It’s the stuff of rookie nightmares: Royals catcher Carter Jensen was supposed to start in the team’s series finale against the Twins on Thursday night, but he slept through his alarms.
No, really, he did.
The 22-year-old rookie was set to be in the starting lineup but overslept and arrived late to the game at Kauffman Stadium, and he ended up being scratched as a result.
“Yeah, Carter had an oversight,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said after the Royals’ 5-1 loss. “Overslept and wasn’t here on time. And we made the decision to scratch him from the lineup.”
Jensen later came in to catch in the ninth inning but didn’t get an at-bat; Salvador Perez switched from designated hitter to catcher to take Jensen’s place at the start of the game.
Royals star Vinnie Pasquantino weighed in on Jensen’s rookie mistake after Thursday’s loss and gave him some friendly advice:
“You got a 36-year-old catcher who’s preparing to DH today, and then his world gets a little rocked an hour and a half before the game that he’s not going to be DH-ing,” Pasquantino said.
“First and foremost we’re glad Carter is okay. That was kind of the initial thought when we were trying to get a hold of his parents… but once you find out he’s okay it’s like, ‘Alright, it’s a growing moment.’ He’s really young. There are some things that cannot happen, and that’s one of them. He’s going to have to wear it on the chin, same way anybody would have to. It can’t happen. And hopefully, it doesn’t happen again. But it’s one of those things where you just can’t afford to make mistakes like that in this game. Just got to move forward the best that he can.”
#Royals: Carter Jensen overslept and was scratched from today’s lineup. Here’s what Vinnie Pasquantino had to say about the situation after the game. @KSHB41 pic.twitter.com/BHHt6k1G6n
— McKenzie Nelson (@McKenzieMNelson) April 2, 2026
“He’ll learn from it,” continued Pasquantino. “Grow up a little bit. We’re here for him, though. It’s not like anybody’s mad at him. Things happen. But you got to learn from mistakes like that. And maybe get another alarm clock or something.”
Jensen, for his part, took full responsibility for his embarrassing gaffe after the game knowing he let his teammates and coaches down.
“No running from it,” Jensen told reporters. “Just didn’t wake up to my alarm. Slept through it. Don’t really have an excuse, nor should I. It sucks. Happens. … Just learn from it and know it won’t happen again.”
Definitely a tough moment for the young player, and one that will indubitably stick with him for a while. Jensen, a Kansas City native selected by the Royals with the 78th pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, attended Park Hill High School, which is just a short drive away from Kauffman Stadium. The 22-year-old has split his time between catcher and DH alongside Perez this year after hitting .300/.391/.550 across 20 games in 2025.
With any luck, Jensen won’t be caught oversleeping for a game ever again, not as long as all his phone alarms are working.
“Making sure if I don’t set one alarm, maybe set three, four, as many as possible,” Jensen said. “Moving forward, that’s what I’m going to do. Set a million alarms. Make sure I’m up. It stinks, though.”
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