CBS Sports' Top 100 MLB players list finally gives Royals the respect they deserve

National media has not always been quick to praise the Kansas City Royals, for better or worse. The small-market club has not given many doubters a reason to change course in recent years, falling from a postseason appearance in 2024 to an 82-win season in 2025.

Back-to-back winning seasons is no small thing given the last three decades of Kansas City baseball, but it is not exactly the kind of résumé that grabs national attention.

Still, the Royals have some individual talents who do turn heads, and CBS Sports took notice of that this week.

Three Royals players land in CBS Sports' Top 100 MLB players list.

Dayn Perry recently put together his list of the top 100 MLB players for the 2026 season. He made clear this was not simply a review of what happened in 2025, but a forward-looking exercise built around projected impact in the season ahead. If the Royals are going to trend upward in 2026, having three players land inside the top 50 is a pretty good place to start.

Venezuela infielder Maikel Garcia came in at 48th, fresh off the heels of a breakout 2025 season and stellar run in the World Baseball Classic.

Garcia will be under Royals control for a few more years, giving Kansas City an above-average anchor at the hot corner. Garcia had a power-speed combination in 2025 that not even Hall of Famer George Brett could match, becoming the first Royals primary third baseman to hit at least 15 home runs and steal at least 20 bases.

He earned his first All-Star nod this past season, and with his 26th birthday earlier this month, his best playing years could be ahead of him.

Moving on down to 38th, Perry placed Royals southpaw Cole Ragans. The future-forward process in these rankings is apparent after Ragans only made 13 starts last season. Ragans made his second consecutive Opening Day start last season and will repeat in that role in 2026.

His back-of-the-baseball-card numbers were not pretty in his limited action last season, but a strong conclusion to the season and elite peripheries (third-lowest FIP in MLB) slate him to be one of the game's best pitchers... if he can stay on the mound.

Lastly, the highest-ranked Royals player should surprise no one. Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. came in at third overall, only trailing Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge.

Perry went as far to call the Texas native "the most complete position player in baseball today," and that is not a stretch. His two-year run has been the elite of the elite, earning First Team ALL-MLB, All-Star, Gold Glove, and Silver Slugger awards in 2024 and 2025.

That trajectory is why Kansas City signed Witt to a 14-year contract ahead of the 2024 season, the longest and largest contract in the Royals franchise history. If baseball fans did not know who Witt was before, his highlight reel from the World Baseball Classic has drawn plenty of attention ahead of Opening Day.

While the list doesn't include several other key Royals players, it still feels good from a fan perspective to have multiple players drawing accolades.

The Royals have gone lengthy stretches in their recent history without players standing out in their position or peer group, much less being a top player in baseball overall. Now, all the praise and projection fall on deaf ears if it doesn't translate to real-world wins.

Let's see if this trio can help push Kansas City to that next level.