The Royals system is categorized mostly by the unfound upside present among the crop of prospects. The team’s most recent first-round draft selections — Frank Mozzicato, Gavin Cross, and Blake Mitchell — have all struggled to some degree in their professional careers thus far. Mitchell, of course, hasn’t played much aside from a handful of Complex League games but doesn’t rank on Pipeline’s top 100 prospects.

In fact, not a single Kansas City prospect ranks within the game’s top 100 prospects on any major publication. As a result, it’s easy to see why the system ranks 29th in the league. Still, there’s optimism to be found. There are a ton of very young prep prospects that were highly drafted. Mozzicato, Ben Kudrna, Blake Mitchell, Blake Wolters, Carter Jensen, and Hiro Wyatt are all 20 years old or younger and could raise their prospect status greatly with just one strong season.

Here are the Farm to Fountains Top 30 Royals prospects:

Overall Value ( /50): 35.2

Player Comp: Tyler Glasnow

Mozzicato was a bit of a surprise when he was drafted 7th overall by the Royals in the 2021 MLB Draft. After a bit of a disappointing first-year campaign, he’s only improved in 2023. Mozzicato has lowered his walk rate and is striking out batters at one of the highest rates in the Minor Leagues. With these improvements, he’s showing the frontline starter potential.

Overall Value ( /50): 35.0

Player Comp: Cody Bellinger

Carson Roccaforte was taken with the 66th overall pick by the Royals in the 2023 draft. Royals Director of Scouting, Danny Ontiveros, called him a “potential five-tool player” in center field and some of that showed up in 2023. He will almost certainly stick in center and offers plus defensive value with a good bat as well.

Overall Value ( /50): 34.5

Player Comp: Jake Lamb

Cayden Wallace showed fans in 2023 that he can become a well-rounded, true third baseman at the next level. His power and approach was great for High-A Quad Cities, but he hit a bit of a wall after a promotion to AA Northwest Arkansas. He looked like he was starting to adjust when the season ended, and should start there once again next season.

Overall Value ( /50): 31

Player Comp: Tyler Soderstrom

Blake Mitchell is a bat-first prep catching prospect. The Royals drafted him early because they believe in the prodigious power potential. When he makes contact, Mitchell can hit the ball a long way with some impressive exit velocities. He’s looked great behind the plate so far in Arizona, as well, which is a good sign he could stay behind the plate long term. The risk is sky-high, but with it comes a sky-high ceiling — one the Royals hope they can tap.

Overall Value ( /50): 30.3

Player Comp: Chris Archer

Ben Kudrna’s development through the minor leagues has been steady, if slow. He made noticeable improvements from 2022 to 2023 in his walk rate and ability to miss bats. He creates a ton of swing and miss — some of the very best in the entire minor leagues last season.

6 – OF tyler gentry

Overall Value ( /50): 30

Player Comp: Alex Gordon

Gentry entered the system as a third-round pick in a shortened 2020 draft. He was the 2022 George Brett Hitter of the Year, and looks primed and ready to snag an Opening Day roster spot in 2024. He’s well rounded with an excellent approach at the plate and good line-drive power.

Overall Value ( /50): 29

Player Comp: Tommy Edman

Javier Vaz became front and center in the Royals’ farm system last season. He was a spark plug all year long, rarely striking out and showcasing possibly the very best hit tool in the entire system. FanGraphs was the first to place “Javi” in their top five Royals prospects. Don’t be surprised if other publications have him higher by preseason 2024 as well.

Overall Value ( /50): 28.5

Player Comp: Brendan McKay

Noah Cameron has some of the very best command in the entire system, and his stuff is pretty solid as well. He’s got a dominant changeup, paired with a fastball 93-95 mph and a nice 12-6 curveball as well. Tommy John surgery caused him to drop in the draft and slowed the early part of his professional career. 2023 was his first full pro season and hopefully 2024 will bring a higher workload as well.

Overall Value ( /50): 28.4

Player Comp: Jesse Hahn

Chandler Champlain is a competitor every single night on the mound. He bullies opposing hitters in the strikezone and dares them to try and catch up to his stuff. His fastball is mid-90s, paired with a solid curveball, slider, and a somewhat new splitter that he debuted in 2023. As a starter, he could become a back-end starter at the major league level.

Overall Value ( /50): 28.0

Player Comp: Tyler O’Neill

Gavin Cross was selected ninth overall in 2022 but has struggled since. 2023 was a disaster of a season, but much of his season was marred by injury and illness. His strikeout rate is rather high, but his swinging strike rate isn’t all that bad, leading to some expectations that he could bounce back in 2024. The power potential is very real, but the hit tool needs to catch up some.

11. UTIL Nick Loftin

12. RHP Mason Barnett

13. OF Jared Dickey

14. RHP David Sandlin

15. RHP Emmanuel Reyes

16. RHP Blake Wolters

17. 3B Trevor Werner

18. C Carter Jensen

19. 2B Peyton Wilson

20. C Ramon Ramirez

21. 3B Austin Charles

22. OF Asbel Gonzalez

23. SS/CF Tyler Tolbert

24. OF Erick Torres

25. RHP Henry Williams

26. RHP Hiro Wyatt

27. RHP Luinder Avila

28. RHP Andrew Hoffmann

29. OF John Rave

30. OF Darryl Collins

Did you like this article?