Futures Game Video

Click on the line below to see video.
Mike Moustakas singles off John Lamb

Johnny Giavotella good play on a groundout on the shortstop side of second base.

Mike Montgomery Ks Wil Myers on a 96 mph fastball

Danny Duffy K's Christian Colon

Wil Myers doubles off Louis Coleman

David Lough HR off of Chris Dwyer

If you are interested to see more head over to my Youtube Channel kcscoliny. I'll post pics of the event within a couple days.

Quote of the day

"It's obviously very prudent for him to start in Triple A." Dayton Moore talking about Eric Hosmer

For those of us living in the Omaha area is a great thing. Some have said Hos might restart the year in AA but this signal by Moore could lead to a tremendous lineup to watch everyday.

1. David Lough LF
2. Johnny Giavotella 2b
3. Eric Hosmer 1b
4. Mike Moustakas 3b
5. Clint Robinson DH
6. Paulo Orlando RF
7. Manny Pina C
8. Irving Falu or Joaquin Arias SS
9. Jarrod Dyson CF

Would love Jirschele to hit Lough in that leadoff spot so he can try to expand on his patient approach from the second half(.403 OBP) last season. Also it should push David into trying to steal more bases which he should be able to do with his above average speed.

JJ and the 10 Royal dwarfs

Since GMDM was hired in 2006 he said that the Royals success would hinge on drafting and developing players, thus the day of following Royals prospects was reintroduced for the first time since the days of Dee Brown.

For folks like myself who love to follow these Royals and minor league games there is one day every year that is bigger than Christmas, of course it's the newest release of Baseball America's Prospect Handbook, the most in depth coverage of minor league players by organization in the business. And while I've read past BA Handbook's, since the '08 draft the Handbook's arrival has become a bigger and bigger deal every year since I actually use it while I try to learn about players at minor league games and try to interact with scouts.

Since that 2008 draft class BA has had one consistent writer cover their system and has had 10 prospects that have appeared in the books the past three seasons. I thought it would be interesting to interpret what JJ Cooper thought each year and see if much had changed in their game along the way.

2009-11
Mike Moustakas #1, 4, 3
Eric Hosmer #2, 5, 1
Mike Montgomery #4, 1, 5
Tim Melville #5, 6, 14
Danny Duffy #6, 8, 7
Johnny Giavotella #11, 16, 18
Kelvin Herrera #12, 18, 30
David Lough #15, 10, 25
Derrick Robinson #16, 22, 26
Salvador Perez #19, 20, 17

Mike Moustakas
'09
Power 70
Makes consistent contact and should hit for average.
Can turn on any fastball but can get pull conscious
Needs to recognize breaking balls better
Lacks athleticism and will have to work on first step quickness.
Above average arm
'10
Two above average tools Raw Power and Arm strength
Too pull happy
Footwork raw and thick body
Good hand eye coordination and quick wrist
Struggled to adjust to offspeed stuff early in the count.
'11
Plus Plus power
Excellent bat speed that allows him to drive balls to any field
Uncanny contact ability
Below average runner
Better approach
Defense
Above average arm
Average first step quickness
Average hands
Mechanics lacked consistency

The Constant- Plus plus power, excellent bat speed, plus arm,doesn't walk, great contact ability, below avg runner
Improvements- First step, improved approach
What GMDM said- GMDM mentioned that they've discussed with Moose and other prospects that they need to be patient at the plate. This is big because Moose is not going to be a big strikeout guy as JJ pointed out he has an uncanny ability to make contact. If he is in positive count situations his ridiculous power will dominate. His power will touch parts of the K that haven't been seen by many Royals and his hard hit balls will allow him to carry a solid average which will help Royals fans forget he is only walking 6% of the time.
My opinion-I like to compare his game to two Brewers he'll either be Casey McGehee, as I just can't see a real low failure rate with an outside shot of becoming a Ryan Braun type peak.

Eric Hosmer
'09 Handbook-
Big time Raw power and bat speed
Ability to go the opposite way.
Soft hands with good athleticism
Enough athleticism to play OF
Very good arm
Needs a better gameplan at the plate
'10
Offense- Outstanding raw power, struggled w/pitch recognition(possibly due to eyes), below average speed
Defense- Plus Arm, average defender, less athletic than advertised w/heavy feet.
'11
Offense-Uses the opposite field, Bat speed to turn on pitches and drive them out the opposite way. Lasik improved his eyesight which led to better results, Below average runner
Defense- Plus arm, showed increased agility and good range w/ability to occasionally play OF.

