RRosternomics
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Royals KCR

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GM: J.J. Picollo

Overview

REBUILD ↗ rising
cheap & losing · year 4 in this regime · payroll 0.61× league · TAB -10.5
-10.5TAB — talent above budget25th/30
-10.4WAB — realized wins (TAB + luck)25th/30
2.0depth — 2+ WAR regulars26th/30
-4.7dead WAR — sub-replacement drag13th/30
28%dead money %12th/30
0.401win %26th/30
17.5roster fWAR25th/30
-24surplus $M (value vs cost)16th/30
$86Mpayroll $M24th/30

Roster

CFMichael A. Taylor 123GKyle Isbel 30GDrew Waters 12G
LFKyle Isbel 29GMJ Melendez 23GEdward Olivares 12G
RFKyle Isbel 49GHunter Dozier 35GEdward Olivares 27G
SSBobby Witt Jr. 98GNicky Lopez 52GAdalberto Mondesi 15G
2BNicky Lopez 68GMichael Massey 48G
3BBobby Witt Jr. 55GNicky Lopez 30GHunter Dozier 27G
1BNick Pratto 43GHunter Dozier 42GVinnie Pasquantino 37G
STARTERSBrady Singer 3.0WARZack Greinke 1.9WARBrad Keller 0.8WARDaniel Lynch IV 0.8WARKris Bubic 0.6WAR
CMJ Melendez 78GSalvador Perez 77GCam Gallagher 18G
DHSalvador Perez 40GVinnie Pasquantino 35GHunter Dozier 25G
BULLPEN★ Scott Barlow 24svDylan Coleman 16hJose Cuas 11hAmir Garrett 10hTaylor Clarke 10hCollin Snider 7hJosh Staumont 5hAnthony Misiewicz 4h
CMJ Melendez 78 · Salvador Perez 77 · Cam Gallagher 18
1BNick Pratto 43 · Hunter Dozier 42 · Vinnie Pasquantino 37
2BNicky Lopez 68 · Michael Massey 48
3BBobby Witt Jr. 55 · Nicky Lopez 30 · Hunter Dozier 27
SSBobby Witt Jr. 98 · Nicky Lopez 52 · Adalberto Mondesi 15
LFKyle Isbel 29 · MJ Melendez 23 · Edward Olivares 12
CFMichael A. Taylor 123 · Kyle Isbel 30 · Drew Waters 12
RFKyle Isbel 49 · Hunter Dozier 35 · Edward Olivares 27
DHSalvador Perez 40 · Vinnie Pasquantino 35 · Hunter Dozier 25
SPBrady Singer 3.0 · Zack Greinke 1.9 · Brad Keller 0.8 · Daniel Lynch IV 0.8 · Kris Bubic 0.6
BP★ Scott Barlow 24 · Dylan Coleman 16 · Jose Cuas 11 · Amir Garrett 10 · Taylor Clarke 10 · Collin Snider 7 · Josh Staumont 5 · Anthony Misiewicz 4

Each position lists its starter then backups by games (so platoons & bench show). Starters (mound) & bullpen (left, foul territory) are ranked by WAR; ★ marks the closer (most save chances). MLB Stats API.

