Zero to Hero - A Scotsman in MLB

[benp28]

International Amateurs

A three-player Venezuelan class for the Royals in 2033 headlined by Natalino Villa, a CF with plus plus speed and potential contact and gap power with an average eye.



The additional players signed were:

C Jorge Mendiola: weak defensively but potential plus contact, power, and eye is a good combination.
SP David Castro: plus plus potential stuff behind a three-pitch arsenal with average control, his progress will depend on raising his movement rating.

Trades & Free Agents

Tuesday, January 17th , 2034
Signed free agent SP Shane Baz to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,900,000.

The only signing of the month, 34-year-old Shane Baz signs for under $2m and will pitch out of the bullpen with his plus stuff from two plus plus pitches among his four-option arsenal.

Financial Situation

After the budget increase to start the offseason, Sherman added another $16m to the budget which should provide some flexibility for any in-season moves.



Around the League

Transactions

Sunday, January 29th , 2034
Minnesota Twins: Signed free agent RP Yeijiro Ando to a 1-year contract worth a total of $6,700,000.
Saturday, January 28th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: Signed free agent RP Matt Brash to a 2-year contract worth a total of $36,400,000.
Friday, January 27th , 2034
Toronto Blue Jays: Signed free agent RP Sammy Peralta to a 2-year contract worth a total of $28,600,000.
Thursday, January 26th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent RP Nick Robertson to a 2-year contract worth a total of $33,200,000.
Wednesday, January 25th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed free agent SP AJ Smith-Shawver to a 4-year contract worth a total of $52,900,000.
Monday, January 23rd , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: Signed free agent CL Shawn Bass to a 2-year contract worth a total of $17,600,000.
Sunday, January 22nd , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Franco Aleman to a 2-year contract worth a total of $34,800,000.
Saturday, January 21st , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: Signed free agent 3B Spencer Steer to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,500,000.
Toronto Blue Jays: Signed free agent RP Mason Fluharty to a 3-year contract worth a total of $30,600,000.
Friday, January 20th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: Signed free agent SS Royce Lewis to a 1-year contract worth a total of $11,800,000.
Thursday, January 19th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent SP Ian Hamilton to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,200,000.
Wednesday, January 18th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: Signed free agent 1B Rafael Devers to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,920,000.
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent RP Richard Lovelady to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,180,000.
New York Mets: Signed free agent 1B CJ Abrams to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,600,000.
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent RP Nick Starr to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,180,000.
Cleveland Guardians: Signed free agent RF T.J. White to a 1-year contract worth a total of $6,900,000.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed free agent RF Gabriel Gonzalez to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,240,000.
Tuesday, January 17th , 2034
Colorado Rockies: Signed free agent RP Luis Frias to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,220,000.
San Antonio Avalanche: Signed free agent RP James Karinchak to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,220,000.
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent SP Javier Assad to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,140,000.
Cincinnati Reds: Signed free agent 1B Oneil Cruz to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,600,000.
Los Angeles Angels: Signed free agent RP Jhoan Duran to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,960,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent SP Jack Leiter to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,380,000.
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Spencer Strider to a 2-year contract worth a total of $22,800,000.
Toronto Blue Jays: Signed free agent SS Ezequiel Tovar to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,600,000.
Atlanta Braves: Signed free agent RP Jose Ferrer to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,440,000.
New York Mets: Signed free agent RP Luke Little to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,120,000.
Cleveland Guardians: Signed free agent CF Emmanuel Rodriguez to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,480,000.
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Connor Cooke to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,200,000.
The San Antonio Avalanche traded 19-year old minor league LHP Alfredo Carrasco and 21-year old minor league RHP Juan Romo to the Arizona Diamondbacks, getting $500,000 in international amateur bonus pool room in return.
Monday, January 16th , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Nathan Lavender to a 2-year contract worth a total of $13,200,000.
Minnesota Twins: Signed free agent 1B Robert Perez Jr. to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,160,000.
Cincinnati Reds: Signed free agent 2B Anthony Volpe to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,180,000.
Cleveland Guardians: Signed free agent SP Jackson Baumeister to a 1-year contract worth a total of $4,720,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent RP Tyson Neighbors to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,560,000.
Minnesota Twins: Signed free agent SS Carson Williams to a 4-year contract worth a total of $34,400,000.
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded 21-year old minor league RF Mike Woods and 24-year old minor league LHP Jody Kestner to the New York Mets, getting 34-year old RF Joey Wiemer (retaining 80%) and $2,240,000 in cash in return.
Sunday, January 15th , 2034
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 25-year old RHP Wally Phillips to the Boston Red Sox, getting 19-year old minor league 1B Luis de la Pena and 20-year old minor league RHP Chris Sparks in return.
The Cleveland Guardians traded 25-year old RHP Dan Dorosh to the New York Mets, getting 22-year old LF Bud McCraw and 21-year old minor league LF Luis Oceguera in return.
Saturday, January 14th , 2034
Tampa Bay Rays: Signed free agent 3B Blaze Alexander to a 1-year contract worth a total of $5,500,000.
Baltimore Orioles: Signed free agent RP Alex McFarlane to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,800,000.
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent C Drake Baldwin to a 2-year contract worth a total of $14,900,000.
New York Mets: Signed free agent RP Chase Lee to a 1-year contract worth a total of $7,800,000.
Friday, January 13th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent RP Emmanuel Clase to a 2-year contract worth a total of $10,800,000.
Houston Astros: Signed free agent SP Jacob Lopez to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,520,000.
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 26-year old C Chris Hopkins to the Los Angeles Angels, getting 22-year old minor league C Mike Ehalt in return.
Thursday, January 12th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent RP Landen Roupp to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,360,000.
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent RP Woo-suk Go to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,360,000.
The Seattle Mariners traded 18-year old minor league C David Saldivar to the Texas Rangers, getting 32-year old RHP Yusuke Matsumura (retaining 70%) and $360,000 in cash in return.
Wednesday, January 11th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: Signed free agent RF Zac Veen to a 2-year contract worth a total of $11,000,000.
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent RP Cionel Perez to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,460,000.
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent RP Andre Pallante to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,180,000.
Miami Marlins: Signed free agent 2B Jansel Luis to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,080,000.
Tuesday, January 10th , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent RP Trevor Stephan to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,480,000.
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent RP Mason Miller to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,140,000.
Monday, January 9th , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent RP Justin Martinez to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,180,000.
Sunday, January 8th , 2034
Miami Marlins: Signed free agent RP Camilo Doval to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,360,000.
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent RP Mat Olsen to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,080,000.
Thursday, January 5th , 2034
New York Mets: Signed free agent SP Reiver Sanmartin to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,460,000.
Boston Red Sox: Signed free agent RP Andrew Saalfrank to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,320,000.
Wednesday, January 4th , 2034
The Cincinnati Reds traded 23-year old minor league 3B Tim Riva to the New York Mets, getting 34-year old 1B Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and $4,640,000 in cash in return.
Monday, January 2nd , 2034
San Antonio Avalanche: Signed free agent 1B Brett Baty to a 1-year contract worth a total of $6,500,000.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 27-year old 3B Joshua Liranzo and 24-year old LHP Dan Clark to the Miami Marlins, getting 24-year old RHP Ted Sheek and 21-year old minor league LF David Quintero in return.

Injuries

Tuesday, January 24th , 2034
New York Yankees: Alfred Manny Mook has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 8-9 months.
Tuesday, January 17th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: Takashi Toguchi has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 4-5 months.
Sunday, January 8th , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: SP Yves Zaldivar diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 3 months.

Hall of Fame

The Hall of Fame a new member following the 2034 ceremony, as Freddie Freeman was elected with 89.9% of voters in his 1st year on the ballot.

Paul Goldschmidt remains short, and saw his percentage drop by 2% to 70.8%, putting into question whether he will make the cut. Royal favourite Salvador Perez saw his percentage increase by almost 10%, to 42.4% in his second year on the ballot although he remains an outside bet to make it to Canton.

[benp28]

Development Lab

Results

No Improvement: Billy Mamaugh, Jeremy Rogerson, Curt Bogans, Danny Petty, Juan Zubia, Edgar Mir, Ben Alvarado

Eric Cook: Successful, potential Curveball up by 5, current Curveball up by <5
Ian Gordon: Poor, current Avoid Ks down by <5
Nelson Fantauzzi: Successful, current BABIP up by <5
Mike Bell: Outstanding, potential Curveball up by 5, current Curveball up by 10

Round 2



Preseason & Spring Training

The Royals start Spring Training 4-3 while moving players around the diamond to give them extra reps at new positions; most importantly they are injury free in February.

Around the League

Transactions

Saturday, February 25th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent RP Hayden Wesneski to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,460,000.
Tuesday, February 21st , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent RP Robert Colina to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,640,000.
Monday, February 20th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent SP Emmet Sheehan to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,500,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent SP Dong-hyun Kim to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,360,000.
Saturday, February 18th , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent SP DJ Herz to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,420,000.
Friday, February 17th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent RP Jordan Balazovic to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,480,000.
Boston Red Sox: Signed free agent RP Daniel Lynch to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,520,000.
Friday, February 10th , 2034
Chicago White Sox: Signed free agent 1B Xavier Isaac to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,840,000.
Friday, February 3rd , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Ben Joyce to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,340,000.

Injuries

Tuesday, February 28th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: RP Anderson Munoz diagnosed with radial nerve compression, will miss 5 months.
Monday, February 27th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: RP Pierson Ohl diagnosed with bone chips in his elbow, will miss 5-6 months.
Minnesota Twins: Hurston Waldrep has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 14-15 months.
Saturday, February 25th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: 3B Jake Gelof diagnosed with a ruptured medial collateral ligament, will miss 8 months.
San Diego Padres: RP Jared Rumer diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 6-7 months.
Boston Red Sox: 2B Jim Hinton was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn abdominal muscle. He's expected to miss about 2-3 months.
Friday, February 24th , 2034
San Diego Padres: RP Richard Lovelady diagnosed with a ruptured disc, will miss 8 months.
San Antonio Avalanche: RP Paul Wilson diagnosed with a bone spur in his elbow, will miss 2 months.
San Antonio Avalanche: RP Rodolfo Espinoza diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 8-9 months.
Cleveland Guardians: CF Emmanuel Rodriguez was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: hip strain. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Wednesday, February 22nd , 2034
San Antonio Avalanche: 2B Pedro Ibarguen diagnosed with a torn ligament in his thumb, will miss 4-5 weeks.
New York Yankees: 2B Matt Shaw was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: high ankle sprain. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Tuesday, February 21st , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: RF AJ Gracia was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: strained oblique. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Saturday, February 18th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: RP Ethan Roberts diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff, will miss 13 months.
Friday, February 17th , 2034
Washington Nationals: Jett Williams has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 9 months.
Tuesday, February 7th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: Ernesto Alfarela has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 3 months.
Sunday, February 5th , 2034
Colorado Rockies: Minjae Seo has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 2 months.

[benp28]

Preseason Predictions

The Royals are predicted to be baseball’s only 100-win team in 2034, going 101-61 with a +196 run differential. Mike Hoffer and Curt Bogans are each predicted to have 200 Ks with an ERA of under 3.50.

Development Lab

Results

No Improvement: Bobby Witt Jr., Alex Duke, Danny Petty, Jesus Aguilar, Esteban Medina.
Drew Burress: Poor, No Change
Toby Demkowski: Poor, No Change
Enny Mijhail Van Dyke: Successful: Outfield Arm up by 5, Outfield Range & Error up by <5
Edgar Rivera: Successful: Catcher Arm, Framing, & Ability up by <5
Juan Moreno: Successful: Infield Arm, Range, Error, Doubleplay up by <5
Jorge Tejada: Successful: Outfield Error up by 5, Arm & Range up by <5
Edgar Mir: Outstanding: Infield Arm, Range, Error, Doubleplay up by 5

Opening Day Roster



Despite the disappointing end to the 2033 season, it is a fairly familiar batting roster that opens up 2034 for the Royals despite some interesting battle in Spring Training.

At Catcher, Edgar Rivera saw off Sam Hart for the back-up catcher role but that does give Hart a full season of catching at AAA to try to take that role in 2035.

Dan Colligan took the back up defensive infielder role, beating out Ian Gordon and Ed Nicholson with the strength of his bat. Gordon and Nicholson are both elite defensive back ups though for any serious 2B or SS injuries. Edgar Mir was invited to Spring Training and impressed but with huge potential power still to unlock he will be given a full season in AAA.

The 1B/3B bat-first infielder position was won by Luis Zesati. This was mainly a reflection of the development Juan Zubia still must do, with the Royals hoping he can realise his power potential in Omaha. Toby Demkowski was a Spring Training invitee and benefitted from the time but will open the season in AAA.

Jeremy Rogerson will look to back up his Batting Title fresh off his long term contract while Bobby Witt Jr. will be trying to get as close to the Royals career WAR record as he can entering the penultimate year of his contract while needing to prove that he is still capable of playing SS.

Alex Duke has developed strongly over the last season and a half and a trip to Spring Training was an acknowledgement of that from the management although he was always unlikely to displace what is an elite collection outfielders. Similarly, for Ed Stevens, the return of Edgar Manzo was always going to make it hard for him to retain a place and so it proved. They will both start at AAA.

C Jonathan Gerew 2027 8th Round

1B Jeremy Rogerson 2027 2nd Round
2B Tim Storer 2028 1st Round
3B Danny Petty 2028 1st (S) Round
SS Bobby Witt Jr. 2019 1st Round

LF Billy Mumaugh 2029 1st Round
CF Drew Burress 2033 Trade (SF)
RF Jimmy Goodman 2027 1st Round
DH Enny Mijhail Van Dyke 2028 3rd Round

C Edgar Rivera 2026 Scouting Discovery
INF Luis Zesati 2032 Trade (WAS)
INF Dan Colligan 2031 Trade (LAD)
OF Edgar Manzo 2026 International Amateur



The Royals revamp their pitching staff for the 2034 season. The failure to resign Chase Dollander was a failing the fans are ready to throw in the front office’s face so they will be hoping the young arms are ready to step up in a way they weren’t in 2033.

Curt Bogans, fresh off a 10-year contract, will lead the starting rotation with four of the five arms home grown players. Mason Barnett will be playing potentially his final year in Kansas City and that he is the 5th best starter but providing the same level of performance as the last 9 years is the risk the front office are taking!

In the bullpen, the Royals will continue their adjustment to a more conventional bullpen with a Closer and two Setup men – all three of whom are homegrown. In addition, offseason signing Shane Baz and returner Raimon Gomez will look to make an impact in keeping the Royals at the top of the reliever rankings!

There were few difficult decisions in the bullpen with Brad Demarest and Mike Halpin gaining experience while Stevie Emanuels (back at the Royals) missed out to a LHP in Sa-yoo-Kim and Eric Cook’s offseason development will need to be proved in AAA before he is trusted in the Big Leagues again – that meant that Rule 5 acquisition D’Mani Hamble earns a bullpen spot to start the season.

The pitching looks light, and a midseason acquisition certainly should not be ruled out for the Royals. 

[benp28]

Kansas City Prospects

Edgar Mir is the crown of the Royals farm and is on track to make his big league debut in 2034. Alex Duke, Ed Nicholson, and Sam Hart will hope to join him although Toby Demkowski might be a step behind with the competition at 3B.

The pitching side is a little further away from the big leagues but there is excitement in the young arms of Chris Wolff, Ethan Chafin, and TP Bender.



Major League Top 20 Prospects

Three top 20 prospects start the season on MLB rosters with Toronto excited to have two of those players, in pitcher Tyree Sanon and 1B Josh Bright. The most exciting might be 3B and 2nd best prospect in baseball, Eric Rose of the Cleveland Guardian. Two more top ten players, LF Chase Bethea and RHP Robbie Austin, start in AAA which is where the Royals Mir will start.



MLB Farm Rankings

Having graduated several players over the last season, the Royals farm takes a hit to open 2034 although is still graded as a top ten farm and they will hope their investment in development sees the next wave of player make their moves over the season.

[benp28]

MLB Standings

The Royals (16-12) finish the first month half a game back from the White Sox (16-11) in the AL Central. The Mariners (21-7) and the Angels (18-9) are the hot teams in the American League in April.

In the National League, the Padres (20-10) have made a strong start, as have the Reds (17-10).



Kansas City Results

It was a solid opening to the season for the Royals without being spectacular. A season-opening 2-1 home series victory against the Twins was followed by a 0-3 sweep on the road in Boston.

Likewise, after rebounding to sweep the Guardians in a four-game home series, Kansas City then dropped back-to-back 1-2 series decisions at home to the Astros and on the road against the Braves.

Sitting at 8-8, there was frustration building for a club that was predicted to dominate baseball in 2034. A strong back-half to the month cooled the panic as a 2-1 road series win in Cleveland was followed by 2-1 and 3-1 home victories against the Red Sox and Blue Jays before splitting the first two games of a divisional road series in Chicago.



Kansas City Team Statistics





Solid batting performances across the board have fuelled the Royals start to the season with the heady heights of 6th for Home Runs the most satisfying of those. The bullpen has started where it left off, although unfortunately so has the starting rotation and the defence has been middle of the pack to be generous.

