Kansas City Royals: Lorenzo Cain Likely Out for the Season

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Kansas City Royals star center fielder Lorenzo Cain looks to be done for the season. He has played through left hand and wrist issues since August.

The Kansas City Royals are currently 4.5 games back from a Wild Card position. Although that doesn’t sound like an insurmountable number, there are four other teams ahead of them in the standings.

The Royals look to close out a series against the Cleveland Indians on Thursday. To finish the season they go on to play the Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins and the Indians (again). The Indians are first in the American League Central and the Tigers are one game back from a Wild Card position.

However, the Royals will have to finish their season without the help of Lorenzo Cain. During an appearance on MLB Network Radio, Royals manager Ned Yost explained that Cain’s “wrist has been slow to heal,” with the team feeling there is “no sense trying to push it.”

Cain has only played in one game in the month of September. After the September 9 game against the White Sox, he announced the possibility of shutting himself down for the remainder of the season.

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If in fact Cain is shut down for the remainder of 2016, the Royals will continue to rely on the outfield of Alex Gordon, Jarrod Dyson and Paulo Orlando. Cain would finish 2016 with a .287/.339/.408 slash line with nine home runs and 56 RBI. These numbers are good for a top-tier defender, but they pale in comparison to his 2014 and 2015 seasons.

Cain also missed almost all of July with a hamstring injury. His future health impacts the future plans of the Royals. Furthermore, he is entering the final year of his contract in 2017 and is due $11 million. The Royals may choose to shop him for future assets. Or they could take another championship run before their core championship players become free agency eligible. Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Danny Duffy and Wade Davis all hit the market after 2017.