Royals Right-Hander Linked To Tigers After Superb 2024 Season
The Kansas City Royals finished tied for second place in the American League Central with the Detroit Tigers in 2024 with an 86-76 record.
Kansas City won the season series with Detroit and was awarded second place and the second Wild Card spot. They beat the Baltimore Orioles before being stopped by the New York Yankees in the ALDS.
This offseason, the Royals have some questions to answer. Right-hander Michael Wacha can opt out of his contract and return to free agency. Jim Bowden projects that the 33-year-old will receive a three-year, $54 million contract, and also listed the Tigers as a potential threat to steal him away from Kansas City.
"Michael Wacha has been superb and consistent over the past three years, posting ERAs between 3.22 and 3.35 with double-digit wins each season, all while pitching on short-term contracts," Bowden wrote.
"Wacha has a $16 million player option for 2025 that I expect he'll decline so he can enter free agency and land a multiyear contract."
Losing Wacha would certainly hurt the Royals. They would still have Cole Ragans, Seth Lugo, and Brady Singer in their rotation. But Wacha was a good source of veteran innings, so they would miss that in 2025.
Losing him to the Tigers also wouldn't be ideal, as Detroit is a division rival. This might help the Tigers put some separation between themselves and Kansas City next year in the AL Central.
It will be interesting to see how Wacha's market develops and if the Tigers emerge as a threat to steal him away from the Royals.
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Curt Bishop is a freelance sports writer who graduated from Maryville University of St. Louis with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the field of Communication and currently writes as a contributor for various platforms covering Major League Baseball. Curt’s work includes covering trade and free agency predictions, as well as rumors and news.