KC Royals will be sellers if these 5 players don’t step up now

Wow, that was not a fun road trip for the KC Royals.

The Royals' road struggles became abundantly clear, thanks to a nine-game trip to the West Coast and Texas. Kansas City once had a double-digit gap between their wins and losses, but that evaporated quicker than an Oklahoma shower.

According to FanGraphs, Kansas City now sits outside the playoff picture, sporting a 28.8% chance of making the postseason. It is a far cry from where this team sat just this time last month. Yet, there is a lot of baseball ahead and an All-Star break for players to catch a breath.

Yet, there is still pressure on the front office to decide their trade deadline approach. July 30 is closer than you may think. That is less than 30 games for Royals executive vice president and general manager J.J. Picollo to define his view of the word "aggressive."

Kansas City went from borderline buyers to possibly being sellers at the upcoming trade deadline. It is an unfortunate reality that Kansas City fans must accept at this juncture of the season. We all want the team to turn things around, force the issue of being buyers, and make a postseason push in 2024. For the Royals to turn things around and make a postseason push in 2024, these five players must step up quickly.

3B Maikel Garcia

The Royals have already begun resetting third baseman Maikel Garcia's role in the lineup, but there is no denying he was the worst everyday hitter over the past two weeks. If he wants to regain his leadoff spot and semblance of success at the plate, he needs a strong homestand.

The Venezuelan native did not start in the June 20 contest and has been pulled out of the lineup's top spot in the last two Texas games. He was one of three players to play in 14 games across the past two weeks, but his abysmal .344 OPS and .193 OBP were not getting it done for a leadoff man.

Royals fans know what Garcia can do, such as his promising May at the plate. He performs notably better in Kauffman's confines this season, where the Royals will play their next 10 games. Garcia has everything to prove and nothing to lose with his recent demotion from the lineup.