KC Royals officially add experience, batting depth after September roster expansion

The KC Royals were the talk of the town on Saturday, making a series of acquisitions to close out August. The three players Kansas City added shared common traits: veteran leadership and recent postseason experience. Now, with the 26-man roster expanding to 28 in September, the Royals have made all the player acquisitions official.

KC Royals bring in reinforcements for season's final month

Kansas City announced the addition of outfielders Tommy Pham and Robbie Grossman, infielder Yuli Gurriel, and pitcher Alec Marsh to the active roster ahead of Sunday's series finale against the Houston Astros. The corresponding moves were expected, with infielder Nick Loftin and outfielder Tyler Gentry being optioned back to Triple-A Omaha. Both players had struggled in limited opportunities since rejoining Kansas City, with Gentry still seeking his first MLB hit.

The Royals needed to clear a 40-man roster spot for Yuli Gurriel, so they designated left-handed pitcher Anthony Veneziano for assignment. Veneziano, a 10th-round draft pick in 2019, has pitched 4 1/3 innings for Kansas City over the past two seasons.

Pham and Gurriel will make their Royals debuts on Sunday, with Pham batting leadoff. Marsh makes another start for Kansas City, with veteran starter Michael Lorenzen remaining in the 15-day IL.

This marks another chapter in the unusual saga of Grossman and Pham. Last season, they faced off in the World Series on opposing teams—Pham with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Grossman with the Texas Rangers. However, they spent some of this season as teammates with the Chicago White Sox. Now, after each left the White Sox for different teams, they find themselves as teammates once again, both in the midst of another postseason race.

Gurriel was a key player for the Astros for nearly a decade, spending his first seven seasons in Houston from 2016 to 2022. He played in 108 games for the Miami Marlins in 2023 but struggled to secure a spot with a major league club in 2024. This season, he played for the Gwinnett Stripers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. According to Stripers broadcaster Dave Lezotte, Gurriel "did everything he was asked," slashing .357/.452/.617 with more walks than strikeouts since the start of July.

Kansas City aims to end a four-game skid on Sunday and secure the season series against the Astros. The Royals are 4-6 over their last 10 games, all against first-place teams in their respective divisions. Despite the recent slide, Kansas City holds a one-game lead over the Minnesota Twins for the second Wild Card spot and a 4.5-game lead over the Boston Red Sox.

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