Loftin believes things are about to get scary for the rest of the league.
The Kansas City Royals put together one of their best offensive showings of the season on Tuesday night, rolling past the Tampa Bay Rays 12-5 at Tropicana Field.
Nick Loftin led the way with four hits and a home run, and when the dust settled he made it clear that his team is just getting started.
"We believe in our abilities and what we are capable of doing," Loftin said. "We're going to continue to do that every single day, one pitch at a time, one day at a time, and when they come back into the lineup, it's going to be pretty scary."
Loftin Finding His Swing
The "they" in Loftin's message is impossible to ignore.
Kansas City's entire Opening Day infield is currently on the shelf.
Bobby Witt Jr. has been sidelined with a Grade 1 MCL sprain, Vinnie Pasquantino is out following hamate bone surgery and Maikel Garcia was placed on the injured list the same day as Tuesday's blowout.
Jonathan India's season is already done after labral repair surgery.
Through all of it, the 27-year-old utility man has stepped into a much bigger role and run with it.
Loftin came into Tuesday hitting .264 with a .806 OPS on the season and then went 4-for-5 while launching his third home run of the year.
That is a massive jump from the .208 average and .635 OPS he put up in a forgettable 2025, and it has shown that he can handle more than a bench role.
Caglianone Catching Fire
Loftin was not the only bat that came alive in Tampa.
Jac Caglianone, who grew up going to games at Tropicana Field as a kid, crushed two home runs in front of friends and family to bring his June total to nine.
The 23-year-old Tampa native has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball this month, slashing .379/.468/.742 with a 1.210 OPS in June heading into Tuesday.
He now has three multi-homer games since June 9.
Carter Jensen also kept things rolling by extending his hitting streak to 14 games, and the lineup collected seven extra-base hits.
Looking Ahead
The Royals sit at 34-46 and remain in last place in the AL Central, while the Rays dropped to 43-33 with the loss.
Kansas City's record does not scream contender, and conversations about moving players like Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha before the trade deadline have already picked up steam.
But Loftin's words showed a clubhouse that is far from checking out.
With Caglianone's breakout becoming something real and Jensen continuing to develop, the Royals have young pieces who could make a serious impact whenever the injured starters return.
Whether those players make it back soon enough to change the direction of the season is another story, but one thing is obvious.
This team believes, and on nights like Tuesday, it shows.
