KANSAS CITY -- Michael Wacha’s first All-Star Game came in 2015, when he was a 25-year-old surrounded by Cardinals teammates and still taking in the whole scene with a sense of wonder. “The best of the best,” he said then.
Now he’s back, and the path between those two Midsummer Classics has been anything but straight.
Wacha will enter the visiting clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Tuesday as an All-Star again, 11 years after that first appearance. The 10 seasons between selections make his case a rarity in Major League history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Only Bert Blyleven, with an 11-season gap from 1973-85, and Schoolboy Rowe, with a 10-season gap from 1936-47, have gone that long or longer between All-Star nods.
“I definitely waited long enough in between,” Wacha said with a laugh.
The wait covered a career that has moved through peaks, detours and reinvention. Drafted in the first round by the Cardinals in 2012, Wacha burst onto the scene as a rookie in 2013 and capped that season by earning NL Championship Series MVP honors during a postseason run full of big October moments. After the Cardinals let him leave as a free agent in 2019, he spent time on a string of one-year deals with the Mets, Rays, Red Sox and Padres before landing with the Royals for the past three seasons.
He’s remained effective by adjusting along the way. Wacha has added a slider in recent years and changed how he uses his pitches to stay ahead of hitters in his 14th big league season. But the core of his game is still there: the changeup he leans on most, the ability to touch 97 mph when needed, and the work ethic he values most.
“Just the way I still love the game, and how much I love to prepare,” Wacha said. “I love to go out there and compete every day. I’m glad that the fire is still there.”
That fire has made him one of the Royals’ best free-agent additions in recent memory. Since 2024, Wacha has posted a 3.65 ERA over 79 starts and 458 2/3 innings.
Kansas City signed him in December 2023 to a one-year deal with a player option as part of its roster overhaul, and he became a key piece in the club’s push back to the postseason. In 2024, he made 29 starts with a 3.35 ERA and added two starts in October.
After that season, the Royals gave him a new three-year contract that runs through 2027 and includes a club option for 2028.
The Royals still haven’t built on that 2024 breakthrough, but Wacha’s influence has gone well beyond innings and ERA. His teammates talk about the standard he sets every day.
“He wants the team to win more than anybody I’ve met,” starter Noah Cameron said. “Like, if the team’s losing, he’s freaking locked in, pissed off a little bit, even if he’s doing well.”
Bobby Witt Jr., who will be with Wacha in Philadelphia for his third All-Star appearance, pointed to the value of having a veteran like that in the room.
“A guy that’s been around the game, who plays the game the right way, does everything the right way -- watching him, for one, is special,” said Bobby Witt Jr., who will join Wacha in Philadelphia for his third All-Star appearance. “But also being able to talk to him each and every day: What he thinks, how he’s attacking hitters, whatever it is, being able to converse about baseball with him has been great.”
Back in 2015, Wacha was the young All-Star leaning on veterans like Adam Wainwright. In Kansas City now, he’s the one teammates look to. The label may have changed - from rising arm to clubhouse elder - but the lessons have stayed the same: perseverance, reliability and leadership.
And sometimes those lessons show up in the smallest moments.
“Even just really the small things,” Cameron said. “Like in between innings, the catcher who’s not catching goes out and warms up the pitcher, and Wacha is the first guy to get up and go give that guy a high five. That’s super small, and you’d never think about it, but that shows me even more like how to be a good teammate, how to be the best professional you can be.”
In Other News...
Royals Just Became Part Of A Surprising Mets Deadline Twist
A game against the Royals ended up carrying bigger deadline ripple effects for the Mets than anyone expected. Mark Vientos was hit by a pitch on July 9 and the injury now leaves New York dealing with a lineup hole at a time when the club was already weighing whether to move him before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
For Kansas City, the immediate result was just another tense moment in a midseason series, but the broader impact now reaches into New Yorks roster math. The Mets, sitting at 40-54 and well back in the National League Wild Card race, suddenly have a harder decision to make with a player they had considered as a possible trade chip, and the timing of any move has become far less straightforward. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Could Finally Get A Much Needed Lineup Boost Friday
After spending time at Triple-A Omaha, Vinnie Pasquantino is close to giving the Royals the kind of lineup jolt they have been waiting for. Manager Matt Quatraro said the first baseman is nearing a return from a right-hamate fracture, and his comeback should give Kansas City a more settled look in the middle of the order while also restoring some defensive flexibility.
Pasquantinos return would likely send Jac Caglianone back to right field after covering first base in his absence, a move the Royals have been anticipating as they try to piece together the lineup. There is also a broader injury picture to monitor, with Maikel Garcia and Kyle Isbel both working their way back and possibly helping in the coming weeks, which could make the roster look a lot deeper before long. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Hold More 2026 Draft Power Than Most Fans Realize
The Royals are heading toward the 2026 MLB Draft with far more ammunition than a lot of fans may realize. Kansas City owns the sixth overall pick, and it also has another selection in Competitive Balance Round A, giving the club three picks inside the top 60 and five before pick 120 as it builds out a full draft board for what could be a pivotal class.
What makes that especially interesting is how much flexibility it gives the front office once the board starts taking shape. The early picks around the league could influence the Royals approach, and their own range of possibilities is broad enough to include prep position players or collegiate pitchers, with slot and underslot considerations likely to matter as the draft unfolds. [Read more 🡒]