KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Less than six hours before the start of the 2023 season, the Kansas City Royals shipped out a left-handed reliever.
The Royals traded Richard Lovelady, 27, to Atlanta for an undisclosed amount of cash, the team announced Thursday morning.
Lovelady, a Georgia native, originally joined Kansas City as a 10th-round pick in the 2016 First-Year Player Draft from Kennesaw State University.
He reached the big leagues in 2019, but has struggled to remain healthy during the last three-plus seasons, going 2-3 with a 5.62 ERA in 46 appearances.
Lovelady, who didn’t make an appearance with the big-league club in 2022, has struck out 40 with 15 walks in 41 2/3 innings with the Royals.
He posted a 2.74 ERA in more than 200 innings across six minor-league seasons.
Kansas City opens the 2023 season at 3:10 p.m. Thursday against Minnesota at Kauffman Stadium.
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