Lugo perfect addition for the Royals

The addition of Seth Lugo opened many Royals fans' eyes and possibly fans across the league as well. I believe the team may have slightly overpaid for Lugo, but I believe he will give the Royals quality starts throughout the life of his contract.  
Kansas City hasn't spent $40 million plus on one player in free agency in over seven years when they signed Ian Kennedy to a five-year deal worth $70 million. Lugo and the Royals agreed to a three-year deal worth $45 million. Fans, prepare yourself to not see too many strikeouts from Lugo over the next three seasons. From the MLB Network on Lugo: "He's a pitcher, not a thrower." That being said, Lugo last season struck out an even 140 hitters with San Diego. Lugo will likely not lead the team in strikeouts nor innings pitched, but he fits Kansas City's pitching staff perfectly with his ability to keep the ball in the yard, quality starts, and ability to stay healthy. 
Manager Matt Quatraro thought almost the exact same thing during an interview with The Athletic: "He throws a ton of strikes; he’s an efficient guy on the mound; he’s got four pitches; he’s ultra-competitive, pretty unflappable,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “He’s resilient, and more than anything, he’s motivated to prove that last year was not just a one-off and he wants to be a good starter long-term.” 
Lugo had many offers from other teams, and likely more money as well. Kansas City's offer intrigued him because they offered him what the Mets never gave him—the opportunity to be a big league starter. Aside from the money, Kansas City also added a third year to the deal while other teams offered him a two-year deal in free agency. 
Lugo opted out of his deal with the Padres even though the Padres wanted to keep the right-hander around. Many fans in San Diego wanted to see Lugo return, but they weren't too surprised when he decided to test his luck in free agency.  The Padres weren't going to let him go without a fight as the team offered him a four-year deal but for less money than what the Royals gave him. 
Money aside, Lugo will provide stability in the rotation and possibly the bullpen if being in the rotation doesn't work out. The chances of Lugo being moved back to the bullpen, like he was with the Mets a few years back, are highly unlikely after the Royals gave him a good sum of money to be part of the rotation. 
The Royals this offseason made two significant additions to the rotation in Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha. The Central may be the weakest division in baseball, and the Royals are looking to take advantage of it. It's not guaranteed that the Royals will reach the playoffs, but if they happen to get there, both Lugo and Wacha have playoff experience. Back in 2022, Lugo pitched two innings out of the bullpen for the Mets in the wild card game against… wouldn't you know it, the Padres. 
Other than his good stats throughout his career between the Mets and Padres, pitching at Kauffman Stadium may be the perfect place for him to succeed in a couple of ways. The 34-year old as we all know isn't known to strike out many batters; however, he still knows how to get outs. Last season, the righthander ranked 20th in baseball with a 45.2% ground ball rate. The Royals infield has two elite defenders in Bobby Witt Jr and Maikel Garcia. Lugo was able to get hitters to pop up 232 times last season. 
Pitching isn't the only thing Lugo possess, he’s a good veteran presence in the clubhouse according to catching prospect Carter Jensen: "They’re all really cool guys to have around, to let us pick their brains about different things, not even just pitchers but catchers also and even position players” Jensen said. “They’ve been great to be around so far and I’m excited for the future.”
 Injuries happen in baseball; however other than an injury from time to time, Lugo has stayed healthy throughout his career. Lugo's ability to stay on the field may have a little to do with the way he pitches along with him not trying too hard to throw bullets like, for example Cole Ragans who can throw it 99 to 100mph. Lugo's velocity sits between 91 to 93 mph with an occasional uptick of 95 or 96mph. 
Kansas City added a few former Padres via free agency other than Michael Wacha, the team added names such as catcher Austin Nola, Hunter Renfrone, and Adam Frazier. A few of the players may have not played with Lugo while he was a member of the San Diego rotation, but he will definitely have many teammates he is familiar with. Not saying he won't get used to his new teammates, but he will have people who know right from the get go likely giving him good chemistry with the Royals, thus maybe allowing pressure ease a bit more on top of the Royals great defensive stars in the infield. 
Lastly, the Royals will be banking that the 34-year old helps the team win games and stay healthy. It will be interesting to see how deep he goes into games or out of the bullpen if the rotation isn't working out, but regardless of the amount of innings he racks up, he will be an intriguing one to watch on the bump every fifth day for Kansas City.










Popular posts from this blog

Flashback Royals: Remembering a Murder Victim

Image
The Royals over the years have worn patches on their uniforms to remember tragic periods in American history including 9/11 and more. Kansas City in 2007 was stunned after learning that local teenager Kelsey Smith was abducted and murdered. The Royals wore light blue ribbons on their wrists in remembrance of the 18-year old after former manager Buddy Bell spoke to the Smith family.  Many Kansas Cityians remember the Kelsey Smith case well after the story of her abduction hit the local media and national media. On June 2, Smith was shopping at her local Target in Overland Park, KS looking for a picture frame for her boyfriend John Biersmith. While at Target, Smith's killer followed her throughout the store after noticing her at the jewelry counter. While Smith was in the checkout line, her abductor ran to his vehicle to grab his gun and waited for her to leave the store to grab her. The 18-year old was unable to fight off the kidnapper and was forced into her vehicle and...
Read more

Flashback Royals: The murder at the pool

Image
Self-defense is more important now than ever, and teams like the Royals are promoting it through various events. In 2008, the Royals held a self-defense class called T.A.K.E. to support The Ali Kemp Educational Foundation and honor Ali Kemp's life. Similarly, the Kelsey Smith Foundation, named after a girl abducted at a Target in Kansas in 2007, also focuses on teaching self-defense. The Royals later honored Kelsey Smith's memory as well. Ali Kemp's murder in 2002 had a profound impact on the Kansas City metro area. At 19, Ali was working as a lifeguard in Leawood, Kansas, during the summer. Her father believed it was a safe job: "It was a wonderful job, a neighborhood pool. And you would think the safest place in the world." However, her shift on that fateful day turned tragic. Around 3 p.m., Ali called a friend for company, but the friend missed the call. Shortly after, Laurel Vine, another friend, arrived at the pool and saw a man leaving. Thinking ...
Read more

Royals small connections to US Presidents

Image
The state of Kansas and the Kansas City metro have several connections to US Presidents, such as the 33rd President Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower. Although both Kansas and Kansas City have connections to the late Presidents, none of Kansas City's professional baseball teams such as the Monarchs, Athletics, or the Royals had the chance to meet either of them. However, former Royals manager Ned Yost has been to the White House more than once. Yost has met five US Presidents during his time in baseball. The former manager's first interaction with a President was with 39th President Jimmy Carter while living just outside of Atlanta. Yost said the 39th President attended games regularly: "Jimmy used to come a lot to the Braves games, and you could walk down the tunnel going to the dugout when Jimmy was there because Secret Service guys were all outside his little room they had for him and I’d waltz right in there and go sit down,” Yost said. “Him and Rosa...
Read more