Royals Sign Reliever Alex Lange to One-Year Deal

Kansas City Royals pitcher Alex Lange, a 30-year-old right-handed reliever from suburban Kansas City, signed a one-year major league contract with the team on Thursday, just two days after his release from the Detroit Tigers.

Lange, who grew up in the area and attended Lee's Summit West High School before playing college baseball at Louisiana State University, returns to familiar territory. The Royals announced the deal, which fills their 40-man roster to capacity. Lange brings five seasons of experience from the Tigers, where he posted a 15-15 record with a 3.70 earned run average and 29 saves across 142 appearances. He transitioned from a starting role to the bullpen after the Tigers acquired him from the Chicago Cubs in a 2019 trade for outfielder Nick Castellanos. Lange made his major league debut with Detroit in 2021 and solidified his spot as a high-leverage option in 2022.

His most productive year came in 2023, when he served as the Tigers' closer for much of the season, converting 26 of 32 save opportunities in 67 games. That campaign featured a 3.68 ERA over 66 innings, with a 27.4 percent strikeout rate and strong ground-ball tendencies on half of the batted balls he...