3 prospects Royals' underwhelming farm system can't afford to lose in Rule 5 Draft

The Kansas City Royals have no shortage of matters and needs they have to address in the coming winter months after painfully missing out on the postseason in 2025.

While the primary focus might be on how J.J. Picollo and Co. upgrade the 26-man roster - whether that be the stagnant second base position, the extremely underperforming corner outfield, or the bullpen in need of a complementary boost - offseason work goes beyond just the major leagues.

Part of that work pertains to next month's Rule 5 Draft. While the official draft date isn't until Dec. 10 at the conclusion of the MLB Winter Meetings, the official date and time to protect prospects from the proceedings by adding them to the 40-man roster is Tuesday afternoon at 5 p.m. CT.

As it stands right now the Royals have three remaining 40-man roster spots, with that number expected to grow by the end of the week after Friday evening's non-tender deadline passes.

It remains to be seen whether the Royals use all three of those spots to protect prospects from the Rule 5 Draft, but assuming they do, here are three key farmhands that they really cannot afford to leave unprotected given how underwhelming their farm system looks overall.

3 prospects Royals must protect ahead of Rule 5 Draft deadline

RHP Ben Kudrna

Kudrna is one of the most interesting names in the Royals system right now. After a rough start to his 2025 season in Double-A Northwest Arkansas, where he gave up 32 earned runs in his first 11 outings, he only surrendered 12 earned runs in his last nine appearances before receiving his first Triple-A promotion in August.

While his Triple-A debut wasn't anything to remember - he posted 14.29 ERA in 11.1 innings - he's still a 22-year-old with some real promise in the prospect world as he's currently among the Royals Top 10 prospects according to MLB Pipeline's rankings.

His second-half of the Double-A season was solid enough showing in the upper minors to believe there's a serviceable big league arm to be had, especially with how positive the scouts view his secondary offerings - Pipeline has given his changeup and curveball 55 grades.

Given how poorly their rotation held up health-wise last season, having the right amount of major league capable starting depth will be vital for Kansas City next season.

So, while it seem impossible to think Kudrna will have a role in the majors on Opening Day, if he finds his footing in Omaha, there's plenty of reason to think the Royals could give him a shot if the need arises midseason.

SS Daniel Vazquez

No Royals prospect has seen their stock rise this offseason as much as Daniel Vazquez has after his sensational 2025 Arizona Fall League season.

In 98 plate appearances in 22 games, the soon-to-be 22-year-old shortstop slashed .329/.459/.468 with two homers, 21 RBI and a 19.4% walk rate.

Now, this performance obviously needs to be taken with a grain of salt, given he spent most of 2025 in High-A Quad Cities and posted just a 96 wRC+ in the process.

That being said, even with his offensive shortcomings, his AFL stint undoubtedly showed there's a solid contact-oriented bat to dream on in Vazquez. Not to mention, he's also swiped 25+ bags in two of his first four seasons among the top four levels of MiLB and Pipeline grades his fielding abilities at a 60.

It would certainly be a gamble for teams to take a very unproven name like Vazquez in the Rule 5, but after the Washington Nationals essentially sported a 25-man roster in 2024 to add the glove and speed of Nasim Nuñez to their organization, anything is possible and it might not be a chance the Royals can afford to take.

OF Gavin Cross

Lastly, we end with Gavin Cross, who Royals fans have been patiently waiting for some time now after the Royals used their ninth overall pick on him back in 2022.

After posting a 168 wRC+ in his first taste of Low-A in 2022, Cross has left a lot be desired in every seasons since. In 2023, 94 of his 96 games occured in High-A, where he only mustered a 93 wRC+ and .683 OPS.

However, in 2024, a 114 wRC+ and .770 OPS in a full season of Double-A gave Royals fans plenty of hope that the Cross could find his way to a big league promotion in 2025.

That, however, was not the case as the the 24-year-old outfielder only slashed .241/.291/.413 with a 92 wRC+ in 114 games with the Naturals in 2025 and didn't even crack Omaha's roster.

That being said, there's still some reason to think that Cross could play a role in the Royals' outfield that's in dire need of new life in 2026. He still managed to have a solid season when it came to run production with 17 homers and 64 RBI and from a speed perspective, he managed to steal over 20 bases for the third consecutive season.

He'll need to conquer Triple-A first, but given the fact he also ended the season a very high note, capturing Texas League Position Player of the Week to round off the final week of August, Cross could just be a strong Spring Training away from finally being a viable midseason call-up option for KC in 2025.