Brett Squires: Late-Blooming Sleeper or Four-A Player?

[Kevin O'Brien]

Image courtesy of USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

 

One of the more intriguing stories in the Royals' farm system is corner infielder Brett Squires. Squires initially began the season in Double-A Northwest Arkansas. However, he recently received a call-up to Triple-A Omaha, and he's continued to be on fire at the plate.

With the Naturals, the former University of Oklahoma product slashed .294/.388/.538 with a .926 OPS in 139 plate appearances. He also hit six home runs, scored 22 runs, collected 29 RBI, and stole nine bases on 10 attempts. He also had a .244 ISO and sported a TJ Bat+ of 141, according to TJ Stats.

Below is also a look at his Statcast percentiles from Double-A, which are a bit more limited due to a lack of publicly available pitch-tracking data.

As Royals fans can see above, it wasn't a "perfect" profile by any means.

Squires whiffed 35.3%, which ranked in the 19th percentile, and he had an O-Swing% of 32.3%, which ranked in the 26th percentile. Thus, he chased and whiffed more than fans would like to see. Still, despite those two traits, he had a walk rate of 12.9%, which ranked in the 61st percentile. So his aggressive approach didn't seem to affect his production in Northwest Arkansas.

His performance has been even better in Triple-A Omaha.

In eight games and 31 plate appearances, Squires is slashing .333/.355/.867 with 1.222 OPS. He already has four home runs, five runs scored, 11 RBI, and a TJ Bat+ of 189. Additionally, his Statcast percentiles, which are more complete in Triple-A, are pretty eye-popping, especially with more categories available due to pitching tracking in Triple-A.

Squires ranks in the 99th percentile in barrel rate (22.7%), hard-hit rate (63.6%), xwOBA (.486), wOBA (.505), and TJ Bat+ (189). He also ranks in the 100th percentile in average EV (96.9) and 97th percentile in 90th% EV (108.7). Safe to say, the batted-ball quality from Squires has been impressive, and he certainly is making his case in Triple-A that he deserves a call-up to the Major Leagues at some point in 2026.

And for those who needed to "see" what Squires can do, live or on video, here's an example of Squires' smooth swing doing major damage against Triple-A pitching.

 

Then again, there are some of the same issues in Triple-A that we saw in Double-A. He has a 27.7% whiff rate, a 76.2% Z-Contact%, and he hasn't drawn a walk yet. On Thursday, he went 0-for-4 with 2 strikeouts against the St. Paul Saints. Thus, things can get problematic for him when he's not putting the ball in play.

Thus, let's determine whether Squires is a sleeper who could have an impact at the Major League level or if he's just a Four-A player who is feasting on mediocre pitching and favorable hitting environments. 

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Squires Has Always Demonstrated This Batted-Ball Ability

The one reason fans should be optimistic about Squires' Major League outlook is that he has consistently shown the ability to hit the ball hard. That's a Minor League skill that often translates well to the Big Leagues.

Not only has Squires demonstrated excellent exit velocity, hard-hit, and barrel ability with the Storm Chasers, but he also showcased similar skills in his stint in the Cactus League in Spring Training. 

In 21 plate appearances in Arizona, Squries slashed .263/.286/.842 with a 1.128 OPS. The 26-year-old also had three home runs, four runs scored, and eight RBI. While he was a non-roster invitee and didn't seem to have much of a shot to make the MLB Opening Day roster, he demonstrated skills that could blossom in the Major Leagues. That is further illustrated in his Statcast percentiles from Spring Training, courtesy of TJ Stats. 

Here's an example of Squires absolutely mashing a ball against the Rockies in a Spring Training game on February 28th. 

 

Thus, even though we are just seeing the Statcast data publicly for the first time in Triple-A, this isn't the first time that Squires has demonstrated an ability to hit the ball effectively. His strong Spring Training stats show that there is some legitimate power potential in his profile, though it carries some strikeout and swing-and-miss risk.

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Is He Too Similar to CJ Alexander?

One former prospect Squires profiles similarly to is Alexander, who was also a corner infielder in the Royals system back in 2024. Alexander was acquired from Atlanta in 2022 in a trade that also netted Drew Waters and Andrew Hoffman in exchange for the 35th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft (which eventually became pitcher JR Ritchie).

In 2024 with the Storm Chasers, Alexander slashed .303/.352/.554 with a .906 OPS in 350 plate appearances. He hit 16 home runs, scored 56 runs, and collected 54 RBI. That included some big-time bombs like this one that went 437 feet in Rochester that season.

 

Additionally, Alexander also sported a TJ Bat+ of 131 in 82 games, and had a Statcast profile with the Storm Chasers that was similar in composition to what Squires is doing this year with Omaha. 

 

Alexander did everything that one wanted to see from a slugger in Triple-A: he hit the ball hard, launched and pulled the ball well, and even though he didn't walk, he didn't strike out a whole lot either (60th percentile K%).

Unfortunately, the former Braves draft pick hit a wall when he got called up to the Majors in 2024. In eight plate appearances, he only had one hit and struck out three times. He posted a .250 OPS, and that Statcast percentiles were meager, to put it kindly. 

While it wasn't a big sample, it was obvious that Alexander looked overwhelmed at the MLB level. Thus, he was not only optioned back to Omaha after only eight plate appearances, but he was also eventually designated for assignment and picked up on waivers by the Athletics. 

As was the case with the Royals, Alexander put up big numbers with the A's, posting a 131 wRC+ in 2024 and a 96 wRC+ in 2025. He also received a promotion in 2025 with the Athletics, but much like his time in Kansas City, the sample was small (17 PA), and the results were meager, as illustrated by his .352 OPS and lackluster Statcast percentiles.

Right now, Alexander is in the Astros organization playing for Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys. Much like 2024 and 2025, he's mashing in Triple-A, slashing .263/.357/.506 with 10 home runs, an .863 OPS, and 115 TJ Bat+. That said, he remains in Triple-A, even though the Astros are 20-31.

Perhaps Houston is the place where Alexander puts it together at the MLB level. However, he is the epitome of a Four-A player.

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Will Squires Follow A Similar Path to Alexander?

Right now, it's easy to see the comparisons between Alexander and Squires.

Alexander was a 20th-round pick while Squire went undrafted. Neither is really known for their defense or their speed on the basepaths. They also have never been highly-rated prospects in their career, as Squires has never made the Royals' Top-30 on MLB Pipeline since debuting in 2023. Lastly, they have swing-and-miss issues that could prevent them from finding MLB opportunities and success. 

Still, I am not sure if Squires is Alexander 2.0 just yet.

Squires is still 26, and Alexander didn't debut until he was 27. Thus, age is more on Squires' side, though that gap is closing quickly for the former Sooner. If he doesn't debut this year, he'll be the same age as Alexander when he made his MLB debut in 2024.

The big question with Squires is where he will fit if promoted. He primarily plays third and first base, and those positions are set with Maikel Garcia and Vinnie Pasquantino as the regular players, respectively. Thus, for Squires to debut, an injury would have to beset one of those guys, and even then, a call-up is not guaranteed for Squires.

Regardless of positional fit, the Royals need hitters who can mash, especially with the club ranking 27th in baseball in runs scored. If Squires continues to mash in Omaha, he'll make some noise for a call-up sooner rather than later.

If the Royals continue to sit near the basement at the end of June, Kansas City may have no choice but to call up Squires and give him a chance to prove himself in the big leagues. 

 

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