KANSAS CITY — Persevering with their flurry of exercise following the Winter Conferences, the Royals swung a commerce Saturday night time. They acquired outfielder Isaac Collins and right-handed reliever Nick Mears from the Brewers and despatched lefty reliever Angel Zerpa to Milwaukee.
The deal turned official Sunday afternoon. By including Collins and Mears and subtracting Zerpa, the Royals’ roster stands at 39 gamers.
TRADE DETAILSRoyals get: OF Isaac Collins, RHP Nick MearsBrewers get: LHP Angel Zerpa
Maybe utility participant is a greater label for Collins, who logged a majority of his video games for the Brewers final yr in left area but in addition noticed time at third base and second base. That versatility was interesting for Kansas Metropolis, though the membership acquired him to play left area in 2026 because the roster stands now.
Collins’ defensive metrics are strong. He led the Majors with 6 outs above common in left area final season, and he has some pace. However the Royals acquired the switch-hitting Collins primarily for his bat as they proceed to search for outfielders who will help elevate their offense subsequent season.
“At this level, we felt like this was an excellent transfer for us contemplating our wants,” basic supervisor J.J. Picollo mentioned. “The necessity for on-base, the necessity for an outfielder. Including a switch-hitter to our roster, after which Isaac’s positional versatility may be very enticing if you mix that with the variety of years of management.
“We all know proper now that the outfield is the first spot he’s going to play, nevertheless it by no means hurts to have a participant that has been in different positions and achieved effectively in different positions. We really feel like there’s loads of upside to this and a few security on the similar time. It helps you handle your roster effectively.”
The 28-year-old Collins completed fourth within the Nationwide League Rookie of the 12 months voting final season after posting a slash line of .263/.368/.411 with a 118 OPS+, 9 house runs and 54 RBIs. His profile is one that matches the Royals — a number of contact, not loads of chase. Evaluators add that he brings constant and gritty at-bats that make pitchers work.
Collins’ 18.4% chase charge ranked in MLB’s 98th percentile, per Statcast, and he recorded only a 22.5% whiff charge. His 12.9% stroll charge was tied for nineteenth in baseball (minimal 400 plate appearances). Whereas there could possibly be some regression for Collins subsequent yr in his second full season within the Main Leagues, the on-base and swing choices sometimes aren’t issues that fall off for hitters. That ability set is precisely why the Royals focused him to elongate the lineup.
“He does it differently,” Picollo mentioned. “He will get deep in counts. He’s not afraid with two strikes. The contact charges are good. However I feel the on-base is what separates him from what we don’t have proper now or what we haven’t had loads of success with. We’d like guys who can get on base round our high 4 or 5 guys.”
This commerce was in a position to get to the end line as a result of the Royals have been in a position to purchase Mears, too – a pitcher the Royals have had curiosity in going again to his time with Colorado in 2023. The 29-year-old possesses an above-average fastball and posted a 3.49 ERA throughout 56 2/3 innings in 2025, with simply 13 walks and 46 strikeouts. And he provides chase to the Royals’ bullpen. Mears logged a 33.5% chase charge in ‘25 — a quantity that ranked in MLB’s 93rd percentile, per Statcast. He depends primarily on his fastball-slider mixture, with a curveball thrown some, too.
Mears threw mid- to high-leverage innings with Milwaukee, and the Royals anticipate him to search out the identical function with them, lengthening their bullpen in entrance of setup man Lucas Erceg and nearer Carlos Estévez.
“There’s an depth about him,” Picollo mentioned of Mears. “He’s acquired an above-average fastball. A breaking ball that appears prefer it fluctuates between a slider and curveball, however each have been above common. … It’s another person you’ll be able to go to in leverage conditions.”
Collins just isn’t eligible for wage arbitration till 2028 and will likely be below membership contractual management till 2031. Mears is arb-eligible this yr and is about to turn out to be a free agent following the ’27 season.
Parting with the 26-year-old Zerpa was not a simple activity for the Royals, particularly with left-handed reduction depth on their offseason to-do listing even earlier than this commerce. Zerpa signed with the Royals out of Venezuela in 2016 and progressed by their Minor League system as a starter earlier than making his Main League debut on the very finish of 2021. He transitioned to a reliever by ’24 and has spent the previous two seasons as a sturdy piece of Kansas Metropolis’s bullpen.
In ‘25, Zerpa posted a 4.18 ERA throughout a career-high 64 2/3 innings. At occasions, he has seemed unhittable along with his 96.6 mph sinker. Different occasions, he struggled with out consistency on his breaking ball.
The Royals have been after offense on this commerce, buying Collins for his contact and on-base skill. On Thursday, Kansas Metropolis got here to an settlement with free-agent outfielder Lane Thomas on a one-year deal, which nonetheless hinges on a bodily and was not one thing Picollo might touch upon absolutely. However that’s two new outfielders who the Royals consider lengthen their lineup and higher assist the core of the place participant group. Nonetheless, these two acquisitions don’t essentially imply the Royals are achieved searching for bats this winter.
“I don’t assume it locks us into something,” Picollo mentioned. “With the defensive versatility, what we expect the free agent can do, what we expect Isaac can do, there’s nonetheless an opportunity that we could do one thing else. … I do not assume I’ll sit right here and say we’re achieved. I don’t assume that’s the case. Nevertheless it doesn’t imply now we have to get one thing achieved.”
