When the Royals opened their clubhouse to members of the media Wednesday afternoon, the bass-driven beat of reggaeton music filtered out the doors from a speaker in the back corner of the room.
There was just a smattering of Royals lingering there to listen, most occupying the right bank of lockers.
But one of the players listening intently to the music sat on the opposite side, surrounded by no one as he alternated between grooving to the tunes and studying a stack of papers. It was Jorge Lopez, the 25-year-old pitcher the Royals recalled from Class AAA Omaha to start Wednesday’s game against the Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium.