Kansas City Royals: Offseason trade targets from AL East
By Cody Rickman
Tampa Bay Rays
Jose De León, RHP Starting Pitcher
Jose De León, the 27-year-old right-handed starting pitcher, has been recovering from a UCL injury in 2018 for the past two years.
De León, once a highly rated prospect, hasn’t been able to find his velocity or command since coming back from injury. He may be a roster casualty this offseason for a Rays organization that needs to protect burgeoning talent on the 40-man roster.
De León couples a 92-mph fastball with an outstanding 81-mph change-up and middle of the road breaking ball options (slider and curveball). He’s primarily used his fastball and horizontal change-up (fun to watch) in his outings in 2019.
If De León is made available for the Royals and finds his command, he would be a welcomed upgrade to the starting rotation (potential number three type starter if he finds his form – 3.50 ERA).
De León does run the risk of never being able to regain his health, he also has a mechanical issue where he tends to throw his fastball on a flat plane (Ian Kennedy’s issue as a starter), which is a more susceptible to home runs in the launch angle era.
Possible trade offer: Cash Considerations