Sunday, August 31

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KANSAS CITY -- Carter Jensen tries his best to avoid having bad games linger long past when he leaves the ballpark, but sometimes, it’s just hard not to see that happen.

When Jensen didn’t get off to as good of a start as he was hoping in Double-A Northwest Arkansas this year, he was lying in bed one night dissecting his at-bats. Through his first 32 games of the season (148 plate appearances), the Royals’ No. 3 prospect put together a .228/.291/.324 slash line with three home runs, a 26.4 percent strikeout rate and a 7.4 percent walk rate.

“I was frustrated after a rough game, and I was just thinking, like, ‘This isn’t me. This mindset isn’t me,’” Jensen said. “I needed to get back to where I was at the end of last year and the Fall League. Do my part. Play to the best of my ability and give my full effort.”

Mechanically, Jensen felt like he was pulling off the ball in his swing instead of trying to stay through the ball and up the middle. He made note of his thoughts, talked it over with his coaches the next day and began implementing solutions in his work while trying to keep his team-first mentality at the top of his mind.

The results recently speak for themselves.

Since May 13, Jensen is slashing .374/.444/.513. His strikeout rate has plummeted to 17 percent and his walk rate has increased to 12.6 percent. His wRC+ over the span of 30 games (135 plate appearances) is 166.

He’s been on a particular tear these past two weeks, having gone 18-for-48 (.375) in his past 12 games.

“I think I caught myself trying to do a little bit too much,” Jensen said of the early part of his season. “I was trying to hit like four home runs in a game to try to help us win. It’s just not really realistic. I was trying to do too much, and I realized that. I just kind of tried to stay under control and do what I could do in that at-bat and that moment. Flipping the mindset of, ‘I don’t have to do everything’ to ‘We have a good lineup, and if I just do my part, then everything will take care of itself.’”

Jensen is one of the Royals’ top prospects for a reason; the 21-year-old has big, raw power in his swing and has improved quite a bit defensively behind the plate since he was selected in the third round of the 2021 Draft out of Parkville (Mo.) High School just outside of Kansas City.

The organization has been extremely happy with Jensen’s growth not only as a hitter but as a catcher and a leader on and off the field.

“It’s been really fun to watch,” Royals director of player development Mitch Maier said. “Speaks to his maturity, speaks to the work. It’s hard to believe he’s still so young. At a really demanding and hard position, for him to get better and put himself in a position, continuing to move the needle toward helping us here. That’s the goal. He’s continued to improve every step of the way.”

Jensen is as motivated as anyone to keep moving up in the Royals’ system; it’s always been his dream to play in the Majors, but to do it for his hometown team would be even more special.

But the past few weeks have brought an extra level of motivation. Eventually, Jensen wants to be teammates with Jac Caglianone again. The two became close in the Arizona Fall League last year and were roommates in Double-A earlier this year. Soon, Caglianone was moving onto Triple-A, and right after that, MLB’s No. 10 prospect was in the big leagues with the Royals.

Jensen and Caglianone still talk a lot, and Jensen has been rooting for Caglianone from afar.

“He’s a freak of nature,” Jensen said. “... I love watching him, love playing with him. It’s kind of more motivation, like, ‘Man, I want to get back playing with Cags.’ He’s my brother. We both know how good of players we are, and we both know that when we’re hitting in the lineup together, fun things can happen. But I trust the plan I have and the plan the Royals have for me, and I want to be where my feet are and put forth my best effort every day. Ultimately, I’m going to get to where I want to be.”

Royals No. 2 prospect Blake Mitchell hasn’t played for a full-season affiliate yet this year after he had surgery back in Spring Training to repair a broken hamate bone on his right wrist/palm area.

Originally looking at a six-to-eight week timeline for return when he had the surgery, Mitchell began a rehab assignment in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League on May 5 but only played four games and logged nine at-bats. The Royals’ top catching prospect hasn’t played since May 13 after experiencing right wrist soreness, which is somewhat expected after a surgery like the one he had.

“He’s back to swinging,” Maier said. “We had the setback, had a little reset. At this point in his swing progression, things are good. That’s encouraging as he continues to increase his volume.

“It’s been a longer of a return than what we estimated, but at the same time, we’re hoping he has a great second half, a healthy second half, and capitalize on as many at-bats as we can for Blake this year.”

On another injury note, Royals No. 24 prospect Tyson Guerrero underwent Tommy John surgery on his left elbow last month and is in Arizona to begin the rehab process. The 26-year-old lefty was a non-roster invite in Spring Training and began the season with Triple-A Omaha. But he only threw 10 2/3 innings and allowed 11 runs (seven earned) before the Storm Chasers placed him on the full-season injured list at the end of April.

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