Royals 2014 draft tracker

TCU pitcher Brandon Finnegan was drafted by the Royals with their first pick, No. 17 overall. Richard W. Rodriguez Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Round one

Pick 17: LHP Brandon Finnegan, TCU, L/L, 5-11, 185

The Royals’ top pick helped lead the TCU Horned Frogs to the Big 12 Tournament championship. He leads the nation in strikeouts per nine innings at 12.02. Watch him pitch for Team USA in Japan, just because it’s kinda awesome, and follow him on Twitter here.

Pick 28: LHP Foster Griffin, The First Academy (Fla.), R/L, 6-3, 200

Griffin committed to Mississippi but is expected to sign with the Royals. Why the heck not? The slotted bonus for this selection is a cool $1,815,500. Watch Griffin’s highlight video here, and follow him on Twitter here.

Competitive balance round A

Pick 40: C Chase Vallot, St. Thomas More HS (La.), R/R, 6-0, 215

According to the Times-Picayune, Vallot helped his team win a Class 4A state championship while batting .545 with 62 RBIs, 15 doubles and 13 home runs. See him flash some power here, as he launches moon shots during BP for a home-run derby, and follow him on Twitter here.

Round two

Pick 56: RHP Scott Blewett, Baker HS (N.Y.), R/R, 6-6, 210

Had commited to St. John’s, but being selected this early means he’ll almost certainly sign with KC. Fast-forward this video to the 1:45 mark to watch him throw a filthy offspeed pitch and punch a dude out. Follow him on Twitter here.

Round three

Pick 92: LHP Eric Skoglund, Central Florida, L/L, 6-6, 170

MLB.com’s scouting report lists this tall drink of water as a potential starter in the majors. His fastball is said to hover around 90 mph and he has an average slider and changeup, “and he knows how to use all three pitches effectively,” according to the report. Watch him pitch here, and sing (!) here. Oh, and follow him on Twitter here.

Round four

Pick 123: SS Dawon Burt, Fuquay-Varina HS (N.C.), R/R, 5-9, 160

Information’s a little scarce on this kid, who also goes by “DJ,” but he’s a speedster who is said to be able to play multiple positions and has power that belies his relatively small stature. Watch video of him taking BP here. Alas, no Twitter.

Round five

Pick 153: RHP Corey Ray, Texas A&M, R/R, 6-4, 195

Ray, a native of the Houston area, was 6-1 with a 1.94 ERA for the Aggies this year pitching in the SEC. Watch video of him warming up during last year’s summer league in California right here. And here’s the Twitter link.

Round six

Pick 183: OF Logan Moon, Missouri Southern, R/R, 6-2, 195

Hey look, a Blue Springs native! Yep, the Royals went local with this one, nabbing a Blue Springs South product. He batted in the upper .300s this season, with 35 RBIs, one homer and 17 stolen bases as a senior at Missouri Southern.

Round seven

Pick 213: CF Brandon Downes, Virginia, R/R, 6-3, 195

Downes produced one of our favorite highlight-reel clips for an outfielder. His offense dipped a bit this year, but scouts still like his ability to make hard contact to all fields and, yes, his range in center. His Twitter can be found here.

Round eight

Pick 243: 1B Ryan O’Hearn, Sam Houston State, L/L, 6-3, 200

Our video for O’Hearn includes an extended interview as Sam Houston played a special game at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Note the bomb he hits at the :56 mark (he hit eight for SHSU in 62 games this season, batting .292). The Twitter for O’Hearn is here.

Round nine

Pick 273: OF Brandon Thomasson, Tennessee Tech, R/R, 6-4, 218

This video shows what had to be one of the best days of Thomasson’s career with the Golden Eagles, as he hit for the cycle vs. Miami of Ohio (note the homer at 1:15 and knock that completed the cycle at 1:55). Twitter seekers will find him here.

Round 10

Pick 303: LHP Nick Green, Utah, 6-2, 190

Green is the fourth lefty pitcher scooped up by the Royals in this draft. He was 2-4 with a 4.26 ERA in 23 appearances as a senior with the Utes. His career marks at Utah: 4-8 with a 3.94 ERA. To follow Green, the Twitter to click is right here.

Saturday’s picks

Pick 333: OF Robert Pehl, Washington, 6-1, 205

Pick 363: LHP Emilio Ogando, St. Thomas University (Fla.), 6-2, 180

Pick 393: LHP Eric Stout, Butler University, 6-3, 185

Pick 423: LHP Ian Tompkins, Western Kentucky, 6-0, 195

Pick 453: SS Corey Toups, Sam Houston State, 5-10, 170

Pick 483: 3B Manny Olloque, Torrance High School (Calif.), 6-2, 165

Pick 513: LHP Brennan Henry, Bellevue University (Neb.), 6-4, 205

Pick 543: RHP Alberto Rodriguez, Northwest Florida State, 6-1, 225

Pick 573: OF Scott Heineman, Oregon, 6-1, 205

Pick 603: C Kyle Pollock, Evansville, 6-0, 200

Pick 633: RHP Evan Beal, South Carolina, 6-4, 205

Pick 663: SS Mike Hill, Cal State-Long Beach, 6-2, 195

Pick 693: RHP Eric Sandness, San Joaquin Delta College (Calif.), 6-6, 210

Pick 723: LHP Brandon Thomas, San Diego State, 5-11, 200

Pick 753: OF Rudy Martin, Lewisburg High School (Pa.), 5-7, 150

Pick 783: C Michael Arroyo, Puerto Rico Baseball Academy, 6-0, 181

Pick 813: C Alex Close, Liberty University, 6-3, 225

Pick 843: 1B Joshua Banuelos, Fresno Pacific University, 6-2, 215

Pick 873: 3B Vance Vizcaino, Glendale Community College, 6-1, 200

Pick 903: 3B Ryan Lillard, Urbandale High School (Iowa), 6-1, 185

Pick 933: RHP Rocky McCord, Auburn, 6-2, 170

Pick 963: LHP Timothy Hill, Bacone College (Okla.), 6-2, 200

Pick 993: OF DonAndre Clark, St. Mary’s College (Calif.), 5-10, 180

Pick 1023: RHP Todd Eaton, Southern Illinois, 6-1, 190

Pick 1053: LHP Andrew Sykes, Valparaiso High School (Ind.), 6-1, 188

Pick 1083: OF Brandon Gonzalez, Villa Park High School (Calif.), 6-0, 180

Pick 1113: C David Noworyta, Holy Cross High School (N.J.), 6-4, 180

Pick 1143: LHP Cole Way, University of Tulsa, 6-11, 235

Pick 1173: OF Jeff Hendrix, Oregon State, 6-0, 195

Pick 1203: 2B Diego Francisco, Palm Beach Central High School (Fla.), 5-10, 165

This story was originally published June 6, 2014 at 2:24 PM.