Let’s look to the minors with Clint Scoles at Royals Academy. He names his Minor League Player of the Year: Kris Bubic.
The strikeouts were a sight to behold with the first year full season pitcher leading the entire minor leagues with his 185 regular season strikeouts. That total is a number that a Royals pitcher hadn’t seen in 19 years with Ryan Baerlocher striking out 193 in 166 innings in 2000 with Charleston in the South Atlantic League and Wilmington in the Carolina League. The bulk of those strikeouts coming in Charleston. Still, Bubic’s 185 was the second-highest total over the last 25 minor league season in the Royals system and easily the highest mark during the Dayton Moore era.