The best KC Royals prospect at each position going into 2025

It's been a while since the Kansas City Royals have had an above-average farm system according to industry-wide rankings. As of right now, the organization sits in the 25th spot in both MLB Pipeline and Bleacher Report's farm system rankings — a spot that leaves much to be desired.

Most of the club's top prospects have MLB ETAs past the upcoming season, which can be viewed as both a good and a bad thing. The good is that recent drafts have brought in a ton of high-end talent, but the bad is that not much of these talented stars-in-the-making are very close to the big leagues.

According to MLB Pipeline's top-30 Royals prospects list, just two of the players inside the top 10 have an ETA at the game's highest level in the coming season. Aram Leighton of Just Baseball also has two of the team's top prospects debuting in the 2025 campaign, but they're two different ones than MLB Pipeline came up with. This goes to show how much prospect depth can vary depending on who you ask.

With that in mind, let's take a look around the Royals' system and determine the best player at each position as we prepare for 2025. A lot of these names are going to be ones fans will want to familiarize themselves with as soon as possible.

Catcher: Blake Mitchell

• MLB Pipeline Top-30 ranking: Royals No. 2
• Baseball America Top-10 ranking: Royals No. 2
• Just Baseball Top-15 ranking: Royals No. 2

The industry is in complete agreement that Blake Mitchell — the Royals' first-round pick from the 2023 MLB Draft — is the second-best prospect in the organization's farm system. The 20-year-old just wrapped up his first full season as a professional and it went extremely well, especially when you consider the fact that he's extremely young and unexperienced.

Mitchell appeared in 111 games between Low-A and High-A, registering 16 doubles while hitting 18 home runs and driving in 51. He also went 26-for-33 in stolen base attempts, which is an outrageous number for a catcher. The Texan's .793 OPS is also nothing to scoff at.

Possessing a unique blend of power, speed and defensive prowess, Mitchell is an obvious long-term replacement for Salvador Pérez once he either retires or is forced into a first base/designated hitter role. The Royals already began the shifting of his position during this past season, so Mitchell will be the answer behind the plate in the blink of an eye.