Former MLB GM gives aggressive debut deadline for KC Royals' Jac Caglianone

For Kansas City Royals fans, one of the most exciting stories of spring training had to be first baseman Jac Caglianone. The team's top pick in the 2024 MLB Draft quickly earned an invite to big-league camp, earning an opportunity to prove himself alongside players like Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez.

The left-handed slugger exceeded so many expectations with his strong spring showing and had a serious contingent of Royals fans hoping to see him on the Royals Opening Day roster. Alas, Kansas City will start the season without Caglianone on the 26-man roster. But one notable columnist believes the wait will not be too long.

The former MLB Executive of the Year has 16 years of combined experience leading the Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals organizations, with plenty of shining moments and equally murky ones to show for it.

Bowden recently put pen to paper with his 25 predictions for the 2025 MLB season. The Royals popped up occasionally in his predictions, but Bowden's aggressive timetable for Caglianone's debut will be impressive if it comes true.

"Bubba Chandler of the Pirates, Jac Caglianone of the Royals and Travis Bazzana of the Guardians are part of the first wave of top prospects promoted to the majors in 2025, getting the call over Memorial Day weekend."

Could Jac Caglianone join KC Royals before the All-Star break?

All three of Chandler, Caglianone, and Bazzana are their respective teams' top prospects and within MLB Pipeline's top 25 overall prospects, but seeing Caglianone in Kansas City two months into the season feels extreme. All three of the Pirates, Royals, and Guardians are hoping to be in the playoff picture come Memorial Day, and turning to an unproven prospect this early in the season could be risky.

To Bowden's credit, keeping Caglianone down on the Royals farm may be hard. He batted an absurd .529 with a team-leading three home runs and a 1.871 OPS. He proved that his Arizona Fall League metrics were no fluke with some of Cactus League's hardest-hit balls. Fans believed in the Florida product's 70-grade power, but seeing it translate so well to game action is always an exciting sign.

Caglianone is currently slated to start the season in Double-A Northwest Arkansas, picking up after he ended the 2024 season with High-A Quad Cities. That assignment certainly has its pros and cons, but a strong bat in the Texas League will keep the conversation going for Caglianone's promotion to Kansas City. Perhaps the Royals will give Caglianone a long leash to ease into an outfield spot, like MLB.com's Anne Rogers alluded to earlier this offseason.

No matter when it comes, Royals fans will be out in droves to see Caglianone's debut. If Bowden's prediction comes true, here is hoping it is a sign of just how good Caglianone is rather than how badly the Royals need him to produce immediately.