Royals’ Kyle Wright makes strides during rehab assignment after shoulder surgery
Kansas City Royals pitcher Kyle Wright took the next step towards his return from right shoulder surgery.
Last Friday, Wright made his first official rehab start with Double-A Northwest Arkansas. He allowed two earned runs in four innings.
More importantly, he didn’t feel any lingering effects from the injury.
“It definitely felt pretty good to be back out there,” he said. “Felt pretty good and the ball is coming out pretty good. Execution of the command was solid.
“Could’ve been better but going to give myself a little bit of grace on the first one. I made a couple of dumb mistakes, which I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s been a little while since I pitched, but overall, I was really happy with it.”
Wright has been sidelined since October 2023. He hasn’t pitched in an official MLB game in over 18 months. The Royals acquired him from the Atlanta Braves with the notion that he would be out for a considerable time.
At the time, KC was looking to stockpile pitching talent. The Royals now have a talented ensemble of starters that includes Cole Ragans, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Kris Bubic and Michael Lorenzen, among others.
Wright is another established MLB pitcher. In 2022, he won 21 games and posted a 3.19 ERA with the Braves.
Now, Wright is trying to regain his form. The Royals believe he can be a capable starter again and have plans to stretch him out in the minors.
Wright was scheduled to make another rehab start on Wednesday with Northwest Arkansas.
“It will be a good thing for us when he is back,” Royals general manager J.J. Picollo said. “How he fits in and what we are going to do is still to be determined. There is still a little ways away before we get to that point. Anything can happen. You can lose a starter at a moment’s notice. So we just hope Kyle can continue to build up as a starter. He looked great the other night and we are excited about that.”
Wright said his fastball topped out at 95 mph during the rehab start. It was his goal to stay around the 93-95 mph range.
“That’s a great range for me, especially with my pitch mix,” Wright said. “So anything that comes up that’s a bonus. But, I’m really happy with where the velocity was. Ninety-five kind of surprised me a little bit. That was real exciting for me.”
Wright will continue to get treatment between his rehab starts. He said the biggest obstacle is being able to recover after getting off the mound the next day. As a result, Wright has utilized dry needling to expedite the recovery process and help the bloodflow to his shoulder and other affected areas.
“I’ve done it a bunch,” Wright said. “It’s just kind of modifying the routine with how I’m doing it. That’s really been the big thing.”
Wright will likely pitch at least four innings in Wednesday’s rehab start. He is open to pitching as a starter or reliever with the Royals. In his mind, he wants to help contribute after being sidelined for a lengthy period of time.
“Whatever they tell me I’ll do,” he said. “For me, getting back into games is what I’m looking for. I believe I can be a starter and that’s great. I also want to pitch. You know with the surgery I had, you only hear negative things when people talk about it. If I can just get back into a game and be a useful piece to help us win, that’s what I want to do.”
The Royals have a lot of pitching depth with Noah Cameron in Triple-A Omaha and Alec Marsh working his way back from injury. Wright is also a part of the mix as the club has options to help fuel another postseason run.
“Best case scenario is Kyle Wright is ready to return to the major leagues and our starting pitching is still pitching the way it is,” Picollo said. “Then we have a decision to make. Until then, we just want Kyle to keep moving in the right direction.”
