The Royals and infielder Abraham Toro have agreed to a minor league deal, reports Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase. The Republik Sports client also receives an invite to big league camp in spring training.
It’s an early birthday present for Toro, who turns 29 tomorrow. The trilingual Québécois infielder has appeared in the past seven big league seasons as a part-time, multi-positional player. He was with the Red Sox in 2025 but he was outrighted off the roster in August. He became a free agent at season’s end, which allowed the Royals to sign him to this deal.
He has 1,582 plate appearances over those seven campaigns. His 17.1% strikeout rate is a few ticks better than average but his 6.4% walk rate is on the low side. He has a combined .223/.285/.356 line over that time, which translates to an 81 wRC+, indicating he’s been 19% worse than league average.
It’s possible there’s a bit more in the bat, as he’s put up more intriguing numbers in the minors. Dating back to the start of 2021, he has 799 minor league plate appearances with a 12.6% walk rate, 19.1% strikeout rate, .286/.380/.474 line and 120 wRC+.
Defensively, he has logged hundreds of big league innings at the non-shortstop infield positions, with brief looks in the outfield corners as well. The Royals are set on the left side of the infield with Bobby Witt Jr. at shortstop and Maikel Garcia at third. On the other side of the dirt, Vinnie Pasquantino has first base locked down. Second base is a bit less settled since Jonathan India and Michael Massey both struggled in 2025.
Kansas City currently has Nick Loftin and Tyler Tolbert on the roster as potential bench infielders but both are still optionable. If the Royals would prefer those guys to get regular playing time, they could be sent to Triple-A. The Royals have added Kevin Newman and now Toro as veteran infielders on non-roster pacts who could potentially take over a bench role. If Toro cracks the roster, he is out of options. If he’s holding a roster spot at the end of the year, he can be retained beyond 2026 via arbitration.
Photo courtesy of Brian Fluharty, Imagn Images
Nothing special for the Red Sox but he did help hold down the fort for a while. Best of luck to him going forward.
hayzee – It still blows my mind they didn’t have a qualified backup for first base. They should have told Raffy to learn first base years prior.
The DR manager for the last WBC wanted Raffy to play first base, but Cora refused to allow it. Complete mismanagement by the Sox, as usual.
I wish Toro well, but his .188 BA, .254 OBP and .509 OPS from mid-June thru his release in mid-August absolutely killed the Red Sox offense.
Devers would’ve made a big stink about “I’m a third baseman” if they had tried to get him to learn 1B sooner. I don’t think that was ever a realistic option for him in Boston.
Exactly Meow. Cora thought he was protecting his player. Can’t blame Cora for that.
He reminds me of Dom Smith. Not a guy I feel comfortable as a primary 1B, but definitely a guy who exceeded expectations and can be a capable backup.
It was a tough job for Toro, who had played only 90 innings at the position (+297 in the minors) to be forced into a starting first base role. He’s been pretty good defensively at 3rd and decent at 2nd. He’s great at making contact but with below average power and high chase rates, will never hit well enough to play 1st regularly.
Hope he gets another shot. He may not be a starter but I definitely think he’s a big league caliber player.
2022 to 2025: Total WAR = 0.0
Use Toro to mow a lawn, that’s no bull.
Classic Quad-A player.
Too bad he didn’t sign with Texas or the Angels (the two teams in the AL West he’s not played for).
TIL that the number of languages Toro can speak is triple the number of defensive positions he can play.
Sounds like a guy who could be very successful after his playing days are over
Seemed like a great attitude guy and good team player when he was with Boston this year. Numbers weren’t there and he’s probably never an everyday MLB player at this point, but yeah I could see him transitioning to a coaching role in the future for sure.
And there goes the big bat Breslow had his eyes on!
There were a few clutch moments for Toro with the Sox last season, he just got overexposed playing every day. Good for him getting another chance in KC