The up-and-coming Royals are not a factor in the Juan Soto sweepstakes, the single-biggest focal point of the MLB hot stove season. But the club still has a series of major, and potentially franchise-altering, decisions in front of it this offseason.
The Royals are steadily expanding their list of potential ballpark sites to build a successor facility to Kauffman Stadium, and they are now considering a site in Johnson County, Kan., near the location of the former Sprint corporate headquarters.
The enlarged stadium site search is not unlike the wider view also taken by their Truman Sports Complex neighbor, the NFL’s Chiefs. It also follows last spring’s stinging defeat at the ballot box by Jackson County, Mo., voters, and subsequent, and still active, consideration of a site at Washington Square Park, at the southern edge of downtown Kansas City.
Outgoing Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has been quite eager to get a stadium deal with the Royals done before his term finishes in January. Similar to the Chiefs’ deliberations on both sides of the Missouri-Kansas borders, the Royals’ inquiries in Kansas could put more pressure on officials back in Missouri.
Though the Royals’ stadium search is not nearly as pressing as issues rising with the Rays and A’s, both of which will play in minor league facilities in 2025, the Kansas City deliberations remain one of the key, unresolved ballpark matters in the league.
TV Talk
The Royals, meanwhile, are just one of two remaining MLB teams to not have their local media rights fully settled for the 2025 season following the Diamond Sports Group bankruptcy, which was resolved last week with court approval of its reorganization plan.
Of the 12 MLB clubs that DSG aired in 2024, six (Angels, Braves, Cardinals, Marlins, Rays, and Tigers) are returning to Diamond Sports Group in revised deals and four others (Brewers, Guardians, Reds, and Twins) are shifting over the league model in which MLB will produce and distribute their local games. The Rangers are not returning to DSG and have been considering forming their own local network.
That leaves Kansas City, which has also been negotiating with DSG on a restructured rights deal. If an agreement is struck, the club will likely enter 2025 as one of the top teams in the company’s baseball portfolio as the Royals improved by 30 wins in 2024, reached the playoffs for the first time in nine seasons, and feature American League Most Valuable Player finalist Bobby Witt Jr.
