Brady Singer will make major-league debut Saturday for Royals, manager Matheny says
Any questions about the Royals possibly manipulating the service time of former first-round pitcher Brady Singer were put to rest Wednesday.
Manager Mike Matheny said Singer will be part of the Royals’ 30-man roster and make his first big-league start Saturday at Cleveland.
“He just earned it,” Matheny said. “He came in here and made us watch him by how well he competed, how he went about his business.”
Singer garnered the organization’s Double-A Pitcher of the Year Award last season, his first season in professional baseball.
He’ll step into a rotation that will miss its top two starters from last year, Brad Keller and Jakob Junis, at the start of this season as they both continue to build up after COVID-19 infections delayed or interrupted their progressions during spring training. Keller and Junis will begin the season in the injured list.
“Coming in right after Danny (Duffy), we feel really good that Brady is going to give us a chance to win,” Matheny said.
Just 23, Singer was the Royals’ top pick in the 2018 draft. MLBPipeline.com lists him as the franchise’s top pitching prospect.
Singer, a 6-foot-5 right-hander, said on Sunday that he has felt good during the team’s summer camp.
“I’ve been working on this for a long time,” he said. “I feel extremely good. I feel like this is the best I’m going to be, right now. I feel like I’ve worked on everything as much as I can. I feel 100 percent ready to go.”
Singer has appeared in four games, including two starts, for the Royals this spring/summer. He has struck out six in 5 2/3 innings and has a 4.76 ERA.
Last year, Singer had a 2.85 ERA in 26 starts between Single A-Advanced Wilmington and Double-A Northwest Arkansas. He struck out 138 in 148 1/3 innings and allowed a 137 hits.
“He’s got good instincts,” Matheny said. “(W)e’re paying close attention to Brady in Arizona as well back in Kansas City. How does he handle his work? How is he competing, first and foremost?
“And then how are all of those are little things linking up? Is he showing he’s ready for this? And he just continued to put check marks next to those questions.”
Duffy, 31, made his MLB debut in 2011. He’s made 181 career starts, all for the Royals, and will make his third Opening Day start Friday.
“He’s got the stuff to do it,” Duffy said of Singer. “I’ve always said that anybody that comes up to the big leagues, ‘You belong here.’ And Brady has been super-impressive. I’m pumped for him.
“I never made my debut in front of no fans and without my family there, so I feel for him there. I can’t give him advice of how to make your debut in the middle of the pandemic. But I think when the ball drops and the game gets going, it’s going to be second nature for him. I’ve got full confidence in that guy.”
This story was originally published July 22, 2020 at 1:11 PM.
