43 Wily Peralta RP

Peralta was released by the Royals on Monday.

After entering the season with a chance to close for the Royals, Peralta didn't come anywhere close to meeting expectations. He struggled to a 5.80 ERA in 40.1 innings, with a high 10.8 percent walk rate and a very low 13.6 percent strikeout rate. The 30-year-old is unlikely to receive much interest on the free-agent market, as his ERA has come in at 4.72 or above in four of the last five seasons.

The Royals designated Peralta for assignment Saturday.

Peralta entered spring training as a candidate to close for the Royals but never gained much traction on that front. The right-hander ultimately wasn't able to lock down a key setup role, either, posting a 5.80 ERA, 1.59 WHIP and 5.4 K/9 in 40.1 innings before the Royals decided to cut him from the 40-man roster. If no team is willing to trade for or put in a waiver claim for Peralta, he'll either have to accept an outright assignment to the minors or request a release.

Peralta (2-1) earned the win against the White Sox on Wednesday by giving up two hits and a walk over two innings. He had one strikeout and was charged with a blown save for allowing an inherited runner to score.

Peralta entered with the bases loaded and nobody out during the eighth inning, and although he was unable to preserve the 3-2 lead, managed to get through the inning with the game still tied. The 29-year-old has allowed six runs over nine innings and has a 4:5 K:BB, but has not given up an earned run across his last three appearances.

Peralta secured the save in Saturday's 3-0 win over the Indians by not allowing a baserunner during the ninth inning. He did not record a strikeout.

Peralta was able to grab his first save of the season -- and preserve the shutout -- by inducing three ground-ball outs to finish the game. The 29-year-old has 9.00 ERA, 1.83 WHIP and 3:4 K:BB through his first six innings of the season.

Peralta was charged with a blown save as he allowed two runs on one hit and one walk over two-thirds of an inning during Saturday's loss to the Tigers.

Peralta entered during the seventh inning with a 4-3 lead and two runners on base and walked the bases loaded before serving up a grand slam to Christin Stewart. The 29-year-old came into the season slated for a high-leverage bullpen role, but that could be slipping away as he's given up five runs across three innings, with one loss and one blown save to show for it.

Peralta (0-1) took the loss Wednesday, allowing one run on a hit and a walk in an inning of relief as the Royals fell 7-6 to the Twins.

After Brad Boxberger and Ian Kennedy each struggled Tuesday, Peralta was the next man up in a key spot, but he couldn't get the job done either. With the score tied 6-6, he walked Nelson Cruz to lead off the ninth, let pinch runner Byron Buxton steal second, then gave up a game-winning single to Eddie Rosario. The back end of the Royals' bullpen is a mess right now, and if none of the three veteran arms step up soon, manager Ned Yost may begin to look to younger options like Kyle Zimmer in high-leverage spots.

Peralta retired two of the four batters he faced in Monday's 6-2 loss to the Rangers in Cactus League play. He conceded a double and a base hit and struck out one in the outing.

Peralta allowed one of the runners he inherited to score and gave up an additional run on Logan Forsythe's two-out double, but he was at least able to close out the fourth inning to end his day. Manager Ned Yost remains non-committal regarding his plans at closer this season, but Peralta is making a case to hold onto the job with a 1.93 ERA and 0.86 WHIP over five spring appearances. Peralta's top competition for the ninth-inning role, Brad Boxberger, made just his second appearance of the spring Monday after missing nearly two weeks with a leg injury.

Manager Ned Yost would not name Peralta as Kansas City's closer ahead of spring training, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports. "The roles will define themselves over time," Yost said.

Yost mentioned Peralta as a possible late-game option, noting the right-hander "got the job done" as the team's closer in 2018, going 14-for-14 in save opportunities. The manager also suggested that he may move away from a traditional ninth-inning role in 2019, instead using the team's top relievers in more flexible high-leverage roles. The Royals recently signed Brad Boxberger, who is also a candidate to close after converting 32 saves for the Diamondbacks last season.

Peralta altered his contract with the Royals to make $3.25 million next season, to go along with a mutual option of $7 million for the 2020 campaign, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports.

Peralta reinvented himself as a reliable closer for Kansas City in the second half of the 2018 season, logging 3.67 ERA and 1.49 WHIP with 14 saves in 14 chances. His 4.77 FIP, 35:23 K:BB and career low .280 BABIP suggest that he was extremely lucky to finish the year without any blown saves, but the right-hander did just enough to warrant a reworked deal. Look for the 29-year-old to remain in a high-leverage relief role, if not the ninth-inning spot, when the upcoming season arrives.

Peralta allowed two hits and a walk during a scoreless ninth inning to secure the save against the Reds on Tuesday. He did not record a strikeout.

