Here are the latest news happenings for the Royals from last week!
ICYMI: Jared, Kevin, and Preston sat down with Royals pitching prospect Walter Pennington!
ICYMI: Farm to Fountains now has merch! Get all your favorite gear with the Farm to Fountains logo at our shop!
Overall Team Record: 20-15 (3rd, 2.5 GB)
Upcoming Series (3 Games): Milwaukee Brewers (20-13) vs. Kansas City Royals (20-15)
- Monday: RHP Bryse Wilson (2-1, 3.00 ERA) vs. LHP Cole Ragans (2-2, 3.44 ERA)
- Tuesday: RHP Colin Rea (3-0, 2.67 ERA) vs. RHP Seth Lugo (5-1, 1.60 ERA)
- Wednesday: RHP Joe Ross (1-3, 4.65 ERA) vs. RHP Brady Singer (2-1, 2.45 ERA)
WEEKLY SERIES RECAP
Kansas City Royals vs. Toronto Blue Jays (4/29 – 5/1): After a tough loss on Monday where they nearly came back and won the game, the Royals took the second two games against the Toronto Blue Jays to win the series. Two dominant performances by both Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans helped them secure both victories. In game two, Michael Massey provided some early offense with a two-run home run in the second inning off of Blue Jays starter Jose Berrios. The Royals scratched across two more insurance runs in the eighth thanks to back-to-back doubles from Bobby Witt, Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino. In game three, Chris Bassitt shut the Royals down for five straight innings, but the Royals exploded for three runs in the 6th and another three runs in the eight thanks to a Michael Massey three-run home run.
Texas Rangers vs. Kansas City Royals (5/3 – 5/5): This was a tough series loss, but the Royals stayed in a constant battle with the World Series champion Texas Rangers besides Saturday’s game. Friday was a pitcher’s duel between Michael Lorenzen and Brady Singer until the seventh inning when the Royals scored six runs off the Rangers bullpen that was capped off by a three-run home run by Salvador Perez. Game two was an ugly loss with a final score of 15-4. Michael Wacha got torched for seven earned runs, and there wasn’t much the Royals offense could do to get back into this one. Daniel Lynch IV was called up for the start on Sunday and dealt in place of Alec Marsh. They had a 2-0 lead going into the eight. Schreiber, who has been nails, gave up a run in the eight, and McArthur who has also been lights out, blew the save to send the game into extras. Unfortunately, he gave up the winning run in the tenth as well. A tough loss, especially in a game that should’ve been won.
ROYALS NEWS
Anne Rogers gives an update on Alec Marsh and more: “He’s been throwing bullpens and made a rehab start with Triple-A Omaha on May 5, tossing four scoreless innings with six strikeouts and one walk. Assuming he recovers fine from that start, he should be in line to return to the Royals’ rotation when his spot comes up again on May 10.”
Jacon Milham covers how MLB Executives names KC Royals top team (so far) in 2024: “Feinsand asked 24 voters “Which team has been the biggest surprise?” and Kansas City earned 13 votes. That nearly doubled the Cleveland Guardians, who received seven votes. The AL Central stood tall in this question, with the Royals, Guardians, and Detroit Tigers earning 21 or 24 votes. All three teams sit multiple games above .500 while the Minnesota Twins’ 12-game winning streak has them sitting third in the division.”
ROYALS ANALYSIS
Anne Rogers dives into the emergence of James McArthur: “It’s really crazy,” McArthur said. “Thinking about where I was a year ago as a pitcher to where I am now, there’s just been so much growth and development. I’m really grateful.” On May 8, 2023, the Royals acquired McArthur for Minor League outfielder Junior Marin and cash. It was a minor trade at the time; McArthur was a fringe-roster player, and the Phillies needed bullpen help and a 40-man spot for Jeff Hoffman in late May.”
