Royals catcher Carter Jensen scratched after sleeping through alarms: 'I felt like I let my teammates down'
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Royals catcher Carter Jensen scratched after sleeping through alarms: 'I felt like I let my teammates down' originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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The Kansas City Royals have high hopes for this season, and that involves highly-touted rookie catcher Carter Jensen. But on Thursday, Jensen made a mistake that forced the team to scratch him from the lineup.
"Carter had an oversight," manager Matt Quatraro said, via MLB.com. "Overslept. Wasn't here on time, and we made the decision to scratch him from the lineup."
Jensen is splitting catching duties with Salvador Perez this season, as one will usually DH while the other spends the game behind the plate. Therefore, Kansas City had to give Perez an unexpected start at catcher against the Minnesota Twins as the Royals went for the sweep.
Minnesota won the game 5-1 to salvage the series, but the story after the game was Jensen's rookie mistake. Here's why the Royals said it was necessary to scratch Carter Jensen.
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Why was Carter Jensen scratched?
Royals catcher Carter Jensen admitted after the game that he overslept on Thursday morning, which forced him to be late to Kauffman Stadium and miss the game against the Twins.
"No running from it," Jensen told the media. "Just didn't wake up to my alarm, slept through it. Don't really have an excuse, nor should I. It sucks, happens. I felt like I let my teammates down, coaches down. Just learn from it and know it won't happen again."
#Royals catcher Carter Jensen in the clubhouse after the Twins game earlier today. Jensen plans to set a few alarms in the future. @KSHB41pic.twitter.com/wy2nDvgsaU
— Nick Jacobs (@Jacobs71) April 3, 2026
Like many young professionals new to the workforce, Jensen learned to set multiple alarms in case he sleeps through the first one
Manager Matt Quatraro made the decision to sit Jensen for the mistake, but told the media that he didn't think this would be an issue for the catcher moving forward.
"He's a stand-up guy, a really hard worker, a great kid," Quatraro said. "He feels terrible. He's accountable to it. It's not something that has been a pattern or any of that kind of stuff. Nobody feels worse than he does, and I think he'll admit to that. And we’ll move on."
Jensen's mistake meant Salvador Perez had to start at catcher in the game despite expecting to serve as the designated hitter against Minnesota. Therefore, Perez caught a day game after a night game and had to change his pre-game routine to include his catching duties.
First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino also addressed the situation in depth, as he said he hopes the young player can learn from the incident.
"We're glad Carter’s OK, right? That was kind of the initial thought when you're trying to get a hold of his parents and everything like that," Pasquantino said. "But once you find out he's OK, it's like, 'All right, it's a growing moment.'"
#Royals: Carter Jensen overslept and was scratched from today's lineup. Here's what Vinnie Pasquantino had to say about the situation after the game. @KSHB41pic.twitter.com/BHHt6k1G6n
— McKenzie Nelson (@McKenzieMNelson) April 2, 2026
However, Pasquantino also stressed how inexcusable Jensen's mistake was.
"He's really young. There are some things that cannot happen, and that's one of them. He's going to have to wear it on the chin, same way anybody would have to. It can't happen. And hopefully it doesn't happen again," Pasquantino said. "But it's one of those things where you just can't afford to make mistakes like that in this game. Got to move forward the best that he can.
"I know he feels really bad. I know that it was not his favorite drive to the field this morning, but it wasn't our favorite, either, trying to figure out what was going on. He'll learn from it. Grow up a little bit. We're here for him, though. It's not like anybody's mad at him. Things happen. But you got to learn from mistakes like that. And maybe get another alarm clock or something at home."
Jensen is the youngest player on the Royals' current roster and has played just 26 games in his MLB career since debuting at the end of last year. The 22-year-old will have many learning moments throughout the season, and this is just the first one.