The Kansas City Royals have embarked on an the improbable task of righting the ship after a less than ideal first half in order to clinch their second consecutive postseason berth.
So far, after a productive trade deadline and managing to hold a .500 record to start the month of August, the Royals sit 4.0 games back of the New York Yankees for the final American League Wild Card spot heading into their weekend set against the Minnesota Twins.
And while stars like Bobby Witt Jr., Salvador Perez, Maikel Garcia have played their role in ensuring the Royals stay in their postseason scrap, there have been several performances that haven’t exactly gotten the recognition they deserve.
3 underrated Royals performers who’ve made a major impact since the All-Star break
Kyle Isbel
As mentioned already, Garcia (142 wRC+), Perez (162 wRC+) and Witt Jr. (111 wRC+) have all been their usual above average selves of late. Then, there’s a hitter like Mike Yastrzemski, who already had eyes on him as the new guy, and has wasted no time in stepping up for his new squad when the lights have shone brightest.
These factors have played a role in overshadowing the excellent second half that center fielder Kyle Isbel has been crafting.
Among the six Royals hitters who’ve posted at least 50 plate apperances since the July 18 restart after All-Star festivities, his 129 wRC+ trails only Perez and Garcia. He’s slashing .333/.396/.417 with seven RBI and is rewarding the Royals for their faith in him after not acquiring a center fielder at the deadline, despite some suitable names being available.
Michael Wacha
Moving to the mound, we have name in Michael Wacha that isn’t your most conventional name when it comes to being underrated, as he’s had a huge role to play all season in the middle of this Royals staff.
That being said, between Seth Lugo’s extension, the new additions to the starting staff in Bailey Falter and Ryan Berget, wondering when Cole Ragans and Michael Lorenzen will return from the IL as well as coming to grips with losing Kris Bubic, Wacha likely hasn’t been on the forefront of Royals fans’ minds when it comes to the starting staff.
What also makes his performance so underrated is how he stacks up around the rest of the league’s starters since the July 18 season restart.
In 25.1 innings across four second-half starts, Wacha is throwing to the ninth lowest ERA in baseball at 1.78 ERA, the third lowest WHIP at 0.63 and the eighth lowest BAA at .159.
Taylor Clarke
Then there’s the ‘pen, where the Royals best reliever has been none other than Taylor Clarke, who continues to craft a career-revitalizing season.
After coming back down to earth from a brilliant month of May – where he threw to a 0.75 ERA – with an 8.56 ERA from June 1 to the All-Star break, Clarke has looked better than ever since. He’s crafting a perfect 0.00 second-half ERA as well as a team-leading 1.44 FIP, 0.33 WHIP and .071 BAA in 9.0 innings across seven outings.
While he may not hold the same high leverage responsibilities as arms like Carlos Estévez and Lucas Erceg, he’s been a breath of fresh air for this ‘pen that’s still missing Steven Cruz and only recently saw the returns of Hunter Harvey and Daniel Lynch IV.
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