The Constant- Plus Arm, uses the opposite field, outstanding raw power
The Improvement- His eyes and agility and range
Look ahead- As pointed out by others Hosmer's breakout 2010 was similar to what Billy Butler did for his minor leaguer career (Hos .977 OPS v. Butler's career .978 OPS). Hos initially could be very similar to Billy when he arrives at the K but should have more projection longterm as he adds more strength to that big frame.

Mike Montgomery
'09
Fastball 90-92 touches 95 with plenty of life on the fastball.
Changeup-80 mph changeup already rates average and could become an outpitch.
Curve-Palm curve puts little stress on arm. Can spin a breaking ball
Makeup- Extremely competitive
'10
FB sits 90-92 while touching 94-95.
Curve- Switched to traditional downward curve grades as slightly above avg when he stays on top of it.
Changeup- shows flashes of being a plus pitch.
Mechanics- Solid, able to repeat delivery, excellent arm spped
'11
FB sits 91-93 and can run it up to 95-96.
CB Benched the palmball, Throws above avg curve 74-76 He is still learning to locate it however.
Change- Plus pitch w/late fade and excellent arm spped
His mechanics are solid.

The Constant- FB Velocity, solid mechanics, competitive
Improvements- Changeup and Curve have both improved flashing plus
My opinion- An arm problem kept Montgomery from possibly taking the top minor league pitching honors last season. His drive and stuff could push the Royals to a callup this season and will take over the void left by Zack in a couple seasons.


Tim Melville '09
FB 91-95
Curve Plus Curve
Changeup- Adequate
Other- Plenty of athleticism and repeats his free and easy delivery so he has no trouble throwing strikes. Needs consistency w/ curve and changeup.
'10
FB sits 92-93 touches 95.
CB True 12-6 downer, plus pitch when he can command it.
Changeup Lacks conviction w/this pitch
Other- Has to work on keeping delivery in sync and tends to lose tempo. Inconsistent mechanics, adequate athleticism and clean arm action w/durable build.
'11
FB-91-93 mph Fb that touches 96 with good downhill plane.
CB-12-6 curveball can be a plus pitch
Changeup- Improving can stay up in zone when he loses proper mechanics
Other-Inconsistent tempo and slow down delivery = problems w/control. Tends to nibble on the corners too much and curve loses tightness when mechanics are off.

The Constant- Most things seem consistent.
The Change- With no fault of JJ's Melville went from his draft year being a solid no problem mechanics guy to the last two seasons being a struggling control/mechanics guys.
Other- Melville is less athletic than some of the other Royals pitchers and almost more robotic but still is young and has a nice ceiling. He'll be one of the guys I definitely try to get alot of video of at Spring training.

Danny Duffy
'09
FB sits 88-92 and touches 94.
Curve plus pitch at times
his changeup rates as slightly above average.
Rarely has the feel for both secondary pitches on the same day. August shutdown w/shoulder discomfort
'10 Fastball
88-92 on a good downward plane.
His curve is slow and big breaking which is a good complement to his fastball allowing it to play up.
Changeup got better but he still hasn't fully embraced it.
Other-Motion has improved but still throws across his body. Good at messing w/hitters timing which lets his stuff play up.
'11
FB was as good as ever touching 95-97 regularly. Paces himself early in gms 90-92 then gets to the mid 90s later.
Changeup is his best secondary pitch although his feel for it wavers it is slightly above average at times.
CB- Slow w/plenty of depth
Other- Probably switch to his slider-Crossfire delivery, gotten better at staying online w/plate. Sidelined in April w/elbow soreness
Elbow injury sidelined him in April

The Constant- Crossfire motion
Improvements- Fastball has popped up anywhere from 5-7 Mph from 2009 BA book. Changeup has improved
Watch out- Twice in three years he's had arm problems.
Other- I've heard for sometime Duffy's best secondary pitch could be the slider the Royals made him bench in the low minors. It concerns me though with his mechanics that a slider might put too much pressure on his arm leading to more arm injuries even if it's the best secondary pitch for his arm motion.

