The Royals are making another change to their coaching mix, and Alec Zumwalt is moving out of the on-field hitting coach chair.
According to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, Kansas City reassigned Zumwalt within the organization on Tuesday. The Royals have not confirmed the report, but Rosenthal said Zumwalt will keep his directorial title next season while no longer serving as an on-field coach.
Zumwalt, 45, has been with the Royals for 15 years and spent the last five seasons as the club’s lead hitting coach and senior director of hitting performance. His time in Kansas City has included several other roles, too: pro scout from 2011-12, major league advanced scout from 2013-17, and director of baseball operations/player development and scouting from 2018-19.
The move comes after a season in which the Royals’ offense never quite found its footing. Kansas City finished 22nd in total runs scored with 690, along with a .247 batting average and a .718 OPS.
The early months were especially rough. The Royals opened slowly, sitting at 22-37 entering June, and posted a .650 OPS in May as the bats struggled to settle in.
The offense did show life later on. Rookie catcher Carter Jensen started to surge behind the plate, and Jac Caglianone unlocked the power that has made him such an intriguing piece.
Both players earned American League Player of the Month honors.
Still, the club couldn’t fully recover from the sluggish start. There were down years from Bobby Witt Jr., Maikel Garcia and Vinnie Pasquantino, among others, and injuries played a major role in that story.
Witt dealt with back spasms and a knee sprain during the summer. Garcia missed time because of hamstring injuries and a muscle strain in his left hand.
Pasquantino had surgery on his right hamate bone.
When the lineup was intact, Kansas City did show flashes. In August, the Royals scored 130 runs in 27 games. But September brought more frustration, with the team going 4-11 in its last 15 games and being outscored 137-100 during the month.
Zumwalt is the latest staff shakeup under Matt Quatraro. The Royals already moved on from Keoni DeRenne and Joe Dillon last offseason, and former pitching coach Zach Bove left for the Chicago White Sox, who reached the playoffs this season.
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