‘He’s going to be a stabilizer’: Royals confident in Will Smith after tough outing

The Kansas City Royals revamped their bullpen this offseason. The Royals felt they needed more veterans who could handle high-leverage situations.

Last season, Royals relievers produced a 5.23 ERA and had a combined .313 BABIP (batting average on balls in play).

As a result, KC acquired relievers Will Smith, Chris Stratton, John Schreiber and Nick Anderson this offseason. The quartet is tasked with fortifying a young bullpen that also includes James McArthur, Angel Zerpa and Matt Sauer.

So far, the bullpen has gotten off to a rocky start. Stratton allowed two runs in one inning on opening day as the Royals fell 4-1 to the Minnesota Twins. On Saturday, Royals relievers surrendered five runs in the late innings.

KC held a 1-0 lead after six scoreless innings from newcomer Seth Lugo. The Twins tied it in the eighth and got to Smith in the ninth. Smith allowed four earned runs, two hits and issued two walks. He also hit a batter.

The Royals lost 5-1 and have dropped the first two games in the series.

“He’s going to be a stabilizer back there,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said following Smith’s relief outing. “He had a rough first game, and that’s it.”

In two games, the Royals bullpen has allowed seven earned runs.

Conversely, Royals starters have been stellar. Lugo and Cole Ragans have thrown a combined 12 innings and posted 13 strikeouts, two earned runs, seven hits and four walks.

The Royals believe their relievers will turn it around. It’s too early in the season to re-evaluate after two games. However, the Royals understand a good April is pivotal to avoid falling behind in the American League Central.

“I mean, you obviously want your first outing to go well,” Smith said. “This one didn’t, and it is what it is. We can say all the cliches: It’s a long season and all that stuff. As a competitor, you want your first one to go well for a new team. And it just didn’t today.”

Despite the early struggles, the bullpen has shown some positive signs. Schreiber worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh inning. He hit two batters and allowed a walk. However, he induced a double play to end the frame.

Schreiber was fired up as he walked off the field. The Royals loved seeing his emotions in a pivotal moment.

“That’s unusual for him to hit two left-handed batters in the same inning,” Quatraro said. “That’s really unusual. The ground ball is what you expect. I mean, (Carlos) Santana put a good swing on that changeup to get a base hit. But otherwise, he had the movement and his stuff looked good.”

As the bullpen rounds into form, the Royals also know they haven’t scored enough runs. KC squandered two strong starts against the Twins.

Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. collected two doubles on Saturday. Meanwhile, MJ Melendez and Maikel Garcia have swung the bat well.

Still, the offense has scored just two runs and collected 10 hits in two games.

“It’s tough,” Melendez said. “Whenever our pitchers go like that and, you know, they get zero or one (runs) through seven or eight innings, it’s tough not to come out with a win right there. So we just got to do a better job offensively.”

The Royals have a chance to salvage the three-game series on Sunday. Brady Singer is set to start against Twins pitcher Bailey Ober. It’s another chance for the bullpen to preserve a lead and the offense to find a rhythm.

“It’s early in the year and just part of the game,” Witt said. “You learn and move on. It just makes you better. And that’s what these games do. They make you better, and I think everyone is just going to keep getting better from it.”