Outfielder Drew Waters cleared waivers for the second time this season.
The Kansas City Royals announced outfielder Drew Waters has cleared waivers after he was designated for assignment on Wednesday. He was assigned outright to play with Triple-A Omaha.
This marks the second time this season Waters has cleared waivers after being DFA’d, as he cleared waivers in the season’s opening week. After the second time around, the timing of it comes at a rather uneasy time for Waters.
Waters has yet to play a game for the Royals at the big league level this season, as he has only played for Triple-A Omaha this year. However, as part of the rosters expanding from 26 to 28 as September arrived, his contract was selected by the Royals on Tuesday – but his stint did not last long.
Before he was able to make his season debut, Waters ended up being DFA’d the following day to make room on the roster for Michael Massey, who was reinstated from the 7-day concussion IL. Though Waters cleared waivers, it is rather unlikely that he will play with the Royals in the season’s final month, as his future with the team is looking dim.
Playing in parts of the last four seasons, Waters has never been able to solidify a role with the Royals. Once a former top prospect as part of the Atlanta Braves’ farm system, the outfielder was traded to Kansas City in 2022 and has yet to effectively translate his game to the major league level.
Across the four seasons, Waters has only played in 208 games, often going back and forth from being selected by the Royals and optioned to Triple-A. Waters played 71 games for the Royals last season, posting a .243 batting average in 206 at-bats, while logging just one homer.
At the Triple-A level, Waters has not performed dominantly, but he has been solid. In 98 games this season, he is hitting .251 and has hit 12 homers while knocking in 49 RBI. However, some particular struggles have continued to bite him.
While his slashline looks decent, his 85 wRC+ is definitely a concern at the level he is playing at. He also owns a 25.2% strikeout rate, which is an improvement from his tallies at the big league level, but still a concerning rate.
At the end of the season, Waters becomes eligible to qualify for seven-year minor league free agency if he is not added back to the Royals’ roster.
