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KC Royals: Five players who deserve September call-up

By Cody Rickman

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 07: Kansas City Royals catcher Cam Gallagher (36) pours sunflower seeds into his mouth prior to the game between the Kansas City Royals and the Washington Nationals on July 7, 2019, at Nationals Park, in Washington D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 07: Kansas City Royals catcher Cam Gallagher (36) pours sunflower seeds into his mouth prior to the game between the Kansas City Royals and the Washington Nationals on July 7, 2019, at Nationals Park, in Washington D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Kansas City Royals pitcher Arnaldo Hernandez (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/TNS via Getty Images)
Kansas City Royals pitcher Arnaldo Hernandez (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/TNS via Getty Images) /

ARNALDO HERNANDEZ (PITCHER)

The 23-year-old 6’0″ RHP starter has started 23 games between two levels (AA and AAA). Arnaldo Hernandez put together 23 innings of 1.96 ERA, 20 K, 1.39 WHIP in four starts at AA Northwest Arkansas. In the month of August, Hernandez has put together 29 innings of 2.48 era, 17 K, 1.10 WHIP in 5 starts at AAA Omaha.

Hernandez features a fastball, change-up, and curveball with the change-up being his most prominent out pitch. He is a pitcher who relies on fooling the batter to get outs.

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A's slug their way past Kansas City, wins 6-4
A's slug their way past Kansas City, wins 6-4 /

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    • Coming out of the bullpen for the Royals may add a few MPH onto his fastball making him a useful addition to a worrisome bullpen. If he is able to repeat his release point with the fastball and change-up he could use those pitches effective, especially if his fastball plays up in velocity.

    His breaking ball is easier to read out of his hand, but adds a nice change pace as a big looping 12-6 curve. Hernandez has shown enough over the past month to punch his ticket to the bigs and he is already on the 40-man roster, so this move only makes sense.

    JESSE HAHN (PITCHER)

    The 30-year-old 6’4″ RHP pitcher hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2017 when his career was derailed by injuries (UCL repair). Jesse Hahn (currently on 60-day IL) is on the rehab trail with one inning stops at Rookie level Arizona and A+ Wilmington, he’s had 5 Ks in his two innings. Hahn was able to make six appearances in 2018 before a set back with injury stopped his campaign to return the majors.

    When the Kansas City Royals received Hahn via trade with the Oakland A’s, I was excited to see what he could do with the spacious outfield of Kauffman Stadium. Hahn has shown flashes of being able to induce weak contact and strike out major league hitters.

    If his fastball plays above 94 mph his off-speed offerings become devastating. I absolutely love his curveball, it is a “bugs bunny” curve that starts at your head and ends at your toes. He has fluid and repeatable mechanics which deceive the hitter between choosing to swing at his 94-mph fastball or his 73-mph big breaking curveball.

    He throws a slider in the low 80s in addition to his fastball and curveball. If Hahn comes out of the bullpen with the ability to mix his pitches and locate he could be a dominate reliever for the Royals moving forward.

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    CONCLUSION

    The Kansas City Royals will have some tough decisions to make regarding who to call up in the next few days, but these are the five guys that I believe should be joining the team for the duration of the season.

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