Royals can't afford to go another offseason without upgrading at this position

Some may think that August is too early to discuss offseason plans, but if you're the 50-73 Kansas City Royals, there's nowhere else really to look than the future, as their season is essentially over. There's already been plenty of focus on the pitching staff with owner John Sherman discussing that investment needs to be made there, specifically in the rotation. And the Royals already took some light strides to address that with Thursday's signing of Tony Gonsolin.

However, you don't get to 23 games under .500 as a team by only experiencing pitching issues. The reality is that there's been numerous areas of this Royals roster that have been subpar. One of those positions, that's perhaps flown under the radar a bit, is second base. Manned primarily by Michael Massey, second base is the worst position by OPS metrics for the Royals this season, not including DH.

This isn't meant to be a major slight on Massey as comparatively speaking to last season, his .725 OPS, 96 wRC+ and 1.5 fWAR are much better than his .581 OPS, 57 wRC+ and -0.4 fWAR in an injury-ridden 2025 campaign. The problem is though, while he may not be a black hole at the plate, he lacks that pizazz that a regular starter in a contending lineup should have.

In an infield with the likes MVP-hopeful Bobby Witt Jr., All-Star Maikel Garcia and either a former Silver Slugger finalist or potential future Silver Slugger award winner Jac Caglianone, Massey certainly stics out like a sore thumb. And with the likes of Caglianone and Isaac Collins showing their worth in the outfield plus Kyle Isbel being a defensive stalwart in center, second base seems like the one positonal need Kansas City should have at the top of their offseason wishlist.

Last winter they opted to run with the platoon of Massey and Jonathan India and we see where that's gotten them this season. If they're serious about not wasting their chance to contend again starting in 2027, they need to be diligient in getting the most out of each position and that just hasn't been the case at second this season.

Michael Massey could still have role to play in Royals' 2027 plans, even if he's not starting

Again, Massey has been having a decent enough season, but the Royals just need someone beyond average here that offers a little more consistency month-to-month at the dish.

Fortunately for Massey, his average bat could do wonders in addressing the Royals lack of bench depth. He's a left-handed hitter, making him a more favorable name to call upon for ideal matchups across the league. On top of that, with prior experience at both third base and in the corner outfield, he has enough versatility to be a utility-style player.

Then, perhaps his value could be used to free up space and finances for a potential upgrade. He may not be worth keeping around as a starter if the Royals want to strive for achievements beyond their 2024 ALDS appearance, but there are probably many teams who would be jazzed to take that step and have season like the Royals did two seasons ago. In this case, perhaps Massey makes a lot of sense as a tradeable asset.

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