Johnny Giavotella
'09
Offense
Compact swing that allows him to turn on a fastballs and wait on offspeed stuff
Advanced pitch recognition w/good eye
Vulnerable to pitches on outerhalf
Defense
Overall 45
Improved hands on double play exchange
Lacks range to his right
'10
Good knowledge of strikezone
Short stroke adequate power
Defense
Played like a below-average defender
Range to his right was poor
Slower first step and shoddy footwork
Above average arm
Other-Took bad at bats into the field
'11
Offense
Gap to gap power
Good awareness of strikezone
Defense
Improved agility
Range still leaves something to be desired especially on balls up the middle
His arm is good and improved at turning the Double play

The Constant- Quick short swing, gap power, below avg defense, poor range up the middle
Improvements- agility improving



Kelvin Herrera
'09
FB- 91-92 touches 95
Curve- slurvy w/command for his age
Changeup- Solid w/ command for his age
'10
Injured due to overcompensating for a change in his landing.
'11
Injured elbow problems caused by his landing
Returned at instructs
FB Low 90s touching 95
Curve- Average/slurvy
Changeup Potential plus pitch

The Constant- Everything is the same due to injuries
My Opinion- Kelvin has an electric arm and has been one of my off the top prospect faves for sometime now but a move to the bullpen is probably needed unless his landing has been changed and is completely comfortable to him. His injury probs should temper some enthusiasm on Yordano Ventura who is jumping toward the Top 10 of most Royals prospects charts at 5'10 with a high 90s fastball.

David Lough
2009
Raw Power
Plus speed
Avg in CF
Below Avg Arm
2010
Above avg speed
Lack of weakness
Arm tick below avg
2011
Quick stroke=double power
Solid on base ability
Above average speed
So so reads on balls
Avg CF
Below avg arm

The Constant- Avg tools, below avg arm, above avg speed, lack of weaknesses
The New- Solid on base ability
My Opinion- JJ mentioned in the '11 book that Lough is probably a 4th OF. I think this is misplaying his skillset, David's 2nd half on base ability if developed could lead him to a DDJ type career in my opinion. I've always been a huge Lough fan and believe in his skillset very much and a lack of corner outfielders at the upper levels will give him a opportunity this year if he can take advantage of it.

Derrick Robinson
'09
3.8-3.9 sec speed from leftside
Left-handed swing looks unnatural
Improved pitch recognition
Doesn't read pitchers moves well
Defense
Speed to run balls down
Arm a tick below average
'10
Offense
Movement of feet allows him to get bat thru left stance faster
Posted sub 4.0 times to first after switch in stance
Defense
Speed allows him to play above avg CF
Arm Fring-average
'11
Offense
70-75 speed on a 20-80 scale.
Gets thrown out stealing too often for his speed
Very little power
Defense
Poor jumps at times
Plus defender in CF
Arm Below average

The Constant- Plus defense in CF, 70 speed, doesn't get good read on pitchers, little power
Improvement(s)- Left handed swing
Not looking good- Arm strength, Jumps on hit balls,


Salvador Perez-
'09
Offense- Bat spweed improving but swing path is long due to long arms
Defense
Sets a good target, soft hands, decent job at blocking balls
Arm is 55 on the scale plays up due to quick exchanges
'10
Offense- Gap to gap power
Lacks athleticism and projection
Defense
Tick above average arm
Receives ball well, handles pitchers like a veteran
'11
Gap to gap power
Consistent contact
25 grade speed
Defense
Slightly above average arm
Good job framing pitches
Handles velocity and calls a good game

The Constant- Defense Receives ball, handles pitchers, above average arm, gap to gap power
Improvement(s)- Improved contact
On the downswing- Speed

ORoyals video and Soria rumor pops up again 5 days left

I've attended the last three ORoyals games a doubleheader Sunday and the afternoon game Monday. Quick thoughts on a few guys

Jarrod Dyson- Only got to see him show off the wheels once as he stole a base Monday afternoon but he showed a good arm in center when he would've had Morrison on a close play at the plate had Pina hung on to the ball. Looked alright at the plate as one could expect a couple line drives with not much pop.

