Kansas City Royals: Profiling the nineteen 2019 Non-Roster Invitees

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SURPRISE, AZ – FEBRUARY 22: Pitcher Richard Lovelady #74 of the Kansas City Royals poses for a portrait during photo day at Surprise Stadium on February 22, 2018 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

The Kansas City Royals announced early Tuesday their list of Non-Roster Invitees for Spring Training. The list contains a total of nineteen players.

Although Spring Training still feels so far away, the Kansas City Royals‘ list of Non-Roster Invitees was released Tuesday. Though it is sort of a long shot for any of these guys to crack even the 40-man roster by Opening Day, they’ll head to Spring Training alongside those who currently hold a spot.

For the 2018 season, the Kansas City Royals also invited nineteen players to Spring Training who were not on the roster. Last year’s non-roster invites included speedster Terrance Gore who now resides on the 40-man roster, utility player Cody Asche, and Frank Schwindel.

Schwindel will travel to Spring Training again this season as a non-roster invitee, along with fellow infielder Nicky Lopez and three others. From an outfield perspective, perhaps the most interesting name is Bubba Starling. Starling has battled injuries throughout his career, so it is up in the air what may happen in the 2019 season for him.

MJ Melendez headlines a group of four catchers heading to Spring Training, and there are several talented pitchers on the list. One is Richard Lovelady, who is likely to earn major league time again in the 2019 season, as well as Michael Ynoa who very recently signed a minor league deal with the Royals.

There is still a lot of time until the season officially begins (I know…depressing) and a lot of things could happen between now and then. Plus, with the dismal season the Kansas City Royals had last year, roster shifting is a possibility.

SURPRISE, AZ – FEBRUARY 22: Nicky Lopez /

Top Prospects on the List

Four of the Kansas City Royals’ Top 30 Prospects according to MLB Pipeline made the list of Non-Roster Invitees.

Foster Griffin

Foster Griffin was invited to Spring Training as a Non-Roster Invitee in the 2018 season as well. In the 2018 season, he was named a Mid-Season All-Star with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals.

In his minor league career, he has tallied an overall ERA of 4.66 through 577.1 innings. His 2018 season was spent in entirety with the Naturals where he had a 5.13 ERA in 26 starts, 28 appearances overall, yielded 197 hits, struck out 117, and walked 40.

Griffin is the 29th ranked prospect in the Royals organization according to MLB Pipeline.

Richard Lovelady

Richard Lovelady is another prospect in the Top 30 in the Royals organization. He was also invited to Spring Training before the 2018 season, like a few other guys on this list. Lovelady had a phenomenal 2017 and 2018.

In the 2017 season, he split time between Wilmington and Northwest Arkansas. where he combined for a 1.62 ERA in 66.2 innings of work. In 2018, he pitched 73.0 innings and tallied an ERA of 2.47. He yielded 53 hits with the Omaha Storm Chasers, striking out 71 and walking 21.

Though he likely will not start the season up with the Royals, he will see plenty of time at Kauffman throughout the 2019 season.

Lovelady is ranked as the 13th prospect within the organization on MLB Pipeline’s list.

Nicky Lopez

Nicky Lopez resides in the seventh spot on the Top 30 list. His 2018 season was split between the Northwest Arkansas Naturals and the Omaha Storm Chasers. Overall, he slashed .308/.382/.417 on the season.

With Omaha, he slashed .278/.364/.417. The middle infielder is a player to watch out for this season. It is very very likely that he will make his way to Kauffman Stadium this season for sure. Though he likely won’t get any time at short, he poses the potential to take over at second base for Whit Merrifield in the near future.

MJ Melendez

MJ Melendez is the youngest of the top prospects to be invited to Spring Training. The 20 year old was drafted in the second round of the 2017 draft.

The Lexington Legends catcher played in 111 games during the 2018 season. He slashed .254/.337/.470 in 2018. MLB Pipeline predicts the fifth ranked player in the Royals system will earn time in the majors by the 2021 season. But, he will get a taste of what Spring Training is like, which will be great experience for the young, talented catcher.

