This story was excerpted from Anne Rogers’ Royals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
KANSAS CITY – Recently, Noah Cameron feels like he’s in a video game. His controller is the PitchCom device attached to his hip. He clicks the buttons corresponding to each pitch as he visualizes where he wants the ball to go. In this recent stretch of games, the ball is pretty much going exactly where Cameron wants it to go.
“It feels like I’m playing a video game now more than ever because I’m literally clicking buttons and calling the pitch,” Cameron said. “Kind of feels like MLB: The Show.”
Obviously, the stakes of what Cameron does on the big league mound are much higher than a video game. But he is putting up video game numbers right now, having allowed just one run on six hits in his last 23 innings, starting with his seven-inning appearance on July 24 in Detroit.
This comes on the heels of a seven-game stretch in which Cameron posted a 7.97 ERA. His season ERA entering July 24 was 5.27. And it was coming at a time in which the Royals needed him to step up; all the injuries they’ve endured have wiped out their pitching depth. They needed Cameron on the mound every fifth day, but every fifth day was proving to be a grind.
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The turning point came on July 19 against the Padres, when Cameron allowed seven earned runs in five innings. The next outing, the Royals used an opener in front of Cameron.
“I was pitching myself out of my role, pitching myself out of the big leagues at that point,” Cameron said. “I was pitching myself into getting optioned. Obviously, we had a lot of injuries and stuff that helped me stay up here, which sucks because I’d rather be pitching well and everyone be healthy. But then they opened for me, and they presented it just like we were changing it up. I understood, but I had a little chip on my shoulder.
“I take everything seriously, but I needed to turn things around and throw better. That doesn’t mean I need to go 23 innings with one run, although that is nice for sure, but I just need to have quality outings to help the team and show them I can pitch here.”
Beck Way opened against the Tigers, throwing the first inning, but Cameron was dominant that night, as he went seven scoreless innings to complete the game. He revealed after the game that he decided to call his own pitches, insistent that it had nothing to do with his catchers; he just wanted to take control from the mound.
Everyone was on board, and if they weren’t right away, they are now; Cameron’s conviction on the mound is undeniable, and it has a lot to do with calling his own game.
“If this was a different guy who didn’t do his homework like Noah does – he’s very prepared,” pitching coach Brian Sweeney said. “And a man convicted on the mound is a man I want throwing the baseball.”
Cameron added that the pitch calling has more to do with his mentality than the actual game plan; his style hasn’t changed, and he and the catchers are all on the same page. If a catcher feels particularly strong about a pitch, Cameron wants them to call it. Salvador Perez has caught all three of Cameron’s recent appearances and only called a different pitch twice. On July 30 in Minnesota, Cameron wanted to throw a slider to Alex Jackson, but Perez wanted a changeup because Jackson’s swings didn’t look good on any of Cameron’s previous changeups. Sure enough: Strikeout swinging on a changeup.
On Wednesday against the Twins, Cameron thought about a two-strike fastball to Austin Martin in the eighth inning, but Perez insisted on a slider. Sure enough: Strikeout swinging on a slider.
“The style isn’t changing – it really is just more mindset for me,” Cameron said. “I think it’s just when I call a pitch now, it’s just more quality. When I call it, I already have good thoughts and confidence in my head of the pitch.”
The pitch calling is part of Cameron’s revival, but his slider has also become a weapon again, after he’s found a feel for it and committed to using it more. Through his first 19 starts this year, Cameron threw his slider only 9.7% of the time and averaged 85 mph. He wasn’t throwing it as hard, and it was blending with his cutter.
But he and the Royals know that when he’s throwing the slider more, he pitches better. It opens up the rest of his arsenal. As Cameron kept working on it in the bullpen and in games, the feel came back. In these last three appearances, the usage has gone up to 16.3% and averaged 85.5 mph.
“He’s a guy that has to mix it, right?” Sweeney said. “He’s not going to just throw fastballs all game. We had to get [the slider] back in the mix. Even if it’s not the shape you want, it’s one of those platoon-neutral pitches that you can use on both sides that’s just going to open up areas for your curveball, for your cutter, for your changeup.”
Cameron looks a lot more like what we saw from him during his 2025 rookie campaign, and he needs to finish this season as strong as possible. The Royals are going to need him in ‘27. Their injury issue isn’t going away, and they have a lot of work to do to backfill that depth.
Cameron needs to be a starter they can continue to rely on.
“He had that rough stretch, but we all go through those phases,” second baseman Michael Massey said. “This game, at this level, is too difficult to not face those challenges. What you’re really looking at is a guy that, when he does face those challenges, how does he respond? And clearly, he’s responded really well.”