Dyson single

David Lough- The usual solid performance from David played solid defense in left while becoming a bit more patient at the plate. His bat is as quick thru the zone as any Royal minor leaguer in the system and despite his size provides nice pop. David's BABIP is attrocious this month(.132 comin into today) but even with that he is carrying a .368 OBP his highest of any month this season and has drawn 9 more walks(19/10) than he did in April-June. If he can build on his last 10 games .257/.386/.514 and the solid approach KC has a solid ML CF/4th OF, in the mold of Brett Gardner with a tick less speed but a tick more pop.

David Lough Groundout
David Lough Forceout

Mike Moustakas- I don't think we'll have to worry about groundouts to second ala Alex because I didn't see him hit a ball on the ground during the three game set but unfortunately I didn't see him square up a ball either. He seems to be taking every first pitch which at the triple A level probably isn't the best approach as the pitchers are savvy enough to feed him offspeed pitches when he is down in the count and get him out with pitches out of the zone which is exactly what happened in the three games I saw. Quite a few popouts and a couple he hit on the button at people. Defensively he didn't get many chances other than a tailor made 5-3 double play he turned. I think AAA is a good challenge to Mike and it'll be a good challenge to him and force him to start hitting down in the count.

Mike Moustakas flyout to CF
Mike Moustakas strikes out swinging

Kila Ka'aihue and Logan Morrison- As usual Kila is the man was unloading on all swings and knocked out a opposite field HR on Monday. He's patient looks for pitches he can crush in "his zone" and when he sees one there is no wasted swing. Other than Logan Morrison Kila was the best looking hitter on the field and uncoiled on all hit attempts. He has a professional approach everytime and is looking for something he can handle. He never waivers no matter what the count, I wish KCs hitters would do the same unfortunately it probably doesn't matter what Kila does cause GMDM is a moron. As I mentioned Morrison is a total stud who is country strong and combines Kila's approach with a little more raw talent and bat speed. Morrison probably doesn't have Kila's strength but he is a solid gap hitter that could probably be an above average hitter at the ML level within a year or two.

Kila Ks
Logan Morrison Groundout

As you can see with the videos I tagged I had some bad luck with the cam as far as results but I was mostly looking to show off the bat speed of these guys. Video quality is better than yesterday.

Rumor- The latest rumor today was that the Yankees offered Montero as apart of a deal for Soria. Jesus Montero is a lock for pretty much every Top 10 list of prospects in baseball, is a catcher by his current position only and a 20 year old holding his own at AAA, so pretty much there isn't much not to like. In fact Jon Heyman said on MLBNetwork they offered the same package as Cliff Lee to the Royals and they turned it down. If true then GMDM is an idiot an even bigger one than we already thought. So in two days KC has rumors they are interested in Frenchy and turned down a deal for Montero+, if those aren't fireable offenses then I don't know what are. The Royals are said to want more pitching, why? They have quite a bit of pitching in the system already how much do they need, yes they are going to deal with some prospect failures but come on they already have more pitching in the minors than any other team in the bigs. They need the best talent made available to them whether that is a stud hitting catcher, outfielder or a centerfielder. GMDM should be doing nothing but stockpiling talent at all positions not just pitching, does he not realize if he has Montero, Myers and Perez behind the dish at least one is going to fail, one is going to make it and he can deal the other. This guy just doesn't get it. If the Yankees did offer this and GMDM passed well I guess 2012-2014 will probably just turn out to be more of the same.

Quick Thought David Lough

Lough continues to be impatient at the plate but has added some punch to his bat since April. Eight home runs, five doubles and six triples since May 1 leading to a .284/.318/485 while the BA and the SLG are definitely good enough to play CF instead of Maier the on base percentage isn't going to cut it. Lough makes easy contact has plenty of speed and arm to hack it defensively in center but his lack of patience will create a tough hill to climb to the majors. I've always contended that Lough could be DDJ with less on base skill but more power and I think he is well on his way to becoming that player although a sprinkle more of patience would definitely help. July was the month Lough took off last season so be on the lookout for a leap in numbers hitting at the top of the order in Omaha.

Redoing the Royals Prospect List 6-10

#6 David Lough- Quick bat and adjusting to fulltime duty in CF. Still wish he was more patient at the plate but he is still young in his baseball career.

#7 John Lamb- Dominated Single A ball and has earned the quick promotion to Wilmington.

#8 Chris Dwyer- Adjusting well to his first full season of pro ball.

