Deepening slump threatens demoted KC Royals outfielder's MLB future

MJ Melendez, the catcher-turned-outfielder whose painful-to-watch four-year struggle with major league pitching hadn't previously moved the Kansas City Royals to action, went 0-for-4 in the club's April 16 loss to New York at Yankee Stadium. Three days later, the Royals gave him the news everyone suspected was coming sooner or later.

They were sending him back to the minors, a place he hadn't spent a full season since pounding a minor league-leading 41 home runs in 2021, and since then had only played 24 games. The much-anticipated demotion to Triple-A Omaha was the right move — slashing only .085/.173/.170 at the time, with only four hits in 47 at-bats, there wasn't really any room remaining for him in Kansas City. Playing for the Storm Chasers would give him the chance to rediscover what he'd lost after that spectacular award-winning 2021 season.

Nearly a month later, however, things haven't improved much for Melendez. He's done little, if anything, to allay the many nagging questions and concerns about his hitting.

The slump that began with the KC Royals continues for MJ Melendez at Omaha

Going only 1-for-5 as he did Tuesday night against Columbus was, unfortunately, business as usual for Melendez. He's collected more than one hit in a game only twice, and gone hitless eight times, in the 18 games he's appeared in for Omaha since his demotion. He's homered only once in 74 at-bats, a power breakdown that won't help him get back to Kansas City, he's striking out an alarming 34.2 percent of the time, and his 23 wRC+, while better than the shockingly bad -5 wRC+ he had when sent down, speaks volumes about his present value to the organization.

And although his .162/.203/.284 Omaha line through Tuesday is better than the line he left behind in Kansas City, it's still bad, and that it reflects what he has and hasn't accomplished against minor league pitching simply compounds the overall Melendez problem. He may be hitting a bit better, but a slump is still a slump, and his continues even in the face of less-challenging pitching.

And none of that is what the Royals and Melendez want or need.

What is MJ Melendez's future with the KC Royals?

This is, of course, a question the Royals probably wish they didn't have to answer. But that 41-homer season is now more a fading memory than it is the promise of future success it once was, he hasn't hit better than .235 in a single big league campaign, his subpar major league metrics leave much to be desired, and his four-year .216/.299/.390 line isn't the stuff successful careers are made of. Adding to that mix the terrible season he's having only darkens the outlook.

The sad truth is this: Melendez appears to be losing his long battle with the bat, and the threat to his career is as bad as it's ever been, if not worse. His days with the Royals could be numbered if he doesn't soon turn the tide.