Free agent pitcher Michael Lorenzen went under-the-radar last season and was extremely effective for the Kansas City Royals down the stretch. As Lorenzen navigates free agency, he has a shocking plan to make him a more appealing-option to a few teams.
Lorenzen and his agent, Ryan Hamill of CAA, are planning to market him as a two-way player as a way to circumvent Major League Baseball’s 13-pitcher roster limit according to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
“Hamill, according to sources briefed on his conversations, is talking with such clubs about signing Lorenzen, getting him the necessary plate appearances to qualify for two-way status and then flipping him to a contender that would benefit from carrying him as a 14th pitcher,” Rosenthal wrote.
“Teams that employ large numbers of platoons might not consider keeping an extra pitcher an advantage,” Rosenthal continued. “But teams with fairly set lineups might welcome the spare arm. The Los Angeles Dodgers will be in that position next season if, as expected, Ohtani resumes pitching. If the Dodgers then traded for a two-way Lorenzen, they could choose from among 15 pitchers. Which would be the most Dodgers thing ever.”
In order to qualify as a two-way player, Lorenzen would need to pitch 20 innings and appear in 20 games as a position player or designated hitter with at least three plate appearances in each game.
Why Michael Lorenzen would make sense as a two-way player
Rosenthal speculates that rebuilding teams like the Miami Marlins or Chicago White Sox would be potential fits for Lorenzen to sign with as a two-way player, as they are not actively trying to compete and have ample opportunities at designated hitter for Lorenzen to meet to necessary threshold to qualify as a two-way player.
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That way, once Lorenzen qualifies as a two-way player, the Marlins, White Sox, or any other team that signs Lorenzen with the intention of giving him at-bats would be able to trade him to a contender where he would not count against the 13-pitcher limit.
Before the National League adopted the designated hitter in 2022, Lorenzen had shown that he was a very capable hitter. During the 2018 season with the Cincinnati Reds, Lorenzen hit four home runs in 34 plate appearances. Throughout 147 plate appearances in his career, Lorenzen is slashing slugging .429 with seven home runs and 24 RBI.
Lorenzen is a quality arm without the added bonus of the potential production at the plate. Based on the potential haul he would command at the trade deadline as a two-way player should make him a very appealing target for any rebuilding team.
