Even with the Royals’ 2026 season already buried in the standings, there’s still plenty to track if you know where to look. The wins and losses may be gone, but the individual performances keep giving Kansas City something worth watching, especially when the conversation turns to 2027 and beyond.
That’s the bigger takeaway from Baseball America’s annual poll of MLB managers, coaches and executives. Several Royals showed up in elite company, and the recognition says a lot about how the industry views the club’s top-end talent.
Bobby Witt Jr. was the Royals player showing up everywhere in the voting. He landed in the top three for Best Baserunner, Fastest Baserunner, Most Exciting Player, Best Defensive Shortstop and Best Infield Arm.
That kind of spread is no accident. Even with a notable chunk of the season lost to injury, Witt still leads all AL fielders with 24 Outs Above Average, and the highlight-reel plays keep piling up.
His arm strength is the one part of his game that invites debate, since poll voters named him the best infield arm even though he ranks 10th in maximum arm strength at shortstop alone. Still, when he makes plays like this, the label is tough to argue with.
Maikel Garcia also earned major respect in the poll, taking the most votes for Best Defensive Third Baseman. He missed a large portion of the summer himself because of injury, but the defensive reputation at third base has never really been in question.
Garcia has 6 Outs Above Average, good for the 92nd percentile, and he ranks third in maximum arm strength at third base this season. He finished behind Witt in the infield arm voting, but the tools are clearly there.
Jac Caglianone was another Royal to get noticed, coming in second in Best Outfield Arm voting. That shouldn’t exactly shock anyone who watched him pitch at Florida and saw how much force he can put behind the ball from the outfield.
Caglianone is tied with teammate Isaac Collins for the ninth-most outfield assists in MLB this season, and his average arm strength of 98.5 mph leads all players, not just outfielders. That is a serious weapon coming out of right field.
Michael Massey might have been the most interesting Royals name in the poll. He finished second in Best Defensive Second Baseman, which stands out because his major league fielding has not always matched the reputation he built in the minors.
Injuries and inconsistency at the plate have tended to overshadow the glove. This season, though, the defense has taken a real step forward.
Massey has a career-best 7 Outs Above Average, placing him in the league’s 94th percentile, with much of that coming from plays to his right and his work as Witt’s double play partner in several games.
For Kansas City, that’s the thread worth following now: the season result may already be decided, but the individual pieces still matter. Whether it’s Witt, Garcia, Caglianone or Massey, there are real tools here, and the people around the league noticed.
In Other News...
Royals Fans Are Split Again Over Whats Happening In The Booth
The Royals TV booth has been a moving target this season, and fans have noticed. Ryan Lefebvre is still handling play-by-play, but the analyst chair has rotated among Rex Hudler, Jeremy Guthrie, Eric Hosmer and Jeff Montgomery, while Bridget Howard has come on as the sideline reporter. The mix has given Kansas City a different broadcast feel, and not everyone is reacting to it the same way.
Awful Announcings annual MLB broadcast crew ratings reflected some of that unease, dropping the Royals from 21st to 25th. Much of the debate has centered on Hudlers high-energy approach and whether the rotating analyst setup helps or hurts the booths rhythm, with viewer opinions split on whether the changes have made the telecast fresher or simply more uneven. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Fans Have An Early Prospect Name Worth Tracking Now
The complex leagues are still the best kind of hiding place for a prospect, and Gregory Sanchez just gave scouts something to file away for later. The Dominican right-hander flashed a high-velocity fastball in a recent outing and backed it up with a promising three-pitch mix, the sort of early look that can make an arm feel a lot more real than a line in a transaction log.
For Royals fans, the broader takeaway is just as interesting because Dominic Battista keeps showing up in the same kind of cross-check conversations as other recent high school signees, including Rangers infielder Connor Comeau. Battistas name is one worth keeping on the radar now, not because the finish line is close, but because these are the stages where the first real clues about a players future start to surface. [Read more 🡒]
Salvador Perez Just Earned A Place In Elite MLB Company
Salvador Perez keeps adding to a resume that already makes him one of the most important international signings of the modern era. Since arriving in Kansas City, he has become the kind of franchise centerpiece teams spend years hoping to find, pairing long-term staying power with the sort of production and leadership that put him in rare company alongside some of baseballs most recognizable international stars.
For the Royals, Perezs place on that list is a reminder of how much value a single scouting win can carry over time. The company he is now grouped with includes players who reshaped the expectations for what an international signee can become, and Perezs own career has followed that same path of impact, durability and big-stage relevance, even as the broader discussion around the signings continues to point to how unusual it is to land a player who changes a team this completely. [Read more 🡒]