Wil Myers Headlines Arizona Fall League Names

From October 4 to November 19, seven Royals will join the Surprise Rafters of the Arizona Fall League.

Wil Myers, Nate Adcock, Christian Colon and Clint Robinson are the headliners, with an quirky age range of 20 years old (Myers) to Robinson (26).

They’ll be joined by pitchers Jeremy Jeffress, Bryan Paukovits and Brendan Lafferty.

The big name is Myers, the Royals third round pick in 2009 and a consensus top-five prospect.  Myers has run into a challenge in Northwest Arkansas after dominating the lower levels.  He’s started to turn things around as the Texas League season concludes, he’s produced a .306/.375/.500 line in his last ten games and .294/.375/.518 for the whole month of August.  Myers has adjusted to a higher level of competition as well as a new position, after catching for his first full season (and change) in the Royals system.

Robinson has been a force at the plate in the minors, winning last year’s Texas League Triple Crown, and having a ridiculous August.  He may be heading to Surprise to be showcased as a trade candidate.

Colon has been on a fast track since signing soon after being selected fourth overall in last season’s amateur draft.  He’s hitting .258/.327/.345 in Double A and should get some more at bats against good competition.

The Royals stuck with Rule 5 pick Adcock all year and while he may not be on the big league club next year, they can get him work in the minors as a starter.  He should see more regular time in the AFL after spending most of the season waiting weeks between appearances.

Jeffress may be one of the more frustrating arms in the system, as he has fabled good stuff, but his command is rough.  More seasoning can’t hurt, and with a triple digit heater and a wicked curveball, he still has a lot of upside.  The Royals have toyed with the idea of using Jeffress as a starter, so he may see some work in that capacity too.

Paukovitz and Lafferty are less known than the above group.  Paukovitz is a 6’7″ righty who has shown good control in Wilmington this year, walking 2.7 BB/9.  He’s been used exclusively out of the bullpen this year for the first time in his career.  In 290.2 innings in the minors, he has  career 4.43 ERA.

Lafferty has made a good transition to Double A with a 3.79 ERA in 19 innings pitched after a shaky stint in Wilmington where he threw 43.1 innings of 4.57 ball.  His K/9 and BB/9 both improved with the promotion as well as his ERA, so he will get a look in Arizona where other names like Mike Trout and Bryce Harper will be lurking.