Cardinals Veteran Starter Could Be Fit For Royals After Strong 2024
The Kansas City Royals were largely carried by a strong starting rotation in 2024. Cole Ragans, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Brady Singer helped carry the team to its first postseason appearance since 2015.
However, they may lose Wacha, who has a player option for 2025 that he is expected to decline. If he goes, they'll need to fill that spot in the rotation, even with Ragans, Lugo, and Singer still in the mix.
Perhaps if they are looking to fill a rotation spot, they could turn to another reliable source of veteran innings, St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Lance Lynn.
Lynn has an $11 million club option for 2025 that the Cardinals are expected to decline, according to Katie Woo of The Athletic. He made 23 starts for St. Louis in his second go-around with the team, going 7-4 with a 3.84 ERA.
Spotrac predicts he'll land a one-year, $7.6 million contract in free agency this winter. That shouldn't be out of the Royals preferred price range, especially if they want to remain competitive in 2025.
One thing they'll have to be cognizant of is that the veteran right-hander will be turning 38 next May. He also made two trips to the injured list due to knee inflammation, so they'll want to be careful in that regard.
However, when he was healthy, he gave the Cardinals exactly what they needed, and he could do the same for the Royals if he can put his knee issues behind him.
We'll see if they target the right-hander.
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Curt Bishop is a freelance sports writer who graduated from Maryville University of St. Louis with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the field of Communication and currently writes as a contributor for various platforms covering Major League Baseball. Curt’s work includes covering trade and free agency predictions, as well as rumors and news.