3 worst front office decisions that doomed KC Royals' chances this season

It’s safe to say that the Kansas City Royals front office made more good decisions than bad this season. While some calls were contentious at the time, general manager J.J. Picollo and his team generally achieved favorable outcomes from those transactions.

Adding pitchers Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo was not universally praised, yet they ended the season as two of Kansas City's most valuable players. Extending Bobby Witt Jr. on his massive contract initially faced skepticism, but his 2024 season demonstrated that he's very much worth it. Even the trade deadline acquisition of Michael Lorenzen wasn’t well-received after the Royals gave up minor-league standout Walter Pennington.

Yet those decisions, among others, all helped fuel Kansas City's playoff run and a Wild Card series win.

Picollo deserves recognition for his achievements. The team's transactional success rate was widely praised during the postseason, especially following the roster additions in August. However, there are a few outliers — some blemishes that prevent Kansas City's front office from having a perfect season. Here are two serious missteps and one not-so-serious error from the Royals' leadership.

KC Royals Misstep #1: Having Will Smith, Chris Stratton as headline bullpen additions

Hindsight is 20/20, but Royals fans always had to squint a bit to fully trust veterans Will Smith and Chris Stratton leading the bullpen.

Both players were coming off stellar 2023 seasons — including in a World Series win with the Texas Rangers — and Kansas City paid a championship premium for the two, signing Smith for $5 million in 2024 and giving Stratton a two-year deal worth $4 million annually. However, both players turned out to be more of a burden than a boost.

Smith was Kansas City's de facto closer at the start of the season, but that experiment ended quickly due to his obvious struggles. Meanwhile, Stratton saw plenty of action but posted his worst ERA since 2019. Overall, both players were undeniable disappointments throughout the entire season.

Kansas City eventually addressed this year's and next year's bullpen by acquiring Lucas Erceg and Hunter Harvey, but the early-season struggles might have been avoidable. Only two relievers from the Opening Day roster made the playoff roster, with four of the eight being out of the organization entirely. While the bullpen finished on a strong note, relying heavily on Smith and Stratton did not age well.

KC Royals Misstep #3: Giving James McArthur a walkout song

Remember this?

Admittedly, baseball teams typically don’t have a designated walkout sound designer on their front office staff, but still, someone had to approve giving reliever James McArthur the premiere closer treatment with this walkout sequence. I’m all for incorporating more contemporary aspects into the game, but this specific instance spelled trouble for McArthur.

The righty blew a save immediately after the walkout and was never the same pitcher following that moment. Here’s how McArthur performed before and after the "White Horse" incident.

Correlation doesn’t equal causation, but this is quite the correlation, isn’t it? Who knew that the flashing lights, pumped-up bass, and simulated pressure could lead to such a downturn in performance?