonathan Schoop, but they’re going to be more focused on dealing some players than acquiring a notable veteran from a division rival with an eye towards 2023.
Of the remaining two-thirds of the league’s teams, which seem likeliest to be in touch with Royals president of baseball operations Dayton Moore and general manager J.J. Piccolo?
Best Fits
Mariners — Seattle has won 14 in a row to go into the All-Star Break owners of a 51-42 record. It’s still an uphill battle to catch the Astros in the AL West, but they’re firmly in the Wild Card mix and likely to look for ways to upgrade over the next two weeks. No position stands out more than second base, where Seattle has gotten a collective .212/.279/.299 line. Offseason acquisition Adam Frazier has underwhelmed, as has last year’s deadline pickup Abraham Toro. The M’s could move Ty France to second base, but he’s better suited for first base/designated hitter duty. Frazier’s headed towards free agency after this season anyhow, and Merrifield could be an affordable upgrade for both the remainder of this season and next.
White Sox — The White Sox have had a generally underwhelming season, but they’re coming out of the Break just three games back in the AL Central. The second base tandem of Leury García and Josh Harrison hasn’t panned out, although Harrison has been alright over the past month. Merrifield would still be a definitive upgrade there, and his relatively modest salary should be particularly appealing to a team already sporting a franchise-record payroll. Would the Royals be willing to deal Merrifield inside the division? They’d surely like to compete next season, so perhaps that’ll give them some hesitance, but he’d only be under contract for one season of plausible contention.
Dodgers — Heyman reported last week that the Dodgers have already been in touch with the Royals. Second base isn’t really a need for L.A., with former top prospect Gavin Lux enjoying his awaited breakout season. Lux has seen some time in left field of late while the Dodgers have been without Chris Taylor, though, and their offseason pickup of Hanser Alberto as a righty-hitting utilityman hasn’t worked. Landing Merrifield may lead to a bit of a position player surplus once Taylor returns from the injured list, but the Dodgers haven’t been deterred by having “too much talent” in recent years.
Giants — The Giants are in a similar boat as their archrivals. They have a handful of second base-caliber players, and righties Wilmer Flores and Thairo Estrada are playing well. Tommy La Stella is off to a rough start after opening the year on the injured list, and the Giants have already been tied to Brandon Drury. That suggests they’re open to adding another righty-swinging versatile infielder. Merrifield doesn’t have Drury’s power, but his high-contact game may be a better fit for Oracle Park.
Brewers — The Brewers are expected to look for another bat this summer as they battle the Cardinals at the top of the NL Central. Kolten Wong has been a slightly below-average hitter this year, and his public defensive metrics have tumbled. That’s not too dissimilar from Merrifield, and perhaps Milwaukee will feel he’s not much (if any) of an upgrade over Wong. However, Bob Nightengale of USA Today recently wrote that the Brew Crew could listen to offers on Wong even as they look for other ways to add to the offense.
Longer Shots
Orioles — The Orioles are within 3 1/2 games of a Wild Card spot despite their second basemen hitting only .196/.269/.363. Rougned Odor is just a stopgap, and the O’s are likely to look for a better second baseman this offseason. Actually reaching the playoffs this year is unlikely, but Merrifield is affordable and would be a good fit for a 2023 team that could more earnestly compete. With the 2022 club at least hanging around, there’s an argument for GM Mike Elias and his staff to strike a little early for a controllable player.
Angels — It’s a similar argument for the Angels, although their involvement in the bidding would be strictly about 2023. The Halos have gotten nothing from second base this year, one of the reasons they’re set to miss the playoffs again. Next season will be a turning point, with Shohei Ohtani slated to reach free agency after the year. They’re going to have to aggressively address the roster’s flaws over the next eight months. Nothing stops them from adding controllable players this summer while still dealing rentals like Noah Syndergaard and Michael Lorenzen.
Rays — The Rays haven’t gotten much out of second base this year, but that’s largely because Brandon Lowe missed more than a month. With Lowe back, the keystone is no longer a concern, although Tampa Bay’s myriad outfield injuries could cause them to look at a versatile infield/outfield type.
Braves — Atlanta hasn’t gotten much from Orlando Arcia since Ozzie Albies broke his foot. They acquired Robinson Canó as a stopgap and anticipate Albies returning late next month. That probably reduces the urgency to add a second baseman, although they’re in a tight battle with the Mets and could work Merrifield into the corner outfield once Albies returns.
Phillies — Continuing the theme of “contenders whose second basemen got hurt,” the Phils have been without Jean Segura since May. He’s expected back this year, though, and the presence of top prospect Bryson Stott gives Philadelphia some cover until then. Bullpen or center field help seems likelier.