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – MARCH 09: Pitcher Jake Kalish #35 of Israel throws in the top of the second inning during the World Baseball Classic Pool A Game Five between Netherlands and Israel at Gocheok Sky Dome on March 9, 2017 in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images) /

Pitchers

Next up is the pitchers who have been extended an invitation to travel with the team to Spring Training.

Jason Adam

Jason Adam has been in the Kansas City Royals organization since for a majority of his career. He was invited to Spring Training in 2014 as well. In his minor league career, he has a total ERA of 4.28 through a total of 566 innings pitched.

He did see some time in the majors in 2018, with an ERA of 6.12 in 32.1 innings of work. In the minor leagues, between the Northwest Arkansas Naturals and the Omaha Storm Chasers, he tallied an ERA of 1.50 through 24 innings.

Jake Kalish

Jake Kalish was drafted in the 32nd round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of George Mason. In late July 2018, he was named the PCL Pitcher of the Week. This is his first time being invited to Spring Training.

In 2018, Kalish split time with Omaha and Northwest Arkansas. He totaled 127.2 innings through the duration of the season, tallying an overall 8-8 record. His year finished with an ERA of 3.88. In Omaha, his ERA was 3.34.

Zach Lovvorn

Zach Lovvorn has tallied an overall career ERA of 4.78. In 2018, he played for both Omaha and Northwest Arkansas. He started nearly every game he appeared in, 24 out of 27.

On the season, his ERA sat at 5.20 through 143.2 innings of work. He struck out 82 while only walking 49.

Andres Machado

Andres Machado is another young pitcher who was extended an invite. The 25 year old appeared in two games for the Royals in 2017 for a total of 3.2 innings.

In 2018, he played for the Storm Chasers and Naturals. His total ERA sat at 5.53 for the season though 83.0 innings. He started 12 out of the 37 games he appeared in. In his minor league career, he has an overall record of 15-31 and an ERA of 4.94.

Michael Ynoa

Michael Ynoa was recently acquired and signed to a minor league contract by the Kansas City Royals. The Dominican Republic native was formerly with the Chicago White Sox organization. His minor league career has seen him total an ERA of 4.37 with a total of seven teams.

He has also played in 45 MLB games where he holds a record of 2-0 and an ERA of 4.42.

SURPRISE, AZ – FEBRUARY 20: Xavier Fernandez of the Kansas City Royals poses for a portrait at the Surprise Sports Complex on February 20, 2017 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Rob Tringali/Getty Images) /

Catchers

In addition to MJ Melendez, the Kansas City Royals invited three other catchers to participate in Spring Training.

Nick Dini

Nick Dini is a 25 year old catcher hailing from Monroe, New Jersey. He spent a majority of his 2018 season with Northwest Arkansas, but he did get a little time with the Storm Chasers. In 2018, he slashed .251/.294/.398 overall. He only played 14 games with Omaha, but there he recorded 13 hits, six RBI’s, and an OPS of 1.017.

In his four year minor league career, his overall slash is .287/.342/.409. He has totaled 244 hits, 19 homers, and 117 RBI’s. In 205 games behind the plate, he totals a fielding percentage of .985.

Xavier Fernandez

Another one of the catchers invited to Spring Training is Xavier Fernandez. He began his career with the Royals in 2013. In 2018, he split between playing with Wilmington and Northwest Arkansas, playing 36 games with each. His overall slash for the year sat at .287/.335/.445, but his numbers were considerably higher with Northwest Arkansas at .328/.382/.504.

In his career, he has a slash of .275/.337/.404. He has hit a total of 18 homeruns, 247 total hits, and knocked in 112 RBI’s in his five-year minor league career to this point. Fernandez has also played a little first base, but his main position is behind the plate. His career fielding percentage as a catcher is .981.

Sebastian Rivero

Sebastian Rivero rounds out the list of catchers invited. He is just 20 years old, and the entirety of his 2018 season was spent with the Lexington Legends. He played in a total of 77 games during the 2018 season, where he slashed .258/.301/.391.

