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Source: https://royalsreview.com/rss/index.xml

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<title type="text">Royals Review</title>
<subtitle type="text">Your best source for quality Kansas City Royals news, rumors, analysis, stats and scores from the fan perspective.</subtitle>
<updated>2025-09-18T20:34:47+00:00</updated>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com" />
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<entry>
<author>
<name>Matt Chabot</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Royals offense sputters yet again as they fall 2-0 to the Mariners and drop the series]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/2025-royals-game-recaps/87702/royals-offense-sputters-yet-again-as-they-fall-2-0-to-the-mariners-and-drop-the-series" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87702</id>
<updated>2025-09-18T16:34:47-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-18T16:34:47-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="2025 Royals game recaps" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Today, the Royals face the Mariners in the decisive game of a crucial three-game series at Kauffman Stadium. The series is even, with the Mariners taking game one in a 12-5 blowout in which the Royals were once down 10-1. Despite the brutal loss in game one, the Royals managed to bounce back in game […]]]></summary>
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<img alt="" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.royalsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/140/2025/09/imagn-27110812.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100" />
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Today, the Royals face the Mariners in the decisive game of a crucial three-game series at Kauffman Stadium. The series is even, with the Mariners taking game one in a 12-5 blowout in which the Royals were once down 10-1. Despite the brutal loss in game one, the Royals managed to bounce back in game two thanks to Cole Ragans’ return to the mound and another standout performance from Carter Jensen. The Royals’ offense was not able to carry their success from last night into today’s game and lost the final game of the series 2-0
The game really kicked off in the second inning, when the Mariners were able to open the inning with a single by Josh Naylor and then a double by Jorge Polonco to take a 1-0 lead early. Stephen Kolek was unfazed and stepped up by striking out Eugenio Suarez. Then, with one out and a runner on second, Dominic Canzone came to the plate and, similar to how the game ended last night, he hit a hard shot to Adam Frazier, who made a good play on the ball and made a double play to end the inning.
Following the top of the second, the Royals threatened to score after getting one out singles from Salvador Perez and Adam Frazier. Unfortunately, this was followed up by a flyout for Jac Caglianone and a strikeout by Carter Jensen. This marked the start of a cold streak for both offenses, as both teams were only able to put up one baserunner from the beginning of the third inning until the start of the eighth inning. 
In the eighth, a bit of an odd situation gave the Mariners a base runner with one out in the eighth inning. After Dominic Canzone came to the plate and hit a ground ball to Michael Massey for what seemed to be a routine out, the Mariners challenged the call on the field. They argued that Michael Massey was illegally positioned on the outfield grass, and after winning that challenge, Massey was charged with an error, and Canzone was awarded first base. This cost the Royals after JP Crawford hit a two-out double off Daniel Lynch IV, scoring Victor Robles from first, who came in as a pinch runner for Canzone.
With that error, Stephen Kolek was knocked out of the game after another incredible start. After giving up the two back-to-back hits in the second inning, Kolek did not allow another hit the rest of his time on the mound. In fact, Kolek only allowed two more base runners in the game, with one being a walk to Josh Naylor and the other being the error by Michael Massey. Kolek finished with a stat line of 7.1 innings pitched, 1 earned run, and one walk vs eight strikeouts, which was a career high. This was Kolek’s fourth start with the Royals, and it was his fourth quality start as he continues to make a strong case to be in the 2026 rotation.
Unfortunately for the Royals, on the other hand, Luis Castillo also had a great start, going six innings and allowing only three hits. The Kansas City offense struggled yet again and did not manage to score a run despite threatening again in the ninth with runners on first and second. It is a story we have heard time and time again this year, where a dominant performance by a pitcher is overshadowed by offensive struggles. 
There are nine games left in the regular season, and the Royals will take on the Blue Jays in Kansas City tomorrow at 6:40.

]]>
</content>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Matt Chabot</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Game 153: Royals wrap up series against the Mariners]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/2025-royals-gamethreads/87653/game-153-royals-wrap-up-series-againsts-the-mariners" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87653</id>
<updated>2025-09-18T14:29:37-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-18T13:40:00-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="2025 Royals gamethreads" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Today, the Royals take on the Mariners in the final game of a must-win three-game series at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals have split the series so far, with the Mariners taking game one in a 12-5 blowout where the Royals were down 10-1 at one point. Kansas City bounced back in game two in Cole […]]]></summary>
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<img alt="" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.royalsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/140/2025/09/gettyimages-2236017950.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100" />
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Today, the Royals take on the Mariners in the final game of a must-win three-game series at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals have split the series so far, with the Mariners taking game one in a 12-5 blowout where the Royals were down 10-1 at one point. Kansas City bounced back in game two in Cole Ragans’ return to the mound and another big game from Carter Jensen. The Royals will now look to take the series this afternoon as they cling to their playoff hopes. 
The Royals’ playoff chances are slim, and they have really been trying to give their young prospects chances to impact the game, with Carter Jensen having played in four games in a row and Jac Caglianone playing in eight of the last nine games. The Royals sit 7.5 games back from a playoff spot, and the team knows they have to be all but perfect if they want to sneak their way into the playoffs.
Today, the Royals will send Stephen Kolek to the mound, who has been exceptional for the Royals in his three starts with the team so far. In his 19.2 innings pitched for the Royals this year, Kolek has only allowed four total runs and has dropped his season ERA from 4.18 to 3.71. Kolek has seen massive improvements with both his fastball offerings and has consistently been elite at forcing ground balls for the Royals. He now has an opportunity to go for his fourth consecutive quality start as a Royals starter this season.
