Marsh claims fifth starter spot as Royals' rotation solidifies

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- The Royals’ fifth starter competition has reached its conclusion.

Alec Marsh won the job.

Manager Matt Quatraro made the announcement Thursday that Marsh will start and Jordan Lyles will begin the season in the bullpen.

“It was a competition,” Quatraro said. “Marsh exceeded, in the spring, what we could have hoped for and really just made that decision to put Jordan in the bullpen for how we thought we were going to put the best 13 together.”

Quatraro and pitching coach Brian Sweeney told Marsh on Wednesday that he had made the rotation, and Marsh was “ecstatic.”

“The last couple of years, I feel like I’ve gotten beat down a lot on and off the field,” Marsh said Thursday after allowing four runs in 3 2/3 innings in the Royals’ 8-5 loss to the Guardians at Goodyear Ballpark. “Dealing with stuff and getting through it. … I’m just pumped they have faith in me. What they’ve done with me, and the coaching staff coming in, having my back and believing in me is the biggest thing.”

With Cole Ragans as their Opening Day starter and Seth Lugo, Brady Singer and Michael Wacha following him in some order, the Royals touted the fifth starter spot as a competition from the beginning of spring. But it began to truly feel like one in the last week.

Health dictated some of the decision, with Lyles’ spring slowed because of lower back tightness. Performance dictated a lot of it.

Marsh, 25, made his debut last year, posting a 5.69 ERA over 74 1/3 innings, but he took massive strides at the end of the year with his arsenal. This spring, Marsh’s composure and command stood out, and he said he made the biggest strides mentally over anything pitching-related this spring.

“Being able to recognize when I get frustrated or when I get tense and being able to slow the game down,” Marsh said. “That’s going to be big for me the rest of my career. When I’m out there relaxed and playing ball like I’m in the backyard, that’s when the stuff comes out the best.”

Lyles, 33, posted a 6.28 ERA in 31 starts for the Royals last year. The 177 2/3 innings were valuable, but the Royals have raised expectations in 2024.

“We were very clear with every guy in the organization going into the offseason and throughout the offseason that nothing is guaranteed to anybody,” Quatraro said. “And that’s not an indictment that Jordan can’t start games or can’t be a big part of helping us win. It’s just that at this moment, we have some tough decisions to make.

“One of them was that we thought Alec was deserving of being in that spot. It’s not a banishment or punishment to somebody, but guys know that everything has to be earned.”

Lyles is entering the final season of his two-year, $17 million contract. As a player with more than five years of service time, he must consent to being optioned. But the Royals see some value in having him in the bullpen because of his ability to pitch multiple innings, his durability and potentially his stuff ticking up in shorter stints. They plan to use him in a variety of roles.

“I didn’t know it was coming,” Lyles said before allowing two runs in three innings out of the bullpen in the Royals’ 3-3 tie to the White Sox at Surprise Stadium. “You take the information, digest it, and then you roll with it. I’m going to try to figure out how to get outs regardless of the situation. It’s part of the game. At the end of the day, I’m a member of the Kansas City Royals, and I’m going to do anything and everything I can to get important outs for this ballclub, for [Quatraro] and for Sweeney.”

The Royals also had lefties Daniel Lynch IV and Anthony Veneziano competing for the rotation but optioned both late Wednesday. Veneziano, the Royals’ No. 14 prospect, had a good spring but needs more time in Triple-A to develop.

Lynch “made the decision tough,” Quatraro said. After a 2023 season marred by shoulder injuries, the 27-year-old showed he was healthy when he pitched in winter ball this offseason and performed well this spring, allowing four runs in 13 Cactus League innings. His velocity was trending up recently, and he made mechanical adjustments to continue to improve the velo and the sharpness of his secondary stuff.

“I’ve been around baseball long enough to know that hard work doesn’t necessarily guarantee you’re going to get good,” Lynch told MLB.com. “But it’s tough to put in so much work, especially taking time out of my offseason [to pitch in winter ball], putting in all the work and then also performing really well and not being rewarded for that. But that’s part of it. I’m not owed anything.”

The message to Lynch was to “knock the door down,” Quatraro said. The Royals will need more than five starters to get through the season, and Lynch could be the top option when there’s opportunity.

“I don’t see myself as an up and down guy,” Lynch said. “I don’t see myself as a depth guy. I’m going to pitch how I’ve been pitching until that opportunity arises. And once it does, don’t give them an option for it to be any other way. That’s kind of my attitude, as much as it sucks.”