More pitching depth!
The Royals have continued to add pitching, acquiring left-hander Bailey Failter from the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The 28-year-old has made 22 starts this year with a 3.73 ERA, although he has the fourth-lowest strikeout rate among qualified starters. MLB.com reporter Alex Stumpf reports the return is pitcher Evan Sisk and first baseman Callan Moss.
Falter was originally drafted by the Phillies in 2015 out of high school, making his debut with them in 2021. He has been both a starter and reliever, making 81 career starts and 29 relief appearances with an ERA of 4.40 in 454 innings. He was traded to the Pirates in 2023 and seemed to have a breakthrough last year when he was a 1.7 rWAR pitcher in 28 starts. He continued that progress this year with the lowest ERA of his career. He was eligible for arbitration this season for the first time and is under club control through 2028.
Falter throws a 92 mph fastball, slider, sinker, curve, and splitter. His slider has been his best pitch with a .221 opponents’ average and a 23.4 percent whiff rate. He has a small platoon split with lefties hitting a higher average than righties, but with less power. He has given up just two runs over 12 innings in his last two starts.
Evan Sisk was up briefly with the Royals this season, giving up one run in 5 1/3 innings. The 28-year-old left-hander had a 3.77 ERA in 28 2/3 innings at Triple-A Omaha. Callan Moss was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Saint Leo University, and the 21-year-old first baseman was hitting .270/.372/.418 in 92 games for High-A Quad Cities.
The Royals have been focused on adding pitching to a depleted pitching staff. Earlier today they acquired pitchers Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek from the Padres for catcher Freddy Fermin.