The Royals, who have just taken more than $7 million in pay cuts in an amazing deal with Mike Minor, are among the teams in contention for the Athletics. Frankie Montaz, tweets Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. If Montas goes elsewhere, Rosenthal adds that the royals are still looking to add the veteran right-handed starter to part of their newfound payroll slot.
Montas is one of the most popular players left in the trading market, having been linked with the Twins, White Sox, Yankees and now the Royals in recent days. Other clubs are no doubt working hard to get the future 29-year-old right-hander out of Oakland.
This comes as no surprise given the Athletics’ clear willingness to trade veterans and the strong year Montas has put together in 2021. Last year, the strong right-hander threw 187 innings for a 3.37 ERA while hitting a high strikeout rate of 26.6% to 7.3. % walking speed. MLBTR contestant Matt Schwartz is projecting $5.2 million in earnings this season, with Montas controlled through arbitration in the 2023 campaign.
The Royals as they are now built will be heavily dependent on recruiting talented but largely untested young starters for the season as they hope to return to competitive status in the relatively weak AL Central Division. Brad Keller now that Minor has been transferred, he is the team’s most veteran starter but needs a rebound after a career-worst performance in 2021. Brady Singer, Daniel Lynch, Carlos Hernandez, Chris Bubich, Jackson Kovar and Jonathan Heasley will all be in the mix for rotation opportunities, but of that group, only Singer has come a long way towards sustained success in MLB — and even he’s looking to bounce back from something of a sophomore slump.
Kansas City, buoyed by the upcoming debut of high-profile avenues such as Bobby Witt younger, Nick Pratto, MJ Melendez and others are hoping the strength of their young core will help them move up the standings. Signing Montas would greatly improve their chances of doing so, although the very fact that they are pursuing him is another sign that, despite a mostly quiet offseason, the organization believes a window to competition is opening.