Erceg earned the save in Thursday's 7-4 win over the Nationals, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning.
Erceg's now converted his last six save opportunities, allowing just one earned run while striking out 13 over 10.2 innings in that span. The 29-year-old right-hander's ERA is down to 3.36 with a 1.05 WHIP and 72:16 K:BB across 61.2 innings between the A's and Royals this season.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Earns 13th save
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Erceg struck out one in a perfect ninth inning to earn the save in Wednesday's 3-0 win over the Nationals. He struck out one batter.
Erceg was summoned for the second straight game and locked down his 13th save on just 12 pitches. According to Anne Rogers of MLB.com, the 29-year-old secured the Royals' franchise-record 26th consecutive scoreless inning. He has converted all five of his September save attempts and owns a 3.41 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 71:16 K:BB across 60.2 innings this season.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Secures save in extras
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Erceg picked up the save Tuesday against the Nationals, pitching a clean inning with two strikeouts.
The Kansas City right-hander made quick work of Washington in the bottom of the tenth inning, firing nine strikes out of his 12 total pitches. Since joining the Royals on July 31, Erceg has been a stalwart, collecting nine saves while pitching to a 3.13 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 29:3 K:BB across 23 innings. Overall, he now sports a 3.47 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 70:16 K:BB with 12 saves over 59.2 total innings this season.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Takes extra-inning loss
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Erceg (2-6) allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits and a walk while striking out two over 1.2 innings, taking the extra-inning loss versus the Tigers on Tuesday.
Erceg's six-inning scoreless streak came to an end as he faltered in the 10th inning after he kept the game tied in the ninth. He also ended August in rough form, but he's generally brought some stability to the Royals' bullpen since they acquired him from the Athletics. For the year, Erceg is at a 3.53 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 68:16 K:BB while earning 11 saves, 18 holds and five blown saves over 58.2 innings.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Secures save Sunday
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Erceg allowed a hit and struck out one in a scoreless inning while earning a save against the Twins on Sunday.
Erceg worked around a leadoff single by Christian Vazquez to close out the 2-0 win. After blowing two straight save chances and allowing seven runs over three appearances, Erceg has now converted three consecutive saves. He's now 11 for 16 in save opportunities with a 3.67 ERA over 54 innings. Of those 11 saves, eight have come since his Royals debut July 31.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Perfect inning for 10th save
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Erceg struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the save in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Twins.
Erceg was able to protect the two-run lead the Royals established in the eighth inning. It's his second clean outing in a row after he struggled in three straight appearances from Aug. 28 to Sept. 3, including one outing which was cut short when he was hit on the hand by a batted ball. He's up to 10 saves -- including seven as a Royal -- while posting a 3.74 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 61:15 K:BB through 53 innings between Kansas City and Oakland this year.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Bounces back to notch save
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Erceg picked up a save against the Guardians on Wednesday, striking out one batter in a perfect ninth inning.
Erceg had a rough outing Tuesday, giving up three runs over two-thirds of an inning. Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro went right back to the right-hander in a save situation one day later, and Erceg responded by retiring the side in order on 15 pitches. That bodes well for his chances of continuing as Kansas City's closer despite entering Wednesday amidst a rough stretch during which he went 0-2 with two blown saves while giving up seven runs across two innings over three appearances.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Struggles in return to mound
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Erceg (hand) allowed three runs on two hits and struck out two over two-thirds of an inning during Tuesday's 7-1 loss to the Guardians.
Erceg loaded the bases with two singles and a hit batsman in the top of the eighth inning. James McArthur then walked in one run and gave up a two-run single to Steven Kwan, with all three runs going on Erceg's line. Erceg has been charged with seven runs across two innings over his last three appearances, a disappointing turn of events after his 15.1-inning scoreless streak from July 22 to Aug. 26. Overall, he has a 3.88 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 59:15 K:BB over 51 innings while logging eight saves and 18 holds between the Royals and the Athletics this year. Prior to his hand issue, Erceg had been operating as the Royals' closer, but if his performance continues to be poor, the job could be once again up for grabs.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Exits after comebacker
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Erceg exited Thursday's game against Houston after fielding a comebacker with his bare hand, Joel Goldberg of Bally Sports Kansas City reports.
Erceg was attempting to field a groundball for a potential double play, but he was unable to catch the ball cleanly and injured his hand. The nature and severity of the issue are unclear, though his potential absence would reopen the closer role in Kansas City.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Collects eighth save
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Erceg recorded his eighth save of the season in the first game of Monday's doubleheader sweep of the Guardians, walking one batter in a scoreless ninth inning.
The right-hander got only seven of his 14 pitches over the plate, and Erceg got some help from his defense when Maikel Garcia made a leaping grab on a one-out David Fry liner that might have brought home the tying run. Erceg has converted all five of his save chances since joining the Royals, and he hasn't walked a batter since July 21, going 14.1 innings between free passes with a 0.00 ERA, 0.42 WHIP and 18 strikeouts.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Nails down seventh save
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Erceg gave up a hit and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Friday to record his seventh save of the season in a 7-4 win over the Phillies.
