First five rounds: Bobby Witt Jr. (1-2), Brady McConnell (2-44), Alec Marsh (CBB-70), Grant Gambrell (3-80), Michael Massey (4-109), John Rave (5-139)
Also notable: Noah Murdock (7-199), Drew Parrish (8-229), Justin Hooper (14-409)
Obviously, this draft class is headlined by the uber-talented Bobby Witt Jr., perhaps the best all-around high school position player we've seen since at least Brendan Rodgers in 2015, if not Byron Buxton in 2012. Behind Witt, though, I see this class as fairly ordinary, as I'm not a huge fan of the Brady McConnell pick and most of the players after that are fairly unremarkable. It was a college-heavy draft for the Royals, as they selected 15 consecutive college players after Witt, mostly from big programs.
1-2: SS Bobby Witt Jr. (Colleyville Heritage HS [TX], my rank: 2)
Perhaps the worst-kept secret in the rumor mill heading up to the draft was that the Royals wanted Bobby Witt Jr. with their first pick. Witt is truly an elite talent, with an all around game that rivals some of the best prep hitters in recent memory. He was the top prep player in the class coming into the season, but in early incarnations of my draft list in the winter, I actually had him behind Andrew Vaughn because I just wasn't sold on his hit tool. Well, now I am. The DFW native and son of former big leaguer Bobby Witt is an impact player in all facets of the game, showing big power, much improved plate discipline and ability to make contact, plenty of speed, and exceptional defense at shortstop. He generates his power from a big swing that caused some minor swing and miss questions over the summer, but with his exceptional spring, that's less of an issue and he projects for about 30 or more home runs annually with good on-base percentages. That'll certainly play, especially when you're an elite defender at shortstop, and overall you could compare his game somewhat to Francisco Lindor. Additionally, he's reported to be a hard worker and very easily coachable. The only knock on Witt at this point is his age, as he turned 19 in June and is old for his class, but given all the other positives, that's hardly an issue. Committed to Oklahoma, he instead signed at slot for $7.79 million and is slashing .256/.301/.326 with six stolen bases and an 18/6 strikeout to walk ratio over 19 games in the complex level Arizona League.
2-44: SS Brady McConnell (Florida, my rank: 71)
A draft-eligible sophomore because he turned 21 in May, Brady McConnell followed a similar path as his teammate and 2018 first rounder Jonathan India. India was a well-regarded high school prospect who instead made it to campus at Florida and hit mediocrely for two years before exploding for a .350/.497/.717 line as a junior and getting drafted fifth overall by the Reds. However, I wasn't quite that high on India, and with a .250/.351/.391 slash line in the minors this year, my thoughts haven't changed. Anyways, this paragraph is about Brady McConnell, who also was a well-regarded high school prospect coming out of Merritt Island on Florida's East Coast, and he ranked 58th on my 2017 list. After picking up just three hits as a freshman at UF in 2018, he exploded in India-like fashion by slashing .332/.385/.576 with 15 home runs and a 57/17 strikeout to walk ratio over 59 games for the Gators. Perhaps more impressively, 11 of his 15 home runs came in conference play against tough SEC arms, leading to a .299/.349/.615 slash line in those 30 games. However, like India, I'm not quite sold on McConnell at this draft position. He has power in his 6'3" frame and got to it consistently in 2019, drifting forward in his effective load before exploding with his smooth, whippy swing. On the flip side, his plate discipline this year was mediocre, as evidenced by a high 22.4% strikeout rate and a low 6.7% walk rate. If McConnell wants his production to carry over to pro ball, he'll have to get more patient at the plate and prove that he can find the barrel consistently against pro pitching. He's also only so-so at shortstop and will likely have to move over to second or third base, especially with Witt guaranteed to stay there. Together, that gives McConnell the upside of a power-hitting shortstop with 20-30 homer annual pop, though he has some questions to answer if he wants to get there. He signed for $2.22 million, which was $521,000 above slot, and he's slashing .250/.348/.475 with two home runs and a 31/10 strikeout to walk ratio over 21 games between the Arizona League and rookie level Idaho Falls.
