Royals History: Past proves patience could be virtue in KC's big bat search

No one can say general manager J.J. Picollo isn't trying hard this winter to strengthen a Kansas City Royals offense beset by a frustratingly inconsistent offense in 2025.

He's traded for promising young outfielder Isaac Collins, signed free agent outfielder Lane Thomas away from Cleveland, engineered Maikel Garcia's stunning contract extension, and re-signed Jonathan India in hopes of reaping a turnaround season from the player who's hit well before.

But even with spring training looming right around the corner — big league camps open in a little more than a month — it's hard to shake the feeling that Picollo isn't quite ready to conclude the roster reconstruction to which he's been dedicated since he started making moves just days after the World Series ended. After all, the Royals still haven't landed the consistently big power bat they so badly need and talk of their continuing search for such an asset remains unabated.

Is there hope that Kansas City can pull something significant off even as spring training draws closer and closer?

Yes. Just think back to the winter of 2021.

It took the Royals a long time to get the bat they needed five years ago

The boat the Royals find themselves in this winter is much the same as the one they sailed most of the baseball winter following the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. They desperately needed a potent addition at the plate, especially among their outfielders after Alex Gordon's retirement following the truncated season's conclusion.

The search for a productive bat, conducted then by former general manager Dayton Moore, wasn't short. It certainly didn't end with the late November signing of free agent Michael A. Taylor, whose glove spoke much, much louder than his bat, or with the re-signing of once-promising outfielder Bubba Starling, who it turned out would never play in the majors again.

Things looked a bit better when Moore snared slugging free agent first baseman Carlos Santana in December. Santana, though, was in his mid-30s, and his .199 average overshadowed the eight homers he managed to hit across the 60-game 2020 campaign.

And January passed without the acquisition of another meaningful hitter. Fans couldn't be blamed if they'd abandoned hopes and dreams of another impact bat.

But after January turned to February, Moore delivered. With just days left before spring camp opened, he landed outfielder Andrew Benintendi in a February 10 three-team deal with the Red Sox and Mets that at the time cost the Royals only Khalil Lee (to New York) and Franchy Cordero (to Boston), and, ultimately, Luis De La Rosa and Grant Gambrell to the Red Sox as players to be named later.

Benintendi didn't disappoint. Despite missing time with a rib fracture, he clubbed 17 homers, drove in 73 runs, doubled 27 times, and slashed .276/.324/.442 in his first KC season. And for good measure, he also won a Gold Glove for his left field defense.

Benintendi's power dropped off in 2022, but he'd knocked in 51 runs, was hitting .304 with a .373 OBP, and won a spot on the American League All-Star team when the Royals dealt him to the Yankees in a trade deadline swap that netted them pitching prospects Chandler Champlain, Beck Way, and T.J. Sikkema. Benintendi finished the season with the Yanks; since then, he's hit 45 homers — 20 in each of the last two seasons — collected 172 RBI, and slashed .245/.309/.391 for the White Sox.

Although he wasn't a game-changer for Kansas City — the Royals finished fourth (2021) and fifth (2022) in the AL Central for the two seasons in which he wore their uniform — Benintendi brought some spark to their offense and helped their outfield defense.

He was definitely worth the long wait before the Royals could grab him. That's something from which Kansas City fans can draw some comfort as they anxiously wait for Picollo to secure another important bat.