Kansas City Royals: Five Most Disappointing Players in 2016

Most Disappointing Royals in 2016 – Number 3: Edinson Volquez

Similar to Chris Young, the expectations were high for Edinson Volquez heading into 2016. He filled the void of James Shields departing in 2015, and went on to become the Royals’ “ace” throughout the season.

Volquez was the opening day starter for Kansas City and did enough to get the win. The rest of his season was a huge rollercoaster though, and his 2016 season saw him record an ERA of 5.37 ERA.

Volquez had a 10-11 record throughout the season, but the confidence was never there. This was a guy who most fans had all the faith in the world in last season, especially during the playoffs.

This was a guy who most fans had all the faith in the world in last season, especially during the playoffs.

This year, had the KC Royals punched their ticket to the postseason, Volquez might not even have been in the starting rotation. That’s how badly the pitcher formerly known as “Steady Eddy” dropped off for the Royals this year. He was bad.

Of course, I can’t discuss Edinson Volquez being a disappointment this year without bringing up his historically bad outings. Here are a few:

• April 28th against the Angels – Shelled for eight runs in five innings
• June 24th against the Astros – Had one of the worst outings EVER, giving up 12 runs (11 earned) in only one inning of work
• August 3rd against the Rays – Gave up eight runs in five innings to one of the worst teams in the American League

Whew. Those are pretty bad, but that seemed to be the norm for Volquez this season. The Royals could decide to extend a qualifying offer to him for next season, but I sincerely hope they don’t. Volquez proved he’s not the answer for this team in 2017 and beyond.