On the mound for the Mariners is Luis Castillo, who has struggled at times this year and is not quite playing like the ACE quality pitcher he used to be. However, Castillo is still posting an ERA of 3.76 on the year and has proven to be a quality pitcher. In his last two starts, Castillo bounced back from a brutal stretch of games where he gave up 19 runs over just 17 innings and four starts. Castillo heavily relies on his fastballs, and the Royals will have to be ready for a variety of firm pitches if they want to come away with the series.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Lineups</h2>
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-bluesky-social wp-block-embed-bluesky-social"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/app.bsky.feed.post/3lz4ngyqi4s26" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreidhur3ot6bqxqn5wmq42yajwinrisn2jh6yve7plc5rdviabdgyyi">Series finale on deck.— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw?ref_src=embed">Kansas City Royals (@royals.com)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/post/3lz4ngyqi4s26?ref_src=embed">2025-09-18T15:17:28.087Z</a></blockquote>
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<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true">Brunch and baseball for the series finale. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TridentsUp?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TridentsUp</a> <a href="https://t.co/luX6avyJW4">pic.twitter.com/luX6avyJW4</a>— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mariners/status/1968692577349112121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
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</content>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Brian Henry</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Royals’ 2026 payroll may already be a little tight]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/royals-analysis-sabermetrics-stats/87636/royals-2026-payroll-is-already-a-little-tight" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87636</id>
<updated>2025-09-18T10:07:23-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-18T10:00:00-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="Royals Analysis" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[It is time to shift gears and look to next season, for me at least. To that end, the first thing to know is – what kind of space does the front office have to add talent? Or what can be done to free up enough money to get what the team needs? Here are […]]]></summary>
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It is time to shift gears and look to next season, for me at least. To that end, the first thing to know is – what kind of space does the front office have to add talent? Or what can be done to free up enough money to get what the team needs?
<a href="https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/kansas-city-royals/payroll/_/year/2026" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/kansas-city-royals/payroll/_/year/2026">Here are the salaries</a> the Royals are definitely on the hook for in 2026, assuming they don’t trade the contracts. I am putting Salvador Perez’s option as well. He is not leaving this team unless something very weird happens. The most likely change would be that instead of picking up his option, they signed him to a new deal.
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Seth Lugo – $21.5 million*</li>
<li>Michael Wacha – $18 million</li>
<li>Bobby Witt – $14.1 million*</li>
<li>Salvador Perez – $13.5 million</li>
<li>Carlos Estévez – $10.1 million</li>
<li>Cole Ragans – $4.6 million *</li>
</ul>
*Including signing bonus
So, the team has just shy of $82 million in contractual obligations if you ignore the two mutual options that Michael Lorenzen and Randall Grichuk have, althoug they will owe $4.5 million in buyouts on the two. Mutual options never get exercised. The team also has a very interesting decision to make on Jonathan India who will be entering his final year of arbitration and will cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $10 million. Do you pay that to a guy who they don’t seem to like at any defensive position and hasn’t been a particularly good hitter? Second base is still a big question mark, so maybe, but I am not sure. If kept, that pushes them above $90 and then there are several other arbitration eligible players that are going to get paid including Kris Bubic, Vinnie Pasquantino, John Schreiber, Kyle Isbel, Daniel Lynch, Angel Zerpa, and maybe Michael Massey, Sam Long, and Bailey Falter if they want to keep those who are still relatively cheap as Arb 1 players.
Of the arbitration folks, Bubic and Schreiber are starting to get expensive. My guess is Bubic in Arb 3 gets $7-8 million, and Schreiber is going to get in the $4-5 million range. Bubic is a no-brainer unless the shoulder is cooked, but moving Schreiber could make sense in some scenarios. Isbel is Arb 2 and will make around $4 million. As a useful position player that is good enough value that I don’t think it is a question whether or not you tender him. 
Everyone else is Arb 1 and not going to crush the payroll. Still, this group is going to push the payroll up by around $25 million and maybe a bit more. Even if India isn’t retained, that puts the payroll over $100 million before all the group of pre-arb players start getting their dribs and drabs. I would not be surprised if Picollo only has between $5-$15 million in the free agency budget with the option to drop India and add some more if there is a better or cheaper option. That is also assuming they are going to stay in the $120-$130 million range for overall payroll.
While it would be lovely to go sign Kyle Tucker, we all know that isn’t going to happen. I think a lot of people would like to retain Mike Yastrzemski, but $5 million or whatever he would receive might matter to the budget. Plus, if we assume Jac Caglianone in right field, having two left-handed right fielders seems like an odd choice on an already lefty-heavy team. Also, I don’t want to have to commit to learning how to spell Yastrzemski from memory. On the other hand, free agency this offseason is looking pretty weak at the two positions – second base and outfield – where the Royals could upgrade the most.
They could clear up some payroll by moving someone like Estévez. You would not get much in return, but clearing $10 million might be worth it if the front office thinks the current bullpen can take care of the situation. Also, these are easier to trade for at the deadline than impact bats if you are in the race next July.
Anyway, this is going to be an interesting offseason, and I think the potential for some big trades is very high, which is something I will definitely get to writing about over the next several months. Money is not going to be something I expect them to throw around aggressively, both because of the lack of quality free agents and the limited amount I think the front office will be given from above. How they play this will be super fun to watch, if you are into a very nerdy sort of fun, or it will be incredibly boring as they just sit on their hands and basically expect Carter Jensen and Caglianone to boost the offense up through improvement along with maybe a bounce back from India.
This is just the first salvo of preparation for the offseason, which will be followed by lots of how Royals writers trying to find fixes to the anemic offense that sunk them in 2025. I wish I could tell you the tens of millions and a lot of options, but I think they are going to have to get more creative than splashing around money in free agency, as per usual. That does not mean that six months from now we won’t be looking at a much more solid 26-man roster than they had going into this season.
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</content>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Greg Walker</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Kansas City Royals news: Ragans returns, Isbel departs]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/royals-news-notes-links/87623/kansas-city-royals-news-ragans-returns-isbel-departs" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87623</id>
<updated>2025-09-18T09:17:41-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-18T08:00:00-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="Royals Rumblings" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Cole Ragans dominated in his first inning back from the IL ($): Ragans got Arozarena swinging on three pitches. He overpowered the All-Star outfielder with three fastballs 95 mph or higher. Next, Ragans sent Raleigh — an American League MVP candidate — down on strikes. Rodriguez received the same fate. He swung through three consecutive […]]]></summary>
<content type="html">
<![CDATA[
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<img alt="" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.royalsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/140/2025/09/gettyimages-2235445145.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100" />
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<a href="https://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article312153293.html">Cole Ragans dominated in his first inning</a> back from the IL ($):
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
Ragans got Arozarena swinging on three pitches. He overpowered the All-Star outfielder with three fastballs 95 mph or higher. Next, Ragans sent Raleigh — an American League MVP candidate — down on strikes. Rodriguez received the same fate. He swung through three consecutive heaters before making a U-turn back to the Mariners dugout. All told, Ragans induced nine swings and misses in the first inning alone.
