Royals acquire Luke Weaver


The Royals heading into the trade deadline for the most part will be looking to trade veteran pieces for young talent, but the team has recently added a few arms to a shaky bullpen by making trades with the Mariners and the Diamondbacks. Arizona and Kansas City both aren't looking to be heading to the playoffs anytime soon, so the Royals believe acquiring pitcher Luke Weaver could boost the young pitching staff for the next few seasons. The 28-year old the past few seasons has yet to return to his 2019 form. As the trade deadline nears, Kansas City has been fielding interest in some of their bullpen arms including Scott Barlow, Taylor Clarke, and others. The team is looking to build for the future by acquiring young talent in trades; but the Weaver trade is a bit of a head scratcher for me because of the team's young and talented pitchers in the big leagues and in the minors. Like I mentioned in the article earlier, the team has been looking for bullpen help the past few seasons. Weaver fortunately can be a starter or a reliever in the big leagues. The team in my opinion is in favor of the 28-year old's for many reasons and so were other teams including the Mets. A few Royals writers believe the acquisition of Weaver is to replace starting pitcher Brad Keller in the rotation who could be traded. The Royals in my opinion would be foolish to trade a young and controllable pitcher like Keller who has shown signs of greatness in the past four and a half seasons since coming to Kansas City by way of trade in a rule five draft deal with the Diamondbacks in 2017 for next to nothing. Weaver, in my opinion, most definitely isn't Keller's replacement in the rotation but a long reliever for a Royals team that has had an up and down year from their bullpen at this point of the season. The right hander has a five pitch arsenal that includes a fastball, changeup, curveball, cutter, and a sinker. I believe Weaver having five pitches to work with could really benefit either the rotation or the bullpen. Weaver began his career as a member of the Cardinals before being traded to the Diamondbacks for slugging first baseman Paul Goldschmidt. I believe the Royals made a good choice to go after Weaver who was a former first round draft pick. However, the 2022 season for the 28-year old has been his worst season of his career, the right hander has a 7.71 ERA this season. According to beat writer Anne Rogers, the Royals are planning to use Weaver out of the bullpen for the rest of the season but could use him in the rotation next season depending on the team's rotation plans with young pitchers coming up through the minors. Arizona picked up third baseman Emmanuel Rivera from Kansas City who had yet to find his footing in the majors. The Royals are hoping Weaver can remain healthy after dealing with multiple injuries the past few seasons including blister troubles and tightness in his elbow. Kansas City could get a dominant bullpen arm out of Weaver if he can stay healthy and return to his 2019 form.

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