Kansas City Mayor Lucas Drops Bold Hint: Will the Royals’ New Ballpark Deal Change Everything by 2026?

As the Kansas City Royals gear up for the 2026 season, the spotlight shines brightly on pitchers Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic, both laser-focused on one mission: staying healthy and dominating the mound. Anne Rogers dives deep into their mindset, capturing the relentless competitive fire that fuels these athletes. Bubic’s words resonate with ambition and grit — “We want to be out there every fifth day, contributing, pushing towards the playoffs again.” It’s clear that for these young arms, endurance and consistent presence on the mound will define their year.

Alongside this stellar focus on health and resilience, the Royals’ spring training camp reveals a shifting roster, with new faces arriving and some sidelined due to injuries or personal matters. From local hero Alex Lange chatting about his formative baseball days to updates on long-term injury woes for James McArthur, the buzz around Kansas City’s ballpark is electric and hopeful.

Meanwhile, off the field, talk of a stadium deal looms large as Mayor Quinton Lucas pledges to secure a transparent agreement to keep the Royals locked in downtown — a move that could signal a transformative era not only for the team but for the entire region.

Add to that roster projections, trade whispers, and the backdrop of broader MLB updates, and you’ve got your front-row seat to everything unfolding in baseball’s heartland this spring. Buckle up — these early season developments promise to set the tone for a compelling year in Royals baseball.

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Anne Rogers writes about how Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic are focusing on staying healthy.

Everything is about staying on the mound this year.

“We want to be out there,” Bubic said. “Cole is as competitive as it gets as well. We want to be out there playing with our guys every fifth day. We want to be part of it. I know we fell short of the playoffs last year, but we feel like there’s no reason we can’t get there again and succeed.”

She also has the early reports on who is in camp.

Jaylon Thompson is in camp and he talks to

He also writes about the setbacks that cost James McArthur all of last season.

McArthur missed the entirety of Royals spring training — and ultimately the season — in 2025. The medical staff worked to understand what led to his continued discomfort. At first, McArthur had one of his screws removed due to the belief it was in a bad spot.

“I was super puffy,” McArthur said. “I don’t want to get too deep into it, but it’s just like when they saw the image, they could see stuff in my elbow and they were like, ‘This isn’t normal.’ And their only thought or best guess through imaging was that it was like bone chipping from the screw head that was sticking out of the bone just a touch.”

Pete Grathoff writes that Bobby Witt Jr.’s puppy was one of the first ones in camp.

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David Lesky projects which pitchers will make the roster.

I think there are some definite trade candidates in here. I know I’ve been saying they might move Schreiber all winter, but I just remember Picollo talking about Mears the same way he talks about Schreiber and think that the bullpen probably only needs one of them. I mentioned Avila and Cruz, but Neris is an interesting pickup on a minor league deal. He struggled last year with three teams, pitching to a 6.75 ERA, 5.35 FIP and 4.59 xERA. Maybe he’s toast as he’s entering his age-37 season, but he still got plenty of strikeouts. My guess is he doesn’t show enough, but you never know, I guess.

In his annual State of the City address, Mayor Quinton Lucas pledged to get a stadium deal done with the Royals this year.

“We will get a deal done in 2026 that’s fair and transparent for our taxpayers, our future, and our team,” Lucas said….

Lucas said he wouldn’t speak for the Royals, but said he thinks downtown checks all the boxes.

“We’ve kept strong relationships with the Kansas City Royals throughout the process,” he said. “So I have to say, I will never speak for them. I think they have important decisions to make, but I think in making a transformational decision, not just for the team but for this entire region.”

Philip Ruo at Royals Keep wonders if the Royals have done enough to compete in 2026.

Patrick Glancy at Powder Blue Nostalgia writes about the Royals games he attended in 2025.

The Cubs sign former Royals pitcher Kyle Wright to a minor league deal.

The Nationals sign pitcher Miles Mikolas to a one-year, $2.25 million deal.

The Orioles sign pitcher Chris Bassitt to a one-year, $18.5 million contract.

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