Tyler

Tolbert

The Royals said afterwards that Tolbert cramped up while taking his position in the eighth. Until then, it was a great day for Tolbert. Given a rare start — often a pinch-runner, he came into the day with 16 plate appearances in 27 games played — Tolbert got one up into the nice breeze blowing out to left at Wrigley today and was credited with a 391-foot homer on a fly that, at 94.2 mph, didn’t even qualify as a hard-hit ball.

Witt suffered a leg injury during Tuesday’s game against Chicago, but the shortstop told reporters that this is a rest day and he could be in the lineup if needed. It’ll be the first day off of the season for Witt and the 25-year-old will get a day of maintenance with Maikel Garcia moving over to shortstop and Tyler Tolbert getting the start at third base.

The speedy Tolbert played in 13 games during his first stint with the Royals and went 0-for-5 with six steals. He should be used in a similar fashion this time around, as his bat just isn’t major league quality.

Tolbert has been used primarily as a pinch-runner this season, going hitless in five at-bats with the Royals, though he has swiped six bases and scored three runs. He’ll be back once the Royals’ roster flexibility can handle his skillset once again.

Tolbert will return to his role as a bench bat and pinch runner for the Royals. With Dairon Blanco starting a rehab assignment, Tolbert’s time in Kansas City could be coming to a close soon.

Tolbert has played sparingly for Kansas City since being called up back on March 31. The 27-year-old speedster can miss anywhere between three and seven games, under league rules.

Tolbert is a surprising choice to be the Royals’ first hitter callup of the season, but it’s Dairon Blanco who needs replacing and Tolbert can fill in as a pinch-runner. The 27-year-old is just a .245/.333/.359 hitter lifetime in the minors, but he’s stolen 243 bases and been caught just 16 times in 512 games. He was 40-for-44 in Double-A last year. In 2022, he actually went 60-for-60 in high-A.

None of the aforementioned players were favorites to break camp with the team. However, Castro could see at-bats this season as a depth piece, while Clarke will likely get innings out of the bullpen at some point during the season when injuries strike.

While Jac Caglianone is the biggets name on the list of non-roster invitees, Cross is intriguing in his own right. The 23-year-old outfielder — and ninth overall pick from the 2022 draft class — slashed .261/.342/.428 with 15 homers, 59 RBI and 30 stolen bases (32 attempts) in 101 games at Double-A Northwest Arkansas in 2024. There’s a good chance that we see him in Kansas City at some point during the 2025 season and his speed would give him some appeal from a fantasy perspective.