Maikel Garcia Shares Injury Update After Exiting Royals Lineup

The Kansas City Royals have really struggled this season, and a recent development with third baseman Maikel Garcia makes it worse.

The 26-year-old was removed from Tuesday's contest against the Washington Nationals for pinch-hitter in the sixth inning. The Royals revealed he was removed from the game with left hand soreness.

According to Anne Rogers of MLB.com, "Maikel Garcia said he's been dealing with this hand soreness since the series in St. Louis a month ago. He says it really only flares up on him when he hits foul balls. Doesn't hurt when he makes direct contact, nor in the cage. He's not in the lineup today."

Maikel Garcia said he's been dealing with this hand soreness since the series in St. Louis a month ago. He says it really only flares up on him when he hits foul balls. Doesn't hurt when he makes direct contact, nor in the cage. He's not in the lineup today. #Royals

— Anne Rogers (@anne__rogers) June 17, 2026

Garcia has not been playing at his full strength for at least a month now. Along with the hand, he also dealt with a hamstring strain in late May which caused him to miss six games. Neither of these put him on the injured list.

But the injuries could explain his down year at the plate.

Through 67 games played, Garcia is slashing .266/.326/.378, good for a .704 OPS, with three home runs, 30 RBIs and 16 doubles. These stats are a far cry from his breakout 2025 campaign where he had .800 OPS and 74 RBI.

The Royals currently have 10 players on the injured list. Including Vinnie Pasquantino, Kyle Isbel, Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans. They are clearly weary about resting Garcia because of this.

The Royals were starting to turn their season around to begin June before they were struck with more injuries.

They now sit at the bottom of the American League Central division with a record of 29-45. The team had high hopes coming into this year on the backs of Bobby Witt Jr. and Pasquantino, but the team has struggled to get over the hump thus far.

Just two seasons ago the Royals were fighting the New York Yankees in the American League Division Series, but they have been unable to build off of that success the following two years.

If Gracia has to continue to play through his injury, this offense may continue to falter. It is unclear how the Royals and Gracia will attempt to combat this injury.

But the third baseman is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Nationals, so they may be going with the same route as his hamstring injury.

More updates are surely to come on his condition as he progresses throughout the week.

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This story was originally published June 17, 2026 at 9:58 AM.