KC Royals announce opening series of offseason moves

Wednesday night was a bittersweet one for long-time KC Royals fans. They watched Texas Rangers general manager Chris Young, a former Royals pitcher, celebrate as Texas won its first World Series ever.

That bittersweet reached a new level seeing former Royals general manager Dayton Moore on the field, after joining Young in an advisory role in Texas. It stings seeing so many former Royals personnel hoisting the trophy, but I am glad to see both of them succeed outside of Kansas City.

The season ends, but the offseason truly begins for the KC Royals.

The World Series conclusion brought about the much-anticipated beginning of the offseason. Royals general manager J.J. Picollo and manager Matt Quatraro made the offseason priorities clear nearly a month ago, but now is the time for action. Kansas City wasted little time after the offseason began, reinstating eight players from the 60-day IL alongside other moves.

The Royals reinstated pitchers Jake Brentz, Kris Bubic, Austin Cox, Daniel Lynch IV, Josh Taylor, Josh Staumont, first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, and catcher Freddy Fermin from the 60-day IL list, The Royals added those players after pitchers Zack Greinke and Brad Keller, with infielder Matt Duffy, officially became free agents. Keller and Greinke have spent extended periods of their careers with the Royals franchise, albeit on very different paths.

The Royals had to designate outfielder Nate Eaton for assignment to reinstate all eight players from the IL. Eaton started the 2023 MLB season on the Royals 26-man roster but failed to make a positive offensive impact. He went 4-for-53 at the plate, resulting in a .076 batting average and .201 OPS. The 26-year-old outfielder will have a spot in Kansas City if the Royals want him back on a minor-league deal.

All those moves together set the Royals' 40-man roster back at 40 players. The team will have to execute more moves in the coming days as the offseason progresses. Whether it be adding new players via free agency, trade, or protecting players from the Rule 5 draft, Royals fans should expect more moves to come.

After all, standing pat did not win Young and Moore another World Series. Being aggressive and transactional did. Let us hope that Royals leadership will be active in the coming months in making this team better ahead of Opening Day 2