The Royals have called up pitcher Jorge Lopez to start tonight against the Blue Jays in place of Burch Smith. He will be making his Royals debut after being acquired back in July in a trade with outfielder Brett Phillips for third baseman Mike Moustakas. To make room for Lopez, the Royals released reliever Blaine Boyer.
The 25-year old Lopez hails from Puerto Rico and was the second-round pick by the Brewers in 2011. In 2015, the right-hander was named Southern League Pitcher of the Year with a 2.26 ERA and 137 strikeouts in 143 1⁄3 innings pitched.