Look, we don’t have to mince words, Kansas City Royals outfielder MJ Melendez has been a slight disappointment since he was drafted in the 2nd round (53 overall) in 2017. We were told that he would be an ultra-athletic catcher with power, but his first three seasons have been underwhelming. This is in no way shaming the kid or declaring he’s a bum. I think he still has some untapped potential. The defense has been great once he moved to left field and he has above average speed which aides his defense. He’s flashed his power potential with 53 home runs in three seasons. Averaging 17 home runs per season over a ten year career is nothing to be ashamed of. The glaring hole in his game is his ability to be consistent with putting the bat on the ball. He’s only a .221 career hitter and hit .206 in 2024 which is actually impressive seeing that his average was under .200 for the majority of 2024. He’s gotten off to horrible starts now for two seasons, but last year was especially dreadful. He hit a combined .157/.218/.320 in the months of April and May. He goes on cold stretches for extended periods of time which craters his offensive numbers. He started toying with a different stance last June and saw better results for a short stint, but fell back into old habits.

This year MJ is looking to prove that he can be a cornerstone player for the Royals and lock down left field. Royals beat writer Anne Rogers has been all over Melendez’s revamped stance 2.0 this Spring. His BP has looked good during side sessions but it’s still too early to draw any conclusions. Regardless, Melendez might not have the luxury of staying on the team if his early season struggles continue for a third year. There are players on this roster that the team can insert into the lineup if Melendez does not produce. And this is all this is about. I love MJ on this team. He and Bobby Witt Jr and Nick Pratto all came up to the Majors together.

“The last three years, I haven’t felt like I’ve really shown who I am as a player”

MJ Melendez

If you count the nine every day players: Salvador Perez, Vinnie Pasquantino, Jonathan India, Bobby Witt Jr, Maikel Garcia, Kyle Isbel, Michael Massey, Hunter Renfroe and Freddy Fermin, there are essentially three bench spots left. Here’s some other guys who could be vying for one of those spots, but could be on their last chance with the Royals.

Nelson Velazquez

“My swing is faster, like it was in 2023. My focus is just on getting my opportunity.”

-Nelson Velázquez

I had high hopes for Velazuez when he was traded here for reliever Jose Cuas. He won the DH job out of camp last year after hitting 14 homers in 40 games for the Royals in 2023. He had a reputation of having monster power with upside, but he has not produced when called upon consistently. He hit a combined .216/.280/.400 in the months of April and May and never found any consistency the rest of the season. He played 64 games for the Royals in 2024 and finished with a .604 OPS and a 26.5% strikeout rate. He did have some big moments where he came up clutch at the plate, so I’m not ready to completely forget about him. I would expect Velazquez to compete for the every day DH role although I can imagine Michael Massey getting some work at DH this season as well. Per Anne Rogers Velazquez has said he lost some weight and feels more athletic which should serve him well if he plans to help on defense and not be a DH only. He’s either going to be on this roster on Opening Day, or try to catch on with a different big league team.

Nick Pratto

Pratto is yet another high draft pick for the Royals that has struggled to find his way in the Majors. He was touted as Eric Hosmer carbon-copy. We all remember Pratto as a pre-teen playing in the Little League World Series. He crushed 36 home runs across AA and AAA in 2021 before he was called up to The Show in 2022. In two MLB seasons (145 games) he has a 44% strikeout rate. That ain’t gonna play I’ll tell you that right now. He didn’t record an at-bat in the Major Leagues last season. Pratto has learned Left and Right Field to try and get into the lineup more often, but it’s his bat that the Royals need. His ineffectiveness is why the Royals felt like they needed to sign Hunter Renfroe in 2024: a more polished version of Pratto. If he can tap into his power more by getting into deeper into counts, this could be a career year for the former first rounder.

“Some guys are out of options,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “Some guys have options. Some guys [have] more power. Some have speed. Some are [better at] defense. There’s a lot of factors to how all 13 guys complement each other, not just who the best hitters are and who the best defenders are. We’ve got to see how to put the best team together.

– Royals Manager Matt Quatraro