Off-radar infield prospect's huge day powers Royals Cactus League comeback vs Brewers

Kansas City Royals fans know wins and losses do not matter much in spring training, but a win still feels a lot better than a loss. On Sunday, it looked like Kansas City was headed for its second loss in three Cactus League games against a split-squad Milwaukee Brewers team.

Trailing 1-0 entering the seventh inning, the Royals' bats had been stymied by a parade of single-inning Brewers arms. Kansas City finally scratched across the tying run on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly from utilityman Peyton Wilson. Then shortstop Dustin Dickerson stepped in and flipped the game.

Dustin Dickerson comes through for Royals in early Cactus League victory over Brewers

Dickerson only logged two at-bats, but he made them count. He finished with two extra base hits, two runs scored, and four RBI, including a two-out home run in the ninth that gave Kansas City breathing room in what became a 7-3 win.

Dickerson is not known for his power, which is part of what made the swing stand out. It was his first spring training homer, and it turned a tense afternoon into something the Royals could actually enjoy.

Royals fans are going to see a lot of Dickerson late in spring, especially with Bobby Witt Jr. and Maikel Garcia headed out soon for World Baseball Classic action. The glove-first infielder got his first taste of Triple-A last season, but he is still well down the organizational pecking order.

He spent most of 2025 with Double A Northwest Arkansas, playing 100 games for the Naturals and making the kind of highlight reel plays that keep a coaching staff confident in the glove. He is no slouch on the bases either, swiping a career high 21 bags in 111 games.

Dickerson is also the first non-debuting Royals player to homer this spring. Team captain Salvador Perez opened his spring with a solo shot in the second inning of Friday’s game, and utilityman Michael Massey followed later in that same inning with a two-run blast.

Dickerson appeared sparingly in big league camp last year, but he produced in his nine plate appearances across eight games.

Still, the path is crowded. Kansas City brought in non roster depth like Kevin Newman and Connor Kaiser, and Dickerson has primarily played shortstop as a pro because that is where his value is loudest. That reality does him no favors in an organization that already has multiple shortstop options on the 40-man roster.

Even so, Dickerson has a clear role in Double-A and can keep building his case as legitimate organizational depth with another strong season in Northwest Arkansas.

Sunday’s heroics do not guarantee anything, but they do matter. There are not many chances for a bench player to walk into a game late and put his team on his back. Dickerson got that moment, and he took it.