The Kansas City Royals signed reliever Alex Lange to a $900,000 deal with performance bonuses, betting on his high-velocity arm despite injury setbacks.

The Kansas City Royals have signed reliever Alex Lange to a one-year, $900,000 contract with $100,000 in performance bonuses. The 30-year-old right-hander, released by Detroit after missing most of 2024 due to a lat injury, made one major league appearance in 2024, pitching one scoreless inning. He showed strong velocity, averaging 96.2 mph on his fastball and 88.4 mph on his knuckle-curve, and struck out nearly 30% of Triple-A batters despite a 4.63 ERA. The Royals view the signing as a low-cost gamble on a pitcher with high-velocity stuff and prior high-leverage experience. The deal marks their second bullpen addition in two days.