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.mlb.com/royals/news/kyle-isbel-exits-mariners-royals-game-due-to-injury">Kyle Isbel left the game with a hamstring injury</a>:
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“He felt something in his hamstring,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “We’ll get him an MRI in the morning and see how it is.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.mlb.com/royals/news/cole-ragans-returns-from-injured-list-in-royals-win-over-mariners">The Royals are staying focused</a> despite being effectively eliminated from postseason contention:
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“It’s tough to deliver, but it is one day at a time,” Frazier said. “There are two weeks left. If you just check out, your numbers are going to reflect it. You’ve got to show up mentally. Stay locked in. … You got to take some pride with yourself up [at] the plate and in the field. Still got 10 games left to play hard.”
</blockquote>
Baseball America graded out <a href="https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/mlb-farm-system-grades-for-every-team-in-2025/">how the farm performed in 2025</a> ($):
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
Big league pitchers have exposed holes in his offensive game, but Jac Caglianone laid waste to minor league competition and surged to the majors—all while learning a new position—which is an encouraging development in such a short amount of time. Carter Jensen has joined him in the majors, and Noah Cameron has also exceeded expectations so far. Elsewhere, the Royals got great returns so far from several lower-level prospects such as David Shields, Yandel Ricardo, Kendry Chourio and Asbel Gonzalez. Even despite Blake Mitchell’s lost season, this is a system in a better place than it was 12 months ago.
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.justbaseball.com/mlb/carlos-estevez-provided-bullpen-stability-royals-needed/">Carlos Estévez has brought stability to Kansas City’s bullpen</a>:
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
Again, he doesn’t leave batters dumbfounded with blistering stuff, but he’s found a way to close out games that works for him. And as long as the saves keep coming, the Royals likely won’t care how he’s going about getting them.
With Kansas City also seeing the likes of several trusted arms hit the IL at some point his season, like Erceg, Hunter Harvey, Steven Cruz and Daniel Lynch IV, one thing has remained constant, and that is Estévez’s stabilizing presence in the back.
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/royals-to-place-ryan-bergert-on-injured-list-with-forearm-tightness.html">Ryan Bergert’s season is over as he heads to the IL</a> with a forearm injury.
<a href="https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/will-cal-raleigh-break-aaron-judges-home-run-record-mariners-slugger-inches-closer-after-two-homer-night/">Cal Raleigh has a shot at breaking Aaron Judge’s AL home run record</a>.
In a cost-cutting move, the <a href="https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-twins/fired-entire-pro-scouting-department/">Twins fired almost their entire pro scouting staff</a>.
The <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/cubs-clinch-2025-postseason-berth">Cubs clinched their first postseason birth since 2020</a>.
In the midst of a strong stretch, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2025/09/17/justin-verlander-future-giants-mlb-playoff-race/86211032007/">Justin Verlander intends to pitch in 2026</a>.
Despite another bad season, <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/article/the-chicago-white-sox-with-talented-young-players-and-organizational-alignment-are-finally-heading-in-the-right-direction-193919084.html">the White Sox appear to be headed in the right direction</a>.
Dan Szymborski investigates <a href="https://blogs.fangraphs.com/which-teams-have-suffered-the-most-from-injuries/">which teams have been most ravaged by injuries this season</a>.
<a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/46273635/mlb-2025-starting-pitcher-ace-success-statline-breakdown-skenes-skubal">Comparing 2025’s aces to those of past eras</a>.
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6634605/2025/09/17/mlb-rising-fastball-induced-vertical-break/">How improved understanding of rising fastballs has revolutionized pitching development</a>. ($)
St. Louis first baseman <a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/cardinals-place-willson-contreras-on-injured-list.html">Willson Contreras will miss the remainder of the season</a> with a shoulder injury.
Milwaukee left-handed pitcher <a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/brewers-place-jose-quintana-on-il-due-to-calf-strain.html">Jose Quintana will miss at least the remainder of the regular season</a> with a calf injury
<a href="https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/1080603/college-football-relegation-model-big-ten-how-it-works">Could college football benefit from a Premier League style shakeup</a>?
<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/elon-musk/tesla-full-self-driving-fails-train-crossings-drivers-warn-railroad-rcna225558">Teslas appear unable to recognize railroad tracks</a>.
A Chinese airshow <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn5qk4de997o">demonstrated why flying cars are an awful idea</a>. Also worth pointing out that we already have flying cars — we call them helicopters and there are many reasons why they are not more widely used.
<a href="https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Food/ben-jerrys-resign-ice-cream-co-founder-values-unilever/story?id=125659735">Jerry Greenfield, cofounder of Ben & Jerry’s, is leaving the company</a>, citing disputes with parent company Unilever over the founders’ political activities.
Your song of the day is Arm’s Length by Pool Kids.
