KC Royals News: Lorenzen oblique, James McArthur setback, Trevor Richards D-Backs

The Kansas City Royals got the second-half of the season underway on Friday. The focus around them will undoubtedly be on their approach at the upcoming trade deadline over the next few weeks, especially after dealing for Adam Frazier to upgrade the bench earlier this week.

However, amid all the hustle and bustle that the trade season brings, there's other headlines Royals fans need to be aware of.

KC Royals News: Details of Michael Lorenzen's oblique injury revealed

Earlier this week the Royals suffered the blow of losing another key arm, after veteran Michael Lorenzen was placed on the injured list Monday (retroactive July 11) with an oblique strain.

Ahead of Friday's game though, Royals broadcaster Joel Goldberg reported a timeline for Lorenzen and some additional insight on what caused his injury, provided by manager Matt Quatraro.

Goldberg reported that Lorenzen is expected to miss one to two starts and that Tuesday's starter would be "determined as they get closer to the day".

“Unfortunately, being sick is what caused the oblique injury," Quatraro said in regard to the orgin of Lorenzen's ailment.

Oblique injuries can sometimes be difficult ones, so thankfully for the Royals it doesn't sound all too serious if he's only set to miss one to two turns through the rotation.

KC Royals News: Reliever James McArthur suffers a setback in recovery

Another Royals arm facing injury problems this season has been former closer James McArthur, who's yet to pitch in 2025 after undergoing elbow surgery to treat an olecranon fracture.

MLB.com's Anne Rogers provided an update on Friday on McArthur and unfortunately it wasn't positive news.

"McArthur faced a setback in his recovery recently. He had 2 screws placed in his elbow to stablize an olecranon fracture this past winter," Rogers wrote on X.

"Now both screws have been removed, as he wasn't responding well. TBD on his return," she added. "He's undergoing tests to determine next steps."

Now, while the presence of Carlos Estévez, Lucas Erceg and hopefully the return Hunter Harvey now that he's on his rehab assignment means McArthur likely doesn't have to hold a high leverage role like he did in the first-half of 2024.

However, the more major league proven pitching depth the better and I'm sure the Royals wouldn't turn down another arm to add to the fold.

Unfortunately though, that doesn't appear to be anytime soon in the case of McArthur.

KC Royals News: Former reliever Trevor Richards lands in the Arizona Diamondbacks' bullpen

To round things out, former Royals veteran bullpen arm Trevor Richards has found his way back to the big leagues after the Arizona Diamondbacks selected his contract from Triple-A Reno on Friday.

Richards signed with the D-Backs on a minor league deal on June 19 after the Royals outrighted him to the minors and he exercised his right as veteran to elect free agency instead.

After Kansas City signed him to a minor league deal in the beginning of May, Richards made just three appearances with them this season, and he left a lot to be desired. He threw to an extremely inflated 12.00 ERA, 3.00 WHIP and .438 BAA across 3.0 innings of work.

And since joining the D-Backs organization, things haven't exactly gone swimmingly for the 32-year-old. In 12.1 innings of work, he's thrown to a 6.57 ERA, but his 1.14 WHIP and .229 BAA are much more serviceable.