OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - Fountains Up -- A Kansas City Royals Franchise

3Bplay · 01-01-2026, 03:59 PM

Team Roster/Records | Statistics | Standings

2026 SPRING PREVIEW
K.C. enters 2026 with re-newed sense of optimism

By 3BPlay
02/15/2026

After one of the busiest offseasons in recent memory, Kansas City enters the 2026 season with as much optimism as I can remember, at least since the mid-2010's. They overhauled their lineup, adding Brendan Donovan as the headlining piece in a three-team trade between them, the Cardinals, and Mariners that saw some other big names get moved, including Kris Bubic and Jonathan India. Both went to Seattle, with the Cardinals getting righty pitcher Bryce Miller from the Mariners, and outfielder Lars Nootbaar going to Seattle from the Cardinals.

They lengthened their bullpen, trading away lefty reliever Angel Zerpa to Milwaukee for righty Nick Mears, with young outfielder Isaac Collins coming over as well in that deal. Matt Strahm returned to the Royals for this season via trade with Philadelphia, and in a twist, signed Japanese pitcher Kona Takahashi to a major-league deal. That wasn't all, as they also signed free agent outfielders Lane Thomas and Harrison Bader to short-term contracts, with Bader potentially returning for 2027 via a team option.

"We checked all of the boxes that we had in front of us," JJ Picollo said from Surprise last week as the Royals' pitchers and catchers reported. "You know, we targeted Brendan very, very early as a possibility, and made every effort to try to bring him in just one-on-one with St. Louis, but both sides felt it necessary to bring in a third team, and Seattle jumped in and helped grease the skids, so to speak."

Long thought to be the Royals' top trade target, Boston outfielder Jarren Duran and a player-to-be-named-later were eventually dealt to the Nationals in a blockbuster, with MacKenzie Gore and first baseman Trey Lipscomb going back to the Red Sox.

"We started off pretty far apart, and managed to close the gap a little bit, but couldn't get anything done," Picollo said of their negotiations. "Washington's getting a heck of a player, but we feel really good about what we accomplished the past few months."

The Royals will enter camp with seventy-eight players on the spring roster, thirty-nine of them on the 40-man roster and equally split between pitchers and position players at thirty-nine apiece. Picollo noted that they are largely done with trying to improve the roster aside from potentially looking for veteran catching help, but noted that they always have 'ears to the ground' when it comes to improving their situation.

"I mean, right now we have four catchers in camp, and we could potentially have a need for a fifth guy," said Picollo. "There are some potential targets we're looking at, but nothing has been finalized. Other than that, we'll keep our eyes and ears to the ground for anything that might come up, especially as it pertains to injuries, either on our end or other teams."

Salvador Perez, Carter Jensen, and Luca Tresh are the three main catchers currently in camp with youngster Blake Mitchell also getting some reps with the veteran pitchers, as well as the pitchers he's much more likely to be working with this year. Luke Maile was the Royals' third catcher for most of last season, and took on a bigger role after dealing away Freddy Fermin at the deadline last season. He would certainly be welcomed back, but at thirty-four, doesn't offer a ton of upside offensively or defensively at this point. Tresh, 26, is the closest to being ready for MLB duty, but has missed time the last few years with injuries, and Mitchell is at best a few years away.

"We're pretty happy with how Blake is coming along," said manager Matt Quatraro. "Just working with him up close for the past week or so, you get a pretty good idea of what he's all about. He's worked hard to get back to where he can contribute this spring, and I think his time in the Arizona Fall League last year was an eye-opener for him."

The majority of the positions for the upcoming season are set, with perhaps the exception of a bullpen slot or two. There also figure to be some battles for bench roles, with a lot of uncertainty behind the starting nine. Nick Loftin, Michael Massey, and Dairon Blanco figure to be the main contenders for reserve roles, with Kyle Isbel potentially getting displaced due to the Bader acquisition.

