KC Royals: No surprises in MLB.com prediction of Opening Day roster
Opening Day is right around the corner and Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com gave us his predictions as to who he thinks will land on the KC Royals roster.
As the title indicates, there weren’t really any surprises with Flanagan’s predictions that he posted on MLB.com regarding the Kansas City Royals‘ 2020 Opening Day roster. COVID-19 has impacted the roster, but for the most part, it’s exactly how we’d expect it to heading into the 2020 season.
For the position player starters, Flanagan has:
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in the outfield
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With Soler being included in the outfield, it’s easy to assume that Flanagan also has him locked in as the designated hitter, which definitely fits him better than playing defense on a regular basis. McBroom is only the starter at first base because Ryan O’Hearn tested positive for coronavirus.
For the rotation, Flanagan listed three locks, which were Danny Duffy, Jakob Junis, and Mike Montgomery. Brad Keller isn’t included due to his positive test.
One of the interesting notes included in the article is that Lopez has been playing well in Summer Camp and Flanagan says that he could be a threat in the bottom of the order. This is the time for Lopez to show off what he can do after a lackluster rookie campaign in 2019.
In the outfield, he notes that the obvious starters are that of Gordon, Merrifield, and Dozier and that brings up questions as to what will happen to Bubba Starling and Brett Phillips. They’re both out of options and haven’t shown that they’re going to be a long-term plan with the organization, so will they even be on the Opening Day roster?
Everyone is most looking forward to seeing how the rotation looks when the season begins and Flanagan does list 2018 first round pick Brady Singer as a possibility to find his way into the rotation. He also lists Keller, Glenn Sparkman, Jorge Lopez, and Foster Griffin as options.
If Lopez and Sparkman aren’t in the rotation, then obviously they’ll be locks to make the bullpen. Flanagan also has Ian Kennedy, Scott Barlow, Josh Staumont, and Trevor Rosenthal as locks as well. Some of the likeliest possibilities listed include Kevin McCarthy, Randy Rosario, Kyle Zimmer, and Stephen Woods Jr.
Next. Nine Royals Prospects Who Could Make Debuts in 2020. dark
This gives Royals fans a nice look at what the 2020 roster is going to look like. There weren’t many prospects listed, but give it time. Between COVID-19 and injuries, there will be several key prospects who will make their MLB debut.