Ned Yost explains his return to Royals and how he’ll work with KC manager Matt Quatraro
Ned Yost never strayed far from the Kansas City Royals.
In fact, as the club marched toward Major League Baseball’s 2024 postseason, the former Kansas City manager was fully invested in the journey. He watched every pitch and cheered every run.
There were nervous moments and some anxiety, sure, but Yost — who guided the Royals to their last World Series championship in 2015 — couldn’t look away from the action.
“I was going through my retired life, loving it,” Yost said on Thursday. “Watching the team last year was a lot of fun compared to years past.
“You just knew they were building and growing. And going through the year, it was fun watching them. And we got to the playoffs (and) all of a sudden everything kind of changed. The two games with Baltimore were good, but I started feeling a lot of anxiety during that time. I mean, anxiety that I never felt before. And I finally understood what it was like to be a fan.”
Yost still owns the most managerial wins (746) in franchise history. Two years ago, he was inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame during a ceremony at Kauffman Stadium.
And now he is back with the organization, hired this week as a senior adviser to Royals general manager J.J. Picollo. He hopes to also be a resource for current KC manager Matt Quatraro, who led the Royals back to the playoffs for the first time since that World Series championship 10 years ago.
Yost retired as manager after the 2019 season, succeeded in the role by Mike Matheny, who had originally been hired by the Royals for a job similar in title to the one that Yost will occupy now.
“I knew there were things I could do to help,” Yost said. “You know, being a former manager, I know what Matt needs. I know what, you know, Matt thinks. I know what to help him look for in situations. And it has nothing to do with game management. It all has to do with, you know, suggesting players that can come to the big leagues and guys I know that could help him.”
Yost indeed knows this role well. The Royals also hired him as an adviser to the GM — then Dayton Moore — ahead of the 2010 season. Yost took over as manager four months later when the Royals fired Trey Hillman in May 2010.
The Royals in 2018 hired former St. Louis Cardinals manager Matheny as a special adviser for player development. Matheny took over as manager of the Royals when Yost retired in 2019 but was fired by Picollo after the 2022 season.
Yost’s job as an adviser will be different time. He will help those overseeing the Royals’ minor-league system identify players best suited to help the club compete in the American League Central. KC’s near-term plans for Yost include an extended stay at spring training in Surprise, Arizona, followed by monthly visits to the organization’s various minor-league affiliates throughout 2025.
“I’m going to be here six weeks for spring training to kind of get re-familiarized with the minor-league system and put faces with names,” Yost said. “And I’ll probably spend five to six days a month in Triple-A, five to six days in Double-A and then go wherever they need me to go to watch.”
For his part, Quatraro said “it speaks volumes to who he is as a person” that Yost availed himself for this sort of role with the Royals.
“He has done everything you can do in this game,” Quatraro said, “and for him to want to be back, help and contribute ... he has been as selfless as you would expect. And I think that fits perfectly with the theme here and the culture and understanding he just wants to help — being here and being able to help me and give advice, watch the players and talk to the coaches.”
Quatraro indicated that he doesn’t feel threatened by the return of the winningest manager in club history.
“He is in no way trying to insert himself into a spot where he hasn’t been,” Quatraro said. “But he just has a ton of knowledge and can help us in a lot of ways.”
Yost said he is especially excited to watch the organization’s younger prospects. He said he wants to keep tabs on the catchers, in particular, as he played that position during his own six-year MLB career. Top KC catcher prospects Blake Mitchell and Carter Jensen are currently taking part in the Royals’ big-league camp this spring.
Yost said he believes the Royals are close to winning it all again and is eager to assist in any way.
“My philosophy has always been that Matt manages the players and manages the game,” he said. “The coaches are the ones that prepare the players to be productive for Matt to use in any way that he feels fit.
“So, just in that latter part, (I will be) just trying to identify guys that will help him win a championship, because I think we are getting real close.”
Last summer the Royals selected top prospect Jac Caglianone with the sixth overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. And he had a solid start to his pro baseball career in High-A.
In October, he hit five home runs with 21 RBIs in the Arizona Fall League. He was also a pitcher in college, but the Royals expect him to be a position player in the majors.
KC is also high on young pitchers Noah Cameron, Ben Kudrna and Chandler Champlain, among others, within its farm system. Yost will help decide which players are ready to make the leap to the majors.
The Royals are primed for another competitive season. They re-signed several key veterans and made a strategic trade to acquire leadoff hitter Jonathan India in hopes of jump-starting their lineup.
Yost said Thursday that he has already noticed a competitive, confident tone on the fields at spring training. He said he sees similarities to the environment the Royals enjoyed after reaching the World Series in 2014 for the first time in three decades.
He referenced the Royals’ 2014 AL Wild Card game against the Oakland Athletics and besting then-ace Jon Lester.
“That was the moment they figured it out that they were good and they believed it,” Yost said of the 2014 Royals. “We went out there, won that game and won eight straight and went on to the World Series. So the next year, we came in and ran it because they had that valuable experience.”
Yost believes the Royals’ American League Division Series appearance against the New York Yankees last fall will catapult the team forward this season.
“I always said when I retired ... I wanted to see the Royals win one more world championship before I die,” he said. “And I think there are a lot of things that have got to happen. You’ve got to stay healthy and guys have to have good years.
“They are capable of going out and competing for that championship now. I want to see it, I want to be a part of it and help them any way that I can.”
This story was originally published February 13, 2025 at 2:02 PM with the headline "Ned Yost explains his return to Royals and how he’ll work with KC manager Matt Quatraro."
