Royals hire Thames to complete new hitting coach staff

KANSAS CITY -- The Royals hired Marcus Thames as their second hitting coach on Monday afternoon, finalizing the hitting staff under senior director of hitting/hitting coach Alec Zumwalt.

Thames, 48, has an extensive background in playing and coaching, most recently as hitting coach for the White Sox over the past two seasons. Following a 10-year big league playing career with the Yankees, Rangers, Tigers and Dodgers, Thames began a coaching career in the Yankees’ Minor League system. From 2016-21, he served on the big league staff, first as assistant hitting coach and then as hitting coach in New York.

Thames was the Marlins’ hitting coach in 2022 and the Angels’ hitting coach in ‘23 before going to Chicago.

Thames will work closely with Zumwalt and Connor Dawson, who was hired last week as a hitting coach. Dawson, 32, is coming back to his native Kansas City following four seasons as a hitting coach with the Brewers. Dawson is highly analytical with more of a new-school approach to hitting, while Thames presumably brings the experience factor to the staff. The Royals were searching for both -- and fresh perspectives from outside the organization -- when they began the hiring process at the beginning of the offseason as they looked to replace former assistant hitting coaches Keoni DeRenne and Joe Dillon.

As a player, Thames debuted in 2002 with the Yankees -- hitting a home run in his first career at-bat off Hall of Famer Randy Johnson -- but only played in seven games that year. After a stint with the Rangers in ‘03, Thames spent the next six seasons as a fourth outfielder and designated hitter with Detroit, which included a 26-homer season for the ‘06 American League champions. After another season with the Yankees in 2010, Thames finished his career in ‘11 with the Dodgers.

The Royals are hoping to elevate their offense following a 2025 season in which the group as a whole struggled. Kansas City saw another great season from Bobby Witt Jr., a breakout performance from Maikel Garcia and 30-homer/100-RBI seasons from Vinnie Pasquantino and Salvador Perez, but struggled to get the most out of the rest of the lineup. As a result, the Royals’ 4.02 runs per game in 2025 ranked 26th in MLB. Kansas City slashed .247/.309/.397 in 2025, and its 93 wRC+ was tied for 22nd.

Following the season, general manager J.J. Picollo stated his belief in Zumwalt leading the hitting department but acknowledged there would be changes elsewhere. The two new hirings reflect that mindset. Dawson comes from a small-market organization the Royals would like to emulate, while Thames brings his experience as a power hitter and from quite a few power-focused organizations.

During Thames’ tenure with the Yankees from 2016-21, the club led the Majors in home runs (1,313). When he was with the Angels in ‘23, the offense ranked among the AL leaders in home runs (third, 231), slugging percentage (fifth, .426) and OPS (seventh, .743). The White Sox have struggled and gone through a lot of change in the past few years, but in the second half of 2025, the young offense ranked fifth in the AL in runs per game (4.85), home runs (89) and batting average (.250).