Kansas City Royals Prospect Ashe Russell Takes a Break

KANSAS CITY, MO - JUNE 17: After signing with the Kansas City Royals, number one draft pick Ashe Russell watches the Royals take batting practice prior to a game Milwaukee Brewers at Kauffman Stadium on June 17, 2015 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MO - JUNE 17: After signing with the Kansas City Royals, number one draft pick Ashe Russell watches the Royals take batting practice prior to a game Milwaukee Brewers at Kauffman Stadium on June 17, 2015 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)

The Kansas City Royals are a team that must rely on its farm system. The key to doing that is having success in the MLB draft. The current big league core has several players the team drafted and got right. But what about the next wave of players?

The Kansas City Royals had, what could be difficult news, come out on Friday. Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star reported here that 2015 first round pick Ashe Russell was taking a break from baseball.

Russell’s career has not gone how I would assume he, or the Kansas City Royals, envisioned it since being drafted. In 2015 and 2016 combined Russell has logged a total of 38.1 IP to the tune of a 4.46 ERA. While this may seem like huge concern there is some silver lining to this development.

One is that Russell is still only 20 years old. There is time for whatever issues are currently being faced to be worked through. That brings to the second positive.

Russell is not the first Kansas City Royals pitching prospect to travel this road. Zack Grienke and Danny Duffy both took time away from the game. Both pitchers came back and have had excellent careers. Their stories should be a source of encouragement for both Ashe and the fan base.

Speaking of which we as fans need to make sure that we support Ashe as he works through whatever it is that may be going on. One thing that is for sure is that the Kansas City Royals organization knows how to handle such a situation.

The 2015 draft appears to be a bit of a disappointment right now. Yes small market clubs like the Kansas City Royals need to have successful drafts. However, what perhaps gets overlooked at times is that these players are people first.

Next: Ryan O'Hearn

We here at Kings of Kauffman wish Ashe Russell the best of luck and will continue to support him. We look forward to him taking the mound at The K in the future. While Russell has not commented on the situation I’m sure more information will develop. You can follow him on Twitter here.

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