<div class="youtube-embed"><iframe title="Pool Kids - Arm's Length [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ayB8Whgkg_E?rel=0" allowfullscreen allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div>
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</content>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Greg Walker</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Rusty Ragans returns, Royals rally rescues relievers in 7-5 romp]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/2025-royals-game-recaps/87645/rusty-ragans-returns-royals-rally-rescues-relievers-in-7-5-romp" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87645</id>
<updated>2025-09-17T23:00:05-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-17T22:36:12-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="2025 Royals game recaps" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[The Kansas City Royals traded punches with the Seattle Mariners before an eighth inning rally put them ahead for good in a 7-4 win tonight at Kauffman Stadium. With the Royals out of the playoff race, in lieu of a beat-by-beat recap, let’s hit the highlights: The victory improves Kansas City to 76-76. Grass Creek […]]]></summary>
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The Kansas City Royals traded punches with the Seattle Mariners before an eighth inning rally put them ahead for good in a 7-4 win tonight at Kauffman Stadium. With the Royals out of the playoff race, in lieu of a beat-by-beat recap, let’s hit the highlights:
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>In his first outing in three months, Cole Ragans came out with a purpose. His first five pitches were four-seam fastballs up in the zone. Each one resulted in a swing and miss. He threw the pitch ten times in the inning, sitting 97 and garnering nine swinging strikes, a foul ball, and a ball. The only other pitch he threw in the inning was a slider that struck out Cal Raleigh on a check swing. It had to be the most dominant inning from a Royals pitcher all season. </li>
<li>That form did not last forever. Ragans was much more wild to start the second, beginning the inning with a nine-pitch walk to Jorge Polanco. He then threw four straight four-seamers to Eugenio Suárez, with each coming at just 94. The fourth caught way too much of the plate and Suárez launched a bomb over the center field fence. Ragans would walk Mitch Garver later in the inning but otherwise would not allow any more baserunners until departing with two outs in the fourth. He was unable to maintain the velo he showed in the first inning and struggled with locating his secondaries, but managed to gut it out aside from the homer. Ragans was pulled having thrown 62 pitches.</li>
<li>In the bottom of the first inning, Bryce Miller continued to pitch as he has been lately, which is to say not too well. He got the first two outs but then gave up a line drive single to Vinnie Pasquantino. Maikel García followed with a ball that looked like a 6-3, but J.P. Crawford didn’t play it well and García reached without a throw. That brought up Salvador Perez, who would do something we have seen many times before — looked like a fool chasing a breaker in the dirt before smashing an outside fastball out to dead center for a long homer. </li>
<li>Kyle Isbel grounded out to end the second inning and walked gingerly off the field afterwards. He went straight for the trainer in the dugout. Tyler Tolbert took over in center field to start the third inning. It was later confirmed to be a hamstring injury for Isbel.</li>
<li>The Royals had multiple other opportunities to score off Miller but couldn’t cash in. A Mike Yastrzemski double and Bobby Witt Jr. single gave them runners on the corners with nobody out in the third. They would later load the bases in the inning but were unable to bring home a run. In the next inning, Carter Jensen walked and Tyler Tolbert singled with one out. They would also be stranded. In the fifth, Adam Frazier singled with Pasquantino on second base, but the latter was thrown out at the plate.</li>
<li>The Royals lost the lead in the late innings. With Angel Zerpa pitching for Kansas City, Suárez doubled to lead off the seventh. He would come around to score the tying run on a sac fly. Lucas Erceg lost the lead when he threw a cement mixer slider to Crawford on his second pitch of the evening. Crawford crushed it into the right field bullpen to give Seattle a 4-3 lead. Erceg would subsequently allow a couple singles but picked Julio Rodríguez off first base to end the inning.</li>
<li>Kansas City took the lead for good in the eighth with a novel rally. Perez walked to lead off the inning before Frazier slapped one down the left field line that resulted in about as short a home run as you will ever see at Kauffman Stadium. That gave the Royals a 5-4 lead. They’d plate a few insurance runs in a rally that included a 105.9 mph double into the left-center gap by Jac Caglianone and a 108.1 mph line drive single by Carter Jensen.</li>
<li>Carlos Estévez entered in the ninth with a 7-4 lead in tow, looking for his 40th save of the season. He immediately got in trouble when hard groundballs from Suárez and Naylor got through the infield, putting runners on the corners with nobody out. The Royals happily traded a run for an out with a slick 4-6-3 double play before Estévez retired Crawford to lock down a 7-5 Royals win.</li>
</ul>
The victory improves Kansas City to 76-76. Grass Creek is on the line tomorrow as the Royals and Mariners will do battle in the rubber match of both this series and the season series. 
Cole Ragans: 3.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 HR
Bryce Miller: 5.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 HR
Salvador Perez: 1-3, HR, R, 3 RBI, 2 BB
Eugenio Suárez: 4-4, HR, 2B, 3 R, 2 RBI
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Greg Walker</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Game One-Hundred and Fifty-Two: Seattle Mariners at Kansas City Royals]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/2025-royals-gamethreads/87618/game-one-hundred-and-fifty-two-seattle-mariners-at-kansas-city-royals" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87618</id>
<updated>2025-09-17T18:21:20-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-17T19:15:00-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="2025 Royals gamethreads" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[The Kansas City Royals will take on the Seattle Mariners this evening at Kauffman Stadium. The former has seen their postseason odds evaporate over the last few weeks, while the latter is currently on a W10 that has vaulted them to the top of their division. All the Royals can do is play spoiler at […]]]></summary>
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The Kansas City Royals will take on the Seattle Mariners this evening at Kauffman Stadium. The former has seen their postseason odds evaporate over the last few weeks, while the latter is currently on a W10 that has vaulted them to the top of their division. All the Royals can do is play spoiler at this point while still hoping to capture the hearts and minds of Grass Creek.
Kansas City will start Cole Ragans. 2025 has been a real bummer of a season for the erstwhile ace. Ragans made 10 starts early on, posting a 5.18 ERA despite running a 36.4% strikeout rate, a mark that has only been bested by one qualified starter over the last five seasons (that being Spencer Strider in 2023). His struggles in run prevention can largely be chalked up to poor luck and sequencing, as evidenced by his .382 BABIP allowed and 62.1% strand rate. He never got the opportunity to turn his fortunes around, though, suffering a rotator cuff injury that kept him out for over three months. This is his first start back and he should get another turn or two in the rotation to end the season on a high note. Ragans last faced Seattle in June of 2024, tossing six innings of one-run ball.
The Mariners will counter with Bryce Miller. Like Ragans, Miller has had a frustrating, injury-riddled season, having hit the IL twice with elbow issues. Unlike Ragans, Miller has not had positives to lean on when healthy as his performance has backed up across the board. His underlying plate discipline metrics haven’t changed much, but he’s surrendering a ton of hard contact and has allowed nine homers in five starts since returning from the IL. Miller last faced Kansas City in June last year and had his worst start of the season, bleeding seven runs in five innings.
First pitch: 6:40 pm CDT
<h2 class="wp-block-heading has-text-align-none">Royals lineup</h2>
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-bluesky-social wp-block-embed-bluesky-social"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/app.bsky.feed.post/3lz2l5lt7rs2t" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreibas5i6iskdm7siyyxkchjb6xdimmstur6pdcgmysgf6rvjvhlqaq">Cole heads to the mound to take on the Mariners.— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw?ref_src=embed">Kansas City Royals (@royals.com)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/post/3lz2l5lt7rs2t?ref_src=embed">2025-09-17T19:31:05.607Z</a></blockquote>
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<entry>
<author>
<name>Max Rieper</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Is it time to start worrying about Jac Caglianone?]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/royals-analysis-sabermetrics-stats/87604/is-it-time-to-start-worrying-about-jac-caglianone" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87604</id>
<updated>2025-09-17T12:56:52-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-17T12:00:00-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="Royals Analysis" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[It is not uncommon for hitters to struggle initially when they reach the big leagues. Alex Bregman hit 2-for-38 in his first ten games. George Brett hit .125 in 13 games when he was first called up. Aaron Judge hit .179/.263/.345 in his first month in the big leagues. Jac Caglianone was another such rookie […]]]></summary>
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It is not uncommon for hitters to struggle initially when they reach the big leagues. Alex Bregman hit 2-for-38 in his first ten games. George Brett hit .125 in 13 games when he was first called up. Aaron Judge hit .179/.263/.345 in his first month in the big leagues.
