1:00pm: The Royals introduced to reporters, together with Alec Lewis of The Athletic, that Zerpa has a small tear within the patellar tendon of his proper knee.
11:42am: The Royals introduced Wednesday that theyβve chosen the contract of second baseman Michael Massey and recalled catcher Sebastian Rivero from Triple-A Omaha. Massey will take Whit Merrifieldβs spot on the lively roster, whereas Rivero is up rather than backup Cam Gallagher. Each Merrifield and Gallagher had been traded previous to yesterdayβs deadline. Lefty Angel Zerpa was moved to the 60-day injured record to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Massey.
Massey, the Royalsβ fourth-round decide in 2019, is in having fun with an impressive season within the minors, posting a mixed .312/.371/.532 with 16 house runs, 28 doubles and 13 steals by 391 plate appearances. That features a huge .325/.392/.595 batting line (158 wRC+) in 143 journeys to the plate on the Triple-A degree. Baseball America tabbed him eighth amongst Kansas Metropolis prospects on their midseason rating of the system, giving him above-average grades for his hit device, energy and glove at second base.
With Merrifield traded, thereβs a transparent opening for the 24-year-old Massey to hitch Bobby Witt Jr. as a staple within the Kansas Metropolis infield. Heβs definitely not as ballyhooed a prospect as Witt was previous to his debut, however Massey was chosen with the 109th total draft decide not way back and has achieved nothing however hit since making his skilled debut. For a 41-63 Royals membership that’s clearly taking part in for the longer term for the rest of the present season, Massey is simply the kind of promising teenager who should command on a regular basis at-bats in hopes of seizing a spot on subsequent yrβs roster.
As for the 23-year-old Rivero, heβll give Kansas Metropolis a 3rd catching possibility behind Salvador Perez and MJ Melendez. With that duo on the roster for the foreseeable future, itβll be robust for Rivero to carve out a lot of a task, however he has a minor league possibility remaining past the present season. Rivero hasnβt hit in a tiny pattern of 58 large league plate appearances, however he has a .266/.322/.380 line in 171 Triple-A plate appearances thatβs no less than satisfactory for a catcher, notably a companyβs No. 3 catcher on the 40-man roster.
Zerpa, 22, is likely one of the groupβs extra promising pitching prospects, however a transfer to the 60-day injured record may very nicely imply the tip of his season. The Royals positioned him on the 15-day injured record on account of a proper knee damage final week however have but to offer extra particulars surrounding right this momentβs shift to the 60-day IL.