Continuity breeds confidence for Royals' 2025 rotation

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- As Royals pitchers and catchers headed out to the backfields for their first official workout of Spring Training on Wednesday, there were familiar faces everywhere.

For the pitchers especially, that¡¯s a good thing.

The Royals largely return the same pitching staff that was one of their strengths from 2024, when their starting rotation's 3.55 ERA ranked second best in the Majors. The notable departure is starter Brady Singer, whom the Royals traded to the Reds in November for their new leadoff hitter Jonathan India and outfielder Joey Wiemer.

Otherwise, the Royals were able to ensure Michael Wacha¡¯s return with a new three-year deal and brought back Michael Lorenzen on a one-year deal. Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans return atop the rotation looking to repeat their success after tallying second- and fourth-place finishes in the American League Cy Young Award voting.

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¡°It should breed some confidence, and then it¡¯s also like, ¡®What did we do well and what can we improve upon?¡¯¡± pitching coach Brian Sweeney said. ¡°That¡¯s what the offseason is for, that¡¯s what Spring Training is for, and that¡¯s what we¡¯re focusing on.¡±

¡°Just from a communications standpoint, that¡¯s about the closest rotation I¡¯ve been a part of,¡± added Lugo. ¡°¡­ It looks like everyone¡¯s throwing well from what I¡¯ve seen the last couple of days. Excited to get going and see where we line up when the hitters get in the box.¡±

There¡¯s one spot remaining, though, for one of the biggest competitions this spring: the fifth starter. The Royals have around 14 pitchers building up as starters at the start of camp, although the frontrunners for the last rotation spot are limited to just a few names.

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¡°How cool is that, that we have really tough decisions to make?¡± Sweeney said. ¡°We have some really good pitchers in camp. They¡¯re good at their job, and we¡¯re just going to let those guys compete. Let those guys go out there and do their thing. They know what¡¯s at stake. They know what¡¯s going on. They see what the team looks like. Let them go compete and have some fun.¡±

Already the field has narrowed some with an injury update on Wednesday. Alec Marsh, seen as one of the frontrunners for a rotation spot after he made 25 starts last season with Kansas City, entered camp delayed in his throwing progression because of right shoulder soreness he experienced this offseason.

Marsh is back on track with his progression and throwing every day, but he will be behind the others when it comes to facing hitters. That might delay how built up he is at the end of camp, but overall the concern level is minimal right now.

¡°We¡¯re going to take it a week at a time here, not put a timetable on anything,¡± Marsh said. ¡°I don¡¯t have a crystal ball, so I don¡¯t know what it looks like in the future. But we¡¯re going to attack it as best we can, as fast as we can, and I want to be out there competing with these guys as soon as I can.¡±

How that impacts the rotation competition remains to be seen, but it might give the edge to Kris Bubic or Daniel Lynch IV. Kyle Wright is also in that mix, although he will be closely monitored after not pitching last season due to the right shoulder surgery he had in November 2023.

¡°We¡¯re going to continue to build them up, and then at some point, we¡¯re going to have to make a decision,¡± manager Matt Quatraro said. ¡°We saw how well [Bubic and Lynch] did out of the bullpen last year. Health is a huge part of this, and understanding that we have guys that can do both. ¡­ That depth, and all those guys being willing to do what it takes to help us win, is going to be helpful.¡±

Because of the success last year, internal and external expectations have been raised, and the competition is a good thing, Bubic said. The atmosphere on Day 1 of camp reinforced that -- with talk of last year limited as the focus shifted to 2025.

¡°Everybody¡¯s on the same page in terms of what we expect from ourselves,¡± Bubic said. ¡°Attacking the zone, trusting our stuff, that stuff remains key year to year. It never changes. We¡¯re excited to see how it plays out. We saw last year that pitching and defense can take us a long way. We¡¯re excited to showcase that again.¡±