Jac Caglianone was another such rookie who struggled out of the gate, hitting .147/.205/.208 with five home runs in 41 games before he was placed on the Injured List with a hamstring injury. He returned in September, but it has been much of the same – he’s hitting just .176 this month with one home run. 
Eventually, small sample sizes become not-so-small anymore. Jac Caglianone now has 202 plate appearances at the big league level and is hitting .152/.228/.277. For all rookies in their debut season, his batting average is the lowest for any hitter with at least 200 plate appearances in the expansion era. He has the tenth-worst OPS+ for any debut season since 1960.
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That’s a lower OPS+ than David Howard, Brett Eibner, Mendy Lopez, or Nicky Lopez in their debut season.
Some of these players went on to have fine MLB careers. Brandon Inge struggled for a few years but eventually became a 5 WAR player and an All-Star. Cristian Guzmán was a two-time All-Star at shortstop. Jack Wilson had a 12-year career as an All-Star shortstop. But those players all excelled with their glove – Jac is out there for his bat. If we limit the list to just rookies at traditional power positions (1B, 3B, LF, RF), Jac is the worst.
<img src="https://platform.royalsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/140/2025/09/rookie-power.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100" alt="" title="" data-has-syndication-rights="1" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="" />
The common culprit for rookie struggles, particularly for power hitters, is an inability to make contact. Big league velocity and breaking balls are often a separator between Triple-A and the Majors. But that hasn’t been the case for Jac Caglianone. His 21.8 percent strikeout is below the league average of 22.1.
Instead, the problem is that Caglianone is pounding the ball into the ground. That makes it hard to hit home runs! Among all hitters with 200 plate appearances, Caglianone is 30th in baseball, hitting 49.8 percent of balls on the ground. He’s hitting just .171 on groundballs, 21st-worst in baseball for anyone with at least 50 groundballs. Hitting poorly on groundballs doesn’t mean you can’t be productive – Salvador Perez is hitting just .117 on grounders (second-worst in baseball). But Salvy has only hit 34 percent of balls on the ground – he’s elevating and driving the ball more than Jac.
He has been robbed of a few home runs by playing in a spacious park – last night he hit a flyball that would have been a home run in 25 of 30 Major League ballparks, but was an out at the K. But he’s hitting just .171 on the road, and playing in the most home-run friendly park would only give him an additional three home runs, according to Baseball Savant.
A lot of his struggles may be attributable to just plain bad luck. Caglianone has some of the <a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders/major-league?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&type=24&season=2025&month=0&season1=2025&ind=0&qual=200&sortcol=5&sortdir=default&team=0&pagenum=1">best exit velocity numbers in baseball</a>, so his ability to hit the ball hard is not in question. But he has an expected batting average of .257, based on his batting data. Among hitters with at least 200 plate appearances, he has the widest gulf in baseball between his batting average and expected batting average, and it’s not even close.
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So is he the victim of bad luck or is there reason for concern with Jac Caglianone? 
I wouldn’t be too alarmed yet, since many of the underlying metrics look pretty good for Caglianone. He’s not striking out, he’s squaring up, and he’s hitting the ball hard – eventually, those balls will find holes in the defense. He could stand to elevate the ball more and get that home run number up, but it is encouraging that he doesn’t seem overwhelmed by Major League pitching. 
It is frustrating to see Caglianone struggle while rookies like Nick Kurtz amaze with their performance. The tools are there for Jac – the contact quality, the patience, and the power potential. The question is simply whether the results catch up. The Royals don’t have the luxury of slow development from their middle-of-the-order hitters. Caglianone doesn’t need to be a star tomorrow, but he does need to turn hard contact into real production soon. If he does, the Royals’ lineup looks competent, perhaps even dangerous. If he doesn’t, they may be left searching for answers yet again.
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Bradford Lee</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[First hits]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/royals-history-trivia/87408/first-hits" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87408</id>
<updated>2025-09-17T09:40:57-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-17T10:00:00-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="Royals History" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Life’s first events are always a treat.  Think about how you felt when you got your first bike.  Your first kiss.  Your first car.  Your first marriage. First events in sports are also memorable.  That first game you attended.  The first strikeout.  The first home run.  The first time you stole a foul ball from […]]]></summary>
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Life’s first events are always a treat.  Think about how you felt when you got your first bike.  Your first kiss.  Your first car.  Your first marriage.
First events in sports are also memorable.  That first game you attended.  The first strikeout.  The first home run.  The first time you stole a foul ball from a kid.
This season is over.  Yes, I know there are a few games left, but the Royals are just playing out the string.  One of the highlights of this summer was seeing Jac Caglianone and Carter Jensen get their first major league hits.  Hopefully there’ll be many more for both young men.
Will either of these two develop into future stars?  It’s impossible to say at this point, but I’m optimistic that both will have long and productive careers with the Royals.
Looking back, here are the first major league hits and first hits as a Royal with some of our earliest stars.
The Royals first star, and I use that term somewhat loosely, was Sweet Lou Piniella.  When you’re an expansion team dealing with the rules in place in 1969, it was a minor miracle that Cedric Tallis was able to put together the type of team he did.
Piniella, who was a high school standout in the Tampa area, originally made his debut in the 1964 season with the Orioles at the age of 20.  He got one at bat in four games but didn’t record a hit.  He spent nearly all the next four seasons in the minors before getting a late season callup with Cleveland in 1968.  He got five at bats in six games but still couldn’t record that elusive first hit.
The Indians left him exposed to the expansion draft whereupon the Seattle Pilots snaped him up. Tallis then spun some of his devil magic and acquired Piniella just in time for the Royals first game on April 8, 1969, at Municipal.