The outfield bats have been as solid as expected with Billy Mumaugh (171 wRC+) hitting 8 HRs to go with 25 RBIs while Jimmy Goodman (193 wRC+) has 32 hits in 85 at-bats.

Cade Townsend (72 FIP-) and Mike Hoffer (79 FIP-) have both offered strong starting pitching with Townsend back to 10+ K/9 to start the season. In the bullpen, only J.J. Paniagua (124 FIP-) has struggled with Eddie Baquerizo (44 FIP-) being particularly effective, with 7 saves and a 1.74 ERA.

Transactions & Injuries

Monday, March 20th , 2034
SP Marcos Paz diagnosed with a finger blister, is day-to-day for 2 weeks.
Friday, March 31st , 2034
Marcos Paz has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another one week.
LF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke was injured while running the bases. The diagnosis is not yet known.
Saturday, April 1st , 2034
LF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke diagnosed with a sprained ankle, will miss 3 weeks.
Purchased the contract of CF Alex Duke from Triple A Omaha.
Thursday, April 20th , 2034
Sent LF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke to Triple A Omaha for injury rehab.

A couple of injuries to start the Royals year; Marco Paz blistered his finger and then suffered a setback in recovery which put some early strain on the bullpen while Enny Mijhail Van Dyke was injured in the first game of the season which gave Alex Duke his first call up to the Major Leagues.

Minor League News

Texas League (AA) Batter of the Month: Tim Spears (2028 5th Round) .395, 10 HRs, 34 RBIs

Texas League (AA) Pitcher of the Month: Mike Bell (2028 7th Round) 3-0, 1.29 ERA 21 I, 27 K, 4 BB

Around the League

Transactions

Sunday, April 30th , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: Signed free agent 1B Corey Julks to a 1-year contract worth a total of $930,000.
Monday, April 24th , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: Signed free agent 2B Peyton Stovall to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,380,000.
Toronto Blue Jays: Signed SP Kevin Gahagan to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $76,600,000.
Thursday, April 13th , 2034
Milwaukee Brewers: Signed CL Amari Blakes to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $57,000,000.
Wednesday, April 12th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: Signed 2B Kahlil Watson to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $24,000,000.
Sunday, April 9th , 2034
Miami Marlins: Signed SP Brayden Harris to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $34,600,000.
Chicago White Sox: Signed LF Juan Soreni to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $183,500,000.
Saturday, April 8th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed SP Steve Richardson to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $32,800,000.
The Cincinnati Reds traded 21-year old minor league LHP Phil Bender and 22-year old minor league RHP Edgar Fuentes to the Colorado Rockies, getting 33-year old minor league C Brandon Valenzuela in return.
Friday, April 7th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed 2B Kayson Cunningham to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $31,500,000.
Wednesday, April 5th , 2034
Minnesota Twins: Signed free agent SP K.B. Monroe to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,520,000.
Sunday, March 26th , 2034
The Cleveland Guardians traded 16-year old minor league 3B Luis Viera and 23-year old minor league RHP Ted Dampeer to the Toronto Blue Jays, getting 29-year old minor league C Edward Duran in return.
Saturday, March 25th , 2034
Wednesday, March 22nd , 2034
The Texas Rangers traded 20-year old minor league RF Juan Barrera and 20-year old minor league LHP Marc Oliver to the St. Louis Cardinals, getting 34-year old minor league 3B Lenyn Sosa in return.
Tuesday, March 21st , 2034
The Los Angeles Angels traded 24-year old minor league RF Juan Olmedo and 22-year old minor league RHP Juan Urrabazo to the Houston Astros, getting 26-year old minor league C Nate Cline in return.
Monday, March 20th , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed free agent SP Casey Legumina to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,200,000.
Sunday, March 19th , 2034
The Washington Nationals traded 24-year old minor league RF Ernesto Salto and 23-year old minor league RF Ken Regan to the San Antonio Avalanche, getting 29-year old minor league C Nate Costic in return.
Saturday, March 18th , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: Signed free agent RP Nick Starr to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,140,000.
Thursday, March 16th , 2034
The San Francisco Giants traded 21-year old minor league C Jorge Arzuaga and 21-year old minor league RHP Steve Kirkpatrick to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 27-year old minor league RF Alejandro Sandoval in return.
Sunday, March 12th , 2034
The Cleveland Guardians traded 19-year old minor league RF Luis Yescas and 24-year old minor league 1B Jorge Reyna to the St. Louis Cardinals, getting 27-year old minor league 3B Forrest Drader in return.
Thursday, March 2nd , 2034
Chicago White Sox: Signed SP Dan Nichols to a 6-year contract extension worth a total of $234,000,000.
Wednesday, March 1st , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed CL Juan Rivera to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $60,000,000.

Injuries

Sunday, April 30th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: Daylen Lile has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 6-7 weeks.
Los Angeles Angels: SS Adael Amador diagnosed with a fractured finger, will miss 8-9 weeks.
Wednesday, April 26th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: RF Joey Wiemer diagnosed with a strained quad, is day-to-day for 4-5 weeks.
Wednesday, April 19th , 2034
Toronto Blue Jays: Jeremy Thornton has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 4 weeks.
Wednesday, April 12th , 2034
Texas Rangers: SP Mason Englert diagnosed with biceps tendinitis, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Tuesday, April 11th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: RP Matt Manning diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, will miss 12-13 months.
Detroit Tigers: 3B Shamar Sumling was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: sprained knee. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Toronto Blue Jays: CF Ismael Garza was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: fractured hand. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Sunday, April 9th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: SP Juan Villalvazo diagnosed with a damaged elbow ligament, will miss 12-13 months.
Saturday, April 8th , 2034
New York Mets: SP Bryan Woo diagnosed with a partially torn labrum, will miss 4 months.
San Antonio Avalanche: SP Marquis Etienne was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: sore shoulder. He's expected to miss about 7 weeks.
Friday, April 7th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: SS Masyn Winn diagnosed with plantar fasciitis, will miss 5 weeks.
Thursday, April 6th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: CF Daylen Lile diagnosed with a fractured tibia, will miss 7 weeks.
Cleveland Guardians: RF T.J. White was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: herniated disc (back). He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Wednesday, April 5th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: LF Jakob Marsee diagnosed with a strained hamstring, will miss 6-7 weeks.
Milwaukee Brewers: SS Daniel Guilarte diagnosed with a strained hamstring, will miss 8 weeks.
Boston Red Sox: RF Roman Anthony was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: strained hamstring. He's expected to miss about 7 weeks.
Tuesday, April 4th , 2034
Sunday, April 2nd , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: SS Tai Peete was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: knee tendinitis. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Friday, March 31st , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: 2B Jordan Lawlar was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: sprained ankle. He's expected to miss about 8 weeks.
Monday, March 20th , 2034
Houston Astros: RP Brad Hovey diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, will miss 12 months.
Sunday, March 19th , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: RP Chris Fariello was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: chronic back soreness. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Baltimore Orioles: SS Greg Singleton was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: shoulder tendinitis. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Friday, March 17th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: RP Ken McCoggle diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 3 months.
Miami Marlins: LF Mike Carethers diagnosed with an oblique strain, will miss 3-4 weeks.
Detroit Tigers: 2B Kyren Paris was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn quadriceps. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Thursday, March 16th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: RP Mason Black diagnosed with a ruptured disc, will miss 8-9 months.
Wednesday, March 15th , 2034
Toronto Blue Jays: LF Jeremy Thornton diagnosed with a herniated disc, will miss 7-8 weeks.
Los Angeles Dodgers: RP Julio Nava diagnosed with a sore shoulder, will miss 5 months.
Sunday, March 12th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: RP Ronan Kopp diagnosed with a damaged elbow ligament, will miss 14-15 months.
San Francisco Giants: SP Eddie Jordan diagnosed with a torn triceps, will miss 4 months.
Pittsburgh Pirates: SP AJ Smith-Shawver was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: rotator cuff strain. He's expected to miss about 8 weeks.
Saturday, March 11th , 2034
Milwaukee Brewers: RP Andres Munoz diagnosed with an elbow sprain, will miss 5 weeks.
New York Yankees: RP Wilson Ayala diagnosed with a strained back muscle, will miss 4 weeks.
Washington Nationals: RF Mike Wills was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn hamstring. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Friday, March 10th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: RP Steven Jennings was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: rotator cuff strain. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Thursday, March 9th , 2034
Miami Marlins: LF Jeff Wells was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: plantar fasciitis. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Tuesday, March 7th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: RP Zach Oatsvall was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: sore shoulder. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Monday, March 6th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: CF Nate Carey diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain, will miss 6 weeks.
Sunday, March 5th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: SP Robert Gasser was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: sprained elbow. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Saturday, March 4th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: RP Tobias Myers diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, will miss 7 months.
Houston Astros: 1B Curtis Mead was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: hamstring strain. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Thursday, March 2nd , 2034
Texas Rangers: SP Joel Edmund diagnosed with a herniated disc, will miss 2 months.  

[benp28]

MLB Standings

The Royals (31-25) have had a solid start to the season, although trail the highflying White Sox by 3 games. The White Sox’s .611 record is only topped in the American League by the 38-18 Mariners, with the Red Sox (32-22) holding an early lead in the East.

Over in the National League, the Padres (37-21) hold the best record in baseball to sit atop the West, but it is tight in the East (Washington .5 ahead of the Braves) and the Central (Cubs 1.5 ahead of the Reds).



Kansas City Results

Another frustrating month results wise for the Royals as they win five and lose four of their series, splitting the tenth. One of those victories was to clinch the series against the White Sox to start the month, before dropping two of three in Toronto. Another series loss to an American League team followed as they came home and lost two of three to the Rangers, before the Cubs came to town and Kansas City took two wins in a three game series. After a split (2-2) series in San Antonio, the Royals clinched their second 2-1 series win against NL teams in Los Angeles before the AL-leading Mariners were brought down to earth with a 3-0 sweep in Kansas City.

The White Sox came to town next and stopped any momentum with a 2-1 series victory, with the Royals finishing the month on the road taking two of three in Tampa Bay before dropping the first two games of a series against the Twins, ending the month on a three-game losing streak.



Kansas City Team Statistics





The bats stayed hot while the arms did not in May. Stolen bases (8th) and home runs (4th) are the most satisfying statistics that have ‘stuck’ and the Royals will hope that helps keep runs scored (2nd) in the top couple of places, one of the big challenges from 2033. For the pitching staff, they will hope that sitting 10th in BABIP is something that is more bad luck than design, with ZR up to 4th it is just the defensive efficiency of the team that is concerning.

Drew Burress (154 wRC+) had a great month with 7 HRs and 28 RBIs as well as a strong defensive month. Danny Petty (109 wRC+) wasn’t quite the opposite but his -1.6 ZR for the month is concerning and will be monitored closely by the Royals.

Mike Hoffer (85 FIP-) had another strong month with an ERA below 3.00 while Curt Bogans (83 FIP-) may be coming around with a 3.00 ERA in four starts. In the bullpen, Raimon Gomez (48 FIP-) had a great month across 15 innings, giving up seven hits while striking out 10 batters per nine.

Transactions & Injuries

Saturday, May 6th , 2034
Optioned RF Edgar Manzo to Triple A Omaha.
Purchased the contract of LF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke from Triple A Omaha.

Very little movement for the Royals in May, although Mason Barnett did approach Stewart about an extension – 6yrs at $12.7m is a lot of money which the Royals will not be parting with!

Minor League News

Texas League (AA) Batter of the Month: Rogelio Camacho (2030 6th Round) .348, 14 HRs, 40 RBIs

Texas League (AA) Pitcher of the Month: Phil Farmer (2033 Trade WAS) 5-0, 2.36 ERA, 49 K, 34.1 IP

Midwest League (A+) Batter of the Month: Alejandro Estrada (2028 International Amateur) .316, 11 HRs, 35 RBIs

Midwest League (A+) Pitcher of the Month: Jesus Sandoval (2030 7th Round) 4-0, 1.03 ERA, 47 Ks, 35 IP

Carolina League (A) Batter of the Month: Jorge Lona (2028 International Amateur) .494 5 HRs, 19 RBIs

Carolina League (A) Pitcher of the Month: Edgar Alba (2032 Trade WAS) 4-0, 1.29 ERA, 43 K, 28 IP

Around the League

Transactions

Tuesday, May 30th , 2034
The Cincinnati Reds traded 22-year old minor league 3B Simone Sengo and 18-year old minor league 1B Luis Brignoni to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 28-year old minor league RF Jonathan Allison in return.
Monday, May 29th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: Signed CF Mike Miller to a 8-year contract extension worth a total of $336,000,000.
Minnesota Twins: Signed SP Tyrese Johnican to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $109,900,000.
Sunday, May 28th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed SP Stephon Mickell to a 6-year contract extension worth a total of $169,900,000.
Monday, May 22nd , 2034
The Toronto Blue Jays traded 17-year old minor league SS Alejandro Saiz and 19-year old minor league RHP Eddy Baltodano to the Chicago White Sox, getting 35-year old minor league LF Gilberto Celestino in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 23-year old minor league CF Chris Edson and 20-year old minor league RHP Josh Kotrous to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 31-year old minor league RHP Khal Stephen in return.
Saturday, May 13th , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: Signed SP Blade Tidwell to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $46,400,000.
Thursday, May 4th , 2034
Detroit Tigers: Signed C Chris Hukle to a 7-year contract extension worth a total of $78,500,000. All extensions, trades

Injuries

Wednesday, May 31st , 2034
Chicago Cubs: RP Yoniel Curet diagnosed with a herniated disc, will miss 5 weeks.
Tuesday, May 30th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: RP Nicanor Berns diagnosed with bone chips in his elbow, will miss 5 months.
Monday, May 29th , 2034
New York Mets: 2B Joe Poh was injured being hit by a pitch. The Diagnosis: concussion. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Atlanta Braves: CF Esteban Villegas was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: biceps tendinitis. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Thursday, May 25th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: LF Julio Rodriguez diagnosed with a broken kneecap, will miss 5-6 months.
Wednesday, May 24th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: RP Constant Bellgrove diagnosed with a strained abdominal muscle, will miss 6 weeks.
Tuesday, May 23rd , 2034
Atlanta Braves: C Steve Crawford was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: fractured finger. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Sunday, May 21st , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: LF Greg Clevenger diagnosed with a strained oblique, will miss 6 weeks.
Washington Nationals: CL Juan Rivera diagnosed with an elbow sprain, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Boston Red Sox: SP Zach Eckloff was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: herniated disc (back). He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Thursday, May 18th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: RP Gavin Stone diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 3 months.
Wednesday, May 17th , 2034
New York Mets: LF Alejandro Moreno diagnosed with a fractured rib, will miss 3-4 weeks.
New York Yankees: RF Jackson Chourio was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: strained rib cage muscle. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 1-2 weeks.
Tuesday, May 16th , 2034
Texas Rangers: LF Corbin Carroll was injured being hit by a pitch. The Diagnosis: bone marrow edema (wrist). He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Monday, May 15th , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: SP Sam Grebe diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, will miss 9 months.
Chicago White Sox: SS Juan Borja was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: biceps tendinitis. He's expected to miss about 3-4 weeks.
Thursday, May 11th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: SP Tim Elkins diagnosed with radial nerve compression, will miss 6 months.
Arizona Diamondbacks: RP Jamie Russell diagnosed with elbow tendinitis, will miss 6 weeks.
Wednesday, May 10th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: CF Emmanuel Rodriguez diagnosed with a strained abdominal muscle, will miss 4 weeks.
Toronto Blue Jays: SP Kevin Gahagan was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: herniated disc (back). He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Tuesday, May 9th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: CL Phil Sturgis diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 5-6 months.
Monday, May 8th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: C Kyle Teel diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 4 months.
Saturday, May 6th , 2034
Toronto Blue Jays: 3B Nacho Alvarez Jr. was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: plantar fasciitis. He's expected to miss about 5-6 weeks.
Tuesday, May 2nd , 2034
San Diego Padres: Joe Harmon has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 3 months.
New York Mets: 2B Zach Masteller was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: separated shoulder. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Monday, May 1st , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: SP Mike Bowe diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, will miss 11-12 months.

[benp28]

MLB Standings

The Royals (46-38) find themselves 3.5 games back from the White Sox (48-33) at the end of June with the Guardians a further 5.5 games back. The Mariners (50-33) continue to lead the way in the American League and are the first team in the league to 50 wins, while the Red Sox (44-38) top a very even East division which sees 3.5 games separating four teams.

Over in the National League, the Padres (60-25) boast a .706 winning record this season while the Cubs (43-39) and the Nationals (41-39) lead their divisions with more pedestrian records.



Kansas City Results

The Royals start the month in rough fashion, dropping the last two games of a road series against the Twins to get swept 4-0, before making it eight losses in a row in getting swept at home by the Padres (3-0).

Eight wins in a row followed, though, in Detroit (3-0), then at home against the Angels (3-0) and the Orioles (2-2). Three series on the road produced a 5-4 record, with 2-1 defeats to the NL Diamondbacks and the AL-leading Mariners before a sweep of the Rangers (3-0).

The Mets took two of three in Kansas City before the Royals won the first game of a four-game series against the Tigers.



