Royals’ 2026 rotation competition narrows after latest spring training roster moves

With spring training well underway and the 2026 regular season less than three weeks away, the Kansas City Royals’ immense pitching depth seems likely to remain just that.

The likelihood of trading away a name like Kris Bubic seems incredibly unlikely this close to the season – and given the fact the signing of Starling Marte represents an upgrade to the lineup that many might’ve earmarked the Royals using their pitching depth to obtain.

So this means there’s been a bit of a pitching competition afoot this spring, specifically for the fifth starter role behind the likes of Bubic, as well as ace Cole Ragans and veterans Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha.

And on Saturday, the Royals limited the competition for the rotation by making a small wave of minor league demotions, which included a pair of new 40-man roster pieces in prospects Ben Kudrna and Steven Zobac.

Ben Kudrna, Steven Zobac demotions narrow Royals rotation competition in most unsurprising way

There’s no denying that of the Royals starting depth beyond their aforementioned front four, the duo of Kudrna and Zobac seemed to be inferior to the likes of major league proven talents in Noah Cameron, Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek, along with potential lengthy bullpen arms in Luinder Avila and Bailey Falter.

Simply put, when you’re a team with postseason contending ambitions, major league experience often is more favorable than prospect promise.

And with Kudrna and Zobac in particular, despite their addition to the 40-man roster, it seemed as though it was done more out of Rule 5 protection necessity than including them in their Opening Day plans, as the two still have plenty of developmental questions.

Kudrna is the most promising of the two, but after his late-season promotion to Triple-A Omaha in 2025, a 14.29 ERA and 2.74 WHIP proved there’s some work to be done at the highest level of the upper minors before Royals can consider him a rotation option. On top of that, his eight runs allowed in 3.1 innings of work this spring was uninspiring to say the least.

Then with Zobac, who despite not allowing a run so far this spring, an injury-riddled 2025 season stunted his development somewhat and also resulted in a poor 7.68 ERA and 1.90 WHIP showing in Double-A Northwest Arkansas. So, a return the Naturals to start 2026 is not a shock here and probably necessary.

Could Kudrna and Zobac get their time in the big league limelight at some point this season? Perhaps. The Royals faced plenty of pitching injuries last season so anything can happen.

But if anyone had to be the first on the chopping block among starters, these two were the likeliest of candidates.