This week’s “Jottings” will be positive., which hasn’t always been the case, especially after some tough weeks on the road, where the Royals have struggled more this season.
In this post, I will recap the Royals’ sweep in Cincinnati, some of the changes Carlos Hernandez has made since his recent promotion, and whether Noah Cameron could be a factor in the Royals’ rotation in 2025.
Royals Dominate the Reds in Cincinnati
After the Royals lost two of three in Minnesota, I was worried about the weekend series at Great America Ballpark against the Reds. First, the Royals wouldn’t have Seth Lugo or Cole Ragans pitching in the series. Second, the Reds were coming off a sweep of the Cardinals in the previous series, in which the Reds outscored the Cardinals 19-4.
Thankfully, my concerns were calmed immediately as the Royals dominated every game in this series in Cincinnati. The numbers from the three-game slate were wild, especially from the hitting end.
The pitching certainly did their job, which isn’t easy to say considering how hitter-friendly the GAB is. Michael Wacha, Michael Lorenzen, and Brady Singer held the Reds hitters in check all weekend. Lucas Erceg stepped up in a clutch situation in the seventh, helping the Royals escape a bases-loaded jam.
Safe to say, Erceg has lived up to the hype since coming over from Oakland at the Trade Deadline, and he has the profile of a pitcher who could be the Royals’ closer for 2025 and beyond.
The biggest surprise of the series was Dairon Blanco, who collected three home runs, five hits, and eight RBI in two games on Saturday and Sunday. Blanco also had this incredible performance using a yellow crayon-themed bat for the player’s weekend. I’m guessing the Royals wouldn’t oppose Blanco using the bat for the remainder of the season (which isn’t going to happen, but one can hope).
Blanco likely won’t stay this hot at the plate. That said, it does show that manager Matt Quatraro’s commitment to building depth and giving bench players regular opportunities is starting to pay off at the most crucial time of the season.
On Wednesday, in their win against the Twins, Paul DeJong had a big game that recently earned him more at-bats. Garrett Hampson hasn’t hit well, but he’s provided excellent value defensively in the outfield this year (he has seven fielding runs via Savant, which puts him in the 90th percentile of the league). Freddy Fermin has also been valuable on both a hitting and defensive end and may be the best backup catcher in the league.
The depth and skills of this Royals bench were missing under former manager Mike Matheny and honestly in the later years of Ned Yost (i.e., 2018 and 2019). Part of that credit belongs to JJ Picollo, who acquired the right pieces for the right price this offseason (and at the Trade Deadline). However, Quatraro cultivates the clubhouse and works with this group every day. The buy-in he has built with this club from 1 to 26 shouldn’t be taken lightly, especially for a club coming off a 106-loss season in 2023.
After Blanco’s big day on Saturday, Dairon Blanco’s agent seemed to affirm this clubhouse culture.
It’s only one series. After all, the Royals lost two of three against the Twins, missing an opportunity to gain some ground directly in the AL Central.
However, the Royals demolished a Reds team with a +30 run differential and an expected W-L of 65-59, which would be the second-best record in the NL Central. The Reds may not have a winning record, but they are not chumps. Winning in Cincinnati showed that this club is starting to progress outside of Kauffman Stadium (their road record is now 31-30).
Quatraro has this club gelling at the right time. Hopefully, another strong series at the K this week against the Angels can help build some much-needed momentum for their series against the Phillies, who are 73-51 but 5-5 in their last ten games.
Carlos Hernandez: Bullpen Booster?
In my latest post for “Farm to Fountains,” I discussed Carlos Hernandez’s stellar road trip this week and if he can provide the depth this Royals bullpen needs in the next two months.
In three outings since being called up from Omaha, Hernandez has posted a 2.25 ERA with a 1.00 WHIP and has struck out six while walking only one. It seems like Hernandez has opted to use his curveball more since being promoted, which has produced solid results so far.
Here’s what I said about Hernandez’s curve and how his work in Omaha has yielded strong results this month.
The slider and curve both displayed a lot more horizontal break in Omaha than they did with Kansas City this year. We started to see more of that horizontal movement in Hernandez’s recent outings, especially in this strikeout on Friday night against Cincinnati’s Jeimer Candelario…
Hernandez’s curve is more of a vertical offering. However, it can be easily hit and hard to boot if it’s not located well. That said, the curve has a lower hard-hit rate (40%) than the slider (45%) and a lower wOBA (.244 to the .409 mark on the slider).
Utilizing the curve as his primary breaking offering could help Hernandez fully tap into his potential and be the backend reliever the Royals need in low to medium-leverage situations.
For more, check out the piece on “Farm to Fountains” and continue to follow along as we grow the site. It is an excellent resource for coverage of the Royals at the Major and Minor League levels.
Noah Cameron: Royals Pitching Development Success Story
Cameron has been one of the most significant pitching prospect surprises this season.
After posting a 6.10 ERA in 17 starts and 72.1 IP in Double-A in 2023, Cameron posted a 3.63 ERA and 3.23 FIP in 16 starts and 74.1 IP with the Naturals. That strong performance earned him a promotion to Omaha, and he’s been excellent with the Storm Chasers.
Cristian Martinez, Preston Farr, and I talked with Cameron this offseason, and a big priority for him was developing his stuff and adding velocity and shape to his four-seamer.
So far, it seems like that work has paid off. He posted a K% of 27% with the Naturals, and with the Storm Chasers, his K rate was 31.5% before Sunday’s game. It likely will be higher after his seven-strikeout performance.
Regarding the metrics, the four-seamer doesn’t showcase eye-popping velocity, with an average velocity of 91.3 MPH. However, he has demonstrated excellent command and movement with the pitch, which explains its above-average PLV of 5.03.
Cameron’s progress certainly softened the loss of Mason Barnett, who was traded away to Oakland to acquire Erceg. Furthermore, Cameron’s success this year not only gives hope to Royals fans looking for another addition to the pitching staff in 2025 but also that the Royals Pitching Development team is backing up the promises they made when Picollo took over in 2023.
Picollo and owner John Sherman promised to build a “pitching factory” in Kansas City similar to what we have seen from other small market clubs like the Guardians, Brewers, and Rays.
Cameron’s development from 2023 to 2024 shows that they are making progress on that goal, and that should make Royals fans excited that there could be even better days ahead in 2025 and beyond.
Photo Credit: Jeff Dean/AP