Royals Video
On Wednesday afternoon, the Kansas City Royals held their end-of-year press conference. As in past seasons, President of Baseball Operations JJ Picollo and manager Matt Quatraro were front and center. Below is the full presser.
In this post, we will share the five most important quotes from Picollo and Quatraro during the press conference, and what they could mean for the Royals this offseason.
"We feel confident in Marcus Thames and Connor Dawson to lead our hitting direction moving forward." -Picollo
One of the major changes announced in the press conference was that the Royals would be moving on from lead hitting coach Alec Zumwalt this offseason. On Tuesday, MLB Insider Ken Rosenthal reported that Zumwalt would be reassigned within the organization.
Zumwalt will return to his role as Senior Director of Hitting Performance, a role he held before becoming hitting coach in May of 2022 with the Royals (replacing Terry Bradshaw).
According to Picollo, the move wasn't due to Zumwalt's performance, but to the team's confidence in assistant hitting coaches Dawson and Thames moving forward. Both coaches replaced Keoni DeRenne and Joe Dillon last offseason, and the Royals offense improved from ranking 24th in wRC+ in 2025 (93) to 19th this season (98).
Rumors suggested Dawson and Thames took on greater responsibilities during the season, likely in preparation for Zumwalt's eventual move back to Minor League player development. Zumwalt found success in this role with former colleague Drew Saylor, but Saylor struggled solo in the Director position after Zumwalt moved up to the Majors. The position has remained vacant for the past year, suggesting the Royals may have been eyeing Zumwalt to return regardless of how the team fared offensively.
Picollo praised Zumwalt's work and noted that his tenure as hitting coach was never meant to be long-term.
Quote"Alec Zumwalt wasn't removed as hitting coach because we were dissatisfied with his job; it was always part of our plan to eventually move him back into the front office."
The Royals said they would replace Zumwalt on the staff. However, Thames or Dawson will likely get the top job, and Zumwalt's replacement will likely take on an assistant role on staff.
"When you look back at the sheer volume of time missed across both the pitching staff and position players, we have to evaluate everything—from our daily routines to how we handle rehab progressions." -Picollo
Another big news item was that the Royals would change their behavioral and training staff this offseason. That includes parting ways with head trainer Kyle Turner, assistant athletic trainer Chris Delucia, and Major League rehab coordinator Jeff Blum.
Injuries were just the tip of the iceberg for the Royals' issues this season. After all, injuries are part of the game and affect every MLB team in one form or another.
However, Kansas City seemed to struggle to make the right decisions about putting players on the IL and letting them "play through" minor setbacks. They made peculiar decisions with players like Maikel Garcia, Bobby Witt Jr., and Jac Caglianone by not putting them on the IL right away. That not only prevented them from fully rehabbing, but also left the Royals short-handed for long stretches.
Kansas City also reassigned Melissa Lambert, Director of Behavioral Science and Major League Mental Performance, to the Minor Leagues. Lambert was the first female Royals staff member to sit in the dugout. While her hiring got a lot of fanfare, one has to wonder whether player inconsistency and "blow-ups" from key young stars (like Garcia and Caglianone) contributed to the Royals going in a different direction.
Quatraro's quote about Cole Ragans and his return date also showed that Royals management didn't have the utmost confidence in the training staff's work.
Quote
"We’re gonna try to get him to see another doctor so we can get a concrete answer on what’s going on and ensure we have the right long-term plan."
The Royals have been decimated by injuries the past two years. Hopefully, new faces and minds on staff can help get them back on the right track in preparation and recovery.
"Upgrading left field and center field, along with adding right-handed offense, is a major priority for us this offseason." -Picollo
The Royals noted they had a strong core in place and that Caglianone would play alongside Vinnie Pasquantino next season, with Cags at right and Vinnie at first base. That said, they were noncommittal about setting positions at left and center field next season, suggesting they may be looking to move on from Kyle Isbel and Isaac Collins in 2027.
Isbel has long been known for his defense rather than his bat. That said, he still hit .255 with a .654 OPS in 409 PA last season. That's more than serviceable for a player who was a Gold Glove finalist in 2025.
