Former Royal Jake Brentz Returns To Monarchs

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A former Royal is returning to the Kansas City Monarchs. Jake Brentz, a back-end bullpen arm who signed with the Chicago Cubs earlier this season, is returning to the four-time league champions. 

Brentz will be available out of the bullpen for the Monarchs’ game with Kane County Friday night at 6:30 p.m. 

Brentz was one of the Monarchs’ top relievers to start the 2025 season, striking out 17 batters and walking just five over 12.1 innings of work. He also impressed with his stuff, averaging 95.7 mph on his fastball, the best mark among left-handers in the American Association at the time of his departure.

“Jake Brentz is a guy with big-league experience, a great presence on the mound, and outstanding stuff from the left side,” Monarchs manager Joe Calfapietra said. “We’re excited to have him back in our bullpen.”

The St. Louis County native signed with the Monarchs leading up to the 2025 season. He first heard about the team when working out at Legends Field when it served as the Royals alternate site during the 2020 pandemic season. 

Brentz, a St. Louis County native, owns 85 MLB strikeouts across 80 big-league appearances, all with the Royals. He led the team with 72 appearances in 2021, producing a 3.66 ERA and striking out 10.7 batters per nine innings. 

Originally an 11th-round draft pick by Toronto out of Parkway South High School, Brentz has played 196 MiLB games with four organizations. 

The Monarchs (50-34) sit in second place in the American Association West with 16 games to play. They’ve won nine of their last 11 games and are 5-1 on their current road trip. They return to Legends Field Monday night against Winnipeg for Bark at the Park night.