Electrifying Royals prospect rises in Baseball America Top 100 as youngest arm

Kansas City Royals pitching prospect Kendry Chourio has been no stranger to over-the-top praise this offseason. The international signee had a jetpack strapped to his back in 2025, going from a mid-level member of the 2025 signing class to pitching in Low-A Columbia’s postseason run.

He went from barely a blip on the Royals prospect radar to the organization’s best pitching prospect, all in the span of one season. Chourio flashed on the backfields this spring and even made an appearance in the Spring Breakout game.

Now, his prospect profile has taken another step forward in Baseball America’s latest Top 100 update.

Royals top pitching prospect Kendry Chourio continues to rise early in 2026

Several players entered the 2026 season on the cusp of graduating from prospect status, like Royals catcher Carter Jensen. That reality is part of what makes Chourio a dark-horse candidate to end the 2026 season as the top pitching prospect in baseball.

He took another necessary step in that direction by jumping seven spots in Baseball America’s Top 100 update. Chourio opened the season at No. 82 overall and now sits at No. 75 thanks to movement ahead of him. He also remains the youngest pitcher on the outlet’s Top 100 list.

The Venezuelan still has to perform in the season ahead, and his 2026 debut set him back just a touch. Chourio’s April 2 outing for Columbia saw him toss three innings, allowing four hits and walking one batter, which resulted in two earned runs. His four strikeouts and polished control were par for the course for the prospect, but the overall results looked more like his early outings with the Fireflies than those of an organization’s top pitching prospect.

So what has evaluators so excited about the right-hander? It is all about polish.

Chourio may not flash a triple-digit fastball or have an overpowering physical presence on the mound, but his pitchability is far beyond his years as a teenager. His fastball is still more than potent enough, touching 98.5 mph against the Texas Rangers in the Spring Breakout game. That was a notable jump from his 2025 max of 97.7 mph, and Chourio now sits comfortably in the 95-97 mph range as a starter.

That will absolutely play as he continues to physically mature and gain more experience.

The hope is that Chourio nearly doubles the 51.1 innings he threw last year, establishing himself as both a workhorse and a pitcher with a true starter’s arsenal.

His fastball leads the charge, but Baseball America credits him with “the best changeup in the Royals’ system” and also gives him an above-average curveball.

It is primarily that 60-grade control that gives Chourio such a strong outlook, making him a low-level prospect Royals fans absolutely need to keep tabs on.