Royals sign Chris Stratton


This offseason Kansas City took their time signing free agents, and fans got quite annoyed. Now, weeks later the team is signing players left and right. 
The Kansas City front office brought in veteran reliever Chris Stratton on a one-year pact worth $3.5 million guaranteed. The contract includes a player option worth $4.5 million with a $500,000 buyout. Stratton's contract with Kansas City is somewhat interesting according to yardbarker.com: "It’s fairly surprising to see Stratton secure an opt-out provision in his contract. Middle relievers of this ilk typically haven’t been afforded that luxury, although the Reds did give Emilio Pagan an opt-out after his first season earlier this month. YardBarker continued in the article: "For Kansas City, perhaps that was a necessary bridge to cross in order to sway a reliever they were prioritizing to sign there rather than with a more clear-cut contender." YardBarker makes a good point about a pitcher like Stratton. The Royals have been at the bottom of the barrel for the past couple of years. So why would a veteran like Stratton come to a team like the Royals? Because Kansas City spiced up the contract a bit, and the deal includes an opt-out provision. Stratton has plenty of experience in the big leagues. The former Ranger made his debut on May 30, 2016 against the Braves. But since his debut, Stratton has bounced around the league. Kansas City is Stratton's sixth team in his career. When you think of a relief pitcher, you usually think of high velocity. The righthander's velocity ranges between 92 to 93 mph. Despite the lack of velocity, the fastball is still an impact pitch. According to ballsavant.mlb.com, the reliever relies heavily on his fastball (54.6%), in fact maybe a bit too much. Stratton has plenty of other options in his reputation he could choose from including a slider, curveball, changeup and a sinker. Last season the Rangers relied on Stratton some, but most of his work was while a member of St Louis's bullpen where he pitched a total of 53.2 innings with a 4.19 ERA. But his season only improved from there. The Cardinals traded Stratton along with pitcher Jordan Montgomery to Texas on July 30, 2023 for pitchers John King and Tekoah along with shortstop Thomas Saggese. The decision to trade Stratton wasn't easy for the red birds: “Our hope is this isn’t the last time they’re wearing this (Cardinals) uniform.” The Cardinals’ hopes of Stratton returning to St Louis is officially out the window, and seeing the Cardinals' hopes being crushed is a beautiful thing to see.  Signing his deal with Kansas City may allow him to stay in one city for more than a year. Stratton is one of those relievers who seem to have games where he can get out of trouble, but other times he gets hit around by teams. Despite Stratton's struggles, the reliever will boost the Kansas City bullpen next season. How will Stratton improve the bullpen exactly? For one, the veteran is able to pitch more than one inning an outing. According to YardBarker, Stratton can pitch in multiple innings on a regular basis: "Stratton has regularly worked multiple innings, evidenced by the fact that those 255 1/3 frames came over the life of just 219 appearances." The addition of Stratton will give the Royals bullpen a boost next season but won't be a signing that will completely flip a bullpen from bottom of the league to the top of the league; however, it could be a bigger signing than it may appear. Kansas City's bullpen will be interesting to watch next season and hopefully make the Royals more competitive in the American League Central.


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