Royals hiring pitching assistant from elite college program signals step forward

The Kansas City Royals are coming off a season, that although disappointing overall, did feature numerous brights spots. And none were brighter than the work of the pitching of staff, especially the starting rotation.

Brian Sweeney and his crew helped build up this entire pitching unit to post the sixth lowest ERA in baseball last season at 3.73, with FIP, WHIP, BAA and BB% sitting comfortably within the top half of the league.

However, one of the key names behind such success, one of Sweeney’s right-hand men, will not be back in the fold for 2026, after assistant hitting coach Zach Bove left to take over the White Sox’s pitching coach role.

This meant the Royals needed to fill this vacant assistant role, and they did so in a unique manner that warrants plenty of reason to be excited about the future.

The team announced on Monday that they’d hired Mike McFerran to fill Bove’s shoes next season as assistant pitching coach.

Royals hiring Mike McFerran could spell great things for pitching staff’s future

McFerran spent the last two seasons within the Athletics organization. In 2024, he was the team’s pitching performance coach and then transitioned into their Minor League pitching coordinator last season.

What he’s better now for though is his time in the collegiate sphere. He was a jack-of-all-trades of sorts from 2017-2020 with DIII Skidmore College in New York, serving as the associate head coach, pitching coach and recruiting coordinator.

Then, he moved to the ACC powerhouse in Wake Forest where he was the pitching lab coordinator and director of player development between 2021 and 2023 before making the the leap to the A’s. This is where fans should probably get the most excited about McFerranconsidering the wealth of talent he worked with, such as the Top 100 prospect with the Reds, Rhett Lowder, as well as fellow first rounder and current Phillies farmhand Ryan Cusick and Rockies No. 12 overall prospect Sean Sullivan.

Between his work with Skidmore College, Wake Forest and the Athletics, there’s one thing that they all have in common; they’ve seen him primarily work with younger arms.

While Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha aren’t exactly drinking from the fountain of youth these days, the reality is, every other starting pitcher in the Royals rotation mix will be 28-years-old or younger on Opening Day.

Then, there’s the farm system, which is by no means one of the top in the league, but it does have it’s fair share of pitching bright spots will soon be pounding on the major league door soon enough.

Both Ben Kudrna and Steven Zobac could find themselves in the major leagues this season after they were added to the 40-man roster last week. Then, there’s prized arms of David Shields and Kendry Chourio, as well as to a lesser extent Drew Beam, who may not be a threat for the majors in 2026, but with another strong minor league season could be on call-up watch list starting in ’27.

The Royals pitching department already found ways to create young breakout sensations in 2025, with Kris Bubic rising to All-Star status and Noah Cameron finishing fourth in AL Rookie of the Year voting. So, now that they’ve added a great mind when it comes to working with young moldable arms in McFerran, it certainly signals that they’re willing to lean into the strong state of their pitching and better usher in the future.