Royals add 3rd catcher to roster. It came at the expense of a struggling outfielder
The Kansas City Royals shuffled their roster ahead of Friday’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
The Royals selected the contract of Luke Maile from Triple-A Omaha to operate as a third catcher. In a corresponding move, the club sent Drew Waters to the minors.
Maile gives the Royals another catching option. On Thursday, Royals star Salvador Perez exited with calf tightness against the Seattle Mariners. He fouled a pitch off his left leg in the seventh inning and left the game as a precaution.
Perez was back in the lineup against the D-Backs, but he was the designated hitter. The Royals started Freddy Fermin behind the plate.
“He feels good and I think it was a little bit of a scare to him last night,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro told reporters in Phoenix. “His cleat got caught on that one swing and he felt his calf or Achilles a little bit. As soon as the game was over and he got looked at, he felt better and was adamant on the plane about playing.”
Perez felt good during pregame workouts, thus the Royals put him in the starting lineup. KC already planned to have Fermin catch left-handed starter Kris Bubic on Friday night.
This season, the club has turned to three catchers as Perez has dealt with minor injuries.
“We just wanted to cover a little bit so we can run for Salvy or Freddie (Fermin) or whoever is catching and the other is DHing,” Quatraro said postgame. “It give us a little coverage.”
In the meantime, the Royals hope Waters can regain his form with the Omaha Storm Chasers. He hit .243 with one home run and 14 RBIs in 71 games. However, Waters had struggled at the plate in recent weeks.
Waters posted a .171 batting average (12-for-70) in his last 30 games. He had a .237 on-base percentage and wasn’t producing in the lineup.
The Royals currently have Jac Caglianone, Kyle Isbel, John Rave and Mark Canha as available outfielders. KC could also turn to utilitymen Nick Loftin and Tyler Tolbert to cover innings if needed in a pinch.
Waters, 26, earned a big-league promotion after MJ Melendez was sent to Triple-A. The Royals continue to search for outfield production as the trade deadline looms at the end of the month.
This story was originally published July 4, 2025 at 9:06 PM.