Kansas City Team Statistics





It was a groundhog month for the Royals as they go 15-13 again with the bats carrying a struggling pitching group. Other than walks and base running/stolen bases the Royals lead every category in the National League and will hope those bats stay sharp! In the pitching room, hits allowed (10th) and runs allowed (12th) need to be addressed and it is hard to see the Royals not making changes in July.

Enny Mijhail Van Dyke (273 wRC+) won the AL Batter of the Month Award after hitting .429 with 12 home runs, 28 RBIs and 31 runs scored. He also drew 12 walks to post an OBP of .495. Danny Petty’s (161 wRC+) defence has turned a corner, with the majority of his negative ZR coming from his pitching performances.

Curt Bogans (78 FIP-) and Cade Townsend (62 FIP-) were the pick of a starting rotation that had a reasonably strong month lowering their collective ERA from 4.50 to 4.47. The bullpen, however, had a rough month, ERA going from 3.94 to 4.66. Only Jon Holtz (90 FIP-) and J.J. Paniagua (59 FIP-) had FIPs below the league average with some real problems with walks for Eddie Baquerizo (9.3/9), Shane Baz (8.7/0) and Raimon Gomez (5.9/9). Baz and Gomez have control of 50, which is probably a touch lower and causing the problem but Baquerizo is more troubling as scouts think he has 55/60 control, both our Head Coach and OSA in agreement.

Transactions & Injuries

The Royals suffered no injuries and let the roster do the work for the month!

Minor League News

Midwest League (A+) Batter of the Month: Julio Herrera (2030 Tade HOU) .427, 8 HRs, 27 RBIs

Texas League (AA) Pitcher of the Month: Phil Farmer (2033 Trade WAS) 5-0, 1.75 ERA, 47 K, 36 IP

Texas League (AA) Batter of the Month: Rogelio Camacho (2030 6th Round) .372, 22 HRs, 36 RBIs

Dominican Rookie (R) League Batter of the Month: Jesus Cipolloni (2032 Trade ATL) .552, 14 HRs, 48 RBIs.

Around the League

Transactions

Wednesday, June 28th , 2034
The St. Louis Cardinals traded 20-year old minor league RHP Luis Danys Rhodes to the Milwaukee Brewers, getting 31-year old minor league C Joe Mack in return.
Monday, June 26th , 2034
The Houston Astros traded 33-year old LHP Luke Little to the San Antonio Avalanche, getting 23-year old minor league RHP Brad Murphy and 22-year old minor league 3B Esteban Orozco in return.
Saturday, June 24th , 2034
The Chicago Cubs traded 20-year old minor league RHP Binyam Foster, 21-year old minor league RHP Jesus Vera, and 19-year old minor league LHP Luis Romero to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 38-year old LHP Cionel Perez in return.
Friday, June 23rd , 2034
The Seattle Mariners traded 23-year old minor league 3B Luis Baeza and 22-year old minor league 1B Jorge Chaparro to the Texas Rangers, getting 26-year old minor league 2B Josh Vandiver in return.
Tuesday, June 20th , 2034
The Los Angeles Angels traded 24-year old minor league 3B Jimmy Donald to the Miami Marlins, getting 26-year old minor league C Dillon Moss in return.
Monday, June 19th , 2034
The Miami Marlins traded 22-year old minor league C Wolfrid St. George and 22-year old minor league RF Jesus Valle to the New York Mets, getting 27-year old minor league SS Will Rhine in return.
Wednesday, June 14th , 2034
The New York Mets traded 18-year old minor league RF Juan Jara and 22-year old minor league 1B Tony Kirkham to the Cleveland Guardians, getting 34-year old minor league RF Felix Stevens in return.
Monday, June 12th , 2034
The Detroit Tigers traded 23-year old minor league RF Chris Stairs and 20-year old minor league SS Jon Alexander to the Baltimore Orioles, getting 34-year old minor league 3B BJ Murray Jr. in return.
Tuesday, June 6th , 2034
The Detroit Tigers traded 18-year old minor league LF Julio Alvidrez and 20-year old minor league CF Sergio Meraz to the Miami Marlins, getting 26-year old minor league 2B Luis Urbina in return.

Injuries

Friday, June 30th , 2034
Atlanta Braves: LF Danny Stellato diagnosed with back spasms, will miss 6-7 weeks.
Thursday, June 29th , 2034
Texas Rangers: LF Ben Heiselman diagnosed with a torn posterior cruciate ligament, will miss 11 months.
Wednesday, June 28th , 2034
New York Mets: 2B CJ Abrams diagnosed with a torn posterior cruciate ligament, will miss 8-9 months.
San Francisco Giants: RF Aaron Palensky was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: fractured finger. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Tuesday, June 27th , 2034
Washington Nationals: LF Dylan Crews diagnosed with torn ankle ligaments, will miss 8-9 weeks.
Houston Astros: 2B Joendry Vargas diagnosed with a fractured finger, will miss 6 weeks.
New York Yankees: RF Jackson Chourio was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn quadriceps. He's expected to miss about 5-6 weeks.
Sunday, June 25th , 2034
Texas Rangers: RP Alemao Hernandez diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 4 months.
Thursday, June 22nd , 2034
New York Yankees: SP Andrew Painter diagnosed with a bone spur in his elbow, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Atlanta Braves: SS Colt Emerson diagnosed with a concussion, will miss 6 weeks.
Washington Nationals: CF James Wood was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: high ankle sprain. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
New York Yankees: LF Jasson Dominguez was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: strained rib cage muscle. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Sunday, June 18th , 2034
Colorado Rockies: RP Chris Wagner diagnosed with bone chips in his elbow, will miss 7 months.
St. Louis Cardinals: SS Masyn Winn was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn quadriceps. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Friday, June 16th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: SP Jeff Baniewicz diagnosed with a hamstring strain, will miss 7 weeks.
New York Mets: SP Joe Barner diagnosed with a herniated disc, will miss 2-3 months.
Thursday, June 15th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: RP Nick Robertson diagnosed with a torn meniscus, will miss 4-5 months.
Boston Red Sox: 1B Triston Casas diagnosed with a strained abdominal muscle, is day-to-day for 4 weeks.
Cincinnati Reds: CF Gavin Turley was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: fractured thumb. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Wednesday, June 14th , 2034
Miami Marlins: C Malcolm Moore diagnosed with a fractured knee, will miss 6 months.
Detroit Tigers: SS Sean Albright was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: fractured foot. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Monday, June 12th , 2034
Colorado Rockies: SP Jonathan Glymph diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 3-4 months.
Sunday, June 11th , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: 2B Andres Gimenez was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: chronic back soreness. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
Saturday, June 10th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: SS Maikel Garcia diagnosed with a sore shoulder, will miss 6 weeks.
Friday, June 9th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: SP Codi Henson diagnosed with a strained abdominal muscle, will miss 7 weeks.
Wednesday, June 7th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: SP Justin Steele diagnosed with biceps tendinitis, will miss 4-5 weeks.
San Antonio Avalanche: 2B Chris Ryder diagnosed with a sprained ankle, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Tuesday, June 6th , 2034
Boston Red Sox: RF Roman Anthony diagnosed with a strained hamstring, will miss 7-8 weeks.
Seattle Mariners: 1B Amari Dixie diagnosed with a sports hernia, will miss 8-9 weeks.
Saturday, June 3rd , 2034
San Diego Padres: RP Jenrick Gross diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain, will miss 3-4 weeks.
San Antonio Avalanche: LF Jorge Vaca diagnosed with a strained hamstring, will miss 2-3 months.
Miami Marlins: 2B Sean Gamble was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn groin. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Friday, June 2nd , 2034
Detroit Tigers: CF Riley Greene diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain, will miss 4 weeks.
Washington Nationals: RP Drew Beam diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 6-7 months.  

[benp28]

The Royals reach the All Star break 2.5 games back of the White Sox after an 8-6 start to July. A game closer than the start of the month but frustrating after dropping five of six going into the break.



The Royals had four All Stars with LF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke earning his first selection, 1B Jeremy Rogerson his second, and Billy Mumaugh and Drew Burress their third.



The American League won the game with Rogerson going 1-2 but the other three were hitless, although Mumaugh did take a walk in one of his two at-bats.



The Royals bats reach the All Star Break in good shape. Mijhail Van Dyke is slugging at an absurd .747 rate with 22 HRs, and a .333 average. Rogerson is also batting over three hundred, at .315 while slugging .580, the same slugging rate as Billy Mumaugh.

The Royals continue to have their most successful stealing season of the Stewart era, built on Bobby Witt Jr.’s 24, Mumaugh’s 16, and Drew Burress’s 14. Burress had a day-to-day leg injury for a month which caused the Stewart to dial down the stealing aggressiveness but that will be ramped back up in the second half of the year.

Defensively, Dan Colligan has been exceptional as part of a LHP platoon with Tim Storer while the left hand side of the diamond has been a struggle as Danny Petty, Witt Jr. and Mumaugh have combined for a -5.5 ZR!

Petty has struggled generally, dropping about .020 across AVG, OBP, SLG, and going from a 7.5 ZR 3B to -0.9. Zesati has also struggled this year, his 10 HR not masking a .231 average.



Some major changes which will be covered at the end of the month is the tale of the pitching staff after season long struggles. Marcos Paz is the only starting pitcher with a FIP- over 100 but Curt Bogans is also the only pitcher with a FIP under 4.00. Mike Hoffer and Cade Townsend have complimented his well, both offering over two WAR over the first half of the season while Mason Barnett is exactly the 5th starter the Royals wanted, providing 1.6 WAR even if he isn’t lasting as deep into games as they would like.

In the bullpen, William Schmidt (a very underrated contributor to the Royals) has been as consistent as always, as he looks to end a 4th year as a Royal with a 4th consecutive year of a sub 100 FIP. Eddie Baquerizo has been strong in the closer role, with 24 saves at a .889 clip for the year. Jon Holtz looks to make this year the year he sticks in the Majors, a 77 FIP- to go with an 11.3 K/9 rate is music to Royals fans ears. 

[benp28]

Owner Goals

Team Record:
Man, that was a tough first half of the season. We really need to go full throttle in order to meet our goal of making the playoffs this year. I know you'll get it done.

Improve team stats:
I can't be upset with a team that's 5th in Stolen Bases. I hope that the team can keep up this pace the rest of the season.

Extend your player:
I told you to sign Chase Dollander to an extension. For some reason, you decided not to. I do give you the final say on player moves, but when I tell you a player is important to us, I expect you to listen.

Improve your fan interest:
I haven't seen much progress in the area of fan engagement.

Minor Leagues





It’s been another positive half-year on the farm with several players now waiting in the wings of AAA. Edgar Mir has posted a 2.3 WAR while looking to bring his power up to its potential so he will spend the rest of the season in Omaha. He will be joined by AA high performers, Chris Lee and Roger Camacho, as well as Ed Nicholson, Sam Hart, and Toby Demkowski who all feel like they are ready should the opportunity arise. It would likely take injuries for the final three to feature but if Camacho hits at AAA level then Zesati could be at risk.

Double A is a more balanced prospect breakdown with pitchers Chris Wolff and Mike Bell, joined by the bats of Alfredo Pastora, Alejandro Estrada, Tim Spears, and Catcher Jorge Lona but all three are developing nicely.

2027 Draft

The Royals had the 25th pick of the 2034 draft and, aligned to their new lower first round philosophy went with a high school player. It was a left field pick, though, 18-year-old Mike O’Gorman not being in many people’s first round picks. O’Gorman, however, has a strong 70-50-50 profile with a knuckleball that is already a 40/75 as part of a three-pitch arsenal. A risk, without doubt, but the upside made the risk worthwhile in Royals’ eyes.

The rest of the Royals first five pick played out as follows:

Round 2, Pick 23 - SP Erik Omelanczuk, age 20 out of college – another three-pitch starter, Omelanczuk projects as a 65-55-50 power pitcher throwing 97-99 MPH with a plus plus fastball and sinker, and a plus changeup
Round 3, Pick 23 - CF Chase Standberry, age 17 out of high school – a 65-range OF who could stick in Centre, projecting plus contact and power with an average eye and plus speed
Round 4, Pick 22 - SP Josh Flaherty, age 18 out of high school – a two-way player with a 55-45-60 pitching projection behind two plus and one above average pitches, his potential plus plus power and plus eye convinced the Royals to pick him up in the 4th round
Round 5, Pick 22 - SP Dan Carrig, age 18 out of high school – a four-pitch starter who project plus plus stuff, plus control and average movement, he has three potentially plus pitches to go with an average fastball. As a flyball pitcher he may only amount to a trade chip but his ceiling is that of a #2 starter.

Omelanczuk will start in A ball, and will be joined by 13th and 18th round relievers Brendan Nevilles and Jonathan Klingman while 20th round pick Josh Eastman will start in A+. The rest of the 20-player class will start in Rookie Ball with the best hoping to feature in Winter Ball.

The top five pick of the 2034 draft were as follows, headlined by potential multi-Cy Young winner Joe Davis:

Round 1, Pick 1 - New York Mets: SP Joe Davis, age 17 out of high school
Round 1, Pick 2 - Cleveland Guardians: SP Branden Duncan, age 21 out of college
Round 1, Pick 3 - Los Angeles Angels: SS R.J. Frank, age 21 out of college
Round 1, Pick 4 - Tampa Bay Rays: CF Ken Balcom-Miller, age 18 out of high school
Round 1, Pick 5 - San Antonio Avalanche: SP Al Kramer, age 18 out of high school

[benp28]

MLB Standings

The Royals (62-45) still trail the White Sox (63-44) at the end of July, although the gap has closed to a single game with the two AL Central Division teams holding the best two records in the American League. The Mariners (62-46) had a losing month but still hold a comfortable lead in the West, with the Red Sox (58-48) as strong in the East.

Over in the National League, the Padres (69-39) continue to be the best team in baseball with the Giants (63-45) trying to keep them honest. The Nationals (52-52) and the Pirates (56-49) lead their respective divisions, Washington more comfortable than Pittsburgh.



The Royals hold a nine-game lead over the Orioles in the Wild Card race although clearly with bigger goals in mind; the Yankees are in a race for the final spot with six teams within three and a half games.

In the National Leagues, the Giants are in a similar position over the Cubs with the Cardinals holding the final spot, and only three teams withing five games of that last place in the race to October.

Kansas City Results

It was a losing sandwich for the Royals in July but luckily the bread of the sandwich was a lot of wins! They started the month winning two of three from the Tigers for a 3-1 home series win, before sweeping a home series against the Rays (3-0) and then taking two of three in L.A. against the Dodgers.

The final loss of that series started a run of five losses in six games as St Louis won both games in St Louis before the Yankees took two of three in New York to take the Royals into the All-Star Break.

Kansas City came out the All Star Break hot, though, with three home series seeing a sweep of the Guardians (3-0), a win over the Rockies (2-1) and a sweep (3-0) of the Reds to end the month with a 16-7 record.



Kansas City Team Statistics





The Royals continue to lead the Americal League in most batting categories, only Home Runs (3rd), Walks (4th), Stolen Bases (6th) and Base Running (14th) not leading the league. Base Running is something the Royals have not been good at during Stewart’s time, maybe reflecting a very slow line up over the years.

July’s batting highlights included Drew Burress (147 wRC+) continuing his strong season with another 5 SBs to go with a .894 OPS. Jeremy Goodman (145 wRC+) had a walk rate that matched his strike out rate in compiling a .902 OPS while Jeremy Rogerson (131 wRC+) continues to hit over .300 for the second season.

The infield, Rogerson aside, had a tough month and so far this year haven’t offered the defence to justify weak bats! One to watch for the Royals as the season moves to the key months.

The pitching staff were very strong, headlined by Cade Townsend’s (38 FIP-) three starts, 20 IP, 2.66 ERA. Sa-yoon Kim (123 FIP-) struggled and may need a rest down in AAA; the acquisition of Billy Nicklas as a left handed option may make that more viable.

Transactions & Injuries

Saturday, July 1st , 2034
Traded 32-year old RHP Raimon Gomez to the Colorado Rockies, getting 22-year old RHP Chris Wagner and $6,000,000 in cash in return.Traded 25-year old minor league C Kevin Bryant, 25-year old minor league 2B Jorge Aguilar, 26-year old minor league 2B Daniel Covarrubias, and $20,000,000 in cash to the Houston Astros, getting 29-year old RHP Brad LaPointe (retaining 70%) and 23-year old RHP Jimmy Lininger in return.
Wednesday, July 12th , 2034
SP Mike Hoffer was injured while pitching. The diagnosis is not yet known.
CL Jimmy Lininger was injured while pitching. The diagnosis is not yet known.
Friday, July 14th , 2034
SP Mike Hoffer diagnosed with bone chips in his elbow, will miss 3 months.
RP Billy Nicklas was claimed off waivers from San Francisco.
Saturday, July 15th , 2034
CL Jimmy Lininger diagnosed with a flexor-pronator strain, will miss 3-4 weeks.
Purchased the contract of RP Ramiro Cepeda from Triple A Omaha.
Tuesday, July 18th , 2034
Traded 27-year old RHP J.J. Paniagua, 22-year old minor league 2B Juan Fonseca, and 23-year old minor league LF Tim Felver to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 32-year old RHP Chase Dollander (retaining 60%) and 24-year old minor league RHP Ismael Conston in return.