Unfortunately, a foot injury forced Isbel to take a step back in both categories this year. He only hit .224 with a .591 OPS, and his Def went from 7.7 in 2025 to 2.5 in 2026. While he was still an above-average defender, he wasn't as elite as he was last year. That small regression tanks his value, especially since his offensive profile is paltry, as illustrated in the Stacast Percentiles profile below.
As for Collins, he struggled in his second full season in the Majors, his first in Kansas City.
After hitting .263 with a .779 OPS in 441 plate appearances with the Brewers last year, the Royals acquired Collins to be a regular part of the lineup in 2026. Unfortunately, he regressed with the Royals, hitting .213 with a .641 OPS in 519 plate appearances. He also struggled defensively, posting a -4.0 Def and 0.1 fWAR.
Lastly, his Statcast percentiles were mixed. On one end, he didn't chase or whiff much, which is why the Royals acquired him. However, he didn't offer much in exit velocity and hard-hit rate, which made him a bit of a drain as a corner outfielder.
The Royals tend to be shy about saying which positions are "open" in a given offseason. However, Picollo was pretty transparent about upgrading the LF and CF positions this offseason. That likely means Isbel and Collins will be utility players or minor-league players, especially if Kansas City can acquire some big-name outfield sluggers via trade or free agency (Seiya Suzuki? Taylor Ward?).
"Addressing the bullpen is a top priority—we don't really have a set, potential closer right now." -Picollo
It's no secret that the Royals bullpen was terrible in 2026 and heavily contributed to their 69-93 this season. Picollo pointed to losing Carlos Estevez for the season after just the second game and to some of their "expected" contributors sorely disappointing (Lucas Erceg and Matt Strahm).
However, the Royals did give arms like Nate Pearson and Steven Cruz opportunities in the ninth inning after the Trade Deadline. And while those two showed flashes, neither of them did enough to snatch up the closer's spot.
Cruz posted a 4.30 ERA in 58.2 IP and saved eight games. However, his FIP was high at 5.16, and he struggled mightily with the long ball (23.7% HR/FB%). Like many Royals relievers, Cruz struggled to generate chase (O-Swing%), even though his stuff profile was solid, TJ Stats noted.
As for Pearson, he got off to a fast start with the Royals initially. Overall, he saved three games and had six holds for the Royals in 26 IP. However, he struggled with control, as evidenced by a 6th percentile BB%, 9th percentile CSW%, and 4th percentile Strike%. The former Blue Jays top prospect certainly demonstrated stuff in Kansas City. Unfortunately, his control and command didn't quite iron out, as shown in his TJ Stuff+ summary profile below.
Pearson and Cruz showed that they can be a part of this Royals bullpen in 2027. That said, they likely will have low- to medium-leverage roles rather than high-leverage ones, as was the case in August and September for both pitchers.
"Navigating early-season workloads and factors like player involvement in the World Baseball Classic created challenges in getting off to the start we wanted." -Picollo
The Royals got off to a slow start in 2026 that seemed to kill momentum before it could build. They went 12-19 in March and April and had a run differential of -22. From there, they had only one winning month: a 16-11 in August, when the season was well out of hand.
It was interesting that Picollo pointed to the WBC as an issue in getting ready for the season, and that could've contributed to their slow start. The Royals had roughly seven players participate in the WBC, with Garcia earning MVP honors.
However, because so many players participated (and their teams had deep runs), the Royals didn't have much time together in Spring Training. According to Picollo, that hurt chemistry and explains why Kansas City didn't come out hot at the start of the season. The WBC grind also seemed to affect Garcia, Salvador Perez, Seth Lugo, Luinder Avila, and Pasquantino (less so with Michael Wacha and Caglianone).
This isn't the first time the WBC has affected the Royals during the season. In 2023, the Royals went 56-106 and had slow starts from Witt and Brady Singer because they played with Team USA in the WBC (and only sparingly). So, in the last two WBC seasons, the Royals have finished in the basement of the AL Central.
That said, the Royals did have a 30-win turnaround in 2024, the year after the WBC. Perhaps the Royals could see another 30-win turnaround in 2027?
Kansas City fans would accept a 99-win season, especially since a record that strong would likely net the Royals an AL Central division crown in 2027 and a first-round bye in the postseason.
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