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Free-agent reliever Alex Lange<\/strong> is finalizing a one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals<\/a>, reports Anne Rogers of MLB.com<\/a>. The righty had been released by the Detroit Tigers<\/a> on Tuesday. The Royals have an opening on the 40-man roster.<\/p>\n The 30-year-old Lange is a former first-round pick who spent a few seasons as one of Detroit\u2019s top relievers. He worked as A.J. Hinch\u2019s closer for a good chunk of the 2023 season, going 26-32 in save chances. Lange turned in a 3.68 earned run average while striking out 27.4% of opposing hitters across 66 innings that year. He got grounders on half the batted balls he allowed while missing bats on a huge 15.5% of his offerings. Lange was prone to bouts of wildness but his stuff played.<\/p>\n Lange\u2019s strikeout rate plummeted early in the 2024 season. Detroit demoted him to Triple-A by the end of May. Lange seemed like he was bouncing back against minor league competition until he suffered a significant lat injury. That required surgery which not only ended his \u201924 campaign but shelved him until August this year. Lange was essentially a non-factor for two straight years. He only pitched one time at the big league level this past season, working around two hits and a walk to complete a scoreless inning.<\/p>\n The encouraging sign is that Lange\u2019s stuff didn\u2019t appear diminished. He averaged 96.2 mph on his sinker and 88.4 mph on his knuckle-curve in that lone big league appearance. Both velocities were marginally up from where he\u2019d sat two years ago. Lange punched out nearly 30% of Triple-A opponents while turning in a 4.63 ERA across 24 appearances. He also walked 14.3% of batters faced, but that\u2019s par for the course for a pitcher who has always had well below-average control.<\/p>\n It\u2019ll surely be a cheap one-year flier on a pitcher with plus stuff and some high-leverage experience. Lange has a minor league option remaining, so the Royals can keep him in Triple-A Omaha next season without exposing him to waivers. He has between three and four years of service, meaning K.C. could control him for three seasons. Lange will need a healthy season to convince the Royals to tender him contracts that\u2019d make the extra control years meaningful, but there\u2019s a bit of long-term upside.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n