The Reds loaded the bases against Peralta in the bottom of the ninth inning trailing 4-3, but he was able to get Joey Votto to ground out to end the game. It's rarely been easy for the 29-year-old with a 3.90 ERA and 1.55 WHIP, but he's managed to convert all 14 save opportunities for the Royals this season.

Peralta allowed a run on two hits and one walk while striking out one in the ninth inning as he picked up the save Sunday against the Tigers.

Peralta entered the ballgame with a two-run lead, and he'd let a run cross the plate before striking out the final batter of the afternoon. Although it isn't always pretty, Peralta has yet to blow a save opportunity this season. The 29-year-old figures to maintain his role as the closer for the final week of the 2018 campaign.

Peralta struck out one without allowing a baserunner in one inning of work to record his 11th save of the season Thursday against the Twins.

Peralta remained perfect in save opportunities for the season, needing just nine pitches to retire the side Thursday. He's now turned in four consecutive scoreless appearances -- spanning 3.1 innings -- and is locked in as the Royals' closer. Peralta has also generated a surprising number of punchouts, striking out 28 batters across 27.1 innings.

Peralta got the one-out save Tuesday against the White Sox, allowing no runs and no hits while walking two batters.

Peralta came into the ninth with two on and two out and the Royals leading 6-2 and proceeded to walk the bases loaded before issuing another walk to bring in a run. He was then able to get Yolmer Sanchez to pop out to end the game and earn his 10th save of the year. Peralta is 10-for-10 in save chances this season and sports a 3.76 ERA and a .209 batting average against with an inflated 1.44 WHIP due to the 19 walks (against 27 strikeouts) he's allowed in 26.1 innings.

Peralta worked a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to record his ninth save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Twins.

He did allow an inherited runner to score on a sac fly, but Peralta still picked up his first save since Aug. 18. The veteran right-hander had given up runs in each of his previous three appearances, and his 3.96 ERA and 25:17 K:BB in 25 innings for the Royals this season aren't exactly elite numbers, but he should remain the team's primary closing option down the stretch.

Peralta threw a perfect ninth inning with one strikeout against the White Sox on Saturday en route to his eighth save of the season.

He has a couple three-run hiccups on his ledger this season, but Peralta has been (surprisingly) effective for Kansas City on the whole. The right-hander has been scored upon in just two of his last 12 appearances and he still hasn't been charged with a blown save since inheriting the closer job.

Peralta worked around a walk with one strikeout in a scoreless inning of work to earn his seventh save of the season Monday against the Blue Jays.

Staked to a two-run lead, Peralta walked the leadoff hitter to bring the tying run to the plate. He then struck out Randal Grichuk and got Kendrys Morales to ground into a double play to end the game. It was Peralta's first save in roughly two weeks and was a nice way to bounce back after he was touched up for three runs in his previous outing. He appears set to see the save chances that do come the Royals' way, but his lackluster ratios and poor team context put a cap on his fantasy value.

Peralta struck out one and walked two in a hitless ninth inning to earn the save Tuesday against the White Sox.

Peralta is now 6-for-6 in save chances this year and has allowed runs to score in only three of his 15 appearances. The 29-year-old has 14 strikeouts in 14.1 innings, and that swing-and-miss has helped mask some control issues (11 walks). Peralta appears to be locking down the closer role in Kansas City for the time being.

Peralta worked around a walk with one strikeout in a scoreless inning to earn his fourth save of the season Sunday against the Twins.

Asked to protect a two-run lead in the ninth, Peralta walked a man with two outs but struck out the final hitter he faced to close it out. Although save chances can be hard to come by for the journeyman converted reliever, he's been scored upon in just one of his last 11 outings to lower his season ERA to 3.18.

Peralta struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his third save of the season in a 4-2 win over the Twins.

There haven't been many save chances to go around in Kansas City since Kelvin Herrera was shipped off to Washington, but Peralta has successfully converted all three of the ones he's been given. With neither Tim Hill nor Brandon Maurer proving to be reliable, Peralta could continue to emerge as the Royals' best closing option.

Peralta gave up a hit and struck out one in a scoreless inning Wednesday to record his second save of the season in a 6-5 win over the Brewers.

Tim Hill began the inning protecting a 5-1 lead and quickly served up a three-run homer to Brad Miller, forcing the Royals to turn to their newly minted closer, and Peralta was able to get the job done against his former club. The right-hander's fastball was popping at 97 mph, but his track record -- he hasn't posted an ERA below 4.00 in the majors since 2014 -- makes him a volatile fantasy option despite his current role. Then again, Bud Norris headed into 2017 with a similar resume of failure as a starter and turned around his career as a high-leverage reliever, and Peralta could well do the same.