Time Is Running Out On Royals First-Round Draft Pick Frank Mozzicato

[Mike Gillespie]

Image courtesy of © Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals’ starting rotation is in a bit of disarray. Cole Ragans, still billed by many as the cream of the club’s starting pitching crop, threw well in a Triple-A rehab start Saturday but remains sidelined after experiencing elbow pain the next day. Elbow discomfort has also forced Kris Bubic, who missed much of last season with a rotator cuff issue and most of 2023 after Tommy John surgery, out of action since May 15, and he isn’t expected back until June. Consistency has not been Noah Cameron’s closest ally.

So it is that a depth issue faced the Royals when they opened a three-game home series against the always-tough Yankees Monday, with a 10-game road trip to Texas, Cincinnati, and Minnesota, all of whom are in the thick of at least Wild Card races, to follow.

The solution, though, won’t include Frank Mozzicato, the promising prep phenom pitching prospect whose curveball and potential so captivated the Royals that they grabbed him with their first pick (and seventh overall selection) in the 2021 amateur draft. He’s far from big league-ready … and may never be.

Mozzicato’s is a sad tale indeed, and one easily told through the young left-hander's disturbing numbers.

Frank Mozzicato Continues to Struggle in the Royals' System

That choosing Mozzicato so early in the 2021 draft triggered immediate skepticism understates the situation. After all, the Royals could have picked Kumar Rocker, Gavin Williams, Jordan Wicks, Andrew Painter, Max Muncy, or Matt McClain, all of whom were available then and have made it to the majors. And although he’d thrown four straight high school no-hitters that year, taking an 18-year-old with their first pick seemed a pretty risky move for a club with an increasingly questionable draft history.

Unfortunately, Mozzicato, now 22 and ranked as KC's 17th-best prospect by Royals Keep, has done little to vindicate Kansas City’s decision.

Take, for example, his 26 appearances (22 starts) at Double-A Northwest Arkansas, the highest level he’s achieved. Including last Sunday’s no-decision start against Amarillo, in which he struck out eight but gave up three runs and four hits and walked three in 4.1 innings, he’s winless in nine starts this year. Worse, though, is that he’s been battered in 2026 for 30 runs (26 earned) in 30.2 innings for a 7.63 ERA, and he’s walked 16.2% of the batters he’s faced (7.04 BB/9).

He wasn’t much better for the Naturals last season, which surprised many after he started the season with a 1.24 ERA and 37 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings across seven starts for High-A Quad Cities. But after his late May promotion to Northwest Arkansas, he went 2-5 with a 7.46 ERA and walked almost a batter per inning.

And the rest of Mozzicato’s troubling pro career? At 12-32 in 95 games, he’s lost almost three times as often as he’s won. His 4.60 career ERA isn’t awful, but it’s a stat heavily influenced by his first three seasons (4.30 at Single-A in 2022, 4.65 for a 2023 campaign split between Single and High-A, 3.45 at High-A in 2024) while at the same time it masks the nine-game 7.12 he put up after his 2023 bump-up to High-A, his 5.03 last year, and, of course, the 7.52 across his 26 appearances at Northwest Arkansas.

Troubling, too, are his more advanced 2026 metrics — only in whiff % (30.1, 60th percentile) and K% (25, 51st percentile) is Mozzicato above the 50th percentile, and he’s at the 14th percentile in strike % (14), and the 21st percentile in BB% (16.2) and zone % (42.6).

The southpaw’s fastball is also a concern. Mozzicato simply hasn’t displayed the velocity he needs.

And then there’s his control. If not improved soon, Mozzicato’s tendency to walk far too many batters (career 16.3 BB% and 6.48 BB/9) may well be enough to keep him out of the majors.

What Does the Future Hold for Royals Prospect Frank Mozzicato?

Mozzicato clearly isn’t headed for the majors anytime soon. His struggles in Double-A will likely strand him there for the rest of this season, and suggest Triple-A may be too much for him. He and the Royals need to find a cure for what ails his pitching.

If they don’t, his days in the organization could come to an end sooner rather than later.

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[Lopsided]

I remember the Royals were ecstatic about getting him in the first round. How sad that he has been such a disappointment and no one has been able to get himself turned around.  However at 22, he could still end up pitching for someone in the bigs. Once he does, he will probably be successful and the Royals will be able to watch another of their picks bloom, "for some one else".