Noah Cameron fourth in AL ROY voting, Marcus Thames new hitting coach

The Kansas City Royals have made plenty of headlines since the offseason really kicked off after the conclusion of the postseason.

They’ve seen their fair share of awards and finalist nods flow in of late, with Bobby Witt Jr.’s impressive trio of honors – winning Gold and Platinum Gloves as well as a Silver Slugger – and Maikel Garcia also having his defense honored with a Gold Glove.

Then, there’s the early offseason moves, like the new contract extension for Salvador Perez, the trade with the Tampa Bay Rays to acquire outfielder Kameron Misner or the internal subtractions of names like Sam Long.

But amid the hot stove warming, there’s some other worthwhile headlines Royals fans should be aware of as the heart of the winter chaos inches closer and closer.

Royals News: Noah Cameron narrowly missed AL ROY finalist field

After finding himself just on the outside looking in when this year’s AL Rookie of the Year field was revealed last week, the Royals faithful learned that Noah Cameron was truly only just outside of the top three.

While the Athletics’ first baseman Nick Kurtz was the unanimous decision for the award and his teammate Jacob Wilson captured the strong majority of second place votes, the voting seemed to really open up after that.

In fact with the same amount of second place votes as the third finalist, Roman Anthony, only 18 points separated Cameron from the Red Sox outfielder.

No matter how you slice and dice it, as much as being etched in history as an official finalist would have been a honor for the standout rookie, the results speak for themselves. After a sub-3.00 ERA campaign, the Royals seem to have a staple in the rotation for years to come.

Royals News: KC hires Marcus Thames for vacant hitting coach role

After hiring Connor Dawson last week to join Royals lead hitting coach Alec Zumwalt’s staff, Kansas City has reportedly also hired Marcus Thames to join the team’s offensive brain trust for the 2026 season.

The Royals had the need for a pair of assistant hitting coaches after letting go of both Keoni DeRenne and Joe Dillon at the beginning of the offseason.

Thames most recently held a similar role with the Chicago White Sox for the past two seasons, while also serving as a hitting coach with the New York Yankees, Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Angels in his 10-year coaching career after his MLB playing career ended back in 2011.

And after speaking with MLB.com’s Anne Rogers, GM J.J. Picollo made it clear as to why the team opted to hire Thames.

“With Marcus, he’s got vast experience and great hitting knowledge,” Picollo said to Rogers.

He also went on to discuss rave about how well Thames has worked with great hitters and strong personalities during his decade-long coaching career.

“We’ve got a couple players that we consider great on our team,” Picollo said to Rogers. “He’s going to connect really well with them.”

While the offense had it’s bright spots in 2025 highlighted by their four Silver Slugger finalists, overall it was hard to see this as anything other than a down year at the plate for the Royals – as made evident by their below average and bottom 10 team wRC+ of 93.

The hope will now be that the trio of Zumwalt, Dawson and Thames will bring out the best in this group in 2026, to restore hope of brighter days filled with October baseball.