KC Royals lean on college players early in MLB Draft but still see plenty of upside
For just the second time in franchise history, the Kansas City Royals began the MLB Draft by selecting 10 college players.
The Royals completed Day 2 of the draft on Monday with eight selections, all college players, including six pitchers, a catcher and a dynamic outfielder. It seemed to indicate an about-face from last season when they went heavy on high-upside high school players early in the draft.
However, Royals scouting director Danny Ontiveros said that wasn’t a conscious effort or a predetermined plan of attack.
Instead it was a result of the way the draft unfolded as well as the fact that the Royals didn’t have the extra bonus pool money due to having traded away their competitive balance round pick.
“It wasn’t planned,” Ontiveros said after the second day of the draft concluded. “Sometimes it just really depends on availability at that time. If you’ve got the money. There’s signability questions that come up with some of the high school players. But the one thing is, we like these players. So when you start looking at things. Financially, things worked out. And we really liked these players. So I just kind of ended up going with it.”
The Royals’ rounds 3-10 picks were:
- Third round, No. 87: Mason Barnett, RHP, Auburn
- Fourth round, No. 115: Steven Zobac, RHP, California
- Fifth round, No. 145: Hunter Patteson, LHP, Central Florida
- Sixth round, No. 175: Hayden Dunhurst, catcher, Ole Miss
- Seventh round, No. 205: Mack Anglin, RHP, Clemson
- Eighth round, No. 235: Wesley Scott, RHP, Walters State CC
- Ninth round, No 265: Brandon Johnson, RHP, Ole Miss
- 10th round, No. 295: Levi Usher, outfielder, Louisville
That group joined the pair of college hitters the Royals selected on the first day of the draft, Virginia Tech outfielder Gavin Cross (first round, No. 9) and University of Arkansas third baseman Cayden Wallace (second round, No. 49 overall).
Ontiveros also asserted that considerable upside exists in several of the players they selected, despite them being a few years older and having played multiple years in college.
Specifically with Zobac, the Royals still see the potential for major strides because he hasn’t been a full-time pitcher for most of his time in college. He went to Cal as an outfielder, then pitched out of the bullpen before he eventually started.
That athleticism as a former outfielder is also a trait the Royals covet in pitchers.
“When we started watching all throughout the Pac-12 Tournament, the stuff just kept creeping up,” Ontiveros said. “The spin on the breaking ball got tighter. We met him at the combine, an unbelievable human being. You start adding these things up, and he’s probably still about 15 pounds to put on his frame. All the intangibles were there. There’s upside to the body. It’s a starter’s delivery, a starter’s mix, arm action.”
The analytic department also came back with glowing reports on Zobac. Ontiveros described his metrics as “through the roof.”
They also view Patteson as a pitcher with a high ceiling yet to be reached. Patteson had Tommy John surgery this spring, so he’ll have recovery and rehab as immediate focuses.
Last season, four of the Royals’ top five picks were high school players. That group included three high school pitchers in top pick (seventh overall) Frankie Mozzicato from Connecticut, area standout Ben Kudrna out of Blue Valley Southwest (second round, No. 43), and New Jersey native Shane Panzini (fourth round, No. 108). They also tapped another KC area high school standout in Park Hill catcher Carter Jensen in the third round (No. 78).
Of course, they benefited from signing Mozzicato below the slot value and spreading that extra money around in order to sign some of the other picks and keep them from playing college baseball instead.
The Royals were not operating without that same sort of financial flexibility this year.
“I think in certain situations today, we were looking at possibly some high school guys and it just didn’t fit,” Ontiveros said. “But we like the players that we took.
“At that point, I think you start thinking, OK, these guys might be a little closer. There’s a lot of similarities, so we’ll go this direction. I wouldn’t say it was we’ll take this guy because he’s safer or he’ll get there faster. I just think it kind of lined up that way.”
Mix of potential starters and relievers
Barnett, 21, was a bullpen guy who moved into the starting rotation. The relationship between the Royals scouting department and the Auburn coaching staff played a big part in the Royals staying on Barnett.
Barnett’s velocity has gone as high as 97 mph and he also has two breaking balls as well as a changeup. He will definitely get the chance to start at least at the beginning of his professional career.
Zobac and Patteson were also drafted as starters, while Anglin, Scott and Johnson are all guys that they think could profile as power relievers, though Anglin and Scott have started in the past.
Scott has a low arm slot with a mid-to-upper 90s fastball, so he could get a look as a starter. But as a reliever he compares to Cleveland’s Nick Sandlin, who has an ERA below 3.00 and a strikeout per 9 innings of 10.99 in 58 career appearances in the majors.
Ontiveros said Johnson reminded him of former Royals bullpen stalwart Greg Holland because of his “fiery” demeanor and “uber competitive” nature.
Keep an eye on Usher
Louisville product Levi Usher went in the 10th round, but he could prove an intriguing prospect if the Royals’ hitting development staff can maximize his physical tools and develop an approach at the plate that creates more consistency.
Usher won a college Gold Glove award as a center fielder with several highlight-reel plays. He’s considered an above average runner and also received above average grades for his arm, which should make him the type of defender that could fit well in the middle of the outfield for the Royals. He also has above average raw power.
The 6-foot tall, 210-pound senior earned ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors and led the conference in stolen bases for the second year in a row.
“He’s an unbelievable athlete,” Ontiveros said. “Double-plus arm, double-plus run. He can defend in center. … The thing with the guy like Levi is his swing needs work, it just does. He made some improvements this year. He cut his strikeouts down. He cut his chase down. But there’s something that I think (hitting coordinator) Drew (Saylor) and (senior director of player development and hitting performance Alec Zumwalt) and (assistant hitting coach) Keoni (DeRenne) can unlock with this kid.”
Ontiveros drew the comparison between Usher and Chicago White Sox outfielder Adam Engel, another former Louisville player, but thought Usher might have an even higher ceiling.
Dollar bill breakdown
The slot values associated with the 10 picks made so far are:
No. 9 - $5.2 million
No. 49 - $1.58 million
No. 87 - $724,300
No. 115 - $527,800
No. 145 - $394,200
No. 175 - $298,600
No. 205 - $233,400
No. 235 - $186, 400
No. 265 - $163,700
No. 295 - $153,500
This story was originally published July 18, 2022 at 8:19 PM.
