It was no secret that the Kansas City Royals wanted to strengthen its bullpen and add a bat before the July 30 trade deadline. The Royals achieved one of those goals on Saturday night in acquiring reliever Hunter Harvey from the Washington Nationals.
We have acquired RHP Hunter Harvey from the Washington Nationals for minor-league INF Cayden Wallace and our Competitive Balance A pick.
To make room for Harvey, RHP Nick Anderson has been designated for assignment.
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) July 14, 2024
In return, Washington will receive third base prospect Cayden Wallace and the Royals’ Competitive Balance Round A draft pick (39th overall) in the 2024 draft.
Kansas City designated veteran right-hander Nick Anderson for assignment to make room on the roster.
Royals Acquire Reliever Hunter Harvey from Washington
Harvey was once a top prospect with the Baltimore Orioles after they selected him with the 22nd overall pick in the 2013 draft. He made his MLB debut in 2019. However, the flamethrower struggled mightily with injuries throughout his Orioles tenure.
He eventually made his way to a rebuilding Nationals team via waivers ahead of the 2022 season and has broken out in the nation’s capital. Over the past three seasons, Harvey has produced a 3.17 ERA (130 ERA+) in 145 innings over 138 games.
During this time, the 29-year-old struck out 27.8 percent of opposing batters while walking just 6.4 percent. Additionally, his fastball velocity ranked in the 96th percentile or higher in all three seasons.
Hunter Harvey fits the profile of what J.J. Picollo said he was looking for. Averages 97.8 with the 4-seam and has struck out 50 in 45 innings.
Few years of control too.
The new set-up man for the #Royals pic.twitter.com/wXj2LDuDL9
— Jack Johnson (@JohnyJ_15) July 14, 2024
This season, the righty is averaging just under 98 mph with his fastball and ranks among the league’s best in Whiff, Chase, Strikeout, and Walk rates. While he has given up an alarming amount of hard contact, he has induced ground balls at an above-league-average rate.
An additional element of the trade is that the Royals will acquire Harvey and his affordable salary and team control. He is due less than half of his $2.35 million salary for the rest of the season and can be controlled via arbitration for one more season.
Harvey has racked up 10 saves in his career, all in 2023. It’s unclear if the Royals will acquire Harvey and use him as the closer or as a fireman. Either way, he will surely add the firepower and strikeout ability that Kansas City severely needed out of the bullpen.
Photo Credit: © Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports
