KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals got regulars Bobby Witt Jr., Salvador Perez and Jac Caglianone back in the lineup for Tuesday's series opener against the Texas Rangers.
All three players missed time during the Royals' series in Minnesota over the weekend with various injuries.
Witt left Sunday’s game in the seventh inning with right knee soreness. Against Texas, he was batting second and playing shortstop. Witt is batting .280 with 27 RBIs in 66 games and his nine home runs is tied for Perez for the club lead.
Perez was hit by a pitch on his right thumb June 5. A cracked thumbnail and swelling forced him from the lineup June 6-7. He was batting fifth as the designated hitter against the Rangers. Perez is hitting .204 with 26 RBI in 61 games.
Caglianone was dealing with right shoulder soreness after crashing into the wall on June 5, left Saturday’s game in the fourth inning. He is back in right field and batting sixth on Tuesday. Caglianone is hitting .250 with six home runs and 15 RBI in 60 games.
Also returning is right-hander Stephen Kolek, who has been out since June 4 due to a family emergency. Kolek is 3-1 with a 3.32 ERA in six starts.
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Kansas City Royals' Jac Caglianone celebrates after hitting an RBI single during the first inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Friday, June 5, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez reacts during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Friday, June 5, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. fields a ground ball during the first inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)
MCKINNEY, Texas (AP) — A Texas teenager who fatally stabbed a 17-year-old track athlete from a rival team during a competition was convicted of murder Tuesday in a trial that drew attention far beyond the booming Dallas suburb where the two students attended different high schools.
A jury rejected Karmelo Anthony’s claims of self-defense during a confrontation with Austin Metcalf in stadium bleachers last year. Most people who testified were students who described a heated exchange over Anthony's refusal on a rainy spring day to leave a tent that belonged to Metcalf's team.
Anthony, now 19, did not testify at trial and faces up to life in prison after a sentencing hearing in which his mother was the only witness. His lawyer had an arm around him when the guilty verdict was announced.
Notoriety about the case spread, in part, because of social media posts that amplified the killing in racial terms. Anthony is Black; Metcalf was white. Lawyers on both sides, however, told jurors that the tragedy had nothing to do with race.
Jurors, who deliberated for less than three hours, had the option of a lesser charge, manslaughter, but didn’t choose it. The same jury will determine the sentence.
“He’s very sorry for what he did. Please, have mercy on my son,” Anthony's mother, Kala Hayes, pleaded to jurors shortly after the verdict.
But prosecutor Bill Wirskye asked for a lengthy prison term.
“Mercy to the guilty,” he said, “is cruelty to the innocent.”
Earlier Tuesday, during the trial's closing arguments, the jury heard dueling narratives from Wirskye and defense attorney Mike Howard about what happened in April 2025.
Several schools were competing when Anthony sat under the Memorial High School tent that was perched in the bleachers. Metcalf and others had repeatedly told Anthony to leave, witnesses testified, leading to an escalating confrontation.
Howard told jurors that Metcalf had “no legal right to put his hands on Karmelo.”
“Texas law does not require that you wait until you get hit,” Howard said. “In that split second of chaos, you must put yourself in his shoes.”
During the nearly weeklong trial, prosecutors said that Anthony provoked Metcalf, and witnesses have testified that Anthony was the aggressor.
“This is not self-defense, folks. It’s murder plain and simple,” Wirskye said.
Anthony at one point reached inside a bag and replied: “Touch me and see what happens,” according to a police report.
Metcalf pushed Anthony, according to witnesses, who said Anthony then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest. The teens, both from Frisco, didn't know each other.
“You don’t get to meet a shove with a stab, especially if you provoke the shove,” Wirskye said.
The prosecutor also made a broader pitch to the jury: “Ultimately, this case is about accountability. What kind of community do you want to live in.”
The trial drew lines of spectators hoping to find seats in the gallery and unfolded amid heavy security at the Collin County courthouse. As police officers watched Tuesday, dozens of people stood outside the courthouse in 90 degree Fahrenheit heat (32 degrees Celsius) to await the verdict. There were wails of grief from one woman — “This isn’t real!” — when the result became known.
Frisco is one of Texas’ fastest-growing cities that is dotted with dozens of modern school campuses and gleaming athletic facilities.
Several students testified that Metcalf, after ordering Anthony to leave his team’s tent, scoffed before Anthony reached into a bag and pulled out a knife.
One teen recalled Metcalf telling Anthony, “You don’t have anything in that backpack. It’s Frisco.”
The parents of Anthony and Metcalf have said they were good students who planned to go to college.
Associated Press writer Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.
A crowd gathers by Collin County Sheriffs vehicles parke in front of the Collin County courthouse after the Karmelo Anthony verdict was reached Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
An Austin Metcalf supporter holds a sign as law enfrocement officilals walk past in front of the Collin County courthouse following the verdict in the trial was reached Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Karmelo Anthony supporters voice their opinions in front of the Collin County courthouse after a verdict was reached Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
An emotional Karmelo Anthony supporter is consoled by another outside the Collin County courthouse after the verdict was reached in the trial Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Law enforcement officials stand in front of the Collin County courthouse after the verdict was reached in the Karmelo Anthony trial Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
A person walks around announcing the guilty verdict in the Karmelo Anthony trial in front of the Collin County courthouse, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Supporters for Karmelo Anthony demonstrate in front of the Collin County courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
A Collin County seriff drives past the front of the county courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
