Could A Change of Scenery in Kansas City Help Jacob Berry?

 In some surprising transactional news, Isaac Azout of Fish on First (a Diamoncentric partner site) reported that the Miami Marlins were trading INF/OF Jacob Berry to the Kansas City Royals for cash considerations.

Berry was a heralded pick in 2022 out of LSU, as he hit .370 with a 1.094 OPS and 15 home runs in his final season with the Tigers. Unfortunately, he's struggled in the Marlins system, as he has yet to make his MLB debut despite being 25 years old and Rule 5 eligible (he wasn't selected in last year's Rule 5 Draft). 

This season has been an interesting one for Berry, who's in his third tour of duty with the Triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (great nickname, by the way).

In 302 plate appearances, he is hitting .25.1 with a .372 OBP and .734 OPS. He also sports a 103 wRC+ and 97 TJ Bat+ with 18 stolen bases on 25 attempts. Unfortunately, the power has not been great this year, as he has only five home runs and an ISO of .111. The latter is 22 points down from his ISO a season ago with Jacksonville.

What makes Berry such an interesting prospect is that he has tremendous plate discipline. This year, not only does he have 15.2% BB%, a 4.8% improvement from a year ago, but he also sports a 1.07 BB/K ratio. When looking at his TJ Stats Statcast percentiles, he not only makes frequent contact and minimizes the whiffs, but also doesn't chase very much either. 

Yes, his LA Sweet-Spot% (16th percentile), Average EV (20th percentile), and barrel% (33rd percentile) are concerning. Conversely, his whiff%, Z-Contact%, K%, and BB% are all at the 84th percentile or higher. Furthermore, his O-Swing% ranks in the 76th percentile, thanks to his 23.3% mark. 

The Royals have been making a much bigger push to acquire hitters who don't chase.

They did that last year by acquiring Lane Thomas and Isaac Collins, both of whom had a history of strong chase rates. This year, Thomas (23.4%) and Collins (23.6%) had the second- and third-lowest O-Swing rates of Royals hitters this year. The only hitter with a lower O-Swing% was Jonathan India. However, the Royals' second baseman had only 58 plate appearances this year before going down for the season with a shoulder injury. 

Berry fits that same mold of a hitter as Thomas and Collins, though the former LSU product has less of a Major League track record compared to the two. 

Could Berry Get a Shot This Year?

Berry has an intriguing profile, even for an older prospect currently in Triple-A. He got on a heater at the plate earlier in the year with Jacksonville, showing some home run power and a stronger ability to pull the ball in comparison to previous seasons in the Minors. 

Berry also demonstrated a penchant for coming through in the clutch as well. In the Triple-A National Championship game in 2025, he hit a walk-off home run that clinched the title for Jacksonville.

For a hot minute this year, it looked like Berry was finally going to play himself into a promotion to Miami, even with the Marlins surpassing preseason expectations. Unfortunately, things cooled for him in June. That is evident in his drop in TJ Bat+ and wOBA from before June to afterward. 

The biggest difference for Berry from Opening Day until Memorial Day and June 1st to now is that the exit velocity has dropped and he's pulled the ball a lot less. Those two things have seemed to do the most damage not just to his TJ Bat+ and wOBA, but also to other key Statcast categories. Nonetheless, despite the regression in hard-hit and exit velocity-related metrics, his plate discipline and contact percentiles remained consistent in both periods of data. 

Berry is a switch-hitter capable of playing multiple positions in both the infield and outfield. In terms of the former aspect, he is pretty much the same kind of hitter from both sides of the plate. He has a little more power and hard-hit ability as a righty, but he launches the ball better and has better exit velocity from the left side of the plate. 

Regarding the latter, the 25-year-old has played second, third, and right field this year. Nick Loftin, Michael Massey, and Jac Caglianone have held those positions down this year. That said, the Royals could move around Loftin and Massey this offseason, especially if it would involve them acquiring a more proven veteran bat or pitcher. Additionally, if the Royals trade Vinnie Pasquantino, it could open the door for Caglianone to move to first base full-time.

Thus, Berry could emerge as a possible corner outfielder option, in addition to one who could play multiple infield positions if Massey and/or Loftin are traded this offseason.

Granted, Berry is coming to Kansas City without much fanfare from Miami. He was widely seen as a bust by Marlins fans, including Ely Sussman, who oversees Fish On First. 

That said, I do think Berry's profile is very similar to Collins', who didn't make his MLB debut with the Brewers until he was 24 years old. Currently, Collins is 29, and yet he is having a solid season with Kansas City (100 TJ Bat+) while sporting a Statcast profile similar to Berry's. 

Thus, Collins' success makes one wonder whether the Royals believe Berry can mesh with their hitting development team, especially their new hitting coaches, Connor Dawson and Marcus Thames. After sporting the 8th-highest O-Swing% from 2023 to 2025, the Royals only have the 14th-highest mark this year, a nice sign of progress. 

Berry's profile fits the new Kansas City hitting profile, and players like Collins and Thomas (who was recently traded away) embody that mold.

Maybe the former LSU product can be another success story who can give Kansas City value at multiple positions across the field for both 2027 and beyond.  

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