The Royals have declined their end of the $12 million mutual option Michael Lorenzen‘s contract for the 2026 season, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports. Lorenzen will instead receive a $1.5 million buyout and enter free agency.
The veteran right-hander first came to Kansas City in a trade from the Rangers before the 2024 deadline, and Lorenzen delivered 28 2/3 innings of 1.57 ball down the stretch for the Royals, even though a hamstring injury kept him on the injured list for about a month. The two sides reunited last winter with a one-year free agent worth $7 million in guaranteed money — a $5.5 million salary through 2025, followed by the $1.5 million buyout.
Mutual options are almost never mutually exercised, so both sides certainly viewed the contract as a one-year pact. Lorenzen’s numbers weren’t as sharp in 2025, as he posted a 4.64 ERA, a sub-21% strikeout rate, and a host of other uninspiring Statcast stats over 141 2/3 innings (starting 26 of 27 games). Lorenzen’s 4.16 SIERA at least exceeded his ERA by nearly half a run, perhaps reflecting a solid 6.4% walk rate that matched the righty’s career best.
Kansas City brought Lorenzen back with the idea that he could eat innings in the back of the rotation, and he ended up being particularly important given the number of Royals starters who missed time on the IL. The injury bug bit Lorenzen himself in July when an oblique strain sidelined him for a month, but over the past three years Lorenzen has quietly averaged 141 2/3 innings per season.
Lorenzen’s lack of speed and strikeout ability will limit his earning potential, and he will likely receive only one-year deals since he turns 34 in January. But many teams are in need of back-end rotation help or starting depth in general, and Lorenzen’s past as a relief pitcher makes him a candidate to be converted into a bullpen role on a postseason roster. Kansas City has enough rotation depth that a new deal for Lorenzen is likely unlikely, but the Royals could look to trade a starter and then re-sign Lorenzen to fill that hole later in the winter. This is exactly what the Royals did last offseason, in trade Brady singer to the Reds and about six weeks later he signed Lorenzen.
The Royals’ other option decisions include a $5 million mutual option Randal Grichuk‘s services for 2026 (with a $3 million buyout) and a $13.5 million club option Salvador Perez. It is expected that Grichuk’s option will be declined and Perez’s option will be exercised, or the team will negotiate a new multi-year extension with the longtime catcher.
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