First Royals full-squad workout shows off 'completely different team'?

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- As Royals players filed out of the clubhouse early Monday on their way to the backfields of the team’s Spring Training complex, several wore their brand new equipment bags like backpacks.

“Ready for the first day of school,” one hitter remarked as he pulled the straps tight on his back.

Indeed, Monday brought major first-day-of-school vibes under the sunny skies, with the first full-squad workout of the spring. As always, excitement filled the air with baseball returning and the hope a new season brings.

Last year was a different feeling because the team had brought in manager Matt Quatraro and a brand new coaching staff, began to implement new and much-needed infrastructure throughout the organization and deemed 2023 a year they would evaluate their homegrown players at the Major League level.

This year, a clubhouse full of new faces has greeted the Royals and surrounded the homegrown core following a 56-106 season that no one wants to endure again.

“It feels like a completely different team because it is,” first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino said. “Hopefully for the better. We want to get away from that losing feeling. The past few years have been tough. You want to get to a point where you’re going out there every day, and the odds are you’re going to win rather than lose.”

Quatraro and general manager J.J. Picollo addressed the team Monday before workouts, and the message centered around opportunities players have this camp, not getting too far ahead of the work they need to do that day and, ultimately, performing.

“We’ve had an exciting offseason, but none of it matters unless you go out there day to day and perform,” Quatraro said.

The Royals have 10 players on their 40-man roster and one on the 60-day injured list (starter Kyle Wright) who are in their first year of the organization:

• Three are from trades: Wright and relievers Nick Anderson and John Schreiber.
• One is from the Rule 5 Draft: Reliever Matt Sauer.
• Six are from free agency: Starters Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha; relievers Will Smith and Chris Stratton; hitters Hunter Renfroe, Garrett Hampson and Adam Frazier.

All are scattered throughout the clubhouse -- there’s no separation between the position players and pitchers this year -- and have been in constant conversation with the young players the Royals have returning.

New perspectives are welcome from those who have been entrenched in the Royals' organization for years.

“Over the past few years, it’s been always the joke -- it kind of always felt the same for the past four years because you just were with the same guys,” Pasquantino said. “Now, it’s a different group of people. Even some of the big leaguers we’ve had in years’ past, they were here for a long time. … It’s nice to get different opinions of what guys have done in previous spots, what different things look like. Even asking about different players in organizations they’ve played with, how they prepare. It’s been cool.”

The Royals would have loved to take a step forward with every young player they had last year, but it didn’t happen. Processes put in place last offseason continued this winter, but it takes time to set in. There weren’t enough players ready for the big leagues; meanwhile, the Royals needed to improve several aspects of their game from ‘23.

So they got busy on the free agent market with the go-ahead from CEO/chairman John Sherman.

“I would have to say that I put J.J. and [Quatraro] in a tough position last year,” Sherman said Monday. “We made some changes we thought were necessary, we went with our young guys, and we certainly learned that there was more development to be had, which is why we made [signings]. We’d love to be able to build a team without spending a lot of time in free agency. But you’ve got to get the farm system ready and build that whole pipeline.

“We’re committed to putting a winning team on the field, and if they’re coming up through the system, that’s great. If we’ve got to supplement them from the outside, we will.”

The result was $109.5 million committed to free agents while maintaining payroll flexibility in the coming years. They checked every box in terms of acquisitions and then also got a mega-extension done with star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr.

It was a successful winter.

But performance will rule the summer.

“We’re all fired up and eager to get out there.” Witt said. “We’re trying to build a winning team. But we’ve got to worry about today. We’ve got to worry about our process, be resilient through it all, try to work and focus each and every day. Go out there and embrace today.”