Making Royals' Opening Day roster special beyond words for Jensen
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ATLANTA -- Eight months ago, catcher Carter Jensen's equipment was stashed in a different locker inside the visiting clubhouse of Atlanta’s Truist Park. He was here for the Futures Game, part of the American League squad and impressing scouts with his massive power in batting practice and making Royals fans wonder when he would get the callup to his hometown team.
He was even wearing cleats with the Kansas City skyline, honoring his hometown -- but also, in a way, manifesting what was to come.
The callup happened in September. Jensen hasn’t stopped impressing.
And now?
He’s here in Atlanta as a member of the Royals -- an important member -- on the Opening Day roster for the first time in his career as Kansas City kicks off its 2026 schedule Friday night against the Braves (6:15 p.m. CT, Royals.TV).
“I think when I was sitting right there,” Jensen said Thursday afternoon, nodding to the locker he occupied last summer at the Futures Game, “I was just excited to one day be in the situation I’m in now. And now it’s all about what I can do to one-up that. What can I do to help this team go to the playoffs and make something special happen there? That’s my mindset.”
Opening Day on Friday will be another "first" for Jensen, the Royals’ No. 1 and MLB’s No. 18 prospect who made his debut on Sept. 2, 2025, and hit .300 with a .941 OPS that final month of the season. It’s been something of a storybook start to his career, having grown up in Kansas City, being drafted by his hometown team in 2021 and putting together such a strong start in the Major Leagues.
But that’s why Opening Day is so special, because it restarts everything -- the good and the bad. It’s a new year, with new goals, and Jensen begins it as someone the Royals want to count on in their lineup and behind the plate when Salvador Perez isn’t catching.
Whether the Royals play Jensen, a left-handed batter, on Friday remains to be seen -- facing lefty Chris Sale is no easy task. On Thursday, the Royals were toying with either Jensen or the right-handed Nick Loftin in the designated hitter spot.
But the club does plan on playing Jensen quite a bit, definitely as Perez’s backup catcher and also at DH if Jensen hits the way the Royals think he can -- with a blend of power and patience that could elevate this lineup in the middle and bottom part of the order. How often Jensen and Perez split catching duties has yet to be established.
“We’ll go day to day with the catching, but Carter’s going to catch,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “He and Salvy are going to split -- not evenly, 50-50, but game times, travel, the type of game one of them has to catch will dictate what happens the next day. And as far as hitting, [Jensen] will get DH reps as well. We think he’s a really good hitter, so we’re going to find ways to get him in the lineup.”
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Wherever and whenever Jensen finds himself playing, he’s ready for it.
“Stay hungry and never get complacent,” Jensen said. “Always wanting more, striving for more and working hard. That’s my mindset going into it. Try to balance the emotions, keep everything in check and put my best foot forward every day.”
For all the memories Jensen has at Kauffman Stadium growing up a huge Royals fan, he doesn’t think he ever attended an Opening Day there. He watched baseball all day on Opening Day, for sure, but doesn’t remember ever going in person.
That means his first one in attendance will be on the field. How’s that for baseball magic?
“It’s kind of hard to talk about, like putting it into words what it means,” Jensen said. “But I’m excited.’”