Buchholz was sent to Double-A Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday in order to keep building up his arm, Rustin Dodd of The Athletic Kansas City reports.

EDGE Analysis

Buchholz had been pitching in extended spring training while working his way back from elbow surgery which ended his season after just two starts last year. The Royals have reportedly been pleased with what he's shown so far, but if they don't add him to the big-league roster by May 1, he'll be eligible to opt out. He landed with one of the organizations with the easiest pitching staffs to break into, so he has a legitimate shot to pitch major-league innings this year, but he's had an ERA below 4.78 just once in the past four years, so expectations should be kept quite low.