The Kansas City Royals have announced their 26-man roster for the team’s first playoff series in nearly a decade. The team is in Baltimore, set to kick off a best-of-three series against the Orioles on Tuesday afternoon. There were also roster moves to make.
All of September, teams roster 28 players. For postseason play, that number drops to 26, meaning the Royals had some trimming to do ahead of Tuesday’s contest. Alec Marsh, who pitched 77 pitches on Sunday, was the first casualty of the first-round roster. Marsh would likely be unavailable until at least Friday, making him an easy option.
Also absent from the postseason roster are outfielder Robbie Grossman and RHP Carlos Hernández. Kansas City will use just 11 pitchers instead of the usual 13. However, in a short three-game series, that shouldn’t be an issue.
Royals activate Vinnie Pasquantino
Also alongside the roster news, the Royals announced that first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino had been activated from the injured list and will play today versus the Orioles. Pasquantino was injured in August against Houston. He suffered a broken thumb on an errant throw to first base and has been out of the Kansas City lineup since August 30.
The return should be a serious boost to a Royals lineup that seriously lacked offensive firepower over the season’s final month. With the team clinching on Friday, they were able to give an extra game of rest for many key starters including Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez. It was Witt’s first game off all season. With more rest and the return of Pasquantino, the Kansas City lineup will turn its sights to Baltimore starter Corbin Burnes. He gets the ball as the starter in game one, opposite Cole Ragans.
