Philip Ruo

Since becoming the Royals' general manager in 2021, JJ Picollo has overseen four drafts. While every draft is shaped by the talent available, several consistent trends have emerged that may offer insight into how Kansas City will approach the upcoming 2026 MLB Draft. Position Players Come First In each of his four drafts, Piccolo has selected a position player in the first round. 2022: Gavin Cross - OF 2023: Blake Mitchell - C 2024: Jac Caglianone - 1B/P 2025: Sean Gamble - OF 2025: Josh Hammond - SS (Prospect promotion incentive pick) While Caglianone was a two-way player in college, nearly every scouting report projected him as a full-time hitter in professional baseball. The Royals have consistently invested in premium offensive talent at the top of the draft. With the exception of Cross, these players currently occupy a spot in the top five of the RoyalsKeep prospects rankings, with Caglianone already an everyday starter in the Royals’ big-league lineup. Pitcher-Heavy Following Round 1 Picollo has consistently favored pitchers in the early rounds after round 1. In the five picks following the first round, 80% of the selections have been for a pitcher. When looking at rounds 2-10, 68% of the picks have been for pitchers. In 2024, the Royals selected seven straight pitchers after taking Caglianone in the first round, highlighted by the current No. 2 prospect, David Shields. The lone exception came in 2022, when Kansas City selected third baseman Cayden Wallace with the second pick before selecting pitchers in the following rounds. The strategy has already produced several of the organization's top pitching prospects. While none of these pitchers have yet broken into the majors, six of these early-round pitchers are currently in the top 20 prospects. #2 David Shields | 2024 Round 2 #7 Drew Beam | 2024 Round 3 #11 Michael Lombardi | 2025 Round 2 #13 Justin Lamkin | 2025 Competitive balance round B #15 Blake Wolters | 2023 Round 2 #16 Steven Zobac | 2022 Round 4 Conscious of Slot Money Picollo has shown a willingness to sign players above the pick’s slot value, especially when it comes to signing prep players. Five of the six highest draft above-slot bonuses have been to high school players. Three of those went to early-round pitchers, with a couple of late-round players securing larger-than-expected bonuses. The high-bonus high schoolers are usually funded through early-to mid-round college players going under-slot. Notably, the Royals have signed more players under-slot (32) than they have over-slot (21) to help in redistributing the pool money. However, not all early-round high school grads commanded an over-slot bonus. When the Royals drafted Blake Mitchell with their first pick in 2023, they signed him for just over $1 million under slot to spread their pool money throughout the rest of the draft class. This was the only time in four years where Picollo spent significantly under the slot value for a top pick, the closest being Carson Roccaforte (2nd round competitive balance, $259k under slot) also in 2023 and Nolan Sailors (4th round, $435K under slot) in 2025. High-Impact Prep Players The Royals have not been hesitant in selecting high school players early in rounds. Almost half (7 of 15) players selected within the first three rounds have gone towards high-impact high school players. Picollo, in general, is not afraid to select high school players. 19 (23%) of selections have been given to high school players. However, if you exclude the first three rounds, the earliest selected high school player was in the 13th round. These selections are typically developmental bets with higher ceilings but longer timelines than the available college players at that stage of the draft. Five of these late-round picks ultimately did not sign with the Royals and opted to play college baseball. Overall Position Distribution Positionally, the Royals have favored pitchers with 51 (61%) of their 83 selections. 13 picks have been dedicated to outfields, 9 to shortstops, 5 to catchers, 3 first basemen (including Caglianone, who notably converted to the outfield), 2 third basemen, and 0 second basemen. This mirrors the trend of selecting a bat first, followed by a run of pitchers in early rounds. The Royals also are unwilling to commit draft capital towards too many low-upside positions like first and third base. What This Means for 2026 While every draft is different depending on the players available for selection, Piccolo has left a general outline for how the Royals approach the draft. Expect the Royals to likely select an offensive player with the 6th overall pick, followed by a run of pitchers. The DiamondCentric mock draft has OF Drew Burress slotted as the sixth pick. Keep an eye out for high school players in the early and late rounds, with college players dominating the middle of the draft.

