Royals Set Starting Rotation as Competition is Solidified

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.