{"id":529221,"date":"2026-01-20T15:38:20","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T15:38:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/529221\/"},"modified":"2026-01-20T15:38:20","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T15:38:20","slug":"kansas-city-royals-news-the-offense-remains-a-question-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/529221\/","title":{"rendered":"Kansas City Royals news: The offense remains a question"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"\">Jesse Rogers at ESPN writes what each <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/mlb\/story\/_\/id\/47631039\/mlb-2026-free-agency-update-al-central-tigers-guardians-twins-royals-white-sox\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:AL Central team has left to do this offseason.;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">AL Central team has left to do this offseason.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"\">What they\u2019ve accomplished so far:\u00a0Adding Collins should help with production from the outfield, which was lacking last season. No matter the position out there, the Royals ranked near the bottom of the league in OPS. Strahm and Mears fit in the bullpen, as the team traded\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/mlb\/player\/_\/id\/4705673\/angel-zerpa\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Angel Zerpa;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Angel Zerpa<\/a>\u00a0for Collins (and Mears) but lost oft-injured reliever\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/mlb\/player\/_\/id\/33191\/hunter-harvey\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Hunter Harvey;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Hunter Harvey<\/a>\u00a0to free agency.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">What they still need to do:\u00a0The Royals\u2019 task hasn\u2019t changed: attempting to find more offense to put around all-world player\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/mlb\/player\/_\/id\/42403\/bobby-witt-jr\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Bobby Witt Jr;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Bobby Witt Jr<\/a>. It\u2019s likely to come via a trade rather than any of the free agents left on the market. The team might still add to the bullpen, but there has been quite the roster churn for Kansas City so far. And remember, the Royals were active during trade season last July, so the roster will look very different on Opening Day this year as opposed to 2025.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Preston Farr at EightOneSix projects <a href=\"https:\/\/royalsminors.substack.com\/p\/2026-projections-part-one\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:how some Royals hitters will fare in 2026;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">how some Royals hitters will fare in 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">A full season from Jac Caglianone gets him close to 30 home runs, but questions about chase and healthy contact continue to limit him some. Still, a 12% walk rate and .819 OPS would come pretty close to \u201cas-advertised\u201d for the 23-year-old slugger. Vinnie Pasquantino projects here to lead the team in home runs again, this time with 36. That\u2019s four more than he finished with in 2025 and his .510 projected slugging percentage would be a career-high. Also of note, the projection sees Vinnie\u2019s walk rate taking a step up in 2026, falling more in line with where he finished in his first two MLB seasons rather than the sub-8% numbers we saw in 2024 and 2025.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The local NAACP chapter awards Salvador Perez the <a href=\"https:\/\/fox4kc.com\/news\/kansas-city-royals-salvador-perez-receives-mlk-jr-diversity-advocate-award\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Martin Luther King, Jr. Diversity Advocate Award in Sports;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Martin Luther King, Jr. Diversity Advocate Award in Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Michael Coyle at Royals Keep <a href=\"https:\/\/royalskeep.com\/news-rumors\/royals-keep\/the-2025-royals-rotation-was-a-strength-lets-examine-its-depth-in-2026-r4049\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:looks at the rotation depth in 2026;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">looks at the rotation depth in 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/mlb\/story\/_\/id\/47661864\/braves-agree-jorge-mateo-ha-seong-kim-hurts-finger\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:The Braves sign infielder Jorge Mateo;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">The Braves sign infielder Jorge Mateo<\/a> to a one-year contract.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sny.tv\/articles\/yankees-signing-seth-brown-minor-league-deal\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:The Yankees sign outfielder Seth Brown;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">The Yankees sign outfielder Seth Brown<\/a> to a minor league deal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Several teams are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mlbtraderumors.com\/2026\/01\/several-teams-showing-interest-in-miguel-andujar.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:interested in free agent Miguel Andujar;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">interested in free agent Miguel Andujar<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Who are the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mlb.com\/news\/potential-mlb-trade-candidates-for-2026\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:players most likely to be traded;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">players most likely to be traded<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Will Luis Arraez <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mlbtraderumors.com\/2026\/01\/poll-will-luis-arraez-land-a-multi-year-deal.