{"id":816794,"date":"2026-09-29T01:09:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T01:09:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/816794\/"},"modified":"2026-09-29T01:09:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T01:09:17","slug":"kansas-city-royals-report-card-grading-every-catcher-from-the-2026-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/816794\/","title":{"rendered":"Kansas City Royals Report Card: Grading Every Catcher From the 2026 Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to the 2026 Kansas City Royals \u201cReport Card,\u201d where the Royals On SI beat writers grade every player on their performance at their respective positions this season.<\/p>\n

For the first edition of \u201cReport Card,\u201d we are starting with the boys behind the plate: the catching group. Before we begin, Salvador Perez will not be included in this report, as he spent the majority of the season as the designated hitter. He will instead be featured in the designated hitter edition.<\/p>\n

Carter Jensen \u2014 B<\/p>\n

What a rookie season Carter Jensen put together. Entering the year, it was clear the Royals were banking on continued development from their young sluggers, with Jensen being one of them. That is exactly what the catcher showcased in 2026.<\/p>\n

Jensen finished the season slashing .239\/.323\/.467 with a team-leading 27 home runs and 81 RBIs. Along with those numbers, the 23-year-old set both franchise and MLB records while making his impact felt at the plate.<\/p>\n

Paired with his 27 home runs were 35 doubles and two triples, giving Jensen 64 extra-base hits, which surpassed Mike Piazza for the MLB record for extra-base hits by a rookie catcher. This also surpassed Bobby Witt Jr. for the Royals\u2019 rookie franchise record. Jensen also set an all-time MLB record for most leadoff home runs by a catcher with six.<\/p>\n

Arguably the biggest record Jensen broke was the Royals\u2019 rookie single-season home run record when he hit his 25th, surpassing Bob Hamelin\u2019s 1994 mark of 24. Jensen\u2019s power was on full display throughout the season.<\/p>\n

The main thing holding Jensen\u2019s grade back from being higher is his defensive ability behind the plate. Jensen excels at framing and pop time, so that is not the issue. It is his ability to block the ball. He posted a minus-9 Blocks Above Average, which ranks in the third percentile, according to Statcast.<\/a><\/p>\n

Nonetheless, this was a very memorable rookie campaign for Jensen, one that has brought a great deal of optimism about the impact he can have in the future.<\/p>\n

Luke Maile \u2014 D<\/p>\n

Luke Maile didn\u2019t have a large sample size this season, as he appeared in just 18 games while serving as a veteran depth option at catcher. In those 18 games, he didn\u2019t provide much offensively, slashing .159\/.229\/.273.<\/p>\n

There isn\u2019t much more to Maile\u2019s role than providing depth when needed. It\u2019s hard to say he had either a good or bad year given the limited sample size, but it is always valuable to have veteran depth at catcher because you never know when you\u2019re going to need it.<\/p>\n

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