Royals give Daniel Lynch IV long-awaited role change (but it wasn't the right one)

The Kansas City Royals are in a world where injuries are really dictating their gameplan. They just added the likes of Stephen Kolek and Luinder Avila to the 60-day IL due to Tommy John surgery, and they don't have an abundance of starting names to choose from. Cole Ragans has undergone elbow surgery himself also, Kris Bubic is out of the picture now after being shipped off the L.A. and the likes of Ryan Bergert and Ben Kudrna's season ending surgeries have rendered them unavailable to call-up for months now.

This has led to some drastic measures being taken, as the Royals will reportedly be moving Daniel Lynch IV into the rotation for Friday's game against the Chicago Cubs. Lynch came up as a starter in the beginning of his pro career and has been no stranger to the odd spot start since moving to the bullpen full-time in 2024. However, the proposed starting change isn't just a spot start, as he'll reportedly be in the rotation moving forward, according to Anne Rogers of MLB.com.

Lynch has been somewhat of a Swiss Army knife for the Royals the past few seasons, never really having a defined role, but never really having his importance questioned either. And that's culminated in him easily being the Royals' most reliable relief arm this season. In 46 innings of work this year, the lefty is throwing to a 1.96 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and .183 BAA.

Considering all their closing issues, with Carlos Estévez's velocity problems and then hitting the IL immediately, Lucas Erceg losing his high-leverage edge entirely and Alex Lange falling back into his old ways from the start of the season, the Royals need solutions in the ninth inning. They hold the fourth most blown saves in MLB, which has been huge factor as to why they currently sit in the bottom two in ERA, FIP, WHIP and BAA as a relief corps.

The Royals have a surefire relief option in Lynch that's earned the right to be the guy anchoring the 'pen and getting the ball in the ninth. The fact the Royals are calling on him again to start moving forward feels like they're abandoning all the progress they've made with him that's seen him revitalize his career and look worthy of being the 34th overall pick eight years ago. It seems like a clear step backwards.

Royals' hand was forced when it came to moving Daniel Lynch IV to rotation

We've touched upon the Royals' crummy injury luck in the starting staff, but what's more glaring about Lynch's promotion is the fact that he's a product of the Royals not having any real sure fire options to turn to.

Mitch Spence has shown in his major league appearances this season that he's not cut out for the majors, especially after surrendering 10 earned runs in 1.1 innings of work his last time out. Mason Black is more of a reliever now. And Steven Zobac may be on the 40-man roster, but he's still struggling to both stay healthy and produce at the Double-A level, throwing to a 5.40 ERA in 10 starts with the Naturals this year.

Beyond that, Lucas Braun could be an option with a 3.92 ERA in the Braves' Triple-A ranks, but he's still likely going to need to get his footing in the organization before making that leap having only arrived in the Lane Thomas trade over the weekend. Then the likes of names like veterans Vince Velazquez and younger options like Henry Williams or Ben Sears don't exactly inspire much awe as replacement big league replacement options - certainly not enough to warrant 40-man roster gymnastics right now.

Lynch seems like Kansas City's last choice, because the options beyond him right now seem bleak for finishing out the 2026 season.

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