The Royals announced they have brought back reliever José Cuas on a minor league deal. Cuas previously pitched for the team in 2022-23. He did not pitch in the big leagues last year, spending the season in the Braves organization. In 132 career MLB games, he has an ERA of 4.37 with 122 strikeouts in 119.1 innings.
Cuas had a pretty unusual journey to the big leagues. Originally drafted by the Brewers in 2015 as an infielder, he converted to a pitcher when his bat didn’t develop. He struggled in his first season on the mound and was released, bouncing around to the Diamondbacks organization, then indy league ball. One winter, he pitched for Royals coach Tony Peña Jr. in the Dominican Republic. The Royals signed him, and he made his MLB debut in 2022 at the age of 28. He posted a 3.58 ERA in 47 relief appearances that year with 34 strikeouts in 37.2 innings.
The next summer the Royals traded him to the Cubs for outfielder Nelson Velázquez. Cuas pitched very well down the stretch for the Cubs, but struggled early in 2024 and was placed on waivers. He pitched briefly for the Blue Jays later that year. He was claimed off waivers by the Phillies, but was released by them last May. The Braves signed him to pitch for their Double-A team, ultimately releasing him in August despite a 3.22 ERA in 18 games.
Cuas brings a sidearm approach that creates odd angles for a hitter. He relies heavily on a sinker, and generates a 44 percent groundball rate for his career. He is much tougher on righties than lefties in his career, but he does struggle with control at times.
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