The Royals made two big moves in July to position themselves for the run in to the season. First, however, they decided to move on from Raimon Gomez for the second time, his return not having been as successful as first time around. They traded him for an injured Chris Wagner who could be a plus-plus-plus pitcher when he returns next year.

On the same day, they picked up another two pitchers – 65-60-60 starter Brad LaPointe and 70-55-50 reliever Jummy Lininger. Fans were very happy with acquisition of LaPointe while management were happy that the Astros retained 70% of the salary. LaPointe’s is an expiring contract so he has three months (plus hopefully a post season) to justify an extension. Bryant was an elite Catcher to give up but the Royals are happy with their Catching options and LaPointe was too good of a pitcher to turn down.

July 12th knocked the Royals though as new acquisition reliever Lininger got hurt the same day as Mike Hoffer. Two days later the worst news was confirmed for Hoffer, as he will miss four months (the rest of the season) with bone chips in his elbow. In better news, the Royals were successful in their waiver claim of Billy Nicklas, a left-handed reliever with 55-55-50 ratings.

Lininger wasn’t as bad, the reliever straining his flexor-pronator to knock him out for 3-4 weeks. 2029 8th round pick Ramiro Cepeda was called up for the first time to replace him.

With Hoffer out for the season, the Royals looked around the league to see if there were any clear replacements. With the Phillies at 43-62, and out of contention, an enquiry was sent over to see if there might be interest in giving up Chase Dollander, who they had outbid the Royals for over the off season. The ask wasn’t impossible and so the start of a megadeal was launched. When all was said and done, the Royals acquired Dollander with the Phillies retaining 60% of his contract for the next three years, leaving Kansas City paying $11.1m in 2034 and 2035, and $10.7m in 2036. There are two Team Options after that to keep him under contract if desired. In addition, they picked up Ismael Conston, a potential 60-60-50 reliever with two plus pitches. Going the other way was J.J. Paniagua who had struggled in Kansas City sadly, as well as 2031 trade acquisition Juan Fonseca and 2029 16th rounder Tim Felver, a high contact outfielder with average defence and no power or eye.

LaPointe and Dollander at the top of the Royals makes them noticeably stronger as the post-ASG record suggests; Dollander came across as an All Star for the fifth time, pitching for the National League having signed for an American League team!

Minor League News

Dominican Rookie League (R) Batter of the Month: Jesus Cipolloni (2032 Trade ATL) .505, 19 HRs, 60 RBIs

Around the League

Transactions

Monday, July 31st , 2034
The Cleveland Guardians traded 30-year old LHP Folger Boaz to the Detroit Tigers, getting 19-year old minor league LF Wei-sng Ngui in return.
The Houston Astros traded 23-year old minor league LF Sergio Rivera and 23-year old minor league 1B Vicente Reina to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 29-year old minor league LF Alex Sosa in return.
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded 27-year old minor league CF Nate Quinn to the San Diego Padres, getting 27-year old RHP Brenton Lupkoski and 21-year old minor league RHP Brad Barton in return.
The Tampa Bay Rays traded 32-year old SS Thomas Saggese to the Texas Rangers, getting 24-year old minor league C Bobby Edwards and 23-year old minor league RHP Cheong-won Kim in return.
The Atlanta Braves traded 26-year old minor league RHP Jesus Pacheco to the Seattle Mariners, getting 21-year old minor league 3B Kekaulike Tennant and 19-year old minor league C Andy Busch in return.
The San Francisco Giants traded 20-year old minor league SS Joey Hennig and 20-year old minor league RHP Andy Matthews to the Arizona Diamondbacks, getting 31-year old 1B Peyton Stovall in return.
The Tampa Bay Rays traded 31-year old RHP Sean Hermann to the Baltimore Orioles, getting 19-year old minor league RHP Rodolfo Gurule in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 21-year old minor league RHP Sincere Harriston and 22-year old minor league 1B Joe Eder to the New York Mets, getting 34-year old minor league 3B Damiano Palmegiani in return.
The Los Angeles Angels traded 18-year old minor league 1B Sergio Salinas and 19-year old minor league LF Jesus Requenez to the Chicago Cubs, getting 25-year old minor league CF Jim Hooper in return.
The Minnesota Twins traded 25-year old minor league LHP Juan Mercado to the Boston Red Sox, getting 19-year old minor league CF Jeff Marshallin return.
The San Francisco Giants traded 22-year old minor league RF Alejandro Estrada to the Miami Marlins, getting 29-year old 2B Jansel Luis in return.
Sunday, July 30th , 2034
The Los Angeles Angels traded 24-year old minor league LHP Josh Fangman to the Miami Marlins, getting 29-year old RHP Noble Meyer in return.
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 25-year old LHP Juan Medina to the New York Yankees, getting 23-year old minor league 3B Mike Hemrick and 20-year old minor league LF Jesus Navarro in return.
The New York Mets traded 23-year old minor league RHP Luis Alaniz and 24-year old minor league LHP Ken Strader to the Toronto Blue Jays, getting 28-year old minor league RHP Dusty Scheurich in return.
The Atlanta Braves traded 31-year old RHP JR Ritchie to the Texas Rangers, getting 23-year old minor league RHP Marc Thoreson and 20-year old minor league RHP Brendon Saggers in return.
The New York Yankees traded 21-year old minor league RF Alfredo Zamora and 23-year old minor league RHP Jorge Bustos to the Detroit Tigers, getting 27-year old minor league CF Josh D'Amonte in return.
The Minnesota Twins traded 28-year old minor league LHP Jake Wolfe to the New York Yankees, getting 23-year old minor league LF Steve Medinain return.
The Miami Marlins traded 29-year old LHP Thomas White to the Colorado Rockies, getting 18-year old minor league 2B Jorge Salinas and 24-year old minor league CF Jonathan McGuire in return.
Saturday, July 29th , 2034
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 27-year old RHP Bobby Simak and $270,000 in cash to the Chicago White Sox, getting 24-year old minor league RHP Erik Wright in return.
The San Antonio Avalanche traded 24-year old minor league 3B Pat Cooper to the San Francisco Giants, getting 26-year old minor league LHP Dan Rudisill in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 21-year old minor league LHP Cain Filby to the Cincinnati Reds, getting 33-year old RHP Alejandro Melean in return.
The Cleveland Guardians traded 30-year old RHP Easton Tumis to the Detroit Tigers, getting 17-year old minor league 2B Juan Santana and 22-year old minor league 3B Nelson Brown in return.
Friday, July 28th , 2034
The Cleveland Guardians traded 25-year old RHP Nate Green to the New York Yankees, getting 21-year old minor league RHP 0148 Kram in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 17-year old minor league LF Juan Ramos to the Minnesota Twins, getting 35-year old RHP Nick Frasso in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 22-year old minor league LF Rodolfo Aguilera and 17-year old minor league C Domingo Figueroa to the Cleveland Guardians, getting 32-year old RHP Jackson Baumeister in return.
The Chicago Cubs traded 21-year old minor league LF Jamie Brown and 21-year old minor league LHP Bobby Crawford to the Minnesota Twins, getting 31-year old minor league C Adrian Sugastey in return.
The Boston Red Sox traded 30-year old LF Miguel Bleis and 18-year old minor league 1B T.J. Sainte to the Arizona Diamondbacks, getting 29-year old 2B Dave Messineo in return.
The Cincinnati Reds traded 30-year old RHP Payton Martin to the Detroit Tigers, getting 23-year old minor league LHP Luis Pacheco and 20-year old minor league LHP Edgar Vergara in return.
The Tampa Bay Rays traded 26-year old RHP Bob Abernathy to the St. Louis Cardinals, getting 19-year old minor league 3B Gianluigi Petito in return.
The Los Angeles Angels traded 21-year old minor league RHP Chris Huffman to the Atlanta Braves, getting 30-year old RHP Owen Murphy in return.
Thursday, July 27th , 2034
The San Diego Padres traded 20-year old minor league RHP Jeff Nolt, 24-year old minor league RHP Davon Willie, and 22-year old minor league RHP Jesus Vega to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 33-year old RHP Blake Burkhalter in return.
The Houston Astros traded 28-year old RHP Steve Green to the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting 23-year old minor league LHP Caleb Kuhlman, 24-year old minor league 1B Jorge Ayala, and 22-year old minor league RHP Bobby O'Brien in return.
The San Antonio Avalanche traded 17-year old minor league RHP Alexis Guerrero and 23-year old minor league RF Juan Azancot to the San Francisco Giants, getting 34-year old minor league C Abrahan Gutierrez in return.
The Seattle Mariners traded 23-year old minor league LHP Jesus Close and 19-year old minor league LHP Dan Jadwin to the Atlanta Braves, getting 31-year old minor league 3B Kevin Made in return.
The Minnesota Twins traded 26-year old minor league RHP Luis Guerrero to the Seattle Mariners, getting 17-year old minor league RF Jorge Balcortain return.
The St. Louis Cardinals traded 22-year old minor league LF Mike Rivera to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 35-year old 3B Blaze Alexander in return.
Wednesday, July 26th , 2034
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded 34-year old RHP Mat Olsen and 20-year old minor league LHP Josh Dering to the San Diego Padres, getting 26-year old RF Ricky Uhrich in return.
The Detroit Tigers traded 20-year old minor league C Andres Sandoval and 18-year old minor league RF Jorge Zavala to the Atlanta Braves, getting 33-year old minor league LF Wilderd Patino in return.
The Los Angeles Angels traded 30-year old 2B Bryan Rincon and 22-year old minor league RHP Greg Barbera to the New York Yankees, getting 28-year old C Cade Arrambide in return.
Tuesday, July 25th , 2034
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 28-year old RHP Jamie Russell to the St. Louis Cardinals, getting 19-year old minor league SS Juan Saldana in return.
Monday, July 24th , 2034
The Milwaukee Brewers traded 31-year old RHP Chase Petty to the Baltimore Orioles, getting 24-year old minor league RHP Mike Oceguera in return.
The Detroit Tigers traded 21-year old minor league 2B Edgar Montoya and 20-year old minor league SS Chris Lockhart to the Boston Red Sox, getting 26-year old minor league 3B Pat Sander in return.
The New York Mets traded 31-year old RHP Aiden May to the San Antonio Avalanche, getting 22-year old minor league 1B Ed Brown and 20-year old minor league 3B Jesus Castillo in return.
Saturday, July 22nd , 2034
The San Antonio Avalanche traded 20-year old minor league LF Eric Chancy and 23-year old minor league RHP Tyrese Knuckles to the Chicago White Sox, getting 29-year old minor league 1B Jonatan Yan in return.
Friday, July 21st , 2034
The St. Louis Cardinals traded 18-year old minor league RHP Rogelio Garduno and 19-year old minor league LHP E.Z. Hendeson to the Chicago White Sox, getting 31-year old minor league 3B Tommy White in return.
Thursday, July 20th , 2034
The Detroit Tigers traded 23-year old minor league RHP Jonathan Rivera and 21-year old minor league RHP Braulin Levin to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 31-year old minor league 3B Kyle Karros in return.
The San Francisco Giants traded 19-year old minor league LHP Jared Barnes and 19-year old minor league RF Chris Jensen to the Texas Rangers, getting 33-year old RHP Ben Joyce in return.
Wednesday, July 19th , 2034
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 23-year old minor league RF Rodolfo Alvarado and 22-year old minor league RHP Tony Waddell to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 27-year old minor league RF Chris Turner in return.
The Washington Nationals traded 17-year old minor league SS Jorge Morales and 22-year old minor league RHP Gilberto Fuentes to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 30-year old RHP Chan-koo Kim (retaining 80%) and $770,000 in cash in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 21-year old minor league LF Juan Rivera to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 31-year old RHP Thatcher Hurd in return.
Tuesday, July 18th , 2034
The Minnesota Twins traded 21-year old minor league 1B Andy Wyrick and 20-year old minor league LHP Jimmy Knepper to the Houston Astros, getting 34-year old minor league RF Lawrence Butler in return.
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded 19-year old minor league C Jamir Pluviose to the Milwaukee Brewers, getting 35-year old CF Michael Siani in return.
The Milwaukee Brewers traded 37-year old RHP Camilo Doval to the Detroit Tigers, getting 22-year old minor league 3B Pat Kissling and 24-year old minor league LHP David Navarro in return.
The New York Mets traded 30-year old RHP Myung-joo Kim to the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting 18-year old minor league CF Jesus Ayala in return.
The Colorado Rockies traded 23-year old minor league RHP Gabe Eberhard to the Milwaukee Brewers, getting 29-year old 3B Antonio Anderson in return.
Monday, July 17th , 2034
The Los Angeles Angels traded 21-year old minor league 1B Billy Seaton Jr. to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 31-year old RHP Tyson Neighborsin return.
The Boston Red Sox traded 19-year old minor league 2B Andres Soto and 20-year old minor league RHP Kevin Davis to the Houston Astros, getting 36-year old minor league LHP Brandon Eisert in return.
The Cleveland Guardians traded 26-year old RHP Mike Bonetti to the Baltimore Orioles, getting 22-year old minor league C Calvino Tamez and 24-year old minor league LF Ben Payer in return.
The Los Angeles Dodgers traded 35-year old LHP DL Hall to the Los Angeles Angels, getting 19-year old minor league RHP Eric Jackson and 20-year old minor league 1B Ken Blanchard in return.
Saturday, July 15th , 2034
The Minnesota Twins traded 22-year old minor league 1B Kevin Cords and 23-year old minor league LHP Amari Rideaux to the Washington Nationals, getting 34-year old minor league 1B Trey Sweeney in return.
The San Francisco Giants traded 21-year old minor league 1B Juan Lugo and 17-year old minor league RHP Nesty Aguirre to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 38-year old RHP Trevor Stephan in return.
Friday, July 14th , 2034
The New York Yankees traded 20-year old minor league C Tim Zimmerman and 22-year old minor league 3B Ulmont Ledbetter to the New York Mets, getting 31-year old RHP David Hagaman in return.
Wednesday, July 12th , 2034
The Seattle Mariners traded 20-year old minor league 1B Dave Hull to the Houston Astros, getting 29-year old 2B Devin Saltiban in return.
Tuesday, July 11th , 2034
The Texas Rangers traded 21-year old minor league C Kyung-hwan Kim and 20-year old minor league 3B Chris Rison to the Colorado Rockies, getting 28-year old minor league 3B Eric Steelman in return.
The Detroit Tigers traded 38-year old RHP James Karinchak to the Washington Nationals, getting 19-year old minor league LHP Rogelio Heredia and 24-year old minor league RHP Quinten Franke in return.
Washington Nationals: RP Alex McFarlane was designated for assignment and placed on waivers (from active).
Monday, July 10th , 2034
The Tampa Bay Rays traded 25-year old RHP Alpha Marbley to the Seattle Mariners, getting 23-year old minor league LHP Shamond Kahanek in return.
Sunday, July 2nd , 2034
The San Diego Padres traded 19-year old minor league 3B Arturo Mendizabal and 19-year old minor league 3B David Morocho to the Minnesota Twins, getting 37-year old RHP Yeijiro Ando in return.

Injuries

Monday, July 31st , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: RP Jamie Russell diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, will miss 13-14 months.
Saturday, July 29th , 2034
Texas Rangers: CF Evan Carter diagnosed with a strained posterior cruciate ligament, will miss 7-8 weeks.
Thursday, July 27th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: 2B Quadir Dammons diagnosed with a herniated disc, will miss 7-8 weeks.
Cincinnati Reds: RP Josh Carpenter diagnosed with a torn meniscus, will miss 4 months.
Arizona Diamondbacks: RP Ajani Okafor diagnosed with a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament, will miss 11-12 months.
Monday, July 24th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: 2B Junior Caminero diagnosed with a strained triceps, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Colorado Rockies: RF Yeison Morrobel diagnosed with an oblique strain, will miss 6 weeks.
Milwaukee Brewers: CF Jon Bricker diagnosed with a sprained ankle, will miss 4 weeks.
Thursday, July 20th , 2034
Atlanta Braves: Danny Stellato has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 4 weeks.
Wednesday, July 19th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: 2B Jackson Holliday diagnosed with an oblique strain, will miss 5 weeks.
New York Mets: 1B Ethan Anderson diagnosed with a torn meniscus, will miss 4 months.
Tuesday, July 18th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: CF Daylen Lile diagnosed with chronic back soreness, will miss 6-7 weeks.
Tampa Bay Rays: RP Sean Hermann diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 6 weeks.
Monday, July 17th , 2034
Chicago White Sox: RP Hunter Dobbins diagnosed with a sprained ankle, will miss 6 weeks.
Colorado Rockies: RP Danny Rodecap diagnosed with biceps tendinitis, will miss 7 weeks.
Sunday, July 16th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: 2B Brice Turang diagnosed with an elbow sprain, will miss 5 weeks.
Friday, July 14th , 2034
Miami Marlins: LF Mike Carethers diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, will miss 6-7 months.
Wednesday, July 12th , 2034
San Francisco Giants: CF Dan Castillo diagnosed with bone marrow edema in his wrist, will miss 6-7 weeks.
Sunday, July 9th , 2034
Atlanta Braves: C Steve Crawford diagnosed with a fractured hand, will miss 4 weeks.
Toronto Blue Jays: CF Danny Rose was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: shoulder inflammation. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Saturday, July 8th , 2034
Miami Marlins: 2B Jansel Luis diagnosed with a fractured thumb, will miss 7-8 weeks.
Friday, July 7th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: 1B Anthony Volpe diagnosed with a broken kneecap, will miss 5-6 months.
Wednesday, July 5th , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: CF Joe Wolter was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn ankle ligaments. He's expected to miss about 7 weeks.
Tuesday, July 4th , 2034
Washington Nationals: CF Arturo Rivera was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: herniated disc (back). He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Monday, July 3rd , 2034
Texas Rangers: LF Jacob Young diagnosed with a torn quad, will miss 3 months.
Atlanta Braves: 1B Austin Riley diagnosed with a fractured finger, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Sunday, July 2nd , 2034
Milwaukee Brewers: RP Andres Munoz diagnosed with ulnar nerve entrapment, will miss 3-4 months.  

