Royals Rumblings - News for July 31, 2024

The Royals are trading on up.

J.J. Picollo reflected on a busy trade deadline that had the Royals acquire infielder Paul DeJong and pitchers Michael Lorenzen and Lucas Erceg.

“We’re pretty happy with the way this went,” Picollo said. “Over the last couple days, we had an objective that we wanted to add to our bullpen. We were able accomplish that. We also were able to add some depth to our rotation and then add a bat. The bigger thing for us over the last couple of days, we wanted to do what we could to help this club, but we also had in mind our prospect value and how we needed to protect that. ...

“(We were) trying to thread the needle of doing both, and it’s not the easiest thing. There were certain things we would have loved to have done, but in the end the cost acquisition was higher than we were willing to go.”

Sam McDowell reviews the moves.

But I’ll add another takeaway: The Royals managed not only to assist their playoff race in 2024, but also perhaps even more obviously for 2025 — and beyond. Hard to do, particularly in what became a seller’s market this deadline.

As the Royals make their first push toward a postseason since lifting the World Series trophy nine years ago, it’s an important aspect of their entire trade deadline haul that could easily get lost in the shuffle. It shouldn’t.

The team was fired up about Bobby Witt Jr.’s grand slam on Monday.

“That guy’s incredible,” Quatraro said. “Obviously, a go-ahead grand slam, you aren’t going to get any bigger than that. Then watching those defensive plays, there were so many things that he did so well tonight, it’s hard to really remember them all in the moment.”

Right fielder Hunter Renfroe added: “Right now to me, he’s one of the best players in baseball and when he comes to bat with the bases loaded, you think something special’s gonna happen and obviously it did. It was pretty remarkable and fun to be a part of.”

Bobby took it all in stride.

“I’m just playing the game,” Witt said. “I’m not trying to [think about] the streak. I’m just trying to do what I can do and make sure I’m prepared each and every day.”

Craig Brown also marvels at Witt’s performance on Monday.

Jay Jaffe writes that new Royals infielder Paul DeJong reminds him of old Royals shortstops.

DeJong is in the ballpark of these hackers because he’s walked in just 3.9% of his plate appearances while striking out in 30.9%; only Ezequiel Tovar and Ceddanne Rafaela have lower walk rates. When he does make contact, his 88-mph average exit velocity ranks in just the 28th percentile, but his 9.6% barrel rate is in the 65th, and his 41.1% hard-hit rate in the 62nd. He leads the White Sox with 18 home runs, but he’s moving from a ballpark conducive to righty power to one that’s not; in terms of our park home run factors for righties, Guaranteed Rate Field is at 107, Kauffman Stadium at 94.

David Lesky reviews the Michael Lorenzen trade.

Lorenzen’s fastball has been a force. Opponents are hitting .148 with a .307 SLG on it. His changeup has been outstanding too with a .136 average allowed an .198 SLG. His slider, though, has been hit hard, but that’s been a pitch that’s been plus for him in recent seasons. The Royals coaching staff has shown an ability to coax more out of sliders from some guys, so if they can get the slider back, they might see something out of Lorenzen that the Rangers didn’t get. I think this is a solid move that doesn’t move the needle a ton but helps them to get through the season.

Kevin O’Brien at Royals Reporter also chimes in on the Lorenzen deal.

The Padres acquire closer Tanner Scott from the Marlins for four players.

Baltimore gets Eloy Jimenez from the White Sox.

The Dodgers gets pitcher Jack Flaherty from the Tigers.

Tigers outfielder Mark Canha goes to the Giants.

Texas acquires reliever Andrew Chafin from Detroit.

The Marlins send Trevor Rogers to Baltimore, reliever J.T. Chargois to the Mariners, and first baseman Josh Bell to the Diamondbacks.

The Yankees get Mark Leiter Jr. from the Cubs.

Cleveland gets pitcher Alex Cobb from the Giants.

The Mets get three pitchers - Paul Blackburn from the A’s, Tyler Zuber from the Rays, and Huascar Brazoban from the Marlins.

The Twins get pitcher Trevor Richards from the Blue Jays.

Pittsburgh gets outfielder Bryan de la Cruz from Miami and infielder Isaiah Kiner-Falefa from the Blue Jays, and send Martin Perez to the Padres.

The Astros get reliever Caleb Ferguson from the Yankees.

The Twins designate Josh Staumont for assignment.

A controversial call costs U.S. tennis star Coco Gauff in the Olympics.

U.S. Olympic women’s rugby player Ilona Maher is becoming a TikTok star.

Dinosaurs likely didn’t live in dense jungles.

How much water should you drink every day?

The Princess Leia Return of the Jedi bikini sells at auction for $175,000.

Your song of the day is Usher with Trading Places.