Royals Prospect Pushes for 2027 Outfield Job After Huge Season

Few spots on the Kansas City Royals roster are as unsettled as center field this winter, and one possible answer is already in the organization.

Outfielder Carson Roccaforte hit more than 30 homers and stole more than 30 bases in the minors this season, and Jaylon Thompson of the Kansas City Star wrote recently about whether that run can carry him onto the 2027 roster.

Roccaforte, who is 24, spent most of the year with Double-A Northwest Arkansas and hit 30 home runs with 21 stolen bases and 80 RBIs in 110 games there.

After a move up to Triple-A Omaha in August, he posted an .862 OPS in 28 games and went 11-for-11 on steals.

His totals between the two stops came to 35 homers and 32 steals, and MLB.com reported in September that he was the first minor leaguer to reach 30-30 since 2023 and the first Royals prospect to ever do it.

Nobody has doubted the glove on the 66th overall pick of the 2023 draft, and Kings of Kauffman reported that he won the organization's Defensive Player of the Year award for a third straight season.

The strikeouts are what still hold him back, with 181 of them in 540 at-bats this year.

Kansas City is coming off a 69-93 season and needs more from its outfield.

Center fielder Kyle Isbel hit .224 with a .591 OPS in 100 games, and the Star noted that 2027 will be his final year of team control.

In Tuesday's Royals Review news roundup, the front office named both center field and left field as spots that need better results.

President of baseball operations J.J. Picollo stopped short of handing Roccaforte the job at his end-of-season press conference.

A Royals Review recap said Picollo mentioned Roccaforte could be in the mix but also pointed out that he hits left-handed on a roster that already leans that way.

Picollo wants to be aggressive in adding players without going wild on payroll, and he spelled out the goal for this winter with one line.

"We need to add players that help us at the major league level."

In my view, Roccaforte has earned a real shot at the center field job in spring training, since his defense gives the Royals a solid floor and his power is something Isbel could not offer this season.

Kansas City also just watched catcher Carter Jensen hit 27 homers and earn a spot on MLB Pipeline's All-Rookie team, so the club knows how fast a young bat can grow in the majors.

The calendar might work against him, though, because the labor deal expires on Dec. 1 and Picollo has said moving early in November will be important.

That could push Kansas City toward a veteran from the long list of outfield options on the free agent market before the new year.

I would add a right-handed bat for left field and let Roccaforte fight for center, because if he can cut down on the strikeouts, the Royals could find their next everyday center fielder without spending a dollar.