The Royals have been one of baseball's best turnaround stories in 2024, currently sitting nine games over .500 and holding the second Wild Card spot in the American League. Five games back of division-leading Guardians and a half-game on third-place Twins, they are in a very competitive race for their division once again.
Royals general manager JJ Picollo joined Jayson Stark and Doug Glanville Windup Yesterday's podcast will discuss a difficult offseason that saw Kansas City sign nine free agents for more than $100MM in total guarantees before signing the franchise shortstop. Bobby Witt Jr. to 11-year, $288.7MM extension. Royals fans, in particular, will want to listen to the excellent, nearly 45-minute full interview to hear about the work on building the team's new identity, some of the inner workings of that Witt extension and plenty of news from Picollo's. long career in the industry.
But Stark noted late in the interview given the Royals' performance and the timing of the interview, he was hesitant not to ask about the Royals' deadline needs. Picollo, naturally, didn't raise his hand with too many details but did talk about his desire to deepen the bullpen and add a bat that can play both the outfield and the infield in an effort to expand the lineup.
“Some of our relief teams are starting to focus on the skills and abilities that we've seen in the past,” Picollo said of his relief team. “That will help, that will help put the pieces of the puzzle together, but the depth in our bullpen to come around those guys, I think, would be good. Whether it's close or not – that will be very difficult for anyone – there will be too many of them, and the competition will be steep. But if we can go deeper and be more reliable in our bullpen, that would be great. I have spoken in the past about strikes. We are a matchup bullpen without big power. Now, we have a couple of guys that we think could fit the bill inside but they haven't done it yet.”
The Royals really don't have the kind of power weapons that fuel the late innings of modern MLB games. The Kansas City bullpen's 93.6 mph average fastball (per Statcast) is tied for fourth-slowest in MLB. The only Royals shortstop to average 95 mph or more on his heater this season James McArthur again Angel Zerpa. Rights Carlos Hernandez, Dan Altavilla again Is Klein each averaged 96.7 mph or better, but none threw six innings with the big league club.
McArthur, Klein and Hernandez may be among the names Picollo was referring to when he suggested the organization has power arms that could eventually fit that bill but they haven't done so on a consistent basis. Hernandez had a great first half in 2023 and averaged nearly 99 mph in his blazing heater, but struggled with subpar command and issues keeping the ball in the park. McArthur finished well in 2023 and had a big first month in 2024, but sits at a 7.20 ERA in 15 frames since the calendar flipped to May. Klein is one of the organization's top prospects but has walked about 16% of his opponents at Triple-A Omaha this year.
Kansas City has had shaky results especially from its two free throws in the bullpen. Left hand Will Smith and it's okay Chris Stratton both posted ERAs north of 5.00. Stratton's 29 1/3 innings are the best in the Royals' bullpen, but he's walking a league-worst 15.2% of his opponents and is sitting at 92.2 mph with his hitter — his lowest mark since moving from a starting role to a back-to-back bullpen gig 2018. Smith's fastball velocity of 91.4 mph is also a career low, as is this year's 17.4% strikeout rate.
It's possible the Royals could look to upgrade over any of these veteran additions to the pitching staff. However, Stratton signed a two-year, $8MM deal with a surprise player option that stands as the second season of that contract. That could give him a long time, as the Royals know they will be paying him $4MM next season unless he can turn things around and put himself in a position to decline that second-year option. Smith is on a one-year, $5MM deal but has been much better of late, allowing just two earned runs over his last 14 2/3 innings.
As for the offense, it seems like the Royals have an open mind about where the new bat can fit in on the defensive end. Picollo mentioned at multiple points throughout the interview that the Royals need more production from the outfield — as we recently detailed in MLBTR Front Office subscribers — but pointing to an outfielder doesn't mean it should.
“Offensively, you always want to add a bat somewhere — stretch your lineup,” the GM explained. “…We have three or four guys on the roster every day, and we mix and match a lot, so it doesn't happen be being an outside player, but someone who can play outside again the infield would be great. Another bat we can stretch our lineup and get more production from the back end of our lineup. “
No team in Major League Baseball got less production from its pitching staff in 2024 than the Royals, whose collection turned in a .210/.271/.345 batting line. A 72 wRC+ result (which shows he was 28% worse than league average at the plate) is the lowest in the game. Hunter Renfroe, Kyle Isbell again MJ Melendez he led the Royals in outfield appearances, but of the 262 MLB hitters with at least 150 plate appearances this season, those three ranked 218th (Renfroe), 238th (Isbel) and 250th (Melendez) in terms of wRC+.
The Kansas City area has been more productive, led by the aforementioned Witt, their newly extended star shortstop. Witt is a bona fide MVP candidate, and a second baseman Michael Massey was quietly dominant (.294 / .306 / .529) in 110 plate appearances before hitting the IL with a back injury late last month. First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino slightly better than average, and third baseman Michael Garcia he didn't hit much (.247/.299/.365), played well defensively and provided outstanding value in the lanes (17-for-17 in steals).
One common theme among the Royals' top hitters is management. Pasquantino is the only healthy left-handed bat offered for closer to league average. Melendez, Isabel, Adam Frazier and change-calling Drew Waters (picked in Omaha as I write this) are all abused at the plate. Massey, who just received a league rehab assignment this week, will add another left-back when he returns. Even then, Kansas City will still have a predominantly right-handed roster. Picollo didn't elaborate, but adding a left-handed bat — or at least a switch-hitter who provides more from the left side of the plate — would seem especially smart.
However things are moving, Picollo's comments clearly underscored the strong desire to continue the active mindset of the season until this year's deadline. He mentioned that Kansas City fans deserve to see that level of aggression, but said the motivation is more than that.
“I also think about the players who committed to coming to Kansas City and bought into the vision we had, which included winning and a chance to get to the playoffs,” said Picollo. “So you feel the need to help add to what we already have and the motivation for ownership to have this off-season to sign those players.”
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