By virtue of their draft position — No. 14 in the first round — and long-held philosophy of taking the best player available, the Royals’ brass entered the first night of the Major League Baseball draft on Monday expecting some uncertainty.
They waited out 13 selections, watching the picks come off the board, wondering who might still be available in the middle of the opening round. As the dominoes began to fall, the Royals looked at the boards inside their draft room and made a final decision: Nick Pratto, a high school first baseman from Huntington Beach, Calif.