2022 roster — value & surplus

PlayerAgeServiceGfWARSalary $MSurplus $M
Brady Singer 25 pre-arb 273.0 0.7 +10.2
Bobby Witt Jr. 22 – 1502.3 0.7 +7.8
Zack Greinke 38 FA-elig 261.9 13.0 -5.9
Michael A. Taylor 31 FA-elig 1241.7 4.5 +1.9
Vinnie Pasquantino 24 – 721.4 0.4 +4.8
Andrew Benintendi↔ NYY 27 FA-elig 931.4 6.3 -1.2
Scott Barlow 29 arb 690.9 2.4 +1.0
Daniel Lynch IV 25 – 270.8 – –
Nate Eaton 25 – 440.8 0.2 +2.7
Brad Keller 26 arb 350.8 4.8 -2.0
Nicky Lopez 27 arb 1420.8 2.5 +0.3
Salvador Perez 32 FA-elig 1140.8 18.0 -15.2
Taylor Clarke 29 arb 470.7 1.0 +1.6
Kris Bubic 24 pre-arb 280.6 0.6 +1.5
Amir Garrett 30 arb 600.6 2.0 +0.0
Whit Merrifield↔ TOR 33 FA-elig 950.5 4.8 -2.9
Kyle Isbel 25 pre-arb 1060.5 0.7 +1.1
Dylan Coleman 25 pre-arb 680.4 0.7 +0.8
Drew Waters 23 – 320.4 0.2 +1.3
Emmanuel Rivera↔ ARI 26 – 630.3 0.2 +0.7
Edward Olivares 26 pre-arb 530.2 0.7 +0.2
Michael Massey 24 – 520.2 0.3 +0.6
Luke Weaver↔ ARI 28 FA-elig 140.2 1.5 -0.7
Wyatt Mills↔ SEA 27 pre-arb 190.2 0.1 +0.6
Carlos Santana↔ SEA 36 FA-elig 520.1 4.2 -3.7
Gabe Speier 27 pre-arb 170.1 0.3 +0.2
Daniel Mengden 29 arb 50.1 0.1 +0.4
Josh Staumont 28 pre-arb 420.1 0.7 -0.4
Matt Peacock↔ ARI 28 – 70.1 0.1 +0.1
Joel Payamps↔ OAK 28 – 290.1 0.4 -0.2
Maikel Garcia 22 – 90.1 0.1 +0.1
Anthony Misiewicz↔ SEA 27 pre-arb 150.0 0.2 -0.0
Cam Gallagher 29 arb 180.0 0.9 -0.7
Adalberto Mondesi 26 FA-elig 150.0 3.0 -2.9
Dairon Blanco 29 – 5-0.0 0.1 -0.1
Jose Cuas 28 – 47-0.0 0.4 -0.5
Foster Griffin↔ TOR 26 – 5-0.0 0.0 -0.2
Max Castillo↔ TOR 23 – 5-0.1 0.0 -0.3
Angel Zerpa 22 pre-arb 3-0.1 0.3 -0.6
Albert Abreu↔ NYY 26 – 4-0.1 0.1 -0.5
Freddy Fermin 27 – 3-0.1 0.0 -0.4
Collin Snider 26 – 42-0.1 0.4 -0.8
Sebastián Rivero 23 pre-arb 17-0.1 0.3 -0.7
Brewer Hicklen 26 – 6-0.1 0.0 -0.5
Carlos Hernández 25 pre-arb 27-0.1 0.4 -0.9
Brent Rooker↔ SDP 27 pre-arb 14-0.2 0.1 -0.7
Nick Pratto 23 – 49-0.2 0.2 -0.8
Arodys Vizcaíno 31 FA-elig 7-0.2 0.1 -0.8
Ronald Bolaños 25 pre-arb 8-0.2 0.2 -0.9
Jake Brentz 27 pre-arb 8-0.3 0.7 -1.7
Jackson Kowar 25 pre-arb 7-0.3 0.2 -1.2
Ryan O'Hearn 28 arb 67-0.4 1.3 -2.7
Jonathan Heasley 25 – 21-0.4 – –
MJ Melendez 23 – 129-0.6 0.6 -3.0
Hunter Dozier 30 FA-elig 129-1.1 4.8 -8.7

Key additions (new vs 2021)

PlayerfWAR
Bobby Witt Jr.2.3
Zack Greinke1.9
Vinnie Pasquantino1.4
Nate Eaton0.8
Taylor Clarke0.7
Amir Garrett0.6

Key subtractions (gone from 2021)

Player2021 fWAR
Danny Duffy1.7
Domingo Tapia0.5
Jakob Junis0.5
Hanser Alberto0.4
Richard Lovelady0.2
Ervin Santana0.1

Current & Historical Payroll

2022 payroll
$86.4M
2023 guaranteed
$0M

What the front office was committed to as of 2022, 2022–2028. Guaranteed $ are contract commitments signed by 2022; arbitration & free-agent years are projected from service time. Hover a figure for its luxury-tax (CBT) & actual-cash values.

