It felt as though the Kansas City Royals had learned their lessons. There were promises that the organization would modernize when Dayton Moore was fired. Getting rid of Mike Matheny and Cal Eldred, while bringing in Matt Quatraro, was a step in that direction. Even their decision to let Luke Weaver depart showed a willingness to move on.
And then there is Ryan O’Hearn. He had already been rendered moot on the Royals roster in 2022, starting just 28 of his 67 games last year. It would have been easy to refuse to tender him a contract and allow him to go on his way.
Kansas City Royals have not learned from one mistake yet
But that is not what the Royals did. Instead, they decided to bring O’Hearn back on a one year contact. Because any time a team can lock up one of the worst players in the majors in the middle of November, you have to.
O’Hearn had a miserable performance in 2022. His .239/.290/.321 batting line with one homer and six doubles in 145 plate appearances was entirely replaceable by anyone languishing in Triple-A. On the positive side, his 73 OPS+ was his best mark since 2018. And if that makes anyone feel better about this signing, share what you have been drinking.
It would be one thing if the Royals were still a year or two away from some of their top prospects reaching the majors. Someone has to fill out the roster and players such as O’Hearn can make a career out of being a body.
But his path to playing time is even more limited. Nick Pratto and Vinnie Pasquantino are both in the majors, holding down the first base and designated hitter spots. Pratto can play in right as well, although he has the potential to be an elite defensive first baseman. Drew Waters is in right field, blocking the other position that O’Hearn plays.
He is also behind Hunter Dozier in the pecking order. Dozier can play the corners in the infield and outfield, pushing O’Hearn further along the bench. Considering that he started approximately once a week in 2022, what purpose does he serve now that the Royals are starting to bring prospects to the majors?
Ryan O’Hearn is back with the Kansas City Royals for 2023. Just when it appeared that they had learned their lesson, the Royals continued to be the Royals.