Kansas City Royals: Every First Round Pick Since 2000

Every Royals first-round draft pick since 2000: Ashe Russell (2015)

In 2015, the Kansas City Royals made Ashe Russell the 21st overall pick in the MLB Draft and he struggled during his short time in their farm system. Normally pitchers struggle right away and slowly improve, but Russell has been going in the opposite direction.

In year one, Russell had an ERA of 4.21 and a record of 0-3 with a 1.239 WHIP in 11 starts. Year two was rough for Ashe Russell, as the Indiana native only started two games and had a 9.00 ERA, 0-1 record, and 1.500 WHIP in 20 innings pitched.

Taking pitchers in the first round can be a huge hit or a devastating miss. Russell proved that he falls in the “miss” category, as he opted to step away from baseball in 2017.

We see this type of thing happen with minor league ballplayers all the time, but normally it either doesn’t happen at all or it’s short-lived. Russell has still not returned and that could mean he’s done playing baseball for good. There was talk in April of 2018 by Alex Duvall of Royals Report, however, that Russell was throwing in Arizona.

The Kansas City Royals could really use Ashe Russell’s services. Hopefully, he’s okay and can contribute to the Royals rotation someday.