Development Lab
The priority of the Development Lab this offseason was to try to lower the fragility of a large number of the higher rated prospects in the Royals system.
Having one development lab for the whole organisation is beginning to feel a little challenging and so from next season, offseason spots will be increased to 12 – with 4 open to 40-man players, 4 open to players in A-ball, and 4 open to Rookie ball.
First Round
Tim Storer
Generate Batspeed
No Improvement
Sheng-En Lin
Strength and Conditioning
Improvement
Fragile to Somewhat Fragile
Dave Holcombe
Strength and Conditioning
No Improvement
Marcos Paz
Strength and Conditioning
No Improvement
William Schmidt
Strength and Conditioning
No Improvement
Mike Hoffer
Improve Control
No Improvement
Second Round
Jimmy Goodman RF
Successful
Outfield: Range <5; Error <5; Arm <5
Billy Mumaugh LF
Outstanding
Outfield: Range <5; Error 5; Arm <5
Luis Gotay CF
No Improvement
Sheng-En Lin CF
No Improvement
Edgar Mir 2B
No Improvement
Marquis Foggie SS
No Improvement
Awards
It was a successful Awards season for the Royals, with four players honoured by the league. Alongside manager
Stewart winning the AL Manager of the Year, outfielders
Wyatt Langford and
Jimmy Goodman won a Great Glove and Platinum Stick respectively. It was two in a row for Royals relievers as
Wen-Hui Pan took home the Reliever of the Year Award in the AL. In addition,
Jeremy Rogerson (Rookie of the Year) and
Isaac Paredes (Most Valuable Player) received votes in their respective awards.
AL Great Gloves LF
Wyatt Langford KC
NL Great Gloves
AL Platinum Sticks RF
Jimmy Goodman KC
NL Platinum Sticks
AL Manager of the Year Colin Stewart KC
NL Manager of the Year Charles Kulle COL
AL Reliever of the Year Wen-Hui Pan KC
NL Reliever of the Year Chad Sparkman SD
AL Rookie of the Year Kevin Bales NYY
NL Rookie of the Year Jesus Veliz MIL
AL Cy Young Connor Phillips SEA
NL Cy Young Ricky Tiedemann LAD
AL MVP Coby Mayo BAL
NL MVP Steve Melendy PHI
Pre-Arbitration Extensions & Trades
The first day of the offseason brought some huge news for Royals fans.
[However, in the OOTP world this simply meant that he opted out of the original contract and so now has a four year contract paying $33m in 2032 and 2033, and then $28m in 2034 and 2035. The Royals would have taken a run at re-signing Witt Jr. and, with the budget slashed by owner Sherman, the we will take this as a successful resigning, albeit on a hugely team friendly deal.]
Sunday, November 2nd , 2031- SS Bobby Witt Jr. has exercised his contract opt-out.
- Traded 27-year old 1B Luke Adams to the Seattle Mariners, getting 18-year old minor league CF Joe Wallace and $2,000,000 in cash in return.
- Traded 27-year old 2B Gregory Barrios and 19-year old minor league RHP Luis Gramajo to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 21-year old minor league 2B Chris Maguire, 19-year old minor league RHP Juan Bautista, and $500,000 in cash in return.
Luke Adams enjoyed a couple of successful seasons in Kansas City, although his glove was always more consistent than his bat. A glut of infield prospects at the top of the farm mean that the Royals are happy to thanks Adams for his service and move on. The Mariners offered the best return, $2m in cash to go along with prospect
Wallace, a 19-yo OF with a potential 80-grade eye and plus contact and gap power.
Gregory Barrios was in the same situation as Adams – an arbitration eligible player whose glove outshone his bat and had been overtaken by other players in the Royals system. The initial returns for Barrios were not as attractive as for Adams but the addition of organisational piece, pitcher
Luis Gramajo allowed the Royals to strike a deal with the Dodgers, $500k plus two interesting prospects, 2028 6th Round pick
Chris Maguire (a plus defender at 2B with potential plus contact and power) and 2030 7th Round pick
Juan Bautista (a starting pitcher with a potential 50-55-55 profile and a plus change-up as part of a three pitch arsenal).
Thursday, November 6th , 2031- Signed 1B Hunter Owen to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $2,900,000.
- Signed RP Frank Mozzicato to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,600,000.
- Signed SP Aiden May to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,650,000.
Saturday, November 15th , 2031- Signed RP Wen-Hui Pan to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $5,800,000.
Thursday, November 20th , 2031
Drew Beam was coming into the second year of arbitration and with several high upside pitchers at the top of the system, the Royals decided to move on from his $5m estimated arbitration 2032 contract. Stewart went back to the Dodgers for another high-prospect infielder, 2028 1st Round pick
Steve Carter (a plus 2B defender with plus contact and gap power to go with above average power and eye) in exchange for Beam, 2031 trade acquisition
Dan Colligan and MiL Free Agent organisational piece
Steve Zampa into the deal.
