Ángel David Zerpa (born September 27, 1999) is a Venezuelan professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

for the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2021.

Career

Zerpa signed with the

as an international free agent in 2016 for a $100,000

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

. Zerpa made his professional debut in 2017 with the Dominican Summer League Royals, going 3–4 with a 1.84 ERA and 39 strikeouts over innings. He spent the 2018 season with the

Arizona League Royals The Arizona Complex League Royals are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona. The team is compose ...

, going 3–6 with a 3.88 ERA and 34 strikeouts over innings. Zerpa split the 2019 season between the

Burlington Royals The Burlington Royals were a minor league baseball team in Burlington, North Carolina, United States. They were a Rookie-level team in the Appalachian League. The team was affiliated with the Cleveland Indians from 1986 to 2006 as the Burlington ...

and the

Idaho Falls Chukars The Idaho Falls Chukars are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and play their home games at Melaleu ...

, going a combined 6–3 with a 3.40 ERA and 55 strikeouts over innings. He did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. On November 20, 2020, Zerpa was added to the Royals 40–man roster. Zerpa split the 2021 minor league season between the

Quad Cities River Bandits The Quad Cities River Bandits are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. Their home games are played at Modern Woodmen Park (formerly John O'Donnell Stadium) in Davenport, Iowa, on ...

, the

Northwest Arkansas Naturals The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springdale, Arkansas, Springdale, Arkansas. The team is a member of the Texas League, and serves as the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. T ...

, and the

Omaha Storm Chasers The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, Nebraska, Omah ...

, going a combined 4–4 with a 4.58 ERA and 108 strikeouts over innings. On September 30, 2021, Zerpa was recalled to the active roster to make his MLB debut as the starting pitcher versus the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

. In 2022, Zerpa made 3 appearances (2 starts) for the Royals, logging a 2-1 record and 1.64 ERA with 3 strikeouts in 11.0 innings pitched. In 19 starts split between Northwest Arkansas and Omaha, Zerpa posted a 2-5 record and 4.02 ERA with 69 strikeouts in 71.2 innings of work. He was placed on the 60-day injured list on August 2 with a small tear in his

patellar tendon The patellar tendon is the distal portion of the common tendon of the quadriceps femoris, which is continued from the patella to the tibial tuberosity. It is also sometimes called the patellar ligament as it forms a bone to bone connection whe ...

, and missed the remainder of the year. On March 15, 2023, Zerpa was placed on the 60-day injured list with left shoulder

tendinopathy Tendinopathy is a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow ( tenn ...

. He was activated on July 14, and subsequently optioned to Triple–A Omaha.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zerpa, Ángel 1999 births Living people Arizona League Royals players Burlington Royals players Dominican Summer League Royals players Idaho Falls Chukars players Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Northwest Arkansas Naturals players Omaha Storm Chasers players People from Valle de la Pascua Quad Cities River Bandits players Sportspeople from Guárico Tiburones de La Guaira players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States