[benp28]

MLB Standings

The top two teams in the American League are both in the Central division as the 80-54 Royals trail the White Sox (84-50) by 4 games. The Mariners (74-59) and the Red Sox (73-61) have both maintained their leads in the West and East respectively, with the Royals leading the Wild Card by 13 games.

In the National League, the Padres (89-46) have slowed down but still have the best record in baseball for an 11-game lead in the West. The Cardinals (71-62) and the Marlins (68-67) lead the Central and East although neither have played particularly impressively so far and those divisions could become a dogfight over the last month of the season.



Kansas City Results

The month started badly for the Royals as they lost five of seven to Division rivals – 2-1 in Cleveland and 3-1 in Chicago. The Chicago series could come back to haunt the Royals as they fell to 4-6 in the season series so will need to sweep the final home series in September to take the tiebreaker.

After getting shutout at home in game one of three game series against the Yankees, Kansas City was worried! Thankfully, they turned it around taking the final two games of the series and then winning both games in a short series against St. Louis.

They then took two of three in Minnesota and again in Milwaukee, before coming home to win another series by the same score against the Avalanche.

The final two series of the month were sweeps, both to the Royals; at home against the Phillies and on the road in Detroit.

All that provided an 18-9 month which the Royals were delighted to bank after the 2-6 start!



Kansas City Team Statistics



The Royals remain the best batting team in the American League by most metrics; although their stolen bases ranking has dopped to 10th, they remain top in eight categories and third in Home Runs. The pitching has solidified with the additions to sit 5th in starter ERA and Reliever ERA while allowing the least hits and throwing the most strikeouts – a solid combination!

Billy Mumaugh (157 wRC+) and Jeremy Rogerson (129 wRC+) have kept the good times rolling in Kansas City, with both still in with a chance of 30-100 seasons with a strong September. Along with Drew Burress (105 wRC+) the Royals have three of the best five averages in the American League, with Rogerson on track for his second Batting Title in a row.

Mason Barnett (134 FIP-) struggled in August but was more than picked up by Brad LaPointe (68 FIP-) and Curt Bogans (73 FIP-). Bogans remains on track for 200 Ks, with 206 needed to make the Royals top ten list! The bullpen remains in flux, mostly due to injuries but Shane Baz (59 FIP-) is holding it together with acquisition Billy Nicklas (49 FIP-).

Transactions & Injuries

Sunday, August 6th , 2034
SP Chase Dollander was injured while pitching. The diagnosis is not yet known.
Monday, August 7th , 2034
Sent CL Jimmy Lininger to Triple A Omaha for injury rehab.
Wednesday, August 9th , 2034
RP Eddie Baquerizo was injured while pitching. The diagnosis is not yet known.
SP Chase Dollander diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain, will miss 5 weeks.
RP Jonathan Fleri was designated for assignment and placed on waivers.
Purchased the contract of SP Liam Peterson from Triple A Omaha.
Friday, August 11th , 2034
RP Eddie Baquerizo diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff, will miss 4 months.
Purchased the contract of RP Jimmy Lininger from Triple A Omaha.
Tuesday, August 15th , 2034
1B Jeremy Rogerson was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: bruised ankle. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 5 days.
Monday, August 21st , 2034
3B Danny Petty was injured while throwing the ball. The diagnosis is not yet known.
Tuesday, August 22nd , 2034
3B Danny Petty diagnosed with a partially torn labrum, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Purchased the contract of SS Ed Nicholson from Triple A Omaha.
Thursday, August 24th , 2034
1B Luis Zesati was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: mild hamstring strain. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last one week.
Saturday, August 26th , 2034
SS Bobby Witt Jr. was injured in a collision at a base. The diagnosis is not yet known.
Sunday, August 27th , 2034
SS Bobby Witt Jr. diagnosed with a sore elbow, is day-to-day for 3 weeks.
Monday, August 28th , 2034
LF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn hamstring. He's expected to miss about 4-5 weeks.
SS Bobby Witt Jr. was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: sore elbow. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last one week.
Purchased the contract of RF Edgar Manzo from Triple A Omaha.
Purchased the contract of 2B Chris Lee from Triple A Omaha.
Thursday, August 31st , 2034
CF Alex Duke was injured while running the bases. The diagnosis is not yet known.

Wow! It was a rough month for the Royals with injuries and there are fingers crossed around the city for several players recovery in time for the postseason.

It started on the 6th with Chase Dollander going down one inning into his second start of the month. The following day saw some good news as Jimmy Lininger was available and went to a minor league rehab assignment.

The 9th was a bad day though, as Dollander was diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain, meaning he would miss 5 weeks. That saw Minor League Free Agent Liam Peterson called up from AAA; having added 1.3 WAR for the Avalanche in 2033, he has offered three league average starts. On the same day, Closer Eddie Baquerizo went down with an injury while pitching!

The worst news was confirmed on the 11th, season over with a torn rotator cuff. A tough end to what had been a good sophomore year in the majors, 26 saves across 42 games with a 2.76 ERA. This caused the Royals to recall Lininger very early from his rehab stint.

The rest of the month was the turn of the batters! On the 15th the Royals lost Jeremy Rogerson to an injury running the bases and the Royals feared the worst but luckily he was day-to-day for only 5 days.

The good luck didn’t last though as it was a rough last few days of the month. The Royals lost Danny Petty for 5-6 weeks, Bobby Witt Jr. to a day-to-day injury the team don’t want to take any risks with, and Enny Mijhail Van Dyke for 4-5 weeks. The last day of the month saw Alex Duke go down running the bases; the Royals wait with fingers crossed for the diagnosis next month.

Minor League News

Texas League (AA) Batter of the Month: Alejandro Estrada (2028 International Amateur) .345, 11 HRs, 33 RBIs

Texas League (AA) Pitcher of the Month: Gebre-Mariam Ufanisi (2032 9th Round) 7-8 SV, 15 K, 13.2 IP.

Dominican Rookie League (R) Batter of the Month Jesus Cipolloni (2032 Trade ATL) .527, 19 HRs, 69 RBIs

Around the League

Transactions

Monday, August 28th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: Signed SP Billy Almarez to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $151,900,000.
Friday, August 11th , 2034
San Francisco Giants: Signed 3B Jace Jung to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $20,000,000.

Injuries

Thursday, August 31st , 2034
Texas Rangers: RF Steve Morris diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 2 months.
Wednesday, August 30th , 2034
New York Mets: RF Felix Stevens diagnosed with a fractured hand, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Cincinnati Reds: LF Juan Soto was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: latissimus dorsi (back) strain. He's expected to miss about 5-6 weeks.
Sunday, August 27th , 2034
Washington Nationals: SP Carson Whisenhunt diagnosed with a strained biceps, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Philadelphia Phillies: SP Drew Thorpe diagnosed with a partially torn labrum, will miss 6-7 weeks.
Friday, August 25th , 2034
Miami Marlins: 1B Jaheim Osagie diagnosed with a torn meniscus, will miss 4 months.
Boston Red Sox: LF Roman Anthony was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: plantar fasciitis. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Wednesday, August 23rd , 2034
Atlanta Braves: 2B Colt Emerson diagnosed with a separated shoulder, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Tuesday, August 22nd , 2034
Washington Nationals: RF Mike Wills diagnosed with a torn hamstring, will miss 8 weeks.
Chicago White Sox: 2B Mike Jackson diagnosed with a hamstring strain, will miss 3-4 weeks.
Monday, August 21st , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: Macon Winslow has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 4 months.
Baltimore Orioles: RP Victor Mederos was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: strained hamstring. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 3-4 weeks.
Sunday, August 20th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: 3B Derward Rosas diagnosed with a fractured rib, will miss 5 weeks.
Los Angeles Dodgers: RP Sergio Lago diagnosed with elbow tendinitis, will miss 5-6 weeks.
San Diego Padres: SP Stephon Mickell diagnosed with a strained biceps, will miss 4 weeks.
New York Yankees: LF Kevin Bales was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: latissimus dorsi (back) strain. He's expected to miss about 7-8 weeks.
Saturday, August 19th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: SP Thatcher Hurd diagnosed with a sore shoulder, will miss 5 weeks.
Thursday, August 17th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: Julio Rodriguez has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 9 months.
St. Louis Cardinals: RF Bryce Eldridge diagnosed with a strained posterior cruciate ligament, will miss 6 weeks.
Wednesday, August 16th , 2034
Detroit Tigers: RP Jackson Jobe diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff, will miss 13-14 months.
Monday, August 14th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: RF Zac Veen diagnosed with a fractured hand, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Sunday, August 13th , 2034
Atlanta Braves: RP Spencer Strider diagnosed with a strained triceps, will miss 4 weeks.
San Francisco Giants: 2B Vincent Warrior diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 4 months.
Saturday, August 12th , 2034
Tampa Bay Rays: 2B David Ojeda diagnosed with a broken bone in the elbow, will miss 9 months.
Friday, August 11th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: SP Nick Frasso diagnosed with a strained hamstring, is day-to-day for 3-4 weeks.
Washington Nationals: CF Jim Jenkins diagnosed with a strained oblique, will miss 6-7 weeks.
San Francisco Giants: 3B Sterlin Thompson was injured being hit by a pitch. The Diagnosis: fractured cheekbone. He's expected to miss about 5-6 weeks.
Thursday, August 10th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: SP Jackson Baumeister diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 3 months.
Toronto Blue Jays: LF Jeremy Thornton diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain, will miss 7-8 weeks.
Texas Rangers: RP Luis Jaramillo diagnosed with a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, will miss 13 months.
Wednesday, August 9th , 2034
Houston Astros: 1B Curtis Mead was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: torn groin. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Arizona Diamondbacks: 2B Jordan Lawlar was injured being hit by a pitch. The Diagnosis: fractured finger. He's expected to miss about 5-6 weeks.
Tuesday, August 8th , 2034
Washington Nationals: RF Mike Wills diagnosed with a strained quad, is day-to-day for 5 weeks.
Sunday, August 6th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: C Macon Winslow diagnosed with a torn abdominal muscle, will miss 4 weeks.
New York Mets: SP Leighton Finley was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: hamstring strain. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Friday, August 4th , 2034
Milwaukee Brewers: SS Daniel Guilarte diagnosed with knee tendinitis, will miss 4 weeks.
Miami Marlins: RP Geoff Phillips diagnosed with a partially torn labrum, will miss 3 months.
Thursday, August 3rd , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: C Dave Holcombe was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: sprained ankle. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Tuesday, August 1st , 2034
Toronto Blue Jays: Danny Rose has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 8 months.
Houston Astros: 3B Cutter Coffey was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: oblique strain. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.

[benp28]

MLB Standings

One game into the final series of the year, there is only one division yet to be decided although the Red Sox (86-74) are basically there. The White Sox get to 100 wins which wins them the Central Division while the Mariners (87-73) were pushed by the Rangers (84-76) but their first half of the season performance got them over the line.

Over in the National League, the Padres (103-57) will end with the best record in baseball in winning the West, while the Cardinals (91-69) rode a strong September to run away with the Central and the Marlins at only 84-76 will still win the East by over 5 games.



The post season is all set as the only Wild Card decision left is whether the Red Sox or the Orioles (84-76) who win the division with the loser taking the wild card.



Kansas City Results

A 17-9 month for the Royals to take them into the post season with only the White Sox having a better post-ASB record than the Royals.

It was an inauspicious start, dropping three of four to the Astros on the road before bouncing back to take back-to-back divisional series 2-1 against the Tigers and the Twins. A sweep (3-0) in Baltimore and a series win in Pittsburgh followed before the key series of the month, the home three-game stand against the White Sox. Despite winning the first game, the Royals dropped the next two (getting shut out in the final) and, with that, any realistic shot at the Division title. They responded well though, winning six in a row to sweep a home series against the Giants and a road series against the Nationals before dropping the first game of their final series of the regular season in Miami.



Kansas City Team Statistics



The Royals are finishing the season strongly as they will finish in the top three for almost all offensive rankings, only walks (6th), and base running (5th for steals, 15th for base running) not in that top three position.

The July pitching acquisitions have helped as well, with the starting rotation boasting the best ERA in the American League and the Bullpen the 3rd. The Royals lead most categories here as well, with only walks (5th) and defensive efficiency (4th) outside the top three.

Drew Burress (224 wRC+) was the star of the show as he won the American League Batter of the Month Award, hitting .385 with 10 HRs and 25 RBIs to take him to the verge of a 30-100 season. Ed Nicholson (157 wRC+) has done well in his latest time in the Big Leagues, plus defence coupled with 5 HRs and a .622 slugging rate.

Over in the pitching staff, Curt Bogans (67 FIP-) is going to finish just short of 200 Ks but 30 IP, 2.67 ERA for September is a very strong month and he was supported in a starting rotation where only Mason Barnett’s FIP- was above 100 for the month. Shane Baz (56 FIP-) continues to be the star of the bullpen although Eric Cook (33 FIP-) had a very strong month, only giving up 5 H across 12 IP.

Transactions & Injuries

Saturday, September 2nd , 2034
CF Alex Duke diagnosed with a strained rib cage muscle, is day-to-day for 4 weeks.
Saturday, September 16th , 2034
RP D'Mani Hamble was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: rotator cuff strain. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Tuesday, September 19th , 2034
Enny Mijhail Van Dyke has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 3 months.
Wednesday, September 20th , 2034
Alex Duke has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 2 weeks.
Thursday, September 21st , 2034
Placed CF Alex Duke on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to 09/20/2034.
Purchased the contract of LF Ed Stevens from Triple A Omaha.
Saturday, September 23rd , 2034
Optioned RP Ramiro Cepeda to Triple A Omaha.
Purchased the contract of SP Chase Dollander from Triple A Omaha.
Wednesday, September 27th , 2034
Sent 3B Danny Petty to Triple A Omaha for injury rehab.

The outfield is going to rely on the everyday players in the post season as the Royals lost Enny Mijhail Van Dyke for the season, with Alex Duke struggling to make it back. Both suffered setbacks to their injuries, which is hugely frustrating, especially in the case of Van Dyke who had an elite hitting season going. Chase Dollander returned from his rehab assignment and will be ready to go for the postseason while Danny Petty is getting some rehab reps to try to return before the end of the season but that may just be for the playoffs.

Minor League News

Texas League (AA) Pitcher of the Month Chris Wolff (2032 Trade PHI) 4-0, 2.16 ERA of 2.16, 31 K, 25 IP.

Around the League

Transactions

Wednesday, September 20th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed LF Nate Quinn to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $37,420,000.
Friday, September 15th , 2034
New York Yankees: Signed SS Alan Ianiro to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $61,560,000.
Tuesday, September 12th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed RF Ben Glaze to a 8-year contract extension worth a total of $245,300,000.
Saturday, September 9th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: Failed to sign 1st round draft pick Inakel Reeser. Received additional pick compensation.
Cleveland Guardians: Failed to sign 2nd round draft pick Marquis Wanzo. Received additional pick compensation.
Detroit Tigers: Failed to sign 1st round draft pick Mike Robinson. Received additional pick compensation.
Seattle Mariners: Failed to sign 1st round draft pick Wally Clarke. Received additional pick compensation.
Texas Rangers: Failed to sign 1st round draft pick Dave Lewis. Received additional pick compensation.
Houston Astros: Failed to sign 1st round draft pick Vince Hardaway. Received additional pick compensation.
Atlanta Braves: Failed to sign 2nd round draft pick Gabe Atkison. Received additional pick compensation.
St. Louis Cardinals: Failed to sign 1st round draft pick Kevin Gibson. Received additional pick compensation.
St. Louis Cardinals: Failed to sign 3rd round draft pick Chris Albert. Received additional pick compensation.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Failed to sign supplemental 1st round draft pick Chris Williams. Received supplemental pick compensation.
Tuesday, September 5th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed free agent RP Luke Little to a 2-year contract worth a total of $16,600,000.

