Kansas City Royals news: Michael Wacha is dealing

KANSAS CITY, MO - APRIL 11: Michael Wacha (52) of the Kansas City Royals delivers a pitch during an MLB game against the Chicago White Sox on April 11, 2026 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Michael Wacha was in control all night in a win on Saturday, writes Anne Rogers.

Since joining the Royals in 2024, Wacha has recorded a quality start in all seven outings against the White Sox. He’s pitched to a 1.31 ERA in that stretch, and has tossed seven scoreless frames in four of those seven starts.

“The efficiency was what was most impressive,” Quatraro said. “He was in control the whole game. Curve, changeup, putting the fastball where he wanted. That was a masterclass right there.”

Jaylon Thompson also writes about Wacha.

“I knew kind of going into it the stuff was moving good,” Wacha said. “I had some good command. Had a good game plan going into hit, me and Sal (catcher Salvador Perez). He was pressing the right buttons.”

He also writes about how Maikel Garcia is brimming with confidence these days.

“Maikel has been aggressive early in the count starting games …” Quatraro said. “If you are going to be ready to go and you get a good pitch to hit, let it rip.”

Garcia could be on his way to another All-Star nomination. And the big moments don’t faze him. He takes it all in stride — in large part due to his routine.

It works for him. Just as the Royals hoped it would. “I’m doing my routine and having confidence,” Garcia said. “I think that’s the key.”

He also talked to White Sox pitching coach Zach Bove about coming back to Kansas City, where he once coached.

Preston Farr takes a closer look at the offense.

The Royals are essentially in the same place as they were a year ago in runs scored, but there is some promise here in the underlying offensive metrics. The walk rate is the clear standout here. Only once (1973) have the Royals finished a season with a walk rate north of ten percent. 2002 was the last time the team even finished with a walk rate over 8%. Will it last all season? Only time will tell, but the Royals’ 15-game mark last season only finished 0.2% better than the team’s full-season mark (7.2%).

The barrel rate was highlighted as a concern early last season, but Kansas City has done well there thus far. The Royals rank fourth in that regard, behind only the Dodgers, Yankees, and Braves.

Vahe Gregorian writes that the focus of the stadium search is on downtown, as it should be.

Plenty more pieces still need to be put in place to frame this one properly, of course.

Most of all, a clearer picture of the funding and just how the Royals would create more tangible benefits to the community.

Those would be essentials for both the city and Royals to prioritize and communicate, especially because a significant construction project there will mean years of inconvenience to nearby institutions before it comes to fruition. And just because the city and the Royals have sought to avoid a public vote doesn’t mean they don’t have a duty to be transparent and accountable. In fact, that seems all the more critical in this context if they want buy-in.

But at least the downtown-site part of the original premise is back in focus, and that’s where it should stay.

Thomas Friestad at the KC Business Journal writes that Mayor Quinton Lucas wants an aggressive timeline.

Mayor Quinton Lucas set a “very” aggressive goal to get a Kansas City Royals ballpark open at Washington Square Park by Opening Day 2030….

“There is time pressure,” he said. “This is the right way to get a deal done, looking at basically incentive tools, economic activity redirections, that sort of work to do it. And I think that’s why we’re saying now is the right time to make sure we can get this done. Fortunately, this gets us started on this before the World Cup kicks off.”

Charlie Keegan at KSHB has a bit more on potential transportation upgrades for a new ballpark.

Lexy French at Fox 4 has fan reactions to the idea.

Former Royals pitcher Hunter Harvey is back on the Injured List.

The Tigers sign former Royals outfielder Tyler Gentry.

Christian Yelich exits with a hamstring injury.

George Springer lands on the Injured List and the Blue Jays add Eloy Jimenez to the roster.

41-year-old Justin Turner signs with a team in the Mexican League.

What young stars are next to get a long-term contract extension.

Shohei Ohtani breaks Ichiro’s record for Japanese players with a 44-game on-base streak.

Zach Eflin looks to 2027 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Astros pitcher Tatsuya Imai has arm fatigue.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. admits he didn’t understand baseball rules why trying to turn a double play.

Former MLB infielder and manager Phil Garner dies at the age of 76.

The Kansas Jayhawks baseball team wins their tenth in a row to take over first place in the Big 12.

The Indiana Fever re-sign Sophie Cunningham and Kelsey Plum is returning to the Sparks in a flurry of WNBA moves.

Why do we always remember how to ride a bike?

How Kodak is trying to turn things around after teetering on bankruptcy.

The New York Times looks at whether memes have already nuked our culture. [$]

Your song of the day is Mr. Big with Wild World.