How the Royals will set the table for their 2020 MLB season over the next three weeks
The sounds of baseball will fill the air at Kauffman Stadium as bats whack baseballs and pitchers unleash blurring fastballs that cut through the air on their way toward home plate Friday.
The Kansas City Royals begin spring training 2.0 at their home ballpark three and a half months after MLB suspended all spring camps in Arizona and Florida on March 12.
With a 60-game regular season starting later this month, the Royals will spend the next three weeks trying to round their ballclub into playing shape in order to compete in one of the most unique seasons in baseball history.
Here are five factors that will shape the Royals’ hopes for success this season:
Salvy and Mondi
Multiple-time All-Star and Gold Glove-winning catcher Salvador Perez and budding five-too shortstop Adalberto Mondesi will both go into camp fully healthy after rehabbing from injuries that may have led to early restrictions in a normal 162-game season.
GM Dayton Moore and manager Mike Matheny have said that Perez, who’s coming off Tommy John surgery he underwent in March 2019, is in even better shape than he was during spring training in Arizona.
The 60-game season may allow him to play on a more regular basis without Matheny having to worry about easing him into a heavy workload over a longer season.
Mondesi, coming off shoulder surgery he underwent in September, would have been on the borderline of being ready for the season opener. A switch-hitter, he’d been slowly working back to hitting from both sides of the plate when spring training was halted. He was in the lineup for the first time on the day the Royals’ final exhibition game was canceled.
Probably the most dynamic player on the Royals, Mondesi could have a huge impact if he’s available every day in a 60-game sprint of a season.
Bullpen choices
Matheny wants to deploy KC’s bullpen in different ways this season, perhaps using pitchers based on high-leverage situations as opposed to plugging them into traditional roles.
Of course, there’s a lot of sorting out to be done in the next three weeks.
This spring, the Royals were facing a potential bullpen logjam. Ian Kennedy, Scott Barlow, Tim Hill and Kevin McCarthy had been their most steady big-league relievers.
Trevor Rosenthal and Greg Holland looked to have regained their past forms in the glimpses they showed during Cactus League games, while Josh Staumont displayed electric stuff and pitchers like Glenn Sparkman, Richard Lovelady and Tyler Zuber also had some impressive outings.
Others, such as Jorge Lopez, Jesse Hahn and Randy Rosario, are out of options, meaning they’d need to either make the roster or be exposed to claims by other teams.
Rule 5 draft pick Stephen Woods Jr. must be on the roster all season or he’ll be sent back to Tampa Bay. Kyle Zimmer getting an additional option year takes some of the pressure off; he’s another bullpen arm with electric stuff.
Young starters
While they haven’t been added to the 40-man roster yet, top pitching prospects Brady Singer, Jackson Kowar, Daniel Lynch and Kris Bubic are part of the Royals’ 60-player pool.
With the fifth-starter spot still undetermined, it’s possible that one of them could earn a place on the roster to start the season. Singer remained with the club in big-league camp until it ended in March.
Any one of them making the club would represent a benchmark in the Royals’ youth movement, in which they’ve invested heavily the past few years.
Starling/Phillips
Hometown hero Bubba Starling, a former Gardner Edgerton High star, and fan favorite Brett Phillips will continue to battle to make the roster in the outfield. Both are out of minor-league options, so not making the team for either of them means potentially getting claimed by another organization.
Whit Merrifield and Hunter Dozier figure to get the lion’s share of their playing time in the outfield this season, so it remains to be seen how many outfielders the Royals will carry.
Starling, a former fifth overall draft pick, posted a .367 batting average, .441 on-base percentage and .767 slugging percentage in 30 spring training games. He struck out just four times, walked three, hit three home runs and stole three bases.
First base
Ryan O’Hearn and Ryan McBroom were both off to torrid spring performances in Arizona.
A left-handed hitter, O’Hearn smashed five home runs in 13 games (35 at-bats) and posted a slash line of .343/.395/.857. Of his 12 hits this spring, eight were for extra bases.
McBroom, who bats right-handed, batted .314 with a .368 on-base percentage. He belted three home runs and slugged .657 in 35 at-bats. Six of his 11 hits went for extra bases, and his eight RBIs ranked behind only O’Hearn.
This story was originally published July 2, 2020 at 12:03 PM with the headline "How the Royals will set the table for their 2020 MLB season over the next three weeks."
