The Kansas City Royals owned the fifth overall pick in the 2012 Major League Baseball amateur draft. The three top arms—Kevin Gausman, Kyle Zimmer, and Mark Appel—still remained on the board after the first three picks, guaranteeing that Kansas City would get one. When the Baltimore Orioles snapped up Gausman with the fourth pick, the Royals made their selection: Kyle Zimmer, right-handed pitcher out of the University of San Fransisco.
After seven arduous, injury-filled seasons for Zimmer and existential, meme-filled seasons for Royals fans, Zimmer finally debuted with the Royals in 2019. While Zimmer was underwhelming this year, he still has some upside, a miracle considering Zimmer’s litany of arm injuries.