KC Royals Prospects: An early look at the farm system

The KC Royals have some promising hitters playing at High-A Quad Cities.

The Quad Cities River Bandits joined the Kansas City organization for the first time last season and proceeded to win the High-A Central League Championship. Some of last year’s top Quad Cities hitters, including Michael Massey and Vinnie Pasquantino, have moved on, but some big names are playing this year for the River Bandits.

Outfielder Tyler Gentry returns to Quad Cities after playing 44 games for the club last season. A third round pick in the 2020 major league amateur draft, he slashed .259/.395/.449 in 2021. This season, though, he’s slashing a phenomenal .545/.630/.909 with an organization-leading 1.539 OPS in six games.

Catching prospects Luca Tresh and Kale Emshoff are also playing for the River Bandits. While Emshoff has struggled (.129 with a .496 OPS and 15 strikeouts in 31 at-bats), Tresh is faring much better with a .296/.333/.444 line. He also has a home run and has driven in six runs.

A surprising name is Herard Gonzalez. An infielder and 2017 international signee out of the Dominican Republic, Gonzalez has a hit in all but one game this season and is slashing .308/.419/.423 with eight hits, one home run and four walks.