Breaking Down the Royals' Organizational Award Winners (Pitcher Edition)

[Kevin O'Brien]

Image courtesy of MLB Pipeline

 

   

 After breaking down the Royals' position-player prospects who earned organizational awards in a post over the weekend, we are moving on to the pitchers. 

The Royals have two awards for pitchers in the farm system: the Paul Splittorff Pitcher of the Year award and the Dan Quisenberry Reliever of the Year award. The latter is a new award this season. 

In addition to those two awards, I want to highlight one pitcher named Baseball America's Royals Minor League Pitcher of the Year. He didn't earn an organizational award because he played between two levels and pitched fewer innings than the Splittorff Award winner. However, this pitcher was every bit as dominant, perhaps slightly more so when looking at particular metrics.

Let's look at three Royals pitching prospects who had excellent Minor League campaigns in 2026.

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Paul Splittorff Pitcher of the Year: David Shields, LHP, Quad Cities

After winning Carolina League Pitcher of the Year last season in Columbia, Shields had a solid first season in High-A Quad Cities, including Midwest League Pitcher of the Year honors. 

 

As a 19-year-old, Shields posted a 4.01 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 116.1 IP. His FIP was solid at 2.78, and he posted a 29.7% K% and a 23.7% K-BB%. He was hurt a little more this year by the long ball, as his 11.6% HR/FB% was 4.6% higher than his rate in the Carolina League a season ago. And yet, despite that increase in HR/FB% and ERA, Shields managed a second straight Splittorff Award. 

 

Shields may be the most pure strikeout artist in the Royals organization. He posted a 28.5% K% last year and a 23.5% K-BB% with the Fireflies in 2025. The lefty out of the Pittsburgh area is a strike machine, as evidenced by his 64.7% strike% and 29.9% CSW with the River Bandits this year. Lastly, he does a good job of generating ground balls for outs, as illustrated by his 44.7% GB%. 

The 2024 second-round pick will likely matriculate to Double-A Northwest Arkansas in 2027 and could matriculate to the Major Leagues quickly if he continues to perform as he did in High-A and Low-A ball. Shields doesn't have an elite fastball by any means (it averages 92-94 MPH), but his solid breaking ball and excellent command have helped him generate a lot of swinging strikes (82nd percentile) and a ton of chase as well (95th percentile O-Swing%).

With the Royals needing top-of-the-rotation pitching in the long term, Shields could compete for a roster spot in Spring Training. While it's unlikely he will make the Opening Day roster out of camp in Arizona, he should get some exposure to MLB hitters in Surprise, which should help prep him for the upcoming Double-A campaign. 

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Dan Quisenberry Reliever of the Year: L.P. Langevin, RHP, Quad Cities

A fourth-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft out of Louisiana Lafayette, Langevin has long been known for having one of the best fastballs in the Royals' farm system. 

However, in 2026, it seemed like Langevin not only put it all together control-wise, but he also stayed healthy, something that has prevented him from generating more attention as a prospect. 

After only pitching 21.1 innings in High-A and Rookie ball in 2025 (5.91 ERA and 3.99 FIP), the Quebec-born righty accumulated 55.1 IP in 40 appearances. In that sample, he generated an insane 44.9% K% and 28.4% K-BB%. Yes, the walks were high (16.5% BB%), but he seemed to harness his control a bit, especially in the Midwest League playoffs. 

In four games, he collected two saves and allowed no runs or walks, allowed one hit, and struck out eight. He flat-out dominated South Bend and Dayton hitters, especially in clinching games. 

 

When Jared Perkins and I talked with Royals Scouting Director Brian Bridges, he basically felt that, stuff-wise, Langevin was good enough to pitch in the Royals bullpen today. Of course, the control and command need slight tweaking, but the stuff, especially the fastball, is Major League ready. Langevin ranking in the 100th percentile in Whiff% and CSW% this year shows fans the upside he could provide to the Royals bullpen soon. 

What makes Langevin even more impressive is that his mindset is perfect for the bullpen, especially in high-leverage situations. Growing up as a hockey player in Quebec, Canada, has rubbed off on him. In our interview, Langevin talked about his "attacking" mindset and trusting his stuff to blow hitters away. 

Like Shields, Langevin will move up to Double-A in 2027. However, he could move up even quicker than Shields. If Langevin dominates Texas League hitters and his control continues to develop (as it did in 2026), it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility to see him make his Royals debut after the All-Star Break next season. 

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Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year: Kendry Chourio

While he didn't win an official award from the Royals, Chourio was one of the best pitchers in the Royals' farm system this past year.

In 90.2 IP between High-A and Low-A ball, the 18-year-old posted a 2.48 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 3.11 FIP, a 25.7% K%, and 20.9% K-BB%. Surprisingly, Chourio was MORE effective as a strikeout pitcher in High-A. His 28.3% K% and 23.5% K-BB% with the River Bandits were much better than his 23.4% K% and 18.6% K-BB% with the Fireflies. That shows Chourio is maturing as a pitcher at each level, and his stuff (85th percentile SwStr%) and control (93rd percentile Strike%) are as good as advertised. 

As a result, Baseball America not only recognized Chourio as the Royals' best pitching prospect, but the best player in the system, period. 

 

Seeing Chourio on this list with other decorated prospects like the Dodgers' Josue De Paula, Mariners' Kade Anderson, and Padres' Ethan Salas is impressive, especially since all three made their MLB debuts this season. 

Even though he's still a teenager, Chourio shows incredible poise on the mound, especially in big spots. In a clinching road game against the South Bend Cubs, he absolutely shoved with 4 1/3 scoreless innings and six strikeouts. The Cubs were one of the best teams in the Midwest League this year, and the Venezuelan teenager made them look foolish. 

 

Chourio will likely move through the Royals' system at a slower pace, mostly because of his age. However, Chourio's stuff is legitimate, and he showed in High-A ball that he can adjust to tougher competition, even midseason.

Because he had fewer innings, it wouldn't be surprising to see Chourio start the 2027 season in High-A Quad Cities again. That said, just like last year, he won't be there for long if he dominates (again). So Royals fans should look forward to Chourio's Double-A debut at some point next season and a possible MLB ETA by 2028, especially if all goes to plan.  

   

 

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