Cameron is trying to capture that rookie year magic again.
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Noah Cameron was not in the mood for sugarcoating anything after his latest start.
The 26-year-old lefty lasted just four innings, gave up three earned runs on 95 pitches, and was the first one to say it was not good enough.
"I needed to attack more," Cameron said. "Got behind in counts and was kind of back to nibbling. ... I've got to be better."
A Frustrating Pattern
Cameron has been saying some version of that all season, and the numbers tell the same story.
Through seven starts in 2026, Cameron owns an ERA north of 5.50 while walking too many hitters and giving up loud contact at a rate he never dealt with as a rookie.
Compare that to his 2025 season, when he went 9-7 with a 2.99 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP across 138.1 innings and finished fourth in American League Rookie of the Year voting.
The home runs have been brutal.
Cameron has already surrendered five long balls in a short stretch of starts, and opposing hitters are squaring him up at a much higher clip than they were a year ago.
The pitching staff as a whole has struggled in Kansas City this season, and Cameron's early regression is feeding right into that.
Why Cameron Matters So Much
The Royals sit at 19-22 and fourth in the AL Central, three games back of the Cleveland Guardians.
Nobody in that clubhouse thought they would be sitting under .500 heading into mid-May after making the postseason in 2024 and bringing most of the core roster back.
Kansas City's rotation has been hit hard by injuries all year.
Cole Ragans recently landed on the 15-day injured list with a left elbow impingement, Ryan Bergert is done for the season after UCL reconstruction surgery, and the bullpen has had its own rough stretches since Opening Day.
With arms going down left and right, the Royals need Cameron pitching like the guy he was last year.
Room to Turn It Around
Cameron has already proven he can pitch at this level, and his rookie year was not built on smoke and mirrors.
He carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning of his debut against Tampa Bay and finished with the third-best ERA by an American League rookie since 1995.
He said himself that he fell back into old habits, nibbling at corners instead of going right at guys.
At least he sees it.
If Cameron can trust his stuff and get back to attacking the zone the way he did for most of 2025, this rotation has a completely different feel to it.
Kansas City cannot afford to wait too long to find out.