Mets Breakout Superstar Predicted To Land With Royals In Free Agency Surprise

Could the Royals pull off a heist?

Aug 8, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; A New York Mets hat and glove in the dugout in the second inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images / Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The 2024 season was something of a magic carpet ride for the Kansas City Royals. How will they carry that momentum into the future?

After losing 106 games in 2023, the Royals pulled a complete 180, making a playoff berth and defeating the Baltimore Orioles in a playoff series to advance in October for the first time since 2015. But the Royals won't surprise anyone in 2024. If they want to keep improving, they'll have to keep upgrading the roster.

With reliable veteran Michael Wacha set to hit the open market, the Royals could be down a man in the rotation. But one insider believes the Royals will sign a pitcher who broke out for the exciting New York Mets this year to supplant Wacha in their starting rotation.

On Friday, Jim Bowden of The Athletic predicted that Mets star Sean Manaea, who is expected to opt out of the second year of his contract with New York, would sign with the Royals on a three-year, $68 million contract.

"The Royals sign lefty Sean Manaea to a three-year, $68 million deal to replace the departed Wacha," Bowden said.

Swapping Manaea for Wacha could wind up working out better for the Royals than maintaining the status quo. As good as Manaea's overall statistics were in 2024, there are some under-the-hood metrics, stemming from the mechanical change he made in July, that suggest he could keep getting better.

After the All-Star break, Manaea's ERA stayed nearly the same, finishing the season at 3.47, but that was due to an unlucky jump in home run rate. His WHIP dropped from 1.22 to 0.94, his opponents' OPS dropped from .639 to .593, and his strikeout-to-walk ratio rose from 2.40 to 3.83.

If those peripheral stats can translate into dominance over a full season, Manaea will prove to be a bargain at $68 million. And the Royals should hope to be the team to benefit from the lefty's continued resurgence.

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