Kansas City Royals get hard-throwing pitcher as player to be named in Danny Duffy trade

Danny Duffy didn’t throw a pitch for the Los Angeles Dodgers, nonetheless, the Kansas City Royals turned his expiring contract into a hard-throwing right-handed minor-leaguer and potential future bullpen option.

Zach Willeman, a 19th-round draft pick of the Dodgers in 2017, joined the Royals organization courtesy of the Dodgers on Wednesday in the completion of the July trade that sent the longtime Royal Duffy to the West Coast.

Willeman, 25, became the player to be named later in the trade that sent Duffy and cash to the Dodgers on July 29 ahead of the MLB trade deadline. Duffy will be a free agent this offseason. He’d been off to one of the best starts of his career prior to a forearm injury that sidelined him for several months.

Duffy, a California native with 10 and 5 rights, approved the deal that sent him away from the only organization he’d played for in his career. He was part of the AL pennant-winning club in 2014 as well as the World Series championship club in 2015.

After joining the Dodgers, Duffy took out a full-page ad in The Star to thank the fans and the Kansas City region.

Duffy had been on the injured list with a left forearm flexor strain at the time of the deal, which necessitated the Royals including cash in the trade.

Duffy continued his rehab after joining the Dodgers, but he reportedly experienced pain in his elbow during a September bullpen session and did not appear in a game after joining the team he rooted for as a child.

The 6-foot-2, 219-pound Willeman pitched for the Dodgers’ Double-A affiliate this season and appeared in 33 games with a 3.78 ERA. He struck out 59 batters in 49 2/3 innings for an 11.14 K/9 along with 4.34 walks/9, a 1.36 WHIP and a .232 opponent’s batting average.

Baseball America ranked Willeman the No. 22 prospect in the Dodgers farm system in 2019, and he reportedly showed fastball velocity sitting between 94-96 mph and combined them with a slider and curveball.