Sources: Royals keeping Maikel Garcia on five-year extension - ESPN

Third baseman Maikel Garcia and the Kansas City Royals are finalizing a five-year contract extension, sources told ESPN on Friday, locking up the Gold Glove winner with the team that saw him develop through its system into an All-Star.

The deal, which is pending a physical, includes a club option for a sixth year, sources said. It covers four years of arbitration for Garcia and buys out two free agent seasons, maintaining one of the best left sides of the infield, with Garcia and perennial All-Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. both signed through at least 2030.

Though Garcia, 25, is capable of playing all around the diamond — last season, he logged time at shortstop, second base, center field and right field — he does his best work at third, where last season he won his first Gold Glove and finished 14th in American League MVP voting.

Garcia's bat, which had produced below-average results since his 2022 debut, blossomed in 2025, when he hit .286/.351/.449 with 16 home runs, 74 RBIs and 23 stolen bases. The leap compelled the Royals to commit to Garcia, adding him to Witt as the team's only players under contract past the 2028 season.

Kansas City on Thursday signed outfielder Lane Thomas to a one-year, $5.25 million contract, continuing to complement a lineup the Royals hope will match their pitching staff. With Garcia, Witt, first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino and catcher Salvador Perez as lineup fixtures, Kansas City came into the winter looking to add multiple bats.

Rookie catcher Carter Jensen and outfielder Jac Caglianone, who is entering his first full season, are expected to play larger roles for the Royals in 2026 as two of the highest-touted players to join the big league team in years. Kansas City's offense struggled