#9 Louis Coleman- Under 1 Whip while showing he can make it thru multiple innings. Don't be shocked to see him in KC by seasons end

#10 Tim Melville- Struggling with control and mechanics. Has definitely been the biggest disappointment of the Royal prospect season thus far.

The rumors were flying Monday as some speculation came out about a possible big promotion of a KC prospect was tossed around. While we are still unsure of the prospect or the rumor any move to KC for a prospect such as Crow, Moose or Montgomery would be a mistake in my opinion. KC is not contending this season and the short term gains of moving a prospect 2 levels to the bigs without as much as 2 months in AA ball would be a reach. You don't see the Marlins moving Mike Stanton or the Nats calling up Strasburg yet do you. And those teams are way closer to being in the race as the Royals are. Let them dominate and if you want to call them up in September then give them a crack otherwise you are just playing to attendance and job concerns.

Royals Minor League Rosters set Here is the best of

Best Rotation- Wilmington Blue Rocks- Not really close since Mike Montgomery started in Wilmington. Montgomery, Noel Arguelles, Tim Melville and Chris Dwyer makeup a top notch minor league rotation one that Ben Badler of Baseball America tweeted to me might be the best in the minors. Honorable Mention- Burlington Bees- John Lamb, Tyler Sample, Kelvin Herrera and Matt Mitchell make up a solid foursome all in the Top 30 of the BA list of Royals prospects.

I could see alot of quick moves with those rotations. Herrera has done well in Burlington in his previous four starts as has Montgomery. Look for Montgomery to move up to Arkansas sometime in June or July if Crow would move up and Herrera, Lamb or Mitchell to follow suit to Wilmington with Keaton Hayenga joining the Burlington party. Arguelles is a late scratch with arm soreness but even with that I'll take Wilmingtons rotation over Burlingtons.

Best Bullpen- Omaha Royals- This AAA bullpen is probably better than Kansas City's minus Soria. Blake Wood, Carlos Rosa and Greg Holland all have power arms from the right side while Chris "Disco" Hayes is a groundball machine and Adam Bostick showed that he might have the stuff to be a LOOGY in AAA Buffalo last season putting up solid numbers vs lefties (1.93 FIP 11.12 k/9 and .211 BAA). Bryan Bullington could possibly start for Omaha since they are low on starters at the AAA level but ultimately he showed he is best used out of the pen putting up some solid numbers out of the pen in AAA Las Vegas last season (2.62 FIP in 40 innings w/9.6 k/9).

Best Outfield- Omaha Royals- Again not even close this unit is not only solid offensively but also special defensively. David Lough, Jordan Parraz and Jarrod Dyson will be extra fun to watch this season as they all move decently well defensively while Parraz also carries a cannon for an arm. Lough and Dyson impressed in spring while Parraz like Lough enjoyed a breakout offensive season in '09. We Omaha fans should enjoy watching these guys man the outfield.

Best Infield- Northwest Arkansas Naturals- While not stellar defensively this crew has shown in their previous two stops in the minors they can put up enough numbers offensively to counter that. Clint Robinson, Johnny Giavotella and Mike Moustakas will man 1st, 2nd and 3rd base together like they have the past two seasons in Burlington and Wilmington. They will be joined by Chris McConnell at Shortstop who according to Total Zone is a very very good defensive shortstop.

Again the position players lack behind pitchers as KC has a good pitching prospect at almost every level either in the rotation or the pen. Hopefully KC can start to makeup that difference this season with hopeful bounce back seasons by Hos and Moose and Myers stepping up. We'll see as the minor league season starts Thursday.

Next Up : Checkout my Omaha Royals video on Friday from the Thursday night game against the Memphis Redbirds.

Possible Omaha Royals OF should be exciting to watch.

