1. Yasmani Grandal – After playing 129 regular season games, Grandal earned just 11 postseason at-bats during the Dodgers playoff run. Obviously, the Royals have little need for another catcher with Salvy eating up an average of 139 games the past five seasons, but with the likely departure of Eric Hosmer this offseason, Kansas City could use a first baseman, a spot Grandal has filled in during 48 games in his career. Could he play first base every day? That’s for the Royals to decide, but he’s obviously got the power to carry the position, can fill in at catcher for Perez off days and could use some steady offensive ABs without the strain of the catching position on his way to his eventual free agency. It also offers the Royals the ability to trade Salvador to deepen a farm system that should already be getting deeper with the additions from the 2018 draft. With a $7.7M arbitration estimate, the Dodgers could use the tax savings that this move would offer while likely asking little in return other the Royals taking the money off of their hands.

2. Rusney Castillo – The Red Sox are still on the hook for 3 years and $37 million of Castillo’s contract. All for a player that they have given all of 99 games in three seasons. For a team with a full outfield already, it’s not likely that Castillo is going to break through in Boston given Bradley, Betts, and Benintendi ahead of him. Despite this, the Cuban born outfielder is coming off a strong season in which he hit .314/.350/.500 with 15 home runs in 87 games for the Triple-A Pawtucket squad.

The Royals aren’t likely to compete over the next three seasons, but they have a need in centerfield and not much depth at the upper levels with ready players at that position. Heading into the season Paulo Orlando, Bubba Starling and Donnie Dewees are the three best in-house candidates above Double-A. Those three players aren’t likely to block anyone whom the Royals deem necessary to give at-bats to anytime soon.

Is Castillo a star? No, but it’s obvious KC is thin at that position, the Red Sox could use some salary relief and the Royals don’t have many prospects that can move the needle in trades. With this move, GMDM shouldn’t take on a large part of the deal but a $3-5m total package for a bucket of balls could offer KC a playable player in center for three seasons could be worth the risk while offering nothing in terms of players that they would need to trade.

3. Joc Pederson – The Dodgers are heading into the season with a pair of players not likely to gain as much playing time as their arbitration estimates might suggest with Grandal and Pederson at $2M. While most fans would like to trade for the next player on the list, the move for Pederson would also fill a need for Kansas City. Best case scenario for a deal like this would center around a Herrera/Soria flip for Joc but that doesn’t quite give the Dodgers the salary relief needed, though it does make their bullpen stronger during the regular season. Also, a healthy Herrera in the playoffs would’ve obviously helped them during this last playoff run. If the Royals would catch the ’15/’16 vintage of Pederson, then a .500 or better record would not be out of line while his salary wouldn’t preclude them from re-signing Eric Hosmer, which would be a dream scenario for GMDM.

4. Jackie Bradley Jr. – This one is obvious and the Royals have been linked to Bradley multiple times the past couple of seasons in rumors. While GMDM and staff would be smart to add a player who has averaged 2.5 WARP over the past three seasons, they would likely need to outbid the Cubs, Rangers, and Giants for his services which seems a tall order when you think of prospects alone. The $5.9M arbitration estimate isn’t huge this season, but he’s got two more seasons of arbitration coming behind it with a down year offensively on the books. His defense in center is more valuable to the Royals and their huge outfield than Boston, while freeing up ’18-’20 money to play in the big free agent bidding pools. A difficult trade of an inexpensive bullpen piece like Scott Alexander would probably need to be moved to win this bidding over the teams mentioned above.

Each of these trades makes sense either for a rebuilding team or one that wants to play on the fringes of competing while waiting for TV money and a farm system rebuild to supplement the major league team.

First off, the Royals gave up their first round pick due to signing Ian Kennedy after he was rewarded a qualifying offer from the San Diego Padres. Secondly, the Royals again failed to gain a pick in the collective balance lottery which are rewarded to teams that receive revenue sharing. And lastly, the penalties for going over a team’s pool amount make it very restrictive to go over the pool amount. The Royals $3.225m pool with 10% cushion ($3.5m) was the second lowest in the MLB draft this year, ahead of only the Cubs.

Still don’t follow? Checkout a quick refresher here.

Now onto the show! Today’s review goes over the players in rounds 2 through 10. With this review, you will see reviews on the players from different baseball sites including Baseball Prospectus, Baseball America, Perfect Game and a few others that you should subscribe to. On top of that information, I have offered my own analysis of the picks after reviewing video, talking to the players and, in most cases, the coaches they have played for.

