Seth Lugo and the Kansas City Royals Reach Million-Dollar Agreement
Right-handed pitcher Seth Lugo and the Kansas City Royals are finalizing a two-year, $46 million extension. This news comes days before Thursday’s trade deadline, solidifying Kansas City’s intentions to fight for a playoff spot in a very open American League. The agreement will guarantee Lugo 20 million dollars per season, in addition to a signing bonus of 3 million dollars. It also includes a purchase option for a third season for 20 million dollars, or a club option for 17 million dollars with a purchase of 3 million dollars, according to sources close to the negotiation. Lugo, 35, finished second in the American League Cy Young voting last season and has maintained a similarly excellent performance in 2025, with an ERA of 2.95 in 113 innings. He was expected to decline a $15 million player option for 2026 and reach free agency, but Lugo expressed his desire to remain in Kansas City and negotiated the extension to stay in one of baseball’s most prominent rotations. Lugo’s outstanding performance was key to Kansas City’s surprising 2024 postseason run. A bad streak in June, where the Royals had an 8-18 record, seemed to indicate that they would get rid of players with potential for free agency. However, the team has achieved a 13-8 in July and, with a 52-54 balance, is four games behind Seattle and Texas for the last wild card spot in the American League. Kansas City demonstrated its intention to fight for a playoff spot by acquiring outfielder Randal Grichuk from Arizona in exchange for reliever Andrew Hoffmann. The Royals will do so with a pitching staff affected by injuries. All-Star left-handed pitcher Kris Bubic was placed on the injured list due to a rotator cuff strain on Sunday, while ace Cole Ragans is also out with a shoulder injury, although he has already started throwing and could soon move on to bullpen sessions. Right-handed pitcher Michael Lorenzen is close to returning from an oblique strain and left-handed reliever Daniel Lynch IV is on a rehab assignment, offering hope that the Royals’ pitching staff could be in full form for the final stretch. Lugo will continue to be fundamental. After debuting with the New York Mets at age 26, Lugo established himself as a solid reliever during his five years with the team. He signed with San Diego in 2023 and became a starter, with an 8-7 record and a 3.57 ERA, impressing Kansas City enough to warrant a three-year, $45 million contract. With the widest variety of pitches in baseball – Lugo throws two types of fastballs, three sliders, two curves, a changeup, a splitter, and a cutter – he threw a career-high 206⅔ innings in his first season with the Royals, recording an ERA of 3.00.Although Lugo’s peripheral numbers this year suggest a possible regression, their effectiveness ranks 10th in the American League and has stabilized a pitching staff that, when healthy, is among the best in the Major Leagues, with Lugo, Ragans, Bubic, Lorenzen, Michael Wacha and rookie Noah Cameron.