This season, the Toronto Blue Jays fans have taken over the American League All-Star voting. After the first round of votes, Blue Jays players occupy a spot in each position’s phase 2 vote, with second baseman Ernie Clement earning an automatic spot in the starting lineup for receiving the most phase 1 votes in the American League. This is not the first time MLB has seen fans of one team stuff the ballot box for their favorite team. In 2015, Royals fans voted early and often to get their players on the All-Star roster. While Toronto and Kansas City have different media market sizes (Toronto's nationwide fan base gives it one of the largest voting pools), the teams' profiles are quite similar. Much like this year’s Blue Jays, the 2015 Royals were coming off a close seven-game World Series loss while trying to overcome lengthy playoff droughts; 30 years for the Royals at the time and 33 years for the Blue Jays. One key difference is that the Royals were 14 games above .500 and leading their division at the end of June 2015, and finished the season with the best record in the AL. Conversely, the Blue Jays are finishing June six games below .500 and outside of the playoff picture. In 2015, the All-Star voting was simpler. Whichever player got the most votes at their position was the starter in the All-Star game. No phases and unlimited votes per person. The excessive ballot stuffing by Royals fans ultimately led MLB to change the voting process to include two phases to help prevent one team from dominating the outcome. Below are the AL vote results in phase 2 as of 12:30 pm on June 30, including the number of days left to vote. While only one Blue Jay is leading in the final phase of voting, all positions are represented with a Blue Jays player in phase two. Relievers Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera were also selected to the All-Star team, and Mike Moustakas won the vote for the final roster spot. How deserving was each Royal in battling for their All-Star spot? Below is an initial look at key stats to see how the top vote getters compared to each other. This is not a perfect method to determine who is more “deserving” since the All-Star Game was never intended to reward only the statistically best players. Fan voting has always been as much about popularity as production. All stats used will be from the start of 2015 through July 5, the day voting results were announced. Catcher Salvador Perez ultimately won the vote at catcher, his third all-star selection at the time. Perez was battling with Russell Martin and Stephen Vogt. According to Fangraphs, Perez was the least productive of the three. Among AL catchers with at least 100 plate appearances, Perez ranked 11th in fWAR, 9th in wOBA, and 8th in wRC+. Martin and Vogt were top two in each of those metrics. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Salvador Perez 92 .307 0.6 Russell Martin 124 .354 2.9 Stephen Vogt 140 .373 2.1 First Base Eric Hosmer lost out to Miguel Cabrera, who was fresh off two consecutive AL MVPs, and was clearly more deserving, not to say Hosmer wasn’t having a good year at the time. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Eric Hosmer 115 .342 1.3 Miguel Cabrera 179 .434 3.6 Second Base Omar Infante was not having a good season in 2015 despite his second-place finish in votes. He ultimately became the poster child while ballot stuffing was a problem in 2015. He was the worst performer among qualified AL second basemen. Winner Jose Altuve was a much better option from the young and upcoming Astros, with Jason Kipnis also having a strong season. The Royals notably traded for Ben Zobrist later that season to replace Infante at second base. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Omar Infante 42 .236 -0.8 Jose Altuve 109 .325 1.6 Jason Kipnis 153 .397 4.0 Third Base Moustakas was having a strong season in 2015 and was deserving of his selection to the All-Star reserves, but Josh Donaldson, the eventual AL MVP, had a stronger case for votes. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Mike Moustakas 118 .346 1.8 Josh Donaldson 139 .376 3.8 Shortstop Escobar ultimately held on to the starting spot, and the decision between him and Jose Iglesias was close based on fWAR. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Alcides Excobar 82 .293 1.3 Jose Iglesias 110 .334 1.3 Outfield Mike Trout joined Cain and Gordon as the voted starters. Trout and Cain would both finish the season in the top three of MVP voting. Gordon was also having a strong season, though other players may have had a stronger case for selection. Alex Rios, on the other hand, was not having a good season in Kansas City; he ranked third-worst among all outfielders in fWAR at the time with -0.7. