Following a 100-loss season, the Kansas City Royals were determined to stabilize its starting rotation this winter. That led to a spending spree that brought in veteran arms to complement exciting young arms. The organization’s pitching development system has received criticism in recent years. However, it might be starting to pay off, as indicated by breakout starter Cole Ragans, being officially named as the team’s Opening Day starter earlier in the week.
Another potential win for the system came on Friday, as Royals manager Matt Quatraro revealed Alec Marsh as the team’s fifth starter. He beat out veteran Jordan Lyles and youngsters Angel Zerpa, Daniel Lynch IV and Anthony Veneziano. Lyles and Zerpa will pitch out of the bullpen while Lynch and Veneziano will start the season in Triple-A Omaha.
Updated Kansas City Royals Opening Day roster/depth chart projection:
•Alec Marsh (14 IP, 3 ER, 8 H, 4 BB, 17 K) will be in the starting rotation; Jordan Lyles moved to bullpen.
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Royals Starting Five for their Rotation
Quatraro told reporters that March won the job simply due to his excellent spring.
“It was a competition,” said Quatraro. “Marsh exceeded, in the spring, what we could have hoped for. Really just made that decision to put Jordan in the bullpen for how we thought we were going to put the best 13 together.”
In 14 spring innings, Marsh has pitched to a 1.93 ERA with 17 strikeouts and just four walks. The former second-round pick developed a sinker late in 2023 and has seen great results with it this spring. Although he struggled in 74 1/3 big league innings last year, Marsh might have found something with his new pitch.
As a veteran earning $8.5 million, Lyles might have entered camp as the favorite. However, he struggled mightily last season and the Royals have shown that they want to prioritize results and wins in 2024.
In two spring starts, Lyles pitched five innings while giving up eight hits, five runs and four homers. This comes following a season in which he led the league with 17 losses and produced an ERA+ of just 70. For now, he will pitch out of the bullpen likely as a swingman.
Royals Rotation Stabilizers
Behind Ragans, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Brady Singer expect to stabilize the rotation. Lugo (115 ERA+ in 146 1/3 innings) and Wacha (127 ERA+ in 134 1/3 innings) signed with the Royals this winter after pitching well with the San Diego Padres in 2023. While neither has ace potential, both should pitch well enough to keep the Royals in games. The team lacked starters with this ability last season.
Singer followed up a promising 2022 with a horrendous 2023. However, the influx of veterans should take some pressure off Singer and allow him to get back to his 2022 production. The former first-round pick contains the highest upside of the trio and should join Ragans atop the rotation. If so, the Royals might feature one of the best rotation duos in MLB in a weak American League Central.
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