Kansas City Royals: Who’s Hot, Who’s Not for Week One

Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

1. Salvador Perez

The second half of last season was a struggle for Salvador Perez. Dealing with a myriad of minor injuries, a slight concussion and the fatigue of playing 146 games behind the plate, it is certainly no wonder that his offensive production dropped off during the season half of the year.

It is amazing what a difference an offseason of rest can make. Since Opening Day, Perez has been on a truly torrid pace, producing a .417/.440/.833 batting line. Perez has also been a major part of the Kansas City Royals sudden power surge this season, hitting three home runs in his first six games.

The Royals needed someone to step up, not only in the lineup, but in terms of leadership this season. Salvador Perez has certainly done both. He helped diffuse the situation between Yordano Ventura and Mike Trout yesterday, and responded to the fracas by parking another home run. Defensively, Perez has been stellar, gunning out all three players that tried to steal in this past week.

All Perez really needed was a bit of rest. Hopefully, he will be able to get enough this season and lead the Kansas City Royals back to the playoffs.

And now, to the cold list.

Next: To be fair, he is injured