J.J. Picollo Sends Message to Royals Starters Fighting for 2027 Spots

The Kansas City Royals made their first big decisions of the offseason last week, and one of them added another name to what should be a busy fight for spots in the 2027 starting rotation.

On Thursday, Oct. 29, the Royals declined the $13 million club option on closer Carlos Estévez and exercised a $2.5 million club option on pitcher Tony Gonsolin, according to MLB.com's Perla Paredes, with Kansas City paying Estévez $2 million as part of the buyout.

Gonsolin joined Kansas City while he was recovering from right elbow surgery he had in August 2025 with the Dodgers, and he made just one appearance for the Royals this season, giving up five runs over 2 2/3 innings against the White Sox on Sept. 22.

He will not be handed anything.

At the end of the season, general manager J.J. Picollo said Gonsolin, pitcher Daniel Lynch IV and pitcher Randy Dobnak would all compete for jobs in the rotation, and he set the bar high.

"Nothing is going to be handed to them," Picollo said, according to MLB.com's Maddie Hartley. "They're going to have to win the job, but hopefully we bring in the right competition where the depth of our rotation is better and we're more productive."

Picollo also said the Royals need to get back to being a top-10 rotation, and there is work to do after the starters finished 12th in the American League with a 4.58 ERA this season, per Hartley, on a team that went 69-93.

Lynch moved into a starting role in August and made 10 starts, but his best work this year came out of the bullpen, where he posted a 1.96 ERA in 46 appearances.

Dobnak was acquired in June and had a 3.76 ERA in 13 starts after he was called up in July.

Health is the bigger issue.

Pitchers Cole Ragans, Stephen Kolek and Luinder Avila will be sidelined by UCL injuries, while pitchers Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo and Noah Cameron are penciled into the rotation, according to The Kansas City Star's Jaylon Thompson.

That leaves room for two more starters, and it explains why keeping Gonsolin at $2.5 million made sense.

I like this plan, because the Royals cannot afford to count on one comeback story.

Gonsolin costs very little, Lynch has earned a look after his strong season in relief, and Dobnak gave them more than they could have hoped for, so making all three earn it is the right way to build depth.

The bullpen is the other big job this winter, since the Royals finished 29th in the majors with a 5.07 bullpen ERA, per Paredes, and the option decisions mean they now have to replace Estévez.

That is why there has been talk about how the team could solve its bullpen problems with the right offseason move.

Expectations for Kansas City are low right now, as a harsh power ranking showed recently, and these option decisions were only a first step.

Picollo's message to his starters tells me the front office knows the rotation has to be better, and I expect another starting pitcher to arrive before spring training.