KANSAS CITY — In keeping with their target of adding veteran arms tasked with logging innings next season, the Royals are moving toward a deal with right-hander Jordan Lyles, a source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand on Monday night.
The deal would be for two years, sources told MLB.com, but the financial details were not available. The club has not confirmed the deal, which was first reported by MLB Network Insider Jon Heyman, and nothing is expected to become official until Tuesday or later.
The Orioles declined Lyles’ $11 million option this offseason, making him a free agent. He made $7 million last year as a member of Baltimore’s rotation.
Lyles, 32, has a 5.10 ERA pitching for seven teams in his 12-year career, which began in 2011 with the Astros. He made 32 starts last year, logging 179 innings, and posted a 4.42 ERA. In 2021, he threw 180 innings for the Rangers. That many innings over the past two years piqued the Royals’ interest this offseason as they build their pitching staff.
Lyles will be the second veteran pitcher added in as many weeks after the Royals inked Ryan Yarbrough to a one-year deal last Tuesday, filling their need for a swingman. Lyles will likely be competing for a starting spot in Spring Training, but he does have experience in the bullpen and could be valuable for Kansas City there, too.
Lyles’ career ERA doesn’t jump off the page, but the Royals were interested in his low walk rate over the past couple of seasons. They have been targeting veteran arms who throw strikes after their young pitching staff struggled collectively in 2022. Yarbrough fits that bill with the weak contact he generates. Lyles fits it with his ability to limit walks. He had a 6.7% walk rate in 2022, and that number has decreased each year since ’19, when he had a 9.2% walk rate for two teams (Pittsburgh and Milwaukee).
There are still several free-agent starters on the market, including Zack Greinke. The Royals are interested in bringing him back like they did last season, but the 39-year-old could be garnering more interest — and more money — elsewhere as the offseason continues.