Yankees Two-Time All-Star Identified As Possible Royals Leadoff Hitter By Insider
The Kansas City Royals are going places, but they need to find some reinforcements along the way.
After an unexpected playoff appearance in 2024, the Royals' arrow is pointing up. They've got good bones: a superstar at one of the game's signature positions, a talented starting rotation, and a bunch of versatile role players. What they don't have, however, is a leadoff hitter.
When a transcendent talent like Bobby Witt Jr. bats second, it helps to have a runner on base in front of him. But the Royals' young superstar instead took more at-bats with the bases empty than any other number-two hitter in Major League Baseball this past season.
One insider believes the solution could be to pilfer the leadoff hitter from the team that sent the Royals packing in this year's postseason: the New York Yankees.
Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres, a former two-time American League All-Star, is hitting free agency after a somewhat disappointing 2024 campaign. Anne Rogers of MLB.com named Torres as an option to take over the leadoff gig for Kansas City in 2025, assuming the Yankees let him walk without much resistance.
"The 27-year-old (Torres) might be willing to sign a short-term deal to build up his value, which would certainly appeal to the Royals," Rogers said.
"Torres slashed .257/.330/.378 with 15 home runs, and while he's not a threat on the bases by any means, he does have lots of experience at the top of the order for the Yankees. The power potential the right-handed hitter still possesses is intriguing, too."
In 2018 and 2019, Torres was an All-Star second baseman, blasting a career-high 39 home runs in the latter year at only 22 years old. He hasn't quite found the same consistency in the years since, though, despite remaining one of the best offensive players at the position.
If Torres falls in the Royals' price range, he'd be a very solid get to help relieve some of the pressure on Witt. And perhaps joining a younger team on the come-up would help Torres relax and play his best baseball in 2025.
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Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "Kansas City Royals On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org