The Kansas City Royals are going to trust All-Star closer Carlos Estévez. Even if it means enduring a short period of ineffectiveness.
This spring, Estévez saw his velocity capped around 88-90 mph. A recent Cactus League appearance against the Texas Rangers didn’t eliminate any lingering concerns. He felt “out of sync” after returning from the World Baseball Classic.
The performance was staggering. Estévez didn’t allow a run but issued three walks. His velocity was down and it set off a few alarms. Estévez did pitch better two days later against the San Francisco Giants — but there’s still a ways to go.
“(Estévez) said he felt extremely out of whack,” Quatraro told reporters after the Rangers game. “And that’s what it looked like. You know, we still need a little more velo to come. As he gets in sync, hopefully that is the case.”
On the global stage, Estévez pitched in one game for the Dominican Republic. The Royals aren’t too worried but they would like to see better velocity numbers.
Royals general manager J.J. Picollo told The Star that Estévez will pitch against the Rangers this week. It will be his fifth outing and puts him on a similar track to last season.
“This year he’ll have five outings,” Picollo said. “So when you look at that, he’s right where he typically has been.”
And that year, Estévez led the majors in saves and was an All-Star.
The Royals will open the 2026 season against the Atlanta Braves on Friday. The club expects to turn to Estévez if there is a save situation with the hope he performs as usual.
“We have to go on past history here, and just trust that this is how he operates,” Picollo said.
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Jaylon Thompson covers the Royals for The Kansas City Star. He previously covered the 2021 World Series and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Jaylon is a proud alumnus of the University of Georgia.