The Royals selected Lovelady's contract from Triple-A Omaha on Thursday.
Lovelady sat out most of 2022 while he rehabbed from Tommy John surgery, but he returned to game action in September with Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Omaha. The left-hander had a 3.48 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 23:6 K:BB across 20.2 innings prior to the injury in 2021 and could be a bullpen piece for Kansas City to open next season.