2023 – A new beginning for the Royals. Matt Quatraro era begins. A year to see which of our young players will make up the core going forward. Can Bobby Witt Jr become a superstar SS or will go to the hot corner? Will Brady Singer take the next step forward? Will Salvy be Salvy? Will Big Vin or Pratto take first base? Will they find a position for MJ? Who else emerges from the youth movement? Not to mention the development of the new downtown stadium.
Free Agents/Trades Acquisitions
Jordan Lyles, RHP
Ryan Yarbrough, LHP
Josh Taylor, LHP
Aroldis Chapman, LHP
Top 10 Prospects from Baseball America
1. Gavin Cross, OF
2. Cayden Wallace, 3B
3. Drew Waters, OF
4. Ben Kudrna, RHP
5. Frank Mozzicato, LHP
6. Maikel Garcia, SS
7. Tyler Gentry, OF
8. Nick Loftin, OF/3B
9. Angel Zerpa, LHP
10. Carter Jensen, C [Reply]
Originally Posted by tk13:
I honestly don't care about that. It'd be different if it was a prep pitcher for sure. That's a different beast. There aren't many prep catchers (or major league catchers) with that arm. Unless there's some program specific reason why someone isn't learning baseball or football a certain way, I don't see the logical reason why a HS catcher can't have success. Our player development worries me far more than the prep catcher thing. They obviously went for a guy with tools they want to try and coach up.
That coaching up thing…. well yeah.. anyway. Hope he can develop on his own time. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Mecca:
https://twitter.com/maxrieper/status/1678196386070659072?t=Rer6cuzpD64qQecBe4PS7g&s=09
They don't have this dude's arm. They just don't. I'd have to go look but I'm pretty sure Naylor was considered a bat-first catcher too. Not that we're sure he's even staying at catcher but Mitchell has a 70-grade arm and can throw it almost 100 mph.
They're definitely taking a huge risk here, I agree, but at least they did it with a guy that has elite tools. Amazing arm, really good lefty power and appears to have good plate discipline too. If the Rays did this everybody would be saying how smart they are. [Reply]
So if you think he's a catcher...does this mean they just gave up on Carter Jensen who was one of those finds from going underslot on Mozzicato? [Reply]
Originally Posted by tk13:
They don't have this dude's arm. They just don't. I'd have to go look but I'm pretty sure Naylor was considered a bat-first catcher too. Not that we're sure he's even staying at catcher but Mitchell has a 70-grade arm and can throw it almost 100 mph.
They're definitely taking a huge risk here, I agree, but at least they did it with a guy that has elite tools. Amazing arm, really good lefty power and appears to have good plate discipline too. If the Rays did this everybody would be saying how smart they are.
Yes because they could give him 5 years. Mitchell is a DH with no athletic ability. He is nothing more than a system filler. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Mecca:
So if you think he's a catcher...does this mean they just gave up on Carter Jensen who was one of those finds from going underslot on Mozzicato?
They don't think he's a catcher. They know he is a DH. BTW this is the pick that will get all of these guys fired. [Reply]
Originally Posted by tk13:
They don't have this dude's arm. They just don't. I'd have to go look but I'm pretty sure Naylor was considered a bat-first catcher too. Not that we're sure he's even staying at catcher but Mitchell has a 70-grade arm and can throw it almost 100 mph.
They're definitely taking a huge risk here, I agree, but at least they did it with a guy that has elite tools. Amazing arm, really good lefty power and appears to have good plate discipline too. If the Rays did this everybody would be saying how smart they are.
I don't think teams should ever rule out any type of player (HS pitcher, HS catcher).
His howitzer of an arm is a bigger deal because of the 2023 rules and a potential automated strike zone in the coming years. But there's much more to catching than that. It's a tough position for obvious reasons. Even the high-performing Triple-A catchers bust at probably a 50/50 rate in the majors.
All that being said, the success of this pick is going to come down to whether Mitchell can hit or not, like any other pick.
And even with the polished college position players, we often don't find out if they can hit against pro pitching with the wood bat until they start accruing at-bats in rookie and low Single-A ball. [Reply]
Also this is the 3rd high picks prep catcher taken recently by the Royals.
Melendez
Jensen
Mitchell
Melendez was a glove first prep catcher that scouts said could defensively play in the majors right away..yet today's he's an OFer because the Royals think he's awful behind the plate..
This is the team we trust to develop Mitchell... [Reply]
Originally Posted by Mecca:
Also this is the 3rd high picks prep catcher taken recently by the Royals.
Melendez
Jensen
Mitchell
Melendez was a glove first prep catcher that scours said could defensively play in the majors right away..yet today's he's an OFer because the Royals think he's awful behind the plate..
This is the team we trust to develop Mitchell...
I have more faith in him developing a bad case of jock itch than this clown franchise developing him [Reply]
You don't draft Blake Mitchell unless you think you have 100% job security..so even with this terrible MLB team...awful minor leagues..Piccolo and crew feel no heat or pressure.
That's sad and frankly ridiculous, they're on pace to be one of the 5 worst teams ever. [Reply]