No Pressing Second Base Need
Each of the Yankees, Twins, Marlins, Mets, Astros, Guardians, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Padres and Red Sox have everyday second basemen locked into the lineup. Merrifield’s ability to play the corner outfield could make him an option for some of this group — the Yankees and Padres, in particular, could look into outfield additions — but they seem less likely to be motivated than teams searching for a second baseman. Much of Merrifield’s appeal lies in his defensive flexibility, and pigeon-holing him into the corner outfield reduces a good bit of his value. Contenders looking for an impactful corner bat to upgrade the middle of the order seem likely to find cleaner fits elsewhere.
Merrifield’s vaccination status also impacts some teams’ pursuits, most notably the Blue Jays. He was not permitted to travel to Canada for the Royals series in Toronto last week, and similar concerns reportedly diminished the Yankees’ interest in teammate Andrew Benintendi. Merrifield told reporters he’d be open to reconsidering his stance on getting vaccinated if dealt to a playoff contender that could have to travel across the border for meaningful games. He stopped short of firmly declaring he’d do so, however, and questions about his availability for those games could be of concern for some teams.
There’s no guarantee the Royals will actually follow through on a Merrifield trade. This is far from the first time his name has made the rounds on the rumor circuit, and Kansas City has yet to pull the trigger on a deal (or seemingly come close). If the front office takes a different approach this summer, teams like the Mariners, White Sox, Dodgers, Giants and Brewers feel like the most plausible suitors.
Royals Unlikely To Trade Zack Greinke
JULY 19: Kansas City general manager J.J. Piccolo pushed back against the idea the Royals would only trade Grienke if he requested a deal in a recent appearance on 610 Sports Radio (h/t to Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star). “There’s nothing contractually. We’ll treat Zack Greinke the exact same way we’ll treat any other player. If the return is a good return, then we’ll look at it,” Piccolo said about the possibility of a Greinke deal. The GM acknowledged the team “would have discussions with Zack if anything were to come forward” in recognition of his decision to sign there over the winter, but it doesn’t appear there’s a firm mandate not to deal the six-time All-Star. He nevertheless indicated they’ve yet to have any substantive discussions with interested teams and conceded it seems unlikely a deal will wind up coming together before the deadline.
JULY 15: With the Royals already in sell mode, the majority of their impending free agents figure to eventually emerge as trade candidates. One exception appears to be right-hander Zack Greinke, whom the Royals aren’t planning to trade unless he specifically asks to be dealt, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
The 38-year-old Greinke is back with his original organization after 11 years spent honing a potential Hall of Fame resume around the league, making stops with the Brewers, Angels, Dodgers, D-backs and Astros along the way. Greinke chose to sign a one-year, $13MM deal with the Royals despite a reportedly comparable offer from the now-division-leading Twins and interest at a similar price point from the Tigers. Detroit GM Al Avila said during Spring Training that money was not the deciding factor in Greinke’s decision. Rather, the righty preferred going “back to Kansas City and the place where he started,” which is wholly understandable at this juncture of his career. Heyman adds that Greinke recently purchased a home in Kansas City as well — all of which combines to make a trade appear fairly unlikely.
Greinke has been mostly solid for an unproven and at times shaky Royals staff this season, making 14 starts and logging 73 2/3 frames of 4.52 ERA ball. All of the damage against him has come in four road starts, as he’s been hit hard in Houston, Colorado, Minnesota and Arizona. Greinke has a 1.86 ERA while pitching at Kansas City’s Kauffman Stadium, and despite the pedestrian earned run average, he’s held his opponents to two or fewer runs in nine of his 14 starts. Righties Brad Keller (3.96 ERA, 97 2/3 innings) and Brady Singer (3.82 ERA, 66 innings) have also been good for Kansas City, but the rest of the pitchers who’ve started games for the Royals this year have ERAs either just under or well north of 5.00.
A former Cy Young winner, six-time All-Star, six-time Gold Glover and two-time ERA champion, Greinke’s dominance has faded late in his career as his fastball velocity and strikeout rates have dropped. He’s averaging just 89.2 mph with his “heater” in 2022 while striking out a career-low 12.5% of his opponents. His command of the strike zone remains masterful, however, evidenced by a 4.5% walk rate and a 67.9% first-pitch strike rate, which ranks tenth among big league pitchers (min. 70 innings).
It’s certainly possible that as the deadline draws nearer, Greinke will feel the urge to again join a postseason push and approach the front office about engineering a trade. Even then, he’d likely be selective about his preferred destination, so a trade wouldn’t necessarily be a given. At least for now, it seems much likelier that he stays put.
