This bargain free agent could fill a glaring roster hole on the Royals roster

Pitching wins championships. It sounds cliché and can certainly be annoying to hear every single season. But after every one of those seasons, that old adage is almost always proven to be true. Just ask the Kansas City Royals. After seeing the pitching staff decimated with injuries, the team experienced a real setback from its successful run in 2024 and 2025. 

But it’s not all doom and gloom for the young team. With some scrounging around inside the bargain bin in free agency, the Royals could find themselves heading in the right direction once again. While a pitcher like Cal Quantrill won’t make headlines or be the difference maker in 2027, his versatility could go a long way for Kansas City. 

Quantrill enjoyed a resurgence with the Texas Rangers in 2026. He posted a 1.5 fWAR season in 110 innings, nearly equalling his fWAR over the last three seasons combined. Although Quantrill put in a strong showing in 2026, he remains near the back of the pack of starting pitchers in free agency. With the experience of starting games and coming out of the pen, he could offer the Royals a steady arm on an affordable deal. 

He’s not guaranteed to duplicate the same level of success next season, but he could be considered a low-risk, high-reward arm for a team in desperate need to repair its tattered pitching staff. 

Cal Quantrill could help re-establish the Royals as contenders in the AL Central

After enjoying two very strong seasons with the Cleveland Guardians in 2021 and 2022, Quantrill found himself battling through immense struggles on the mound over the next three seasons. The right-handed pitcher fell victim to a seemingly endless stream of opposing lineups teeing off on him. With a 6.04 ERA and 5.14 FIP in 117.2 innings pitched in 2025, it seemed as if Quantrill may have reached the end of the road in his career. 

With nothing to lose, the Rangers signed Quantrill to a one-year, $1.25 million minor-league deal in 2026. The 31-year-old began the year in Triple-A Round Rock, but he soon found himself in the Rangers’ bullpen by mid-April, offering the team a decent innings-eater. By June, he replaced an injured Jack Leiter in the Rangers' starting rotation. 

In 15 starts to close out his season, Quantrill threw 76.2 innings, striking out 61 and walking just 12. He boasted a low 2.47 ERA and 0.939 WHIP before going down with a right lat strain in late-September. Although he was placed on the 60-day IL, there’s no reason to believe that his injury will linger into the 2027 season. 

Quantrill wouldn’t join the Royals as a potential ace, but he could provide innings, stability, and versatility for a team that could use all three. The Royals don’t need a savior. They just need quality players to right the ship after a forgettable 2026 season.  

With just 4.26 runs scored per game, the Royals were a below-average offensive club throughout the 2026 season. However, they led the league in doubles with 293 and even finished the season with the ninth most hits. So despite the struggles to bring runners home, the Royals can feel optimistic about the offense heading into 2027, especially with a number of young players who are expected to only improve with experience. 

Unfortunately, there is less optimism surrounding the club’s pitching staff. After surrendering an average of five runs a game in 2026, Royals pitchers ranked as the fifth worst in baseball. The staff also had a terrible time striking out opposing batters, notching just 1,173 punch outs in 1,424.1 innings of work, the third lowest in the league. 

Again, Quantrill won’t solve all of the Royals’ pitching woes. He also won’t pad the stat sheet with strikeouts and help the team in that department either. But he may be the kind of affordable pitcher that can keep the team in ballgames and get them back into AL Central contention.   

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