The rest of the squad will arrive tomorrow to begin full-squad workouts, with games slated to start on the 20th. Below are the seventy-eight players (and potentially counting) players that will be in camp to begin work tomorrow:

CATCHERS (4): 13 Salvador Perez, 22 Carter Jensen, 76 Luca Tresh, 90 Blake Mitchell

INFIELDERS (19): 1 Tyler Tolbert, 7 Bobby Witt Jr., 9 Vinnie Pasquantino, 11 Maikel Garcia, 12 Nick Loftin, 19 Michael Massey, 31 Abraham Toro, 34 Brendan Donovan, 37 Kevin Newman, 48 Connor Kaiser, 50 Brett Squires, 51 Javier Vaz, 57 Peyton Wilson, 58 Chris Brito, 59 Austin Charles, 61 Jack Pineda, 83 Dustin Dickerson, 98 Sam Ruta, 99 Trevor Werner

OUTFIELDERS (16): 2 Harrison Bader, 6 Drew Waters, 8 Lane Thomas, 14 Jac Caglianone, 15 John Rave, 16 Isaac Collins, 17 Kameron Misner, 28 Kyle Isbel, 44 Dairon Blanco, 69 Tyler Gentry, 71 Gavin Cross, 76 Spencer Nivens, 80 Carson Roccaforte, 81 Bryan Gonzalez, 82 Alberto Rodriguez, 84 Carter Frederick

PITCHERS (39): 21 Luinder Avila, 23 Michael McGreevy, 25 Nick Mears, 27 Matt Strahm, 32 Stephen Kolek, 36 Bailey Falter, 41 Daniel Lynch IV, 46 John Schreiber, 47 Mason Black, 52 Michael Wacha, 53 Carlos Estevez, 54 Alex Lange, 55 Cole Ragans, 60 Lucas Erceg, 62 Henry Williams, 63 Steven Zobac, 64 Steven Cruz, 65 Noah Cameron, 66 James McArthur, 67 Seth Lugo, 68 AJ Causey, 70 Asa Lacy, 72 Beck Way, 73 Hunter Patteson, 74 Jose Cuas, 75 Frank Mozzicato, 77 Hunter Owen, 78 Oscar Rayo, 85 Ben Sears, 86 Kona Takahashi, 87 Eric Cerantola, 88 AJ Block, 89 Chandler Champlain, 91 Christian Chamberlain, 92 Ethan Bosacker, 94 Drew Beam, 95 Felix Arronde, 96 Luis German, 97 Anthony Simonelli