Royals Release Roman Quinn, Brad Peacock
The Omaha Storm Chasers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Royals, recently released three players, according to their transactions tracker (hat tip to Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star.) The players are outfielder Roman Quinn, along with right-handers Brad Peacock and Brandon Barker.
Quinn, 29, has gotten all of his MLB action in a Phillies uniform thus far, having played 201 games with them from 2016 to the present. He was once considered a very interesting prospect of the Phils, even cracking Baseball America’s top 100 in 2013. However, he hasn’t been able to deliver on his promise, primarily due to injuries. The 50 games he played in 2018 is still his career high.
That stop-and-start nature to his career has seemingly prevented him from ever getting into a good groove at the plate. His career batting line is .223/.300/.343. He’s still been able to provide speed and defense, however, racking up 43 steals and producing seven Outs Above Average in his limited time in the majors.
At the end of last season, he was designated for assignment by the Phils and has bounced around quite a bit since then. The Marlins signed him to a minor league deal in March but cut him prior to Opening Day. He rejoined the Phillies on a minors deal and got called up at the end of April. He was used sparingly though, garnering just 40 plate appearances in over a month, before being designated for assignment in early June.
After electing free agency, he signed a minors deal with the Royals and has been with Omaha since then. In over a month with the Storm Chasers, he was put into just seven games but hit well in that small sample. Despite a batting line of .250/.406/.500, the Royals have let him go.
Peacock, 34, has spent the bulk of his career with the Astros, pitching for them from 2013 to 2020, as both a starter and a reliever. His most effective stretch was from 2016 to 2019, as he appeared in 128 games, 42 of them starts, throwing 320 1/3 innings. In that time, he registered a 3.48 ERA, along with a 28.7% strikeout rate and 9.2% walk rate.
Unfortunately, injuries limited him to just 2 1/3 innings in 2020 and he wasn’t able to get things back on track last year. He signed a minor league deal with the Royals prior to this season and has thrown 38 1/3 excellent innings with the Storm Chasers. He has a 1.64 ERA on the year, along with a 27.6% strikeout rate, 9.8% walk rate and 50% ground ball rate. Despite that solid showing, the Royals have decided to cut him loose, perhaps to give his innings to younger up-and-coming pitchers.
Barker, 29, was drafted by Atlanta in 16th round of the 2014 draft. He went to the Orioles in the 2016 trade that sent Brian Matusz to Atlanta. He later went to the Marlins in the minor league phase of the 2017 Rule 5 draft, followed by some stints in Indy Ball. He signed a minors deal with the Royals last year and threw 52 innings for the Storm Chasers but has been limited by injury to just a single frame here in 2022.
Latest On Royals’ Trade Candidates
The Royals are one of the relatively few teams who look like clear-cut sellers heading into the trade deadline, and there has already been buzz about several of their veteran players. Two new teams have joined the mix, as the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reports that the Dodgers have shown some interest in Whit Merrifield, while the Brewers are among the teams considering Andrew Benintendi.
Such clubs as the Padres and Mets have already been linked to Benintendi in trade rumors, though his non-vaccinated status has apparently removed such suitors as the Blue Jays and Yankees from his market — Benintendi wouldn’t be able to play in Canada altogether, while the Yankees wouldn’t want Benintendi unavailable for remaining regular-season games or potential postseason games in Toronto.
That is less of an obstacle for NL teams like the Brewers, since if Milwaukee eventually had to worry about Benintendi’s status for a potential World Series matchup against the Jays, that would count as a nice problem to have for a team battling for the NL Central lead. The Brew Crew heads into the All-Star break with a narrow half-game lead over the Cardinals, but the Brewers are only 18-24 since the start of June.
An inconsistent offense has plagued Milwaukee, and Benintendi’s strong bat (127 wRC+) would certainly help in that regard. A regular center fielder would probably be a better fit considering that Christian Yelich and Andrew McCutchen are already splitting left field duty, but Benintendi could get the bulk of time in left, while Yelich and McCutchen are rested, used at DH, or McCutchen could also play right field.
Merrifield has long been mentioned as a trade chip, yet while the Royals have resisted overtures in the past, they are reportedly now more open to considering a deal. Of course, Merrfield’s trade value has also tumbled, as the 33-year-old is in the midst of the worst of his seven MLB seasons, hitting .240/.292/.343 over his first 373 plate appearances.
