Saturday, August 02

Welcome to this edition of the Royals Beat newsletter. My name is Anne Rogers, and I’ll be delivering news and insight to your inbox all spring long. Thanks for following along!

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- While the Royals haven’t stopped looking for offensive help even late into Spring Training, they’ve been unable thus far to land the impact bat they envisioned bringing in this past offseason.

That means strong offensive seasons from corner outfielders MJ Melendez and Hunter Renfroe would help alleviate the concern that led the Royals to look for outside help in the first place, deepening the lineup beyond the top four hitters in the order.

A better season from Renfroe especially, given his history as a power threat, would certainly go a long way. The Royals signed him ahead of the 2024 season believing he could provide them reliable production in the middle of the order, similar to what he did in Boston in 2021 (31 homers) and Milwaukee in 2022 (29 homers), posting an .812 OPS between those two seasons.

But Renfroe only hit .229 last season with 15 homers and a .689 OPS, a career low outside the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. After picking up the player option he held with Kansas City, he’s trying to show he’s still the hitter he was just a few years ago.

"That would be a huge boost to us,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “We know that he’s capable of it.”

Renfroe dealt with injuries last season, beginning in Spring Training with back tightness that slowed his normal spring buildup. Then he had two injured list stints throughout the regular season with a left toe fracture and a right hamstring strain, but injuries lingered even when he was on the field.

Health was the first priority this winter. 

"It was a big issue,” Renfroe said. “Toward the middle part of the season, some things popped up. And that led to lower back, hamstring. It’s all connected. But it feels good now. I was hoping that when I started up this offseason that I wouldn’t feel it, and I didn’t, which was great.

“And I feel great this spring. It’s a big plus."

Renfroe came into camp this year leaner, thanks to offseason training that included going to a physical therapist and focusing on his diet and hydration. He cut out sweets, oils and saturated fats as much as he could, and now wherever Renfroe goes, a 64-ounce insulated water bottle goes with him.

"I’ve lost a little bit of weight. I wasn’t necessarily trying to, but it was just a byproduct of the offseason training and trying to eat as clean as possible and drink as much water as I can,” Renfroe said. “Making sure I’m doing everything I possibly can to make my career be as long as possible, make sure I’m healthy as possible coming into this year."

The differences in the 33-year-old’s physical and mental shape have been noticeable for the Royals as they look for more out of him in 2025.

"His routines have changed a little bit trying to close some of the holes from last year,” Quatraro said. “Because I think he knows deep down that he’s a better player than what he showed last year offensively. And he also wants to continue playing, but he knows he’s going to have to produce and play at a high level.”

Whether Renfroe’s lack of production last year was because of the injuries or simply an age regression remains to be seen. But the Royals still believe he has more left in him -- and so does he.

"Right when I got hurt last year, I was going good,” Renfroe said, referencing his .333 average and 1.079 OPS in 15 games in June. “The average was climbing up, the homers were coming. I was playing good defense. And the body shut down on me a little bit. That’s why, coming into this year, I want to make sure I’m as healthy as possible and doing all the right things I possibly need to do to prepare my body for the season.

"There were great things that came from last year. But there were a lot of things I could build on.”

The Royals had a hand in a special moment ahead of Wednesday’s game in Peoria, Ariz., against the Mariners, when they sent former Japanese player Kazuya Fukuura to home plate to handle the lineup card exchange. Fukuura is a former first baseman who played over 20 seasons with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball and has spent the past few days in Royals camp as a guest, talking with and learning from Royals coaches.

Across from Fukuura? National Baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki. It made for a spontaneous moment for both Fukuura and Suzuki, who was surprised to see someone he played against in the NPB.

"We didn’t know Ichiro would be here, but when we saw him, we were just like, ‘Hey, go out there,’” Quatraro said. “Kaz’s translator wasn’t here at the time, so we had to make sure Ichiro explained to him what they were going to do.

"[Fukuura] has been great. The interactions with him in the cage, sharing a lot of conversations about his philosophy on hitting, it’s been really informative for our guys.”

The Royals are expanding broadcast games for fans this year and announced that 10 regular-season games will be simulcast over the air on KCTV5 (CBS), KSMO (MyNetwork), or both. FanDuel Sports Network is the Royals’ broadcast partner and will broadcast all regular-season games that are not on a national broadcast.

But these 10 games will also be available over the air to increase reach:

Sunday, April 6 vs. Orioles (KCTV5 and KSMO) 
Sunday, April 27 vs. Astros (KSMO)
Sunday, May 18 vs. Cardinals (KSMO)
Monday, May 26 vs. Reds (KCTV5 and KSMO)
Sunday, June 1 vs. Tigers (KSMO)
Sunday, June 15 vs. Athletics (KCTV5 and KSMO)
Sunday, July 20 at Marlins (KCTV5 and KSMO)
Sunday, Aug. 17 vs. White Sox (KCTV5 and KSMO)
Sunday, Aug. 24 at Tigers (KCTV5 and KSMO)
Sunday, Aug. 31 vs. Tigers (KCTV5 and KSMO)

To subscribe to Royals Beat, visit this page and mark "Royals Beat" from our newsletter list. Make sure you're following the Royals or that they're checked as your favorite team.

View Online

© 2025 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners.

Please review our Privacy Policy.

You (mlb-newsletters@mlb.com) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from MLB. 

Please add info@marketing.mlbemail.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from MLB.com, please unsubscribe or log in and manage your email subscriptions.

Postal Address: MLB.com, c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.