Kris

Bubic

In the wake of Brady Singer being shipped to Cincinnati, Bubic will get a shot in Kansas City’s starting rotation after pitching exclusively in relief last season following his return from Tommy John surgery. The 27-year-old lefty excelled in shorter bursts out of the bullpen, finishing with a sparkling 2.67 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 39/5 K/BB ratio across 30 1/3 innings (27 appearances). The central question for fantasy purposes is whether Bubic will come remotely close to replicating last year’s astronomical 32 percent strikeout rate as a traditional starter after never topping 25 percent in any of his previous four seasons at the highest level. He’ll have to beat out Kyle Wright and Alec Marsh in spring training, and will also likely have an innings limit in his first full season back from Tommy John. However, last year’s transition to a fastball/slider combo, while also mixing in the occasional changeup, gives him a shot a continuing to miss bats, and could make him a viable early-season streaming option for fantasy purposes. He certainly fits the bill as a deep sleeper heading into spring training.

It was kind of disappointing to see Bubic only utilized as a reliever in the majors this year after looking like he was taking a step forward as a starter before requiring Tommy John surgery in early 2023. He did, however, prove to be excellent out of the Royals pen, finishing with a 2.67 ERA and a 39/5 K/BB in 30 1/3 innings. The K/BB should have been even better... three of those five walks he issued were intentional. He’ll certainly be on the postseason roster.

It’s notable for fantasy purposes that Royals manager Matt Quatraro told reporters afterwards that Kris Bubic would’ve gotten the save chance, had one arisen, after Lucas Erceg faced the top of the Cardinals’ lineup in the seventh inning. It’ll most likely be Erceg getting the highest leverage situations, and possibly some save chances, if Harvey remains unavailable for a couple days.

The 26-year-old southpaw will work out of the Royals’ bullpen for the time being as he continues to work his way back from Tommy John surgery. Bubic logged 35 2/3 innings on his minor league rehab assignment, registering a 3.53 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and a 42/13 K/BB ratio. Walter Pennington was optioned to Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move on Saturday.

Bubic has been effective in his rehab, especially since moving up to Triple-A; he has a 2.14 ERA and a 23/8 K/BB ratio in 21 innings over five starts for Omaha. It’s kind of surprising that the Royals are going this route, since while Bubic isn’t necessarily better than any of members of their rotation at the moment, he certainly seems like a superior option to any of the other candidates to be called on next time a starter goes down, and he does have an option remaining. Alec Marsh also has options and a 6.61 ERA in his last six starts.

Bubic struck out three and also issued three walks, needing 84 pitches (52 strikes) to complete four frames. The 26-year-old lefty’s minor league rehab assignment is up after this latest outing and it appears he’ll rejoin Kansas City’s starting rotation mix at some point next week. The big question for fantasy managers is whether he can come close to re-discovering the form that was starting to make him an intriguing option prior to undergoing Tommy John surgery.

That’s time for him to make two more starts. Bubic has thus far made seven starts in the minors, the last two of which have seen him total 7 2/3 scoreless innings for Triple-A Omaha. He does have an option year left, so the Royals could leave him in Triple-A when the rehab assignment expires.

The lefty allowed just one hit and walked one while striking out seven batters on 63 pitches. Bubic had made two starts at Double-A before this one and is building towards his return to the big league roster. It’s possible he will make another start or two in Triple-A since there is no immediate spot open in the Royals’ rotation, but Bubic looked sharp in this start.

The 26-year-old made two starts at Double-A, throwing five innings and allowing five runs on six hits while striking out five and walking one. Bubic is making his way back from Tommy John surgery last April, so the Royals will likely have him make a few starts in Triple-A to build up his pitch count before being called up.

It’ll be Bubic’s first outing outside of a trio of Rookie-level Arizona Complex League appearances earlier this month, since undergoing Tommy John surgery last April. The 26-year-old southpaw will presumably take a few weeks ramping up in the upper minors before he’s an option for Kansas City’s starting rotation mix. Fantasy managers should employ a wait-and-see approach, but he showed some encouraging signs last year prior to getting hurt.