Melendez homers again, displaying 'special talent'

DETROIT -- MJ Melendez wasn’t wasting any time.

Two hours after describing his approach to Tigers scheduled starter Matt Manning as “he likes his fastball, so jump on that,” Melendez led off Wednesday night’s game for the Royals. Manning had been scratched with arm fatigue, but against Will Vest, Melendez saw five straight fastballs. He took the first four for a 3-1 count, then hit the fifth 386 feet out to the opposite field with a 103.9 mph exit velocity to put the Royals ahead.

“To watch the ball carry off his bat right there to lead off the game, it’s amazing,” said manager Mike Matheny. “You’re hoping that it gets over the left fielder’s head when you see the ball off the bat. It just carries different than everybody else’s.”

Melendez finished 1-for-3 in the Royals’ 2-1 loss at Comerica Park, walking twice along with his homer. While a high strikeout rate has held down his stats enough that he’s remained fairly under the radar, Melendez -- who entered the season as the Royals' No. 2 prospect behind Bobby Witt Jr. -- is quietly putting together a strong rookie season.

His homer Wednesday was his 18th blast of the season, tied for seventh among MLB catchers despite him spending the first month of the season in the Minors. It was also his fourth leadoff homer of the year, a new Royals rookie record.

Melendez is striking out more than is ideal -- his strikeout rate ranks in the 26th percentile among MLB hitters, per Statcast -- but he’s also demonstrating elite patience, with a walk rate in the 93rd percentile and a chase rate in the 76th.

That combination of patience and power has defined Melendez’s approach at the plate.

“That’s just part of my game plan,” he said. “I feel like they kind of go hand-in-hand for me. Trying to be patient, trying to get good pitches to hit, and I feel like the more patient I am, the pitchers are going to have to eventually make good pitches. They don’t want to walk people, so that in turn just gets me better pitches to hit.”

His strikeout rate, though, has held him back so far. In 2021, Melendez broke out in a big way, slashing .288/.386/.625, mashing 41 homers and compiling a 1.011 OPS between Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Triple-A Omaha. His strikeout rate at Double-A was 21.9%, and after his promotion, it fell to 21.2%. In the big leagues this year, it has risen to 24.7%, and he’s slashing .218/.316/.399. Of course, the strikeouts aren’t entirely unexpected, as the jump from Triple-A to the big leagues is often a difficult one.

“It’s just an adjustment period,” Melendez said. “Something that I was able to go through this year, learn on and get better in the offseason and come back better next year.”

As a catcher, Melendez has seen mixed results so far. His pop time to second is slightly better than average, but he’s struggled with framing, landing at the bottom of the Statcast rankings.

“MJ knows how he ranks right now, and he knows that he can be a better receiver,” Matheny said. “It’s something that he works relentlessly at, but it’s also hard to do when he’s in the outfield, so we’re trying to manipulate the work time to get him to work in the outfield -- which is a brand-new position for him, and he’s doing a great job -- and then staying sharp when he gets an opportunity.”

The outfield is another new wrinkle. The Royals already have a starting catcher in Salvador Perez, so to stay in the lineup when Perez is behind the plate, Melendez has played 36 games in the outfield. He's split time between left and right after having never played the outfield, even in the Minors, until this season.

After Melendez's homer, Daniel Lynch took the mound and strung together a strong outing, completing six innings for the first time since Aug. 17 and allowing only a two-run homer to Miguel Cabrera in the first.

“It’s been a while since I’ve thrown to MJ, but I threw to him coming up through the Minor Leagues pretty much at every level,” Lynch said. “We have a pretty good rapport, and are on the same page much of the time -- he does a great job back there, throws well, blocks well, receives well. We’re blessed with two really good options.”

Matheny, a former big league catcher himself, likewise likes what he sees.

“He’s a special talent, all the way around,” he said. “The hit tool is just unique."