Jacob Milham discusses Royals trends… the ones to buy into and not to buy into: “Any baseball fan knows a season is a marathon, rather than a sprint. Royals fans could celebrate the fact that this team would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. But, many will remind themselves of 2024’s 131 remaining games and Kansas City’s propensity for error down the stretch. Knowing that, I took stock of who is and isn’t powering Kansas City’s hot start. Here are my trends that I believe will last the entire season, and those I believe will wilt in the summer heat.
Jaylon Thompson covers the potential of Kyle Wright joining next year’s rotation: “Kansas City Royals pitcher Kyle Wright sat at his locker. A few minutes prior, he had just finished working out and needed a second to collect his thoughts. Wright had just wrapped up his day. It was another training session and cooldown period filled with treatment and recovery. The routine is common for a player out with a season-ending injury. As his teammates walked into the Royals clubhouse, Wright chatted about the latest musings around the team. The Royals, who are off to a great start, have leaned on their pitching staff early in the season.”
Max Rieper discusses how Salvador Perez is defying father time: “But it’s not just power. The knock on Salvy has been his propensity to swing at anything within a five-block radius of home plate. But so far this year he has the tenth-lowest strikeout rate in baseball. He has already drawn ten walks – his career high is 28. While he has the fifth-highest swing rate in baseball, he is seeing fewer strikes than anyone in baseball, and is showing some restraint.”
FARM SYSTEM
Preston Farr does a five-round Mock MLB Draft for the Royals: “He offers an excellent mix of batted-ball ability and power potential. So far in 2024, Kurtz has appeared in 37 games for Wake Forest. He’s slashed .307/.500/.811. With 47 walks and just 26 strikeouts, the excellent approach is clear. Kurtz doesn’t swing-and-miss often, and when he makes contact it’s hard contact at an extreme rate. What’s the downside? Well, defensively Kurtz is a true first baseman. He isn’t going to play outfield, and it’s not usually great process to take a first baseman so early in the draft.”
Jackson Wilks names his Naturals April hitter and pitcher of the month: “With a phenomenal OPS of 1.121, Shrum showed an unprecedented power surge that the team had yet to see from him in previous years. The most he has ever hit in a season was 16 in 2022, and he is now just under half that amount only halfway into the 2024 season. This doesn’t come accidentally, as he’s seen a 4.8% jump in his flyball rate. 30.4 percent of those total flyballs even turn into home runs. More impressive is that only 4.3 percent of those flyballs are infield flies. Last year’s average was 20 percent. Don’t forget that he is hitting to both sides of the field with 37.5% of his contact going to the pull side and opposite side. He is having a great start but he is also improving upon every statistic that made him stand out to me a few months ago.”
Zac Miller names his Storm Chasers hitter and pitcher of the month: “It was an absolutely ridiculous month for Porter. He probably couldn’t have dreamed up a better start to the season. The most eye-popping number is his 1.325 OPS. That is obviously unsustainable, but it is impressive to be able to maintain that high of a number over a 12-game stretch. Porter has already proven to be the Royals’ third catching option based on his taxi squad assignment a couple of weeks ago. He appears to be ready for his opportunity should he need to fill in for Salvador Pérez or Freddy Fermín at some point.”
Preston Farr dives into a preview of the Arizona Complex Royals: “Other arms to monitor include Weskendry Espinoza and Shawndrick Oduber. Espinoza pitched to a 2.45 ERA in last summer’s DSL with 36 strikeouts over 36.2 IP. He features a lively fastball with an exceptional arm side break. Oduber is an international signing out of Aruba. The 6-0 righty struck out 42 hitters over 29.1 innings pitched last season. Marwys Jorge could find his way to Arizona sometime this season, but more likely he’s slated to pitch another full season in the Dominican before heading to the Complex League in 2025.”
MLB NEWS
The San Diego Padres acquired Luis Arraez from the Miami Marlins for four prospects
Grayson Rodriguez is placed on the IR with right shoulder inflammation
Mike Trout needs knee surgery for torn meniscus
The Cleveland Guardians are calling up top prospect Kyle Manzardo
The San Francisco Giants are calling up pitching prospect Mason Black