Royals Report: The Offensive Magic Is Gone

May 30, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; TTampa Bay Rays first baseman Logan Morrison (7) steals second base against Kansas City Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield (15) in the fourth inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

2) Whit Merrifield To Get Most Of The starts At Second

Ned Yost commented to reporters on Saturday that the 27-year-old rookie Merrifield will get most of the starts at second base for the foreseeable future.

That’s more good news for KC Royals fans who are fed up with Omar Infante‘s continued poor play at the plate over the last 2 1/3 seasons (pretty much the moment he signed a four-year, $32 million deal with the Kansas City Royals in 2014).

Signing Infante has clearly been a failure. Now that his elbow has been repaired, there is little reason to think the the 34-year-old will suddenly rebound to his former level of performance. At this point, Infante looks to be little more than a utility infielder, rather than a starting player in major-league baseball (if he’s worth a roster spot at all).

Merrifield, meanwhile, has looked good while drawing starts at left field, third base, and second base since getting the call in mid-May. While he is unlikely to maintain his current 333/.345/.439 triple slash over the long-term, he’s brought an energy to the position that has boosted the KC Royals offense.

Merrifield has taken over the no. 2 slot on the days he’s in the lineup, and really has the skill set to be the leadoff hitter. While I’m not going to rehash the Alcides Escobar at leadoff debate, I will point out that Merrifield has given the Kansas City Royals everything they could have hoped when they added him to the roster in favor of Christian Colon.

Next: Kendrys Morales

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