2020 KC Royals season preview: Randy Rosario

The KC Royals got a small look at Randy Rosario in 2019, and as of now, it seems they will look again come 2020 to see if he can help the bullpen.

Welcome back to the Kings of Kauffman 2020 KC Royals season previews. Just as a reminder, we will be breaking down 30 different Royals over the next month, including analysis of how they faired last season, some predictions for this coming season, and any other information that may be pertinent. This time lets take a look at Randy Rosario.

What did he offer last season?

Rosario split his time last season, spending a large portion of it with the Chicago Cubs, and ending the season with the Royals. Despite a decent previous season, Rosario seemed to struggle a bit in 2019 with the Cubs. He pitched only 10.2 innings for Chicago and held an ERA of 5.91, struggling with walks, and he was fairly susceptible to home runs.

His time with the Royals was short, but he impressed over the few innings he saw. Rosario managed only 3.2 innings with Kansas City, but they were good innings. He allowed 3 hits and 1 run (not earned), struck out 3 and walked none. While it’s a small sample, his success with the Royals is likely driving them to give him another look in 2020.

For the season as a whole, Rosario ended with an ERA of 4.40 over 14.1 innings pitched, 13 strikeouts and 5 walks.

What should we expect in 2020?

Here are the stat line projections for Rosario’s 2020 season form Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs:

• B-Ref: 37 IP, 4.38 ERA, 34 K, 14 BB
• FG: 40 IP, 4.58 ERA, 30 K, 18 BB

Both projections are fairly similar for Rosario and actually have him putting in a decent amount of innings. While it would be nice to see an ERA a little lower than the predictions, considering what the Royals already have in the bullpen, Rosario might be able to win his spot without issue.

The Verdict

Rosario is still fairly young (25) and has potential that the Royals are hoping they can tap into. He has proven that he can pitch at the major league level, recording 46.2 innings with an ERA of 3.66 in 2018, but has always struggled with walks, a reoccurring theme in Kansas City.

During his time in the minors, Rosario has proven he can pitch at each level, and it’s time for him to prove that he can continue in a major league bullpen. Look for the Royals to give him a chance to prove himself and find the form he had with Chicago in 2018.

Rosario may not be the top bullpen arm, but if he can control his pitches, he has every chance to be a consistent reliever in a depleted bullpen. Just about every spot in the Royals bullpen is up for grabs and fans should look to Rosario to be in the fight to claim one.