Thanks again to BCB reader JayWent for this article suggestion.
Kris Bubic has talent — he was a No. 1 pick (40th overall) in 2018 out of Stanford. If that date and school sounds familiar, it should, because
Nico Hoerner was the Cubs’ No. 1 pick out of Stanford that year, thus Bubic and Hoerner were college teammates.
Bubic’s career, unfortunately, has been marred by injury. He had Tommy John surgery in 2023 and missed most of that season. Then when he returned in 2024, it was to the bullpen — he made 27 relief appearances that year with no starts, and did fairly well, with a 2.67 ERA and 1.022 WHIP.
Returning to the Royals rotation in 2025, Bubic made 20 starts with a 2.55 ERA and 1.178 WHIP, with good K and BB rates and only six home runs allowed in 119.1 innings. All of that was worth 3.1 bWAR. So what’s not to like? He missed the last two months of the season with a rotator cuff strain. Per this Royals injury tracker, he was cleared to begin a throwing program in November.
Here’s his pitch selection chart, which seems to emphasize offspeed stuff:
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So there’s risk here, but possible high reward. Bubic, a left-hander, is 28 and under team control for one more year. MLB Trade Rumors says he’s likely to get about $6 million in arbitration.
Would you trade for Bubic? If so, who would you send back to the Royals for one year of team control?