Injuries

Saturday, September 30th , 2034
Cincinnati Reds: CL Mitch Glass was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: rotator cuff strain. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks.
Friday, September 29th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: C Frank Berrios diagnosed with a ruptured medial collateral ligament, will miss 7-8 months.
Chicago White Sox: CF Brady Harris was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: strained back. He's expected to miss about 2 weeks.
Thursday, September 28th , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: SP Tink Hence diagnosed with forearm inflammation, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Tampa Bay Rays: Mike Castillo has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 4-5 weeks.
Pittsburgh Pirates: RF Joey Wiemer was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: intercostal strain. He's expected to miss about 2 weeks.
Wednesday, September 27th , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: RP Harry X McDaniel diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 6 months.
Monday, September 25th , 2034
Detroit Tigers: 2B Kyren Paris diagnosed with a strained lat, will miss 3-4 weeks.
Sunday, September 24th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: RP Steven Echavarria diagnosed with a strained abdominal muscle, is day-to-day for 2 weeks.
Saturday, September 23rd , 2034
San Antonio Avalanche: RP Jonathan Mastin diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, will miss 13 months.
Friday, September 22nd , 2034
Texas Rangers: SP Payton Tolle diagnosed with bone chips in his elbow, will miss 6 months.
Thursday, September 21st , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: SP Raheem Whitthorne diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 2 months.
Colorado Rockies: SS Jorge Guerrero diagnosed with elbow inflammation, will miss 3 months.
Texas Rangers: RP Joel Edmund diagnosed with a sprained ankle, will miss 7 weeks.
Texas Rangers: RF Erik Pickett was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: fractured finger. He's expected to miss about 7 weeks.
Tuesday, September 19th , 2034
Houston Astros: LF Samuel Zavala diagnosed with a strained abdominal muscle, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Monday, September 18th , 2034
Texas Rangers: CL Franco Aleman diagnosed with a damaged elbow ligament, will miss 12 months.
Sunday, September 17th , 2034
New York Mets: 3B Colt Keith diagnosed with a strained groin muscle, will miss 8 weeks.
Saturday, September 16th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: SP Nick Frasso diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 6 months.
Monday, September 11th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: SP Daniel Espino diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 5 months.
Sunday, September 10th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: 1B Noelvi Marte diagnosed with an oblique strain, will miss 4-5 weeks.
Saturday, September 9th , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: 2B Adael Amador diagnosed with a sprained ankle, will miss 6 weeks.
Friday, September 8th , 2034
New York Yankees: RP David Hagaman diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 11-12 months.
Texas Rangers: LF Corbin Carroll was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: hamstring strain. He's expected to miss about 7 weeks.
Wednesday, September 6th , 2034
Los Angeles Dodgers: LF Wyatt Langford was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: separated shoulder. He's expected to miss about 3-4 weeks.
Tuesday, September 5th , 2034
Chicago Cubs: CF Pete Crow-Armstrong diagnosed with a forearm strain, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Atlanta Braves: Colt Emerson has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 4 weeks.
Cincinnati Reds: RP Jose Montero diagnosed with a strained shoulder, will miss 5 weeks.
Tampa Bay Rays: SS Mike Castillo was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: recurring back spasms. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Monday, September 4th , 2034
Texas Rangers: Jacob Young has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 2-3 months.
Houston Astros: Curtis Mead has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 3 months.
Colorado Rockies: SS Ethan Holliday was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: sprained ankle. He's expected to miss about 6-7 weeks.
Sunday, September 3rd , 2034
Washington Nationals: SP Trey Yesavage diagnosed with elbow tendinitis, will miss 4 weeks.
Washington Nationals: SP Sergio Martillo diagnosed with a herniated disc, will miss 3 months.
Saturday, September 2nd , 2034
Miami Marlins: RP Zach Hayden diagnosed with elbow inflammation, will miss 5-6 weeks.
Friday, September 1st , 2034
San Diego Padres: Brad Denick has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 9 months.

[benp28]

Final Regular Season Standings



AL Central Expanded Standings



Transactions & Injuries

Monday, October 2nd , 2034
Optioned LF Ed Stevens to Triple A Omaha.
Placed CF Alex Duke on the active roster.
Activated CF Alex Duke from the injured list.
Optioned 2B Chris Lee to Triple A Omaha.
Purchased the contract of 3B Danny Petty from Triple A Omaha.
Sunday, October 1st , 2034
Sent SP Mike Hoffer to Triple A Omaha for injury rehab.

Around the League

Injuries

Tuesday, October 3rd , 2034
Colorado Rockies: Chase Bethea has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 2 weeks.
Monday, October 2nd , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: LF J.J. Wetherholt diagnosed with a strained posterior cruciate ligament, will miss 2 months.
Minnesota Twins: RP Tyrese Kargbo was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: bone chips (elbow). He's expected to miss about 8-9 weeks.
Sunday, October 1st , 2034
Philadelphia Phillies: SP J.J. Paniagua diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 4-5 months.

[benp28]

The Royals will face the 86-76 Texas Rangers in the AL Wild Card Series. This the first post season meeting of the teams since the Rangers won the 2027 Divisional Series 3-1, and the second meeting of all time. In the regular season, the Royals won four of six.

The Rangers are a stronger hitting team than pitching with the 3rd most runs scored and 2nd most Home Runs in the American League. Leading the way is their 2028 1st round pick 1B Dan Liantonio, who hit 53 HRs and knocked in 120 during the regular season. The Rangers also led the league in stolen bases, playing a high risk game as their three leading base stealers are Wrecked Evan Carter, Wrecked (and out of the series) Corbin Carroll, and fragile former Royal prospect Justin Lebron

Game 1 in Kansas City: Chase Dollander vs Jairo Iriarte (2031 Free Agent)
• Kansas City WINS 7-2
• Dollander: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R
• Iriarte (L): 6.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R
• Jimmy Lininger (W): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R
• William Schmit (SV): 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R
• Kansas City: 4 HRs (Drew Burress, Billy Mumaugh, Alex Duke, Tim Storer)
• 1-0 Kansas City

Game 2 in Kansas City: Brad LaPointe vs Mike Crawford (2033 Trade MIN)
• Texas WINS 6-2
• Crawford (W): 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R
• LePointe (L): 6.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R
• David Molina (SV): 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R
• William Schmit (SV): 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R
• Texas: 2 HRs (Jesus Liendo, Jonathan Roser)
• 1-1 Series Tied

Game 3 in Kansas City: Curt Bogans vs Cade Povich (2033 Free Agent)
• Kansas City WINS 5-2
• Bogans: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R
• Povich: 5.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R
• Mason Barnett (W): 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R
• Mason Englert (L): 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R
• Cade Townsend (SV): 1.0 IP, ) H, 0 R
• Kansas City: 2 HRs (Duke, Jimmy Goodman)
• 2-1 KANSAS CITY WINS

Series MVP: Billy Mumaugh .400, 4 R, 1 RBI

[benp28]

For the third time in five years, the Royals and White Sox (102-60) will face off in the post-season. The White Sox have won both previous match ups, including a 2-0 sweep in the Wild Card series last year.

This is a balanced White Sox team which excelled in scoring runs (1st) and hitting Home Runs (1st). They match that with 2nd best Starters’ ERA and best Relievers’ ERA in the League, combining to give them the 2nd least run against with their pitchers backed up by an American League-best in Zone Rating.

2026 2nd round pick 1B Gavin Grahovac is their talisman, hitting 41 HRs, with 99 RBIs and a team high 21 SBs. 2026 International Amateur 3B Juan Borja led the American in OPS while batting in 107 over the regular season, and 2026 1st Round CF Brady Harris is the man standing in the way of Drew Burress winning Gold Gloves and Platinum Bats!

Pitching wise, their 2027 1st Round pick and former Cy Young winner Dan Nichols will lead them off with Chase Burns (former Royal) slated to start game four. The bullpen doesn’t have many starts but has produced all the way through with that National League low ERA.

Game 1 in Chicago: Danny Petty vs Dan Nichols (2027 1st Round)
• Chicago wins 5-3
• Nichols (W): 7 IP, 6 H, 3 R
• Petty: 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R
• Marcos Paz (L): 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R
• Frank Marmolejo (SV): 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R
• Juan Cardiel: HR
• 1-0 Chicago

Game 2 in Chicago: Chase Dollander vs Noah Schultz (2022 1st Round)
• Chicago wins 8-3
• Schultz: 6.1 IP, 7 H, 3 R
• Dollander: 6.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R
• Jimmy Lininger (L)(BS): 0.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R
• Tim Bowman (W): 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R
• Marmolejo (SV): 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R
• George Lombard Jr: 2R HR
• 2-0 Chicago

Game 3 in Kansas City: Brad LePointe vs Andres Saldana (2033 Trade HOU)
• Kansas City wins 2-1
• LePointe (W): 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R
• William Schmidt (SV): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R
• Juan Borja: HR
• 2-1 Chicago

Game 4 in Kansas City: Curt Bogans vs Chase Burns (2033 MiL Free Agent)
• Chicago wins 5-4
• Burns: 5.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R
• Bogans: 6.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R
• Marmolejo (W)(BS): 2.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R
• Jimmy Lininger (BS): 1.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R
• Schmidt (BS): 1.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R
• Jackson Chirello: 3R HR
• 3-1 CHICAGO WINS

MVP: Beau Cutrone .333, 4 RBI, 2 R

It’s a second consecutive disappointing end to the season for the Royals as the White Sox eliminate them 3-1 and move on to the ALCS.

It’s a case of what might have been for the Royals as Jimmy Liniger blows save chances in games two and four, while William Schmidt also blows a save in game four.

The bats of Drew Burress (1-15) and Bobby Witt Jr. (3-19) went too cold at the wrong time while Jeremy Rogerson (3-15) couldn’t get out of his late season slump. That one of Witt Jr.’s three hits came with a triple with one out in the bottom of the 9th in game four and the Royals couldn’t convert sums up the series with the Royals stranding 30 runners and outhitting the White Sox by 3 hits over the series.

[benp28]

Kansas City Postseason Stats





Too many of the Royals bats went quiet in the postseason unfortunately with Jeremy Rogerson (64 wRC+), Bobby Witt Jr. (50 wRC+), and Drew Burress (37 wRC+) really struggling.

Jimmy Lininger (185 FIP-) blew two save opportunities, while Billy Nicklas (257 FIP-) and Marcos Paz (107 FIP-) both had tough outings but the pitching staff in general excelled.

Owner Goals Review



The 2034 goals went well, with the exception of the one that matters the most as we fail to win the Championship but do improve our Stolen Bases, from 14th to 5th, and through a convoluted journey, resign Chase Dollander. Next year is the deadline for improving our fan interest and we still have five years to build that Championship team.

Minor Leagues



Post Season

Omaha Storm Chasers [AAA] won the Championship.
Northwest Arkansas Naturals [AA] won the Championship.
Quad Cities River Bandits [A+] lost in 1st Round of the Playoffs.
Columbia Fireflies [A] lost in the Championship Final.
Kansas City (ACL) Royals [R] missed the Playoffs by 7.5 games.
Kansas City (DSL) Royals Stewart [R] lost in the Championship Final.
Kansas City (DSL) Royals Glass [R] won the Championship (repeat).

[benp28]

Catchers

As a defensive Catcher, Jonathan Gerew had another great year, finishing in the top three for CERA and Framing. An almost league average wRC+ (93) is a good return and while he hasn’t ever lived up to his All Star nomination, he has been a solid presence behind the plate. However, his arbitration number is $7m for 2035 which may be edging him toward the door. Edgar Rivera (104 wRC+) was a nice switch hitting back up Catcher, a better bat offsetting the weaker glove but he will return in 2035.

Infield

Jeremy Rogerson (133 wRC+) was elite until the final month of the season which saw him go cold in the playoffs and miss out on a 2nd batting title. He led baseball in Defensive Efficiency and Zone Rating at 1B and has four years left on his contract. Luis Zesati couldn’t replicate his early effectiveness as a power back up infielder and his time in Kansas City may be over.

Tim Storer (121 wRC+) had a 13% walk rate helping him to a .361 OBP to go with 21 HRs although his defence took a step backwards and he produced a negative ZR, although a lot of this was based on the innings he spent at SS. He may need a trip through the Development Lab for his defence over the winter. He enters his first year of arbitration and is unlikely to earn a long term contract. Dan Colligan (90 wRC+) offered elite defence in limited innings with a serviceable bat which could put him front and centre for a back up infielder role in 2035. Chris Lee came late in the season during the injury crisis and didn’t manage a hit in his 8 PAs.

Danny Petty (98 wRC+) had a disappointing season with the glove and bat. A .020 drop in average and slugging saw him fail to win back the starting job after late season injury and as he enters arbitration may be someone the Royals look to move on.

That is because Bobby Witt Jr. (89 wRC+) may no longer be able to play SS after a -2.2 ZR over the season. The club legend will see out his contract which makes Petty’s role very much at risk. However, it is now unlikely Witt Jr. will catch Royals record leader George Brett sadly.

Ed Nicholson (129 wRC+) had over 100 ABs in 2034 and impressed. He is very much an average bat but if he can maintain that ZR (3.0 in 32 appearance) then he will have a chance to earn the role for 2035.

Outfield

The outfield is the engine of the Royals batting line up and is all tied down long term.

At LF, Billy Mumaugh (136 wRC+) had another All Star season, just missing out on a 30-100 season with 29 HRs to go with 103 RBIs but does make it a 20-20 year with 22 SBs.

Drew Burress (137 wRC+) gave the Royals 6.1 WAR (9th best Royals season of all time) and also missed out on a 30-100 season by one HR with 101 HRs. Burress also just missed out on a 30-30 season with his 30 SBs. As a reminder the Royals have him for another four years, during which the Giants will play every cent of his contract.

Jimmy Goodman (130 wRC+) was the weakest of the outfield but walked over 12% of the time, provided elite defence and his long term contract peaks next year at only $13m.

Alex Duke (99 wRC+) improved over the course of the season and hit 3 HR in the postseason to make a bid for a place on the roster in 2035. Enny Mijhail Van Dyke ended the season on the IR but had a crazy season before his injury with a 1.028 OPS in 98 games. Although still injured the Royals may look at tying him down long term. Edgar Manzo (33 wRC+) just didn’t take his chance and has seen Alex Duke leapfrog him while the same is true of Ed Stevens (86 wRC+).

Offseason / Early 2035 Overview

C Jonathan Gerew Arbitration/Trade
BU Edgar Rivera

1B Jeremy Rogerson
2B Tim Storer Arbitration
3B Bobby Witt Jr.
SS Ed Nicholson
INF Dan Colligan
INF Danny Petty Trade

LF Billy Mumaugh
CF Drew Burress
RF Jimmy Goodman
OF Enny Mijhail Van Dyke
OF Alex Duke



Starters

The midseason moves left the Royals with an elite starting rotation with four pitchers giving over 4 WAR.

Mason Barnett (101 FIP-) was the odd one out but still provided 2 WAR; a very acceptable return for a 5th starter. He is out of contract and is likely to hit free agency again as he wants a 6-year contract.

Curt Bogans (82 FIP-) started slowly but ended up one K short of 200, throwing 184 innings. He set Royal single season records for K/9 (9th 9.6) and K/BB (7th 3.92).

Chase Dollander (34 FIP-) gave up 11 H over 19 IP for the Royals; as a reminder the Phillies will pay 560% of his contract for the next two years, leaving Kansas City to pay less than $12m/year.

Brad LaPointe (70 FIP-) had a league leading 0.80 WHIP over 15 starts for the Royals. He is a free agent and the Royals will be trying to bring him back on a viable contract.

Cade Townsend (80 FIP-) has been a very underrated arm for the Royals, taking his total Royals WAR to 18 as he enters his second year of arbitration. He set Royals single-season records for winning percentage (9th .722), Ks (10th 206), K/9 (6th 10.2), and K/BB (8th 3.89).

Liam Peterson (80 FIP-) was called up late to cover Chase Dollander’s injury and did well although it’s unlikely he will be resigned as a Free Agent. He was more impressive than Marcos Paz, who is the workhorse who gets flipped between the starting rotation and the bullpen every year it seems although entering his second year of arbitration the end might be closer than he thinks.

Mike Hoffer (89 FIP-) missed the last three months of the season but was impressive and the Royals are excited to get him back in 2035.

Bullpen

The bullpen success was underpinned by Shan Baz (86 FIP-) and Jon Holtz (81 FIP-). Most of the rest of the pen was better than, but not by much, league average, except for Ramiro Cepeda (186 FIP-) and Sa-yoon Kim (123 FIP-). One feel good story was Eric Cook (42 FIP-), who went back to AAA to start the year and came up late in the season to pitch 13.1 innings, giving up 7 hits and 2 walks total.

The post season performance of Jimmy Lininger (95 FIP-) has the Royals hoping Eddie Baquerizo (71 FIP-) comes back strongly in 2035.

Offseason / Early 2035 Overview

SP Chase Dollander
SP Brad LaPointe Free Agent?
SP Curt Bogans
SP Cade Townsend Arbitration
SP Mike Hoffer

RP Eddie Baquerizo
RP Jon Holtz
RP Eric Cook
RP Jimmy Lininger
RP Billy Nicklas
RP William Schmidt Arbitration
RP Marcos Paz Arbitration
RP TBC

[benp28]

Owner Goals



Three new goals, all of average importance, came down from owner John Sherman this offseason. The only immediate goal is Team Record based, with a requirement to reach the Playoffs in 2035, a goal shared by all of the organisation.

The next timeline wise is to acquire a Cy Young Award winner. This is usually expensive and may not be viable but was available for discussion. The alternative was to re-sign Brad LePointe so Stewart will likely see how discussions with LePoints go before reviewing this.