CBB-70: RHP Alec Marsh (Arizona State, my rank: 99)
Alec Marsh has gotten better each year at Arizona State, and this year he posted a 3.46 ERA, a 1.26 WHIP, and a 99/36 strikeout to walk ratio over 101.1 innings. However, that ERA might be just a bit deceiving, as he was blown up for a combined 17 runs between his April 5th start against USC and his April 26th start against Washington. Taking out those two terrible starts, he was remarkably consistent and actually carried a 2.11 ERA. When things are working for the 6'2" righty, he's a reliable arm that fires low 90's fastballs, a couple of good breaking balls, and a solid changeup, all of which he can command fairly well. All together, Marsh does not bring the most eye-popping resume, either from his stats or his stuff, but his well-rounded skill set makes him an advanced arm for a kid who just turned 21 in May and should help him reach the majors as a #3 or #4 starter. Like Witt, he's seen as a hard worker who will get the most out of his ability, especially if the Royals can help him avoid those blow-ups. He signed for $904,300, which was $2,500 below slot, and he has a 3.98 ERA, a 1.08 WHIP, and a 25/1 strikeout to walk ratio over 20.1 innings for Idaho Falls.
3-80: RHP Grant Gambrell (Oregon State, my rank: 116)
Ten picks after nabbing Marsh, the Royals went back to the Pac-12 and grabbed another starting pitcher, this time from Oregon State. Grant Gambrell, with the luxury of throwing to first overall pick Adley Rutschman in Corvallis, had a breakthrough year on the mound and posted a 2.83 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP, and an 80/25 strikeout to walk ratio over 70 innings against much of the same competition that Marsh faced. The Fresno-area native is a big guy at 6'4", and he comes in with a low to mid 90's fastball, a fairly promising slider, and a decent changeup. That slider has sharp break, but it also breaks early and could be easy to pick up, so he'll have to refine it a bit further in order to get the swings and misses he wants out of it. He's fairly inconsistent on the mound and throws with some effort, so despite the solid numbers, the Royals are really buying into his arm strength and are hoping they can turn him into something with pro refinement. He does throw strikes in general, but again, he's not there consistently yet. Consider Gambrell an upside play who could be a mid-rotation starter but who could also end up as a power reliever. He signed for $647,500, which was $120,300 below slot, and he has a 5.06 ERA, a 1.63 WHIP, and a 16/4 strikeout to walk ratio over 16 innings at Idaho Falls.
4-109: 2B Michael Massey (Illinois, unranked)
There's not much upside to be had here, but Michael Massey is about as steady as they come. The Chicago native slashed .330/.360/.483 as a freshman at Illinois then .326/.369/.514 as a sophomore, after which he slashed .280/.337/.366 with a home run and a 6/5 strikeout to walk ratio over 23 games in the elite Cape Cod League. This year, Massey's numbers were down just a hair as he dealt with a back injury, but he still finished at .317/.372/.459 with five home runs and a 33/20 strikeout to walk ratio over 55 games. Standing an even six feet tall, Massey will never be much of a power hitter, instead relying on excellent bat to ball skills (13.4% strikeout rate) and good plate discipline to slap singles and doubles around the field. His feel for the game means he shouldn't have much trouble adjusting to pro pitching, though he likely won't hit enough to end up a full time starter in the majors. He's not the most athletic guy in the world, but he understands the game and plays hard and should be an above average defender at second base or playable on the left side of the infield. Overall, the gritty infielder with contact ability and baseball IQ points very clearly towards a utility infield role at the major league level, one which he should have little trouble getting to. He signed for $472,500, which was $60,500 below slot, and he's slashing .250/.309/.348 with a pair of home runs and an 18/8 strikeout to walk ratio over 27 games at rookie level Burlington.
5-139: OF John Rave (Illinois State, my rank: 138)
Two picks, two Illinois college position players. John Rave comes from Illinois State, but unlike his Prairie State counterpart, he's anything but steady. The Bloomington, Illinois native had a big sophomore year for the Redbirds in 2018, slashing .347/.402/.571, then he continued the hot hitting in the Cape Cod League and slashed .304/.392/.464 with four home runs and a 28/14 strikeout to walk ratio over 41 games. However, his numbers dropped this year as a junior, as he sold out for power and ended up slashing .297/.377/.502 with 12 home runs and a 64/28 strikeout to walk ratio over 62 games. He can show average power when he swings for the fences, but he has historically hit better when he just focused on making hard contact and getting on base, and that's probably what the Royals will try to get him back to doing. His plate discipline is fringy, so pro ball may be a bit of an adjustment for him. Rave is also fringe-average in the outfield despite his well above average speed, so he'll need some refinement there as well. Overall, it's hard to project him, as he'll need more refinement than the typical college hitter, but the talent is clearly there because you don't put up an .856 OPS on the Cape by accident. He signed for $297,500, which was $100,500 below slot, and he's slashing .231/.342/.336 with two home runs and a 40/21 strikeout to walk ratio over 35 games between Burlington and Class A Lexington.
