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MLB.com: Jac Caglianone could reach the bigs soon

On3 imageby: Keith Niebuhr05/25/25On3Keith
Jun 19, 2024; Omaha, NE, USA; Florida Gators first baseman Jac Caglianone (14) hits a home run against the Kentucky Wildcats during the sixth inning at Charles Schwab Field Omaha. The 75th home run of his career, Caglianone breaks the Florida all-time home run record previously held by Matt LaPorta. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 19, 2024; Omaha, NE, USA; Florida Gators first baseman Jac Caglianone (14) hits a home run against the Kentucky Wildcats during the sixth inning at Charles Schwab Field Omaha. The 75th home run of his career, Caglianone breaks the Florida all-time home run record previously held by Matt LaPorta. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

Jac Caglianone is pulverizing the baseball right now. Since being promoted to Triple-A Omaha last week, the former Florida Gators star already has homered three times and driven in seven runs. Someday in the near future, he might be in the lineup for the Kansas City Royals.

In fact, per Sam Dykstra of MLB.com, “Caglianone could be out of Triple-A by the end of June.” Dykstra looked at Caglianone’s situation under a microscope to provide some analysis. Here’s what he wrote earlier this weekend (Keep in mind, this was written before Caglianone’s game Saturday night):

The UF great is turning heads in the minors

How he’s doing: Last year’s sixth overall pick is freshest to Triple-A, having only debuted there on Tuesday. He was a sensation at Double-A Northwest Arkansas before that, slashing .322/.394/.553 with nine homers in 38 games, and he’s already gone deep with Omaha on a 113.6 mph laser on Thursday. He’s still chasing on the high side and has been susceptible to curveballs and changeups through April and May, but he hits the ball so hard that it might not matter.

Defensively, the former two-way Florida star opened the year as a primary first baseman but got his first start in right field on April 24. Two of his three Triple-A starts so far have been in that corner outfield spot.

All eyes are on Jac Caglianone’s potential in the outfield

The MLB situation: Amid its fight to stay afloat in the AL Central,  Kansas City designated Hunter Renfroe for assignment on Friday. The veteran had made the most right-field starts of anyone on the club but was hitting just .182/.241/.242 in 35 games at the time of the move.

Drew Waters had started to peel away more and more right-field starts this month, and he’ll likely be the most immediate benefactor of Friday’s transaction. Royals right fielders as a collective have been worth -1.1 fWAR, 29th-best in the Majors and ahead of only the Rockies’ group (-1.3). Nick Loftin, primarily an infielder, was the corresponding move for Renfroe.

When a promotion could come: Many eyes turned to Caglianone after Friday’s move, but the Royals’ top prospect still only has eight professional starts in right field and one in left on his résumé. K.C. should prioritize getting him more work on the grass before throwing him into the deep end of the Majors.

In five Triple-A games, Caglianone is 6 of 21 at the plate. He has homered in three straight games.

Jac Caglianone had a stellar career for the Gators

Caglianone belted 68 home runs during his final two seasons with the Gators while playing first base and pitching. That included 35 homers as a junior in 2024, which trailed only the 37 from Georgia’s Charlie Condon. Caglianone passed Matt LaPorta for most career home runs by a Florida player with 75. UF reached the College World Series in 2023 and 2024.

The Royals selected him with the sixth overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Caglianone, 22, actually got off to a slow start last year after being drafted. He batted just .241 in 29 games for High-A Quad Cities and then .236 in 21 games in the Arizona Fall League.

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