Jarrod Dyson, David Lough and Jordan Parraz have all reported to AAA spring training. While I wouldn't be surprised if Lough or Dyson started the season in NW Arkansas the combination of the three would in my opinion make for the strongest defensive unit of any Royal minor league affiliate. Dyson showed off his speed and ability to track the ball in center field this spring while playing with the major league team. Dyson seems to be a Joey Gathright clone without the minor league hitting success, remember Gathright had a .761 OPS as opposed to Dyson's .668 effort so far. So temper any expectations to him being a starting CFr in Kansas City as I doubt he'll ever hit enough to make it but for us ORoyals ticket holders he should be fun to watch when he does get on base(82% SB %) and in the field. As for the corners Lough and Parraz are decently adept at tracking the ball and might also have the skills at the plate to contribute at the big league level. Lough exploded on the scene last season with a good effort at Wilmington(.850 OPS) prior to achieving quite a bit of success at NW Arkansas (.934 OPS). Lough probably has the speed to play CF but continues to be paired with speedsters in the minors and has only played parts of each season in center. Lough is the bright spot positionally in the system rated as my #4 prospect due to the fact that he continues to progress with the bat and his speed should make him playable in CF and a plus at the LF slot. As for Parraz he also was having an outstanding season in AA prior to some hamstring problems that developed. Before those problems Parraz was hitting at a .358 clip had earned more walks than strikeouts(29-25) and showed more pop in the bat than previous seasons with a career high .553 SLG. Parraz also has the athletic ability to play a little CF in a pinch but unlike Lough has a cannon for an arm rating #1 in the KC minor league system according to Baseball America. All things considered these three would probably give the KC current alignment a run for their money defensively.

I obviously like David Lough the best of these three but could see Parraz or Dyson as major league contributors in a 4th Outfielder role.

1st Annual Royals Top Prospect Starting Lineup

You've seen top prospect rankings everywhere that are entirely more accurate and informative than mine. So I thought to myself how can I change mine up, how can I seperate myself from the pack. And then boom and epiphany I will rank them by position only. 1 and 1a at each position, yes that brilliant thinking will set me aside from almost no one.

Starting Pitcher ACE

1)Lefty Mike Montgomery- Duh he is the #1 consensus Royals prospect. Lets see Fastball-Check already consistently 90's touches 94-95 should be able to hit those speeds consistently as he fills out. Breaking stuff- Still a work in progress two types of curveballs as usual the youngster is inconsistent with both. Changeup- I would think it won't take long for him to find a consistent grip since he likes to use the palm grip on one of his curveball deliveries. Montgomery has the drive and talent to become a #1 and hopefully will develop in time to stand next to or in place of Greinke in that spot.

1a) Righty Tim Melville- Most like Aaron Crow in this slot and that is probably the right pick but I really like Melville. Melville projected as a 1st rounder in 2008 but struggled his senior year and combined with his draft demands fell to the Royals in the 4th round where he signed for 1.25M. He didn't pitch any pro ball in '08 so for him to jump into the midwest league hold his own and not have to be demoted showed me something. Yes the midwest league is a pitchers league but for the 19 yo to hold up against much older competition and actually get better as the season(10.65 k/9 last 10 starts) went on is a very good sign for his career. Melville's repetoire is the same as the FO office prefers solid fastball touches 95 that is a good strikeout pitch but also is heavy and produced quite a few groundballs. He also is working on his curve and change up. Tim starts the season in Wilmington and will hopefully enjoy similar success as Montgomery and Duffy. Melville doesn't have the polish of Montgomery but I believe after seeing him he could match his upside. BA says 2/3 is his upside but with his body and size I think he could peak into that 1/2 range.

Honorable Mention- Kelvin Herrera, I love everything I've ever read about this kid and will definitely be checking out one of his starts if he repeats Burlington. He is yet to have a problem at any level even holding his own against much older competition at Burlington(IA) in '08 and his one '09 start. In 111 total innings Herrera has given up exactly 1 HR. While his size is not impressive 5'10 162 lbs his pitchability and combination of pitches is. Herrera could skip Burlington(IA) if he proves to be healthy in ST and bounce to Wilmington but I doubt it. I wouldn't be shocked if Kelvin started in Burlington and ended the season in Arkansas. The kid is just polished when healthy he can touch mid 90s and already has solid command on his change. I will be checking him out early in Burlington(IA) as I expect him not to last there long.

