KC Royals: 2020 Northwest Arkansas Naturals roster will be loaded
By Cody Rickman
Pitching
The projected pitching staff for the 2020 Northwest Arkansas Naturals could be the best in the minors for the 2020 season. Since the introduction of the MLB ball to AAA, the Royals may decide to keep advanced prospects such as Daniel Lynch, Jackson Kowar, and Brady Singer in AA to start the season to avoid damaging their confidence in the pitching meat grinder of the Pacific Coast League.
Lynch, Kowar, and Singer have flashed exceptional stuff in 2019 and could be MLB ready by the late 2020 season. The staff will add another dynamite arm in that of Kris Bubic who led the minors in strikeouts in 2019. What to expect from the potential of Singer, Kowar, Lynch, and Bubic can be read here.
Daniel Tillo is another starting pitching arm that will be utilized in the Northwest Arkansas rotation. Tillo saw his velocity spike entering the 2019 and with his potential he will be given more opportunity to stick as a starter. In the long run Tillo may have better potential as a high leverage late inning reliever.
The Naturals bullpen will see the return of the hard throwing Tyler Zuber and the debut of the consistent closer Tad Ratliff. Zuber reminds me a lot of Greg Holland and he is knocking on the door to making an MLB debut in 2020 with the potential of being a high leverage late inning reliever. Ratliff has steadily climbed the Royals farm system as a consistent late-inning reliever racking up 33 saves and ERAs under 2.81 between 2018 – 2019.
At some point in 2020 the Royals may graduate Singer, Kowar, or Lynch to AAA Omaha or to the MLB and the rotation spot can filled with another dynamic arm such as Austin Cox or Jonathan Bowlan who will each start out 2020 in A+ Wilmington.
Cox utilizes excellent deception in his mechanics and a diverse pitching arsenal to achieve success. Bowlan pitched a no-hitter in mid-July for the A+ Wilmington Blue Rocks during the 2019 season.
Mike Rosenbaum a reporter at mlb.com wrote about Bowlan following his no-hitter,
"“An imposing presence on the mound at 6-foot-6, 260-plus pounds, Bowlan features a heavy fastball in the 92-95 mph range that nets him both whiffs and even more ground ball contact. His low-80s slider is his go-to secondary pitch, one that receives above-average grades from evaluators, and he also has some feel for throwing a changeup. He repeats his delivery well given his size, and it translates to above-average control.”"