current $ guaranteed $ arbitration (proj) pre-arb (proj) free agent club option player option mutual option vesting option

Guaranteed / signed (5)

PlayerAgeSvc2022202320242025202620272028
Salvador Perez3210.050$18.0MFREE AGENT
Zack Greinke3817.057$13.0MFREE AGENT
Michael A. Taylor318.000$4.5MFREE AGENT
Carlos Santana3611.115$4.2MFREE AGENT
Arodys Vizcaíno316.168$104kFREE AGENT

Arbitration-eligible (11)

PlayerAgeSvc2022202320242025202620272028
Andrew Benintendi275.062$6.3MFREE AGENT
Brad Keller264.000$4.8MARB 3FREE AGENT
Whit Merrifield335.101$4.8MFREE AGENT
Hunter Dozier304.060$4.8MARB 3FREE AGENT
Adalberto Mondesi264.088$3.0MARB 3FREE AGENT
Scott Barlow293.030$2.4MARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Amir Garrett304.099$2.0MARB 3FREE AGENT
Luke Weaver284.112$1.5MARB 3FREE AGENT
Ryan O'Hearn283.002$1.3MARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Cam Gallagher293.106$885kARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Daniel Mengden293.088$77kARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Pre-arbitration (39)

PlayerAgeSvc2022202320242025202620272028
Nicky Lopez272.139$2.5MARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Taylor Clarke292.120$975kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Josh Staumont282.072$728kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jake Brentz271.000$711kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Edward Olivares261.055$706kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Dylan Coleman250.014$701kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Bobby Witt Jr.220.000$700kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Kyle Isbel250.043$694kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brady Singer252.000$650kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Kris Bubic241.148$643kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
MJ Melendez230.000$604kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jose Cuas280.000$446kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Collin Snider260.000$412kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Carlos Hernández251.043$405kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Vinnie Pasquantino240.000$385kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Joel Payamps281.027$369kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Gabe Speier270.124$301kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Angel Zerpa220.004$288kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Sebastián Rivero230.068$265kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Michael Massey240.000$258kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Nick Pratto230.000$227kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Emmanuel Rivera260.074$216kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Anthony Misiewicz272.000$215kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Nate Eaton250.000$212kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jackson Kowar250.049$170kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Drew Waters230.000$169kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Ronald Bolaños250.159$169kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Wyatt Mills270.061$135kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Matt Peacock280.141$117kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brent Rooker270.167$101kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Albert Abreu260.114$86kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Dairon Blanco290.000$58kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Maikel Garcia220.000$54kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Max Castillo230.000$49kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Foster Griffin261.000$38kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brewer Hicklen260.000$31kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Freddy Fermin270.000$12kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Daniel Lynch IV251.000—Pre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jonathan Heasley251.000—Pre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Graphs

Every roster slot ranked best→worst by WAR. Bars = Royals 2022; the black line = the league-average player at each slot that season. Staying above the line deep into the roster is the depth edge; dropping below it = holes & dead weight.

What each regime is worth — every settled team-season since 1985

RegimeSeasonsWin %Playoff %Pennant %WS %
WINDOW 28152.131.05.01.1
CONTEND 30056.964.719.710.3
FORCED-SPEND 25648.09.81.61.6
REBUILD 32143.31.20.30.3
Rosternomics — quantifying front-office skill, attribution-clean. Follow @rosternomics on X. Decision-makers on record back to 1933; resource-controlled metrics (WAR & payroll) cover 1985–2026.
Data: FanGraphs (WAR), Baseball-Reference & the Chadwick Bureau register (rosters, IDs), the Lahman Database, Baseball America prospect rankings (via The Baseball Cube), and public payroll records. Transaction and trade data was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Executive birth/death data via Wikidata (CC0); bios are original. Emoji graphics by OpenMoji (CC BY-SA 4.0).
All figures are franchise-level outcomes credited to the decision-maker in the acquisition year — not solely attributable to one executive.