It’s been a big news day for the Royals, which is nice to see after a rough end to the homestand over the weekend. They lost two of three against the Cubs at Kauffman and only hold a one-game lead over Boston for the last AL Wild Card spot.
Let’s review today’s big news in the hope that it can build some positive momentum for Kansas City as they kick off the road trip on the South Side against the White Sox (who are fresh off a big move of their own).
This week’s edition of the “Jottings” features me discussing the Michael Lorenzen and Walter Pennington trade between the Rangers and Royals and the signing of two remaining draft picks from the 2024 MLB Draft.
Royals Acquire Lorenzen from Rangers
Some rumblings began this morning from Jon Heyman, who said the Royals were discussing acquiring Lorenzen from the Rangers. Shortly after Heyman’s report, the Royals broke the news about a trade for Lorenzen from their Twitter account, which is typical for deals under GM JJ Picollo.
Lorenzen is a bit of a surprise acquisition since his name wasn’t heavily floated out in trade rumors before Heyman’s report this morning.
Lorenzen has primarily worked as a starter this year for the Rangers. He has pitched 101.2 innings and has a 3.81 ERA with 75 strikeouts in 19 outings and 18 starts. Lorenzen’s xERA is a bit higher at 4.72, and his walk rate of 11.5% is four percent higher than a season ago.
His overall PLV is slightly down, but Lorenzen sports a diverse arsenal with seven pitches he throws over five percent of the time this season (one more than a year ago). The Royals’ pitching coaches have done wonders, as evidenced by Seth Lugo’s success this season. One has to wonder if Brian Sweeney, Zach Bove, and Mitch Stetter saw something with Lorenzen in Texas that prompted them to give Picollo the green light to make the move.
In his press conference this afternoon after the trade announcement, Picollo mentioned that they’re keeping an open mind with Lorenzen and haven’t set a “clear” role for him yet. However, they took advantage of the Rangers’ need to make some pitching changes, with some pitchers on the IL expected to come off the IL soon (such as Jacob deGrom).
Lorenzen doesn’t solve the Royals’ closer woes. However, he gives the Royals a flexible arm that can jump into the rotation or give some length to the bullpen in the middle innings.
Alec Marsh has struggled over the past two months. If he doesn’t turn things around soon, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Lorenzen complement Marsh as a bulk-innings reliever (which I discussed as a possibility with Kris Bubic on Farm to Fountains in my post yesterday).
Another possibility for the Royals is to insert Lorenzen as a sixth starter in the rotation. Cole Ragans and Seth Lugo have had phenomenal years. That said, they are pushing career-highs for inning totals, and they haven’t exactly been “ace-like” in their starts after the All-Star Break. Lorenzen, as a sixth starter, could give those two extra days off, which may help keep them fresher for the season’s stretch run.
Lorenzen isn’t expected to report to the Royals’ organization until Thursday, so in the meantime, with John Schreiber on the IL, the Royals have called up Will Klein to fill a spot in the bullpen.
Lorenzen is only on a one-year deal this season and will be a free agent after 2024. Nonetheless, this is a sneaky move by Picollo and the front office that adds some much-needed depth to the pitching staff for the next two months.
Royals Trade Away Walter Pennington
In exchange for Lorenzen, the Royals gave away left-handed reliever Walter Pennington to the Rangers. This was a tough one to see personally as a fan, as Walter generously interviewed with us at Farm to Fountains earlier in the season.
After the interview, we greatly respected Walter’s story of his road to the show. It certainly hasn’t been easy, especially as an undrafted player out of a Division II college (Colorado School of Mines). He truly is a student of the game and would’ve been a fan favorite in Kansas City if he had stayed here long-term.
He made his MLB debut this year in front of his hometown fans in Denver against the Rockies at Coors Field. Renee Dechert of Pitcher List also had a tremendous interview with him when he visited Denver.
Pennington has been solid in Omaha, having a 2.26 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 59.2 IP with the Storm Chasers this year. He doesn’t have premium stuff, but he has supreme command and control that helps him stay ahead of batters and keep them off balance. As a result, many of his pitches’ whiff and zone numbers have been impressive despite the velocity.
The Royals have kept him in Triple-A primarily this year because there are probably concerns about whether his velocity and stuff would effectively translate to the MLB level. As Royals fans can see from Nestico’s table, he has an overall tjStuff+ of 94, below average.
I saw him in person in Des Moines on July 4th when he was with the Storm Chasers. He gave up a home run that ended up blowing the lead for Omaha. He didn’t have his command that night, as he also gave up a walk against the Cubs. One lousy outing shouldn’t make a pitcher, but it showed me why the Royals may have had concerns about bringing him up.