7-199: RHP Noah Murdock (Virginia, unranked)
Noah Murdock was a well-known prospect coming out of high school in Colonial Heights, Virginia just south of Richmond as an ultra-projectable 6'7" string bean with a low 90's fastball, and he ranked #130 on my 2016 draft list because of it. However, he was raw and had a long way to go. Now even taller at 6'8" and with 2017 Tommy John surgery under his belt, he's still raw, and as a junior this year, he posted a disappointing 6.30 ERA, a 1.68 WHIP, and a 69/33 strikeout to walk ratio over 74.1 innings. He still sits in the low 90's and flashes a solid breaking ball, and the angle he creates with his long arms helps those pitches play up. However, he got hit when he left the ball over the plate and/or his breaking ball flattened out, and he'll need mechanical refinement in the minors. Fortunately for him and the Royals, he's young for his class and doesn't turn 21 until August, giving him more time to develop into a potential big league starting pitcher or late inning reliever. He signed for $230,500, which was $2,500 below slot, and he has a 2.10 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, and a 26/8 strikeout to walk ratio over 25.2 innings with Burlington.
8-229: LHP Drew Parrish (Florida State, unranked)
Drew Parrish gives the Royals another arm from a big ACC program, this time Florida State. After a dominant sophomore season in 2018 (2.52 ERA, 128/37 K/BB), Parrish took a bit of a step back this year, finishing with a 4.67 ERA, a 1.28 WHIP, and a 125/32 strikeout to walk ratio over 94.1 innings for the Seminoles. The Rockledge, Florida native, who grew up playing against Royals second rounder Brady McConnell just two towns over, is the opposite of Murdock in most ways. He stands just 5'11" and sits in the upper 80's with his fastball, but he understands how to mix and locate his pitches and use his tumbling changeup to keep hitters off balance. He likely won't post the same high strikeout numbers he had in college, but he should be the kind of guy to induce weak contact and fill the strike zone in pro ball. He has proven durable as a starter, but perhaps his stuff could tick up in a bullpen role, where he could really pitch off that changeup. He signed for $167,500, which was $17,200 below slot, and he has a 3.95 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP, and an 18/1 strikeout to walk ratio over 13.2 innings at Burlington.
14-409: LHP Justin Hooper (UCLA, unranked)
If you follow the draft closely like I do, here's a name you probably haven't heard in a long time. Justin Hooper was a very well-known prospect coming out of the famed De La Salle High School in Concord, California (near Oakland), and he actually ranked at #28 in my first ever draft rankings in 2015, a list which I view as more of a practice round considering I was just getting into the draft. He instead went on to UCLA, where his career has been...rocky. He got hit around as a freshman in 2016, bounced back for a solid sophomore campaign in 2016 with a 3.69 ERA and a 52/26 strikeout to walk ratio, then missed all of 2018 with Tommy John surgery. In 2019, he got into...one game, retiring two of the four UC Irvine hitters he faced on May 14th and walking the other two. Like Murdock, he's a huge guy at 6'8", though he comes from a low three quarters arm slot that creates a lot of run on his fastball. Back in high school, which was four years ago, he sat in the low 90's with the promise of more velocity and showed a curveball with nice two-plane break, though his mechanics needed to be cleaned up and he just needed to get more consistent as a pitcher in general. That hasn't happened, so he'll be a complete project for the Royals despite having turned 22 back in October, but he's a sleeper with a huge arm that could surprise some people if he can get healthy and get going. As an interesting aside, when I was researching what the heck happened to him since I last heard his name in 2015, I noticed a bunch of tabloid articles about him apparently dating someone famous – I have no idea who Brielle Biermann is, but apparently that's news enough to bury all of the actually relevant things I was searching for. Hooper signed for $125,000.
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