After difficult KC debut, Royals bullish on India's rebound

KANSAS CITY -- When the Royals acquired Jonathan India last offseason, they touted him as an on-base hitter who could spark the lineup at the top, a hole the club desperately needed to fill after its 2024 season. One did not have to look far to see why the move made sense. Across four years in Cincinnati, India had a career .352 on-base percentage while hitting at leadoff the majority of the time. The Royals believed he could bring that to Kansas City and pair his ability with the other core hitters.

It did not end up going quite so smoothly.

India posted career lows in several categories, including his .233 average, .323 on-base percentage, .346 slugging percentage and .669 OPS. He did not hit as many home runs (nine) as his yearly average in Cincinnati (16), but that was to be expected as he transitioned from a hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park to a pitcher-friendly Kauffman Stadium. Interestingly enough, India’s .236/.321/.336 slash line batting first in the order was an upgrade from what the Royals’ leadoff spot collectively slashed in 2024 (.228/.270/.334), but both India and Kansas City were expecting more.

He’ll enter 2026 eyeing a bounceback campaign before he hits free agency.

“Jonathan’s a proven Major League player who had a down year, offensively, for him,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “With his bumps and bruises healed up and being in his second year in the city and understanding the organization, we really think it’s going to be a bounceback year.”

Last spring, the Royals asked the second baseman to learn to play third base and left field, two new positions he had never played in the Majors, so they could move him around and make the alignment work with the rest of the roster. That didn’t go too well, either; Kansas City moved India back to only playing second base by June, and it also moved him out of the leadoff spot in August after acquiring Mike Yastrzemski. India also dealt with some injuries throughout the year that he tried to play through, including a left wrist sprain.

“You talk to [India], he wasn’t happy with the quality of his at-bats,” Quatraro said. “He knew he was popping too many balls up. It wasn’t that he was trying to hit homers, he just couldn’t get out of that swing funk. But I think more than anything, I would attribute a lot of that to the fact that he was trying to learn two new positions in Spring Training, and went into his first year with a new organization out of his comfort zone.”

The context of India’s 2025 season -- being his first in Kansas City and the new positions to learn -- gives the Royals some optimism heading into ‘26 that India might look more like himself. The team also points to some underlying metrics that provide reason to believe he’ll bounce back.

His strikeout rate decreased from the previous year, at 18.7% in 2025 and 19.6% in ‘24. While he doesn’t hit the ball exceptionally hard, that metric didn’t see a drop-off either, with an 87.9 mph average exit velocity and 36.8% hard-hit rate both similar to previous years. India did hit the ball in the air more last year (61.7%) but hit fewer line drives (21.8%) and more popups (10.2%). However, India’s chase numbers and whiff numbers stayed consistent. In 2024, India chased at an 18.4% clip and whiffed at a 19.2% clip. In ‘25, those numbers were 18.6% and 19.9%, respectively.

The Royals chose to bring India back for his final year of club control rather than non-tendering him, a surprise to some but ultimately the way the club was always leaning as that decision neared. He took an $8 million deal, a modest increase from his 2025 salary that paid him just over $7 million, saving the Royals a bit of money. They also didn’t want to have to fill another hole at second base when they’re still focused on making upgrades to the outfield, even after signing Lane Thomas and trading lefty Angel Zerpa to Milwaukee for outfielder Isaac Collins and righty reliever Nick Mears.

And Kansas City views India as the everyday second baseman entering next year. There is risk in banking on his improvement and in his defense; India does not grade out well at second (-6 outs above average and -9 run value, per Statcast), and the club doesn't plan on moving him around again.

But a bounceback season would do wonders for India and the Royals as they look to officially put 2025 behind them.

“[India] will have an inside track to play on a regular basis,” Quatraro said. “That’s why we acquired him, because we really value the on-base and the leadoff ability and the neutrality of the splits and all those kinds of things. You come into the season thinking about him as an everyday player.”