Kansas City Royals: What each member of 2020 draft class can provide
By Cody Rickman
The Kansas City Royals and their fans should be ecstatic about the 2020 draft class.
The Kansas City Royals added talent to their farm system in the 2020 draft and the following undrafted free agent signing period. They added more high-upside pitching talent to their minor league system loaded with pitching prospects. Asa Lacy and Ben Hernandez – the Royals’ first and second round picks in the 2020 draft – have the potential to be top of the rotation arms during the decade.
The rest of the group of pitchers taken in the draft and signed during the undrafted free agent period have the talent to break into the starting rotation. The group most likely will end up as high leverage bullpen arms and we saw what a strong bullpen can do for postseason success in 2014 and 2015.
The position talent acquired in the draft and undrafted free agent signing period provides the Royals with strong versatility in the infield, outfield, and catcher positions. Nick Loftin, Tyler Gentry, Kale Emshoff, and Tucker Bradley have the type of high-floors that make them possible key contributors to a winning ball club.
Earlier last week, after talking to some agents and other baseball officials, I suggested the Royals would be in prime position to grab the most talented non-drafted FAs. MLB Pipeline agrees, saying KC so far has 5 of the top 15 NDFAs. Story: https://t.co/MIQQiXmvQf via @MLB
— Jeffrey Flanagan (@FlannyMLB) June 18, 2020
With a bizarre set of circumstances in place for the 2020 draft (five rounds and $20,000 max free agent signing bonus), the strategy and execution of said strategy by the Royals was a resounding success.
The Royals capably signed all 13 of their newcomers. Lynn Worthy at The Kansas City Star spoke with Royals assistant GM/player performance J.J. Picollo and detailed what is next for the newcomers.
The @Royals have dominated the NDFA market ... https://t.co/3Ix4saZRJp
— Jim Callis (@jimcallisMLB) June 21, 2020
Let’s breakdown what each member of the 2020 draft class can provide in regards to best outcome and likely development.
This breakdown comes with the acceptance that all prospects, no matter how promising comes with risk, make it to the majors at some point. The risk of injury and failure to develop is readily inherent in each prospect no matter how highly touted. There are no guarantees a prospect will reach his potential.