Four Royals Players Receive Pre-Arbitration Bonuses

On Tuesday afternoon, the MLB Pre-Arbitration Bonus Pool recipients were released. For those unfamiliar with the Pre-Arbitration Bonus Pool, it can be defined as follows:

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The MLB pre-arbitration bonus pool is a system introduced in the 2022 Collective Bargaining Agreement to provide additional compensation to players with three or fewer years of service time who are not yet eligible for salary arbitration. The pool, which is funded by the league, is allocated based on a combination of award winners and a WAR (Wins Above Replacement) formula. For example, players like Paul Skenes have received multi-million dollar bonuses through this program. 

A more thorough breakdown of the Pre-Arbitration Bonus Pool, who is eligible, and how it is awarded can be found here. While it is not as celebrated as the MLB awards or as hyped as free agency or trade season in the offseason, the pool highlights pre-arbitration players coming off excellent campaigns. 

This season, four Royals players received bonuses from the pool, including two pitchers and two position players. Let's examine how much those players made and what they did in 2025 to earn those respective bonus amounts. 

Maikel Garcia, 3B: $773,819

Garcia received the 13th-highest amount this season, just ahead of players like Boston's Roman Anthony ($725,317) and Baltimore's Gunnar Henderson ($641,218). After a down season in 2024 in which he posted a 71 wRC+ and 1.2 fWAR in 626 plate appearances, he posted a 121 wRC+ and 5.8 fWAR in 666 plate appearances this season. 

The 25-year-old third baseman didn't just post great stats, but earned some honors and hardware this season as well. He made his first All-Star team, was a Silver Slugger finalist, and garnered his first Gold Glove after posting stellar metrics at the hot corner this year. 

Garcia didn't earn any All-MLB honors, but his high fWAR and various honors contributed to his high pre-arbitration bonus amount. The Venezuelan will enter his first year of arbitration eligibility this offseason, and he could be a candidate for a long-term extension. MLB Trade Rumors projects Garcia to command around $4.8 million in arbitration this offseason. 

Noah Cameron, LHP: $638,351

The rookie lefty had the second-highest bonus amount for a Royals player and had the 17th-highest overall. That isn't surprising, especially considering the season Cameron had on the mound for a rotation that dealt with a lot of pitching injuries this season.

In 24 starts and 138.1 IP, Cameron sported a 9-7 record and posted a 2.99 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and 1.8 fWAR. His fWAR mark actually lagged behind Michael Wacha (3.6), Kris Bubic (3.3), and even Cole Ragans (2.1). That said, his durability and strong showing helped him earn Royals Pitcher of the Year honors from the organization and finish fourth in AL Rookie of the Year voting, behind Nick Kurtz (winner), Jacob Wilson, and Anthony.

The fWAR may not have been as impressive as Garcia's. Still, his strong showing in the AL Rookie of the Year voting, along with excellent surface-level numbers for a rookie starting pitcher, likely contributed to his high bonus. Cameron has an opportunity to continue to collect from the pool for the next few years if he continues to develop as a pitcher, as he is not arbitration-eligible until 2029. 

Stephen Kolek, RHP: $251,660

A Trade Deadline acquisition from San Diego, Kolek thrived in his role with the Royals down the stretch. In five starts and 33 IP with Kansas City, he posted a 1.91 ERA, 0.76 WHIP, and 0.9 fWAR. This was despite initially pitching in Triple-A Omaha when he was originally acquired from the Padres.

His finish was so impressive that he earned September Pitcher of the Month honors from the Royals.

While those numbers with the Royals were impressive, Kolek had a solid overall season, pitching with the Padres before switching organizations. Overall, Kolek made 19 appearances, nine starts, pitched 112.2 innings, and posted an ERA of 3.51, a WHIP of 1.14, and fWAR of 0.9. That's not bad for a pitcher who had only pitched 46.2 innings in 2024 with San Diego as a rookie (he posted a 5.21 ERA and 1.52 WHIP last season).

Kolek's bonus amount put him just behind the White Sox's Shane Smith ($255,276) but ahead of other pitchers such as the Dodgers' Emmet Sheehan ($248,866) and Milwaukee's Aaron Ashby ($228,384). The 28-year-old Texas A&M product is still pre-arbitration eligible this offseason and next and will be arbitration-eligible in 2028, according to Spotrac.

Vinnie Pasquantino, 1B: $245,479

Pasquantino finally stayed healthy in 2025 and had the best season of his short career. 

The 27-year-old first baseman played 160 games and had 682 plate appearances in 2025. Over that sample, he slashed .264/.323/.475 and led the Royals in home runs with 32 and RBI with 113. He also posted a 116 wRC+ and 1.5 fWAR. 

On the hitting end, it was an unforgettable season for the Pasquatch. He overcame a slow start to the season, as he posted a 49 wRC+ in 124 plate appearances in March/April, according to Fangraphs splits. After that brutal first month of play, he didn't have a wRC+ below triple digits, and he was particularly productive after the All-Star Break, posting a 125 wRC+ in the second half.

Pasquantino didn't earn any All-Star or All-MLB honors last season (and it wasn't particularly close). Furthermore, his defense left a bit to be desired. He was seven outs below average and four runs below average defensively, according to Statcast's defensive metrics. His OAA ranked in the bottom sixth percentile, and it was also a nine-out difference from his mark in 2024. 

Still, aside from defense, the Royals should feel good about what Pasquantino did last year as an on-field and locker-room leader for the club. He also did enough to get some money from the pre-arbitration bonus pool, as his amount was larger than Detroit's Colt Keith ($224,454), Toronto's Nathan Lukes ($222,545), and Pittsburgh's Oneil Cruz ($221,795). 

Like Garcia, Pasquantino enters his first year of arbitration eligibility and could be an extension candidate as well this offseason. MLB Trade Rumors estimates him to command $5.4 million in arbitration this offseason.