Royals Prospect Pitcher Already Emerging as Player to Watch in 2026

The Royals have a lot of talented prospects in their system, but Luinder Avila is one of their best...

Aug 13, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Luinder Avila (58) makes his MLB debut during the eighth inning against the Washington Nationals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals have a lot to be excited about this season. They have talented pitchers like Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic, both of whom missed time with injuries last season, back at the big league level.

They also have a slew of talent in their lineup, including American League MVP candidate Bobby Witt Jr. Maikel Garcia, Vinnie Pasquantino, and Salvador Perez are also big-time stars in the Royals lineup.

But the Royals also have a lot of young talent, including Carter Jensen and a few prospects still in the minor leagues.

MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo, Jim Callis, and Sam Dykstra recently put together a list of one prospect from each team to watch at the Triple-A level. For the Royals, they highlighted young pitcher Luinder Avila as a prospect to watch, though Avila found some success in the big leagues last season.

Luinder Avila is an intriguing prospect to watch for Royals

Sep 28, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Kansas City Royals pitcher Luinder Avila (58) throws a pitch against the Athletics during the ninth inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images | Dennis Lee-Imagn Images

"Avila debuted for the Royals last August and posted a 1.29 ERA with 16 strikeouts and six walks over 14 relief innings in the Majors but was unable to secure a spot back in Kansas City this spring, part of which he spent as a member of Venezuela’s World Baseball Classic-winning staff," they wrote. "The Royals plan to use him as a multi-inning arm with Omaha -- someone who gets starts but doesn’t have a full starter’s workload in order to preserve the rotation and bullpen routes for him back to the bigs. Avila’s best pitch remains his low-80s curveball, and he was showing a pair of 96-97 mph fastballs in limited Cactus League looks."

Last season, Avila was brought to the big leagues to work as a reliever in Kansas City after working as a starter for the bulk of his professional career. Avila has a lot of talent and showcased his poise during his short time in the big leagues.

This season, he's a clear breakout candidate for the Royals. He's likely going to be one of the first pitchers called upon in the event of an injury in Kansas City. Avila can work as a short reliever, but he could also give length out of the bullpen. At his best, he's going to be a starter. He's likely going to carve out a role in the Royals' rotation within the next year or two.