Why keeping Alec Zumwalt is not a death sentence for Royals offense

No matter how you slice it, the Royals took a step back from the promising season they had a year ago. They only missed last year's mark of 86 wins by four, but they were unable to qualify for the postseason before the clock ran out on their season.

That is obviously upsetting and disappointing, especially when considering how close they were to a World Series appearance in 2024. Reaching the ALDS is no small feat (we're talking about the Kansas City Royals, this happens once every millinea), but missing the playoffs the following season requires some serious self-reflection and retooling.

At the front of that struggle bus is not a Royals player, but hitting coach Alec Zumwalt. He was public enemy number one when the offense was at its lowest point in the season.

"Everyone in Kansas City wanted our hitting coach gone at the end of the year, but I'm happy we kept Zummy around," said Pasquantino via an interview with 96.5 The Fan.

But fan support has not grown since GM J.J. Picollo stated the team would be bringing Zumwalt back for another year during his end-of-season press conference. He did mention though, that hitting assistants Keoni DeRenne and Joe Dillon, along with director of hitting Drew Saylor, will not be returning to the organization in 2026.

Fan frustration with the hitting coach is a sentiment as old as time. The first person to get fingers in their face when a lineup is struggling is the manager or the hitting coach (never the players with the bats in their hands, ironically).

This time, the outrage is justifiable. In an effort to keep it PG-rated, the Royals' offense stunk, real bad, for the majority of the season. They ranked in the bottom 10 in MLB in wRC+ (T-22nd) and bottom five in runs scored (26th), RBI (26th), and home runs (26th). Their 7.2% walk rate was good for 29th in baseball, only better than the lowly Colorado Rockies.

Those are not numbers to be proud of, but before we blame the Zumwalt and hang him out to dry, it's essential to examine the success from 2024 with virtually the same core and ask ourselves what happened.

Alec Zumwalt is not the Royals offense's problem, contrary to belief

Coaching is one of the most thankless jobs someone can have. When everything goes right, the players get the majority of the credit for figuring things out and executing. When things go poorly, we all want to ask the hitting coach, "What exactly do you do here?"

Instead, we have to hold the players more accountable for their shortcomings. Before the All-Star break, the Royals were one of the worst-hitting teams with RISP.

Vinnie Pasquantino was at the source of that struggle, being in the middle of the order and not having as much success driving guys in early on. He was a .360 hitter with men in scoring position in 2024, but that dipped down to .247 in 2025.

Salvador Perez hit .329 with RISP in 2024, but fell to .280 in those situations this year. His 103 wRC+ in June was not good enough to withstand the entire lineup struggling at the same time.

The issue was the players failing to execute in those "got-to-have-it" moments. There's always an amount of luck with hitting with RISP.

They're similar to touchdowns in football. Yes, you can control it, but only to a certain degree. Success still depends on everything working out perfectly or on luck.

It was clear that 2024 was an outlier in terms of hitting with runners in scoring position. The Royals may not be as good as they were in that department again, but chances are they won't be as bad as they were this year either.

Vinnie Pasquantino speaks candidly about 2025 offensive struggles

The best thing the Royals can do is maintain continuity within the clubhouse as much as possible. Zumwalt was there when the Royals were struggling, but he was also there when they were scorching hot after the All-Star break.

"A lot of it falls on me", said Pasquantino when asked how he reflects on how close the team was to the playoffs. "Have to do better with ducks on the pond and get them in. For me, it wasn't too much of a reflection because it was staring me in the face of where can I be better."

Pasquanitno mentioned that he left 20-30 guys on base this year, and if he cleans that up, coaching decisions don't have to be made, and he's correct.

He also discussed his deep connection with him and how he understands his swing, both inside and out.

"A lot of us knew him from the minor leagues," Pasquantino said. "He was in charge when I got drafted, so I have a really good relationship with him.

"He knows my swing in and out, he knows what I'm thinking. he said. "There's a relationship piece there that helps with being comfortable when you show up at the yard."

Should Zumwalt not get credit for the offensive turnaround in the second half? If he doesn't, then he shouldn't get the blame when the bats were ice cold early in the summer.

Zumwalt will get at least one more shot to make it work this season, and he's earned that. Despite not meeting the organization's goal of making it to the postseason, the Royals still had a winning year.

It would be disingenuous not to acknowledge that. That being said, it's telling that Zumwalt's assistants were let go, almost as a precursor for what could happen if production doesn't turn around.

Th 2026 season will undoubtedly be his last in a Royals uniform if the they don't get out to a fast start.