It also seemed like the Royals were crowded enough with lefties in the bullpen. Pennington deserves a chance to see what he can do at the Major League level over an extended period. However, I am not sure he is better than Angel Zerpa, Sam Long, or Kris Bubic, and he doesn’t quite have Will Smith’s veteran status (or contract).
It was sad that we didn’t see Walter make his Kauffman debut as a member of the Royals. Hopefully, we can see him when the Rangers visit next year.
Kyle DeGroat and Corey Cousin Jr. Sign With The Royals
After the signing of Jac Caglianone, the Royals had three remaining draft picks who had yet to sign a contract with the Royals: pitchers Kyle DeGroat (14th round) and Dane Burns (17th round) and outfielder Corey Cousin Jr. (18th round)
Today, the Royals came to terms with prep picks DeGroat and Cousin Jr, as shared by the Royals Player Development Twitter account, Raising Royals.
According to most draft experts, DeGroat was one of the most high-profile picks of the third day. Kansas City gave him a $350,000 bonus ($150,000 was the recommended slot amount at that round) to help him opt out of his commitment to the University of Texas.
The Royals also could nab Cousin a $350,000 bonus. Cousin committed to the University of Oklahoma and came out of the New Orleans area. Scouts raved about Cousin’s athleticism and arm, as he profiles as an outfielder who can play all three positions. He also throws 92-94 MPH on the mound and can move there if the hitting doesn’t work out in the Minors.
Burns is the lone Royals draft pick not to sign, and he’s unlikely to do so before the August 1st deadline. According to Jared Perkins of Farm to Fountains and Prospects Live, Burns shared that he is honoring his commitment to Texas A&M this morning.
Considering that Texas A&M finished as the College World Series runner-up last year, Royals fans can hardly blame Burns for opting for college instead, especially as a 17th-round pick. Burns could jump up the boards in the future with a strong tenure with the Aggies.
The Royals were able to sign 19 of their 20 draft picks this season. That is the same number of draft picks they signed last year, but this season, they only had one go unsigned (unlike in 2023 when they had two: Donovan La Salle in the 19th round and Blake Wilson in the 20th round).
Kansas City also signed undrafted free-agent infielder Colton Becker to a contract, which helps soften the blow of Burns not signing.
That concludes an excellent draft for the Kansas City Royals under new Scouting Director Brian Bridges. This draft added some much-needed talent to a system rated poorly by most experts over the past few years.
Expect the Royals system to climb in the rankings next spring.
Photo Credit: Mike Mulholland/Getty Images
Losing Pennington is not an easy pill to down. Could be worthwhile if he were to sign a 2 year extension. IMPO, Marsh and Lorentzen can we used as a second starter anytime after he forth inning. This would allow Satan’s, Each a and Lugo to go into an important game (hopefully we have important games) and use their whole arsenal for 4 to 5 innings. Then, Marsh or Lorentzen could come in with a similar plan and, maybe force the opponent to reshuffle their lineup. This rests the bullpen and allows the ration to “pace” itself and makes us a less pedicable opponent. Bubik could pick a spot start too. If the pitching were able to provide a quality start 6 IP, 3 runs. Then our offense might be sufficient with no further acquisitions. I’m ok with playing Maikel @2b and looking for a traditional 3b bat with better than average fielding. In the meantime, it is about winning ballgames. If Salvy could field 3b, he would be a good fit, and Fermin could catch. Joe Torre progressed from catcher to 3b to 1b.
I’m okay with Pennington loss. He was starting to wear down a bit in the past couple of months. If you see his FIP in Omaha since June 1st, it is 4.76. I think the Royals were wise to at least get something in return for Pennington, especially since there wasn’t a clear path for him right now.
I think the only upgrade at 3B that would be realistic is Matt Chapman. The Giants seem willing to shed money, though they claim that they are still “going for it.” Maikel has shown that he can handle 2B, and his bat profiles better there. It’s going to be interesting though what bats are available, especially with Jazz, Pham, and Thomas off the table.
I like Salvy at first when he’s not catching and think it should stay that way.
[…] acquiring Michael Lorenzen on Monday, the Royals were active on the Trade Deadline day, pulling off two trades before the 5 p.m. […]
[…] Even if Wright doesn’t find a spot in the starting rotation out of Spring Training, Wright could be an effective reliever who could fit various roles. He could fill in as a long reliever who could fill in as a spot starter, like Michael Lorenzen a year ago in the second half (after being acquired at the Trade Deadline). […]