Piniella decided he’d had enough of the minor leagues and wasted little time announcing himself. Batting in the leadoff spot, he rifled a double in his first KC at-bat against the Twins’ Tom Hall and later came around to score the first run in franchise history. Sweet Lou was a breakout star in 1969, winning the Rookie of the Year award and receiving some down-ballot MVP votes. 
Prior to the 1974 season, Tallis had a lapse in judgment and traded Lou to the damn Yankees in a deal that ranks among the worst of Tallis’s brilliant career. Piniella played for New York until the age of 40 and was often a thorn in the Royals’ side.
The other star from those early teams was Bob Oliver. Oliver was a versatile player who could play first, third or the corner outfield spots. Much like Piniella, Oliver came up in 1965 at the age of 22 with the Pirates. He got just two plate appearances and didn’t record a hit. Pittsburgh was loaded with high-quality outfielders in those days, and Oliver didn’t get another shot at the big leagues until he made his debut with the Royals. Again, like Piniella, he recorded his first major league hit on April 8, 1969, when he stroked a single off Tom Hall in his second at-bat.
On May 4, Oliver went six-for-six at the plate. Only three Royals have accomplished that feat (Oliver, Kevin Seitzer in 1987, and Joe Randa in 2004). 
On July 4, Oliver hit the first grand slam in Royals history off Jim Bouton of the Pilots. 
Oliver had his best year in 1970, when he hit 27 home runs and drove home 99, picking up some down-ballot MVP votes for his efforts.
Oliver’s son Darren, was born in Kansas City while his father was a member of the Royals, had a terrific 20-year major league career with nine teams as a left-handed pitcher.
Cedric Tallis had a gift of seeing something that others could not. He saw it in Amos Otis. AO originally came up with the Mets in 1967. He went 0 for 11 in his first six games before breaking out with a three-hit day against the Atlanta Braves on September 19, 1967. His first hit was a single off future Hall of Famer Phil Niekro at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Otis went on to hit .361 over the next ten games. The Mets brass didn’t “see” Otis. They tried to make him into a third baseman and nearly ruined him. Tallis took advantage of that need and shipped Joe Foy to the Mets for Otis and pitcher Bob Johnson.
It was highway robbery. Otis quickly became a star in Kansas City and a beloved one at that. On April 7, 1970, in a game at Municipal against our former team, the A’s, Otis got his first Royal knock with a third inning single off Blue Moon Odom. 
Otis went on to become one of the greatest Royals of all time and was a charter member of the Royals Hall of Fame.
Tallis was always on the lookout for young talent, and when the Houston Astros picked up Lee May in a trade, Tallis inquired about a young first baseman who had struggled in his early years. John Mayberry made his debut with Houston in 1968 as a 19-year-old and went hitless in his first 15 plate appearances in 1968 and 1969. Finally, on April 9, 1970, Big John got off the schneid with a fifth inning single off the Giants’ Frank Reberger in a game at Candlestick.
Mayberry found a home in Kansas City and announced himself in a big way. On April 15, 1972, in his first game at Municipal, Big John came to the plate in the bottom of the eleventh inning against the White Sox Bart Johnson and delivered a walk-off single to give the Royals an exciting 2-1 victory. The game had been scoreless going into the 9th before Dick Allen crushed a lead-off home run on a Dick Drago pitch. It looked bleak for the Royals, but Bob Oliver rescued them with a two-out home run in the bottom of the ninth off Wilbur Wood. That set the stage for Mayberry’s heroics. Big John remains one of the most popular Royals of all time. He was inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame in 1996.
In the 1972 off-season, Tallis traded his best pitcher (Roger Nelson) and one of his best hitters (Richie Scheinblum) to the Cincinnati Reds for a couple of oft-injured players, pitcher Wayne Simpson and an outfielder named Hal McRae.
McRae made his debut with the Reds on July 11, 1968, in a game against the Giants at beautiful old Crosley Field. He stroked a single off Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry in his first at-bat. 
McRae was a part-time player on the emerging Big Red Machine teams of the early 1970s. In the deciding Game Five of the 1972 NLCS, the Reds trailed the Pirates 3-to-2, going into the bottom of the ninth. Johnny Bench hit a dramatic home run to tie the score. Tony Perez singled. Dennis Menke hit another single, which moved pinch runner George Foster to third.
Sparky Anderson sent up McRae to pinch hit against Bob Moose. Moose uncorked a wild pitch, allowing Foster to score the winning run while Mac and the sold-out Riverfront crowd went bananas. The Reds went on to lose that World Series to our old team, but McRae made a name for himself by destroying Dick Green while breaking up a double play.
By the time Tallis brought him to KC, McRae was heading into his fifth major league season. In his second game with the Royals, Mac collected his first hit as a Royal, an eighth-inning bases-loaded double off the Angels’ Ron Perranoski, leading KC to a 12 to 5 win.
The next star to make an appearance was a wild-haired California kid who had shot through the Royals’ minor league system. They thought enough of him that they traded away a perfectly good third baseman named Paul Schaal and gave him the job. 
On August 2, 1973, in the fourth inning of his first game, George Brett went the other way, stroking a single to left off the White Sox’s Stan Bahnsen in a game at Comiskey. Brett would go on to collect 3,153 more hits over the next 21 seasons on his way to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Years later, I met Bahnsen and had a nice conversation with him. I asked him if he remembered giving up the hit to Brett (he didn’t). Bahnsen, one of the nicest people you’d ever meet, was kind enough to sign a ball for m,e “Gave up first hit to George Brett”. I don’t have a lot of autographed baseballs, maybe 20, but that one is one of my favorites.
The Royals had two young, homegrown stars debut in 1995. Mike Sweeney and Johnny Damon. Damon came up first and on August 12 hit a fifth inning leadoff triple off future Royal Tim Belcher. Damon collected two more hits, scored a run, and got his first RBI that day, part of a 7 to 2 Royals win.
Sweeney got the first of his 1,540 career hits on October 1st, a 6th inning single off the Indians’ Paul Assenmacher. That was part of a 17-7 shellacking Cleveland laid on the Royals that day. The 1995 Indians were loaded with guys like Kenny Lofton, Omar Vizquel, Albert Belle, Jim Thome, Carlos Baerga, Eddie Murray, Manny Ramariz, and Dave Winfield. How did that crew never win a World Series? Sweeney, meanwhile, was just getting started. From 1999 to 2003, he was one of the better players in baseball. When he wasn’t hurt, he could hit with the best of them. He was inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame in 2015.
