The Kansas City Royals have fired hitting coach Terry Bradshaw and promoted Alec Zumwalt to fill his role on Monday in a shake up of the coaching staff.
(This article was originally published on 18.05.2022)
The Kansas City Royals are 33/1 to win the American League Central and have one of the worst offences in Major League Baseball in 2022.
Poor seasonal record
The Royals have scored 118 runs through their first 32 games, bettering only the Detroit Tigers, Baltimore Orioles and the Chicago White Sox.
They have also scored only 21 home runs so far, which only the Tigers and the Boston Red Sox can beat for the worst total in the big leagues.
The Royals are 12-21 and are 7.5 games behind AL Central leaders, Minnesota Twins.
Bradshaw had been with the Royals system since 2000 and helped usher to the majors, Mike Moustakis and Eric Hosmer, two key components of the 2015 World Series winning team.
He also helped Whit Merrifield lead the AL in hits twice and Jorge Soler break the club’s single-season home run record which Salvador Perez matched last year.
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Constantly shifting
Speaking to the official Kansas City Royals website, general manager J.J. Picollo said : “Baseball is constantly shifting and we have to continue to self-evaluate and make sure we’re giving our players everything they need to be successful at the highest levels.
“Our results so far haven’t matched what we’re capable of, and we all share accountability in that.”
Zumwalt was hired as a scout in 2011 but more recently has spearheaded a shift in hitting development within the Royals’ minor league programme.
The results last season were evident in Bobby Witt Jr. earning Minor League Player of the Year award from Baseball America and MJ Melendez taking the Joe Bauman Award as the minor league home run champion.
