Royals Rumors: Closing door on Cole Ragans trade talks may be getting easier for KC

Entering the MLB Winter Meetings, arguably the most popular topic of trade conversation reagrding the Royals was determining whether or not they'd deal their ace in Cole Ragans.

For around a week-or-so now, countless insiders and analysts weighed in on who they felt would be good fits for Ragans and what a return might look like for Kansas City if they were to pull off a blockbuster of this nature.

However, after Day 1 in Orlando, Royals GM J.J. Picollo set the record straight and made his intentions clear when it came to his ace and his trade status. According to a report from MLB.com's Anne Rogers, Picollo didn't discount the notion that the Royals could trade from their starting pitching surplus, but said "it’s just not going to be [Ragans]".

However, in that same report from Rogers, she mentions that a myriad of other names are drawing interest on the trade market.

Royals starters have reportedly been drawing interest on trade market

"Kris Bubic remains the likeliest trade candidate because he only has one more season of control and dealing him could free up money to pursue other moves," Rogers wrote. "Kansas City has discussed several trade ideas involving Bubic with other teams."

"Teams ask a lot about Noah Cameron, who is coming off a stellar rookie campaign, and there’s some interest in young pitchers Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek, too," she wrote.

This could imply that the message has been received around the league and the pivot away from the Ragans conversation could be easier than expected.

While they might not be aces, each of the four names mentioned carries unique reasons as to why they'd be desirable assets to any prospective rotation.

Bubic, may be the most desirable for the Royals to deal given his aforementioned lack of remaining control, but that doesn't make him undesirable for potential suitors by any means. Before his season-ending rotator cuff injury, the southpaw looked stellar, following up his strong 2024 return in the bullpen - where he threw to a 2.67 ERA - with a 2.55 ERA in 20 starts, earning his first career All-Star nod along the way.

Cameron might be the Royals prized possession given his team control and excellent rookie season in 2025, and they could be reluctant to move him. However, with a dynamic pitch arsenal and the sub-3.00 ERA season he just had - which saw him receive rookie of the year votes - there's no denying that the return for him could be lucrative.

Bergert is still well within his pre-arb years after only making his rookie debut in 2025 and on top of team control the rookie looked solid in his debut season, throwing to a 3.66 ERA across 76.1 innings.

Then there's Kolek, who also happens to be well within his pre-arb years and looked like a brand new arm in 2025 after moving from San Diego to Kansas City at the trade deadline. In five starts as a Royal, Kolek posted a 1.91 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and .167 BAA. He also happens to have considerable experience pitching out of both the rotation and the bullpen at the major league level, adding some desirable flexibility to his trade value.

How exactly the Royals address their starting surplus remains to be seen, but even if they don't end up making a deal before the Winter Meetings wrap up, it seems as though they've had some productive conversations to at least get the ball rolling.