Kansas City Royals: 3 things we’ve learned halfway through the season
By Cody Rickman
3. Top prospects have proven ready
The 2020 season has seen the exciting MLB debuts of starting pitchers Brady Singer and Kris Bubic as well as reliever Tyler Zuber. Each pitcher has shown the talent they possess to earn their promotion, they have also shown there will be some growing pains as they adjust to facing major league level talent.
Singer and Bubic have shown enough to lock up their spots in the starting pitching rotation for the next six years. Zuber has flashed his plus stuff to give Royals fans flashbacks of Greg Holland in his early years with the Royals.
Each prospect will need to continue with their progression. Singer is still in need of gaining more confidence in his change-up. Singer’s change-up has shown some promise, but it appears he is still working on the feel for the pitch. I would like to see Singer use the change-up more often in the second half of the season to get hitters off of his fastball.
Bubic has had some issues with his command, missing with his fastball in hittable locations has caused him some trouble. He will need to make some mechanical adjustments in-game to avoid leaving his pitches in dangerous locations. The off-speed offerings look outstanding and he should start racking up strikeouts once he starts locating more consistently.
Zuber has electric stuff, but has been nibbling far too often this season. He will need to start landing more of his nasty breaking stuff in the strike zone to get hitters off of sitting on his fastball. Zuber can be a lights-out reliever if he throws his premium stuff in the strikezone. Batters have been laying off his breaking pitches and jumping on the fastball.
The 2021 and 2022 seasons are going to be even more exciting as we continue to see more top prospects make debuts.
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2021 ETAs
Khalil Lee Outfielder
Daniel Lynch Starting Pitcher
Jackson Kowar Pitcher
2022 ETAs
Asa Lacy Starting Pitcher
Bobby Witt Jr Third Base
Carlos Hernandez Pitcher
Austin Cox Pitcher
Jonathan Bowlan Pitcher
MJ Melendez Catcher
Nick Pratto First Base
Kyle Isbel Outfielder
Outlook
If the Kansas City Royals decide not to move any relievers at the trade deadline, they will push for the final playoff spot. The offense is due to catch fire and the players who have been struggling have shown enough recently to suggest the breakout is coming soon. The starting pitching and bullpen have performed well enough to keep the team in a majority of the games so far.
Next. Could the Royals Actually Be Buyers at the Deadline?. dark
The 2nd half schedule sets up well for the Royals and they just need to remain consistent on mound and catch fire at the plate to make this a magically unexpected season.