Wacha ditched San Diego for Kansas City



This offseason Kansas City signed two former Padres starting pitchers in Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha. 
Wacha's path to Kansas City isn't as clear as it may seem. Before signing with the Royals, Wacha had the opportunity to remain with San Diego, but he rejected the offer and tested the free agent market. What's the big deal with Wacha leaving San Diego for the Royals? The Padres rejected the right-hander's team option for 2024. Wacha would reject his player option shortly after. Padres President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller explained the organization's decision to move on from Wacha and other pitchers: "The first move of the offseason, we just weren't comfortable at those price points. ... We're very open to those guys coming back." Wacha's decision to not sign for less with San Diego is understandable. Money talks in sports, and players hear it. Wacha signed a 2-year deal worth $32 million dollars with the Royals. The second year of the deal is a player option. Wacha talked to the media shortly after his decision to sign with the Royals: “Just saw the atmosphere here and what it could be,” Wacha said. “The potential is here with this team. Just a lot of excitement here. Couldn’t be more pumped to put on this uniform.” Wacha continued to praise the Royals organization after he put pen to paper: "Seeing the young core that’s been coming up shows a lot of great potential,” Wacha said. “And then after getting on the phone with [general manager] J.J. [Picollo] and discussing the type of vision that he sees here, what he’s trying to build here, seeing those moves coming in… [there’s] a lot of excitement.” In my opinion, the Royals decision to bring Wacha into the equation was a great one. Wacha has a solid track record throughout his career after playing for five teams before signing with the Royals. The Midwest may have influenced Wacha's decision to sign with the Royals a little bit. Wacha was born in Iowa City, Iowa, and he played for the Cardinals for the first seven years of his career. Although Wacha moved to Texas shortly after he was born, I believe the veteran playing the first part of his career in St Louis could have possibly helped influence his decision to sign with the Royals. Multiple teams were rumored to be interested in signing Wacha before the Royals reeled him in with the $32 million dollar deal. The Pirates, Yankees, and the Reds were all rumored to be looking at Wacha. The amount of interest shown by the trio wasn't mentioned. The additions of Wacha and Seth Lugo will help give the Kansas City rotation big boosts next season and beyond. Between both Lugo and Wacha, I believe Wacha will have the biggest impact. As mentioned earlier in the article, Wacha has a solid track record. Wacha, unlike Lugo, has more experience as a starting pitcher in the big leagues with a total of 228 starts compared to Lugo's 64. Last season with the Padres was Lugo’s first season as a full-time starter. Wacha, unlike Lugo, has been a career starter. Wacha has the upper hand over Lugo in starting experience but he also has the track record of staying healthy. In conclusion, Wacha's return to the Midwest could be beneficial for his stats. While playing for St. Louis Wacha had an ERA below 4.00 in his first four seasons in St Louis. Wacha's return to the Midwest could be some of the best years of his career.



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