By MATT PIKE
With the MLB Trade deadline in the rearview mirror, the Kansas City Royals on the final day added three pitchers to their pitching staff, a staff that is currently ridded with injuries with Cole Ragans, Michael Lorenzen, Daniel Lynch, and Kris Bubic.
The Royals started the day trading backup catcher Freddy Fermin to the San Diego Padres for two right handed pitchers, acquiring Ryan Bergert (SD’s No. 7 prospect) and Stephen Kolek.
Bergert made his Major League debut this season and has a 2.78 ERA across 11 games (seven starts) and 35 2/3 innings. Bergert has a 22.8% strikeout rate and 12.1% walk rate, but that walk rate was lower when he was in Triple-A earlier this year (9.2%) and Double-A last year (7.9%).
Kolek has just over a year of service time and won’t be a free agent until 2030. He made his debut in 2024 with the Padres, after they took him in the Rule 5 Draft in 2023 from the Mariners, and posted a 5.21 ERA out of the bullpen that season. This year, he has a 4.18 ERA across 14 starts in 79 2/3 innings. He’s been up and down between the Padres and their Triple-A team and was optioned on Wednesday.
What they gave up was a backup catcher, although Fermin was much more than simply a backup in Kansas City. The 30-year-old Fermin has been Salvador Perez’s right-hand man for the past three seasons, stepping up into more of a co-catcher situation as Perez plays more first base and DH. Fermin is both a clubhouse and fan favorite because of work ethic, preparation and ability to come through in big moments, including in walk-off situations.
Near the buzzer of the 5pm trade deadline, the Kansas City made a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates, trading minor league pitcher Evan Sisk and minor league first baseman Callan Moss to the Pirates for left handed pitcher Bailey Falter
Falter, owns a 3.73 ERA in 22 starts this season, striking out 70 batters in 113 1/3 innings. He’s under team control through the 2028 season, so the Royals will have him as an option for the next few years as others (including Bubic) eventually head to free agency.
Sisk has appeared in five games for the Royals this season. He has posted a 1.69 ERA in 5 1/3 innings of work. In 31 games in Omaha, Sisk has an 0-2 record pitching 28 2/3 innings with a 3.77 ERA earning four saves in five opportunities and striking out 36.
Moss has spent the entire season at High-A, posting a batting average of .270 with 7 home runs and 70 RBIs in 92 games.
The final move for the Royals prior to the deadline was adding an outfield bat, trading with the San Francisco Giants for outfielder Mike Yastrzemski, in turn sending minor league pitcher Yunior Marte, the Royals #20 prospect per MLB Pipline, to the Giants.
Mike Yastrzemski has spent his entire seven year career with the Giants as a pretty consistent corner outfield bat. He is a lifetime .238/.323/.444 hitter with solid defense. Last year he hit 18 home runs with and was a finalist for a Gold Glove. He looks to platoon with recently acquired Randal Grichuk, who bats well against left handers, with Yastrzemski hitting .254/.366/.393 against right-handers. Yastrzemski will be a free agent this winter.
Marte is a 21-year-old right-hander who had a 2.74 ERA in 19 starts with Low-A Columbia with 79 strikeouts in 82 innings.
You can follow Matt on X @KfeqMatt.
