Kansas City Royals: Ian Kennedy has to be better in 2018

The Kansas City Royals spent a lot of money on Ian Kennedy two years ago and it’s time for him to show he’s worthy of that massive contract.

Let’s just say it. The Kansas City Royals probably aren’t going to be any good in 2018. We all know that and even if Eric Hosmer is retained, it won’t change the fact that the Royals are going to be in the midst of a rebuild.

With that said, however, it’d be nice for the team to get some return on their investments. While many will immediately point towards Alex Gordon, at least Gordo has the postseason history to back him up. He hit the game tying home run in Game 1 of the World Series and none of us will ever forget that moment.

The other big contract guy on the team is Ian Kennedy, who was signed to a five-year deal worth $70 million. It’s the second largest contract in team history, behind… you guessed it… Alex Gordon.

Kennedy was signed to Kansas City in hopes of keeping them as a frontrunner in the American League Central. The Royals still had their best players in both 2016 and 2017 and had every opportunity to make it into the postseason. That obviously didn’t happen and Kennedy can’t be blamed for all of it, but his numbers haven’t been worth $70 million.

In year one (2016), Kennedy appeared in 33 games and pitched in 195.2 innings with an 11-11 record, 3.68 ERA, and 1.221 WHIP. Kennedy struck out 184 batters and issued 66 walks. Those numbers were “respectable” for a guy in his first year with a team and getting the hang of things.

The same can’t be said for year two of Ian Kennedy’s contract though. Kennedy appeared in 30 games, but only pitched in 154 innings, significantly down from his 2016 total. The biggest attraction when signing Kennedy to that ludicrous deal was that he’s an innings eater and would be able to give the bullpen a nice day off. That wasn’t the case in 2017.