Kansas City Royals DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. had another huge offensive game in Monday's 7-6 loss to the Tigers. Witt Jr. went 2-for-4 with a single, a grand slam, five RBI, and a stolen base. The 24-year-old jumped on a third-inning Reese Olson hanging curveball, sending it into the left-field seats for his 32nd long ball of the season. Witt Jr. has provided everything from a fantasy perspective this season, slashing .332/.384/.600 with 122 runs scored, 108 RBI, and 29 stolen bases in 666 plate appearances. His power, speed, and batting average were never in question, but Witt Jr.'s additional counting stats have benefited all season long from the Royals' overall offensive performance.

Kansas City Royals right-hander James McArthur (hand) left Monday's contest early with a trainer against the visiting Detroit Tigers at Kauffman Stadium after his right hand was hit while covering first base on a Zach McKinstry single. McArthur stayed in the game for one more batter before he was replaced by Angel Zerpa in the seventh inning. The 27-year-old threw two-thirds of an inning, walking one and striking out one without allowing a run. McArthur began the year as the Royals' closer and has a career-high 18 saves in his second year in the league, but he's ended up in a middle-relief role and has a bloated 4.98 ERA (4.17 FIP) and 1.45 WHIP in his 56 relief innings in 2024. It's unclear how severe McArthur's hand injury is, but it didn't look that bad. For now, he'll be considered day-to-day until we know more.UPDATE: McArthur was diagnosed with right-elbow tightness.

Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Chris Stratton (forearm) was placed on the 15-day injured list on Saturday afternoon with a right forearm flexor strain. The Royals promoted southpaw Angel Zerpa from Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move. Stratton appeared in Friday's game but struggled as he served up two runs across one inning of work. The 34-year-old will be sidelined for the next 15 days, which puts him in danger of missing the rest of the regular season. Stratton was typically deployed in the seventh and eighth innings this summer and held a 5.55 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP across 58 innings of work. Fantasy managers should now expect Kris Bubic, James McArthur, John Schreiber, and Lucas Erceg to handle the high-leverage work down the stretch as the Royals compete for a playoff spot.

Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Chris Stratton was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right forearm flexor strain on Saturday, and left-handed pitcher Angel Zerpa was recalled from Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move. Stratton pitched the ninth inning in Friday night's 8-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates and gave up two runs and three hits in the outing. With just over two weeks left in the regular season, Stratton won't pitch again until October if his forearm cooperates. The 34-year-old started the season solid but has been a disaster in the second half, posting a 7.08 ERA since the All-Star break. Fantasy managers have likely already moved on given his second-half struggles, but if they haven't, then now is the time to do so. Those needing bullpen help to finish out the season may want to consider Lucas Erceg, who leads the Royals with six saves over the last 30 days. His 5.40 ERA in that same timespan is worrisome, but the saves help balance that out from a fantasy perspective.

Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Alec Marsh struck out 11 batters in 5.1 innings of dominating pitching in the Royals' 8-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night. The 11 strikeouts matches a career high for Marsh who struck out 11 against the Tampa Bay Rays in 2023. The righty improved his ERA to 4.52 and recorded the win, making him 8-8 on the season. Marsh has been a solid option for the Royals since getting recalled from the minors but Friday night's performance was easily his best performance of the season. With the Royals fighting to keep their 2.0 game lead in the wild card race, more high quality performances from Marsh will be needed. Fantasy managers in deeper leagues likely should consider adding Marsh to their rosters to finish out the season. Marsh currently doesn't have another scheduled start listed but Kansas City does have an open spot in their rotation set for next Wednesday when the Royals host Tarik Skubal and the Detroit Tigers.