Tuesday, November 25th , 2031- Traded 33-year old minor league 2B Nick Loftin, 18-year old minor league LHP Frank Avalos, and $2,500,000 in cash to the Miami Marlins, getting 24-year old LHP Jake Early in return.
Nick Loftin spent all of 2031 on the IR list for the Royals. The emergence of
Tim Storer, and the acquisition of Steve Carter, meantthere was no longer a place on the Royals roster for Loftin and his $5.5m contract. To get off that contract, the Royals sent the Marlins $2.5m in cash and organisational piece
Frank Avalos. In return they got starting pitcher
Jake Early, a potential 55-50-55 profile, 6-pitch prospect with 3 plus pitches.
Qualifying Offers
Sunday, November 23rd , 2031- SP Mason Barnett rejected the qualifying offer
- 1B Isaac Paredes rejected the qualifying offer
International Free Agents
There was only one International Free Agent of note, Catcher
Juan Ramon. His profile was attractive enough for the Royals to take a run, offering a 4-year $89m ($22.4m AAV) contract to Ramon. The Cardinals blew that out of the water, ultimately giving him the 4-years but at $28m per year for a total value of $112m which was just too rich for the Royals.
Rule 5 Draft
For the first time, the Royals had several players that needed protecting on the 40-man roster. They added nine players ahead of the Rule 5 Draft:
- 1B Sergio Perales on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- 2B Jesus Vela on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- 3B Juan Zubia on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- 3B Danny Petty on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- CF Edgar Manzo on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- P Josh Olaniyan on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- P Lazaro Espinal on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- P Nicanor Berns on the secondary (40-man) roster.
- P Jake Early on the secondary (40-man) roster.
In addition, several teams had approached the Royals with deals for Nasim Nunez. To avoid losing him for free in the Rule 5 Trade, the Royals built a trade with the Atlanta Braves:
In addition to Nunez, the Royals gave up organisation piece (2023 International Amateur signee) Enmanuel Santos. In return, they received $750k and four prospects:
Nicanor Berns – 2024 International Amateur with a 65-50-45 profile with 4 plus pitches. He is lined up for a spot in the bullpen in 2032.
Joe Brown – 2029 16th Round pick reliever with a potential plus-plus fastball and a 60-50-55 profile.
Josh Contreras – 2030 2nd Round pick 20-yo starting pitcher with a plus-plus sinker and three plus pitches, with a potential 65-50-55 profile.
Juan Fonseca – 2029 International Amateur with potential elite 2B defence, 80 power with a plus eye. He will strike out a lot but if he can reach his power potential he could dominate HR charts for years.
The draft itself was uneventful with only one transaction involving the Royals:
- Drafted SP Jim Porter (5 pitches with 45-50-45 profile with some potential stuff growth) in the 2031 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 25, 25th overall Pick) from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
International Amateurs
The Royals signed a four player International Amateur class in 2032, headlined by Venezuelan CF
Esteban Medina ($2,500,000). Medina has a potential profile with plus contact and plus-plus power and the ability to play either corner of the outfield.
The rest of the class was made up of:
- Venezuelan RP Nelson Herrera ($1,400,000): two plus-plus pitches as part of a 80-60-55 profile
- Dominican RP Alfredo Cadena ($1,000,000): two plus-plus pitches as part of a 75-60-60 profile
- Mexican CF Edgar Roca ($700,000): above average contact and power, and plus gap power for a corner outfielder with plus speed
All four will spend 2032 in the International Complex.
Offseason Trades & Free Agents
Saturday, November 29th, 2031
Jake Adolphus took the dreaded trip to see a guru. He will
reorder priorities, likely to be a negative impact on a player who would have been fighting for a roster place in 2032.
Friday, December 26th , 2031- Signed free agent RP T.J. Brock to a 2-year contract worth a total of $3,400,000.
- Traded 31-year old minor league 2B Kiyotake Takenaka to the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting 25-year old 2B Dan Colligan and $1,000,000 in cash in return.
Brock, a 65-55-50 reliever with a plus-plus curveball, to go with plus fastball and change up signs with a Team Option for the 2nd year.
The Dodgers completed a hat trick of trades involving second baseman, with the Royals taking back Dan Colligan plus $1m for Takenaka, who had failed in the big leagues in 2031.
Saturday, December 27th , 2031- Signed free agent SP Mason Barnett to a 3-year contract worth a total of $33,000,000.
Owner goal complete as Mason Barnett returns to the Royals through free agency. Having turned down a one-year Qualifying Offer, the Royals were happy to sign Barnett to a three-year $11m per year contract, with the 2nd and 3rd years as Team Options.
Sunday, December 28th , 2031- Signed free agent CF Dominic Fletcher to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,000,000.
Dominic Fletcher also returns on a $2m contract. The Royals will hope for some development success on their prospect outfielders, but Fletcher provides a fallback option having provided elite defence in 2031.
Departures
Isaac Paredes used his HR-laden 2031 to sign a 4-year contract with the Angels. Fully guaranteed, the contract is worth $66.3m, far more than the Royals were willing to spend.