Look for a review of round 11 through 40 tomorrow.

2. A.J. Puckett RHP 6’4 200 lbs Pepperdine U. 5/27/95
Signed $1.2m Slot Value $963.700 (No Penalty incurred under $1,264,965

According to Pepperdine pitching coach Rolando Garza, the righthander is a high character kid with good athleticism that allows him to field his position while controlling the running game. One of the reasons for his success this year was his ability to close his front side which allowed him to keep height and depth on his pitches, particularly his fastball and change up. Being able to command the fastball to all quadrants of the zone while altering speeds allows him to employ his game plan start to start.

“AJ’s character and athleticism are a great fit to the Royals organization and should allow him to maximize his capabilities in the future.” – Rolando Garza, Pepperdine Pitching Coach

The change up comes out of the same window as the fastball with fade, allowing it to play up while the curveball and slider are pitches that should come together with more work in pro ball.

Analysis – Solid pick, not flashy but an ability to control four average pitches with a chance to tick up velocity despite being a college guy (and thus being older). Read more about Puckett here.

3. Khalil Lee OF 5’10 180 lbs L/L Centreville, VA 6/26/98
Slot Value $579,700

Some in the Royals blogosphere were stunned by this pick, but you have to love it when looking at the video. The tools and the character of the kid the Royals got here in the 3rd round make this pick look very good. The hit tool is there, the speed is there and the arm strength and intelligence combined with the on-field awareness is all present. Hailing from the same general area that produced Jackie Bradley Jr., this outfielder with a smooth swing and a big fastball was under-recruited and often ignored in a similar fashion to JBJ. Does he have the projection of a 6’3 215 lbs. kid? No, he doesn’t, but sometimes you can just take a kid that gets it and is able to play and Lee has done that his entire career. He’s performed on the summer circuit and high school, showing no signs of slowing, which makes it likely that he hasn’t reached his ceiling yet.

Via Prep Baseball Report – Lee is an athletic outfielder with a strong lower half that hits from the left side of the plate. He has an open athletic stance and a smooth load back. He has a slightly longer swing path with good extension through the ball and incredible hand and bat speed that make up for any length in his swing. He has an explosive lower half and maintains balance throughout his swing. Lee has power to all fields and the potential to have big power to all fields. In the outfield, he gets good jumps on balls and takes good routes. He has a quick release and a plus arm in center from a high three-quarters arm slot with a long, loose arm action. While he is quick, he is probably more of a corner outfielder in the future and he plays the game faster than he runs.

Via Baseball America – Shown growth in his position player skill set, running 4.2 or under down the line, and his strong arm plays well in the outfield. Though his frame is compact, he has enough bat speed and pop that most teams considered him a hitting prospect early this spring. But with his blossoming velocity, Lee might be a more attractive pitching option. The confusion over his position could serve Liberty well, as Lee would have the opportunity to play both ways if he happens to make it to campus.

Via Perfect Game – Scouts know in their hearts that some of the best hitters in the game are short. But that doesn’t keep them from wishing that every prospect is 6-foot-3, 195-pounds. And thus we come to Khalil Lee, one of four prospects in the PG Top 100 (the others being Carlos Cortes, Ben Rortvedt and Dominic Fletcher) listed at 5-foot-10 or less.  Lee has very good physical tools. He has a very fluid and well-timed lefthanded swing that shows power and present bat speed. His arm strength is a definitely plus, as he works in the low-90s off the mound and makes laser on-line throws from the outfield and will be a very good defender. His running speed is a tick below average but he has a high speed motor and shows his quickness on the field.One suspects that Lee’s draft status has been downgraded somewhat by his size despite the tools and the performance and what is considered plus makeup. And after all, Pedroia and Bradley were not heavily pursued in the draft out of high school and Betts was a fifth-round pick.

Extras – Volunteered locally as a teacher’s aide at a pair of elementary schools and as a baseball coach for children with disabilities.

Analysis – While some thought this might be a reach in the 3rd round, I think it is an absolute steal and is definitely the player with supreme upside. I would take the pitching away and let a gifted, high IQ player concentrate on hitting and fielding and you could have a top of the order hitter with plus defensive tools all around. As the PG quote above reads, many teams slept on JBJ, Pedroia and Betts due to their size. A few years from now, we could be adding Lee to that list.

4. Jace Vines RHP 6’3 215 lbs Texas A&M 9/4/94
Slot Value $433,900

The righthander got knocked around a little at the Division I level this season after dominating JUCO ball but despite that he showed he can continue to miss bats.

