Royals Predicted To Regret Not Adding Outfield Help In Offseason
The Kansas City Royals had a productive offseason after earning a Wild Card berth last year. Following an 86-win season, they added Jonathan India and Carlos Estevez while also retaining Michael Wacha and Michael Lorenzen.
However, there is one area of the roster that was essentially left untouched. That area is the outfield.
The Royals appear to be banking on a bounce-back year from slugger Hunter Renfroe, but that is far from a guarantee as the start of the 2025 season inches closer.
Bleacher Report's Tim Kelly predicts that during the season, they will regret not improving the outfield in the offseason.
"Kyle Isbel is a tremendous defensive center fielder, but he posted a .654 OPS last season. When you add in MJ Melendez (.674 OPS) and Hunter Renfroe (.689 OPS), the Royals had one of the least productive offensive outfields in baseball last season," Kelly wrote.
"And yet, they project to have that same trio in the outfield on Opening Day. Perhaps Jonathan India and/or Michael Massey will see some time in the outfield in 2025. But this is a team that really needed to add an impact bat in the outfield, and it failed to do so."
There are still a few intriguing bats available in free agency, such as J.D. Martinez. However, the outfield market is essentially picked over, as Martinez is more of a DH-type.
Perhaps if the Royals are in the mix at the trade deadline, they can make a move to add an outfield bat. But for now, this is an area of weakness.
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Curt Bishop is a freelance sports writer who graduated from Maryville University of St. Louis with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the field of Communication and currently writes as a contributor for various platforms covering Major League Baseball. Curt’s work includes covering trade and free agency predictions, as well as rumors and news.