Nick

Loftin

The 26-year-old had a solid spring, going 13-for-34 (.382) with five RBI in 44 plate appearances. Loftin was good for the Royals at Triple-A last season, but he doesn’t have the power or speed to move the needle much for fantasy managers. He also doesn’t provide as much defensive versatility as Cavan Biggio, who made the team.

Loftin has greatly improved his chances of claiming a spot on the Royals bench by hitting .444/.589/.600 in 34 plate appearances. The biggest danger he might face would probably be an outside addition; the Royals recently tried to add Adam Duvall and could keep looking for another bat.

Loftin will take a seat as a precaution for Sunday’s tilt. The 26-year-old is battling for a roster spot with the Royals, but assuming this is just precautionary, there’ll be plenty of time for him to be ready for the regular season.

Loftin opened the scoring in the ballgame with a two-out, two-run single off of Nathan Eovaldi in the second inning. He also led off the fifth inning with a single but wound up stranded at second base. Loftin is in big league camp fighting for a bench spot on the club’s Opening Day roster, so making a strong first impression on Friday seems like a good first step in achieving that goal.

If Gurriel is forced to the IL, the Royals presumably would recall Nick Loftin, who probably ought to be with the team anyway. The team would likely often use Freddy Fermin at catcher and Salvador Perez at first base.

The Royals are bringing up a host of new players, so Loftin is getting the boot from the active roster. The 25-year-old could be back before the end of the season, but he hasn’t played well enough to justify consideration even if it takes place.

The 25-year-old infielder will help to fill the massive void that the Royals are facing at first base after Vinnie Pasquantino (thumb) landed on the injured list on Friday. Loftin has struggled in his time with the Royals this season, slashing just .199/.294/.248 with one homer and 13 RBI in 141 at-bats.

Loftin heads back to the minors after Kansas City made a handful of moves at Tuesday’s trade deadline. The 25-year-old has struggled to a .543 OPS with one homer in 54 games this season at the highest level.

It looks to be nothing more than a routine night off for the speedy 24-year-old infielder. Nick Loftin will start in his place at the hot corner and will bat seventh for the Royals against soft-tossing right-hander Kyle Hendricks on Friday evening in Kansas City.

Loftin was serving as the Royals’ starting second baseman until Monday, when Michael Massey’s return as a DH and CJ Alexander’s promotion resulted in Maikel Garcia moving to second and Loftin hitting the bench. Loftin is back out there today, but he’s playing Garcia’s old spot, with Garcia remaining at second. At this rate, it’s easy to imagine Loftin getting sent back to Triple-A when Massey is deemed ready to return to the field or when Adam Frazier comes off the IL, whichever happens first.