Royals’ bullpen hit with another injury. Here’s the club’s plan moving forward
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Royals placed Nick Mears on the 15-day IL with a right shoulder impingement.
- Kansas City recalled Eric Cerantola from Triple-A Omaha for a second stint.
- The Royals bullpen is missing closer Carlos Estèvez, Matt Strahm and now Nick Mears.
The Kansas City Royals placed right-handed pitcher Nick Mears on the 15-day injured list Friday with a right-shoulder issue.
Mears has dealt with the injury — an impingement — over the last week. He didn’t recover well from his latest outing on Wednesday against the New York Yankees.
In that game, Mears allowed three earned runs in two-thirds of an inning. He has given up eight runs and issued four walks across his last five appearances.
Mears underwent additional testing and is awaiting results to determine the severity of the injury. Royals manager Matt Quatraro noted that Mears felt while he was pitching, but discomfort settled in during the recovery period afterward.
“He got an image today,” Quatraro said. “We’re waiting for that to be read and then meet with the doctor. So we don’t have a whole lot of information yet until we know what (the doctor) has to say. (Mears) wasn’t recovering well enough to keep going.”
In a corresponding move, the Royals recalled right-hander Eric Cerantola from Triple-A Omaha. This is his second stint with the Royals. with the Royals. He has a 1.37 ERA and seven saves across 18 appearances with the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers.
“The first time, obviously, you got all the phone calls, and it was obviously a super-special moment,” Cerantola said of his MLB debut earlier this season. “But now, I’ve got my feet wet and now it’s business — going out there and giving the team what they need and doing my part.
“So that’s my mindset going into this stretch. Just fill it up and do whatever they need.”
Opportunity abounds right now. Cerantola will join a beleaguered KC bullpen that was already missing closer Carlos Estèvez, high-leverage reliever Matt Strahm ... and now Mears.
The pitching staff’s injuries also extend to the starting rotation. Both Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic are sidelined with elbow problems.
“Well, the stuff is impressive,” Quatraro said of Cerantola’s repertoire. “You know, the breaking ball is really good. He can get righties and lefties out. And I think what he took away from the last time here was stay on the attack.”
The Royals opened a three-game series against the Rangers on Friday night at Globe Life Field. Cerantola was available out of the bullpen.
This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 7:03 PM.
