Maikel Garcia exited Wednesday's Royals game with an elbow injury.
The Kansas City Royals were defeated by the Baltimore Orioles 8-6 on Wednesday. However, the big news from the game was third baseman Maikel Garcia's early exit. The infielder left the game early, leading to concern about a potential injury. Sure enough, the Royals later announced that Garcia exited the game due to right elbow soreness.
Elbow injuries are obviously most concerning for pitchers, but they are far from ideal for third baseman who need to consistently make the long throw to first base as well. The severity of Garcia's injury is currently uncertain. The Royals will share further updates as they are made available.
Maikel Garcia Exits Game With Injury
Garcia, 26, was an All-Star in 2025. He has become one of the better third baseman in the sport. The last thing Kansas City needs is for him to miss a significant amount of time.
The Royals fell to 8-17 with the defeat on Wednesday. Garcia has been one of the few players on the roster who has consistently performed at a respectable level this season. The third baseman entered Wednesday's game hitting .274/.346/.400 across 24 games played in 2026.
Kansas City unquestionably needs Garcia. The lineup has struggled with him healthy, so losing him to injury would obviously be a brutal scenario.
Royals' Struggles This Season
The Royals look like one of the worst teams in the entire sport at the moment. It is unfortunate, as they entered the season as one of the most exciting teams in the game.
Many of the Royals stars performed well in the World Baseball Classic. Fans who were not especially familiar with the team's best players got to watch them play in the tournament. Meanwhile, the excitement level during spring training was high as well.
However, underperformance has told the story of the regular season for this Royals ball club. Their series against the Orioles is a good example of what is going wrong.
Baltimore clinched a 2-1 series win on Wednesday. The Orioles won the first game in extra innings, while Wednesday's game was also competitive. The Royals need to find ways to take care of business in close games.
Kansas City will attempt to get back on track against the Los Angeles Angels in a three-game series from Friday-Sunday after Thursday's off day. For now, all they can do is hope that Maikel Garcia avoided a serious injury.