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Mike Trout 163 .404 4.5 Lorenzo Cain 125 .355 3.0 Alex Gordon 122 .352 1.9 Jose Bautista 150 .391 2.6 Yoenis Cespedes 114 .340 2.2 Alex Rios 34 .224 -0.7 Designated Hitter Kendrys Morales was brought in to replace long-time Royal Billy Butler and was a key bat in the middle of the order in 2015. While he ultimately lost out to Nelson Cruz in the All-Star voting, his performance in 2015 earned him a Silver Slugger as DH. wRC+ wOBA fWAR Kendrys Morales 116 .343 0.5 Nelson Cruz 153 .389 2.3 Despite MLB’s attempts to prevent ballot stuffing for All-Star voting, fans will still find a way to show their enthusiasm for their favorite team, even when some of the players are less deserving. While the All-Star Game is a meaningless exhibition that has always been a popularity contest, All-Star appearances can have an impact on player bonuses, impact on arbitration and free agent contracts, and possibly future Hall of Fame voting. Ultimately, the starters for the All-Star game are a representation of the league as a whole, and fans will want to make sure players are deserving of that honor.

Pitching has not been the Royals’ strength in the month of June. Through June 27, the Royals have surrendered 5.72 runs per game this month. This brings their season average to 5.04 runs allowed per game, fifth-worst in MLB. The Royals have also been susceptible to blowouts, with four games allowing 10 or more runs in June. The Royals have also had their fair share of misfortune when it comes to pitchers this month. Cole Ragans was transferred to the 60-day IL and is scheduled for another elbow surgery. Stephen Kolek has missed time due to a family emergency and paternity leave after providing a spark for the rotation in May. Kris Bubic is still rehabbing after his elbow soreness landed him on the IL in May. Seth Lugo missed a week due to a concussion caused by a comeback line drive that hit him in the head. However, while the team may be struggling to find its footing on the mound, one player has stood out as the best performer for the Royals this month: Michael Wacha. With former All-Star starters like Ragans, Bubic, and Lugo all missing time, Wacha has become the ace for the 2026 Royals. His 2.8 bWAR this season, fourth highest in the American League, has already matched his mark from last season with half the season still remaining. He is also leading the AL in starts and innings pitched, which has been particularly important as the pitching staff has thinned from injuries. Wacha leads all Royals pitchers with 0.8 fWAR in June with a 3.51 ERA and 3.20 FIP. Wacha also leads in innings pitched, logging 33 ⅓ innings across his five starts. With an average of 6.67 innings per start in June, Wacha’s stamina has provided additional rest for the Royals’ bullpen, which has repeatedly been forced to absorb extra innings in June. Wacha excelled in limiting hitters to soft contact with a 31.3% hard-hit rate and 1.8% barrel rate. His walk rate also ranked in the 93rd percentile in June at 2.9%. In his age-34 season, Wacha has shown few signs of slowing down. According to Statcast data, his fastball is the most effective it’s ever been, ranking in the 89th percentile in pitching run value, and his off-speed pitches are grading in the 92nd percentile. Despite Wacha’s strong performance in June, his five starts, three of which were quality starts, have only resulted in one Royals victory. Among qualified pitchers, Wacha has the fifth-least run support with only 3.15 runs per game. His lack of run support was on full display on June 27, when he pitched into the eighth inning, allowing only one run, only for the Royals to be walked off by the White Sox in the bottom of the ninth with a 2-1 loss. Honorable Mention: Noah Cameron While Wacha has been the leader in the rotation in June, Cameron has provided much-needed depth in the back end of the rotation. He trails only Wacha among Royals pitchers in fWAR for June with 0.6 and leads all Royals starters in xERA and xFIP at 3.48 and 3.76, respectively. In June, he pitched 27 ⅓ innings across five starts, earning him two wins and two quality starts. Cameron prevented runners from getting on base with a 1.17 WHIP in June, which brought his season mark down to 1.33. Cameron had struggled to find his footing to start the season. Despite allowing more runs on average this season compared to his rookie year, he is displaying positive signs of improvement in his sophomore season. His strikeout rate has gone up from 20.5% to 21.5%, and his walk rate has improved from 7.7% to 6.3%. Cameron might be held back by his low average fastball velocity of 92.3 mph, but his arsenal is boosted by his changeup and slider, both grade out at 102 on TJStats' Stuff+ metric.. He can be inconsistent with his performance, but being available at a time when the rotation is stretched thin is valuable to this Royals team. Honorable Mention #2: Alex Lange Lange was thrown into the closer role on June 3 after Lucas Erceg struggled in May to solidify the back of the bullpen. Since taking on the role, Lange has earned seven saves and no blown saves in 11 ⅓ innings pitched. While his innings are rarely clean with his 1.68 WHIP during June, his ability to close out games with a lead has prevented further damage to the Royals’ record in June.

