Kyle Isbel’s Triple-A rehab assignment delayed by foot soreness

Kyle Isbel’s expected trip to Triple-A Omaha did not start, and the Royals had to push back the center fielder’s return timetable after he felt foot soreness while running over the weekend. He was set to begin a rehab assignment, but Monday’s reevaluation will now determine whether he is ready to resume baseball activity.

The delay mattered because Omaha was supposed to be Isbel’s first game action on the way back from a significant left-foot injury. Kansas City had anticipated the outfielder beginning a rehab assignment with the Storm Chasers, a sign he was nearing a return to the Royals’ lineup after nearly a month out.

Isbel has been sidelined since the club diagnosed him with a Grade 3 tear of a portion of his left plantar fascia. He was placed on the injured list with plantar fasciitis, and the injury has already cost Kansas City a stretch of its center-field coverage while the club waited for him to clear the last step before live games.

The soreness changes that timetable in a meaningful way. Rather than sending Isbel to Omaha to start building up at-bats and defensive reps, the Royals now have to decide whether he needs more recovery time before he can handle the running and cutting required in a rehab assignment. That uncertainty matters more than the original plan, because a rehab start would have marked a clear checkpoint on his path back to Kansas City.

For the Royals, the outcome of Monday’s evaluation could decide whether Isbel’s absence stretches deeper into July and whether the club keeps adjusting its outfield mix without one of its regular center fielders. For Omaha, it means the anticipated arrival of a major-league bat and glove remains on hold, with the next step tied to how his foot responds after the weekend soreness.