Outlook- There is nothing wrong in this system when you talk young starting pitchers. I would say Tampa Bay is the only other team that can match KCs depth from Top Major League level to the Rookie levels in terms of starting pitching talent and they don't have a CY Young winner.
Potential Major Leaguers (Potential IMO): Montgomery (1), Melville (1/2), Crow (2), Herrera (2/3), Lough (3), Lamb (3)

Bullpen
1) Louis Coleman- Drafted out of LSU after putting away the touches on a national title run Coleman was signed for 100k and immediately had success in his bp role. Coleman can get to the mid 90s out of the pen and has a nice slider. His 3/4 arm slot might lead one to think he would struggle against lefties
1a) Brandon Sisk- There are quite a few options in the bullpen for the Royals in the lower minors even at the upper levels they are building some arms but few have had the ups and downs of Sisk. The ups are that Sisk has had quite a bit of success in the minors at every level even a nice performance in the AFL this fall overall Sisk has pitched 151.2 Innings since the start of '08 and has 189 k's versus only 56 Bbs. That's a 11.21 K/9 with only a 3.22 bb rate and a 0.99 WHIP you would be hard pressed to find better stats out of any Royal pitching prospect. Is Sisk a prospect? Probably not he rates as a lefty specialist pitching 89-90 while touching 92-93 with a average change up but you have to like the success he had last season in Wilmington and the Arizona Fall league. Look for him to start in Arkansas or maybe even Omaha.

Honorable Mention- Josh Worrell, playing against younger competition the big Worrell (6'5 215lbs) had some nice numbers 16.46 k/9, 1.73 FIP in 13.2 IP. Lets see how he does against more advanced competition this season. He definitely has good bloodlines as the son of Todd Worrell.

Catcher
1)Wil Myers- Myers fell to the Royals in the 3rd round due to signability concerns, some speculated KC would take him in the 1st rd but they lucked out having him their in the 3rd. He is still relatively inexperienced at the position allowing 6 passed balls in only 11 games. His bat is explosive (14 extra base hits in 22 games)and might cause the Royals to move him out of this position. Expect him to start the season in the extremely tough hitting environment of Burlington (IA) where Moose and Hosmer struggled early. New position, cold weather and older competition could lead to some struggles watch his numbers after the allstar break to see if he is pickin up the position and the pitchers. If(Big) he excels early lookout KC could be onto something.
1a) No One
Honorable Mention- Salvador Perez, Perez the youngest of the Burlington trio last season struggled early in A ball but had a nice bounce back after being demoted to Idaho Falls to find Abs. Perez has nice size at 6'3 and should fill out and add some pop to his swing as he ages. He is only going to be 20 years old but could be the victim of Myers development at Burlington(A) this season making it tough for him to find time at the position but at least he should get Abs at DH. Fernando Cruz was converted from 3b to Catcher this last season and performed decently at Burlington (NC). His batted showed a little progress this season but he still has a long way to go. He'll probably play at Idaho Falls this season.
First Base

1) Eric Hosmer- A tough first year for "The Hos" but I'm still a believer. He was injured quite a bit (hand and wrist) and had problems with his eyesight(Lasik). Hopefully his eyesight is what created his bad GB rates(62.5%). I'm still a believer and think that GMDM created a little bit of the problem with the tough assignments. Midwest League A ball is difficult for any young hitter and then to give him an unjustified promotion didn't help things. All in all it was a difficult season for the Hos hopefully he bounces back with the improved wrist and eyesight.
1a) Kila Kaaihue- I really wanted to put "The Alabama Hammer" in this slot but just couldn't do it. Kila deserves to be on the 25 man roster and only GMDMs shortsighted view of him is keeping him off. Just look at Kilas Total Zone rating defensively while Total Zone isn't a great predictor of defense it should be noted that his defensive game is better than Billys and he could possibly put up neutral defensive stats. Chone has him as slightly below average defensively but positive offensively. Kila's rated as worth 2.6 million according to Chone as opposed to JoGuis 300k value under Chone but anyway.
Second Base
1) Johnny Giavotella- Gio like many position players in the KC org had a difficult season last year. Unlike many others though his was due to bad luck as opposed to his own impatience or injury. Giavotella like Kila is one of the few patient hitters in the organization and showed good patience at High A Wilmington. Gio had a nice 11.8% BB rate although that dropped from 14+% as he drew less walks the last couple months. His ISO was the same as it was in A ball .122 but with his drop in BABIP from .325 to .279 his production fell. Hopefully a promotion to AA and a better hitting environment will bring back the previous production.
1a) Fernando Garcia- Garcia, 20 probably profiles as a defensive second baseman at best had a pretty decent season at Burlington(IA) for a young guy. Garcia doesn't have much pop in the bat (.345 SLG) but has a good eye and should develop with the glove with his athleticism. He drew more walks than Ks (61 v 56) and swiped some bags when he got on (29). He is a fringe guy at best but that plate discipline combined with his athleticism gives him some tools to work with. I don't know if he could handle SS but it would be nice if KC gave him the opportunity.
Honorable Mention- This kind of shows the weakness of the Royals system when I can't place a few positions with legit 2nd spots. Irving Falu shows outstanding range and defensive skill but his lack of power makes him nothing more than infield injury depth.

