ESPN insider's latest evaluation of pitching market should be music to Royals' ears

Kansas City's starting pitching surplus has been the talk of the town among the Royals faithful this offseason, as they wait and see how J.J. Picollo and the front office narrow down the staff.

While some teams might be focusing on landing the seemingly unattainable Cole Ragans at the moment, there's certainly been reported interest in other Royals starters who seem much more gettable.

The one issue the league has been facing as a whole this winter has been a slow pitching market, specifically at the top.

Other than Dylan Cease signing with the Blue Jays last month, the game-changing, "domino-effect" free agent starters still remain in the board, which doesn't bode well for teams like the Royals looking to potentially capitalize on promising arms like Kris Bubic for example, who seem like consolation prize-type hurlers for those that miss out on say a Framber Valdez, Ranger Suarez, Zac Gallen or Michael King.

However, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan, the top-level pitching market may be slow now, but could be "about to warm up".

Hot pitching market will hopefully open the door for Royals to address their pitching surplus

"Once Cease got paid on Thanksgiving Eve, the market for the best starting pitchers looked like it would be bountiful for all to follow," Passan wrote. "In the three weeks since, none from the higher-end group -- Framber Valdez, Tatsuya Imai, Ranger Suarez, Michael King and Zach King -- has signed."

"That could change soon, sources said," he also wrote.

Passan went on to share some details about what some teams might be seeking a top-line starter, one of which could be favorable for Kansas City and trading a name like Kris Bubic in his final year of team control.

"The Mets gladly will spend on one if the years are short," Passan wrote.

On top of that, there are plenty of teams Passan listed that that may have less term term restrictions than a team like the Mets, including the Orioles, Yankees, Astros and Cubs. Perhaps if they don't land one of the four or five top names, an All-Star arm like Bubic might become more intriguing.

Regardless though Passan reiterated that things may be slow now in the pitching market, it's not a representation of a lack of interest.

"What's clear is that even if the Cease deal didn't create an immediate waterfall effect, the desire for pitching remains acute, as evidenced by a tier down from the top," Passan wrote.

At the moment, there seems to be some hesitation on a name like Bubic, given his limited remaining team control and his shoulder injury in 2025 which ended his season prematurely, that's prompted some, including to Passan, to question whether or not he'll actually end up moving this winter.

That being said, the later the offseason goes and the more names that come off the board, those left in the dark can't afford to be as selective as they are now.

And when that time inevitably comes, an All-Star southpaw with a 2.55 ERA wouldn't represent a bad rotation option at all, regardless of any reasons for hesitancy some teams might currently have with him.