3 Royals KC Should Extend Next After Bobby Witt Jr. Deal

3. Maikel Garcia - 3B

Why not go ahead and solidify the infield of the present and future by extending the 23-year-old Garcia, who has shown significant promise and improvement in his time with the club?

There's no rush on getting a Garcia deal done, as he'll be under club control for a while, but it would be a sign of stability and an indication to other free agents that the Royals are truly serious about contending.

Garcia led the team in on-base percentage at .323 with the fourth-most at-bats, compiling 50 RBIs on 20 doubles, 38 walks and 23 stolen bases. He'll need to work on the plate discipline with 115 strikeouts, but those are really promising numbers for such a youthful player that was one of the best defensive infielders in baseball.

He ranked in the 98th percentile in outs above average, and it's reasonable to expect he'll improve in that area as he matures as a player.

After a strong offseason playing with Venezuela, I'm expecting big things for Garcia moving forward. Similar to the other guys on this list, signing Garcia to an extension now could save the Royals quite a bit of money ultimately.

There are a lot of reasons to be excited about this Royals team. Kansas City could and should compete for the AL Central as soon as this season, largely due to these three players on top of the organization's additions in free agency.

The Royals have a bright future. Let's keep that sun shining as we grow into a new era of Kansas City baseball.

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