Royals Promote Angel Zerpa
The Royals announced the promotion of southpaw Angel Zerpa to start this evening’s game against the Indians. It’ll be his major league debut. He was added to the 40-man roster last winter to keep him from selection in the Rule 5 draft, so no move was needed in that regard. Southpaw Daniel Lynch was placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hand contusion to clear active roster space.
Kansas City has brought up a slew of pitching prospects over the past couple seasons. Zerpa isn’t seen as the same caliber of talent as players like Lynch, Brady Singer, and Jackson Kowar, but he’s still viewed as one of the top handful of pitching prospects in the system. Entering the year, Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs slotted Zerpa as the #10 farmhand in the Kansas City organization, while Baseball America placed him 20th on their midseason update.
Both outlets note that Zerpa doesn’t throw especially hard — his sinker typically ranges from 90-94 MPH — but he draws praise for his advanced strike-throwing acumen and secondary offerings, especially his mid-80s changeup. Longenhagen suggests Zerpa could settle into the back of the rotation in the future, while BA projects him as a likely reliever.
Zerpa will break into the big leagues as a starter, although he could be an option to work in either capacity for the Royals fairly early next season. He’s only made one career Triple-A appearance, so he seems likely to begin the year in the minors. But the Kansas City front office clearly believes Zerpa’s not far away from being a regular big league contributor.
While Zerpa had never pitched above Rookie ball before this season, the Royals added him to the 40-man last November because they believed it plausible another club could fast-track him to the big leagues as a Rule 5 pick to gain his long-term control rights. He’ll indeed make it to the majors just a few days after his 22nd birthday, the culmination of a four-level journey this season.
Zerpa has a 4.58 ERA in 88 1/3 minor league innings this year. He began the campaign in High-A and posted a sterling 2.59 mark. An inflated .370 batting average on balls in play after a promotion to Double-A led to a 5.96 ERA at that level, but he posted high-end strikeout and walk rates (28.9% and 7.4%, respectively) across all three levels. That showing earns Zerpa a late-season audition in the big leagues.
Royals Roster Moves
The Royals announced a number of roster moves today. Daniel Tillo and Angel Zerpa were both optioned to the minor leagues, while a third southpaw, Eric Skoglund, was reassigned to minor league camp. Both Tillo and Zerpa are on the Royals’ 40-man roster.
Though both Tillo and Zerpa are on the 40-man, neither seemed particularly likely to make the roster out of camp. The 24-year-old Tillo made it as high as Double-A in 2019, throwing 23 1/3 innings for Northwest Arkansas with a 3.47 ERA/3.62 FIP. He has been rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, notes the Athletic’s Alec Lewis (via Twitter). Fangraphs has Tillo as the Royals’ 38th-ranked prospect. Zerpa, meanwhile, is a 21-year-old southpaw out of Venezuela who has yet to play above rookie ball.
Skoglund will be more familiar to Royals’ fans. The 28-year-old made a total of 27 appearances (22 starts) for the Royals from 2017 to 2019. Over those three seasons, he pitched to a 6.61 ERA/5.50 FIP across 109 innings with a 39.3 percent groundball rate, subpar 13.8 percent strikeout rate, and so-so 8.2 percent walk rate. Skoglund was served an 80-game PED suspension in January of 2019. He returned late that season to spend a little time in the rotation, but without much success. He was designated for assignment last season and brought to camp as a non-roster invitee.
Royals Release Glenn Sparkman
NOV. 23: The Royals announced that they have placed Sparkman on unconditional release waivers.
NOV. 20: The Royals have announced a series of roster moves (via Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com). Right-hander Glenn Sparkman and left-hander Gabe Speier have each been designated for assignment, while right-hander Chance Adams cleared waivers and was assigned outright to Triple-A Omaha. Those moves clear 40-man roster space for four players Kansas City added to protect them from the Rule 5 draft: outfielder Khalil Lee, catcher Sebastian Rivero, and left-handers Daniel Tillo and Angel Zerpa.
The 28-year-old Sparkman pitched in 31 games (23 starts) for Kansas City in 2019. He only managed a 6.02 ERA with a minuscule 13.4% strikeout rate in that time. The swingman started this season in the Royals’ bullpen but went down with a forearm strain after just five appearances.
Unlike Sparkman, Speier is exclusively a reliever. While he’s had some productive minor-league seasons, the 25-year-old hasn’t found much success at the game’s highest level. In seventeen MLB appearances for Kansas City over the past two seasons, Speier pitched to 7.62 ERA while walking an untenable 15.9% of opposing hitters.
Adams underwent Tommy John surgery last month and won’t pitch next season. The former well-regarded Yankee farmhand will try to work his way back into the mix in 2022.