3 Royals whose roles in KC just changed after Brady Singer trade

On November 22, the Kansas City Royals surprised fans by trading starting pitcher Brady Singer to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for second baseman Jonathan India and outfielder Joey Wiemer. It was a major move to acquire a reliable leadoff batter before the 2025 season, and while India will likely to a great fit in that role, the transaction as a whole has shaken things up in Kansas City.

Here are three Royals players whose roles in Kansas City have changed after Singer's trade to the Reds.

Kris Bubic is likely to join the KC Royals' starting rotation

The top of the Royals' rotation is set for 2025, with Cole Ragans, Seth Lugo, and Michael Wacha locked in as arguably the best 1-2-3 punch in MLB. The backend is less certain, but with Brady Singer now vacating a spot, the door is wide open for Kris Bubic to step up.

Bubic began the 2023 season in the Royals' rotation, but his season ended after just three starts when he underwent Tommy John surgery. The 27-year-old wasn't reactivated from the IL until July 2024, and pitched out of the Royals' bullpen for the remainder of the 2024 season, earning a 2.67 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in 30.1 innings.

With Bubic now healthy, Royals general manager J.J. Picollo told reporters at the early-November GM Meetings that the front office saw him potentially returning as a starter next season.

"We’re very comfortable with our starting pitching right now," Picollo said. "You’ve got Wacha, Lugo, Ragans, Singer, Marsh. Kris Bubic was in the bullpen this past year, but we believe he’s a starter... We don’t expect to be in the market for a starter moving forward."

Picollo made those comments before Singer was traded away, so with there now being at least one vacant spot in the rotation, Bubic getting a shot at starting in 2025 is all but certain.