Via Baseball America – An eligible sophomore, Vines couldn’t match results with his stuff in a very erratic sophomore season. Texas A&M’s Saturday starter for much of the year, he lost that job after walking five and giving up five runs while recording only one out in a start against Arkansas. Vines sits 90-91 mph with a fastball that shows good sink and will touch 93-94. His breaking ball will flash fringe-average and his change up is a playable, below-average offering. Vines seemed to wear down as the season lengthened and he struggled to stay out of the top of the strike zone.

Analysis - A draft eligible sophomore here is an interesting decision considering the Royals are likely to overpay for Lee and may need slot bonus money. Perhaps a year in the A&M system disagreed with Vines and the Royals can get a talented arm around slot that they can be groomed to let loose in a reliever role. He seems similar to some of their older SEC picks of the past in Kevin Chapman and Louis Coleman.

5. Nicholas Lopez SS 5’11 175 lbs L/R Creighton U 3/13/95
Slot Value $324.800

Those of you who watch college baseball and the College World Series know how big TD Ameritrade, the home of the CWS, plays. No team and no coach staff knows that better than Creighton’s which plays their entire home schedule in TD, meaning the team is built around two things, pitching and defense. To say the Bluejays shortstop has to be a glove dynamo is an understatement, and Lopez is just that, able to make every play a shortstop needs to.

While the defense is there to handle short, the bat lacks power and his knowledge of the strike zone, speed and athleticism will have to be the tools that carry him through the minor leagues. At 175 lbs and a 5’11, he lacks the physicality to be much of a power threat down the road but showed a little pop in the Coastal Plain League during the summer before his senior year, hitting seven home runs in 43 games which is five more than he hit in his college career.

Other Royals draft picks from Creighton: James Lemon 1973, Steve Hinton 1991

Analysis – Speed and defense are the keys to his game, so perhaps he works his way to a utility role in the future. Regardless of if he turns into enough of a player, it is smart money to put this type of defender behind young pitchers in the minor leagues.

6. Cal Jones OF 6’0 175 lbs R/R Dadeville HS 9/16/97
Signed $250k Slot Value $243,00

“Speed and excitement” is how Cal Jones describes his game from the phone call I had with him. The numbers add up to that as well showing off 6.3-6.4 60 times for the Royals in their private workouts in Kansas City. I asked Cal if he happened to put any in the fountain during his Kauffman workouts and he said he hit a couple out but hopes those will come someday. Currently the centerfielder tries to work the ball up the middle as his game is built on speed.

Cal was a wide receiver during his freshman and sophomore football campaigns before moving to quarterback his junior year. He had an opportunity to play wide receiver at some small college schools but passed on that knowing baseball is his first love and his ticket for the future. When asked if the coaching change at Alabama played into his decision to sign. “Not really, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I’m very excited to get my career started with the Royals.”

Analysis – Speed and athleticism are a Royals trademark in the outfield, so this is a worthy pick at slot to see if you can develop the hitter from within the athleticism that already exists.

7. Travis Eckert RHP 6’2 195 lbs Oregon State 12/28/93
Slot Value $186,500

Despite being from Texas where many prep pitchers are overused, Eckert has a relatively fresh arm after being primarily an outfielder in high school and at Temple Community College. Only after concentrating on pitcher at Clark College did Eckert start to see his stock start to rise. Once under the long toss, weighted ball and strength/conditioning program that OSU promotes, Eckert saw his velocity start to rise and his stock start to round into from. Eckert started the season in the Sunday slot for Oregon State but was bumped after their Friday option was sidelined. He excelled there, performing better during the Pac-10 season than he did during the rest of the schedule, going 5-3 with a 3.11 ERA over 66.2 innings.

“Travis is still just learning his craft and better days are ahead for him.”

The right-handed starter currently works in the 90-93 mph range with some 4’s and 5’s according to Oregon State pitching coach Nate Yeskie. Using an over the top to 3/4 delivery with his pitches, Eckert can alter speeds speeds with the fastball while taking advantage of good control with the pitch, meaning control over command according to Yeskie. It all comes from a delivery with good tempo which allows it to play up. Eckert pairs a slider in the upper 70s to low 80s with the fastball. All in all, Coach Yeskie compared Eckert’s control favorably to current Detroit Tigers starter Matt Boyd who is also from the Oregon State program.

The best pitch in Eckert’s arsenal currently is a change up that he’s able to replicate arm speed with, having enough comfort with it that he’s able to use it versus righties as well as a real weapon versus lefties. A cutter could be added later in pro ball, according to Coach Yeskie, if he wants another weapon to hold hitters off.

