Kansas City Royals: Lorenzo Cain wants to return, retire with Royals
With Lorenzo Cain officially a free agent after being designated for assignment by the Milwaukee Brewers, Cain is now hinting he would like to finish his career where he had his greatest postseason success — with the Kansas City Royals.
Will Lorenzo Cain officially retire as a member of the Kansas City Royals?
From 2011 through 2017, Lorenzo Cain played seven seasons with the Kansas City Royals, putting together a slash line of .289/.342/.421 with 56 home runs and 308 RBI. His run with the Royals included helping the team make back-to-back trips to the World Series in 2014 and 2015, with Kansas City beating the New York Mets to win it all in 2015.
Cain played a big part in both postseason runs, including earning MVP of the 2014 ALCS win over the Baltimore Orioles after slashing .533/.588/.667 in 18 plate appearances.
Those are good memories for both Cain and the Royals, and they are memories that could well bring him back to Kansas City for one last moment (or more) before he retires, a move he recently hinted at in a comment to a former Royals beat writer for MLB.com.
Oh, one more thing Lorenzo Cain tells me, “Let the fans know I would love to retire as a Royal one day.”
— Jeffrey Flanagan (@FlannyMLB) June 22, 2022
Cain coming back to the Royals could happen in a pair of ways.
First (and perhaps the most unlikely), the team could ink him to a deal any time and add him to the active roster. However, this would require a roster move and the faith that the 36-year-old Cain could still bring something to the team after slashing just .179/.231/.234 in 156 plate appearances this season for the Brewers before his DFA.
Second, the team could sign him for the last home series of the season (slated for September 23-25 against the Seattle Mariners) and let him grab an at-bat in each game. This would allow the Royals faithful to show him their appreciation and for him to get to tip his cap and soak in the moments.
Of course, all of this would depend on Cain actually retiring, but he did talk about the wear and tear on his body in an interview right after being designated for assignment.
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Kansas City Royals fans have talked about how great it would be to have Cain back with the team. Don’t be surprised if the Royals and Cain find a way to make it happen before the end of 2022.