Spring training isn’t a tune-up for many of the Kansas City Royals’ pitchers this season — it’s an all-out battle to earn a spot on the roster.
After loading up on starters at last year’s trade deadline, the Royals are coming into camp wth the deepest rotation mix they’ve had in recent memory, and if veterans Seth Lugo and Kris Bubic are healthy, there will be several relative newcomers fighting over one or two spots.
Injuries tend to sort things out more than expected, but one name to watch as the spring progresses is veteran left-hander Bailey Falter. Because he’s out of minor-league options, Falter must be included on the opening day roster if the Royals don’t want to risk losing him to waivers.
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Will Falter miss out on opening day roster?
On Monday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com projected the Royals’ opening day roster and did not include Falter, illustrating that the 28-year-old faces something of an uphill climb after a rough first two months with the club following the trade deadline.
“Falter, another lefty, is out of options – if the Royals don’t need him as a starter, he could slot into the bullpen,” wrote Rogers.
The Royals acquired Falter from the Pittsburgh Pirates last July for minor-league lefty Evan Sisk and minor-league first baseman Callan Moss. It wasn’t the type of trade that is likely to sting the organization long-term, but Kansas City still has to be hoping for more out of Falter than they got originally.
Falter was pitching to a 3.73 ERA through 22 starts as a Pirate, but he only took the ball four times in KC, including twice out of the bullpen when he was demoted from the rotation. He allowed 15 earned runs in 12 innings (11.25 ERA) while surrendering an astonishing 20 hits.
Even if Falter has a tiebreaker on the basis of not having options, he’s going to have to prove he’s capable of performing on a similar level to guys like Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek. The Royals, as a playoff hopeful, shouldn’t put anyone in the rotation purely because they don’t want to put them on waivers instead.
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