Royals cut ties with pair of former highly regarded prospects ahead of 2026 season

When the Kansas City Royals announced their Opening Day rosters, there were not too many surprises about who would break camp with the team.

That is both a good and a bad thing, with so many positions shored up by high-caliber talent while others had little to no real competition in camp. That reality exists partly because of the talent deficit in Kansas City’s upper minor-league levels.

Drafting, signing, and developing talent takes years, and while the results of newer processes and philosophies are starting to work their way through the organization, that also means pushing out players another regime once invested in. That process is still playing out years later, and a pair of recent transactions reinforced that.

When the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Royals’ Triple-A affiliate, posted a thank-you message to pitcher Chandler Champlain, I wondered why the gratitude was necessary. After all, the 26-year-old had just made 29 appearances and 25 starts for Omaha last season and figured to be part of that pitching staff once again.

But lo and behold, Champlain was released on March 23, and he was not alone. Outfielder Tyler Gentry was also shown the door.

Two known Royals organization depth players are out of the organization to start 2026

Start with Champlain. The California native was electric in 2024 down at Double-A, and parlayed seven starts there into a promotion to Omaha. While he understandably regressed against Triple-A competition, he still had the fourth-most strikeouts among Royals minor-league pitchers and entered 2025 as a pitcher worth watching.

Heading into his age-25 season, Champlain felt close to the majors, even if that was partially because the Royals did not have many better options on paper. But Champlain imploded in 2025, posting a 7.84 ERA across 119.1 innings in Omaha.

Even by the bat-friendly standards of the International League, that number was obscene. It set Champlain way back, even if it did not cost him his rotation spot outright last season. Apparently, it was bad enough that the Royals had no interest in giving him another shot in what is now a much more crowded pitching room in Omaha.

Gentry arguably had the better minor-league run with the Royals, including two Organizational All-Star selections in 2022 and 2023.

The Alabama product spent the entire 2023 season in Omaha, and that year really put him on the map. He led the team in home runs with 16, RBI with 71, hits with 120, extra-base hits with 46, total bases with 200, and walks with 81 across 129 games. Kansas City rewarded him later that calendar year with a 40-man roster spot, putting him one step closer to a big-league callup.

Gentry eventually got that call late in the 2024 season, making his MLB debut on Aug. 25. He appeared in only three games and logged just five at-bats during that stretch. Gentry never got that first big-league hit, and the Royals never really gave him an extended chance to find it.

He opened the 2025 season back in Omaha, and despite the Royals’ outfield woes, Kansas City never brought him back up. The club designated him for assignment in late July, then outrighted him back to Omaha. Unfortunately for Gentry, he followed that with the worst Triple-A season of his career at the plate, posting a career-low .655 OPS while struggling mightily with his plate discipline.

What is next for the duo remains to be seen. Their most recent seasons will likely not make them premiere minor-league free agents, but if they want to keep playing, I hope they get another chance elsewhere.

Sometimes a change of scenery or a fresh start is all a player needs, whether that comes under the brightest MLB lights or the oddest corners of the minors.