KANSAS CITY -- The Royals will welcome Michael Lorenzen back to their rotation this weekend against the White Sox, with the veteran righty scheduled to come off the 15-day injured list and start Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium.
With his return, Kansas City is reshuffling its rotation and bullpen.
Rookie Ryan Bergert will stay in the rotation, manager Matt Quatraro said Wednesday, while Bailey Falter will move to the bullpen. The Royals will make a corresponding move when Lorenzen officially comes off the IL on Saturday.
“Just trying to put the best rotation out there right now and also give us the best chance to match up out of the ‘pen and give us a little depth,” Quatraro said of Falter’s transition to the bullpen.
Bergert and Falter were two of the pitchers the Royals acquired at the Trade Deadline, with Bergert (and righty Stephen Kolek, who is in Triple-A) coming from the Padres and Falter coming from the Pirates. Both immediately slotted into the Royals’ rotation because of the three starters on the injured list at the time in Lorenzen, Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic.
The 25-year-old Bergert has allowed four runs in 11 1/3 innings across his two starts, with 10 strikeouts and three walks.
Falter, meanwhile, has allowed nine runs in eight innings across two starts, with seven strikeouts and five walks. After his four-inning outing on Monday night against the Nationals -- a comeback win for the Royals -- Falter said he’s “not the biggest fan of” his secondary stuff right now and sees room for improvement with his stuff and command.
The Royals certainly aren’t giving up on Falter; the team’s vision for the 28-year-old is part of the reason why the club acquired him to help this year and in the future. But at this moment, the Royals have to focus on winning as many games as possible to stay in contention in the American League Wild Card mix.
The reason Falter is going to the bullpen instead of staying stretched out in Triple-A as part of the Royals’ pitching depth is because he’s out of MLB options, meaning he has to stay on the active roster or go through waivers. He’ll make the transition to the bullpen, something he hasn’t done since 2023 and consistently since ‘21, his rookie year with the Phillies.
“He’ll have to try to adjust his routine,” Quatraro said. “He was understanding of that, and he understood that it might take a little time for him to adjust and understand how to get ready quickly and all that. But he was on board.”
While Bergert still has three option years remaining (including this year), what he has shown in his two starts -- from his composure to his stuff -- earned him more chances in the rotation.
“He’s throwing the ball exceptionally well,” Quatraro said. “We’re really happy with that. We think he merits continuing to get starts.”
Lorenzen has been on the IL since July 14 with a left oblique strain, an injury sustained while he was dealing with an illness right before the All-Star break. What was originally thought to be a short stint extended into August because of lingering symptoms, but Lorenzen made two rehab starts with Double-A Northwest Arkansas over the past week.
On Sunday, he allowed three runs on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings, throwing 85 pitches. The results were not as important as Lorenzen pitching into the sixth inning and feeling like he was healthy enough to get back into the Royals’ rotation.
“I feel good,” said Lorenzen, who has a 4.61 ERA in 18 starts with the Royals this year. “I just need to iron out some skill stuff from taking that much time off, only throwing in ‘pens. Just getting some bad habits out of my system, which I felt like accomplished [Sunday]. I feel back to 100%.”