The Royals got a little more clarity on three injured players Wednesday as they prepared for the series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Right-handed pitcher James McArthur is expected to start a rehab assignment Wednesday with Kansas City’s Double-A affiliate, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. McArthur’s last appearance came in mid-September 2024, when he was pulled from his final outing of the season because of a right elbow injury. That injury led to surgery, and hardware irritation complications kept him out for all of the 2025 season and most of this year.
Third baseman Maikel Garcia is also on track to begin a rehab assignment, with the Royals expecting him to report Thursday to Triple-A Omaha. Garcia has had a season full of stops and starts.
He is coming back from a Grade 1-plus left hamstring strain suffered in August, but that was only the latest setback. He previously dealt with a right hamstring strain and avoided the injured list, then later suffered a left hand strain that kept him sidelined for nearly two months.
Connor Seabold is set to join Garcia in Omaha on Thursday to begin his own rehab work. The right-hander is recovering from a right lat strain he suffered in late June.
Seabold was first placed on the 15-day injured list and later moved to the 60-day injured list in a procedural move to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Before arriving in Kansas City, he had already been dealing with left ankle inflammation while with the Detroit Tigers in April.
In Other News...
Royals Can Finally Get A Needed Answer On Gavin Cross
Gavin Cross has spent the entire 2026 season at Triple-A Omaha, but his season has started to look a lot more like a player knocking on the door than one simply filling out a minor league roster. The former first-round pick has been better since July, and with the Royals out of playoff contention, the club is in a position where every remaining look can carry a little more weight than usual.
Cross is also reaching a point where Kansas City can no longer just stash the question for later. He is eligible for the Rule 5 draft this offseason if he is not added to the 40-man roster, which gives the Royals a clear deadline on how they view him. A late-season chance in the majors would not only help settle that roster decision, it could also offer the front office a better read on whether he can still develop into a long-term outfield option. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Fans May Need To Rethink Bobby Witt Jr's Ceiling
Bobby Witt Jr. has already built a rsum that would look impressive almost anywhere, and for the Royals it has helped define the post-rebuild core. Over five major league seasons, he has piled up 33.2 WAR, a total that ranks fourth across the sport since 2021 and first among Kansas City players in that span, a reminder of how quickly he has become the franchises most valuable position player.
Still, the bigger question around Witt is less about how good he is than how high the offensive ceiling really goes from here. His recent seasons have trended down a bit in power and batting average from the peak he reached in 2024, which now looks more like an outlier than a permanent offensive baseline. The Royals can count on a consistently very good hitter and an excellent shortstop, but the evidence points to a star whose value may come more from steady excellence than from being a truly game-changing force at the plate. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Suddenly Have A Big Maikel Garcia Question Again
Maikel Garcia is finally on the move again, and for the Royals that is a welcome sign after the third baseman went down with a left-hamstring strain. Kansas City announced Garcia will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha, a step that suggests his return is getting closer and gives the club a chance to gauge how he handles game action before plugging him back into the everyday mix.
The rehab updates did not stop there, either. Right-hander James McArthur is set to start his own assignment with Double-A Northwest Arkansas after dealing with multiple surgeries and elbow inflammation, while right-hander Connor Seabold will also head to Omaha to begin a rehab stint. For a Royals team trying to piece together its roster in the short term, Garcias status is the one that matters most, even if the next step still leaves a little room for questions. [Read more 🡒]