With the Kansas City Royals’ playoff odds steadily approaching zero, one promising young pitcher saw his season come to an end on Wednesday.
According to Anne Rogers of MLB.com, right-hander Ryan Bergert felt right forearm tightness during his bullpen session before Wednesday’s game against the Seattle Mariners. Bergert is expected to be placed on the 15-day injured list on Thursday, which will end his season with just 10 games left on Kansas City’s schedule.
More critically, Bergert will undergo testing on Thursday, including an MRI, to assess whether any further steps are necessary.
Royals manager Matt Quatraro announced the news after the game, which put a damper on the team’s 7-5 win to climb back to .500 at 76-76.
“Right after we talked pregame, Bergert got hurt in his bullpen,” Quatraro told the media after Wednesday’s game, per Rogers. “He’s going to go on the IL, and Lorenzen will start in his place. We had to pivot in the game plan of Lorenzen throwing multiple innings, because he’ll start on Friday.”
Bergert, 25, was one of two pitchers acquired from the San Diego Padres in exchange for catcher Freddy Fermin on the day of the July 31 trade deadline. He immediately joined Kansas City’s rotation despite only having seven major league starts under his belt at the time, and showed early promise before fading a bit down the stretch.
In total, Bergert pitched to a 4.43 ERA in eight starts with the Royals, striking out 39 batters, allowing 37 hits, and walking 17 across 40 2/3 innings of work. His penultimate start, in which he allowed eight earned runs and 11 hits in 3 1/3 innings against the Cleveland Guardians, undid a lot of the good work he’d done up to that point.
All the Royals can do at this point is hope for a normal offseason for Bergert ahead of an intriguing rotation battle during spring training. The righty should have the inside track on a rotation spot with Michael Lorenzen slated for free agency, but lots can change during the winter.
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