TEMPE, Ariz. -- After a longer wait than originally planned, the Royals finally saw their newest reliever take the mound in a Cactus League game.
Carlos Estévez made his spring debut Friday, pitching the bottom of the fifth inning of the Royals¡¯ 9-8 win over the Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium. Twelve of his 19 pitches were strikes, and he allowed one unearned run, which came after he dropped a popup to the right of the mound to start the frame. Est¨¦vez was hurt by a couple of unlucky hits, including a bloop single into right field and a double that bounced just fair down the third-base line.
¡°I¡¯ve got to get used to everything again,¡± Est¨¦vez said. ¡°Pick up my routine, everything. I felt like I was off a little bit with what I do in the bullpen, getting in the game. But I¡¯ll find it. It¡¯ll be good.¡±
The important thing is the 32-year-old is healthy and getting into a game groove. He was delayed getting into games this spring after experiencing mild back tightness in the early part of camp. The Royals slowed down his progression and had him throw a few bullpen sessions, along with a live batting practice, opting not to rush the veteran reliever with a focus on getting him ready for Opening Day.
¡°I feel great,¡± Est¨¦vez said. ¡°Everything is going well with my body, and I¡¯m in a good spot. For me, it usually takes me three, maybe four outings to say, ¡®OK, this is it, this is the point I want to be at.¡¯ We did a really good job with the live BPs and bullpens out there, and I feel like I¡¯m farther ahead. I¡¯ll get there.¡±
So, on Friday, Est¨¦vez was just happy to get on the mound against another team. One that he¡¯s familiar with, too. He spent 2023 and half of ¡®24 in Anaheim, becoming an All-Star in his first season with the club and establishing himself as one of the best relievers available at last year's Trade Deadline.
That¡¯s when the Royals first did a ton of work on Est¨¦vez, as their interest in adding to the bullpen at the Deadline last summer grew. He ultimately went to the Phillies, though, and the Royals instead landed Lucas Erceg from the A¡¯s right before the Deadline. But their interest in Est¨¦vez remained, and they were able to bring him to Kansas City this offseason on a two-year, $22.2 million deal with a club option for a third year.
And now, Est¨¦vez is expected to be a huge part of the Royals¡¯ ¡®pen in 2025, finding himself in the back-end mix with Erceg and a healthy Hunter Harvey. Est¨¦vez is likely going to get a lot of save opportunities early, with Erceg utilized in a fireman role -- pegged with getting outs in the highest of leverage situations. Harvey could see leverage opportunities in the eighth or ninth inning.
Est¨¦vez has already shown how important his clubhouse presence is as a leader. Young players seem to gravitate toward him -- and he¡¯s all for taking on a mentorship role.
¡°This is a good place to be,¡± Est¨¦vez said. ¡°Everyone is pulling on the same rope, where everyone wants the same goal, and that¡¯s a really good spot to be in Spring Training. It feels great to be around a group like this.¡±
Even with fewer than two weeks until Opening Day, the Royals are still confident Est¨¦vez will be ready by March 27, especially now that he¡¯s made his first Cactus League appearance. Barring any setbacks, he¡¯ll continue on a normal game progression and should get approximately six appearances, whether that¡¯s in Cactus League games or Minor League games on the backfields.
¡°My stuff today was not there until, like, the last two pitches,¡± Est¨¦vez said. ¡°I threw a good slider to [Angels catcher Travis] d¡¯Arnaud. Fastball was not where I wanted it, but the next slider was good, so I was like, ¡®Oh, there it is.¡¯ So, I started feeling better toward the end. And it¡¯s just reps. Just got to keep getting out there and keep doing it.¡±