Inside the 48 hours after Jac Caglianone got his MLB call-up from the KC Royals
Shortly after his promotion to Triple-A Omaha on May 18, Jac Caglianone began working with outfield guru Rusty Kuntz, who had a message for the Royals’ top prospect.
“It could be coming quicker than you think,” Kuntz said of Caglianone’s promotion to the major leagues.
Kuntz was right.
On Sunday, Caglianone was called into Omaha manager Mike Jirschele’s office, and the former Royals third-base coach delivered the good news of the promotion. Video of that moment, which went viral, included Caglianone saying he had to call his dad, Jeff.
Sitting in the visitors’ dugout Tuesday at Busch Stadium, Caglianone recalled that conversation.
“Me and my dad aren’t super emotional people by any means, but this is definitely one of those kind of tear-jerker moments, for sure,” Caglianone said. “And thankfully, like I said, my fiancée (Elli McKissock) was there, too, so I got to share that with her, which was super special.”
Caglianone’s first week with the Class AAA Storm Chasers was spent in Salt Lake City on a road series. He didn’t have time to get settled in Omaha before the call came from the Royals.
Having McKissock, who played volleyball at the University of Florida, on hand in Nebraska proved to be a big help.
“The last 48 hours have been a whirlwind, to say the least,” Caglianone said. “Moved into an apartment in Omaha on Tuesday, and thankfully, my fiancée was there, so she helped me pack everything back up and we hit the road yesterday morning and came into KC.”
Fortunately, the apartments are owned by minor-league baseball, so Caglianone didn’t have to worry about breaking his lease.
Caglianone’s original plan was to pack and hit the road Sunday evening, but the Royals told him to get a good night’s rest, then drive to Kansas City on Monday morning.
The 2 1/2-hour trip allowed Caglianone time to talk with excited family and friends.
“I woke up in the morning pretty early, like 8 o’clock, drove down and just answered as many people as I could on the phone,” he said. “I think I got through maybe two songs.
Those big-league dreams had come true. And that really hit home for the first time when he arrived at Kauffman Stadium.
Caglianone joined the team for its charter flight to St. Louis on Monday, and shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. chronicled the moment.
Royals first baseman Vinny Pasquantino noted that Caglianone dozed off on the 30-minute flight, so the nerves apparently weren’t overwhelming.
At roughly 1:20 p.m. on Tuesday, the second of two Royals team buses arrived at Busch Stadium from the team hotel.
Inside Busch Stadium, an outsider wouldn’t have known that Caglianone was prepping for his debut.
“Just kind of glancing through the clubhouse, it just looks like a normal day in there,” Royals general manager J.J. Picollo said. “You know, there’s no fanfare around him. There’s no teammates swarming him to try to help him.
“They’re going to let him go through his pre-game and whatever jitters he has, he’s going to work through it, probably after that first at-bat.”
A little more than two hours later, a group of roughly 25 journalists were waiting for Caglianone to talk. He took questions for about 10 minutes and then retreated to the clubhouse.
Shortly after 5 p.m. Tuesday, Caglianone prepared to take batting practice for the first time in the majors.
As he neared the cage on the Busch Stadium field, he spied his dad, Jeff, in a group of roughly 30 fans standing in a roped-off area.
Father and son shared a short hug and then it was time for Jac to get to work.
This story was originally published June 3, 2025 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Inside the 48 hours after Jac Caglianone got his MLB call-up from the KC Royals."
