Latest Blue Jays injury setback further proves Royals avoided free agency catastrophe

The Kansas City Royals have had a need for further help in the outfield for some time now and it will no doubt be near the top of their list (if not at the very top of it) this winter.

No team fielded an outfield with a lower wRC+ or fWAR than Kansas City did this season and the consensus is the Royals didn't do nearly enough to address their outfield heading into the year - specifically in the corners.

One of the names that many thought the Royals let slip away last offseason was Anthony Santander. They reportedly offered a contract to him and seemingly missed their chance with him, upping their offer to 3-year, $66 million too late according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

However, while 2025 didn't go to the plan for the Royals outfield, it also didn't go as planned for Santander with the Toronto Blue Jays, and Thursday proved to be yet another example of why the Royals may very well have avoided a real catastrophe.

The Blue Jays removed Santander from their ALCS roster ahead of their Game 4 clash with the Seattle Mariners due to a back injury, thus ending his season and putting another stain on his tenure in Toronto.

Royals are further vindicated for missing out on Anthony Santander in free agency

Santander signed a 5-year, $92.5 million contract with Toronto on January 20 but has looked nowhere near worth that sum of money - and thus certainly not worth the $22 million AAV the Royals were willing to give him.

He received such a deal after coming off an All-Star and Silver Slugger season with the Baltimore Orioles in 2024, in which he belted 44 home runs, 102 RBI while slashing .235/.308/.506 with a 128 wRC+.

However, 2025 has been defined by both injury and underperformance for the nearly 31-year-old veteran. He hit the IL on May 30 with left shoulder inflammation and wouldn't make his return to the lineup until September 23. And for the 54 games he was healthy he only managed to slash .175/.271/.294 with six homers, 18 RBI and an extremely underwhelming 61 wRC+ and -0.9 fWAR.

Then there's the postseason, who before the injury on Thursday Santander still looked just as uninspiring. In 16 plate appearances across five games, he was hitting just .200 with a pair of RBI, a .450 OPS and 29 wRC+.

Now, other than the trade deadline acquisitions of Mike Yastrzemski and to a part-time extent utility man Adam Frazier, the Royals crop of regular corner outfield bats didn't excel in their own right either.

They'd cut ties with aging underperforming veterans Hunter Renfroe and Mark Canha midseason after a 32 wRC+ and 49 wRC+ respectively. They'd demote MJ Melendez to the minors twice due to his -14 wRC+ MLB season as well as Drew Waters for his 66 wRC+. Then, the likes of Jac Caglianone (.157 AVG, .532 OPS, 46 wRC+), John Rave (.196 AVG, .590 OPS, 65 wRC+) and Randal Grichuk (.206 AVG, .566 OPS, 56 wRC+) were just as underwhelming.

That being said, none of them carried a near $100 million commitment over a half-decade, or in the Royals case a $66 million commitment over three seasons.

Now, there still very well could be a 40+ HR and 100+ RBI hitter in Santander still and the Blue Jays may be able to reap the benefits of that when and if he's fully healthy. However, for the time being, he's yet to be anywhere near the supposed prized commodity they invested in.

So, while the Royals certainly have their work cut out for them this offseason, at least they can sleep a bit better at night knowing that they have the increased financial freedom to explore the free agent and trade markets with wider eyes and bushier tails in the coming months.