Jonathan India Has Not Been the Answer the Royals Hoped For

When the Kansas City Royals traded Brady Singer to the Reds for Jonathan India, the deal made a lot of sense on paper. India, a former Rookie of the Year winner, had up-and-down seasons in Cincinnati but ultimately was a successful player.

Kansas City was coming off of a fantastic season and knew they needed to address their offense to repeat that success. India was seen as the answer to a few of their big holes: a need for a proven leadoff hitter, a second baseman, and someone who could hit lefties well. India was proven in each area, but so far has fallen flat.

Let me be clear. The Royals did not expect to get an All-Star when they acquired India. All they needed was a player to get on base ahead of their All-Stars and help round out the roster. Instead, they have gotten poor defense and below-average offense.

Stats updated prior to games on July 6.

Struggling in the Leadoff Spot

In 2024, Kanas City had some of the worst production in baseball out of the leadoff position. The Royals had a combined .604 OPS with only a .270 on-base percentage from their leadoff hitters. It was a putrid effort and left the bases empty far too often for Bobby Witt Jr.’s at-bats.

Adding India, who was primarily the leadoff hitter in Cincinnati, made a ton of sense. His career .776 OPS and .360 OBP from the leadoff position was the right fit for their needs. Although it does not work like this, the Royals essentially added .174 points to their leadoff OPS.

Like I said, it doesn’t work like that and we are seeing why. India has been in the leadoff spot for all but one of his games. Batting first, India is slashing .247/.331/.343, good for a .673 OPS. Is it still better than what the Royals had last season? Yes. Is it up to expectations? No.

India has been particularly bad in his first at-bat of games as well. Instead of being a table setter in the first and putting early pressure on the starting pitcher, India has slashed .173/.235/.253 for a .488 OPS. It’s a nitpicky stat, but when you start most games with a quick out, you can let a pitcher get in a rhythm.

India’s power was expected to take a dip after leaving Cincinnati, where he typically put up about 15 home runs. However, the dip is larger than I thought it would be. His ISO is currently at .096, and he only has four home runs, three of which came on the road.

Helping Against Lefties

India has not been a complete non-factor, as he is helping against lefties. Last season, the Royals slashed .243/.293/.379 with a .672 OPS against southpaws despite having both Salvador Perez and Bobby Witt Jr. on the roster. The need for improvement was clear, and India has provided a boost.

So far, India is slashing .278/.375/.389 with a .764 OPS against lefties, which is in line with his .756 career OPS against lefties. A box has been checked with a passing grade, but with that said, the Royals just haven’t faced many lefties. In fact, India only has 65 plate appearances against lefties in 2025.

Sure, India is doing his job, but it has not impacted the team enough against southpaws, as they rank 25th in OPS against lefties at .637. It’s not all his fault, of course.

While India has done well in this split, you almost need to have a higher standard than what he has provided. For a player who has been awful defensively (-12 OAA, first percentile) and struggled against righties (.652 OPS) you need him to dominate lefties to make up for his value.

At what point do the negatives outweigh the positives? A 117 wRC+ against lefties essentially means India has been 17% better than league average. Yet, he really needs a wRC+ over 135 to make up for his negative value elsewhere. It’s a high standard, but that is the situation.

Hope for a Turnaround?

I know there has been a lot of negativity in this article, but the stats are the stats. I will say, there are some signs pointing in the right direction. Each month India has improved his OPS. He followed a .590 OPS in March with a .694 in May and a .709 in June.

Over the past month, India has slashed .261/.340/.413, good for a .753 OPS. His power has been better, as three of his four home runs on the season came in June. It’s not unusual for a player to struggle to start his time with a new team, so that very well could be the case with India.

Kansas City has also asked India to add to his versatility. Not only has he played second, but he has logged 21 games in left and 20 games at third, which the Reds never asked him to do. Learning new positions, especially for a guy who is not gifted defensively, must have taken some focus away from his offense.

Now that he has settled in, India has some catching up to do. The good news is he’s once again not striking out much or chasing out of the zone, which will allow him to see more pitches he can do damage on. His 86.5% zone contact rate is in line with his career number, which is a great sign for the Royals.

Historically, India has enjoyed his best production in June and July. A career .786 OPS in June and .831 so far in July should give fans plenty of hope. The problem is that those months have also been when his power has ticked up, and I don’t think we will see the same home run output now that he is away from Great American Ball Park, which will impact his overall numbers.

Final Thoughts

Jonathan India is a better player than he has shown so far. How much better? That’s the million-dollar question. Players like India, whose defense sinks their value, will always need to be a good chunk above average offensively for it to all make sense, which is why he’s currently a negative WAR player.

I’ve watched enough Jonathan India to know a good stretch will happen, and we might be seeing it right now. How long that stretch ultimately lasts will determine what type of season he has. Although I don’t think the Royals are regretting the trade by any means, they did expect better, or at least more consistent, production.