Zack is back! Former Royals ace returns to Kansas City on one-year deal, report says

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - He’s coming back home.

Former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke has signed a one-year, $13 million deal to return to the team that drafted him in 2002, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. The Royals have not made a formal announcement.

The former Royals ace was drafted in 2002 and pitched in seven seasons for Kansas City, compiling a record of 60-67 with a 3.82 ERA. Greinke won the Cy Young Award in 2009 with a 13-10 record, a league-leading 2.16 ERA and a 205 ERA+.

Greinke has amassed 219 wins in his 18-year career with 2,809 strikeouts. Greinke has been selected as an All-Star and a Gold Glove winner six times each.

He was traded to the Brewers after his Cy Young-winning season for a package of players that ultimately formed the basis of the Royals’ back-to-back AL champion teams.

Greinke spent just over a season in Milwaukee before his he was traded to the Angels, then he spent three seasons across town with the Dodgers, where he finished second in Cy Young voting in 2015. Greinke went on to pitch four seasons for the Diamondbacks before spending the past three seasons with the Astros.

He went 11-6 with a 4.16 ERA and one complete game in 29 starts for Houston last season.

Greinke left the Royals as an up-and-coming star just hitting his prime years, and he returns to provide veteran leadership for a rotation that figures to be among the youngest in baseball. Brad Keller had been the elder statesman at 26 years old, while Brady Singer, Kris Bubic, Daniel Lynch, Carlos Hernandez and Jackson Kowar are even younger.

The Royals did announce one move on Wednesday, trading starting pitcher Mike Minor and cash considerations to the Cincinnati Reds for left-handed reliever Amir Garrett.

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