The 29-year-old has staked a strong claim to the closer job in Kansas City, securing four of the team's last five saves and posting a 0.00 ERA, 0.44 WHIP and 15:0 K:BB through 11.1 innings since being acquired by the Royals at the trade deadline. James McArthur has turned things around in August with a 1.08 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 8:1 K:BB in 8.1 frames, but looking more comfortable in a lower-leverage role isn't going to get him back in the ninth-inning mix unless Erceg stumbles.
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Royals' Lucas Erceg: Notches first save as Royal
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Erceg earned a save against the Cardinals on Saturday, allowing two hits and striking out two batters over 1.1 scoreless innings.
Erceg entered in a tight situation with a three-run lead and two outs in the top of the eighth frame, as the Cardinals had two runners on base and Paul Goldschmidt -- who homered earlier in the contest -- at the plate. The righty reliever fanned Goldschmidt to end the frame, then remained in the contest after the Royals put up two runs in the bottom of the inning. Erceg allowed back-to-back singles to begin the ninth but retired the next three batters to secure his first save since joining Kansas City at the trade deadline. He's been lights out since becoming a Royal, recording 6.1 scoreless frames during which he's posted an 8:0 K:BB. James McArthur has been struggling and Hunter Harvey (back) landed on the injured list Saturday, so Erceg appears to be the team's reliever most likely to see save opportunities, at least for the time being.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Secures third save
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Erceg allowed a hit and struck out one over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Friday's 5-4 win over the Angels.
Erceg was deployed in the eighth inning Thursday to protect a one-run lead, but he was called on to close things out Friday in a similar situation. With Mason Miller sidelined by a fractured finger on his non-throwing hand, Erceg is the favorite to close for the Athletics in the short term, though Tyler Ferguson received the first save chance in Miller's absence. Erceg has been a fine setup man this year with a 3.68 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 41:13 K:BB to go with three saves, 12 holds and three blown saves over 36.2 innings. He's kept runs off the board in 12 of his last 13 appearances, the exception being a four-run meltdown last Sunday against the Angels.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Returns from stint on IL
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The Athletics activated Erceg (forearm) from the 15-day injured list Wednesday.
Erceg spent the minimum amount of time on the IL and was able to skip a rehab assignment prior to being activated. He's been terrific in relief for Oakland this season, collecting a 2.86 ERA and 27:8 K:BB across 22 innings as the primary setup man ahead of closer Mason Miller.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Another successful bullpen Sunday
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Erceg (forearm) threw a successful bullpen session Sunday and is in line to be activated during the Athletics' road trip that begins Monday, MLB.com reports.
Erceg came out of his 20-pitch session feeling healthy, his second bullpen in a span of four days. With the right-hander eligible to come off the injured list Wednesday, it's possible he's activated that same day, if not soon thereafter.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Successful bullpen session
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Erceg (forearm) threw a 20-pitch bullpen session Thursday and could complete another one Sunday, the Associated Press reports.
The right-hander has had a productive last few days on the recovery front, as he began playing catch at the beginning of the week and now has a bullpen session under his belt. Erceg is expected to be evaluated after Sunday's activity, when a determination is likely to be made on whether he'll require a brief rehab assignment before activation.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Making steady progress
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Erceg (forearm) has begun playing catch and could throw a bullpen session as early as Sunday, the Associated Press reports.
The talented setup man just went on the IL on Friday with a retroactive designation to May 26, and Erceg may possibly be tracking toward an on-time return if this latest news is any indication. Assuming the bullpen session unfolds on schedule and without setbacks, Erceg could potentially be activated Monday, the first day he'd be eligible.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: IL move official
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The Athletics announced Friday that Erceg (forearm) was placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 26.
Erceg hasn't pitched since May 25 due to forearm tightness and will officially be sidelined until at least June 10. Prior to the injury, Erceg had operated as Mason Miller's setup man, a role that Austin Adams or Scott Alexander could fill until Erceg returns.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Bound for injured list
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Manager Mark Kotsay said Thursday that Erceg will be placed on the 15-day injured list due to forearm tightness, Brian Murphy of MLB.com reports.
With a 2.86 ERA and 1.00 WHIP through 22 innings, Erceg has emerged as a quality setup man for closer Mason Miller this season. However, a forearm injury will keep him on the shelf until at least mid-June. Austin Adams, who has also been effective so far this season, is the likely choice to take on the role of Oakland's main setup man while Erceg is sidelined.
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Athletics' Lucas Erceg: Gets second win Tuesday
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Erceg (2-2) got the win against the Rockies on Tuesday, firing a perfect eighth inning.
Erceg's blink-and-you-missed-it frame was done in a tidy 11 pitches, seven of which he located for strikes. The 29-year-old right-hander has had a couple of hiccups along the way, but he sports a pair of saves and seven holds alongside his two wins. Erceg, who's now averaging 98.6 mph on his fastball this season, has the stuff to form a gnarly 1-2 punch with dominant closer Mason Miller in the late innings, and he lowered his ERA and WHIP to 3.32 and 1.05, respectively, with what was his third scoreless effort in the last four appearances.
