Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia is off to a fantastic start in 2025. On Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles, he went 2-for-4 with a run scored. So far in the young season, he has a slash line of .345/.387/.444 with two home runs, five runs scored, six RBI, and one stolen base. Over the past two seasons, Garcia has swiped 60 bases, so look for him to stay aggressive on the basepaths as the season goes on. Right now, Garcia is batting eighth in the order but has batted leadoff for the Royals in the past, and after this hot start, it would only increase his fantasy value if the Royals decide to move him up in the order. Up next for Garcia is a four-game series against the Minnesota Twins, where he will look to continue his hot start.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia is not in the team's Opening Day lineup on Thursday at Kauffman Stadium against the division-rival Cleveland Guardians and right-hander Ben Lively. Vinnie Pasquantino (hamstring) will serve as the designated hitter, while Michael Massey is at second base and Jonathan India mans the hot corner. The Royals are easing Pasquantino into the lineup as the DH to protect him after he suffered a Grade 1-plus hamstring strain last Saturday in spring training. When Pasquantino is healthy enough to return to first base duties, we should see the 25-year-old Garcia return as the regular third baseman for KC. The Venezuelan infielder had a career-high 37 steals in 157 games last year but underwhelmed with his bat (.231 average, seven home runs) and will most likely hit in the bottom third of the batting order this year with India in town.

Kansas City Royals infielder Maikel Garcia will see time in center field during spring training. In the offseason, the Royals acquired Jonathan India from the Cincinnati Reds, which added another bat to their infield. General manager J.J. Picollo noted that the way the team is currently set up, Garcia's "next best spot" is to shift to center field. As a result, this suggests that the team is considering giving Michael Massey the starting nod at second base. Garcia has only seen one start in the outfield throughout his MLB career. However, given the crowded infield, his best option to find consistent playing time may be shifting to the outfield. Last season, Garcia made 157 starts and held a .231/.284/.332 line with 27 doubles and 37 stolen bases. If the 24-year-old were to adjust well to center field in camp, he could push Kyle Isbel to a depth role.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia is batting in the leadoff spot on Saturday afternoon when the Royals face the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 24-year-old underwent an offseason surgery to remove bone spurs from his right elbow. However, seeing Garcia already in spring training action suggests his recovery process was not serious, and he will not face any limitations. Last season, the infielder posted a career-low .231/.281/.332 line with seven home runs and 37 stolen bases. However, he did generate a strong .260 xBA, which suggests that he should see some positive regression in 2025. Garcia typically was placed in the leadoff spot last season, but with Jonathan India now on the roster, Garcia may have to earn this spot in spring training. If he does continue to bat in this spot, he could be a strong contributor for runs, batting in front of Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez.

Kansas City Royals infielder Maikel Garcia (elbow) underwent a minor procedure to remove bone chips in his right elbow on Thursday. Garcia reported elbow soreness to the Royals after playing catch at home the week before Thanksgiving, which prompted the team to send him for an MRI exam, in which bone chips were found. Garcia is expected to be ready for spring training in February and is expected to return as the team's primary third baseman in 2025 after hitting .231/.281/.332 in 2024 with 27 doubles and 37 stolen bases. In addition to his 27 doubles and 37 stolen bases for the Royals in a career-high 157 games in his third year in the big leagues, the Venezuelan infielder hit a career-high seven home runs, drove in 58 runs and scored 84 runs in 626 plate appearances. The 24-year-old doesn't have typical home run power for a third baseman, but the speed is nice for a corner-infield target in fantasy.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia acted as an offensive catalyst in Monday's American League Division Series Game 2 4-2 win over the Yankees. Batting in the leadoff spot, Garcia went 4-for-5 with four singles, an RBI, and a strikeout. He also stole his third base of the playoffs. The 24-year-old mostly provided speed in the regular season, slashing .231/.281/.332 with seven home runs, 84 runs scored, 58 RBI, and 37 stolen bases in 626 plate appearances. However, he has provided speed and batting average this postseason, batting .400 in 15 at-bats. The Royals have scored the third-most runs so far in the playoffs, so Garcia offers exposure to that production while hitting at the top of their lineup for DFS leagues.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia is not in the starting lineup in Wednesday's series finale against the division-rival Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Paul DeJong will get the start at the hot corner and will bat sixth against Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee. Garcia will head to the bench after starting each of the team's last five games while going 6-for-19 with a homer, double and two stolen bases. The 24-year-old's playing time against right-handers has dwindled some in the second half of the season, though, since the acquisition of DeJong. Garcia is hitting .239/.287/.347 on the year with seven home runs, 52 RBI and a career-high 32 stolen bases in 129 games in his second full year in the big leagues. He's obviously been useful in all fantasy leagues for his speed, but he also isn't guaranteed a starting spot anymore when the team faces a righty.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia and outfielder Hunter Renfroe are both on the bench for Monday's tilt against the Los Angeles Angels at Kauffman Stadium. Paul DeJong is starting at the hot corner for the Royals and batting eighth, while Adam Frazier will get the start in right field and hit seventh against Angels right-hander Carson Fulmer. Garcia has given way to the veteran DeJong a bit more of late at third base in Kansas City. Perhaps it's because he's only hitting .236 (13-for-55) in 14 games in the month of August with no home runs. The Venezuelan infielder has been relevant in all fantasy leagues in 2024 because of his 30 stolen bases. Renfroe finally showed some signs of life at the plate over the weekend after recently going hitless in 24 straight plate appearances with nine strikeouts in six games.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia will take another day off on Friday for the series finale against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. It's the second straight game sitting the bench for Garcia, with a scheduled day off on Thursday in between. It's the first time all season that he has sat in two straight games, so be on the lookout for a potential injury for Garcia. Veteran Paul DeJong is starting at the hot corner and is batting sixth for KC on Friday against Reds right-hander Nick Martinez. Garcia has been disappointing at the plate so far in August, going 10-for-45 (.222) with no homers, three doubles, three RBI and nine strikeouts in 12 games, so perhaps the Royals just want to get DeJong more playing time. DeJong, meanwhile, has gone 8-for-25 (.320) with two homers and five RBI in his first 10 games for the Royals after being acquired from the White Sox at the trade deadline.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia will head to the bench Saturday night for the Royals debut of Michael Lorenzen against the Detroit Tigers. He will be replaced in the lineup by the recently acquired Paul DeJong, who will bat seventh in and play third base in Garcia's place. Garcia is hitting .237 with six home runs, 45 RBI, 27 stolen bases and 69 runs scored in 467 plate appearances. It's a rare day off for a guy who leads the league in games played with 108. This seems to be a day of rest for Garcia, who should be back in the lineup tomorrow for the series finale.

