Why this Royal — not Bobby Witt Jr. — has been KC’s best hitter through 35 games
When the Kansas City Royals returned home Monday, their best hitter, according to advanced stats, was not shortstop Bobby Witt Jr.
Instead, it was 25-year-old Maikel Garcia — fresh off his best week of the year.
The numbers, in case you were wondering: Garcia has a .319 average with a .496 slugging percentage. That’s just ahead of Witt, who is hitting .306 and slugging .493.
Add all the contributions, and Garcia is hitting 46% above league-average — according to the all-encompassing stat wRC+ — compared to Witt’s mark of 40% above average.
“There are a lot of things encouraging about Maikel, not just his offense, but his demeanor, his work ethic, his physicality,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said Monday. “He’s just maturing in front of our eyes.”
Garcia’s bat made the most impact during KC’s just-completed 5-1 road trip.
In those six games, Garcia had a .500 average (12 hits in 24 at-bats) with two home runs, two doubles, four RBIs and a pair of walks.
“Swinging at the good pitches and being patient at the plate. I think that was the key last week,” Garcia told The Star on Monday. “And I did a great job last week, and just started this week (Sunday) the same way I played last week.”
Yes, Sunday’s effort was the best of all. Garcia slugged two homers in the Royals’ 11-6 road win over the Baltimore Orioles, going 3-for-5 while leading an offense that set a club record with seven home runs.
Royals general manager J.J. Picollo, however, saw even better signs from Garcia after he displayed that pop. After Garcia’s second home run in the sixth inning, Picollo said the fourth-year pro didn’t appear to be thinking about yanking the ball out of the park.
Case in point: Garcia’s next at-bat was a single up the middle, and in the ninth, he grounded a ball to the right side to help advance teammate Cavan Biggio from second to third base with less than two outs.
“That’s very easy for a hitter to get in the box and try to drive the ball again over the fence, but he didn’t do that. He stayed within himself,” Picollo said. “It was a great sign of where he is not only physically, but more so mentally.”
This 2025 season is an interesting test case for Garcia, who went through a similar scenario last year. He had three home runs in his first six games then, and Picollo said the hitter admitted this offseason that the early power surge led to him hunting more pull-side power.
The results weren’t encouraging. Garcia had just four home runs the rest of the year, though he started to hit better in the playoffs, Picollo said, when he changed his approach to go more toward the opposite field.
Garcia credited Royals hitting coach Alec Zumwalt for helping him with an offseason mechanical adjustment. That would be a newly added toe-tap, which Garcia says has enabled him to be more ready for fastballs.
Statcast numbers back Garcia’s assertion. After hitting .215 with a .305 slugging percentage against fastballs last year, Garcia has improved on those same pitches this season, posting a .317 average and .476 slugging percentage.
That production has come, Garcia says, while staying within himself.
“I know my game is not to hit homers. My game is more running, hit singles, get 90 (feet), steal bases,” Garcia said. “Sometimes, we’re looking for some power. But after that, you have to go back to your plan, to your game, and try to help the team.”
Garcia did plenty of that last week, as his 0.8 wins above replacement over the previous six days ranks second among all hitters, behind only the Yankees’ Aaron Judge.
The hope, Garcia says, is that Sunday’s seven-home run game helps build confidence among the Royals’ hitters — while also keeping the good vibes heading into this seven-game homestand.
“It’s great hitting,” Garcia said, “but it’s more fun when you’re hitting and the team wins, because you’re part of that.”
This story was originally published May 5, 2025 at 6:30 PM with the headline "Why this Royal — not Bobby Witt Jr. — has been KC’s best hitter through 35 games."
