4 most exciting surprises that brightened Royals’ overall gloomy 2025 season

An 82-80 record and sitting out October a year after making it as a Wild Card in a weak American League field might not qualify as exciting. As a whole, the season had its fair share of disappointments. Kansas City Royals fans were certainly hoping for more.

But sometimes the dark, dreary rain brings about a rainbow, and given the way the AL Central shook out by the end of 2025, the Royals aren't poorly positioned to make a run in the division in 2026. We'll have to see how the offseason shakes out, of course, but the Tigers' collapse makes them look much less formidable, and the Guardians aren't exactly invulnerable.

Further generating hope were these four, exciting, bright spots, who reached heights that certainly were not expected as the season began.

Four exciting bright spots that should give the Royals hope for 2026

Maikel Garcia's emergence

The Royals have a bona fide superstar in 25-year-old Bobby Witt Jr., and they've done what's necessary to make sure he'll be in Kansas City for a very long time. Still, the team would look much more formidable if Witt Jr. had a co-star, but for a small-market team, his massive extension makes importing one nearly impossible.

Enter Maikel Garcia. Also 25, Garcia was an intriguing mix of contact and speed with a healthy dose of defensive chops sprinkled in, but his viability as a starter was in question following a disappointing 2024 campaign that saw him slash .231/.281/.332.

However, this year Garcia went full-on breakout. He lowered his strikeout rate to a minuscule 12.6% while raising his walk rate to a respectable 9.3%. Both were huge increases compared to his prior seasons.

The biggest development, however, was Garcia's improvement in the power department. While 16 homers won't wow you, Garcia added 39 doubles to bring his slugging percentage to .449, up from a previous career-high of .364 recorded in his 2022 cup of coffee. The underlying metrics, headlined by a 91.3 miles per hour average exit velocity, prove that his performance was no fluke either.

With 27 steals and great defense thrown in, Garcia posted 5.6 fWAR, making him a worthy Robin to Witt Jr.'s Batman.

Noah Cameron impressed mightily in his rookie season

Soft-tossing southpaws might not get motors running, but when they can pound the strike zone they can be devilishly effective. That's exactly what we saw from Noah Cameron in 2025.

The former seventh-round pick never rose to the top half of either MLB.com's or Baseball America's top-30 prospect rankings for the Royals, though Baseball America praised the deceptive life his fastball provides as part of an overall solid repertoire. Therefore, it shouldn't be a huge surprise that the 26-year-old performed well once he finally got the opportunity.

A 2.99 ERA in 24 starts and 138.1 innings was more than simply performing well. It was outstanding. While he's not a strikeout artist, Cameron generates whiffs at an above-average rate, posting a 59th percentile whiff rate.

Most importantly, he does an excellent job limiting hard contact with a rate that came in at the 73rd percentile. He avoids barrels with an 81st percentile barrel rate, and, unsurprisingly, his 87.9 miles per hour average exit velocity finished in the 82nd percentile.

Cameron is certainly a piece for the rotation moving forward, that, at full strength looks formidable.

Kris Bubic's breakout was a pleasant surprise before his unfortunate injury

Injuries have unfortunately been a major player in the Kris Bubic story so far. After missing nearly all of 2023 with Tommy John surgery, Bubic resurfaced in 2024 as a reliever as he got his sea legs back under him.

However, when 2025 kicked off, he was a man on a mission. Bubic was ridiculously effective while also flashing some impressive stamina in the early going, leading to him being honored as AL Pitcher of the Month for his performance in May.

Bubic would roll through June and July as well, before a rotator cuff strain would cost him August and September, finishing his year prematurely.

Still, through 20 starts, Bubic logged 116.1 innings while posting a 2.55 ERA and 2.89 FIP. If not for the existence of a guy named Tarik Skubal and if not for his injury, Bubic would have garnered serious Cy Young consideration at season's end.

The good news is surgery wasn't required for his rotator cuff injury, and he'll be ready to go for spring training. With Cameron, Michael Wacha, and hopefully bounce-back years from Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans alongside Bubic, it could be scary hours in Kansas City in 2026.

Vinnie Pasquantino staying healthy and fulfilling his power promise

Vinnie Pasquantino had a goal as the 2025 season kicked off. That goal was to finally stay healthy. Since debuting in 2022, Pasquantino had missed time for one reason or another, topping 72 games just once, logging 131 in 2024.

Mission accomplished. The sweet-swinging lefty played in 160 contests in 2025, and in doing so, was finally able to realize his power potential.

Pasquantino posted a .264/.323/.475 line with 32 home runs, shattering his previous career high of 19. 2025 also marked the first time he posted an isolated slugging percentage over .200, coming in at .211.

The 28-year-old is the rare slugger who doesn't strike out. He went down with a K just 15.7% of the time, and his 18.2% whiff rate ranked in the 84th percentile.

Having a quality power bat from the left side makes the Royals lineup that much more potent, and if the injuries are truly behind him, it shouldn't be a surprise for 30+ homers to become his norm year in and year out.