Kansas City Royals infielder Maikel Garcia showed off his speed in Thursday's big victory against the division rival Detroit Tigers. Garcia was 1-for-5 in the contest with a single, run scored and two stolen bases on the day. The 24-year-old has had a full-time role this season for the Royals, mainly leading off and is hitting .237 with six homers, 45 RBI and 27 stolen bases. Garcia was a popular sleeper entering this season and even with his ups and downs at the dish, his speed on the basepaths have made him a valuable member in deeper leagues. Garcia is worth rostering in deeper leagues, but those in daily leagues may want to sit him on Friday with a matchup versus Cy Young candidate Tarik Skubal.

Kansas City Royals infielder Maikel Garcia is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Chicago Cubs. Fantasy managers shouldn't worry as this appears to be a routine rest day for Garcia. In his absence, Nick Loftin will cover third base and bat seventh versus right-hander Kyle Hendricks on Friday. This is a favorable matchup for Loftin but he doesn't offer great upside with the bat. Fantasy managers should be able to find better production elsewhere.

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.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia busted out of a big-time slump on Sunday, going 2-for-3 with a three-run homer in a 10-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. Garcia also walked, scored a run, and drove in three to round out a very nice day at the dish. Unfortunately, those have been few and far between lately for the 24-year-old, who has seen his OPS plummet from .739 on May 25 to .614 before today's game. He has also been dropped all the way to eighth in the Royals lineup, limiting his fantasy value. He still provides a lot of speed and some counting stats, but he is not a must-roster player anymore.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia is not in the team's starting lineup on Wednesday against the Seattle Mariners. This will be only Garcia's second game of the season starting on the bench. In his absence, veteran Adam Frazier will start at third base and hit out of the leadoff spot for KC against Mariners right-hander Bryan Woo. Garcia has been productive for the upstart Royals in 2024, hitting .239/.288/.369 with four home runs, 25 RBI, 10 stolen bases and 20 runs scored in 192 plate appearances. He's riding a modest four-game hitting streak in which he's gone 4-for-17 (.235) with an RBI and two steals. Frazier will have more DFS upside as a sleeper on Wednesday out of the leadoff spot, but he's never faced Woo in his career and has gone just 15-for-84 (.179) on the year with a homer and eight RBI.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia went 3-for-5 at the plate with two RBI and two runs in Thursday's victory. Garcia tallied his first hit of the night with a single in the third and then laced a double in the fifth. Later in the sixth, he knocked his second double of the game, which scored two. This excellent performance brings Garcia to a .247/.302/.396 slash line with four long balls and eight swiped bags. His underlying metrics suggest he could be in for a big summer, as he holds a strong 91.7 mph average exit velocity and 47.6% hard-hit rate, which are both well above-average among qualified hitters. Garcia should be rostered in all leagues with his potent combination of power and speed.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia hit two singles, drew a walk, drove in two runs and scored a run in the Royals' 8-0 win on Friday. Garcia now has multiple hits in four of his last seven games, a good sign after going through a bit of a slump over the past couple weeks. The 24-year-old is now hitting for a .651 OPS and has 18 RBI on the season. If Garcia is able to avoid another major slump, then he may be someone fantasy managers want to keep on their radar as an option to stash on their bench. Garcia will get matchups against Casey Mize on Saturday and Tigers ace Tarik Skubal on Sunday.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia is slotted in the lead-off spot as he faces the Minnesota Twins and Pablo Lopez on Opening Day. This is a promising sign for the young 24-year-old as he will have plenty of opportunities to score as Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino, and Salvador Perez are batting behind him. Garcia is also a threat on the base paths, as he stole 23 bases last season. The right-handed bat is a contrarian option in DFS option today, as he should see a decent number of at-bats and might not be a popular play due to his pitching matchup.

Kansas City Royals manager Matt Quatraro said Monday that, while the team values the multi-position skill of several of their players, third baseman/shortstop Maikel Garcia will start the season at third base. This is not that surprising, as the 23-year-old spent the majority of his rookie season at the hot corner. Garcia slashed .272/.323/.358 in his first season with four home runs, 59 runs scored, 50 RBI, and 23 stolen bases in 515 plate appearances. Garcia offers little power in a position that usually can offer it pretty late, but he does offer a good batting average and plenty of speed. His ability to play different positions may help ensure consistent playing time, which could end up making him a worthwhile late-round pick in rotisserie leagues.