The final goal, for 2038, is to improve the teams record in close games – a fair request after the Royals went 3-7 in extra-innings games, and 19-25 in one-run games in 2034.

Finances

Owner Sherman stretches the purse strings, providing the biggest budget of the year ($232m) with a player payroll of $150m. As revenue topped $250m, with total attendance topping 3m for the first time at 99% of capacity, this seems a fair reward for the increased income while the Sherman family continues to take out $40m+ a year from the club.

Based on the capacity the Royals added $1 to the ticket price for 2035, taking it to $38.



Personnel

After several years of relative consistency, this offseason saw a raft of retirements for the Royals to fill.

Quad Cities River Bandits (MWL, A+) Manager Jason Chandler

Omaha Storm Chasers (IL, AAA) Hitting Coach Jon Lindsay
Kansas City (ACL) Royals (ACL, R) Hitting Coach Maurice Hines
Kansas City (DSL) Royals Glass (DSL, R) Hitting Coach Sean Twitty

Northwest Arkansas Naturals (TL, AA) Pitching Coach Carlos Rivera


In addition, ACL, (R) Pitching Coach R.J. Spang’s contract was not renewed; the late addition to the coaching staff earning an unsustainable contract in Rookie ball.

Prioritising Internal Promotions where possible saw the following promotions:

Jeremy Salazar – AA to AAA Hitting Coach
Eric Ridener – A+ to AA Pitching Coach
Rene Capellan – A+ to AA Hitting Coach

External offers were sent out for the remaining openings:

A+
Manager
Hitting Coach
Pitching Coach

ACL R
Hitting Coach
Pitching Coach

DSL R (Glass)
Hitting Coach

Minor Leagues

Awards

It was a sparce Awards season for the Royals minor leagues, although Dan Jones did pick up his 6th AA Manager of the Year Award in a row!

Dan Jones AA Manager of the Year
Johnny Isom A Manager of the Year
Jason Flach DSL R Manager of the Year

Jesus Cipolloni DSL R Most Valuable Player Award

Notable Retirements

There were only four drafted/traded for players who retired at the end of the season, two from the 2028 draft class and two from the 2029 class:

2028 Class
11th Round CF Jeremy Hall retired from AA having won a 2030 Gold Glove in A ball at CF.
20th Round RP Tim Boone retired from AAA.

2029 Class
14th Round CF Ron Craig retired having not made it out of Rookie Ball.
19th Round RP Nate Lindsay retired from High-A.

KC Top 500 Prospects Performance


 

[benp28]

Personnel

Following negotiations, the following appointments were made to the Royals coaching farm:

A+
Manager – Aaron Comes, 2yrs, $125k
Hitting Coach – Ryan Folmer, 5yrs, $140k
Pitching Coach – Dan Wright, 5yrs, $150k

ACL R
Hitting Coach – Joey Cranford, 5yrs, $50k
Pitching Coach – Colby White, 2yrs, $50k

DSL R (Glass)
Hitting Coach – Robert Glass, 5yrs, $50k

November also saw only the second coach departing for another team, with Assistant GM Eric Treat accepting a GM role for the Toronto Blue Jays. Treat leaves with Stewart’s blessing as he starts his GM tree! He also accepts a $1m pay rise, from $300k to $1,387,500 with a 4-year contract. His replacement is Australian Tye Edlich, who signs a 5-year contract for $500k annually.

Awards

AL Great Gloves 1B Jeremy Rogerson KC
NL Great Gloves
AL Platinum Sticks DH Enny Mijhail Van Dyke KC
NL Platinum Sticks
AL Manager of the Year David Kelton CWS
NL Manager of the Year Albert Gonzalez SD
AL Reliever of the Year Art Burnett SEA
NL Reliever of the Year Juan Rivera PIT
AL Rookie of the Year Josh Bright TOR
NL Rookie of the Year Kadarrius Converse WAS
AL Cy Young Josh Cook DET
NL Cy Young Eury Perez MIA
AL MVP Brady Harris CWS
NL MVP Steve Melendy PHI

Pre-Arbitration Extensions & Trades

Monday, November 6th , 2034
Traded 27-year old 3B Danny Petty, 27-year old RHP Marcos Paz, and 21-year old minor league CF Lodovico Finiguerra to the Cleveland Guardians, getting 24-year old 3B Eric Rose and $5,000,000 in cash in return.
Tuesday, November 7th , 2034
Traded 29-year old C Jonathan Gerew to the Baltimore Orioles, getting 25-year old minor league LF Jesus Ibarra and $22,000,000 in cash in return.
Thursday, November 9th , 2034
Signed RP William Schmidt to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $2,000,000.
Signed SP Cade Townsend to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $9,800,000.
Signed 2B Tim Storer to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $3,300,000.
Monday, November 13th , 2034
Signed RP Shane Baz to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $3,600,000.

Arbitration

Sunday, November 26th , 2034
RP Ryan Johnson was not offered arbitration, becomes a free agent.
SP Liam Peterson was not offered arbitration, becomes a free agent.

Qualifying Offers

Tuesday, November 28th , 2034
SP Brad LaPointe becomes a free-agent.
SP Mason Barnett becomes a free-agent.

40 Man Roster Moves

Sunday, November 12th , 2034
Assigned RP Ramiro Cepeda to Triple A Omaha.
Assigned SS Ian Gordon to Triple A Omaha.
Monday, November 13th , 2034
Placed 2B Edgar Mir on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Placed C Haden Bursey on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Placed 1B Rogelio Camacho on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Placed SP Mike Bell on the secondary (40-man) roster.

Free Agents

Despite letting them reach free agency, the Royals top targets in Free Agency are Brad LePointe and Mason Barnett both of whom the Royals think overreached in negotiations with the team. Stewart was so keen to resign LePointe that he went back to owner Sherman and changed the Cy Young Award winner goal to resigning LePointe.

International Free Agents

Another year of weak International Free Agents saw the Royals pass on making any offers.

International Amateurs

Julio Agurcia, 16 year-old RHP out of Dominican Republic
6' 6" Julio Agurcia is an intimidating presence on the mound. He should headline a quality arsenal with an excellent circle change. He doesn't have the best stuff in the world, but he makes up for it with pinpoint control. Agurcia has the potential to develop into a #1 starter.

Santiago Cordoba, 16 year-old 2B out of Dominican Republic
Lean and athletic, Santiago Cordoba hails from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He has a chance to be an above average hitter with a loose, quick stroke that works inside the ball. He has top-of-the-scale speed. He should be able to provide above average defense as a second baseman. Cordoba has the talent to flourish as a second baseman.

Luis Monarca, 16 year-old RF out of Dominican Republic
Valentino Tarantino, 16 year-old C out of Italy
Humberto Barela, 16 year-old RF out of Venezuela
Gilberto Grijalva, 16 year-old SS out of Venezuela
Kohone Kinoro, 16 year-old 1B out of South Africa
Jorge Mercado, 16 year-old SS out of Venezuela
Ernesto Miranda, 16 year-old 2B out of Colombia
Sergio Ramirez, 16 year-old C out of Venezuela

Around the League

Retirements

Baltimore Orioles: SP Seth Johnson retired from professional baseball.
Los Angeles Dodgers: 2B Enmanuel Valdez retired from professional baseball.
Tampa Bay Rays: SP Christian Scott retired from professional baseball.
Cincinnati Reds: 3B Oneil Cruz retired from professional baseball.
Chicago Cubs: 1B Wes Clarke retired from professional baseball.
Milwaukee Brewers: 1B Alex Kirilloff retired from professional baseball.
Seattle Mariners: 3B Rafael Devers retired from professional baseball.
Chicago Cubs: RP Cionel Perez retired from professional baseball.
San Diego Padres: RP Richard Lovelady retired from professional baseball.
Chicago Cubs: CF Daulton Varsho retired from professional baseball.
Boston Red Sox: RP Ethan Roberts retired from professional baseball.
San Francisco Giants: RP Colby White retired from professional baseball.
Cleveland Guardians: C Dillon Dingler retired from professional baseball.
Texas Rangers: 1B Vinnie Pasquantino retired from professional baseball.
Cincinnati Reds: SP Beau Brieske retired from professional baseball.
Washington Nationals: CL James Karinchak retired from professional baseball.
Los Angeles Dodgers: SP Tristan Beck retired from professional baseball.
Baltimore Orioles: SP Huascar Ynoa retired from professional baseball.
Boston Red Sox: SP Gavin Stone retired from professional baseball.

Transactions

Wednesday, November 29th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed free agent SP Young-cheol Yoon to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,980,000.
The Milwaukee Brewers traded 22-year old RF Fidel Sisneros, 19-year old minor league RHP Ernesto Chagoya, 22-year old minor league RHP Jadon Toatley, and 22-year old minor league LHP Jeremy Zampino to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 27-year old RHP Ron Grace and $2,420,000 in cash in return.
The Milwaukee Brewers traded 29-year old RHP Santiago Suarez to the New York Mets, getting 23-year old minor league LF Jorge Garibay in return.
The San Antonio Avalanche traded 24-year old minor league CF Luis Rosario, 24-year old minor league RF Hesedh Payne, 23-year old minor league RF Rob Crowder, and 22-year old minor league LHP Sung-ho Kim to the Chicago Cubs, getting 33-year old RHP Tekoah Roby in return.
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded 22-year old minor league SS Joe Carr and 23-year old minor league SS Luis Nieves to the Atlanta Braves, getting 30-year old CF Bobby Osier in return.
The Cincinnati Reds traded 33-year old RHP Wilmer Flores (retaining 80%) and $1,730,000 in cash to the Colorado Rockies, getting 22-year old minor league 3B Jonathan Hinson and 19-year old minor league 1B Humberto Sosa in return.
Tuesday, November 28th , 2034
Cleveland Guardians: Signed free agent C Kevin Bazzell to a 2-year contract worth a total of $12,400,000.
The Los Angeles Angels traded 21-year old minor league 1B Ignacio Escobar to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 36-year old RHP Brusdar Grateroland 23-year old minor league LHP Ken Kerstetter in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 19-year old minor league RHP Mike Robbins to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 33-year old RHP Haruya Taniguchi in return.
The St. Louis Cardinals traded 20-year old minor league 1B Julio Ferrer and 23-year old minor league RHP Juan Pabon to the Toronto Blue Jays, getting 29-year old RHP Josh Roberts in return.
The Toronto Blue Jays traded 36-year old LHP Sammy Peralta (retaining 80%) and $1,270,000 in cash to the San Diego Padres, getting 18-year old minor league RHP Sergio Mulen and 22-year old minor league LHP Rogelio Cisneros in return.
Monday, November 27th , 2034
The Atlanta Braves traded 28-year old minor league LHP Jon Young to the New York Yankees, getting 24-year old 1B Vince Borden in return.
Sunday, November 26th , 2034
Chicago White Sox: SP Noah Schultz rejected the qualifying offer
Seattle Mariners: LF Julio Rodriguez rejected the qualifying offer
Texas Rangers: SP Jairo Iriarte rejected the qualifying offer
Atlanta Braves: RF Ronald Acuna Jr. rejected the qualifying offer
Miami Marlins: 1B Ronny Mauricio rejected the qualifying offer
Milwaukee Brewers: LF Charlie Condon rejected the qualifying offer
St. Louis Cardinals: SP Paul Skenes rejected the qualifying offer
San Diego Padres: RF Fernando Tatis Jr. accepted a 1-year qualifying offer worth a total of $18,900,000.
Friday, November 24th , 2034
The Cincinnati Reds traded 26-year old RHP Juan Carrillo to the Milwaukee Brewers, getting 18-year old minor league 2B Sergio Verduzco and 24-year old minor league RF Mike Ellis in return.
Thursday, November 23rd , 2034
The Washington Nationals traded 25-year old RHP Marquis Botchway to the Colorado Rockies, getting 23-year old minor league CF Bobby Gilbertand 19-year old minor league RF Juan Corona in return.
Tuesday, November 21st , 2034
The Atlanta Braves traded 26-year old RHP Sergio Leyva to the San Antonio Avalanche, getting 23-year old LF David Ramos in return.
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 27-year old RHP David Vargas to the Seattle Mariners, getting 23-year old minor league RHP Mike Reynolds and 24-year old minor league 1B Steve Cronk in return.
Sunday, November 19th , 2034
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 26-year old LHP Arturo Traversari to the New York Yankees, getting 19-year old minor league C Dan McElhenyin return.
Thursday, November 16th , 2034
The Washington Nationals traded 27-year old minor league RHP Jared Caudillo to the Minnesota Twins, getting 22-year old minor league 3B Gabe Philpot in return.
Tuesday, November 14th , 2034
The Atlanta Braves traded 29-year old RHP Andy Squires to the Houston Astros, getting 21-year old minor league 1B Danny Failla in return.
Monday, November 13th , 2034
Minnesota Twins: Signed LF Danny Gazaway to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,440,000.
Saturday, November 11th , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed LF Jacob Young to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,480,000.
Minnesota Twins: Signed 3B Trey Sweeney to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,420,000.
San Antonio Avalanche: Signed RP Jonathan Mastin to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $6,860,000.
Chicago Cubs: Signed 1B Jon Bittorf to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $3,480,000.
Philadelphia Phillies: Signed SP J.J. Paniagua to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $3,280,000.
Friday, November 10th , 2034
New York Yankees: Signed RP Jordi Martinez to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,680,000.
Houston Astros: Signed RP Chris Botchway to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $3,920,000.
Cincinnati Reds: Signed RP Josh Carpenter to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,840,000.
The Chicago Cubs traded 29-year old 2B Dane Chance to the Minnesota Twins, getting 25-year old LHP Chris King in return.
Thursday, November 9th , 2034
New York Yankees: Signed SP Jin-hoe Heo to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $45,100,000.
Cleveland Guardians: Signed SP Mike Carson to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $25,320,000.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed C Dave Holcombe to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $24,520,000.
Cincinnati Reds: Signed SP Chris Henegar to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $40,380,000.
Minnesota Twins: Signed 1B Sergio Romero to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $34,380,000.
Los Angeles Angels: Signed CF Bob Deitz to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $25,620,000.
San Antonio Avalanche: Signed 1B Juan Lozoya to a 8-year contract extension worth a total of $164,600,000.
Wednesday, November 8th , 2034
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 27-year old RHP Demarckus Lacy to the Seattle Mariners, getting 24-year old LF David Ramirez in return.
Sunday, November 5th , 2034
Chicago White Sox: SP Noah Schultz declines his contract option.
San Antonio Avalanche: RF Cam Cannarella declines his contract option.
Miami Marlins: 1B Ronny Mauricio declines his contract option.
Milwaukee Brewers: LF Charlie Condon has exercised his contract opt-out.
St. Louis Cardinals: SP Paul Skenes declines his contract option.
Los Angeles Dodgers: C Moises Ballesteros has exercised his contract opt-out.
San Francisco Giants: CF Dylan O'Rae declines his contract option.
Wednesday, November 1st , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed 2B Johnny Powell to a 8-year contract extension worth a total of $237,000,000.

Injuries

Friday, November 10th , 2034
Minnesota Twins: SS David Calvo diagnosed with a ruptured finger tendon, will miss 4 months. 

[benp28]

International Amateurs

Santiago Cordoba, 16 year-old 2B out of Dominican Republic
Lean and athletic, Santiago Cordoba hails from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He will drive the ball with consistency and a sweet, fluid swing. He can flat-out fly. He profiles as an above average defensive infielder. Cordoba works hard at developing leadoff skills, staying on top of the ball and hitting line drives, not flyballs.

Luis Monarca, 16 year-old RF out of Dominican Republic
Lean and athletic, Luis Monarca hails from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He possesses plus-plus raw power. He does a great job at the plate working the count and frustrating opposing pitchers. If he doesn't cut down on his reckless swings his batting average will suffer. Scouts project Monarca to fill a key role for a contending team in the big leagues.

And other players that I was able to further assess were:
Humberto Barela, 16 year-old RF out of Venezuela
Jorge Mercado, 16 year-old SS out of Venezuela
Sergio Ramirez, 16 year-old C out of Venezuela
Julio Agurcia, 16 year-old RHP out of Dominican Republic
Gilberto Grijalva, 16 year-old SS out of Venezuela
Kohone Kinoro, 16 year-old 1B out of South Africa
Ernesto Miranda, 16 year-old 2B out of Colombia
Valentino Tarantino, 16 year-old C out of Italy

Development Lab Results

Drew Burress has completed his training in the development complex, and as you are aware, he has been working with staff to improve his defense at center field.
• No noticeable changes.

