Franmil Reyes staying in Japan, Vance Wilson Twins, KC’s AFL standouts

The World Series is nearly upon us and the baseball world will surely be fixated on the coast-to-coast action set to take place in Los Angeles and Toronto over the next week or so.

For the Royals fans though, although many will likely be tapped in to the 2025 Fall Classic, the reality for them and their team has been centered around the offseason since the day were eliminated from postseason contention at the end of September.

While offseason hot stove will likely, and understandably, take it’s place at the forefront of the focus in KC, there’s still plenty of “under-the-radar” storylines that are worth some attention.

Royals News: Former KC slugger Franmil Reyes re-signs with NPB’s Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

Earlier in the week, Foster Griffin made some headlines with his reported intention to return to the major leagues after a successful overseas stint in NPB. Now, another former Royal in Japan is making headlines.

Rather than making a return stateside, former KC slugger Franmil Reyes has opted to stay Japan, re-signing with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters on a one-year contract for the 2026 season, as per his agent Edwin Dominguez-Alvarez.

Reyes has forged quite the career with the Fighters. He’s coming off a season where he slashed .277/.347/.515 while belting 32 home runs, driving in 90 RBI and posting a 163 wRC+. In his two years in total in NPB, he’s made 899 plate appearances with a .282/.347/.535 slash line with 57 HR and 155 RBI.

Reyes is better known in the MLB space for his years in Cleveland, which included a 30 homer season 2021. In his short-lived stint with the Royals in 2023, he only managed to appear in 19 games before being DFA’d after hitting just .186 with a .519 OPS and 35 wRC+.

Royals News: Vance Wilson in the running for the Minnesota Twins vacant manager position

After Anne Rogers reported last week that Vance Wilson was set to interview with the Royals division rival in Minnesota for their open manager position, more news has surfaced that appears to place Wilson firmly in the running for the job.

La Velle E. Neal III of The Minnesota Star Tribune, reported on Monday that the Royals’ third base coach was one the Twins’ list of names to be Rocco Baldelli’s successor in 2026.

“Add Vance Wilson and Scott Servais to the list of managerial candidates as the Twins continue to search for a replacement for Rocco Baldelli, who was fired three weeks ago,” Neal wrote.

Wilson has been with the Royals since 2018 following a seven-year minor league career and has certainly been a valuable addition to the coaching staff over the years, garnering some high praise among his players.

Royals News: Carson Roccaforte and Daniel Vazquez stand out in latest Arizona Fall League Contest

Several Royals prospects have not wasted any time getting back out on the field after the 2025 minor league season ended.

Kansas City’s system is well represented in this year’s Arizona Fall League, and several Top 30 names have been making noise, with Tuesday’s Saguaros win being the latest example.

After his clutch go-ahead grand slam on Friday, Daniel Vazquez drove in a pair of runs on Tuesday to bring his RBI total up to 10 this fall, placing the Royals shortstop standout tied forth in the league in that department.

And it was an all Royals affair in Surprise that night, as the high-flying outfield prospect managed to drive in three runs himself, going 1-for-2 with a walk and a sac-fly.

It’s an encouraging sign seeing two Top 30 Royals prospects forming a formidable 1-2 punch atop the Saguaros order this month.

While Vazquez may need another year-or-so in the minors having only made a brief cameo in Double-A, Roccaforte may be in the majors sooner than you’d think after balling out during his first taste in Northwest Arkansas last season, hitting .290 with an .862 OPS in 45 games.

Regardless of when either of these names make their big league debut, their standout performances in Surprise this fall certainly bode well for their respective standings in this Royals steadily improving system.