Kansas City Royals Rumors: What’s next on the market?

The additions of Buchter and Maurer are nice, and it seems like the Kansas City Royals will be happy to hang onto Kelvin Herrera for the duration. But one can never have too much pitching, and that’s where Pat Neshek comes in.

Neshek has been a quality arm for years but has blossomed in his mid-to-late 30s, earning two All-Star appearances since 2014. He’s got a microscopic 1.12 ERA and 1.93 FIP this season, both career-bests, and is punching out 10.0 batters per nine, his best mark in a decade.

Adding Neshek would give Ned Yost another veteran late-inning option to go along with Herrera and Maurer. It would remove Scott Alexander and Joakim Soria from high-leverage situations (both own plus-6.00 ERA’s in 15.1 combined high-leverage innings). And it would likely—finally—solidify the bullpen barring an injury; even then, Brian Flynn, Eric Skoglund and Jakob Junis could fit in better as complementary pieces rather than burden-carrying members of the bullpen.

Neshek fits, and as part of the narrow sliver of the Venn Diagram that are high level relievers yet not closers, he won’t command a king’s ransom. Neshek makes sense; I want him in this bullpen and would even slightly overpay for the privilege.