The weather outside is frigid, which reflects the state of the Royals’ farm system, at least as judged by outside observers. Baseball Prospectus released their top 101 prospect rankings with only one Royals player making the list - 2023 first-round pick Blake Mitchell, who comes in at #96. Last year, the Royals only placed one prospect on the list as well, 2022 first-round pick Gavin Cross at #70, but he fell off after a disastrous season.
Mitchell was the eighth overall pick in last summer’s draft out of Sinton High School in Texas. The Royals overlooked the poor history of catchers selected out of high school in the first round of the draft and chose the left-handed hitting Mitchell for his smooth stroke and defense behind the plate.