Analysis – Lottery tickets are fun but hardly ever cash, Eckert is a solid control guy and represents the possibility of becoming a 4th or 5th starter for a 7th round pick which is still great value. Senior sign likely under slot.

8. Chris DeVito 1b 6’2 220 lbs U. of New Mexico 12/1/94
Slot Value $174,100

“Crazy Juice” – These are the words Coach Ray Birmingham kept coming back to with regard to Chris DeVito. The former walk-on from Chatsworth High in California (same school as Mike Moustakas) followed a teammate to New Mexico to rework his swing and hopefully put him in the position that he fell into Saturday as an 8th round pick. A big kid with the fiery competitive attitude one would expect from a red head, he showed the discipline needed to grow as a player and eventually grow into a power hitting threat.

“He’s special, he lets the ball travel deep and has a short compact swing that allows him to hit 96-98 mph velocity.”

Coach Birmingham rated DeVito’s power as 60-70 grade pop while comparing it favorably to that of Alex Gordon’s who his son played with at the University of Nebraska. As the coach of New Mexico, he knows a thing or two about offense, helping D.J. Peterson become a 1st round pick for the Seattle Mariners in 2013 while the program often rates towards the top of the NCAA offensive charts.

Other KC Picks from New Mexico – Cole White, Eric Diaz and former FA Edwin Carl

Analysis – Likely signs for underslot which is value in itself. Add in some real power and maybe you luck into a future power hitting first baseman/DH.

9. Walker Sheller RHP 6’3 195 lbs Stetson U. 5/21/95
Slot Value $162,700

A reliever by trade, Sheller is able to move arm slots from over the top to sidearm while tossing his fastball and slider. Coach Pete Dunn needed Sheller to start some his sophomore year with a lack of quality arms in the program, but this past season a couple new starters brought in allowed him to find his place in the back of the bullpen. A good athlete who was also a position player in JUCO prior to arriving at Stetson he fields the position well while controlling the running game.

With his arm angle and loose arm Sheller can create run away from lefties with the fastball, backfoot his slider to those same lefties or tie up righties with either pitch. The fastball works 91-93 while topping at 94 using it as his swing and miss pitch with the movement he gets on it. The slider works in the low 80’s with two plane break that he can sweep away from righties or put on the back foot of lefties. It’s a weak contact pitch more than a swing and miss.

Via Perfect Game -Sheller varies his arm slots from a more mid three-quarters release to a lower, near sidearm slot, and he has been able to throw strikes and effectively manipulate his stuff from both angles. His heavy, sinking fastball sits in the 88-92 mph range but has a touched a tick higher at times, and he has good feel for a breaking ball which he can the shape and tilt on. He’s been near unhittable this year and he should be a quality mid-relief option in pro ball. 

Analysis – The arm angles, pitches and reliever mentality scream Louis Coleman. That is what a 9th round pick should be in my opinion.

10. Richard Lovelady LHP 6’0 180 lbs Kennesaw State U. 7/7/95
Slot Value $156,600

Coach Kevin Erminio of Kennesaw State talked about Lovelady’s “toughness and the great late movement” that he gets on his fastball. All coming from a 3/4 to low 3/4 delivery Lovelady is able to get good run down and away on the arm side to create weak contact or swing and miss. It all comes from a strong but lean 180 lbs frame that is locked into his craft when he gets on the hill.

Lovelady currently has just average athleticism, and improvement in fielding the position will be needed at the pro level. On top of that, some refinement of the slider to make it a tighter spinning version of the high 70s to low 8os offering to induce more swing and miss could also help improve his stock. Currently the fastball is the pitch that Lovelady will need to lean on in the minors, working from that angle in the 91-to 93 range while touching 94.

A workhorse for Kennesaw that saw him appear in 37 of 56 games, he limited Atlantic Sun opponents to a .136 BAA and overall opponents to just a .186 while striking out 10.25 per 9 innings.

Analysis – I see a LOOGY projection currently that you would hope can refine the slider to become a pitcher that can compete against both lefties and righties.

