Kansas City Royals: What Will the Bullpen Look Like in 2017

The Kansas City Royals made a big trade this offseason that will result in a shift within their bullpen. What will their 2017 bullpen look like?

Wade Davis is no more in Kansas City. He’s been sent to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for outfielder Jorge Soler, and now the Royals will have a new closer in Kelvin Herrera.

The Royals likely felt comfortable making this trade due to the confidence they had in Herrera after his showing in 2016. Herrera stepped in for Davis as the closer when WadeBot hit the disabled list and fared just fine in the closer role.

The flame throwing Herrera recorded 12 saves and had an ERA of 2.75 at the end of the season. Herrera was once the Royals’ seventh inning man and then was bumped up to the set-up guy once Greg Holland landed on the disabled list in 2015.

Now, Herrera will get his shot at being the closer for the Kansas City Royals and fans have the utmost confidence in him. He’s given fans no reason not to have faith in him.

This upcoming season is going to be much different for the Kansas City Royals, as their bullpen isn’t what it once was.

As for the rest of the pen, it got a whole lot weaker with the departure of Davis. The only other decent name there is Matt Strahm, and he’s still a young guy with a lot to prove in the majors.

A notable name that fans probably don’t want to hear is that of Joakim Soria, who had a horrendous season in 2016. Soria returned to the Royals after being one of their best players during the bad years. He returned to a roar of boos, as he was constantly blowing leads for the Royals.

Soria’s 4.05 ERA is a dreadful one for a reliever and it’s hard to think that he could be any worse in 2017. The hope is obviously for him to get back to the dominant days that Royals fans remember from him, but he’s 32 and showing signs of slowing down for sure.

If I had to guess – I’d say Herrera would be the closer (obviously), Strahm is the eighth-inning guy, and Soria would get the seventh inning. That’s a little terrifying to think about, but no one else in the bullpen would make sense to throw in that role right now.

Some other names to watch this offseason and in spring training are Scott Alexander, Brian Flynn, Kevin McCarthy, and Alec Mills. Peter Moylan is someone that I wouldn’t be surprised to see return to Kansas City either, though he is 38 years old.

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These are all guys on Kansas City’s 25-man roster, meaning there’s a good shot for them to make it to the Opening Day roster.

Alexander has spent time in the majors the last two seasons and hasn’t been great, but also hasn’t totally sucked. He had an ERA under 4.00 last season and showed signs of improvement. I won’t be shocked at all if he’s a reliever on Opening Day.

Flynn was actually a pleasant surprise for the Royals in 2016. He pitched in 55.1 innings and had a 2.60 ERA, one of the best averages in the Royals bullpen. He was apart of that impressive group that went 41.1 innings without allowing a run.

Chris Young is also a candidate to pitch out of the pen, but there’s a good chance that he’s put into that fifth starter spot until further notice. Young has proven to be a much better relief pitcher for the KC Royals, but with no fifth starter being signed, Young is always an option to start.

Next: 20 Best Royals During the Dark Years

This upcoming season is going to be much different for the Kansas City Royals, as their bullpen isn’t what it once was. The trio of H-D-H is gone, with only Kelvin Herrera still in town and now in the closer role.

Luke Hochevar is gone as well, no longer serving as the fireman role he served in last season. Peter Moylan would be a great option to re-sign, but his age could be a factor for Dayton Moore and the front office. Anything more than a one-year deal there would be stretching it.

At the end of the day, it’ll be interesting to see how Moore and Ned Yost handle this new crop of guys in the Royals bullpen. The guys on the World Series championship team are mostly gone now and it’s time to try and get this pen back to that elite status.

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