Over the past few weeks, the manager Matt Quatraro has been shuffling around his lineup. Maikel Garcia has not led off for the Royals since May 27, partially to place him in the heart of the batting order, and partially due to a hamstring injury. Since May 27, Quatraro has favored Carter Jensen to lead off against right-handed pitchers and Lane Thomas against left-handed pitchers. However, Jensen has been slumping lately, and it could be time to shake up the order yet again. As the Royals sit near the bottom of the AL Wild Card standings, every lineup decision can make a huge impact on the season and stay in the win column. Jensen has seen a drop in weighted on-base average (wOBA) since late April. His current expected wOBA (xwOBA) is sitting at .267 (6th percentile), but his last 100 plate appearances show that his current form is even worse than that at .224. For reference, the median xwOBA among qualified hitters in MLB is .322. After a strong start, Jensen’s overall run creation is below league average with an 80 wRC+. Massey also brings some experience as a leadoff hitter. He has 80 career plate appearances from the leadoff spot, though he hasn’t featured in that spot since 2024. His career slash line leading off is .233/.288/.411, which is slightly better than his career averages. Massey is far from the perfect leadoff hitter. His current on-base percentage of .283 is less ideal. His baserunning does not stand out in particular. His sprint speed is below average in the 37th percentile. He has only one stolen base attempt this season and has been thrown out more often than he advances when trying to take the extra base on the basepaths. If Massey can‘t improve his baserunning, he could be a frustrating fixture on the bases with stars like Bobby Witt Jr. at the plate. While his wOBA is on the upswing, Massey’s pure on-base ability does not necessarily impress, and a lack of walks could become an issue at the top of the order. While his OBP of .283 against righties is an improvement on Jensen’s mark of .281, Massey has a team-low walk rate of 3.4%. If Quatraro values walks and plate discipline from his leadoff hitter, it might be worthwhile to explore Isaac Collins and his 14% walk rate. Why not stick to Garcia as the leadoff hitter? Against right-handed pitching, Garcia's 76 wRC+ has not been as productive as Massey's 95 wRC+. Garcia’s production could be better used in the middle of the order, protecting Witt in the order. With the regression from Salvador Perez, Garcia provides a rare right-handed bat that can produce in the heart of the order every day. While Massey does not represent the prototypical leadoff hitter, he represents an improvement in form compared to Jensen, who is slumping. Until Jensen shows signs of breaking out of his slump, Massey appears to be the strongest candidate to lead off against right-handed pitching.

