10 eye-popping stats among Royals’ prospects

The Royals’ farm system has made notable improvements in 2024, already notching more collective wins (254) than all of 2023 (253). The farm systems’ win percentage has jumped from .463 in 2023 to .549 in 2024. Not only does the organization have two top 100 prospects in all of baseball in Jac Caglianone (#18) and Blake Mitchell (#56), but the overall depth of the system has improved from top to bottom. It is an encouraging development for an organization ranked as a bottom-10 farm system since the midseason of 2022. The players listed below have had a major impact on this improvement and have posted some impressive individual stats in the process.

What are some of the most impressive offensive stats throughout the farm system?

Blake Mitchell’s 18 home runs

It’s not the number of home runs that I find most impressive, it’s that Mitchell is showing this much power in his first full season of professional baseball. The ball absolutely flies off his bat. In my eyes, he’s already proven that he was worth being taken as the 8^th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. He currently leads all Royals’ prospects in wRC+ (149) and is inching closer and closer to a 20/20 season for the Fireflies (he has 23 stolen bases).

Brian O’ Keefe’s .279 ISO

When you’re almost exactly double the league average ISO (.140), you know you’re doing something right. The Royals signed O’Keefe to a minor league contract back in April and he has been extremely productive for the Storm Chasers ever since. Of O’Keefe’s 56 hits this season, 12 have been doubles, and 15 have been home runs.

John Rave’s 109 hits, 48 extra-base hits

John Rave comfortably leads the Royals’ farm system in total hits and leads in extra-base hits as well. He is also tied for the farm system lead of 18 home runs with Blake Mitchell. He has been a vital piece of the Storm Chasers’ lineup this season and helped them secure a playoff berth for the first time in a decade.

Javier Vaz’s 11% strikeout rate, 1.26 BB/K ratio

It is well-known that Vaz has incredible on-base ability, with a career .378 OBP to prove it. He should be a candidate to bat leadoff for the Royals in the near future, but that’s neither here nor there. His 11.0 K% leads all Royals’ minor leaguers and his 1.26 BB/K ratio is 2^nd to River Town’s 1.45 BB/K, although Vaz has a much greater sample size.

Tyler Tolbert’s 41 stolen bases

This shouldn’t come as a surprise, as Tolbert has compiled 234 career stolen bases, but Tolbert once again leads all Royals’ prospects in stolen bases. His speed on the base paths and in the field flashes often for the Naturals.

What about the pitchers?

Daniel Lynch IV’s 119.1 innings pitched

Lynch has pitched nearly 14 more innings than other Royals’ minor leaguer, while also pitching 22.2 innings with the big-league squad. This makes sense, as Lynch has plenty of experience and has built up his arm to have a higher workload. Not only has he pitched a lot of innings for the Storm Chasers, but he has pitched a lot of effective innings, holding a 3.54 ERA overall.

Evan Sisk’s 1.75 ERA and 1.94 FIP

Royals’ fans have been asking for Sisk to get promoted to the majors for at least a month now, and it’s not hard to see why. He has been absolutely dominant out of the bullpen for Omaha. He’s been given the chance to close games for the Storm Chasers recently, tallying 9 saves on the season. His 13.2 K/9 also leads all Royals’ prospects.

Noah Cameron’s (0.83), Steven Zobac’s (0.84), and Ethan Bosacker’s (0.90) WHIP after promotion

All three of these starters have been lights out since being promoted to their respective clubs in July. Cameron has pitched 25.1 innings in Omaha, Zobac has pitched 34.1 innings in NW Arkansas, and Bosacker has pitched 34.1 innings in Quad Cities. These three have all been encouraging developments in the Royals’ farm system. Their K/BB ratios since promotion are no joke either: 7.50 (Cameron), 8.00 (Zobac), and 5.00 (Bosacker).

Daniel Lynch IV’s 11 quality starts

Based on the above statistics for Lynch, this stat makes sense. To rack up that many innings, you would expect to have quite a few quality starts. However, Lynch clears all other minor league starters in the Royals’ system by four quality starts. No one else has more than seven. Lynch has been as efficient as ever this season.

Frank Mozzicato’s 9 pickoffs

I thought it would be fun to include a random stat, albeit important in its own right. Nine pickoffs are no joke, and no one in the Royals’ farm system is close to this number. I would guess his left-handed delivery has fooled baserunners at first often.

Image credit: Mark Kuhlmann/Omaha Storm Chasers