The Kansas City Royals enter a three-game series Friday against the Los Angeles Angels. After going 1-9 over their last 10 games, fans are hoping for offensive changes to help spark production.<\/p>\n
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Prior to Friday\u2019s game, the lineup card was released. While changes were made, they were not what many expected. With certain players absent and the usual batting order shuffled, reactions have not been sugarcoated.<\/p>\n
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Royals manager\u00a0Matt Quatraro\u00a0has never shied away from analytics when constructing the lineup. Especially against left-handed pitchers, he tries to avoid left-on-left matchups as much as possible.<\/p>\n
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Royals fans are not pleased with the most recent lineup<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Noah Cameron takes the mound for Kansas City in Game 1 against the Angels. Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi will start for Los Angeles.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Fresh series on the way. pic.twitter.com\/sRy5wNjBot<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kansas City Royals (@Royals) April 24, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n <\/p>\n The first thing that stands out is that All-Star third baseman Maikel Garcia is not in the lineup after leaving Wednesday\u2019s game early with right elbow soreness. Anne Rogers of MLB.com provided an update on how Garcia is feeling.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n “Maikel Garcia (elbow) is out of the lineup but says he feels better today after treatment. Hopes to be available off the bench and then get back in there tomorrow. Said he felt a cramp Wednesday that affected his throwing the most,” per Rogers<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Another thing that caught fans\u2019 attention is that first baseman\u00a0Vinnie Pasquantino\u00a0is absent from the lineup.\u00a0Salvador Perez moves to first base and slides into the three-hole. It is an odd decision, considering Kansas City had an off day and Pasquantino appears to be swinging the bat well, going 2-for-3 with a home run Wednesday. As of now, nothing has been reported regarding that decision.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Elias Diaz\u00a0gets the start at catcher, while\u00a0Carter Jensen\u00a0slides into the designated hitter spot. Jensen is also not in his usual five-hole, as he is slotted in the six-hole. All three catchers on the roster are in the lineup Friday night.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Other notable changes include\u00a0Lane Thomas\u00a0batting cleanup while\u00a0Jac Caglianone is not featured in the card as Starling Marte is out in right field.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The reactions to the lineup all seem to center around the same question. Why? Many are calling the decisions a \u201cfireable offense.\u201d While changes were needed and the lack of production backs up that claim, this was not what many expected.\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n\n
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