March 2024

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The Farm to Fountains Daily Digest is your one-stop shop for all of the day’s action in the minor leagues. The coverage of highlights and notable prospects for the entire Royals farm system will keep you up-to-date and in the know.

Omaha played its second game of the season on Saturday. LHP Anthony Veneziano got the start for the Storm Chasers. The game was a pitchers’ duel for much of the early innings after some first-inning stumbles by Veneziano. In that first inning, Veneziano allowed a run but no other runs would come home for either side until the fifth inning. In the home half of the fifth, Omaha took a 3-2 lead. They quickly grew that lead with three more runs in the sixth inning. The Omaha bullpen — which had been lights out in both games so far — finally allowed runs to score in the top of the ninth. The game was tied heading into the bottom of the tenth before the Storm Chasers earned their second walk-off victory in as many days.

Final Score: Omaha 7, Iowa 6 (10)

In his first start of the regular season, things looked rough early for Anthony Veneziano. He faced six Cubs hitters in the first inning, walking two and allowing one run to come across. Things got back on track quickly for Veneziano however. He finished his day with three innings pitched, allowing three hits and one earned run. He walked two and struck out three. The command was sharp after the first inning. After throwing 11 balls in the first, Veneziano missed the zone just five more times over the next two innings combined.

Nick Pratto again continued his hot stretch to open the Triple-A season. He went 2/4 with a walk and an RBI on Saturday. He did strike out once. Over the first two games of the season, he’s now hitting .500 with an OPS of 1.350. As for Devanney, the newcomer to the Royals system has had an impressive first two games of the season. After saving a run on Friday and scoring the walk-off run, he went 2/4 with a double and an RBI on Saturday. He’s old for a minor-league prospect at 26, but Devanney could be a name to watch this season if he continues his success. He profiles as solid depth for the big league team in case of injury.

Perhaps the most concerning news of the entire season thus far continues to be John McMillon’s velocity. The flamethrowing reliever was optioned to Triple-A Omaha to continue building up his arm strength. He was slow to ramp up this spring and needed more time to be ready for major league hitters. His first appearance of the season on Saturday did little to stoke optimism. McMillon pitched the ninth for Omaha, ultimately getting just one out before being pulled from the game. He allowed four runners to score in the inning. McMillon’s fastball velocity on the afternoon averaged just 93 mph. It seems that the path back may be longer than expected for the promising reliever.

Despite playing solid defense in 2023, Rave has been the Storm Chasers’ left fielder in both games so far this season. He launched his first home run of 2024 on Saturday — a 399 ft. blast that left the bat at 107 mph. Rave is an under-the-radar prospect who will have a tough time earning playing time in Kansas City this season. The outfield depth ahead of him is simply too deep, but he’s still a notable name to watch. Rave had an impressive start to the season in 2023 but struggled with strikeouts as the season went on.

Final Score: MIN 5 | KCR 1

Overall Record: 0-2

Winning/Losing Pitcher

W: Jorge Alcara (1-0, 0.00 ERA)

L: James McArthur (0-1, 9.00 ERA)

The Royals brought in Seth Lugo to have this exact game over the course of the season. He wasn’t overly dominant like Cole Ragans, but he shut down the Twins in his first start with the team. The only inning where he looked vulnerable was in the fourth when Alex Kirilloff singled and Lugo hit Byron Buxton with a pitch. Outside of that inning, Lugo quieted the Twins bats.

A slow start from the offense isn’t ideal for a Royals team that needs a solid start to a season, but MJ Melendez going 2 for 4 with a double and driving in the only run for the Royals is a good sign. Bobby Witt Jr. also got on-base three times doubling twice and getting a walk, he was also caught stealing to start the year. Another good sign is Salvador Perez throwing out his first runner on the year and some stellar defense from Maikel Garcia.

The last key highlight was John Schreiber’s debut, in which he pitched an inning with a strikeout while giving up a hit. The issue, however, was both James McArthur and Will Smith, who gave up all five runs to the Twins in the late innings.

The Royals hope to get the bats going and salvage a game from the Opening series of the year and the pitcher they face will be Bailey Ober (0-0). Brady Singer (0-0) will be making his first start of the season looking to rebound from a rough 2023 season.

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The Farm to Fountains Daily Digest is your one-stop shop for all of the day’s action in the minor leagues. The coverage of highlights and notable prospects for the entire Royals farm system will keep you up-to-date and in the know.

The only minor league team in action thus far is the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers. Friday marked Opening Day in Papillion. Omaha faced off against the Iowa Cubs at Werner Park. The game was in the I-Cubs’ favor early, as they led 4-0 heading into the home half of the sixth inning. Then, the Storm Chasers offense started to come alive. They scored three in the sixth, followed by another in the eighth to tie it up. The Storm Chasers’ bullpen was fantastic on the night, pitching six scoreless innings in relief of starter Daniel Lynch IV.

