KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With the Thanksgiving holiday nearing, Kansas City Royals rookie Carter Jensen helped to brighten an otherwise dreary-looking day for a few hundred local residents in need.
A light rain fell on a chilly Friday afternoon as Jensen and other volunteers handed out Thanksgiving turkeys, other holiday meal-prep items, and books for kids in a drive-thru giveaway at the Kansas City Urban Youth Academy. A line of cars began to form more than two hours before the scheduled start of the event, which was staged about a block from the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
Whatever he could do to help ease someone else’s burden, Jensen told Pitcher List he was ready to assist.
“It’s important for everybody to be here, not just me, to give back to the community,” Jensen said. “The fans and the people of Kansas City show up for us every day when we’re playing during the season. They do so much for us.
“If I can make somebody else happy, that makes me happy.”
Jensen made Royals fans happy in 2025 when he zoomed through the minor-league system and hit .300/.391/.550 with three home runs, including one that went 482 feet. Jensen also hit six doubles, took nine walks and finished with 13 RBIs in a 20-game stint in the final month of the regular season. Baseball America ranks him as the No. 88 prospect in Major League Baseball.
Jensen is a real, live example of a hometown boy making good. He grew up in North Kansas City and was a third-round pick out of Park Hill High School in 2021, bypassing a scholarship to play in college at LSU. Jensen’s first two full seasons as a pro were fair, but he started to show real promise in 2024 as a power-hitting catcher with a strong command of the strike zone. Jensen’s progress on the field is notable because he’s so much younger than his teammates or the competition. Having turned 22 in July, he was about five years younger than league average at Triple-A, and nearly seven years younger than major-league average. Keith Law of The Athletic said Jensen’s talent is such that, if he sustains his hitting output as a catcher, he projects to be an All-Star.
“I’ve never really felt outmatched,” Jensen said. “I love being the younger guy. I love the challenge of being able to go out there. Yeah, I’m 22 years old, but I’ve put the work in. I’ve done everything I can to put myself in a position to succeed. There’s no pressure there.”
At the time he was drafted, Jensen was said to be a better hitting prospect than a defender, and the possibility of him being switched to the outfield has been lurking. But his defense has improved over the past two seasons, and Jensen acquitted himself well in the majors on both sides of the ball in September.
Royals left-hander Noah Cameron, who played with Jensen at multiple levels and has thrown to him plenty, said he’s noticed a lot of “incredible” growth on the defensive side.
“He’s putting in a lot of work behind the plate — receiving, pitch calling, stuff like that,” Cameron said. “Everybody knew he had the bat, but it’s been fun to watch him grow as a defensive catcher.”
Catching can be a grind, and Jensen conceded that he felt ready for a break after a long season. He played 131 games total, including 84 behind the plate, among Double-A, Triple-A and the majors. He also played an additional 10 games in the Dominican Winter League for Aguilas Cibaenas, from October to early November. Jensen has packed a lot into ’25. Among the things he learned about himself in the D.R.: Jensen doesn’t speak enough Spanish, and he pushed himself further than he ever had.
“Going through three different levels, never really being in the same spot for long, I think that was the thing that made it a little bit more tiring,” Jensen said. “But I would go through eight different spots if I had to, just to get up to Kansas City.”
There is more for Royals fans to like about Carter that extends beyond the playing field. For someone who just turned 22 in July, Jensen seems not only to have his professional life in order, but also his perspective on what’s important outside of work. He said his mom and dad (Kim and Jim Jensen) raised him to put himself second.
“I feel it’s super-important, and you don’t see it a lot, just with how crazy the world is,” Jensen said. “So, I try to put others above me, make sure everybody else is good, and take care of them.
“Thanks to God — He’s given me an amazing platform,” Jensen said. “With every second I get, I want to be able to get back and give back.”
Kansas City Royals catcher Carter Jensen hands out a turkey at a community giveaway in November 2025.” width=”2675″ height=”2201″ /> Photo by Dave Brown
Cameron said the Royals couldn’t have picked a better person to represent the team at an event like a turkey giveaway. And not only because Jensen is from the area.
“He’s just one of those people. He’s always there for others. That’s the type of person he is,” Cameron said.
Cameron could recall multiple examples when Jensen went out of his way to look after friends and teammates. One time involved driving about 4½ hours to pick up a stranded buddy who was on the way to spring training in Arizona but had their car break down.
“He just wants everyone to be together,” Cameron said. “He cares a lot.”
Jensen said he actually got the call for assistance during a Kansas City Chiefs game. Admittedly, this was a real test. Jensen thought about it for a moment.
“I was like, ‘Man, the Chiefs are in a close game. I want to watch,” Jensen said. “I just turned (the game) on my phone, got on the road and picked him up. Because I knew that if I was in that situation, I’d want to have somebody to lean on and, you know, somebody that would be willing to drive that far and pick me up.”
“I’d do anything for my teammates, people who are close to me. But it’s no big deal.”
Jensen didn’t personally know the people he was helping at the turkey giveaway, beyond those who might have been fans of the Royals, but that was beyond the point.
“I love what the holiday stands for,” Jensen said. “Being thankful for what you have is something that can be overlooked sometimes and taken for granted.”
Jensen also said he enjoyed meeting other volunteers, including many who play college baseball for Kansas Christian in nearby Overland Park, Kan. Missouri-Kansas City softball players helped to pack the boxes that Jensen and company distributed. Conversing with volunteers. Helping out families by handing out a turkey, fresh fruit and vegetables. Saying hi to people driving by. Giving occasional fist bumps to excited kids in the back seat. There are worse ways to spend an afternoon.
“The people give us a lot of energy,” Jensen said.
Similar to other teams around MLB, the Royals have partnered with local businesses for nine years in an endeavor to address food insecurity during the holidays. This time, the Royals’ crew handed out 300 birds and 250 meal kits, taking about 90 minutes to distribute it all before running out. Not everyone in line ended up getting something.
If he could give something else to everyone at Thanksgiving, Jensen said it would be this message: “Everybody, love everybody. There’s too much hate in the world. It’s sad to see. But you know, if everybody could just love everybody, I think this world would be an amazing spot.”
While he’s eager to report for spring training in about 80 days, Jensen awaits his own family’s Thanksgiving. The Jensens have created a tradition of going out for Italian — no offense to turkey traditionalists.
“Mom is not a fan of all the leftovers,” Jensen said. “It doesn’t really matter what kind of food we have. We pay attention to the meaning behind it.”
Kansas City Royals catcher Carter Jensen hands out a turkey at a community giveaway in November 2025.” width=”3267″ height=”2334″ /> Photo by Dave Brown