Royals Trade Ryan O’Hearn to Baltimore Orioles
In order to make room for pitcher Jordan Lyles on the 40-man roster, the Kansas City Royals designated first baseman/outfielder Ryan O'Hearn for assignment on Dec. 28. Tasked with either trading him or placing him on outright waivers within seven days, the team managed to do the former. Per an official club announcement, Kansas City has traded O'Hearn to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for cash considerations. It's unclear exactly how much money is coming back to the Royals.
O'Hearn, who was an eighth-round draft pick back in 2014, has spent his entire career with the Royals organization. He burst onto the scene back in 2018 as a rookie, clubbing 12 home runs in just 44 games and posting a scorching .597 SLG over the course of 170 plate appearances. Since then, however, his production effectively tanked.
From 2019-2022, O'Hearn played in 298 games for the Royals and slashed .211/.282/.351 with a 68 wRC+. He didn't walk enough (8.7%) to make up for his lack of contact ability, and his strikeout rate (26.9%) didn't do him any favors, either. After putting up a .336 ISO as a rookie, his next-highest figure was just .174 in 2019. O'Hearn's power has mostly evaporated over the years, and all he had as a saving grace recently was a small sample size as a pinch-hitter for Kansas City in 2022.
After the 2022 campaign ended, the Royals inked O'Hearn to a one-year deal worth $1.4 million that allowed both sides to avoid arbitration in the spring. Under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, the nature of that contract made it fully guaranteed. Because of that, many expected O'Hearn to remain with the club through spring training and possibly into the 2023 season. Now, that possibility is officially extinguished and O'Hearn will look to revive his career in Baltimore.