01-01-2026, 03:59 PM	#43
3Bplay Major Leagues Join Date: Jun 2018 Posts: 351	2026 Spring Preview (02/15) Team Roster/Records \| Statistics \| Standings 2026 SPRING PREVIEW K.C. enters 2026 with re-newed sense of optimism By 3BPlay 02/15/2026 After one of the busiest offseasons in recent memory, Kansas City enters the 2026 season with as much optimism as I can remember, at least since the mid-2010's. They overhauled their lineup, adding Brendan Donovan as the headlining piece in a three-team trade between them, the Cardinals, and Mariners that saw some other big names get moved, including Kris Bubic and Jonathan India. Both went to Seattle, with the Cardinals getting righty pitcher Bryce Miller from the Mariners, and outfielder Lars Nootbaar going to Seattle from the Cardinals. They lengthened their bullpen, trading away lefty reliever Angel Zerpa to Milwaukee for righty Nick Mears, with young outfielder Isaac Collins coming over as well in that deal. Matt Strahm returned to the Royals for this season via trade with Philadelphia, and in a twist, signed Japanese pitcher Kona Takahashi to a major-league deal. That wasn't all, as they also signed free agent outfielders Lane Thomas and Harrison Bader to short-term contracts, with Bader potentially returning for 2027 via a team option. "We checked all of the boxes that we had in front of us," JJ Picollo said from Surprise last week as the Royals' pitchers and catchers reported. "You know, we targeted Brendan very, very early as a possibility, and made every effort to try to bring him in just one-on-one with St. Louis, but both sides felt it necessary to bring in a third team, and Seattle jumped in and helped grease the skids, so to speak." Long thought to be the Royals' top trade target, Boston outfielder Jarren Duran and a player-to-be-named-later were eventually dealt to the Nationals in a blockbuster, with MacKenzie Gore and first baseman Trey Lipscomb going back to the Red Sox. "We started off pretty far apart, and managed to close the gap a little bit, but couldn't get anything done," Picollo said of their negotiations. "Washington's getting a heck of a player, but we feel really good about what we accomplished the past few months." The Royals will enter camp with seventy-eight players on the spring roster, thirty-nine of them on the 40-man roster and equally split between pitchers and position players at thirty-nine apiece. Picollo noted that they are largely done with trying to improve the roster aside from potentially looking for veteran catching help, but noted that they always have 'ears to the ground' when it comes to improving their situation. "I mean, right now we have four catchers in camp, and we could potentially have a need for a fifth guy," said Picollo. "There are some potential targets we're looking at, but nothing has been finalized. Other than that, we'll keep our eyes and ears to the ground for anything that might come up, especially as it pertains to injuries, either on our end or other teams." Salvador Perez, Carter Jensen, and Luca Tresh are the three main catchers currently in camp with youngster Blake Mitchell also getting some reps with the veteran pitchers, as well as the pitchers he's much more likely to be working with this year. Luke Maile was the Royals' third catcher for most of last season, and took on a bigger role after dealing away Freddy Fermin at the deadline last season. He would certainly be welcomed back, but at thirty-four, doesn't offer a ton of upside offensively or defensively at this point. Tresh, 26, is the closest to being ready for MLB duty, but has missed time the last few years with injuries, and Mitchell is at best a few years away. "We're pretty happy with how Blake is coming along," said manager Matt Quatraro. "Just working with him up close for the past week or so, you get a pretty good idea of what he's all about. He's worked hard to get back to where he can contribute this spring, and I think his time in the Arizona Fall League last year was an eye-opener for him." The majority of the positions for the upcoming season are set, with perhaps the exception of a bullpen slot or two. There also figure to be some battles for bench roles, with a lot of uncertainty behind the starting nine. Nick Loftin, Michael Massey, and Dairon Blanco figure to be the main contenders for reserve roles, with Kyle Isbel potentially getting displaced due to the Bader acquisition. The rest of the squad will arrive tomorrow to begin full-squad workouts, with games slated to start on the 20th. Below are the seventy-eight players (and potentially counting) players that will be in camp to begin work tomorrow: CATCHERS (4): 13 Salvador Perez, 22 Carter Jensen, 76 Luca Tresh, 90 Blake Mitchell INFIELDERS (19): 1 Tyler Tolbert, 7 Bobby Witt Jr., 9 Vinnie Pasquantino, 11 Maikel Garcia, 12 Nick Loftin, 19 Michael Massey, 31 Abraham Toro, 34 Brendan Donovan, 37 Kevin Newman, 48 Connor Kaiser, 50 Brett Squires, 51 Javier Vaz, 57 Peyton Wilson, 58 Chris Brito, 59 Austin Charles, 61 Jack Pineda, 83 Dustin Dickerson, 98 Sam Ruta, 99 Trevor Werner OUTFIELDERS (16): 2 Harrison Bader, 6 Drew Waters, 8 Lane Thomas, 14 Jac Caglianone, 15 John Rave, 16 Isaac Collins, 17 Kameron Misner, 28 Kyle Isbel, 44 Dairon Blanco, 69 Tyler Gentry, 71 Gavin Cross, 76 Spencer Nivens, 80 Carson Roccaforte, 81 Bryan Gonzalez, 82 Alberto Rodriguez, 84 Carter Frederick PITCHERS (39): 21 Luinder Avila, 23 Michael McGreevy, 25 Nick Mears, 27 Matt Strahm, 32 Stephen Kolek, 36 Bailey Falter, 41 Daniel Lynch IV, 46 John Schreiber, 47 Mason Black, 52 Michael Wacha, 53 Carlos Estevez, 54 Alex Lange, 55 Cole Ragans, 60 Lucas Erceg, 62 Henry Williams, 63 Steven Zobac, 64 Steven Cruz, 65 Noah Cameron, 66 James McArthur, 67 Seth Lugo, 68 AJ Causey, 70 Asa Lacy, 72 Beck Way, 73 Hunter Patteson, 74 Jose Cuas, 75 Frank Mozzicato, 77 Hunter Owen, 78 Oscar Rayo, 85 Ben Sears, 86 Kona Takahashi, 87 Eric Cerantola, 88 AJ Block, 89 Chandler Champlain, 91 Christian Chamberlain, 92 Ethan Bosacker, 94 Drew Beam, 95 Felix Arronde, 96 Luis German, 97 Anthony Simonelli Last edited by 3Bplay; 01-01-2026 at 07:39 PM.