Predicting which KC Royals player will lose roster spot after Mark Canha returns

With the KC Royals offense continuing to struggle mightily, there is a ray of sunshine on an otherwise cloudy day. Mark Canha looks just about ready to return. 

The first baseman and outfielder is finishing up a rehab assignment with the Omaha Storm Chasers and will almost certainly be back up in Kansas City by the end of the weekend, if not sooner. That’s welcome news for fans of the club who have watched the offense struggle for runs on a daily basis. He could be the shot in the arm for a group that desperately needs one. But of course, the question is, who will go down when Canha comes off the IL and comes back to Kauffman?

The short answer is that there is no shortage of guys who could be sent down by the KC Royals when Mark Canha returns. The lineup is full of young guys who aren’t getting the job done. It’s not unfair to say there are far fewer players who should feel safe, it won’t be them, than people waiting for the bad news. However, two names stand out from the pack and one that makes the most sense.

Predicting which KC Royals player will lose roster spot after Mark Canha returns

Drew Waters

It feels like it would be a no-brainer for Waters to be the guy who trades places with Canha. After all, it was the slugger landing on the IL in the first place that allowed Waters to come up to Kansas City. 

It’s also not like Waters has been lighting the world on fire. He’s hitting just .167 (3-for-21) in six games with no extra base hits and seven strikeouts. On the other hand, while Waters hasn’t been hitting, there’s a chance something could turn around at some point. That’s demonstrated by a very respectable average exit velocity of 92.9 mph so far this year.

He’s also someone who, when given more opportunities, can be quite the weapon on the basepaths and has an absolute cannon for an arm. Now that he’s here, there’s definitely an argument to be made that he should get a longer look. That leads us to the KC Royals player who should go down when Mark Canha comes back.

MJ Melendez

It’s pretty clear that the Kansas City Royals love the idea of MJ Melendez. Despite hitting just .206 last year, he got over 400 ABs and did bash 17 homeruns. But his inability to consistently hit has carried over to 2025.

This year, he’s gotten off to a .085 start with one home run and one RBI in 47 ABs. While a miniscule .115 BABIP could mean that some of his struggles have to do with luck, it’s clear that Melendez is hurting an offense that can’t afford an automatic out in the lineup.

Sending him down wouldn’t only be punitive for a rough start to the year either. It’s been well documented that Melendez revamped his swing ahead of this season. He then did not exactly tear the cover off the ball in the spring.

It might benefit Melendez, and it will undoubtedly help the Royals if he’s the one who goes down to Omaha and works on some things when Mark Canha is ready to return.