Injury news makes Carlos Estévez signing look even better for KC Royals

Together with the early November re-signing of Michael Wacha and the trade with the Cincinnati Reds for Jonathan India that same month, the late-January acquisition of free agent reliever Carlos Estévez ranks as one of the three best player moves the Kansas City Royals made this winter. And considering injury news that broke just as the club began spring training on February 12, the Estévez signing suddenly looks even better than it did originally.

The news? Estévez's fellow reliever James McArthur is delayed after undergoing surgery that involved implanting screws in his pitching elbow.

The fact that McArthur — whose elbow problem became an issue when it forced him to the Injured List and ended his season last September — had surgery sends the strong signal that he could be sidelined for an extended period. How much time he'll miss, and when he might be ready to pitch in the majors again, only time will tell.

Which makes bringing Estévez to town even more advantageous for Kansas City.

Carlos Estévez will help the KC Royals cover the absence of James McArthur

Some skeptics may downplay the impact that missing McArthur might have. After all, he finished 5-7 with a too-high 4.92 relief ERA last season, numbers weighted down by a poor second-half performance — after the All-Star Break, opponents knocked him around for 16 runs (14 earned for an ugly 6.87 ERA) in 18.1 innings and he lost four of five decisions.

Just how much McArthur's elbow injury contributed to his second-half slide isn't publicly known, but it certainly had to have some negative impact.

Keep in mind, though, that he earned 17 of his 2024 club-leading 18 saves and went 4-3 with a much better 3.99 ERA in the period before the Break. And while making his big league debut with the Royals the season before, he walked only two batters in 23.1 innings, permitted only one of the eight runners he inherited to score, and converted all four save opportunities manager Matt Quatraro gave him.

McArthur has proven he can pitch well in high-leverage situations. The Royals aren't about to give up on him — his injury-free good performances reflect the promise and potential he has as a reliever, so much so that without the elbow issue he could have been competing now for a key late-inning relief role with the Royals.

Now, it appears he won't be in that mix for quite some time. So it is that adding Estévez, who saved 26 games and posted a 2.45 ERA while splitting last season between the Los Angeles Angels and Philadelphia Phillies, takes on more importance. Signing him strengthens Quatraro's bullpen, should decrease the shakiness it displayed at times in 2024, and gives the club some now-needed breathing room while McArthur recuperates and hopefully rediscovers the form that made him so effective for much of last season.