Royals could find their next breakout player in this overlooked prospect

This may be shocking news to even the most diehard of baseball fans, but you can’t win ball games if you can’t stop your opponent from scoring runs. Okay, maybe not shocking news, but it’s a concept that the Kansas City Royals’ bullpen had a hard time wrapping their head around in 2026.

It’s one reason that the team struggled so much this season. Luckily for the Royals, they have a nearly un-hittable relief pitcher in the minor leagues that could become their next breakout star. 

With a devastating arsenal of swing and miss stuff, L.P. Langevin could become a factor for the Royals sooner rather than later. Drafted by the club in the fourth round of the 2024 MLB Draft, Langevin hasn’t had the smoothest development over the last two seasons, but it appears that the right-handed pitcher is finally putting it all together.   

According to MLB Pipeline, Langevin is the club’s 30th best prospect in their minor league system. Equipped with a 70-grade fastball that can sit in the mid-90s with off-the-chart spin rates, Langevin excels at getting batters to whiff. It’s why he was the recipient of the Dan Quisenberry Reliever of the Year award at the end of the season, given out to the top reliever in the Royals’ system. 

The arrival of a top-flight reliever would certainly be a welcomed sight for Royals fans. Boasting the third-worst ERA in all of baseball, Royals’ relievers simply struggled to keep the team in ball games this season. A combined bullpen 5.12 ERA was certainly not a recipe for success for Kansas City all year. 

Pitchers Lucas Erceg, Alex Lange, and Matt Strahm all endured the worst seasons of their careers in 2026. Thanks to coughing up 104 earned runs in just 144 innings of work, the three relievers were worth a combined bWAR of -3.5. With Strahm designated for assignment in August and Lange and Erceg’s future’s with the club in jeopardy, there will be multiple openings in the Royals’ bullpen next season. That might just give Langevin his first shot in the big leagues.  

L.P. Langevin just needs to clear one hurdle in order to be ready to go for the Royals 

Although Langevin has only gotten as far as High-A in the Royals’ minor league system, he has the type of stuff that could help him quickly ascend through the higher levels. However, there is one major drawback in his game that could prevent him from reaching that potential. With 35-grade control, Langevin’s lack of command has been widely noted by scouts for years. 

Through his first two seasons in the minors, Langevin boasts a career walks per nine rate of 7.2. Regardless of what kind of stuff a pitcher has, that is simply unsustainable. The 23-year-old saw some encouraging signs of progression with his control in 2026 though. In 40 appearances for High-A Quad Cities this season, Langevin walked a modest 39 batters in 55.1 innings. That’s a somewhat improved BB/9 rate of 6.3. 

It’s not great, but it shows that Langevin is beginning to hone in on locating his stuff. But the only reason that the Royals would be willing to put up with such a wild pitcher is the fact that he struck out 106 batters in those 55.1 innings. That’s a strike out per nine rate of 17.2, nearly a full strikeout more than San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller this season.  

Whenever you’re out-Mason Miller-ing Mason Miller, you know that you’re doing something right. While that K/9 rate may not completely translate into the higher minor league levels and even in the big leagues, he has the potential to be an absolute game-changer for the Royals.

Not to be outdone, Langevin surrendered just 27 hits on the season. Allowing one hit every four or five innings is about as good as it gets when it comes to a reliever. It’s why his WHIP was just 1.193 in 2026 despite the enormous amount of walks. 

With the well-documented struggles of the Royals’ bullpen this season, a pitcher with the potential of Langevin could completely change how opposing teams approach each matchup. While it’s not likely that he’d immediately jump to the majors to start the 2027 season, don’t be surprised if he earns a promotion later in the year. 

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