SAN FRANCISCO — It’s only Wednesday, but Will Klein has had a week. Maybe a month.
On Monday, the Royals recalled Klein from Triple-A Omaha.
On Tuesday, the Royals traded Klein, as well as right-hander Mason Barnett and outfielder Jared Dickey, to the A’s in exchange for Lucas Erceg. Klein was on the Royals’ team bus en route to Guaranteed Rate Park in Chicago to face the White Sox. His wife, Carson, was in the middle of taking the bar exam.
On Wednesday, Klein found himself standing in Oracle Park’s visiting clubhouse, officially donning the green and gold.
“It was definitely bittersweet,” Klein said on Wednesday afternoon. “It’s great to start a new journey here, get to know all these guys, but you grow up living with those guys for the last four years. They’re your best friends. So, it was tough leaving them — some of them had already gotten traded. … It’s sad to say goodbye, but it’s also fun to start new beginnings here.”
Klein, 24, made his major-league debut earlier this season with Kansas City after three seasons in the minors, but didn’t receive much runway due to the Royals’ success. In five outings this season, Klein, a fifth-round selection in the 2020 MLB Draft, allowed four earned runs over 5 2/3 innings with six strikeouts to two walks.
“He’s very similar (to the player) that Lucas was last year, in terms of where he’s at in his career,” manager Mark Kotsay said on Tuesday. “The Royals had brought him up this season, but he never got a full opportunity to go through that development process because they’re obviously winning a lot of games and had guys get back into their bullpen who they believed in and were confident in.
“This is a chance for Klein to come in here and continue in progression and we’re hopeful that we can get him to a point where next season, he’s pitching in that type of role like Lucas was.”
Klein will begin his time in Oakland in a low-leverage role, but with the A’s out of playoff contention, he’ll likely receive more opportunities compared to his time in Kansas City. For Klein elevate to the same role as Erceg, the team’s set-up man for much of this season, he’ll have to consistently find the strike zone.
Over 216 minor-league innings, Klein has issued 161 walks, or 6.7 per nine innings. Klein has especially struggled this season, walking 27 batters over 37 2/3 innings with Triple-A Omaha. MLB Pipeline, which has Klein as the A’s No. 15 prospect, ranks Klein’s control as 45 on the 20-80 grading scale (50 is considered average).
“He’s had a few outings with the Royals. Not a ton of opportunities to get his feet wet,” Kotsay said Wednesday. “So, we’ll try to ease him into situations and watch him go out and perform.”
While the A’s are defined by their youth, their bullpen features veterans arms in Austin Adams, T.J. McFarland and Scott Alexander, a trio that has appeared in a combined 900 games. Klein, who has yet to spend a full month in the majors, expressed his desire to learn from the bullpen’s elder statesmen.
“You play this long, you’re doing something right,” Klein said. “It’s hard to get here. It’s even harder to stay. Guys that stay for 10-plus years are the best of the best. You have to learn from those guys, and they learned from the guys before them on how to do it. I’m excited to continue to pick their brains.”
