Florida great Jac Caglianone embarked on a speed run through the minor leagues last year before making his MLB debut with the Kansas City Royals. His actual time in the big leagues was up and down as Caglianone struck out more than most would have liked, but he also had some bad luck in terms of getting rewarded for hard-hit balls.
Entering 2026, Caglianone had an encouraging end to the 2025 season. And a subtle change the Kansas City Royals are making could also give the Gator slugger a boost for his sophomore campaign.
Jac Caglianone hopes to benefit from shorter fences in 2026
The Kansas City Royals announced plans to move their outfield fences in by 10 feet ahead of the 2026 season. It will still be 330 feet to the foul pole, but now the power alleys will be reduced from 389 feet to a more standard 379 feet. The Royals are also lowering their fence from 10 feet to 8 1/2 feet.
In an interview with ESPN, Royals' GM J.J. Picollo stated that:
"We want a neutral ballpark where if you hit a ball well, it should be a home run. The second they start feeling like they can't get the ball out of the ballpark, they start changing their swing. I watched it for years and years and years, and I just felt like this is the time to try to push it and see if everything we felt for however many years is accurate."
Caglianone was definitely a victim of not being rewarded for hitting the ball well in 2025. When he debuted, Caglianone had multiple balls that were 100+ MPH off the bat that went for outs.
Eventually, strikeouts caught up to Caglianone, and after an injury, he was sent back to the Omaha Storm Chasers, the AAA affiliate of Kansas City.
He returned to the Royals in December and upped his walk total to finish September with an on-base percentage of .310. In 210 total at-bats in 2025, Caglianone had a .157 batting average and a .237 on-base percentage. He hit seven home runs off 33 total hits.
Hopefully for Caglianone, with a solid spring, the shorter fences in Kansas City can result in some more home runs in 2026.