The Case for Nicky Lopez
By the start of the 2021 MLB season, Kansas City Royals fans were done with Nicky Lopez. The 26-year-old had just finished spring training with a batting average of .118 in 34 at-bats and was coming off a 2020 season where he hit .201 while playing in 56 of the 60 games. He was optioned to Omaha.
Before he could even fully think about what to do next, Lopez was called back up to the Majors and was named the everyday shortstop after an oblique injury to Adalberto Mondesi.
Lopez has filled in exceptionally well at shortstop, but now that Mondesi is back (maybe?) his everyday spots seems to be on the line. Regardless of Mondesi’s health, Lopez should be a regular for the Royals.
Overview
In 49 games, Lopez is hitting .224 with an OPS of .626. He has accumulated 0.5 bWAR and has five sacrifice bunts. I know, I know, these numbers are not super impressive but there is value here. Looking at other middle infielders of the past, the numbers start to look a little better. Omar Infante had an OPS of .632 in 2014 while Alcides Escobar had an OPS of .614 in 2015. Lopez is right around what the middle infield on ALCS championship teams hit.
Also, Lopez has had a huge slump this season. During a 10-game stretch from April 27-May 7, Lopez went 1-for-29 at the plate. That’s Hunter Dozier territory. If you remove that stretch, Lopez is hitting .276 with a .344 OBP and an OPS of .725. That OPS would be good for fourth on the team and over 20 points higher than Whit Merrifield.
Now a player’s stats are a player’s stats, and everyone has a stretch of games they would like to remove. We all like to wonder where the Royals would be if they did not lose 11 games in a row. But Lopez’s streak was so drastic and so early in the year, it has skewed his numbers quite a bit. For 39 of the 49 games Lopez has played in, he has provided near-league-average offense and that’s more than enough to be an everyday middle infielder.
Quality at-bats
There has been a lot of attention on Carlos Santana as there should be. The man has great plate appearances and is second on the team in home runs. The success of Santana has taken some attention off of Lopez though. Lopez is second on the team in walks at 19 and has 70 fewer plate appearances than Merrifield who is third.
Lopez has a walk percentage of 11.8. The league average is 8.8. Lopez and Santana are the only two Royals above league average at walking. This is displayed in Lopez’s .321 OBP, higher than Merrifield and Salvador Perez. Lopez is getting on base.
Lopez also does not strike out often. Lopez has struck out 22 times and has a strikeout percentage of 13.8. Only Merrifield has a lower percentage on the Royals. He’s putting the ball in play and has above-average sprint speed. This leads to infield hits, beating out double plays and putting pressure on the defense.
Finally, Lopez leads the MLB in sacrifice hits with five. In what has become a lost art, Lopez can put down a bunt. He can move a runner over or pull off a squeeze play at the plate. This is especially valuable in extra innings with the new rules.
Lopez does not give away at-bats and is a threat to do a number of things at the plate.
Who’s left?
Who else is going to start for the Royals? Kelvin Gutierrez started out strong but has fizzled out. Hanser Alberto hasn’t provided much, Jarrod Dyson is not an everyday player and we saw how Ryan O’Hearn hits at the MLB level. If nothing else, Lopez is an everyday player because the rest of the options have been terrible. I haven’t even mentioned Dozier or Jorge Soler because their track records are going to keep them in the lineup.
Lopez has had his ups and downs at shortstop but he nearly won a Gold Glove at second. He is a much better defender at second than Merrifield as Merrifield’s best position appears to be right field.
If Mondesi is healthy, Lopez’s spot should not be the one to go. Move Merrifield into the outfield and move Dozier to third if the Royals insist on constantly playing him. If they are worried about outfield depth and want to give Edward Olivares at-bats then give Merrifield or Andrew Benintendi some rest from the field and DH them.
Lopez has been the sixth-best offensive player for the Royals this season. As a team trying to keep its head above water and stay in playoff contention, you cannot afford to bench productive players.
