ESPN makes strong case for what KC Royals’ most glaring need is in 2025

The Kansas City Royals appear to have put their mid-April slump very much in the rearview mirror. In fact, few squads are as hot as they are at the moment, having won 14 of their last 16 games. But that doesn’t mean that all is fixed in Kauffman. As ESPN recently pointed out, there is a real problem spot for the team and that continues to be its outfield.

The problem is also not just the starting outfielders. It can be fixed simply by starting someone else or, ahem … calling someone up from Double-A. But the club will have to focus on it at some point or risk falling out of contention.

The KC Royals’ outfield could derail their red-hot momentum

Bradford Doolittle recently ran down the biggest problem areas for all 30 MLB teams and the KC Royals got tagged unsurprisingly for its outfield’s offensive struggles.

“The outfield ranks 29th in bWAR as a group -- the continuation of a problem that hovered over the roster last season,” Doolittle wrote before noting that the Royals have already taken some actions to try and fix things. With mixed results.

“MJ Melendez was sent to the minors to find himself. His initial results in Omaha suggest he'll be searching for some time. Hunter Renfroe has produced less than a good-hitting pitcher.”

He did try to give credit where credit is due regarding Mark Canha, who is one of the only guys hitting when he plays the outfield (.368 average), but even the slugger isn’t showing any power when he’s out there. He has yet to hit a home run this season.

As a group, the outfielders have failed to produce anything. In total, they entered Wednesday's game hitting .224 with seven home runs and 32 RBI. Compare that to the infielders as a group and you notice rather quickly that Bobby Witt Jr. and Maikel Garcia alone pass the seven combined outfielders who have seen plate appearances in homers with nine round trippers. The two infielders also surpass the RBI production of the entire outfield unit, with 36 to the outfield's 32.

Considering the number of guys the KC Royals have tried in the outfield this season, it certainly seems this is now the number one area to fix once the trade deadline rolls around.