Royals could be testing potential new leadoff plan with first spring training lineup

After a long offseason, baseball is finally back and the Royals will open their Cactus League campaign against the Texas Rangers this afternoon.

And spring training is a time for tinkering and testing ideas out when the games don't count towards the standings. In the Royals' case, they have plenty of things to test out over the next several weeks, especially in the lineup.

One of Kansas City's long-standing issues in recent years has been the leadoff spot and it seemed at it's most prominent last season. In 2025, after what seemed to be too many games of Jonathan India struggling atop the order, the team relied on their trade deadline acquisition of Mike Yastrzemski down the stretch.

But now that Yastrzemski is gone, the question of who will take that spot suddenly arose again this winter, and luckily for the Royals, they do have options at their disposal that could work in the one-hole.

One of those is their 2025 breakout sensation Maikel Garcia, and on Friday in their spring training opener, the Royals will test him out leading off the order.

Royals will roll with Maikel Garcia in the leadoff spot in spring training opener

Now, at first glance, given how well Garcia performed hitting behind the Royals' MVP-caliber name in Bobby Witt Jr., a move away from his usual three or four slot seems like it may not be the wisest of choices.

However, then there's always the contrary opinion; what if someone were there to set the table for Bobby Witt Jr.?

As much as Witt creating opportunities for the rest of the lineup has reaped it's rewards, like Garcia's All-Star campaign and Pasquantino's first 100+ RBI season, how much better could this offense look if Witt were to be hitting with someone on base more often off the hop?

This is where someone with offensive capabilities of Garcia could shine. And it's not as if he'd be going into the role blind as well.

Outside of hitting third through fifth in the lineup, leadoff is the next most frequent place Garcia spent time in during the 2025 season and did so admirably. In 96 plate appearances across 22 games at the top of the order, he slashed .341/.404/.476 with 14 RBI and a 143 wRC+.

It's certainly a risk taking one of your best "heart of the order" hitters out of the middle of the lineup, especially consodering the question marks that are left in his place, whether that be new and relatively unproven big league talent in Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone or new outfield options like Isaac Collins and Lane Thomas.

That being said, setting the tone off the hop is as critical a need in a lineup as any, so having an All-Star bat in that spot could make all the difference.

One spring training game won't decide anything, but Garcia's potential new spot in the lineup will certainly be a storyline for the Royals faithful to monitor closely.