In the final installment of this series, we cover the organizational depth in the “arm barn.” What does the position look like in the Majors? Does the team have any depth on the way in the minor leagues? Similarly to the starting pitcher installment this will be divided by role.

The Major League Options

Long Relief:

Jordan Lyles: The Royals’ plan heading into the season is to probably pencil him in as the number five starter in the rotation, but this writer has a different opinion. Lyles last season was bad, to say the least, but he could slot into the long reliever option well. One thing he did at an average level was get through the order once. According to Fangraphs, he had an ERA of 4.01, 1.22 WHIP, and a LOB% of 75.9, all of which are solid. If Lyles is to bounce-back this season, it should be in the bullpen.

Matt Sauer: The Royals’ lone rule-5 draft pick should slot in beside Lyles as a long relief option. Sauer projects similar to Brad Keller, reaching the majors through the bullpen. According to Preston Farr, Sauer could end up being a middle-of-the-rotation arm in 2025 but has a relatively safe floor with his fastball-slider combo out of the pen.

Middle Relief:

Carlos Hernandez: Royals fans know all about Carlos Hernandez, electric fastball with some of the most inconsistent pitching on the roster. He has gone from future closer to middle-man with some upside still. One issue with Hernandez is the homeruns he gives up, and if he fixes that, he could potentially iron out the inconsistencies.

Chris Stratton: Coming off his best season overall, Stratton is an interesting arm for the Royals to add. On paper, Stratton just seems like your typical average reliever, and a lot of the stats back that up. That isn’t bad either because the Royals need someone who can give reliable innings in this role. Expect to see a ton of Stratton this season, as he has pitched in 60+ innings in three consecutive seasons.

Nick Anderson: One of the sneaky good pick-ups from the offseason was Anderson. He might not be striking out over 40% of hitters anymore, but he will get some high-leverage innings in the pen. Anderson will still strikeout a good amount of hitters, not walk anyone, and not give up home runs. The real question is if he can go over 50 innings for the first time since 2019.

Set-up Men

Will Smith: If the trend continues, the Royals will be World Series Champs by the end of 2024. Hyperbole aside, Smith is the definition of ole’ reliable. He’ll strike out over 24% of batters and walk less than 10% of them while giving teams valuable back-end innings. Are there concerns with his game? Yeah, his fastball hasn’t been great his whole career, leading to an inflated HR/9. His slider, however, is his bread and butter, putting up the second best run value in the league on that pitch.

James McArthur: A tale of two halves described McArthur last season. He made his best Vin Mazzaro impression in his first Royals outing but ended the year with a 16.1-inning scoreless streak. Could he win the closing job easily? Yes, and baseball savant percentiles would back that up. McArthur is intriguing because he gets a ton of grounders, limits hard hits and barrels, and has some good underlying numbers.

Closer:

John McMillon: This might surprise some, or not at all if you follow Preston Farr on Twitter/X. McMillon possibly has the best stuff in the major league bullpen and has the potential to be a top-end closer. Spring Training will say much about McMillon if he wins the spot outright, but the Royals will run a committee to start the year. The question is can McMillon separate himself from McArthur and Smith?

Potential Call-ups for 2024

Jake Brentz

I almost put Brentz on the major league roster, but the lack of innings due to injury and depth the Royals have left him as an odd man out. Brentz just needs to get back into pitching and that most likely means throwing at Omaha for a bit. If he can regain any of his 2021 form then expect him in the majors as soon as possible.

Angel Zerpa

Zerpa is slowly becoming a reincarnation of Ryan Yarbrough. A pitcher who can be a swingman or give you a spot start. Zerpa is still only 24, so maybe half a season in the minors can iron out some of his game. If the Royals can solidify his role and work with him on how to attack right-handed hitters, something he struggled with last season, then after the trade deadline, he could be up in the Majors.

Dan Altavilla

He hasn’t pitched in the Major leagues since 2021, but Altavilla has an intriguing arm. He has lost two seasons due to injuries and has shown that he kept his velocity in the offseason. Of the minor league bullpen arms the Royals have brought in, Altavilla has the highest upside with his high velocity and solid slider.

A Look into the Future

Will Klein

One of the young arms that is on the verge of being a Major Leaguer. Klein has made the rounds in the Royals fandom since he was drafted. He throws hard and has great stuff, but has control issues. Even with said control issues, Klein has a good shot of pitching for the Royals this season. If he doesn’t pan out, every bullpen needs a guy who can pump an easy 97+ fastball with a devastating curve.

Steven Cruz

Now, this might sound weird because he played in the Majors last season, but similarly to Klein, Cruz also has a lot of upside. His time in the majors gave him some things to work on in the minors. If both Klein and Cruz play up to their potential you could have a deadly back-end of your bullpen.

Beck Way

A part of the Andrew Benintendi trade that saw him, TJ Sikkema, and Chandler Champlain come to the Royals org. Way was a starter by trade, but the Royals moved him to the pen during last season. He has plus stuff with iffy command, but if he can figure out the control issues, then he could end up being a nice high-leverage middle-relief option for the future.

The bullpen of the Royals is about as open as it could be for anyone, as no spot is set in stone. There is plenty of upside, but there is also a lot of youth and growing pains that come with that. Another bonus is that the Royals have a good amount of depth in the system, even outside of the listed ones in this article. (I.e. Ryan Ramsey, Luinder Avila, etc.)

Position Grade: C- (A ton of pitchers who need to prove themselves and/or need to rebuild value. Solid depth though).