The Kansas City Royals were buyers at the trade deadline this year. They added pitchers Ryan Bergert, Bailey Falter and Stephen Kolek, infielder Adam Frazier and outfielders Randal Grichuk and Mike Yastrzemski.
The team still has a shot to grab the final American League Wild Card spot. At 57-59, they are four games back, but have a few teams in front of them.
Still, they won 86 games last year and won the second Wild Card, advancing to the ALDS. Their achilles last year was their offense, and that had been their biggest weakness leading up to the deadline.
However, on Friday, Kansas City made a depth move, signing former Boston Red Sox first baseman Bobby Dalbec to a minor league deal.
“Dalbec, a former top three prospect in the Red Sox system back in 2020, has struggled to really find his footing in the major leagues since 2022. After appearing in 117 games that season with Boston, he’d end up playing just 58 games over the next two campaigns. The Sox DFA’d him last September and he then elected free agency this past winter,” Caleb Moody of FanSided wrote.
Dalbec made his Major League debut with the Boston Red Sox in 2020 and was strong in his first two seasons in the big leagues. His best season was 2021.
That year, he hit a career-high 25 home runs and helped guide the Red Sox to the ALCS for the first time since 2018. However, things took a turn for the worse in 2022, and he ultimately lost the starting first base job.
Following the 2024 season, he was designated for assignment and picked up by the Chicago White Sox. This year, he struggled immensely, hitting .222/.333/.278 without a home run, just one RBI and a .611 OPS.
However, the Royals needed depth in their system, and they ultimately found it. Dalbec has a chance to get a fresh start with a new team and potentially find a way back to prominence.
When he’s right, he has a ton of power from the right side of the plate. He can also play third base in addition to first base. He was once a top prospect in the Red Sox organization and appeared to have a bright future.
It will certainly be interesting to see if he can find a way to get back on track with the Royals.
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