Kansas City Royals DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

The Kansas City Royals have optioned left-handed pitcher Evan Sisk to Triple-A Omaha. Sisk has yet to make his MLB debut. Last summer, the 27-year-old spent the entire campaign at the Triple-A level. He logged 57 1/3 innings to the tune of a stellar 1.57 ERA with a 1.03 WHIP. He tallied 81 punchouts and only served up 26 free passes. He did not allow a home run. This was a significant improvement compared to the 6.34 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP he held across 61 innings at the Triple-A level during the 2023 campaign. Fantasy managers should expect the southpaw to be in contention for an early-season 2025 MLB debut given the success he enjoyed at Triple-A last season. When he does get the call, he could contend for a middle-relief role in the bullpen.

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (forearm) is back in the team's split-squad Cactus League lineup on Saturday against the division-rival Cleveland Guardians, starting at shortstop and batting second. It comes just several days after Witt had an injury scare in Wednesday's spring game against the Seattle Mariners, when he was hit by a pitch on his left forearm by reliever Andres Munoz. The 24-year-old All-Star was pulled from the game and underwent X-rays, which thankfully came back negative. Witt took it easy the last few days and luckily escaped with only a bruised left forearm. He's now back in the lineup and will be fine for Opening Day in a couple of weeks. Witt returns to a .276/.364/.586 slash line in spring training with two home runs and four RBI in 11 games. He's in play as the first overall pick in fantasy drafts.

Kansas City Royals right-hander Kyle Wright (hamstring, shoulder) is hoping that he can progress to live batting practice sessions in camp next week, according to MLB.com's Anne Rogers. After already missing all of the 2024 season due to right-shoulder surgery, Wright has missed more time this spring after injuring his hamstring. Even if the 29-year-old former Atlanta Braves pitcher starts facing live hitters next week, he's not going to be ready for the start of the 2025 regular season. The Royals took a flier on Wright hoping that he can recapture his magical 2022 campaign with Atlanta in which he had a 3.19 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 174 strikeouts and 53 walks in 180 1/3 innings. However, it was the only one of his six big-league seasons that stands out, and he's made just nine appearances in the last two years due to his shoulder injury. At best, he's stash-worthy in deep AL-only leagues, but don't expect much.

Kansas City Royals right-hander Alec Marsh (shoulder) said he felt great in two innings of live batting practice in camp on Thursday and will continue to build his arm up. It's unclear when Marsh might be cleared to pitch in a Cactus League game, but he is making progress after arriving to spring training this year with right-shoulder tightness. Even if the 26-year-old is cleared to pitch in spring games before spring training is over, he's expected to open the 2025 regular season on the injured list. In his second year in the big leagues in 2024, Marsh went 9-9 with a 4.53 ERA (4.34 FIP) and 1.26 WHIP with 123 strikeouts and 39 walks in 129 innings over 26 outings (25 starts) for the Royals. He showed better control last year but faded down the stretch in his first full big league season and was sent to the minors while also spending time in relief. Marsh will make more starts for KC this year but is out of the top-100 fantasy starting pitchers.

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (forearm) is still feeling better on Friday and did some increased baseball activities at camp, including hitting, according to MLB.com's Anne Rogers. Witt was hit by a pitch on his left forearm in a Cactus League game on Wednesday, but X-rays came back negative and he's just dealing with a forearm contusion. The 24-year-old All-Star is taking it easy, but there's a chance he'll be back in a spring game on Saturday, depending on how he feels by then. Even if he doesn't return to a game this weekend, though, Witt should be just fine for Opening Day in a few weeks. Fantasy managers that had already taken Witt early in the first round of fantasy drafts were surely holding their breathe on Wednesday after he was hit by reliever Andres Munoz. Last year's runner-up for American League MVP is ranked as the No. 2 player at RotoBaller, behind only Shohei Ohtani.