Final Score: Omaha 5, Iowa 4 (11)

Daniel Lynch IV got the Opening Day start for Omaha. He was in the mix for a roster spot for much of the spring but would eventually find his way optioned to Triple-A. His final line on the night wasn’t impressive in the least. He finished his night with 5.0 innings pitched, allowing nine hits and four earned runs in the process. He did strike out three and only walked one Iowa hitter on the night. Despite the poor results in the box score, Lynch did have his changeup working nicely all night. Across his entire arsenal, he garnered 14 swinging strikes, good for a 29% whiff rate. His fastball velocity has yet to return, as he sat 90-92 all night long with his four-seamer. There was some promise, alongside some struggle. This is the story of Daniel Lynch’s entire career thus far.

First batter faced this season, first strikeout on the year for Daniel Lynch IV. He gets Pete Crow-Armstrong here with the slider. pic.twitter.com/al1lEMwhrR

— Preston Farr (@royalsminors) March 29, 2024

Nick Pratto brought his spring training hot streak with him to Omaha. He finished 2/4 with a walk and two doubles on Friday. Pratto’s entire approach has been revamped this offseason and that’s been clear all spring. It was the case as well on Friday. Through his first two plate appearances, Pratto saw seven pitches and swung at five of them. The passive approach of the past continues to be just that — in the past. Pratto has the physical skills to succeed in the major leagues and swinging more will allow him to put those to use. It’s unclear how long he may spend in Triple-A to open the 2024 season, but if his latest results on the field are any indication he’s more than ready for the major leagues.

Pratto is 2-4 with a pair of doubles and a walk tonight. No strikeouts. He has completely overhauled his approach. The physical skills were always going to work, now the mental approach is catching up. https://t.co/MU8wc3eITp

— Alex Duvall (@aduvall013) March 30, 2024

The Omaha bullpen was the true player of the game in the team’s Opening Day victory. Dan Altavilla, Walter Pennington, Will Klein, Sam Long, and Steven Cruz combined to go six scoreless, allowing just two hits and striking out eight. Each of the names mentioned has a chance to pitch meaningful big-league innings this season. Klein was perhaps the most impressive of the bunch. He threw 16 pitches in his full inning of work. He finished the night with a 50% Whiff% and a 38% CSW%.

CJ Alexander got the offense started in the sixth inning with a massive three-run shot that cleared the berm in right field. The blast went 109 mph off the bat, but the distance wasn’t reported (it’s Opening Day for Statcast too). Alexander would add a fourth RBI later in the night with a single to score Nick Pratto in the bottom of the eighth inning. Newcomer Cam Devanney — who joined the organization in the Taylor Clarke trade — looked solid in his Storm Chasers debut. He was the starting shortstop on Friday, pushing Tyler Tolbert to second base. He finished his night 0/4 with a walk, but had an impressive throw home to save a run late in the game and also scored the walk-off run after a passed ball in the home half of the 11th inning.

The Kansas City Royals continue to work closer to Opening Day. On Friday, the team fell to Milwaukee 11-5 in the penultimate game of this year’s Cactus League. The team will play their final spring training game tomorrow in a split-squad matchup against the Texas Rangers. Outside of Cactus League play, the Royals will also play an exhibition matchup on March 25 against the Northwest Arkansas Naturals in Springdale, Arkansas.

As the team moves closer to Opening Day, they’ve made a flurry of roster moves this week. The moves started on Wednesday when the team optioned starters Daniel Lynch IV and Anthony Veneziano to Triple-A Omaha. Roster changes continued again on Friday when the team announced the next set of transactions.

We have optioned the following players to Omaha (AAA):C Austin NolaINF Nick PrattoOF Drew Waters

We now have 49 players in big league camp.

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) March 22, 2024

Austin Nola heading to Omaha isn’t too much of a surprise. The other two, on the other hand, had varying levels of hope for an Opening Day spot in Kansas City. Although Drew Waters struggled last season, the start of his 2023 campaign was slowed by an oblique injury. Those injuries can linger well into the season, and it looked to do so for Waters.

In all, he appeared in 98 games last season, slashing .228/.300/.377. Entering this year’s spring training, Waters was clearly behind Kyle Isbel for the starting center field position. There was a looming decision between Waters, Blanco, and Garrett Hampson for the backup center field position. Waters had a strong spring, slashing .276/.344/.448 with a home run in 12 games. His swinging strike rate, however, was up at 26.5% in Arizona, which led to an alarming 37.5%.

For Nick Pratto, the move was even more up in the air. Pratto entered the season well outside of the conversation. Vinnie Pasquantino would be back healthy, and between Nelson Velázquez and Hunter Renfroe, the designated hitter role for 2024 seemed set. Pretty quickly into the spring, however, it became clear that Pratto wasn’t the same player we saw last season. He was swinging more often, making hard contact, and striking out much less.

Pratto needs to prove in AAA that his new approach will stick. In AZ it worked well, but it was such a small sample that it makes sense to let him get everyday ABs to prove it more. I had him over Nelly, but I’m not against the move.

Here’s a comparison to consider. Hear me out.

