Royals claim pitcher Conner Greene, designate Burch Smith for assignment

Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty ImagesThe Royals have claimed right-handed pitcher Conner Greene off waivers from the St. Louis Cardinals and have designated pitcher Burch Smith for assignment. Greene will be protected from the Rule 5 draft next month, while Smith is now exposed.

The 23-year old Greene was originally a seventh-round pick by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2013 out of Santa Monica High School in California. Standing at 6’3’’, Greene throws in the mid-90s, according to MLB Pipeline, who ranked Greene as the 27th-best Cardinals prospect, with his fastball occasionally reaching triple digits.

When he is throwing well, he throws downhill and with sink to elicit ground ball outs, but too…