Baseball Prospectus Names 5 Royals Prospects in Top 101

Blue Rocks starter Miguel Almonte against Salem on May 12, 2014 (Jen Nevius).

Back in 2011, Baseball Prospectus ranked 11 Royals prospects in their top 101 list, which led to the organization’s farm system being called the best ever. Nearly all of those prospects have graduated to the big leagues, and the shine of that once-in-a-generation farm system has lost some luster, but the Royals still maintain some quality depth in their minor leagues. The latest version of Baseball Prospectus’ top 101 has 5 Royals prospects making the list.

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The BP crew has always been high on Raul Mondesi, and they continue to love his ceiling, ranking the 19-year old shortstop 27th. Mondesi will be a part of the big league camp in Spring Training, which should be a terrific learning experience before he begins the season back at High-A Wilmington, where he hopes to improve upon the .610 OPS he posted last year.

Coming in at 56th on the list is Miguel Almonte, the soon-to-be 22-year old Dominican righty who has an advanced approach and a plus changeup already, along with fastball velocity in the mid-90s. His ERA was nothing to crow about last year in Wilmington (4.50) but he’ll start the year in Northwest Arkansas anyway. Almonte misses plenty of bats, and while his curveball and overall command still needs work, he could see time in the big leagues this September out of the bullpen.

Sean Manaea is ranked 85th, a sign that while his ceiling remains high, there are questions about his durability and secondary stuff. His delivery is somewhat quirky, and he’s already dealt with a hip injury, so there is some caution with his ranking. Still, a plus fastball that can climb to 93 MPH from the left side could give Manaea the opportunity to make a leap in the rankings if he can build upon his strong 2014 with a solid campaign at the Double-A level.

Despite pitching in some of the highest-leverage innings of the postseason in 2014, Brandon Finnegan finds himself down at the 87th spot on the list. He’s the first pitcher ever to appear in the College World Series and the MLB World Series in the same year, but the doubts about his ability to stick in the rotation, as well as a somewhat limited upside, keep him from climbing higher. Finnegan may start the year in what appears to be a loaded Naturals’ rotation, or perhaps in Omaha. Either way, he should be a lock for a September call-up.

Rounding out the Royals’ group in BP’s list is Hunter Dozier at 95. Dozier had some major problems adjusting to the pitching at the Double-A level, so he’ll be looking to get off to a hot start in Northwest Arkansas this season. Considering the doubts about the Royals’ current player at third base, Dozier has the ability to force his way to the big leagues later this season, as long as his plate discipline allows his power to play up in game situations.

Notably absent from the list is Kyle Zimmer, who found his way onto the top 100 lists of both Keith Law and MLB.com. In the comments of the above linked article, the BP staff notes that Zimmer’s injuries kept him just on the outside of the list, but that some evaluators have him as high as the top 30 when he’s on the mound. That bodes well for the Royals, who are hoping the big righty can make an impact in the big leagues in 2015.

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