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:land a multi-year deal;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">land a multi-year deal<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sny.tv\/articles\/cody-bellinger-free-agency-buzz-2026\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:The Yankees are willing to include opt-outs;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">The Yankees are willing to include opt-outs<\/a> in their offer to Cody Bellinger.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Should the Red Sox <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mlb.com\/news\/masataka-yoshida-in-uncertain-role-for-2026\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:look to move Masataka Yoshida;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">look to move Masataka Yoshida<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Rockies deny they prevented <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/mlb\/article\/rockies-deny-they-blocked-kris-bryant-from-attending-2016-cubs-reunion-225229532.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:Kris Bryant from attending a 2016 Cubs reunio;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Kris Bryant from attending a 2016 Cubs reunio<\/a>n.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Should the MLBPA call owners\u2019 bluff and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crawfishboxes.com\/mlb-news\/71785\/mlbpa-should-call-mlb-owners-bluff-push-for-cap-heres-why\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:push for a salary cap on their terms;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">push for a salary cap on their terms<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">At the Athletic, a look at the players <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/6981924\/2026\/01\/19\/baseball-hall-of-fame-one-vote\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:that received exactly one Hall of Fame vote;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">that received exactly one Hall of Fame vote<\/a>. [$]<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Knuckleballing legend <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbssports.com\/mlb\/news\/wilbur-wood-chicago-white-sox-legend-dies\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Wilbur Wood dies at age 84;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Wilbur Wood dies at age 84<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The NFL coaching carousel continues as Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbssports.com\/nfl\/news\/bills-players-react-to-sean-mcdermott-firing\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:got the axe;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">got the axe<\/a> despite being an Admiral.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Miami Dolphins <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbssports.com\/nfl\/news\/dolphins-hire-jeff-hafley-head-coach-replace-mike-mcdaniel\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:hired Jeff Hafley;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">hired Jeff Hafley<\/a> to be their new head coach. Just don\u2019t Google his coaching history.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Chiefs <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arrowheadpride.com\/kansas-city-chiefs-news\/192581\/report-chiefs-requesting-interview-eric-bienemy\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:are bringing back;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">are bringing back<\/a> former Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy to be the old-new Chiefs OC.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Today\u2019s Off Topic: I bought a bike yesterday. I\u2019ve never been a cyclist, but a rowing coach I\u2019m using wants cycling of some kind included as cross training. Plus my wife and kids all have bikes; I\u2019m the one who cannot ride with them until I buy a bike. So I bought a used one for super cheap. It\u2019s an old, 1990s Raleigh C-30. It needs a new tube thing for the rear tire, but otherwise it looks very well cared for. New seat, new tires, chain in good shape. I\u2019ll get it tuned up and get riding here soon. The guy owned a bike trainer for indoor riding too, and he included it. I\u2019ll ride in my basement as soon as I get the bike fixed and figure out how the trainer thing works. This is really a validation experiment \u2013 invest minimal dollars to see if I\u2019ll commit to it. If I do, then I\u2019ll be willing to spend a bit more for something better.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Any cyclists here? What bike brands do you like? If you\u2019re in the KC area, where are your favorite places to ride? Trolley trail, Indian Creek trail, etc etc?<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Your song of the day is The Mars Volta with Blacklight Shine<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jesse Rogers at ESPN writes what each AL Central team has left to do this offseason. What they\u2019ve&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":529222,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2387],"tags":[28235,5,1365,4156,231,20020,915,197,936,2123,55,2596,2595,402,85,70066,792,17252,4808,4,252,373,4991,18078,2122,2126,142],"class_list":["post-529221","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-kansas-city-royals","tag-angel-zerpa","tag-baseball","tag-cody-bellinger","tag-hunter-harvey","tag-jac-caglianone","tag-jesse-rogers","tag-jorge-mateo","tag-jr","tag-kansas","tag-kansas-city","tag-kansas-city-royals","tag-kansascity","tag-kansascityroyals","tag-kris-bryant","tag-luis-arraez","tag-martin-luther-king","tag-masataka-yoshida","tag-miami-dolphins","tag-miguel-andujar","tag-mlb","tag-royals","tag-salvador-perez","tag-seth-brown","tag-strahm","tag-the-royals","tag-vinnie-pasquantino","tag-yankees"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115928177622781158","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/529221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=529221"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/529221\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/529222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=529221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=529221"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=529221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}