Towards the end of the 1998 season, with the Royals on their way to 89 losses, the team brought up an athletic young centerfielder named Carlos Beltran. On September 14, Beltran came into the game in the seventh inning as a defensive replacement for Larry Sutton. The Royals were on their way to a 16-to-6 blowout win over Oakland. Beltran came up in the bottom of the 7th against Buddy Groom and legged out an infield single. He later came around to score on a double by Dean Palmer. Beltran only appeared in 14 games in 1998, thus retaining his rookie eligibility. He wasted little time becoming a star in 1999, collecting 194 hits, scoring 112 runs, and driving home 108 more, all the while playing a transcendent center field. That output easily won him the Rookie of the Year award. Beltran collected every first-place vote except two. One went to Seattle pitcher Freddie Garcia, who did win 17 games. The other vote went to the Red Sox Brian Daubach, undoubtedly from a Boston sportswriter. Daubach had an okay season, but nothing like Beltran’s. Not even remotely close to Beltran’s. That writer should have his voting privileges revoked.
It’s been so long since Beltran last played for the Royals, having been traded away midway through the 2004 season. The memory remains a blight on the organization, a dark time when we couldn’t find a few extra million to keep a homegrown star. Today, the team vomits that kind of money on a .200 hitting utility infielder. Some year soon, Beltran will go into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It’s a shame the Royals couldn’t keep him in the organization.
All of this brings us to one of our last homegrown stars, the one and only, Sal Perez. Salvy wasn’t even one of the team’s top prospects when he was called up in August 2011.
He made his debut on August 8 in a game against Tampa at Tropicana Field. The starting pitcher for the Rays that day was Wade Davis. Yes, that Wade Davis. In the fourh, Salvy hit a sacrifice fly, picking up his first RBI. In the seventh, he collected his first hit, a leadoff single off his future batterymate, and later came around to score on a Melky Cabrera sacrifice fly. 
Someday soon, Salvy will join the Royals Hall of Fame.  His place among the icons of the franchise is already assured.
Our final home-grown star is still thrilling us. Big things were expected from Bobby Witt, Jr. and he hasn’t disappointed. Junior made his debut on April seventh, 2022, in a game against Cleveland at the K. In the bottom of the eighth, with the game tied at one, Bobby stroked a double down the left field line off Triston McKenzie for his first major league hit. The knock scored Michael Taylor with the go-ahead run. 
Whether the player becomes a star or just another guy, there’s nothing like seeing the joy of someone getting their first hit.  Seeing their family celebrate their loved one reaching the pinnacle of their sport is one of the game’s heartwarming events.

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</content>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Max Rieper</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Kansas City Royals news: Carter Jensen homers – twice!]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/royals-news-notes-links/87590/kansas-city-royals-news-carter-jensen-homers-twice" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87590</id>
<updated>2025-09-17T10:08:05-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-17T09:13:32-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="Royals Rumblings" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Carter Jensen relished hitting his first two career MLB home runs, writes Anne Rogers. “It’s sweet in the moment,” Jensen said. “During that game, I couldn’t let that feeling linger and just coast the rest of the game. I had to try to do everything I could both offensively and defensively, because we were trying […]]]></summary>
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Carter Jensen relished hitting his <a href="https://www.mlb.com/royals/news/carter-jensen-hits-first-2-major-league-home-runs?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage">first two career MLB home runs</a>, writes Anne Rogers.
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“It’s sweet in the moment,” Jensen said. “During that game, I couldn’t let that feeling linger and just coast the rest of the game. I had to try to do everything I could both offensively and defensively, because we were trying to make a comeback.”
</blockquote>
Michael Wacha <a href="https://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article312138906.html#storylink=cpy">did not look great in his return</a>, writes Jaylon Thompson.
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
Starter Michael Wacha lasted only 2 2/3 innings. He surrendered seven runs on nine hits while failing to escape the third frame. It was his first start back from the seven-day injured list following an off-field accident. “It was a tough one for me tonight,” Wacha said. “You know, it felt like they were all over everything. They didn’t make a mistake.”
</blockquote>
The Royals are still <a href="https://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article312138678.html#storylink=cpy">clinging to tiny playoff hopes.</a>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
On Tuesday, general manager J.J. Picollo championed a similar message. He called the remaining schedule a critical stretch for the organization. “These next 12 games are really important for this franchise,” Picollo said. 
“We need to play well and we need to approach it like a playoff series because we are in a do-or-die situation. So, we need to (not only) win series but (also) sweep some series, too.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article312141381.html#storylink=cpy">Seth Lugo’s back did not respond well</a> and he will miss his next start.
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“He didn’t come out of his bullpen yesterday very well,” Quatraro said. “So, he is going to be day-to-day. It’s going to depend on the symptoms as to when he starts getting back into throwing.” 
The Royals are hopeful Lugo can pitch again this season. Quatraro said Lugo tried to throw an aggressive bullpen to be available for Thursday’s series finale against the Seattle Mariners at Kauffman Stadium.
</blockquote>
The Royals announce organizational award winners.
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true">Congratulations to our 2025 Organizational Award winners! Join us for Futures Night on Friday, September 19th, as we recognize our award-winners at Kauffman Stadium! <a href="https://t.co/K9BHa981WP">pic.twitter.com/K9BHa981WP</a>— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) <a href="https://twitter.com/Royals/status/1967594455416160650?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
</div></figure>
<a href="https://royalsreporter.com/2025/09/15/using-plv-to-evaluate-four-royals-hitters-with-undetermined-2026-outlooks/">Royals Reporter looks at hitting metrics</a> to evaluate four Royals hitters at a crossroads.
Shohei Ohtani tosses <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/shohei-ohtani-throws-five-hitless-innings-vs-phillies">five no-hit innings and hits his 50th home run.</a>
<a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/jordan-lawlar-d-backs-earn-big-win-over-giants-in-nl-wc-battle?t=walk-offs-coverage">The Diamondbacks walk-off the Giants </a>and are climbing into the Wild Card race.
<a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/46286161/tests-ok-jays-bo-bichette-return-playoffs">Toronto’s Bo Bichette will miss the rest of the regular season</a>, but hopes to return in October.