— Preston Farr (@royalsminors) March 22, 2024

In all over 13 games, Pratto slashed a gaudy .421/.476/.816 with four home runs, a 4.8% walk rate, and a 19.0% strikeout rate. If anything carries over to the regular season, it is usually strikeout and walk rates. That bodes extremely well for the potential of a breakout season for Pratto. Next for him will be the trip to Omaha where he’ll get a chance to prove that his new approach wasn’t a desert mirage in Arizona.

When the Royals traded for Kyle Wright and signed Seth Lugo, it was a safe bet that the team was done with pitching. That is until the December 15th signing of Michael Wacha to a two-year, $32 million deal. Selfishly, I was glad to be vindicated after wanting a Wacha signing during the 2022-23 offseason. After hinting at more moves, the Royals jumped at the opportunity to add another arm to a rotation that struggled in 2023. 

Signing for $16 million per year makes a lot of sense for Wacha, but it was an easy number for the Royals to land on, too. Early in the offseason, the Padres declined an extension of the same value and length on Wacha. After deciding to try free agency, the Royals gave him what he was looking for and added a player option after year one as a bonus. It appears to be a very aggressive move for a front office that typically sits on their heels. 

The Royals had a standout performance in Cole Ragans after his promotion in July, but the rest of the rotation (and bullpen) fell flat. With a third-worst 5.17 ERA, the fourth-least strikeouts, and 10th most walks, there was much to improve upon. The signing of Seth Lugo added a veteran arm looking to establish himself as a starter. Wacha brings a safety arm to the table with more starting experiences and great numbers. The signing of these two shows that the front office is willing to put bigger money into cornerstone pieces. It also shows an increased savvy within the free-agent market.

Wacha has had his issues with injury in the past, the most being in his shoulder. These concerns may explain why a pitcher younger than Lugo received a shorter deal. Regardless, “Why Wacha?” seems to be an easy question to answer. He’s an 11-year vet with some success and something to prove.

Wacha, in 11 years, has been an All-Star once. While pitching above average isn’t inherently an indicator of being among the best in the game, it’s a start. Wacha has put up six seasons with an ERA+ over the league average of 100. He has held that number at 127 for the past two seasons without making an All-Star game appearance. Regardless of the performance from the rest of the league, it’s fair to assume he may expect more than the club option the Padres exercised.  Wacha, now entering his age 32 season, is looking to lock down a final big deal in the coming years. With a chance to do so at actual market value and not a lower club option, Kauffman’s pitcher-friendly environment is enticing.

It is worth noting, however, that Wacha has taken two hiatuses from high-end pitching. These may have prevented some clubs from expecting results over a lengthy contract. Also adding some uneasiness around Wacha is that his best seasons don’t typically ask him to top 150 innings. Output aside, he has never averaged above 6 innings per outing. Coming into his last years to nail a big contract, he needs to prove he can either go the distance more often or pitch well enough to be worth the strain on the bullpen.  I don’t expect Wacha to be here past his current contract. He may even use that player option to get a longer contract elsewhere a year early. He’s looking to get paid, but he can help the club in the intermediate. 

Wacha is coming off of the best back-to-back seasons in his career. The reasons I was so high on him leaving Boston are the reasons I am high on him this year. He may not shatter the ceiling, but we can fully expect him to put up a 3 to 3.50 ERA and pair it with around 110 strikeouts. His Baseball Savant page shows one big change in recent years to maintain these numbers. Wacha has never had an overbearing fastball, but his changeup is great. In the last two years, he has massively increased his changeup usage and reduced his four-seam. In 2023, he even made the drastic shift of throwing the change more than the fastball, with his change coming in 34.5% of the time. To pair with the increased usage of his change, he’s cut down on the cutter (no pun intended) as well.

This switch to a two-pitch approach has simplified his attack, increasing how often he uses his best pitch. However, this isn’t to say he stays with two pitches the whole time. He threw 5 different pitches last season, including the previously unmentioned curveball and sinker. That same sinker was introduced to his arsenal in 2019, spiking in usage during the 2022 campaign that set his current market.

2024, we can expect to see him roll with his bread and butter. A changeup first approach that will sit around 82 mph, followed up with a fastball resting at 92. Neither is manufactured to blow by people, but his lack of pop on the fastball may be his superpower. Without a massive difference in appearance, his swings and misses will come from hitters simply not adjusting to a 10 mph difference. In situations more dire he can call on the sinker or cutter (or even a surprisingly effective curveball with little usage.) The sinker is the better of the two pitches by far, with a lower batting average and slugging. The putaway percentage is higher, too, but the sinker does have a lower whiff rate. It seems like both pitches are a risk that Wacha will take in order to get the strikeout deep in counts. 

Wacha looks to come in and become the number 2 starter in the rotation behind Lugo. He seems like a candidate to move a little, though. If Lugo falters in his second full season as a starter, Wacha could jump into the “ace” spot. Just as likely, if Singer surprises or Ragans continues his dominance, they may be candidates to move up in the rotation. By season’s end, I expect a pretty similar layout, but we may see some interesting movement. If the Royals intend to keep him past his player option, they’d hope to see him maintain his current production. The player option is probably pretty enticing, and as much as I’d love to keep him, he fills a need for the next two years and could be young enough to demand something long-term.