Josi Novas was signed by the Royals as part of their 2022 international signing class. It was the largest group in franchise history at the time and included other names such as Erick Torres and Juan Olmos. At the time, the team was “very intrigued by the combination of the hitting ability, size, and tools present in shortstop Josi Novas.” Those tools have already started to show themselves in both the Dominican Summer League and the Arizona Complex League. Novas is a 6-4 shortstop with good speed, power potential, and strong contact ability. That mix is a great combination and places Novas on our top prospects list.
Season Stats:
Novas is clearly a raw prospect. He’ll turn 19 before the 2024 season and has plenty more development to go. However, a large amount of that development showed itself in 2023. From his debut in 2022 to last season, Novas improved his approach greatly. His walk rate was nearly eight percent higher year over year. The swing-and-miss is clear in his game and will limit him if he can’t cut down on the strikeouts. With that said, the combination of tools here is just too intriguing to ignore.
Novas has an easy swing from the right side that allows him to generate ample pop to all fields. The overall swing mechanics are easily repeatable and good bat speed allows Novas to hit the ball hard. His large frame gives hope that the power can develop further. He posted a .126 ISO in Surprise last season but that mark was .214 in Novas’s largest DSL sample. Novas should get the chance to test Low-A sometime in 2024. He plays shortstop, but a move to second base wouldn’t surprise me long-term. If his arm can develop, he may profile as a third baseman as well.
The #Royals prospect you probably don’t know, but should follow in 2024: SS Josi Novas. Novas turns 19 next week. He’s a 6-4 shortstop signed by the team in the 2022 international class.
He has easy power to all fields, shown here with a gap double and an opposite field HR. pic.twitter.com/4s7eHFIbrv