Kansas City Royals designate Amir Garrett for assignment among several roster moves
The Kansas City Royals shuffled their roster ahead of Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Guardians.
The Royals reinstated pitcher Ryan Yarbrough from the 60-day injured list and reliever Amir Garrett was designated for assignment. KC also placed outfielder Edward Olivares on the 10-day injured list (retroactive July 8) with a left oblique strain.
“(Ryan) Yarbrough is coming back to start and being on the 60-day (IL),” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “We needed a 40-man and a 26th-man spot. In our estimation, that was the move to make at the time.”
Yarbrough was struck in the face by a line drive on May 7. He sustained skull fractures. In four rehab appearances, Yarbrough tallied a 2.55 ERA across 17 ⅔ innings.
Garrett was a key piece in the Royals’ bullpen. He spent the last two seasons pitching in high-leverage roles. Garrett owned a 3.33 ERA with 28 strikeouts and 20 walks in 24 ⅓ relief innings.
Quatraro said it wasn’t an easy decision. He mentioned the Royals will evaluate how other relievers fare after the All-Star break.
“None of those decisions are easy,” Quatraro said. “We wrestled with it and ultimately decided that is the way we needed to go right now.”
Edward Olivares to IL; Samad Taylor at Triple-A
The Royals plan to be cautious with Olivares. He is dealing with a mild left oblique strain that popped up this weekend.
Olivares was scratched from the Royals’ Sunday lineup. Quatraro said the Royals want to give him adequate rest with the injury and will evaluate him over the All-Star break.
“We are just trying to play it safe,” Quatraro said. “He had yesterday, today, and the four-day All-Star break. We probably wouldn’t have felt comfortable throwing him right back into a game on Friday.”
Meanwhile, Samad Taylor was recalled from Triple-A Omaha. He went 4 for 12 with three runs and four steals in four games with the Omaha Storm Chasers.
Taylor will provide additional depth with the Royals.
“Samad is back for today; that way, we are playing with a full deck,” Quatraro said.
This story was originally published July 9, 2023 at 1:10 PM with the headline "Kansas City Royals designate Amir Garrett for assignment among several roster moves."