Billy Mumaugh has completed his training in the development complex, and as you are aware, he has been working hard with staff to improve his defense at left field.
• Outfield arm rating improves by 5
• Outfield range rating improves by 5
• Outfield error rating improves by <5

Jimmy Goodman has completed his training in the development complex, and as you are aware, he has been working hard with staff to improve his defense at right field.
• Outfield arm rating improves by <5
• Outfield range rating improves by 5
• Outfield error rating improves by <5

Rule 5 Draft

Wednesday, December 20th , 2034
Placed RP David Maciel on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Placed RP Bobby Martin on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Placed RF Albert Stefanov Thomas on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Traded 27-year old minor league C Alfredo Brambila and 27-year old RF Edgar Manzo to the Chicago White Sox, getting 23-year old minor league RHP Ben Cephas and 17-year old minor league RHP Juan Flores in return.
Placed CL Ismael Conston on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Placed RP Phil Farmer on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Thursday, December 21st , 2034
Traded 25-year old minor league LHP Sa-yoon Kim to the Detroit Tigers, getting 23-year old minor league RHP Jonathon Cote in return.
Placed SP Chris Wolff on the secondary (40-man) roster.
Sunday, December 24th , 2034
Lost SP Ignacio Marrero in the Rule 5 Draft to the Atlanta Braves.
Lost SS Eric Baldwin in the Rule 5 Draft to the Cincinnati Reds.
Lost SP Jim Porter in the Rule 5 Draft to the Texas Rangers.

There were several pre-Rule 5 draft moves made by the Royals in December. Several relievers and RF 2031 6th round outfielder Albert Thomas were all added to protect some depth for the Major League team.

A couple of trades were required to free up the space and the end of the road for some major league contributors:

Firstly, Edgar Manzo was a casualty of the talent in the outfield in KC; with Alfredo Brambila suffering the same fate from the Catcher role. Both players deserve to be playing in the Major Leagues and it isn’t going to happen in Kansas City. In return, the Royals picked up a high farm level potential 4th starter in Ben Cephas, four pitches with 55-50-55 potential, along with a young arm in Juan Flores, two plus-plus pitches to provide a 70-55-50 potential profile.

The second trade saw bullpen scapegoat Sa-yoon Kim traded to division rivals the Tigers, traded for a younger version of the same pitcher, Cote offering five pitches and a 50-50-45 potential profile.

On the day, the Royals lost three players, with pitchers Ignacio Marrero and Jim Porter being taken, as well as SS Eric Baldwin.

• Baldwin was the 7th round pick of the 2031 draft and is a contact bat who can play elite 3B.
• Marrero was a Scouting Discovery with five below average pitches and stuff, average movement and potentially plus control.
• Porter was a 2031 Draft 5 pick up by the Royals who played one season in the Major Leagues but had struggled to justify a recall in the following two years; the fans were disappointed to lose him but Stewart thought the club would cope.

Trades & Free Agents

Tuesday, December 19th , 2034
Traded 25-year old minor league 3B Juan Zubia, 23-year old RHP Jimmy Lininger, 25-year old minor league LF Ed Stevens, and 23-year old minor league 2B Chris Lee to the Seattle Mariners, getting 33-year old RHP Connor Phillips (retaining 10%), 27-year old LHP Daniel Nava, 17-year old minor league 3B David Castillo, 17-year old minor league LF Alejandro Huron, and $2,750,000 in cash in return.

The biggest trade of the month impacted the 40-man but was initiated when it became clear that Brad LaPointe was going to be out of the Royals price bracket. It saw postseaon save-blower Jimmy Lininger shipped out, along with 40-man contributors Juan Zubia, Ed Stevens, and Chris Lee. Zubia is the disappointing departure as the Royals may reflect they rushed him through the Minor Leagues after he graduated DSL and exposed him to the Major Leagues too early, stunting his power potential and leaving him a ML average player.

In return the Royals took on 90% of aging pitcher Connor Phillips $21.6m contract, just eating some money for the rest of the trade. Phillips can certainly pitch out of the pen though, with a plus-plus Curveball and plus Fastball and Slider to go with a 65-50-45 profile. Ironically, after Stewart changing the goal, Phillips is the 2031 Cy Young Award winner.

The jewels of the trade were to come:

Leftie Daniel Nava is a groundball pitcher, born in Kansas City, who put up 4.7 WAR last year and led the league in Ks, which lines up with the Royals pitching philosophy. He has four pitches, with his Cutter being plus-plus, and his Curveball and Changeup being plus. This all drives a 60-60-50 profile for the Ace.

David Castillo will need to work on his defence, and he only has average speed, but his bat profiles as elite, profiling to have average contact, 80 power, and a plus eye. He will go to the DSL league.

Alejandro Huron is a plus outfielder with below average speed, whose bat profiles with potential to be elite, with plus contact, power, and eye. He will also go thte DSL league.

Around the League

Transactions

Sunday, December 31st , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: Signed free agent SP Daniel Espino to a 2-year contract worth a total of $21,200,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent CF Michael Siani to a 1-year contract worth a total of $4,520,000.
Atlanta Braves: Signed free agent 1B Hunter Owen to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,440,000.
The Chicago White Sox traded 22-year old minor league C Chase Hallom, 20-year old minor league RHP Ken McPhee, and 20-year old minor league 3B Jamari Benberry to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 36-year old 2B Andres Gimenez (retaining 75%) and $780,000 in cash in return.
Saturday, December 30th , 2034
Los Angeles Angels: Signed free agent RP Jared Jones to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,080,000.
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent LF Corbin Carroll to a 3-year contract worth a total of $23,300,000.
Cleveland Guardians: Signed free agent RF Cam Cannarella to a 3-year contract worth a total of $31,000,000.
Cleveland Guardians: Signed free agent RP Wen-Hui Pan to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,220,000.
Friday, December 29th , 2034
Seattle Mariners: Signed free agent C Agustin Ramirez to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,240,000.
New York Mets: Signed free agent RP Aiden May to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,420,000.
Thursday, December 28th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed free agent 1B Caden Bogenpohl to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,000,000.
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Andy Squires to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,720,000.
The New York Mets traded 18-year old minor league 2B Esteban Corchado and 22-year old minor league RF Cyrille Guignard to the Cincinnati Reds, getting 36-year old LF Juan Soto (retaining 35%) and $520,000 in cash in return.
Wednesday, December 27th , 2034
Tuesday, December 26th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed free agent LF Charlie Condon to a 5-year contract worth a total of $115,200,000.
San Francisco Giants: 3B Cooper Pratt was designated for assignment, placed on waivers and taken off the secondary (40-man) roster.
Monday, December 25th , 2034
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent SP Brad LaPointe to a 6-year contract worth a total of $233,500,000.
Sunday, December 24th , 2034
The St. Louis Cardinals traded 26-year old minor league RF Andres Parra and 20-year old minor league SS Jorge Carrasco to the Detroit Tigers, getting 27-year old 1B Randy Cook in return.
Cincinnati Reds: Drafted 1B Chris Marbley in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 1, 1st overall Pick) from the San Diego Padres.
Philadelphia Phillies: Drafted SS Billy Amick in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 2, 2nd overall Pick) from the San Antonio Avalanche.
Cleveland Guardians: Drafted CF Steve Joseph in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 4, 4th overall Pick) from the Minnesota Twins.
Washington Nationals: Drafted RP Jonathan Flenner in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 6, 6th overall Pick) from the New York Mets.
Toronto Blue Jays: Drafted SS Zach Ferguson in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 7, 7th overall Pick) from the New York Mets.
San Antonio Avalanche: Drafted RP Dan Dorosh in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 8, 8th overall Pick) from the New York Mets.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Drafted SP Eddie Jordan in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 9, 9th overall Pick) from the San Francisco Giants.
Milwaukee Brewers: Drafted 3B Edgar Cavazos in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 11, 11th overall Pick) from the Houston Astros.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Drafted SP Dusty Scheurich in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 13, 13th overall Pick) from the New York Mets.
Detroit Tigers: Drafted 2B Bobby Miles in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 14, 14th overall Pick) from the San Francisco Giants.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Drafted RP Ben Joyce in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 19, 19th overall Pick) from the San Francisco Giants.
Texas Rangers: Drafted RP Andy Lusk in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 23, 23rd overall Pick) from the Miami Marlins.
Boston Red Sox: Drafted RP Macho Ochoa in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 24, 24th overall Pick) from the Philadelphia Phillies.
Colorado Rockies: Drafted C Ernesto Tavitas in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 27, 27th overall Pick) from the New York Mets.
San Diego Padres: Drafted SP Ismael Coronado in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 30, 30th overall Pick) from the Miami Marlins.
Toronto Blue Jays: Drafted 3B Pat Cooper in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 2, Pick 7, 37th overall Pick) from the San Francisco Giants.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Drafted CF Danny Rose in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 2, Pick 13, 43rd overall Pick) from the Toronto Blue Jays.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Drafted RP Mike Oceguera in the 2034 Rule 5 Draft (Round 3, Pick 13, 73rd overall Pick) from the Milwaukee Brewers.
Saturday, December 23rd , 2034
The Cleveland Guardians traded 29-year old RHP Bryce Meccage and 24-year old RF David Alba to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 28-year old 3B Josh Peck in return.
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded 32-year old 2B Jordan Lawlar to the San Francisco Giants, getting 21-year old minor league LF Luis Camacho and 21-year old minor league SS Swen Kirch in return.
Friday, December 22nd , 2034
The Los Angeles Angels traded 20-year old minor league LHP Pat Black and 23-year old RHP Andres Meza to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 27-year old C Walt Burkett and $2,580,000 in cash in return.
Thursday, December 21st , 2034
The Houston Astros traded 31-year old LHP Robby Snelling (retaining 55%) and $430,000 in cash to the Seattle Mariners, getting 24-year old LF Julio Lima and 24-year old minor league RHP Sam Byers in return.
Wednesday, December 20th , 2034
The San Francisco Giants traded 21-year old minor league RF Ernesto Paniagua to the Atlanta Braves, getting 34-year old RHP Ben Joyce in return.
Tuesday, December 19th , 2034
San Diego Padres: Signed free agent 1B Jose Caballero to a 2-year contract worth a total of $4,000,000.
Monday, December 18th , 2034
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed free agent RP Carson Palmquist to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,500,000.
Boston Red Sox: Signed free agent RP Daniel Lynch to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,480,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent RP Raimon Gomez to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,980,000.
The Detroit Tigers traded 29-year old CF Max Clark (retaining 60%) and $370,000 in cash to the St. Louis Cardinals, getting 26-year old 3B Jesus Moreno and 20-year old minor league RHP Quintiliano Duclos in return.
Sunday, December 17th , 2034
New York Mets: Signed free agent RF Miguel Bleis to a 2-year contract worth a total of $3,920,000.
Saturday, December 16th , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Bobby Miller to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,320,000.
Houston Astros: Signed free agent RP Tyson Neighbors to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,560,000.
Seattle Mariners: Signed free agent RP Brett Renfrow to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,560,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent SS Bryce Rainer to a 3-year contract worth a total of $26,100,000.
Friday, December 15th , 2034
Arizona Diamondbacks: Signed free agent 1B Luis Garcia to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,280,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Signed free agent 1B Ronny Mauricio to a 5-year contract worth a total of $105,400,000.
Detroit Tigers: Signed free agent SS Colt Emerson to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,400,000.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 19-year old minor league RHP Dan Long and 22-year old minor league 1B Flavio Nichetti to the Toronto Blue Jays, getting 31-year old LHP Josh Hartle in return.
Thursday, December 14th , 2034
Houston Astros: Signed free agent SP Paul Skenes to a 5-year contract worth a total of $140,200,000.
Wednesday, December 13th , 2034
Atlanta Braves: Signed free agent C Logan O'Hoppe to a 2-year contract worth a total of $23,400,000.
Houston Astros: Signed free agent 3B Addison Barger to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,360,000.
The Texas Rangers traded 21-year old minor league CF Jesus Campos and 24-year old minor league RHP Luis Ruelas to the New York Mets, getting 30-year old 2B Kevin McGonigle in return.
Tuesday, December 12th , 2034
Baltimore Orioles: Signed free agent 1B Mike Boeve to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,280,000.
Monday, December 11th , 2034
The San Francisco Giants traded 23-year old minor league 1B Luis Carino to the Chicago Cubs, getting 30-year old 3B P.J. Moutzouridis and $4,150,000 in cash in return.
Sunday, December 10th , 2034
Houston Astros: Signed free agent LF Julio Rodriguez to a 2-year contract worth a total of $36,800,000.
Saturday, December 9th , 2034
The New York Mets traded 24-year old minor league C Ben Lane to the Atlanta Braves, getting 37-year old 1B Austin Riley in return.
Friday, December 8th , 2034
Minnesota Twins: Signed free agent RP Jose Bravo to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,120,000.
The Tampa Bay Rays traded 27-year old 2B Jim Metzger to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 19-year old minor league 1B Querubim Choro and 23-year old minor league RHP Jaquan Fosque in return.
The Colorado Rockies traded 22-year old minor league SS Alejandro Molina to the Washington Nationals, getting 32-year old 1B Dylan Crews(retaining 75%) and $1,140,000 in cash in return.
The Seattle Mariners traded 20-year old minor league 1B Pat Peters and 18-year old minor league RHP Jesus Carmona to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 33-year old LF Wyatt Langford (retaining 80%) and $2,980,000 in cash in return.
Thursday, December 7th , 2034
New York Mets: Signed free agent RF Ronald Acuna Jr. to a 2-year contract worth a total of $57,600,000.
Cincinnati Reds: Signed free agent RP Matt Svanson to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,320,000.
The Seattle Mariners traded 20-year old minor league CF Rodolfo Orozco to the Atlanta Braves, getting 31-year old CF Cesar Yanquiel Hernandezand $740,000 in cash in return.
The Cleveland Guardians traded 26-year old 3B Tyson Kendrick Jr. to the San Francisco Giants, getting 29-year old LF Max Wood and 19-year old minor league LF Jesus Lara in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 26-year old RF Luis Castro to the Milwaukee Brewers, getting 26-year old RHP Tim Watson and 22-year old 2B Juan Flores in return.
Wednesday, December 6th , 2034
Texas Rangers: Signed free agent RP Porter Hodge to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,640,000.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 29-year old LF Will Gasparino to the Atlanta Braves, getting 25-year old RHP Sam McCluskey and 23-year old minor league 2B Rob Searage in return.
Tuesday, December 5th , 2034
The San Francisco Giants traded 20-year old minor league RF Ignacio Garces to the Los Angeles Angels, getting 31-year old SS Adael Amador(retaining 80%) and $3,170,000 in cash in return.
Monday, December 4th , 2034
San Francisco Giants: Signed SS Sincere Latin to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $111,600,000.
The Los Angeles Dodgers traded 32-year old 3B Elly De La Cruz (retaining 80%) and $180,000 in cash to the Miami Marlins, getting 26-year old C Jon Conrad in return.
Sunday, December 3rd , 2034
The Washington Nationals traded 20-year old minor league LF Lupe Sandoval, 23-year old minor league 1B Alexis Arriola, and 23-year old minor league 1B Regis Brunelleschi to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 34-year old RHP Drew Thorpe (retaining 80%) and $1,540,000 in cash in return.
The Colorado Rockies traded 22-year old minor league RHP Burton Tomiak to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting 33-year old SS Orelvis Martinez(retaining 75%) and $510,000 in cash in return.
Saturday, December 2nd , 2034
The St. Louis Cardinals traded 24-year old minor league LF Ernesto Cornejo and 21-year old minor league LHP Luis Avellaneda to the Toronto Blue Jays, getting 33-year old RHP Sem Robberse in return.
The Colorado Rockies traded 19-year old minor league CF Tommy Begley, 23-year old minor league RHP Jesus Cobian, and 22-year old minor league RHP Ken Eister to the Milwaukee Brewers, getting 29-year old 3B Myles Naylor (retaining 80%) and $1,260,000 in cash in return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 18-year old minor league LF Jesus Altamirano, 21-year old minor league RHP Nazier Polk, and 22-year old minor league 1B Jesus Herrera to the Tampa Bay Rays, getting 29-year old RHP Cameron Flukey in return.
The Cleveland Guardians traded 16-year old minor league 2B Mauricio Morales, 23-year old minor league 1B Kris Cooper, 24-year old minor league LHP Juan Mayorga, and 23-year old minor league RF Sean Baker to the Chicago Cubs, getting 32-year old 1B Kevin Alcantara (retaining 70%) and $380,000 in cash in return.
Friday, December 1st , 2034
The Atlanta Braves traded 26-year old LF Andres Ochoa and 23-year old minor league RF Brendan Jollymour to the Colorado Rockies, getting 19-year old minor league 2B Mike Frank and 23-year old minor league CF Juan Paz in return.
The Houston Astros traded 19-year old minor league 3B Jeff Becker to the New York Yankees, getting 34-year old minor league LHP Jordi Martinezin return.
The Baltimore Orioles traded 19-year old minor league RHP Frank Jaramillo to the Detroit Tigers, getting 36-year old RHP Landen Roupp in return.
The Los Angeles Angels traded 29-year old LF Bob Deitz and 23-year old minor league LHP Ken Kerstetter to the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting 27-year old RHP Aires Machadinho in return.
The Tampa Bay Rays traded 25-year old SS Mike Castillo to the Cleveland Guardians, getting 19-year old minor league 3B Camdyn Moore and 19-year old minor league RHP Asher Zigay in return.


There were several former Royals making moves over the off season but the biggest signing was Brad LaPointe; the Royals were in the running but the Cardinals offered 6-year, with $46.5m in 2035 which was too high for Kansas City. A player opt out after year three makes this a great contract for LaPointe, and the Royals have to wish him well. The fans, however, were shocked that Stewart did not keep Brad LaPointe on the team! The overall fan interest almost crashed!