KC Royals: Remaining Free Agent Starting Pitching Options
By Scott Dillon
There are still a lot of free agent pitchers available. Will the KC Royals look to add an arm before Spring Training?
The KC Royals already have most of their positions filled up, but they could still potentially use an arm in the rotation.
Yordano Ventura, Edinson Volquez, and Ian Kennedy are sure bets to make the rotation, but outside of that there are some question marks. Kris Medlen, Danny Duffy, and Chris Young can all pitch out of the pen or start out the game, but it’s unclear who’ll win the fourth and fifth spots.
Medlen is the most established starter of the three but has had two Tommy John surgeries. He’s an injury risk but if he can return to his 2013 form he’ll great. In 2013, Medlen pitched to a 3.11 ERA in 2013 and won 15 games.
Danny Duffy has been inconsistent at best as a starter. Some days he shows up with the mechanics and ‘stuff’ to throw a no-hitter. Other days it looks like he’ll be lucky to get out of the first inning. I’d like to see Duffy in the pen because he’s been dominant in limited innings.
Chris Young will probably make the rotation but he’s not the guy you can count on every fifth day for the whole year. Chris Young is most effective when he gets some rest after a few outings. The Royals will need to prepare for him to miss some time at some point in the season.
The KC Royals have some options in the rotation and Kyle Zimmer should make it to the majors this year if he can stay healthy. While they have some choices internally, they’d be in good shape if they could sign a starter on a short term deal.
Just like the free agent outfielders, the KC Royals have a shot at signing a pitcher to a short-term contract the closer Spring Training gets. Who are some of the free agent pitchers who might work for the Royals?
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