Royals Claim RHP Ben Lively From Phillies

By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor

Just four days after losing RHP Mark Leiter Jr. to the Toronto Blue Jays on outright waivers, the Philadelphia Phillies similarly lost RHP Ben Lively to the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday, according to MLB.com's Jeffrey Flanagan. The Phillies originally acquired Lively, 26, on Dec. 31, 2014, in exchange for outfielder Marlon Byrd and cash considerations.

The Pensacola, Florida, native was designated for assignment on Monday to make room for RHP Jerad Eickhoff on the 40-man roster. To make room for Lively on their respective 40-man roster, the Royals opted to designate LHP Eric Stout for assignment.

In 20 combined starts with the Phillies last and this season, Lively went 4-9 with a 4.81 ERA, one complete game, 1.407 WHIP and 74-to-34 strikeout-to-walk ratio spanning 112 1/3 innings. Lively made five starts in 2018, before landing on the 10-day disabled list with a lower back strain. The right-hander was activated and optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on May 9, but never made it back to the major leagues with the Phillies.