The Kansas City Royals have agreed to a Major League contract with veteran reliever Craig Kimbrel, according to a source cited by MLB.com, with the team expecting the right-hander to be active in their bullpen as soon as Monday. New York Post reporter Jon Heyman first reported the signing, according to MLB Trade Rumors and Royals Review.
The move gives Kansas City the services of one of the most accomplished closers in baseball history at a moment when the team badly needs bullpen help. Kimbrel, 38, ranks fifth on MLB's all-time saves list with 440 career saves, a nine-time All-Star, the 2011 National League Rookie of the Year, a 2018 World Series champion with the Red Sox, and a two-time reliever of the year award winner, having claimed the Trevor Hoffman NL Reliever of the Year in 2014 and the Mariano Rivera AL Reliever of the Year in 2017, according to MLB.com. Across 17 big league seasons, he has a 2.67 ERA and 1,314 strikeouts in 884 appearances.
Kansas City will become the 12th team of Kimbrel's career once he takes the mound for the Royals, and remarkably, it will be his third team this season alone. He opened the year with the New York Mets on a minor league deal, had his contract selected in April, and pitched six weeks before being designated for assignment in May after allowing 12 runs, 10 of them earned, in 16 innings, according to MLB.com. After electing free agency, he signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, where he posted a 3.86 ERA in 18 2/3 innings, per MLB.com, though MLB Trade Rumors calculated his combined ERA across the Mets and Rays this season at 4.81 over 33 2/3 innings. Notably, one of his outings with Tampa Bay came against Kansas City on June 25, when Royals catcher Carter Jensen hit a ninth-inning home run off Kimbrel that broke up a combined no-hitter.
The Rays designated Kimbrel for assignment last Monday, following the Trade Deadline, and after clearing waivers he again elected free agency, clearing the way for the Royals to scoop him up just days later.
A Steep Decline From His Peak
Kimbrel's statistical profile is far removed from the pitcher who once struck out roughly 40 percent of the batters he faced during his prime seasons with the Braves and Red Sox. Since the start of the 2024 season, he has a 4.78 ERA across 104 appearances spanning four different teams, according to MLB.com. His strikeout rate has fallen to 22.2 percent this year, while his walk rate sits at 11.1 percent, marks that MLB Trade Rumors notes put his strikeout percentage on pace to be the lowest of his 17-year career.
Royals Review, which described Kimbrel as a potential future Hall of Famer, pointed out that his last genuinely effective season came in 2023, when he made the All-Star team with the Philadelphia Phillies. Since then, his ERA has ballooned to 4.78 over 104 games, and this year's Mets-Rays split produced 32 strikeouts and 16 walks in 33.2 innings. Royals Review also noted his velocity has held up reasonably well, with his fastball still sitting at 93.6 mph, and that he mixes in a sweeper, curve and sinker.
Over his career, Kimbrel has also pitched for the Braves, Red Sox, Cubs, White Sox, Dodgers, Phillies, Orioles and Astros before this year's stints with the Mets and Rays, according to Royals Review.
A Bullpen In Need Of Help
The signing reflects just how much trouble the Royals' relief corps has been in this season. Kansas City entered the weekend with a bullpen ERA of 5.32 through Saturday, the second-worst mark in the majors behind only the Athletics' 5.70, according to MLB.com. The team recently shifted one of its more effective relievers, Daniel Lynch IV, back into the starting rotation to address a need there, further thinning an already stretched bullpen.
To cover the gap, Kansas City has been auditioning a rotating cast of relief options, including Easton McGee, Nate Pearson and Jose Cuas, while several other arms wait in Triple-A Omaha for a possible callup down the stretch. That group includes Carlos Duran, acquired in a trade with the Dodgers, plus waiver claims Nolan Hoffman, Connor Thomas and Luke Little, according to MLB.com.
There is little financial risk for Kansas City in taking a flier on Kimbrel. MLB Trade Rumors reported that selecting his contract earlier this year locked in a $2.5 million salary for the 2026 season that remains largely the Mets' financial responsibility, meaning the Rays and now the Royals have only been on the hook for a prorated share of a league-minimum salary during his time on their active rosters. That structure gives Kansas City the chance to see whether the veteran can recapture any of his old form without meaningful financial exposure.
Royals Review raised the broader question of whether adding a 38-year-old reliever makes sense for a Kansas City team that, given its struggles, might otherwise be expected to be auditioning younger arms for next season. But with few of those options having produced results so far, the outlet noted that the Royals may simply be at the point of taking whatever experienced help they can get. Kimbrel's track record, even in decline, still represents more big league success than most of the internal options currently getting a look in Kansas City's bullpen.