Overall, he holds a fielding percentage of .987 behind the plate.

SURPRISE, AZ – FEBRUARY 22: Frank Schwindel /

Infielders

The list of infielders invited to Spring Training is headlined by first baseman Frank Schwindel, but three others will be joining him.

Humberto Arteaga

Humberto Arteaga has been in the minor leagues since 2011. He was a Storm Chaser for the duration of the 2018 season. He played in 118 games for Omaha, where he tallied 121 hits, 21 RBI’s, and a slash of .292/.322/.386. His overall career slash sits at .250/.285/.318.

Arteaga pitched in three games for the Storm Chasers in 2018, following the trend of position players pitching that was set in the MLB during 2018. In the field, he has played every single infield position. He is typically more of a middle infielder, with most of his innings coming at short.

Samir Duenez

In addition to Frank Schwindel, first baseman Samir Duenez will head to Spring Training. He played for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals during 2018. He appeared in 80 games where he slashed .282/.357/.463.

From a fielding perspective, the first baseman holds an overall .983 fielding percentage at his position. He has also played a little outfield where the percentage sits at .986.

Jecksson Flores

Hailing from Cuidad Bolivar, Venezuela, shortstop Jecksson Flores also made the list. His 2018 season was spent with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. In his 122 games played, he tallied 144 hits and 52 RBIs. He slashed .314/.363/.440 on the season.

Overall in his minor league career, he has a slash of .260/.338/.345. The 2018 season was his best yet, and he is building momentum. Unfortunately for him, there is a very talented, young shortstop just starting his major league career by the name of Adalberto Mondesi.

Frank Schwindel

Frank Schwindel is probably the player to be most excited about on this list. The 26 year old was drafted in the 18th round by the Royals in the 2013 draft. He was with the Omaha Storm Chasers for the entire 2018 season. He has yet to climb the ranks all the way up to the MLB, but he is dangerously close.

Last season, he slashed .286/.319/.506, tallying 146 hits in his 134 games played. He walked 34 times, struck out 71, and sent 24 balls over the fence.

SURPRISE, AZ – FEBRUARY 25: Bubba Starling #12 of the Kansas City Royals poses for a portrait during spring training photo day at Surprise Stadium on February 25, 2016 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Outfielders

To finish off the profiles of the nineteen non-roster invitees to Spring Training, we have the outfielders.

Elier Hernandez

Elier Hernandez is a 24 year old from the Dominican Republic. He most often resides in right field. In 2018, he spent time with both the Naturals and the Storm Chasers, 91 and 40 games, respectively. His overall slash on the year was .285/.330/.374.

In his career, which began in the minors in 2012, he has a slash of .264/.309/.372. From a fielding perspective, he has played in all three outfield spots. Overall, his fielding percentage is in the outfield is .960.

Erick Mejia

Next up on the outfield list is Erick Mejia. He is a 24 year old also from the Domincan Republic. He started in 2012 in the Domincan Summer League. In 2018, he was with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. The outfielder slashed .263/.318/.367 on the season.

In his career in the minor leagues, he has a slash of .275/.339/.379. He has tallied 536 total hits and 189 RBI’s. In the field, he has played center in just 14 games. Most of his career, up until 2018, was spent n the infield, particularly the middle infield. It seems he has transitioned to the outfield entirely, but it will be interesting to see how that pans out in the 2019 season for Mejia.

Bubba Starling

The last player who has been invited to Spring Training is Bubba Starling. His injury-ridden career has made him sort of a controversial name in the Kansas City Royals organization. He was a first round draft pick in 2011, but he has not seen any major league time yet. In 2018, he played in a mere 20 games, and nine of them were on rehab assignments with Idaho Falls and in the Arizona League.

Next. Michael Ynoa signed to minor league deal. dark

His overall career slash is .236/.312/.386. He has made the rounds in the outfield, but he is a frequent flyer in center. He has played 536 games there throughout his eight year career. In the outfield, he has a .986 fielding percentage. If he can stay healthy, it’s fairly likely he will see time with the Royals in the 2019 season.

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