The Royals still need pitching depth.
The Royals finished with the seventh-best ERA in baseball, in large part due to their two All-Star pitchers Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans, as well as strong performances from Michael Wacha and Brady Singer. They traded Singer away, but will still have some rotation depth with Kris Bubic expected to re-join the rotation after a year in the bullpen recovering from Tommy John surgery. Alec Marsh, Daniel Lynch IV, and prospect Noah Cameron could be other options to start. But GM J.J. Picollo has indicated he wants to add more pitching depth to hedge against injuries.
“We have to go into the season seven, eight, nine starting pitchers deep, because things happen during the year.”
That may mean dipping into free agency to find someone who can start or relieve depending on what the team needs. Here are some free agent options that could fill either role.
Tyler Alexander is a soft-tossing lefty who thows strikes with one of the lowest walk rates in baseball over the last three seasons. His 5.10 ERA last year wasn’t very good, but he was better as a starter (4.14) than as a reliever, much better on the road (4.03) than at home, and much better after returning from the minors in July (3.88 ERA in 51 innings over his last 12 games). He has a pretty deep arsenal, relying mostly on a cutter and sweeper with a sinker that generates a lot of flyballs that could play better at Kauffman Stadium.
Jakob Junis was drafted by the Royals and spent five years with the club, but seemed to leave on bad terms, although that was under the previous administration and coaching staff. He has a solid 3.80 ERA and 3.69 FIP in the three years since leaving Kansas City filling with 27 starts and 60 relief appearances. He had a 2.69 ERA this past season, walking just eight hitters in 67 innings. He has had trouble staying healthy in his career and his strikeout rates have been all over the map.
Michael Lorenzen was with the Royals last year, filling in nicely as a starter and post-season reliever. He finished with a 3.31 ERA in 130 1/3 innings in his time with the Rangers and Royals combined, and he was an All-Star in 2023 with the Tigers. He turns 33 in January and missed about a month last year with a hamstring strain. Still, he’s a perfect candidate for the back of the rotation that can pitch out of the pen if he struggles.
Martín Pérez is nearing the end of his lengthy career, but he may still have a bit more in the tank. He was an All-Star in 2022 but has a 4.49 ERA and 4.95 FIP over the last two seasons. He won’t strike many out, but he gets a lot of ground balls and he can eat some innings. The lefty turns 34 in early April and likely won’t command a high salary.
Colin Rea returned from a stint in Japan to post a 4.40 ERA and 4.82 FIP in 292 1⁄3 innings over the past two seasons with the Brewers. This past year he was having a pretty solid season until a 10-run blowup in a September start. The 34-year-old right-hander is a strike-thrower with a 6.5 percent walk rate over the last two years.
Drew Smyly had a decent 3.84 ERA but a 4.90 FIP this season, his first season since 2013 he didn’t make a single start. He can be a bit home-run-prone, although Kauffman Stadium could help him out in that regard, and he was fairly effective at avoiding a high barrel rate. He fares well against lefties, and could be solid if expectations aren’t too high on him.
Michael Soroka is one of the younger names on this list at age 27, and he could have more interest in his services due to a huge spike in strikeout rate this year But he still posted a 4.74 ERA and 4.95 FIP with high walk rates and small sample size caveats apply. Soroka was an All-Star in 2019, but has had some bad injury luck since then, so there is talent there if he can return to form.
Ross Stripling has the fourth-lowest walk rate in baseball over the last three seasons but with a 4.52 ERA and 17 percent strikeout rate over that time. The 35-year-old had a 6.01 ERA for the Athletics this year with the second-lowest strikeout rate for anyone with 80 innings pitched. He’s missed significant time the last two years with back issues, so he may not be able to be counted on.
Spencer Turnbull can’t seem to catch a break in his career. He led the league in losses in 2019 despite a solid 3.99 FIP, then pitched in 2020 only to have it be in a shortened year. He got off to a great start in 2021 only to need Tommy John surgery. He was pretty terrific with the Phillies this year with a 2.65 ERA in 54 1⁄3 innings, but he missed the final three months with a lat strain. The 32-year-old right-hander has a plus slider and yields a groundball rate around 50 percent for his career.
Alex Wood may not be ready for the start of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery late last year. The 33-year-old lefty has had a solid 12-year career, but he had a 5.26 ERA in just nine starts this season before his injury. He had a solid 4.33 ERA in 2023 with the Giants, but his strikeout rate has fallen significantly. Teams will probably need an indication on when he can return, so he may not sign until after the season begins.
Ryan Yarbrough pitched for the Royals in 2023 before they traded him to the Dodgers. He began the year in LA but was sent to the Blue Jays mid-season, posting a 3.19 ERA but 4.64 FIP in 98 2⁄3 innings overall this year. He doesn’t strike out many, but has historically had a very low walk rate, although he had a major spike this year to 2.9 per-nine-innings and was pretty BABIP-lucky.. The lefty turns 33 in a few weeks.