Salvador Perez has not gotten off to the best start of the season. After 61 games played, his slash line sits at .204/.254/.345 with a 61 wRC+, all metrics dropping from 2025 to 2026. His wRC+ marks also represent the lowest among all Royals hitters and 15 points below the next-worst hitter this season, Starling Marte. Among qualified hitters in MLB, Perez also has the 5th-lowest wRC+ and wOBA at 61 and .264, respectively. While Perez remains one of the most important figures in franchise history, his offensive regression and Carter Jensen's emergence have created a difficult question for the Royals. Is it time to reduce Perez's role in the lineup? Perez has seen a steep drop-off in most of the main Statcast metrics. His expected batting average and wOBA have both dropped to around the 20th percentile range after both being above the 80th percentile last season. His barrel and hard-hit rate have also taken a dip, along with average exit velocity. Even though he is still pulling the ball in the air at a high rate of 18.4%, it is a noticeable drop from his mark of over 26% in the past two seasons. His opposite field fly ball rate has jumped to 25.8%. This could be explained by his drop in bat speed from 72.9 mph last season to 71.4 mph this season. Failing to pull the ball in the air greatly decreases his power potential and makes it difficult to take advantage of the shorter fences in Kauffman Stadium’s left field. Given Perez's regression, the Royals need to accelerate the transition plan behind the plate. Perez has already begun to play fewer games at catcher and more games at designated hitter. He has already lined up as the DH in 28 games of the Royals’ 65 games this season. He is well on pace to break his 2025 mark, where Perez appeared as the DH in 38 games. Perez hasn’t seen as much regression behind the plate compared to his hitting. Last season, his blocking was well below average, where he saw -15 blocks above average. This season, he has been performing at expected levels and not allowing any excess passed balls or wild pitches. His pop time is well within his career average at 1.97, and he ranks 45th among the 71 catchers with at least 5 stolen base attempts against them. Perez’s framing is below average this season, but his framing has never been particularly good. The replacement at catcher may already be taking place. Jensen has started more games as catcher than Perez this season. While his numbers are not staggering on offense this season, he has been better than Perez at the plate. Jensen is currently slashing .211/.286/.381 with an 81 wRC+. That wRC+ represents the 8th-best among Royals hitters. Jensen is also one shy of the Royals' leader in home runs with 8. Defensively, Jensen has been more than serviceable behind the plate. His pop time of 1.91 ranks 20th among catchers with at least 5 stolen base attempts, and he has caught three more runners than expected. One area Jensen can improve on is his blocking. So far, he already has eight blocks below average. While Jensen has not yet established himself as the impact hitter in the Royals' lineup, he has outperformed Perez offensively and provided competent defense behind the plate. With Jensen earning more opportunities behind the plate, the Royals must decide how to best deploy Perez moving forward. Perez has the third most plate appearances among Royals hitters, and most of those plate appearances have come from the cleanup spot in the batting order. That is a lot of plate appearances in an important position for the worst hitter (according to wRC+) on the roster. On May 30, Perez was moved down to 5th in the order, but that was a temporary adjustment. One solution to giving Perez more time off would be to play him mostly against left-handed pitchers. Perez has a 123 wRC+ against lefties, 5th-best on the team. Compare that to Jensen, who struggles against lefties since he’s a left-handed hitter. When facing right-handed pitching, Perez has a 41 wRC+, more than 20 points lower than the next-worst hitter against righties, Lane Thomas. A sensible solution would be to transition Perez into the short side of a platoon with Jensen, primarily starting against left-handed pitching. What other options do the Royals have at designated hitter? Nick Loftin and Marte are players that the Royals have been mostly using as platoon options against left-handed pitchers. Their production against right-handed pitchers so far this season, though in smaller samples, has proven to be better than what Perez can offer. It would be worthwhile to give them more opportunities for regular at-bats. The baseball case for reducing Perez's role is straightforward. The human side of the decision is much more complicated. Perez is the captain and leader in the Royals clubhouse. Benching Perez could have unintended consequences in the locker room that are hard to predict, especially without being able to see his impact first-hand. Perez is likely also looking to compile as many stats as possible for his legacy. He is only five home runs away from tying George Brett for the franchise lead in home runs. Perez is also 40 hits away from 1,800 hits. While these milestones are still achievable with a smaller role in the lineup, they become much more difficult. Perez has also already pushed back to being rested earlier this season when manager Matt Quatraro said that he was giving Perez a “mental breather” in April. Perez took to social media to say that “I don’t need a mental breather” in reaction to his manager’s comments. While that incident is now well behind everyone involved, it proves that any potential communication about fewer at-bats for Perez will need to be handled better.