Kansas City Royals: Nicky Lopez era has finally arrived
At long last, the Kansas City Royals have decided to call-up infielder Nicky Lopez to the big leagues. The news surfaced on Monday and this is the first of many call-ups that fans have been looking forward to.
Normally Tuesdays is when I discuss a player in the Kansas City Royals farm system and what to expect with them moving forward. Well, after the news circulated about Nicky Lopez getting called up, I decided to stick with a story about him this week.
If you’ll recall, I wrote an article a few weeks ago begging the organization to bring the 24-year old infielder to Kansas City. He’s been lighting it up in the minors ever since the Royals spent a fifth round pick on him in 2016 and it’s good to finally see him getting his shot in the bigs.
One of the reasons that likely stalled Lopez’s promotion was that the two positions he plays were both filled. Adalberto Mondesi is the shortstop of the future and Whit Merrifield is the preferred choice at second base. Well, fortunately, Merrifield can play just about anywhere and it appears the plan is to move him back to right field so that Lopez can be slotted in at second base.
What a couple of days on Royals Twitter. After telling reporters on Saturday that they wanted Whit Merrifield at second, Dayton Moore said he met with Ned Yost on Saturday night and they decided it was best to move Whit to right field and call up Nicky Lopez.
— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 13, 2019
This isn’t to say Merrifield won’t be at second base again, but for now, the move makes sense. Lopez was slashing .353/.457/.500 in 116 at bats in Triple-A and the Royals can’t leave that guy on the bench, especially not when he’s going to be a big part of this rebuild (at least that’s the hope).
It was pretty clear from early on in the season that Chris Owings wasn’t going to be a helpful piece on offense this year. It’s great that he can play multiple positions, but so can Merrifield, and with Lopez now arriving to play second base, Merrifield can fill in out in right field.
This is an exciting call-up for Kansas City Royals fans because we’re starting to see the next wave of talent playing in the majors and getting meaningful at bats. Lopez might not become a star right away, but the sense is that he’ll become a fan favorite and someone Royals fans can root for for years to come.
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Lopez blew through the minor leagues in under three years and if his numbers in Omaha carry over to the majors this season, Royals fans are going to be in for quite the ride.
Welcome to the big leagues, Nicky Lopez!