3 sensible Royals trade candidates if KC needs to shed payroll

The Kansas City Royals have likely had the best offseason so far among AL Central teams. The club has aggressively addressed some outfield issues, trading for Isaac Collins and signing Lane Thomas, while also adding bullpen reinforcements with old friend Matt Strahm and right-hander Nick Mears.

The momentum since the Winter Meetings felt like it was reaching critical mass, edging closer to a major trade that would calm any lingering unease from fans. Then, The Athletic tossed a cold glass of water on the whole thing.

After trading for Strahm, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that “shedding payroll still might be necessary for the Royals to acquire one more hitter.” That may not be easy to do, considering Kansas City lacks any true albatross contracts and already has a below-average Opening Day payroll outlook.

But this is the reality of being a small-market team in modern baseball, especially with the uncertainty surrounding FanDuel Sports Network and future revenue streams.

So let’s lean into what Rosenthal’s sources suggested. If Kansas City really does have to both identify who to trade away for a Jarren Duran or a Brendan Donovan and figure out how to fit those salaries onto the ledger, who are the logical candidates to move?

Here are a few names that make sense to at least entertain.

LHP Kris Bubic

2026 salary: $6 million (projected)

One of Kansas City’s most popular trade chips is also one of the cleanest ways to meaningfully trim payroll.

Lefty Kris Bubic put together an All-Star season in 2025, even if it was cut short by another injury. The Stanford product made 20 starts for the Royals, posting a 2.55 ERA and 2.89 FIP across 116.1 innings. It was a strong follow-up to his dazzling foray into the bullpen in 2024, when he performed like one of the American League’s best relief options.

The problem is durability and timing. Bubic hasn’t thrown more than 130 innings in a season and hasn’t had a fully healthy year since 2022. He’s entering his final year of team control, and nothing about his trajectory screams “obvious extension candidate” for a cost-conscious club.

With the current going rate for starting pitching, the Royals shouldn’t have trouble finding a suitor. The real question is whether another team is willing to pay for the 2024-25 version of Bubic while the Royals quietly worry about what comes next.

LHP Bailey Falter

2026 salary: $3.3 million (projected)

It was somewhat surprising that Kansas City tendered former Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Bailey Falter a contract this offseason. The Royals did trade for Falter at the 2025 deadline, but his four-game body of work did not exactly scream “future rotation piece.”

He was a serviceable fifth starter for Pittsburgh, then imploded in Royal blue with an 11.25 ERA and 5.22 FIP over 12 innings. A late-season IL stint derailed any shot at a clean first impression.

Falter’s calling card is volume, not upside. He tossed a career-high 142.1 innings in 2024, and there’s value in someone who can just take the ball every fifth day. Kansas City, though, is no longer in the “just eat innings” phase. They have a deeper pool of starting options who could do more than tread water.

Falter also has no minor-league options remaining, and the Royals are already juggling a tight group of option-flexible relievers heading into 2026. From a roster-construction standpoint, he’s already in a bit of a squeeze.

Moving Falter wouldn’t drastically change the Royals’ 2026 outlook on the field, but it would free up a few million dollars and clear one more roster logjam. Kansas City could absolutely surprise people and turn Falter around, but right now his projected salary looks like something another club should pay to see if there’s another level.

2B Jonathan India

2026 salary: $8 million (projected)

If Kansas City knew payroll would be tight, why commit $8 million to Jonathan India? That question has hung in the air ever since Rosenthal’s report, and multiple insiders have characterized India’s one-year deal as a surprise. The free-agent market for second basemen wasn’t exactly inspiring, but India was coming off the worst season of his career and still ended up as a key part of the Royals’ infield puzzle.

India bounced all over the diamond in his first season in Kansas City and only settled in once he moved back to his natural second base. Even then, he never really found a gear that matched the name value.

He wasn’t a disaster, but he also wasn’t clearly better than the internal alternatives, caught in that frustrating middle ground of “not bad enough to bench, not good enough to build around.” MLB.com’s Anne Rogers detailed how India struggled with the transition to a new team and role, and there’s absolutely a human element to consider.

On paper, though, the stat line and the salary point in the same direction: if the Royals truly need to create room for one more impact bat, India is the clearest candidate. Moving him would hurt less than dealing a core arm, free up a meaningful chunk of payroll, and open second base for one of the many internal options already crowding the depth chart.

If it really comes down to keeping India or taking a real swing at a lineup-changing hitter, that choice feels pretty straightforward.