Lucas Erceg demoted, Carlos Durán called up

The Royals were hoping Lucas Erceg could be the shutdown reliever in their bullpen. Instead, he has struggled with his command all year and has been a big reason why they have the second-worst bullpen ERA in baseball. Today, the team finally optioned him to Omaha, calling up reliever Carlos Durán to replace him.

Durán was acquired from the Dodgers at the trade deadline for pitcher Kris Bubic. The 25-year-old right-hander had a 3.15 ERA in 40 minor league appearances with 64 strikeouts and 29 walks in 45.2 innings. He has appeared in one MLB game before, giving up one hit, three walks, and three runs, while retiring just one hitter in an appearances with the A’s last year.

Durán has a fastball that sits at 96 mph, but he features a plus slider that could make him a valuable weapon in the pen.

Durán was originally signed by the Dodgers out of the Dominican Republic, but was traded to the A’s in 2025 for outfielder Esteury Ruiz. The A’s let him go after the end of last year, and he returned to the Dodgers on a minor league deal.

Erceg got off to a decent start, but had three big blow ups in late May and has not recovered since. In his last 27 outings, he has given up 26 runs in 24 innings. Overall, the 31-year-old right-hander has a 6.23 ERA, fourth-worst among qualified relievers, his 13.9 percent walk rate is seventh-highest among relievers, and he has the worst strikeout-to-walk ratio in baseball. He had a notable drop in strikeout rate last year, but still maintained a 2.64 ERA. This year, opponents are hitting .333 against his 97 mph fastball.