Royals Flamethrower 'Carving Out Big Role' For 2025 After Breakout Season

It sounds like the Royals made the right move

Mar 12, 2024; Salt River Pima-Maricopa, Arizona, USA; General view of Kansas City Royals hats and gloves in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies during a spring training game at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images / Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals certainly landed an intriguing reliever.

Kansas City has surprised the baseball world and is well on its way to the playoffs barring a historic collapse. Because of their success, the Royals were active around the trade deadline and were buyers. One player the club landed was flamethrowing reliever Lucas Erceg in a deal with the Oakland Athletics.

Erceg has been a breakout star in his second big league season and currently is in the 98th percentile in fastball velocity. He has a 3.81 ERA in 53 appearances this season and is looking like a steal for the Royals.

He has been so impressive that he was mentioned among the top players "carving out big roles" for the 2025 season by Just Baseball's Caleb Moody.

"Although he may have been outshined over the first four months by the great year that Mason Miller is having in Oakland, Lucas Erceg was putting together an excellent season as a set-up option," Moody said. "In 36.2 innings of relief work for the A’s, Erceg posted a 3.40 ERA and 1.20 WHIP with 10.06 K/9. And since his move to the Kansas City Royals at the trade deadline, Erceg has been even better...

"Pair that with his slider that batters can’t seem to touch, as they’ve hit just .122 off of it, and a 98th percentile average exit velocity against (85.6 mph), and Erceg has the makings of being the next great closer for the Royals in 2025 and beyond."

It definitely seems like the Royals made the right move.

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