KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals’ starting rotation is now seemingly set after a handful of moves on Tuesday evening.
Most notably, the Royals decided to option right-handed pitcher Ryan Bergert to AAA Omaha. This means that, as expected, the Royals’ five-man rotation will begin the season with LHP Cole Ragans on opening day, followed by RHP Seth Lugo, RHP Michael Wacha, LHP Kris Bucic and LHP Noah Cameron.
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Bergert’s move to AAA is a sign of both the Royals’ pitching depth and the club’s belief that his value comes from his ability to start. Thus, he’ll likely be the Storm Chasers number one starter to begin the year.
This also allows KC to be quite flexible; after the Royals’ starters dealt with injuries throughout the 2025 season, Bergert will serve as a more-than-viable option to be called up if one of the Royals’ five starters goes down at any point.
The move also gives RHP Luinder Avila a good shot at filling the last bullpen spot for KC as well. After pitching well for the World Baseball Classic (WBC) champion Team Venezuela, Avila would then have the chance to provide value out of the bullpen in KC after being called up last season.
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Bergert’s option wasn’t the only move the Royals made, though. RHP Mason Black, OF John Rave and OF Kameron Misner were also optioned to AAA, meaning the Royals are getting close to having the official 26-man roster ready to go.
Among those competing for the last spot on KC’s bench are UTL Nick Loftin, OF Tyler Tolbert and UTL Josh Rojas. All three bring a unique skillset to the table: Tolbert with his speed and ability to steal bases, Loftin’s ability to play a wide variety of positions and Rojas, with similar utility and good numbers this spring.
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