15-Day IL
Injury Elbow
Est. Return 6/30/2026
2026 Stats
W-L
3-2
ERA
4.11
WHIP
1.23
K
51
SV
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2026 Fantasy Outlook
Bubic, in the midst of his breakout season, broke down after 116.1 innings, and his season ended with a rotator cuff strain that he later said had been an issue for most of the season. It should not have come as a surprise, as Bubic has worked 16 innings in 2023 and 68 innings in 2024 returning from injury, and his body struggled to react to the workloads of starting 20 contests. Yet, what Bubic was able to accomplish in those 20 starts was quite impressive considering his previous efforts as a starting pitcher. We saw some glimpses of success for Bubic working out of the pen in late 2024, and those who took the chance on that playing out as he converted to starting, were rewarded with eight wins, 11 quality starts, a strikeout per inning along with a shiny 2.55 ERA with a 1.18 WHIP. Bubic throws the kitchen sink at both righties and lefties, and what he lacks in velocity he makes up for with location and utilization. Since 2024 (min 140 IP), he has pitched to the eighth-best ERA in baseball. Don't sleep on this guy, even while he's being overshadowed by a more talented lefty teammate. Read Past Outlooks
Signed a one-year, $6.15 million contract with the Royals in February of 2026.
MRI yields good news
Royals manager Matt Quatraro said Sunday that Bubic underwent another MRI that showed nothing structurally wrong with his left elbow or shoulder, Joel Goldberg of Bally Sports Kansas City reports.
Analysis
After being forced to the 15-day injured list May 18 due to a sore left elbow, Bubic made enough progress to gain clearance to head out on a rehab assignment. During his start Tuesday with Triple-A Omaha, Bubic experienced a shoulder issue, which was likely a contributing factor in him getting lit up for five earned runs on eight hits and one walk while recording just four outs. Fortunately, follow-up tests didn't reveal anything overly concerning, so the Royals were comfortable allowing Bubic to resume playing catch Sunday. Assuming he incurs no further setbacks during his throwing progression, Bubic could head back out on his rehab assignment at some point in the next week or two.
After being forced to the 15-day injured list May 18 due to a sore left elbow, Bubic made enough progress to gain clearance to head out on a rehab assignment. During his start Tuesday with Triple-A Omaha, Bubic experienced a shoulder issue, which was likely a contributing factor in him getting lit up for five earned runs on eight hits and one walk while recording just four outs. Fortunately, follow-up tests didn't reveal anything overly concerning, so the Royals were comfortable allowing Bubic to resume playing catch Sunday. Assuming he incurs no further setbacks during his throwing progression, Bubic could head back out on his rehab assignment at some point in the next week or two.
Pitching Stats
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2026 MLB Game Log
2026
2025
2024
2023
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2021
2020
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
90
Last 10 Games
90
Last 5 Games
94
How many pitches does Kris Bubic generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Kris Bubic generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2024
-2%
BAA vs RHP
2026
-12%
BAA vs LHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2024vs Left | .225 | 49 | 13 | 40 | 3 | |||
| Since 2024vs Right | .220 | 157 | 57 | 120 | 9 | |||
| 2026vs Left | .182 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 1 | |||
| 2026vs Right | .206 | 38 | 20 | 28 | 3 | |||
| 2025vs Left | .217 | 22 | 7 | 20 | 1 | |||
| 2025vs Right | .230 | 94 | 32 | 78 | 5 | |||
| 2024vs Left | .286 | 14 | 0 | 12 | 1 | |||
| 2024vs Right | .200 | 25 | 5 | 14 | 1 | |||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | |||||||
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2024
-30%
ERA on Road
2026
-36%
ERA at Home
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2024Home | 3.48 | 1.16 | 101.0 | 9.6 | 3.2 | ||||
| Since 2024Away | 2.44 | 1.18 | 96.0 | 9.2 | 3.2 | ||||
| 2026Home | 3.34 | 1.04 | 29.2 | 9.4 | 4.2 | ||||
| 2026Away | 5.23 | 1.50 | 20.2 | 8.7 | 5.2 | ||||
| 2025Home | 3.20 | 1.21 | 56.1 | 9.1 | 3.0 | ||||
| 2025Away | 1.95 | 1.15 | 60.0 | 8.9 | 3.0 | ||||
| 2024Home | 4.80 | 1.20 | 15.0 | 12.0 | 1.8 | ||||
| 2024Away | 0.59 | 0.85 | 15.1 | 11.2 | 1.2 | ||||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | ||||||||
Stat Review
How does Kris Bubic compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
1.96K/9
9.1BB/9
4.6HR/9
0.7Fastball
91.7 mphERA
4.11WHIP
1.23BABIP
.260GB/FB
1.41Left On Base
69.1%Exit Velocity
81.1 mphBarrels/BBE
4.7%Spin Rate
2222 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
21.4%Swinging Strike
11.3%Prospect Rankings History
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
Bubic spent the first three months of the 2024 season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery in April of 2023. The bulk of his time was with Triple-A Omaha where he compiled 27.1 innings. Toward the end of the assignment, Bubic transitioned for the relief role awaiting him in the majors. The lefty thrived out of the bullpen, working his way into leverage innings where he collected seven holds and a save. His 32.2 percent strikeout rate was by far his career best. His four-seam velocity went up a tick. He stopped throwing his curve while trading some change-ups for sliders. Despite, or perhaps because of, his success, the Royals are moving him back to the rotation. Aside from the obvious workload concerns (he threw only 68 total innings last season), it's unclear how much of his strikeout gains Bubic can maintain as a starter and if he'll maintain the same pitch mix or reintroduce his curve. The Royals' recent success with pitching warrants taking a chance Bubic can be a fantasy streamer.
More Fantasy News
Suffers setback after rehab start
Bubic (elbow/shoulder) suffered a setback after beginning his rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Omaha, MLB.com reports.
Analysis
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Knocked around in rehab start
Bubic (elbow) yielded six runs (five earned) on eight hits and one walk over 1.1 innings in his first rehab start with Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday.
Analysis
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Beginning rehab assignment Tuesday
The Royals announced Monday that Bubic (elbow) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday.
Analysis
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Battling general arm fatigue
Bubic (elbow) is still dealing with general left arm fatigue, MLB.com reports.
Analysis
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Progressing in rehab
Bubic (elbow) started a full throwing program Saturday, MLB.com reports.
Analysis
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Athletics showing interest
The Athletics are interested in acquiring Bubic ahead of the trade deadline, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
Analysis
Bubic hasn't pitched since mid-May due to soreness in his throwing elbow, so he'll need to be healthy in order to make an impact if he gets traded. Bubic, who owns a 4.11 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 51:26 K:BB across 50.1 innings this season, would be a rental for any team that acquires him, since he'll be a free agent in the winter.
Bubic hasn't pitched since mid-May due to soreness in his throwing elbow, so he'll need to be healthy in order to make an impact if he gets traded. Bubic, who owns a 4.11 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 51:26 K:BB across 50.1 innings this season, would be a rental for any team that acquires him, since he'll be a free agent in the winter.