Shortstop
1) Jeff Bianchi- Bianchi had an extremely solid season at Wilmington and NW Arkansas w/.798 OPS. Bianchi propsect status had fallen due to prospect fatigue and lack of overall success but his nice bounceback season has people peeking once again. Bianchi like so many Royals lacks patience at the plate and will need to change that to improve. Many prospect experts didn't believe Bianchi could handle SS but the Royals showed confidence in his ability to play SS and may be rewarded with a potential solid defender at that premium position.
1a) Yowill Espinal- '07 Dominican signee has some pop in the bat but little patience to go with it. He could get his first taste of full season ball this year and could get exposed by more advanced pitching if he can't control his tendancy to swing away. According to minor league splits he only had a 6.2% line drive rate which is abnormally low. He is still young and has good frame and tools to build on. BA had some great quotes on his defense in '08 Brewers skipper Tony Diggs compared him to Alcides Escobar, who didn't hit much in the lower minors but has improved since reaching Double-A and has become one of the game's top shortstop prospects.
Third base
1) Mike Moustakas- Moose showed very little patience and a desire to pull everything last season. Those weaknesses lead to a very difficult season for him. He once again proved he can pack tons of power into his swing(52 XB hits ) but none of that will matter if he can't be more patient at the plate. His defense also seems to be improving at least according to Total Zone. Moose has a couple solid tools good pop in his bat and a cannon arm but if he can't increase his patience at the plate he will struggle. Especially at the AA ball level where he will get exposed.
Honorable Mention- Cheslor Cuthbert was signed out of Nicaragua for 1.35M. Scouts believe he is an advanced hitter although Nicaragua doesn't have the top level competition.
Right Field
1) Jordan Parraz-I've talked about Parraz in my other blog but with a good start in AAA this year he could add the depth the Royals need to trade off Ankiel or DDJ if teams come a biting at midseason. BA surprisingly said he can be a CF fill in, I knew he was athletic but didn't think he had that type of athleticism. He already has the best OF arm in the system so if he can show that kind of athleticism in Left or Right Field then KC could have a above average corner outfielder in the mold of DDJ. Above average defense with a decent offensive game.
1a).
Center Field
1) David Lough- Talk about a coming out party David had the best season of any Royal positional player last year. Lough had a solid .850 OPS in Wilmington when the FO decided to promote him and wow did he respond at AA. Finally away from the cooled off hitting environments Lough exploded on the scene putting up a .934 OPS in 265 ABs including 28 extra base hits. Lough hasn't played CF much unfortunately playing next to speedsters Adrian Oritz, Derrick Robinson and Jarrod Dyson have limited his exposure to the potential but many believe he can play average defense in CF. Lough is pushing Moustakas and others for being the highest rated positional player in the system.
1a) No one
Honorable Mention- You can name any number of Royal speedsters here. Jarrod Dyson, Adrian Ortiz, Hilton Richardson and Derrick Robinson all possess ++ speed but all have little pop with the bat and even less on base skill. The Royals FO love speed as they have drafted some 2 sport speedster pretty much every year since GMDM was hired hoping to land the next Kenny Lofton, thus far they have had little success but it's still early with some of these guys. Richardson is the most intriguing of the group as he looks like he could fill out and add some pop to his skillset but from what I've heard his swing is less than ideal to do that. All of these guys with the exception of Richardson are in make or break years of their career if they continue their struggles this season they might be done.
Left Field
1)Tim Smith- Smith doesn't possess any particular great tools but he does have decent plate discipline which is a rare trait in the Royals system. Expect the 24 year old to repeat AA where he had a .819 OPS in 36 games last season.
1A) No one

As you can see and as everyone already knew prior the Royals system is heavily pitcher weighted. This excercise proves extremely difficult with so little talent in the system positionally.