14 Royals Prospects To Watch Beyond The Top 30

The Royals Top 30 prospects rankings are up now for Baseball America subscribers, with full scouting reports, BA grades and tools grade projections for all 30 players.

Through the process of narrowing the list down to a Top 30, there are other intriguing names who didn’t make the cut but are worth monitoring, with the potential to jump into the Top 30 in the future. Some of those are players who might be in the upper levels and could see big league time this year, though likely in a limited role, while others are lower-level players still in the complex leagues with more upside but plenty of risk.

Beyond the Top 30, these are 14 prospects to watch in Kansas City’s farm system.

Daniel Vazquez, SS. Signed for $1.5 million before the 2021 season, Vazquez went to Low-A Columbia as an 18-year-old and hit .195/.262/.229 in 77 games. He has a glove-over-hit profile with the potential to become a plus defender, showing above-average speed with long strides, good defensive actions and a plus arm.

Will Klein, RHP. Klein struggled for most of the 2022 season with a shin injury that affected his delivery and ultimately his command. He’s healthy now and possesses two major league quality pitches.

Brennon McNair, 3B. An 11th-round pick in 2021, McNair stands out for his twitchy athleticism, baseball actions and solid makeup. He spent 2022 in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League and hit .231/.322/.430 in 42 games.

Nathan Eaton, OF/3B. Eaton made his major league debut in 2022, homering in his first game. He can play multiple positions, giving him a chance to stick around as a major league utility player.

 

Hayden Dunhurst, C. A sixth-round pick in 2022 after his career at Ole Miss, Dunhurst stands out for his abilities behind the plate with a plus arm. He hit .231/.370/.385 in 56 games last year in college.

Christian Chamberlain, LHP. A bulldog on the mound, the diminutive Chamberlain was finally healthy for the first time since the Royals drafted him in the fourth round in 2020. He thrives with a mid-90s fastball with vertical movement that’s tough for hitters to pick up because of his low release.

Shane Panzini, RHP. One of three high school pitchers the Royals picked early in the 2021 draft, Panzini made his pro debut at Low-A Columbia in 2022. He has a fastball and slider that play well off each other because of how they break, but he needs to get his changeup to have more separation off his fastball.

Drew Parrish, LHP. Parrish succeeded in Double-A with an 88-92 mph fastball that plays up because of how well he lands it to all four quadrants of the plate, but struggled against the advanced hitters in Triple-A.

Juan Olmos, C. Olmos was the Royals’ top international signee in 2022 but saw limited action in the Dominican Summer League due to injury. The native of Colombia has big tools, with the potential to develop into a plus defender with a plus arm.

Erick Peña, OF.  Pena signed for $3.8 million in 2019, but the native of the Dominican Republic has yet to show that he’ll be able to hit. Assigned to Low-A Columbia at 19, Peña hit .149/.258/.288 while striking out at a 37.1% rate, similar numbers to his performance in the ACL in 2021. He’s too talented to give up on yet, but he will have to turn things around at the plate.

Mauricio Veliz, RHP. Veliz posted a 2.36 ERA in his stateside debut in the Arizona Complex League in 2022. Still just 20, he has a mid-90s fastball, a plus changeup and throws strikes.

Will Fleming, RHP. Acquired from Seattle in the Carlos Santana deal, Fleming thrives with a plus slider to the arm side with sink coming from a funky delivery.

Yefri Del Rosario, RHP. Now working out of the bullpen in multi-inning stints, Del Rosario is pitching like he did in 2018 before an injury wiped out his entire 2019 season. His mid-90s fastball is back and he’s locating it better.

Tucker Bradley, OF. A nondrafted free agent out of Georgia who signed after the five-round draft in 2020, Bradley has done nothing but hit since joining the Royals organization, posting a .293/.382/.455 slash line at Double-A Northwest Arkansas in 2022. He’s an aggressive hitter who makes contact to all fields, gets good jumps on balls in the outfield and has an above-average arm.