Royals Cut Ties With 19-Year-Old Hurler, Finalize Recent Deal With Brewers
In this story:
Before taking the field on Monday, the Kansas City Royals handled an important bit of administrative business in the front office.
Near the end of spring training, the Royals acquired veteran outfielder Mark Canha from the Milwaukee Brewers. It's a small sample size, but so far, Canha has been good in Kansas City, going seven for his first 18 with two doubles and two walks.
Canha was in camp with the Brewers on a non-roster invitation, so all the Royals owed in return for the 11-year veteran was a player to be named later. They chose that player on Monday, which could wind up having implications for Kansas City, but likely not for several years.
On Monday, the Royals sent 19-year-old right-handed pitcher Cesar Espinal to the Brewers to finalize the Canha trade. Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel was the first to report the news of the decision.
Espinal, a Venezuela native, was pitching in the rookie-level Dominican Summer League for Kansas City. He has pitched 73 professional innings, to the tune of a 3.95 ERA, 44 walks, 73 strikeouts, and a .245 opponent batting average.
Canha is 36, so this could very well be his only season in Kansas City. He's having an impact so far, albeit during a tiny sample, but if the Royals don't make the playoffs, he'll barely be a footnote in franchise history.
There's no guarantee Espinal ever makes it to the majors, so the chance the Royals wind up regretting the trade, on the whole, are minimal. But the Brewers did well to grab a lottery ticket here, and if that lottery ticket hits, Kansas City will remember Espinal as the one who got away.
More MLB: Orioles-Royals Blockbuster Trade Idea Ships All-Star With 1.055 OPS To Kansas City
Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "Kansas City Royals On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org
Follow jrobertsbsbl