South Carolina and reaching College Baseball’s Pinnacle

When Whit arrived to Columbia in 2008, he joined a South Carolina squad that had been one of the best teams in the SEC. In fact, the Gamecocks amassed more wins from 2000 to 2004 than any team in the country, winning two SEC conference titles and one conference tournament title in that time. After enjoying super regional or further runs in seven of the previous eight seasons, the ’08 and ’09 squads underperformed, failing to reach the super regional in each season while finishing in the middle of the SEC field. The program would be changed for good in 2010, however, as Jackie Bradley, Merrifield and a host of others would push the Gamecocks to new heights with a national championship run that featured a rally through the losers bracket, a defeat over their most hated rival, Clemson, and a two game sweep in the finals. It marked the first national championship for a heralded program from the most challenging baseball conference in the nation. It was on that 2010 team that Whit had cemented himself as a future utility dynamo, playing all over the diamond for the eventual national champions and being one of its most productive hitters during the ’09 (3rd highest average) and ’10 seasons.

Pro Ball and the struggle

Things change in pro ball for most players as they go from winners and the best players on their teams to small pieces of a pro program. How they survive that and learn from that shapes whether they become major league players or decide they have futures in other industries. From 2010 to 2013 Merrifield hadn’t enjoyed much success at the lower minor league levels statistically or in the win column. A Royals club that had enjoyed so much minor league success in terms of winning was doing it at the levels above where Merrifield was playing, failing to make the playoffs in any of his first four seasons. Was he struggling to play for himself? Was he struggling with the losing that he hadn’t faced prior? Had he just not made the adjustments needed? Whatever the reason Merrifield had struggled in those seasons, failing to eclipse a .722 OPS during anytime in the minors up until 2013.

The Breakout

At age 25, Merrifield was staring the end of his baseball career in the eyes having struggled in his first four minor league seasons. Despite that lack of expectations and playing at the highest level of his career to date, Merrifield thrived, putting up a career high .829 OPS at Double-A NW Arkansas prior to a promotion after just 44 games there. The hitting wouldn’t stop at Triple-A as got on base in 38 out of 39 games from June 13 to July 28th for the Storm Chasers. That run would lead to a career high .340 average in his 76 games in Omaha that season and an overall .840 OPS across the two levels for the year. Not only was the hitting back for Merrifield but the winning was as well as the Storm Chasers went on to claim the PCL and Triple-A National Title for the ’14 season. Just a step away from the majors and one solid year of results suddenly had Merrifield primed for a shot at the bigs if he could just repeat things in 2015.

Good start and disappointment

An early spring injury nearly won Whit a job to start the 2015 season on the big league club as he was one of the last cuts heading into the year. That competition  propelled him to another outstanding start, jumping out of the gate in April to a .844  OPS as things continued to boom for the utility player. Then, it happened. An injury to Alex Gordon appeared to give Whit a call up to the big leagues. On the night of the injury, teammates hugged Whit in the dugout and everything on the surface gave the look of a player going up the major leagues. We talked to Whit, and he was getting congratulation text via phone as people reacted to him getting pulled from the game but the call didn’t come. It didn’t happen later in the night and it never came that season as we know. Instead the Royals made a deal for super-utility Ben Zobrist who became one of the keys to the Royals World Series run. While this was happening, Whit let his season get away from him, hitting just .223/.267/.309 from July 10th until the end of the season.

New Ideas and a Last Chance with the Royals

Those who watch spring training saw a little more power out of Whit Merrifield during the spring training season. The infielder talked about how he changed his eating program and added more muscle in an attempt to hit more home runs at the minor league levels and hopefully getting a shot with the big league club. It was likely his final audition for Kansas City with his minor league free agency coming after the season. Again, he was one of the final cuts off the club as he saw that body transformation bring the results he was looking for, clubbing five home runs in his first 36 games this year after eight home runs in his previous 211 Triple-A games. Then it happened again. An injury opened the door and Whit got the call to the majors.

What to Expect

What should we expect as fans? I wouldn’t get too excited about seeing an All-Star 2nd baseman in Merrifield, but you will see a spray hitter who will look to use the entire field to collect hits. Since his draft, I’ve said that his skillset is of better use in the National League where he could provide a utility option in the outfield, second or third base and be used as a double switch weapon. On this team currently, Whit can be used in the outfield or second base as well as providing a late inning pinch runner in games he didn’t start. That is a useful player and while he is off to a good start, I think long term you are looking at a guy who could provide a .260/.340/.380 slash line with plenty of hustle and professional at bats. The outfield is likely his best defensive spot but he can play second and in the short term he won’t kill you there, likely playing it at a similar level to what we have seen from Omar Infante this year, although Merrifield provides a better arm. All in all, he’s a guy who is a perfect fit for his current role and you may be surprised to see still in the big leagues some six or more years from now.

Feature Photo Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports