The 4 biggest bombs of this KC Royals season

May is still a week away, but this KC Royals season already feels long. They've played badly and, after ending their seven-game losing streak with an exciting 11-8 victory over the Angels Saturday night, have won only five times in 21 games.

That this is a campaign wracked by disappointments understates the obvious. The miserable record speaks for itself. Key injuries, something the Royals couldn't afford entering a new season and which include Kris Bubic's Tommy John Surgery-necessitating UCL issue, have weakened the lineup. And players who need to perform and produce haven't.

Who among these Royals have been the biggest individual disappointments? Hunter Dozier shocked everyone with three hits and three RBIs Saturday, but still has a .196/.213/,261 line, which means he's not even meeting expectations arising from the .226/.297/.391he's slashed over the past three campaigns. Nicky Lopez is hitting just .171, a number more in line with his 2019 (.240), 2020 (.201) and 2022 (.227) marks than his stellar 2021 performance. And Michael Massey's weak bat (.115/.111/.135) makes one wonder how long he can keep his second base job.

Who, though, have been the biggest bombs?

Count this outfielder as one of the KC Royals' major disappointments

Although Kyle Isbel hit .386 in the Cactus League this spring, his place in the Opening Day lineup was determined in no small part by the oblique strain Drew Waters suffered in late February. It was then that Isbel's chances to begin the season in center field improved dramatically, if not exponentially. And in center field at Kauffman Stadium is where he started Opening Day.

But while his errorless defense has proven him worthy of the role, his bat hasn't. On his way already to a second straight disappointing season after batting only .211 last year, and after going 1-for-4 and just missing his first home run of the season Saturday night, he's hitting .193, an unsustainable average if he wants to remain a major league outfielder.

Isbel's time in center may end when Waters returns ... or earlier if his struggles at the plate continue.

Who else has been a big disappointment?

Nate Eaton remains versatile, but has bombed at the plate for the KC Royals

Nate Eaton didn't tear up the American League after Kansas City called him up for his first taste of the majors last year. As one of the minor league replacements for 10 Royals whose vaccination status prohibited them from crossing the Canadian border for a four-game series at Toronto, he went 2-for-12; then, after a short trip back to Omaha, he finished the campaign with the Royals and a .264 average. Together with his defensive versatility, it was enough to establish Eaton as a legitimate Opening Day roster candidate.

Eaton made that roster on the strength of a .324/.390/.514 spring training line. But his bat has since gone silent—he owns only one hit, an April 10 single against Texas, and is 1-for-25 (.040) in a dozen games. He's been valuable in the field, however, playing every outfield position without committing an error.

But all the versatility in the world won't protect Eaton if he can't hit. And that astonishingly unproductive bat has rendered him a major disappointment. Time will tell if he can solve the problem, but time is a precious commodity he may be losing.

Who's the fourth major disappointment for the Royals?

This relief pitcher has been a big disappointment for the KC Royals

Last season, in a move predicated by team needs, his good minor league career, and the 1.42 ERA he posted in a late-2021 callup, the Royals gave Dylan Coleman a seat in their beleaguered bullpen. He rewarded their confidence with a 5-2, 2.78 ERA record in 68 appearances and headed home for the baseball winter solidly locked into a 2023 roster spot.

Spring training wasn't as kind to Coleman—he gave up five runs and walked nine in eight Cactus League innings, a performance that laid the unfortunate groundwork for what happened after Kansas City broke camp and began the regular season.

Although Coleman pitched a scoreless inning in the club's 2-0 Opening Day loss to Minnesota and another scoreless frame against Toronto six days later, he gave up 10 runs in the other three innings he's pitched so far this season. Texas hammered him for six of those runs in just two-thirds of an inning April 10.

Unsurprising, then, was the demotion to Triple-A Omaha he received April 13. Carrying an ugly 18.00 ERA and burdened by one of the most disappointing performances of any KC pitcher this season, the time had come for Coleman, an obviously talented reliever, to regroup in the minors.