With Los Angeles, Merrifield likely wouldn’t be asked to adopt an everyday role, but rather be toggled around the diamond in a utility role. Since Chris Taylor is on the injured list, Merrifield would more or less take Taylor’s role as an option at second base and all three outfield positions. The Dodgers could also primarily use Merrifield against only left-handed pitching, though his splits against all pitchers have been underwhelming over the last two seasons.
Merrifield is also controlled through at least the 2023 season, as his contract (which was reworked back in April) calls for a $6.75MM salary next year, as he has already hit his health-based escalator clause. He is also owed roughly $2.7MM in salary for 2022, and there is a $500K buyout of an $18MM mutual option for 2024. Even though payroll or luxury-tax concerns aren’t a big obstacle for the Dodgers, it is possible that the Royals might be willing to kick in some money to cover Merrifield’s contract, as a reflection of his struggles this year.
IL Transactions: Matz, VerHagen, Lynch, De Jong
The Cardinals activated left-hander Steven Matz off the 15-day injured list today, as Matz was slated to start the Cardinals’ game against the Reds before the contest was rained out. Matz will now have to wait until after the All-Star break to make his official return to the field, as he has been sidelined since May 22 due to a shoulder impingement. With the Cards in need of rotation help, a healthy and effective Matz would be a major boost to the team, as both sides must hope that this two-month absence can essentially be a restart on Matz’s season. After signing a four-year, $44MM free agent deal with St. Louis in November, Matz stumbled out of the gate with a 6.03 ERA over his first 37 1/3 innings in a Cardinals uniform.
To create room on the active roster, St. Louis placed right-hander Drew VerHagen on the 15-day IL with a right hip impingement. A similar injury sent VerHagen to the injured list for a little over three weeks earlier this season, and the righty was just activated from another IL stint (due to shoulder problems) earlier this week. With all of these health issues, it perhaps isn’t surprising that VerHagen has only a 6.65 ERA over 21 2/3 innings, with walks and home runs being particular issues for the 31-year-old. VerHagen is another offseason signing for the Cards, joining the team on a two-year, $5.5MM deal after spending the previous two seasons pitching in Japan.
More comings and goings off the injured list from around the league…
- The Royals placed left-hander Daniel Lynch on the 15-day IL, as Lynch is again dealing with a blister problem. Lynch had already been sent to the IL with that same blister issue on June 24, and he was activated earlier this week and made two abbreviated starts before returning to the sidelines. It has been a difficult season for Lynch, who has a 5.05 ERA and a wealth of troubling Statcast metrics over 15 starts and 71 1/3 innings. Lynch’s IL placement was part of a busy day of roster moves for the Royals, who sent 10 players (Angel Zerpa, Nick Pratto, Gabe Speier, Collin Snider, Brewer Hicklen, Michael Massey, Freddy Fermin, Nate Eaton to Triple-A; Sebastian Rivero and Maikel Garcia to Double-A) to the minors in the aftermath of their series in Toronto. This clears the way for the return of 10 Kansas City players, who were placed on the restricted list due to their non-vaccinated status.
- The Pirates placed righty Chase De Jong on the 15-day IL due to tendinitis in his left knee, and Bryse Wilson (today’s starting pitcher against the Rockies) was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move. Another knee injury is perhaps a red flag for De Jong, who underwent surgery on that same left knee last year. The surgery cut short De Jong’s first season in Pittsburgh, but after signing another minor league deal with the Bucs this past winter, De Jong has rebounded to post a 2.06 ERA over 35 relief innings in 2022.
Blue Jays Acquire Foster Griffin From Royals For Jonatan Bernal
The Blue Jays and Royals have agreed to a trade this morning, per Jon Morosi of the MLB Network (via Twitter). Toronto will send right-hander Jonatan Bernal to the Royals for southpaw Foster Griffin.
The Blue Jays have sent Griffin to Triple-A. The southpaw made five appearances in the bigs with the Royals, yielding six earned runs across 4 1/3 innings. He has a 1.93 ERA across 28 innings in Triple-A, however.
The Blue Jays also recalled Jeremy Beasley from Triple-A and designated veteran Sergio Romo for assignment, per Keegan Matheson of MLB.com (via Twitter). The 39-year-old Romo made six appearances with the Jays after being cut loose by the Mariners. He fared better in Toronto, though the underlying metrics tell a fairly similar tale. Beasley, 26, has made six appearances for the Bue Jays totaling 10 innings of work with a 6.30 ERA.
For the Royals, this is a sort of paying-it-forward deal, where they pick up a younger arm in Bernal in exchange for a near-ML-ready arm in Griffin. Bernal, 20, has a 5.47 ERA across 52 2/3 innings in Single-A this season, where he is a couple of years younger than the average player.
