KC Royals Spring Training: Important dates, ticket prices, schedule

After a painful eight-season absence, the Kansas City Royals finally returned to the playoffs in 2024, and hope to do it again in 2025. The road back to October baseball won't be easy — the Royals still have weak spots to shore up before they host the Cleveland Guardians for the teams' March 27 regular season opener at Kauffman Stadium — but they begin that long trek in just a few short weeks.

Here's what to know as the club prepares to open the gates to spring camp.

When and where do the KC Royals begin spring training?

Pitchers and catchers will report to spring training on February 12, and other players will join them five days later on February 17. Exhibition games begin on February 21 and continue through March 25.

Kansas City will spend spring training at the Surprise, Arizona, complex they share with the Texas Rangers, and play home games — and those contests they serve as visitors to Texas — at 10,500 seat Surprise Stadium. The complex also includes multiple other fields and impressive training facilities.

Who will the Royals welcome to spring training?

Obviously, all members of the club's 40-man roster will attend spring training, but they'll also be joined by at least 23 non-roster invitees, who the Royals announced on social media on January 10.

Pitchers: Austin Cox, Tyson Guerrero, Ben Kudrna, Anthony Simonelli, Steven Zobac, Chandler Champlain, Andrew Hoffmann, Beck Way, Taylor Clarke, Junior Fernández

Catchers: Kyle Hayes, Omar Hernández, Carter Jensen, Blake Mitchell, Luca Tresh, Brian O’Keefe

Infielders: Jac Caglianone, Tyler Tolbert, Javier Vaz, Cam Devanney, Cavan Biggio

Outfielders: Gavin Cross, John Rave

The Royals can — and often do — add more non-roster players to camp as the spring progresses.

Who are some high-profile prospects who will be in camp?

Headlining the extensive list of top KC prospects in camp this year will be first baseman Jac Caglianone, catcher Blake Mitchell, and pitcher Ben Kudrna, who currently hold down spots as MLB Pipeline's top three Royal prospects.

Also deserving close scrutiny will be Cavan Biggio, Cam Devanney, and Tyler Tolbert, all of whom are notable for their versatility and may have shots at the Opening Day roster.

What position battles should KC Royals fans follow?

While Kansas City has some kind of question at every position and an always-uncertain outfield, two fights for starting spots should be especially intriguing.

The first is on the mound, where the Royals must fill the rotation spot they created in late November by trading Brady Singer to the Cincinnati Reds for infielder Jonathan India and outfielder Joey Wiemer. Competing to join Seth Lugo, Cole Ragans, Michael Wacha, and probably Kris Bubic in the rotation will be recently re-signed Michael Lorenzen, Alec Marsh, and Kyle Wright.

India will be involved in the other obvious position battle. Primarily a second baseman during his four-season Cincinnati career (he's spent some time at DH, but not any other defensive spot), expect him to lock horns with Michael Massey, the Royals' primary second-sacker who's manned the spot 248 times in his injury-marked three KC seasons.

What's the Cactus League season look like?

The Royals announced in August a packed 33-game exhibition schedule, including 31 Cactus League contests. The Cactus League slate begins on February 21 against Texas and concludes with another game with the Rangers on March 22.

The schedule also features a game between Royals prospects and Arizona Diamondbacks prospects on March 14, and two non-Cactus League tilts between KC and Texas on March 24 and 25 at Arlington's Globe Life Field, the Rangers' regular season home. Kansas City's complete exhibition schedule (with game times) starts here.

How can fans get tickets to KC Royals spring home games?

Fans can purchase single-game and half and full-season home contest ticket packages by clicking here. Depending on seat location, single-game tickets generally range in price from $40 to $50, half-season packages from $240-$600, and full-season tickets from $540-$1,050.