This duo of White Sox castoffs could address both present and future Royals issues

When fans look for their teams to improve in the offseason, the players a last-place team moves on from are usually not the fertile ground for another team’s solution.

With the non-tender deadline passing last week, there are plenty of new free agents to explore and inspect for the Kansas City Royals and 29 other teams. But it is their division rival, the Chicago White Sox, that had a pair of non-tendered players who should pique the Royals’ interest: outfielder Mike Tauchman and first baseman Tim Elko.

The White Sox improved from their 2024 lows in 2025, but the franchise is still deeply flawed. Former Royals player Chris Getz is still trying to turn things around as general manager, but a below-average payroll will make his difficult job even more so.

That financial aspect is likely what led to non-tendering Tauchman, who was projected to make $3.4 million in arbitration. The White Sox were able to sign the journeyman for nearly half that in 2025, so they could explore a reunion below that projected dollar amount.

But the Illinois native had a solid season with the White Sox, with a 1.9 bWAR and .756 OPS that would have helped Kansas City nicely in the outfield. Ultimately, he only played in 93 games thanks to injury, but he was a bright spot for the bleak White Sox.

His recovery from knee surgery ended his season and went into the winter, so perhaps medical concerns factored into this decision.

Injury also shaped Elko’s 2025 season, with a diagnosed sprain in July limiting him to only three more MLB games in the season.

Elko ranked among the league’s best in hard-hit rate and bat speed, but struggled to translate that to real-world results and struck out 30 times in 72 plate appearances. Elko will be 27 on Opening Day, but his MLB outlook was only further delayed when a knee surgery in late October repaired a torn ACL and sidelined him for an estimated eight months, according to MLB.com’s Scott Merkin.

Considering he is an older player with some glaring red flags, his non-tender was not a major surprise to clear a 40-man roster spot.

Why should Kansas City want a pair of White Sox castoffs?

Let’s look at Elko first.

Listen, Kansas City should be set at first base for quite some time with Vinnie Pasquantino at the helm and Salvador Perez and Jac Caglianone being options there if push comes to shove.

But Cavan Biggio starting at first base this past Opening Day and former first-rounder Nick Pratto being a minor-league free agent should remind fans how desperately shallow the Royals are at first base.

If the season started today, FanGraphs projects Brett Squires as the Triple-A Omaha starting first baseman. While Squires has some tools to like, he is not the option Kansas City should turn to if the worst comes.

Elko will likely not be a factor in 2026, but if he is, then it will be later on in the season when the injuries and fatigue usually become a factor. Best-case scenario, Elko is ready for Triple-A action in July or August.

With that in mind, I think Elko could land with a team on a two-year minor-league deal, with a fully healthy 2026 offseason being key. Kansas City doesn’t have any first base prospects surging up the pipeline, so Elko isn’t potentially blocking anyone and if he eventually does, Kansas City doesn’t have too much invested in him.

This is a long-term play, but if Kansas City believes they can limit the strikeouts and find that blend of decent contact rates with Elko’s power, then it is worth a shot.

Tauchman is more for 2026 and 2026 alone. He is far from the household name or splashy move that Royals fans want, but he addresses the floor. He draws a fair amount of walks, with an 11.7% walk rate in 2025 and a career 12.6% rate.

Tauchman outperformed his expected numbers slightly, but his 115 wRC+ last season would have been a revelation in Kansas City and vastly outpaced every Royals outfielder not named Mike Yastrzemski. He also does not suffer from a chasm in his 2025 platoon splits, with only 24 points separating his OPS against righties (.752) and lefties (.776).

Tauchman isn’t the everyday left fielder, but helps in right field with an average glove, floating his value some more. He could be something more akin to what Kansas City hoped Mark Canha would be in 2025, with the ceiling being what Yastrzemski was after he joined the Royals last summer.

Ultimately, these are budget moves to bring two free agents to the Royals. Tauchman and Elko are not the players that will push Kansas City back into a pennant race conversation, but they both address some question marks in the Royals organization.

Elko and Tauchman are just two players that can help with Kansas City’s depth in 2026 and beyond, so it will be interesting to see what Kansas City prioritizes as they look to build a postseason-caliber roster for 2026.