Royals make change at hitting coach

Fresh off a series win in Denver against the Rockies but still eight games below .500 through 32 games, the Kansas City Royals made a change at pitching coach Monday, relieving Terry Bradshaw of his duties.

While not named the team’s hitting coach directly, in their official statement the Royals said senior director for player development and hitting performance Alec Zumwalt will join the Major League club and “oversee all hitting efforts.” Assistant hitting coach Keoni DeRenne remains in that position.

The Royals have struggled all season at the plate, even with this weekend’s impressive run-scoring output. They rank 26th in Major League Baseball in batting average, 27th in on-base percentage and 28th in slugging percentage.

Bradshaw had been Kansas City’s hitting coach since 2018 and had been with the organization since 2000.