The fans reacted poorly, dropping fan interest back down to 78. However, the Royals will take a Supplemental 1st Round pick in the 2032 draft.
Financial Situation
Owner Sherman made no changes to the budget in January. However, there was one additional personnel change with Rookie Pitching Coach Joe Testa leaving the organisation. Andy Altemus joins on a one-year contract as the best of some average options.
Preseason & Spring Training
The Royals have their best spring of the Stewart era, going 18-9 to lead the AL Central.
They did suffer several injuries though, some more impactful than others:
Friday, February 20th , 2032- RP Frank Mozzicato was injured while pitching. The diagnosis is not yet known.
Sunday, February 22nd , 2032- RP Frank Mozzicato diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff, it's a career-ending injury.
Thursday, February 26th , 2032- CF Dominic Fletcher was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: sprained wrist. He's expected to miss about 5 weeks.
Tuesday, March 16th , 2032- C Dave Holcombe was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: sprained knee. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last one week.
Bullpen stalwart, and 2021 1st round draft pick
Frank Mozzicato suffered a career-ending torn rotator cuff. An ERA of 3.53 (128 ERA+) over two seasons and 119.2 innings should have been the start of a great reliever career for Mozzicato. Fans and front office alike were heartbroken for the very popular home-grown player.
Losing Fletcher for the first week of the season will be an early test for the young outfielders in Kansas City, which may hasten Fletcher’s departure from KC.
Finally, Dave Holcombe’s day-to-day injury was serious in the context of not improving his Strength & Conditioning over the offseason and remaining fragile. As back-up catcher this could prove problematic, and alternative will be sought by the Royals.
Around the League
Retirements
- SP Sandy Alcantara retired from professional baseball.
- RP Joe Barlow retired from professional baseball.
- SP JT Brubaker retired from professional baseball.
- 2B Jose Caballero retired from professional baseball.
- SP Max Fried retired from professional baseball.
- SP Tyler Gilbert retired from professional baseball.
- CF Trent Grisham retired from professional baseball.
- RP Jonathan Hernandez retired from professional baseball.
- RP Keynan Middleton retired from professional baseball.
- SP German Marquez retired from professional baseball.
- RP Yuki Matsui retired from professional baseball.
- RP Darren McCaughan retired from professional baseball.
- SP Shane McClanahan retired from professional baseball.
- SP Kenny Rosenberg retired from professional baseball.
- RP Paul Sewald retired from professional baseball.
- C Will Smith retired from professional baseball.
- RP Ken Waldichuk retired from professional baseball.
- 1B Christian Walker retired from professional baseball.
- RP Taylor Widener retired from professional baseball.
- SP Brandon Woodruff retired from professional baseball.
Contract Extensions
- Atlanta Braves: CF Michael Harris II 7 years $222,000,000.
- Chicago Cubs: CF Pete Crow-Armstrong 5 years $192,500,000.
- Colorado Rockies: SP Parker Detmers 5 years $55,500,000.
- Miami Marlins: C Malcolm Moore 5 years $46,800,000.
- Milwaukee Brewers: LF Charlie Condon 1 year $24,000,000.
- Pittsburgh Pirates: C Ralphy Velazquez 8 years $102,500,000.
- Washington Nationals: C Jose Medina 4 years $84,800,000.
Free Agent Signings
- Houston Astros: RP Gregory Santos 3 years $60,600,000.
- Los Angeles Angels: 2B Adael Amador 5 years $94,000,000.
- Los Angeles Angels: SP Hayden Juenger 6 years $146,400,000.
- Minnesota Twins: C Thayron Liranzo 7 years $94,900,000.
- New York Mets: RF Joey Wiemer 4 years $116,200,000.
- New York Mets: SP Taj Bradley 6 years124,400,000.
- New York Yankees: C Ethan Salas 8 years $244,000,000.
- Philadelphia Phillies: SP Chase Silseth 6 years $135,800,000.
- San Francisco Giants: SP Michael Prosecky 6 years $70,200,000.
- St. Louis Cardinals: C Juan Ramon 4 years $112,000,000.
Major Injuries
Pitchers
- SP Danny Watson SF diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 3 months.
- Humberto Castellanos BAL diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 4 months.
- Marcelo Martinez BAL diagnosed with a damaged elbow ligament, will miss 12 months.
- Cory Abbott CHC diagnosed with a stretched elbow ligament, will miss 11 months.
- DJ Herz CHC diagnosed with a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, will miss 13-14 months.
- Riley Quick LAA diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, will miss 4 months.
- Jordan Carr MIN diagnosed with a partially torn labrum, will miss 3-4 months.
- Ken Goad NYM diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 13-14 months.
- Tim Herrin STL diagnosed with a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, will miss 13 months.
Hitters
- SS Felnin Celesten CWS has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 9 months.
- 2B Anthony Volpe has suffered a setback in his recovery. He is not expected to recover for another 3 months.
Hall of Fame
For the second year in a row nobody was elected to the Hall of Fame, with only 2nd year ballot
Craig Kimbrel gaining over 60%.
