Another KC Royals castoff finds Baltimore to his liking

The dramatic career turnaround Ryan O'Hearn has enjoyed since the Kansas City Royals traded him to the Baltimore Orioles in early 2023 remains startling. After struggling through a mostly disappointing five seasons with the Royals — during which he twice hit an abysmal .195 — O'Hearn is flourishing as a lineup staple with the Orioles, having hit 29 homers with a .275 average across his first two seasons.

Now, a former KC teammate also seems to be finding happiness with the O's — Emmanuel Rivera.

Yes, the same Emmanuel Rivera who in 2021 seemed so close to filling the third base hole the Royals had unsuccessfully tried to plug since trading Mike Moustakas to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2018. The same Rivera who, despite having so much promise, was out of the organization long before the 2022 campaign ended, and went on to make so-so stops with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Miami Marlins.

The Orioles snagged Rivera off the waiver wire in August, and much like O'Hearn, he appears to be finding his niche in Baltimore.

Former KC Royals infielder Emmanuel Rivera is returning to the Orioles

Friday evening's news that Rivera and the Orioles were in agreement on a new single-year, arbitration-avoiding contract that will pay him $1 million next season shouldn't surprise anyone. Baltimore's August waiver claim paid immediate dividends — playing primarily at third base and occasionally at first, Rivera slashed .313/.370/.578 with four homers and 14 RBI in 27 games.

That performance reflects the potential Rivera displayed with Kansas City in 2021. The sizzling Cactus League bat he swung during spring training carried over to his first shot at Triple-A ball — his 14 homers and .287 average through 44 games at Omaha propelled Rivera to Kansas City in June.

But he suffered a hamate fracture the night after a nice two-hit big league debut in Boston and was back at Omaha in early September after hitting a disappointing, .247 in 27 post-injury games. He finished his first shot at the majors with a homer and a .257 average.

The Royals gave Rivera another big-league chance in 2022, but it ended when they shipped him to Arizona at the trade deadline for reliever Luke Weaver. He hit six homers in 39 regular season games for the D-backs, then went 2-for-5 with a pair of RBI against the Texas Rangers in the World Series. He seemed set for a role with Arizona in 2024, until the club DFA'd him in March and traded him to Miami for cash before the season was even a week old. He struggled to a .214/.294/.269 line in 229 PA for the Marlins before Baltimore picked him up.

Fortunately, it's so far, so good in Rivera's third change of major league scenery. If he has a truly breakout season in 2025, he could have the Royals wishing they'd never dealt him away.