The Royals officially have the worst record in baseball today, as the Oakland Athletics officially passed them in the win column after their win on their “reverse boycott” night, which honestly was pretty cool and heart-warming for someone who still has lots of family in the East Bay Area.
I am going to the series finale against the Reds tonight, hoping that the Royals can snap their eight-game losing streak and avoid their third sweep in a row. It won’t be easy, as the Royals face Ben Lively, the Reds’ best-starting pitcher in this series, though the Royals will counter with Daniel Lynch, who is probably the Royals’ best-starting pitcher during this three-game set as well.
Thus, I just wanted to do an edition of the “Jottings” to cover a few Royals-related stories going on in the Minors, as I particularly focus on some big additions over the past week in Triple-A Omaha, and a key return to the Low-A Columbia pitching staff, which actually has been pretty solid so far in 2023.
Royals Promote Klein, Marsh, and Rave to Omaha
While it was lost in the Dairon Blanco promotion news, the Royals earlier on Monday made an aggressive promotion of pitchers Alec Marsh and Will Klein and outfielder John Rave from Northwest Arkansas, as reported first on the Royals Player Development Twitter account.
The Rave move makes sense with Blanco being promoted to the big league club in Kansas City, as Blanco’s departure did leave a hole in the outfield.
Rave got a lot of buzz for a solid performance in the Arizona Fall League this past fall, and he was hitting .275 with a 118 wRC+ in 54 games with the Naturals this season, according to Fangraphs. He still struck out 24.6 percent of the time, which is still a lot, but he had made up for it with a lot of walks, as his 34 walks were tied for fourth in the Texas League.
Rave had a solid debut last night against Columbus as he collected a double and two RBI in the Storm Chasers’ win.
As for Marsh and Klein, they also made their Omaha debuts today, with Marsh making the start and Klein coming in relief. Marsh walked four in five innings of work, but he still struck out six and only allowed one run in his outing.
Marsh still struggled with some walk and home run issues in Northwest Arkansas, as evidenced by his 5.32 ERA and 10% HR/FB rate in 11 starts and 47.1 IP. That being said, after making 36 starts with the Naturals over the past two years, my guess is the Royals wanted him to have a change of scenery. Hopefully, he doesn’t spend too much time in Omaha and can give a boost to the Royals’ rotation or long relief corps.
Klein was a bit more impressive as he went two innings and struck out five, which included him striking out the side in the 8th inning. Klein is not on the 40-man roster currently, but if he continues to have outings like this, he could likely be up in Kansas City soon, especially with the bullpen’s injury issues currently.
Klein has rebounded in 2023 after a pretty rough 2022 in Northwest Arkansas where he posted a 10.51 ERA in 30 outings and 43.2 IP. The walks plagued him a year ago, as he sported a 22% walk rate and K-BB% of 1.7%, both rough marks, which deflated his prospect stock this offseason.
Thankfully, those rates have improved to 10.7% and 22.9% in Northwest Arkansas, respectively. And thus, let’s hope that Klein’s progression with the Royals’ pitching development in the Minors can transition to the Majors in the next couple of months after the Trade Deadline, as the Royals bullpen will be a lot more open after Aroldis Chapman, Scott Barlow, and some other relievers are likely traded.
Royals Sign Matt Beaty and Jermaine Palacios to Minor League Deals
In a surprising announcement, the Royals announced on Monday as well that they had signed former Giant and Cactus League Royal Matt Beaty to a Minor League deal along with former Twins prospect Jermaine Palacios.
Beaty and Palacios were recently released by the Giants and Tigers, respectively, and have primarily played in Triple-A for both organizations.
Beaty is the bigger story of the two, mostly because he really stood out in Spring Training and seemed to have a chance to make the Royals roster until Franmil Reyes and Jackie Bradley, Jr. turned it on toward the end of Cactus League play.
Ironically, neither Reyes nor Bradley is still with the Royals, as both have gotten designated for assignment over the past month.
The former Dodger and Padre utility man was slashing .272/.406/.447 in Triple-A Sacramento this year with four home runs in 30 games. He did hit well with the Royals in Surprise, and he has shown some improvement in his plate approach both in Sacramento and this past spring in Arizona.
Beaty is most likely insurance for Vinnie Pasquantino, who’s on the 10-Day IL due to a shoulder injury and is waiting for MRI results. If the injury is serious, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Beaty make his way up to Kansas City sooner than later, especially considering the Royals’ offensive woes over the past few weeks.
Frank Mozzicato Set to Return to Fireflies Rotation
One of the best stories this season has been the emergence of Frank Mozzicato, the Royals’ top selection and 7th overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft.
Mozzicato has not only been one of the best pitchers in the SALLY this season, but he has become one of the more intriguing pitching prospects in baseball, as evidenced by Baseball America ranking him as the Royals’ Top Prospect, according to their most recent rankings.
In nine games and 46.1 IP, Mozzicato has struck out 74 batters and is posting an ERA of 2.14. He seemed to be on his way to a promotion soon to High-A Quad Cities until a freak collision during batting practice shelved him for a couple of starts.
Thankfully, it seems like the injuries have been minor (not the month-long timetable as initially reported) and Mozzicato is set to make his return to the Fireflies rotation on Thursday night.
While Mozzicato is the clear ace of the Columbia squad, this rotation and pitching staff has been quite impressive through this first couple of months, which is a sharp contrast to where they were a season ago. In fact, the Fireflies possess one of the best staff ERAs in all of affiliated ball, as of June 13th.
It hasn’t been easy for the Royals at the Major League level, but the Royals affiliates are showing a lot of growth from a season ago. Furthermore, it will be intriguing to see how Mozzicato, Ben Kudrna, Steven Zobac, and Shane Panzini will progress and develop as arms over the course of the Minor League season.
Either way, it is a lot of fun to be a Fireflies season ticket holder right now, especially compared to last year when they were one of the worst clubs in the first half of the Low-A season.
Photo Credit: Columbia Fireflies
Just a minor note. Mozzicato was the 7th overall pick in the 2021 MLB draft.
Thanks for pointing out and made that change!
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Anthony Veneziano is on fire. Kid throws nothing but strikes. Future
Agreed. He’s really adjusted at Omaha after a rough couple of starts. He’ll get a shot at some point in KC this year.
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