MLB rumors: Royals interested in adding Lucas Giolito, Marcus Stroman in free agency

The Royals are "looking at some of the better starters on the market" after a dire 2023 season in which they finished with just 56 wins.

Since winning the World Series in 2015, it has all gone downhill for the Kansas City Royals. They have not finished above .500 since their breakthrough year, and in fact, they hit rock bottom in 2023, winning just 56 games, their worst win total over the past eight seasons. But it appears as though the Royals front office is done with all the losing, as the report out of the rumor mill is that Kansas City is targeting some quality starting pitching on the free-agent market.

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Royals are “looking at some of the better starters on the market” and that included in Kansas City's targets in free agency are Lucas Giolito and Marcus Stroman.

The Royals have a lot of areas that are ripe for improvement after a dreadful 2023 season, but their starting pitching takes the cake for most pressing. Kansas City now has 25-year old starter Cole Ragans to help anchor the rotation, but aside from him, the Royals fielded quite the uninspiring rotation that makes acquiring one of Giolito or Stroman a borderline necessity.

Jordan Lyles started 31 games (177.1 innings pitched) for Kansas City last season, and he pitched to the tune of a 6.28 ERA with dreadful peripherals, Zack Greinke went 2-15 in 27 starts, and Brady Singer, who was once one of the Royals' best prospects, put up a 5.52 ERA in 159.2 innings of work. That was how dire the circumstances were for Kansas City on the mound.

Now, it's not like Lucas Giolito or Marcus Stroman pitched well enough in 2023 to warrant being the primary anchor of the Royals rotation. Giolito, in particular, struggled in 2023, and he has been steadily declining since his peak from 2019 to 2021, but he's only 29 years old, and he might be a good candidate for a bounce-back campaign.

Meanwhile, Stroman put up a 3.95 ERA in 25 starts (136.2 innings pitched, 27 games), tallying a 2.7 ERA during his time with the Chicago Cubs in 2023. Stroman has definitely been the more consistent pitcher between him and Giolito, so the Royals, if the budget permits, may be better off signing the former if they were serious about bringing in some serious upgrades to their starting rotation.