Kansas City Royals DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

The Kansas City Royals placed outfielder MJ Melendez (ankle) on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to July 15) with a left-ankle sprain on Tuesday. The move to the IL comes after Melendez sprained his ankle in Sunday's contest against the Boston Red Sox. At the very least, the 25-year-old will miss the first six games of the second half of the season. He'll be eligible to return to the Royals on July 26. Melendez, a left-handed hitter, does have 11 home runs in 85 games this year and is on track to set a new career-high in that category, but he's also hitting just .192 (51-for-265) and lacks speed (two steals). For however long he's out, both Dairon Blanco and Garrett Hampson could see more playing time in Kansas City in left field. Melendez has hit .273 (9-for-33) with three homers in 10 games in July.

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. literally fell just shy of the 2024 Home Run Derby championship Monday in Globe Life Field. The 24-year-old faced Teoscar Hernandez in the final round and needed 14 long balls to tie. With 13 tallied, Witt Jr.'s final swing hit off the left-center wall, making him just short of tying things up. Regardless of the outcome, it was a strong showing for the first-time All-Star. Witt Jr. was even better than fantasy managers expected in the first half of the season, providing everything with a .323/.369/.558 slash line, 16 HR, 75 runs scored, 63 RBI, and 22 stolen bases in 425 plate appearances.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia will retreat to the bench on Sunday for the series finale at Fenway Park against the hosting Boston Red Sox. With Garcia sitting the final game before the All-Star break, veteran Adam Frazier will start at the hot corner and will bat leadoff for the Royals against Red Sox right-hander Brayan Bello. While Frazier will still be a pretty deep DFS sleeper, he gains some steam out of the leadoff spot and has recorded hits in both of his career at-bats against Bello while adding two RBI. Garcia, 24, is hitting only .231 (87-for-377) on the year, but he's been relevant in all fantasy leagues because of his 21 stolen bases, 43 RBI and 54 runs scored for an improved Royals club in 2024. He's also added six home runs in 94 games. Garcia needs three more steals to set a new career-high in that category.

Washington Nationals right-hander Hunter Harvey has been traded to Kansas City Royals for third base prospect Cayden Wallace (oblique). Harvey racked up 26 holds while posting a 4.20 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and a 50:12 K: BB across 45 innings for the Nationals in 2024. The 29-year-old has struggled since the calendar flipped in June, owning an 8.04 ERA over his last 15 2/3 frames. Harvey will be used in high-leverage situations for the Royals and could see some chances with his new team, but he remains mainly an option in leagues that reward for holds. Wallace has been recovering from an oblique strain since May. Before the injury, the 22-year-old slashed .282/.350/.427 with three homers across 140 plate appearances with Double-A Northwest Arkansas. Wallace was the 49th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft and could join the big league roster sometime in 2025.

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez is back in the starting lineup on Saturday against the hosting Boston Red Sox and right-hander Kutter Crawford after leaving Friday night's win late due to cramping. Perez will serve as the designated hitter and bat cleanup, with Freddy Fermin doing the catching for right-hander Seth Lugo and hitting seventh. Fantasy managers will want to get Perez back into all of their starting lineups on Saturday, despite the fact that he's gone hitless in five career at-bats against Crawford. The 34-year-old nine-time All-Star is hitting .280/.342/.470 on the year with an .813 OPS, 16 home runs and 61 RBI in 92 games and also brings a six-game hitting streak into Saturday's contest. Perez has gone 8-for-23 (.348) with two homers, seven RBI and four runs scored during his modest hitting streak that began on July 5.