Kansas City Royals

Ryan Bergert

SP

no

Mitch Spence

RP

Spence's move to the IL represents yet another hit to the Royals' starting pitching depth, as the organization has already lost Cole Ragans, Stephen Kolek, Luinder Avila, Ryan Bergert and Ben Kudrna to season-ending elbow surgeries. The 28-year-old righty has been part of the Royals' 40-man roster throughout the 2026 campaign, logging a 5.35 ERA and 1.41 WHIP over 16 starts with Omaha and yielding 22 earned runs in 9.1 innings over three appearances at the big-league level.

Nick Mears

RP

Mears has been sidelined since May 29 due to a right shoulder impingement and dealt with multiple setbacks during his rehab, including a right lat strain revealed in mid-July. After progressing to mound work, the right-hander experienced renewed discomfort last week, with subsequent testing revealing thoracic outlet syndrome. Mears will finish his injury-marred first season with the Royals having posted a 5.12 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 15:11 K:BB across 19.1 innings.

Luinder Avila

SP

Avila is likely to remain sidelined until 2028 after undergoing Tommy John surgery Wednesday, so the Royals will stash him away on the 60-day IL. The move frees up a 40-man roster spot for Luke Little, who was claimed off waivers from the Cubs on Thursday.

Stephen Kolek

SP

The right-hander headed for a second opinion on his strained right forearm last week and is now set to go under the knife. The full scope of the procedure isn't clear, but if it's standard Tommy John surgery, Kolek will miss the rest of the season and will likely be sidelined for the entirety of the 2027 campaign.