According to renderings provided by the Royals, we can get an idea of the significance of these changes. Both foul poles will be moved inward nine feet, which should allow for some big offensive improvements itself. The left field and right field walls will follow suit, as they’ll also move in nine feet apiece.
Left-center and right-center are where things change more drastically. Both of these walls will be moved by 10 feet, which could have tremendous implications for homers in Kauffman Stadium. The only area untouched is straightaway center field, which will remain at 410 feet, the third-longest point in the sport.
The wall height is also being adjusted, with most areas in the park shrinking from 10 feet to eight and a half feet.
While these changes will undoubtedly improve the number of home runs hit at Kauffman Stadium, the fear is that they’ll have a more negative impact on the pitching staff. According to the Royals GM J.J. Picollo, this won’t be the case.
When asked about the changes, Picollo said, “Our goal here isn’t to have an offensive ballpark, it’s to have a very fair ballpark. We don’t want it to turn into a bandbox, and every ball up in the air turns into a home run. We just want hitters to be rewarded when they hit the ball well, particularly in the gaps.”
With this move, the organization is aiming to strike a fair balance between offense and defense without fundamentally altering the park’s identity. If this works to their favor, many hitters will be heavily rewarded for their best contact, including but not limited to superstar Bobby Witt Jr.