Kansas City Royals: Top 12 prospects heading into 2020
By Cody Rickman
2) Daniel Lynch – LHP Starting Pitcher (ETA: 2021)
Daniel Lynch has made his way onto all five of the top 100 prospects lists highlight above, reaching as high as #39 on the Baseball America list. Lynch put together an injury delayed 2019 season that included an outstanding performance showcasing in the Arizona Fall League.
For the 2019 season, Lynch pitched 96.1 innings of 2.99 ERA and 1.287 WHIP with 96 Ks. Lynch wowed talent evaluators in the Arizona Fall League with mlb.com, with them having this to say about him:
"“Easily the best lefty in Arizona, Lynch hit 99 mph during the Fall Stars Game and 98 mph during the championship contest. He should have three solid or better pitches in a fastball that sits at 93-96, a mid-80s slider and a deceptive changeup, though his command still needs work.”"
Lynch features three above average offerings in his fastball, slider, and change-up. He mixes in an average curveball with the other three offerings extremely well and if he gets his mechanics under control, he will be able to consistently command each of his pitches.
Lynch is at risk of injury if he doesn’t make the appropriate adjustments to his mechanics as he suffered an arm injury midway through the 2019 season. His mechanics cause him to rush his arm through at the end of his wind-up and it negatively effects his command.
He seemed to simplify his approach during the Arizona Fall League and threw absolutely gas. I don’t expect him to throw 99 mph like he did in the Fall Stars Game, but he should be able to consistent throw above 94 mph in his starts.
Lynch puts a lot of RPM on his stuff hitting 2350 RPMs on his fastball and 2250 on his breaking stuff. His slider was generating more RPMs during the Arizona Fall League and looked sharp and difficult to pick up out of his release.
Lynch is non-roster spring training invitee and will join the other Royals pitching prospects at AA Northwest Arkansas to start the 2020 season (on paper, could be the best starting rotation in the minors). Lynch has the most potential among the Royals pitching prospects and has a ceiling of a number two type starter. He compares favorably to James Paxton.
3) Kris Bubic – LHP Starting Pitcher (ETA: 2021)
Kris Bubic made his way onto two top prospect lists for the 2020 season (Baseball Prospectus and Fangraphs) following a 2019 performance that saw him lead the minor leagues in strikeouts with 185. He got onto the radar by having a fantastic 2019 season split between A+ Wilmington and A Lexington pitching 149.1 innings of 2.23 ERA, 0.971 WHIP, and 185 Ks.
Bubic features some elite deception with his funky delivery. His repertoire of pitches benefit from his awkward wind-up and arm slot. His 91-93 mph fastball plays well with his 84-85 change-up with nice fade to his arm side.
Bubic wasn’t expected to have this good of a curveball when he was drafted, but the arm-slot, axis spin, and high RPMs (2650 RPM) on the curveball have made the pitch another plus offering. He has been able to command his three plus pitches and repeat his mechanics consistently and is ready for more advanced hitters.
Bubic is a non-roster spring training invitee and he should start the 2020 season in AA Northwest Arkansas. He was an advanced pitcher selected out of an elite college competition school and will need to be challenged in 2020.
If Bubic dominates the competition again in 2020, expect to see him on everyone’s top prospect lists. Bubic draws a comparison to Al Leiter for me (minus the big looping curveball and cutter) since he’s willing to work inside to set up his command of the outside portion of the plate.