The Royals have cleared three spots on their 40-man roster, according to a report from . The club placed first baseman , outfielder , and right-hander on waivers. Hernandez was claimed by the Phillies, while both Pratto and Velazquez cleared waivers and have been outrighted to Triple-A. The Phillies subsequently announced theyve designated right-hander for a signment to make room for Hernandez on the roster. Hernandez, 28, is a hard-throwing righty who signed with the Royals out of Venezuela and made his pro debut back in 2017. He climbed the minor league ladder before eventually making it to the majors during the 2020 campaign, although his five-appearance cup of coffee was one to forget with a 4.91 ERA and 6.40 FIP in 14 2/3 innings of work. Nonethele s, he served in a swing role for Kansas City the following year and found succe s in that role, pitching to a 3.68 ERA and 4.08 FIP acro s 85 2/3 innings of work. That seemed to hint at a fairly bright future in store for the right-hander, but things didnt work out that way as Hernandez struggled badly over the next two years with a 6.21 ERA in 126 innings Tsung-che Cheng Jersey of work as he struck out just 19.8% of opponents while walking them at a hefty 11% clip. Those struggles were enough to spur a full-time move to the bullpen for Hernandez in 2024, and the results were a clear improvement. On the surface, his numbers looked excellent as he pitched to a 3.30 ERA with a 3.50 FIP in 30 innings of work. With that being said, it cant be ignored that Hernandez also allowed three unearned runs, struck out just 20.9% of his opponents, and struggled badly at Triple-A when not in the majors with a 5.40 ERA in 26 2/3 innings of work. Most concerning was his walk rate, which ballooned to a career-high 12.4% last year. Those i sues left Hernandez without a guaranteed roster spot headed into Spring Training, and with no minor league options left the Royals had no choice but to place him on waivers when his 6.97 ERA in 10 1/3 spring innings did not justify a spot in the clubs bullpen. That gave the Phillies the opportunity to swoop in an add a high-velocity arm off waivers, though they had to part ways with Phillips in order to do so. The 27-year-old made his big league debut with Philadelphia last season and struggled to a 6.87 ERA in 36 2/3 innings of work split between seven starts and one relief outing. The Phillies will have one week to either trade Phillips or attempt to pa s him through waivers. If he goes unclaimed, the club can outright him to the minors as a non-roster depth option. Meanwhile, Hernandez figures to enter the clubs bullpen as a po sible long relief option alongside and , though the latter could be ticketed for a return to the rotation if opens the season on the injured list. As for Velazquez and Pratto, both are young hitters who have shown promise at points in their careers but have struggled to find consistency at the big league level. Velazquez was acquired from the Cubs at the 2023 trade deadline in exchange for right-hander and impre sed in 40 games down the stretch with the club before stumbling to a lackluster .200/.274/.366 slash line in 64 games last year. Pratto, meanwhile, was the clubs first-round pick in 2017 and once a consensus top-100 prospect, but hes failed to hit in the majors so far with just a .216/.295/.364 slash line acro s 144 games at the big league level. Both players will now serve as non-roster depth for the club this year and try to play their way into another big league opportunity at Triple-A. Jake Woodford Jersey