Bubic tosses two scoreless frames in 2nd rehab outing at Triple-A

Kris Bubic completed his second rehab outing on Saturday night, tossing just 22 pitches (15 strikes) across two scoreless innings for Triple-A Omaha.

Bubic’s outing came three days after tossing a scoreless frame on Wednesday night with Omaha as he continues to make his way back from elbow and shoulder soreness that has kept him sidelined since May 18.

On Saturday, Bubic allowed just one hit – a single – and didn’t walk or strike out anyone while throwing one wild pitch. He averaged 90.9 mph on his fastball, down a tick from the 91.2 mph he’s averaged so far this year. Triple-A Columbus (Guardians affiliate) batters whiffed just once on 13 swings, but Bubic primarily induced weak contact throughout the short outing.

The Royals will evaluate how Bubic feels on Sunday before determining his next steps.

The 28-year-old Bubic first landed on the IL on May 18 (retroactive to May 15) after experiencing left elbow soreness following his May 14 start against the White Sox. Though Bubic expected his IL stint to be a short one, he suffered a setback following his first rehab start on June 9 when he experienced shoulder soreness.

Bubic pitched to a 4.11 ERA in nine starts before his injury. He’s a year removed from being named to his first American League All-Star team, pitching to a 2.55 ERA in 116 1/3 innings across 20 starts in 2025.

It’s possible that Bubic, who is a free agent at season’s end, could return in 2027 given the Royals’ need in the bullpen. But Kansas City is also lacking rotation depth, especially now that Cole Ragans is set to undergo elbow surgery this week.

So, the Royals want to ensure that Bubic feels healthy enough in his return to the mound before making a plan.

“We’re really just trying to see how he feels after these first two,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “Then we’ll reset a plan.”