3 Royals whose roles in KC just changed after Brady Singer trade

Hunter Renfroe could lose his position in the KC Royals' outfield

Along with India, the Royals acquired outfielder Joey Wiemer from the Reds, which could shake up the team's outfield squad in 2025. In 2024, Kansas City utilized Hunter Renfroe, MJ Melendez, Kyle Isbel, Tommy Pham, and Garrett Hampson in the outfield, and all five players struggled at the plate, each posting an OPS under .700 during the regular season.

At the Royals' end-of-season press conference, Picollo admitted that "the offense from the outfield positions has to get better."

“Generally speaking, when you’re looking at left field, right field, that’s where you’re thinking about power guys," he said. "And we know this ballpark doesn’t lend itself to homers, but it does lend itself to slug. So we’ve got to be more productive there.”

Pham and Hampson both became free agents after the World Series, so won't be returning next season. The Royals tendered contracts to both Melendez and Isbel before the deadline on November 22, so despite the two outfielders' questionable offensive stats, the team presumably still plans to use their services in 2025.

That leaves Hunter Renfroe. The Royals signed Renfroe to a one-year $5.5 million contract before the 2024 season, with a $7.5 million player option for 2025. On October 31, Renfroe exercised said option, meaning he will return to Kansas City's lineup next season — even if they wish he wouldn't.

In 2024, Renfroe slashed a disappointing .229/.297/.392 with 15 home runs and a career-low 52 RBI in 385 at-bats. His lack of power at the plate was an ongoing problem all season, though it certainly wasn't the 32-year-old's only issue — his defense also left plenty to be desired. Renfroe earned an abysmal -7 Outs Above Average (OAA) to see him rank in the bottom 6% of all qualified fielders this season, according to Baseball Savant.

While the Royals have likely seen enough from Renfroe, Weimer has plenty of potential to reach, and the team is almost certain to give the 25-year-old a shot. The 2024 season was only Weimer's second in the majors, with the outfielder having made his debut in April 2023 with the Milwuakee Brewers before being traded to the Reds in July 2024.

So far, Weimer is yet to make a big impression in the majors. In 393 big-league at-bats over the last two seasons, he posted a .201/.279/.349 line with an elevated 28.5% strikeout rate. Weimer spent the majority of the 2024 season in Triple-A, where he slashed .224/.351/.312 in 295 at-bats split between the Brewers' and Reds' minor league affiliates.

Still, Weimer has a lot of potential with the right development, and if he can prove himself at spring training, the Royals will almost certainly trial him in the outfield. However, it may mean Renfroe finds himself starting the 2025 season on the bench.