The Royals began the process of thinning out their spring training roster on Wednesday morning, sending five pitchers and four position players to minor-league camp.
The cuts included top pitching prospects Josh Staumont and Kyle Zimmer, who could project as bullpen options at the major-league level in 2017. But Royals manager Ned Yost said the club wanted Staumont and Zimmer to stretch out as starters heading into the season.
“We’ve got enough competition right now in this camp for our bullpen,” Yost said. “But if something happens down the road, and they’re performing down there, and they’re lengthened out, they can very easily come back here and jump right into the bullpen.