<a href="https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/yordan-alvarez-injury-update-astros-slugger-suffers-pretty-significant-ankle-sprain-will-be-out-a-while/">Yordan Alvarez will miss significant time</a> with an ankle injury.
<a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/46285339/mlb-nixes-plan-yankees-blue-jays-series-london-2026">MLB nixes plans</a> for a Yankees/Blue Jays series in London next year.
What<a href="https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/which-2025-non-contenders-can-turn-it-around-ranking-12-bad-mlb-teams-by-the-odds-they-can-compete-in-2026/"> bad teams can rebound next year</a>?
The teams with a chance to <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-playoff-series-fans-would-rather-forget">make up for playoff regrets this year.</a>
What’s next for the <a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/cardinals-notes-arenado-donovan-leahy.html">Cardinals this offseason</a>?
Commissioner Rob Manfred says MLB is<a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/46285653/commissioner-says-mlb-nearing-broadcast-deals-2026-28-seasons"> close on a number of national TV deals</a>.
Can the Chiefs <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nfl-chiefs-playoffs-0ad182d7a974ea16cffe729f9e198e5e">defy the odds and make the playoffs</a>?
The seven <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba/1079943/nba-teams-can-win-2026-championship-ranked">NBA teams that can win a championship</a>.
The Social Security office <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/17/federal-social-security-payments-electronic.html">will phase out paper checks.</a>
You <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2025/09/whole-body-deodorant-america/684218/">don’t need full-body deodorant</a>. 
The <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-lists/robert-redford-best-movies-1235428298/">twenty essential Robert Redford movies</a>.
Your song of the day is The Beths with Straight Line Was A Lie.
<div class="youtube-embed"><iframe title="The Beths - "Straight Line Was A Lie"" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vU0Q8DKWhQk?rel=0" allowfullscreen allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div>
]]>
</content>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>Matthew LaMar</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Carter Jensen explodes but Royals pitching implodes as Seattle wins 12-5]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/2025-royals-game-recaps/87583/carter-jensen-explodes-but-royals-pitching-implodes-as-seattle-wins-12-5" />
<id>https://www.royalsreview.com/?p=87583</id>
<updated>2025-09-16T22:53:14-04:00</updated>
<published>2025-09-16T22:53:14-04:00</published>
<category scheme="https://www.royalsreview.com" term="2025 Royals game recaps" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Michael Wacha hit the very first batter of the game. This was an omen, as it would portend a very poor night from Royals pitching. Wacha and Daniel Lynch IV gave up a very efficient 10 runs in four innings, which proved too great a hole for the Kansas City Royals to climb out of. […]]]></summary>
<content type="html">
<![CDATA[
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<img alt="" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.royalsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/140/2025/09/gettyimages-2235290668.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100" />
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Michael Wacha hit the very first batter of the game. This was an omen, as it would portend a very poor night from Royals pitching. Wacha and Daniel Lynch IV gave up a very efficient 10 runs in four innings, which proved too great a hole for the Kansas City Royals to climb out of. Jonathan Bowlan allowed another pair in the ninth inning, but by that point the damage was already done.
That’s not to say that the Royals didn’t try to come back. Carter Jensen had one of the most impressive games from a rookie that you’ll see, well, ever. In the Minor Leagues, Jensen’s offensive calling card was an impressive swing that generated massive power. Tonight, Jensen crushed balls with exit velocities of 103.4 MPH, 110.8 MPH, and 111.3 MPH, showing that, yeah, that swing will play in the big leagues.
Let’s start with the lowest exit velo, because that was the biggest hit of them all (and arguably the most impressive): Jensen’s first big league home run. Carter drove a middle-middle fastball to the opposite field, where it landed just beyond the left field fence by the foul pole. 
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-bluesky-social wp-block-embed-bluesky-social"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/app.bsky.feed.post/3lyymwuv67k2t" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiamp2fk3irdbmr3u5v5z63itcawnw3cs4mr7eaghglyzbr7wdcvre">Carter Jensen's got career home run No. 1!— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw?ref_src=embed">Kansas City Royals (@royals.com)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/post/3lyymwuv67k2t?ref_src=embed">2025-09-17T00:57:48.367Z</a></blockquote>
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Two innings later, Jensen pulled a ball down and in–off the plate, even–and kept his hands close enough to his body to keep it fair. He deposited just beyond the right field fence by the foul pole.
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-bluesky-social wp-block-embed-bluesky-social"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/app.bsky.feed.post/3lyyphq6kv22t" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreihhcjj3jljkbmtbvxnoliwlzmnt7vamsjxuhsm4ormr2qccdef54q">Carter's got another!— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw?ref_src=embed">Kansas City Royals (@royals.com)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:3rkgpi6qhb4p6ne4jk2kspzw/post/3lyyphq6kv22t?ref_src=embed">2025-09-17T01:43:01.341Z</a></blockquote>
</div></figure>
Then, two innings later, Jensen pulled a slider that hung just a little too much to the deepest part of right-center field. It was a missile that would have been out of 10 parks in the league. 
Jensen’s bestie, Jac Caglianone, didn’t end up with a gaudy stat line, but he also showed some impressive batted balls. Cags demolished a baseball at 101.9 MPH that would have been a home run in 25 ball parks and notched a ground ball single at 101.8 MPH. 
Meanwhile, the Mariners were also smashing giant dongs. Cal Raleigh, who Google serves up as the result when you search “Big Dumper,” hit a pair of homers to surpass Mickey Mantle for most home runs in a single season by a switch hitter and to tie Ken Griffey Jr. for most home runs hit in a single season by a Mariner. More Mariners hit the ball hard, too. It was a big night for the sound of the crack of the bat. 
Jensen’s vendetta against baseballs tonight is in some ways a frustrating one, though. Jensen only had 13 plate appearances through the first 11 games of September, a period of time that saw Kansas City fail to score more than two runs on seven occasions. It was clear that the Royals needed somebody who could, you know, hit line drives at 100 MPH for extra bases instead of the collection of light-hitting utility players and veterans that they’ve used instead. But that’s not what happened.
In any case, the Royals are now down to 75-76 and face an uphill battle to even get to .500 on the year. Meanwhile, the Mariners have won 10 consecutive games, which, good for them. 
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