The COVID class has not panned out.
Everyone knew the 2020 draft was going to be weird and difficult. Amateur ball shut down in March, before many high school seasons had even really begun in earnest. Baseball agreed to limit the draft to just five rounds due to cost constraints, giving teams very few chances to improve their farm systems. And what chances they had would be by flying virtually blind, with very few looks at these players due to the abbreviated season.
The Royals had the fourth overall pick, with Arizona State’s Spencer Torkelson expected to go #1 overall to Detroit. Many mock drafts linked the Royals to New Mexico second baseman Nick Gonzales, with MLB Pipeline reporter Jim Callis reporting the Royals were deciding between Gonzales and prep outfielder Zac Veen, a player they could go underslot with to snag a high-dollar pick with the #32 pick. But the Royals were also linked to other players, including Minnesota pitcher Max Meyer, Arkansas outfielder Heston Kjerstad, and Texas A&M pitcher Asa Lacy.
After the Tigers selected Torkelson, the Orioles threw a wrench into the draft by taking Kjerstad. The Marlins took Meyer, giving the Royals a wide array of options. Vanderbilt’s Austin Martin was thought to be a top-five pick, but had been passed over by the first three teams. Gonzales and Veen were also still on the board. The Royals had gone pitcher-heavy in the 2018 draft, and hitter-heavy in 2019. Which way would they go in 2020?
Although Dayton Moore would admit they considered Martin for the pick, the Royals went with Lacy, considered by many the top pitcher in the draft. He had posted a 2.13 ERA and 130 strikeouts in 88 2⁄3 innings the previous season. He did well facing top talent pitching for the U.S. Collegiate National team that summer and dominated in four starts in 2020 before the season was shut down. MLB Pipeline ranked him the #3 overall prospect in the draft, writing he is a “left-hander who can get swings and misses with four different offerings.” Keith Law also ranked him #3 overall, writing “if there’s a future No. 1 starter in the class, I think it’s him.” Our own Shaun Newkirk wrote there were concerns about Lacy’s delivery and he had some reliever risk, but that he probably had the edge over Georgia’s Emerson Hancock as the top arm in the draft. After the draft, Carlos Collazzo at Baseball America wrote the Royals had “stumbled into exceptional value.”
The Royals were thrilled to add a high-upside arm to the farm system.
“We had ranked him the No. 1 pitcher in the Draft,” said Royals then-scouting director Lonnie Goldberg. “We have a long history with him going back to his sophomore year [in high school] and Team USA. For us to be able to add him into the mix with the group we have … he’s a kid with four plus pitches with an incredible compete level. He’s an animal on the field.
“He’s got no-hit stuff each time he goes out there. His coming to us is a perfect fit.”
Unfortunately, Lacy was not the opposite of a perfect hit. He was assigned to the Royals’ 60-man club pool to work out with the team that summer as there were no minor league games. He went to High-A Quad Cities the next year when minor league play resumed. He had eye-popping strikeout numbers – 79 in 52 innings, but had trouble throwing strikes with 41 walks. Shoulder soreness limited him to just 14 starts, although he participated in the Arizona Fall League with the same high strikeout and walk numbers.
But his control issues just got worse, and he walked 28 in 20 innings for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals in 2022 before getting shut down with back issues. In 2023, he injured his elbow and needed Tommy John surgery. Now 26, Lacy was recently placed on the full season Injured List in the minors, having not appeared in a game in three years.
The Royals had the #32 pick after the first round as a competitive balance lottery pick and selected Baylor infielder Nick Loftin. Loftin was ranked as the #29 draft prospect by Baseball America after hitting .323/.380/.502 with six home runs in 2019. Loftin had a high-contact approach and an ability to play all over the field, drawing comparisons to Royals All-Star Whit Merrifield. Keith Law called him one of the “safest bets” of the draft. The Royals even considered taking Loftin with the #4 pick and were surprised he landed to them. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel was surprised he was still available, writing “I love the pick where the Royals got him.” Loftin made his MLB debut in 2023, but has been a reserve player in parts of the last three seasons, hitting .218/.291/.309 in 98 games.
In the second round with pick #41, the Royals selected high school pitcher Ben Hernandez, a right-hander from the Chicago area. MLB Pipeline ranked him #72 in the draft, while Baseball America had him #86. His calling card was a plus change up, a rare pitch for a high school pitcher to master. Hernandez was released last year and is in the Mariners organization, still having yet to pitch above High-A ball.
The Royals went with a bat in round three with the #76 pick, grabbing Alabama outfielder Tyler Gentry. MLB Pipeline ranked him #81 and Baseball America ranked him #177, noting 60-grade raw power. Gentry appeared in three games with the Royals last year, but has stalled out in Triple-A this year.
In the fourth round, the Royals drafted Oregon State left-hander Christian Chamberlain with the 105th pick. Just 20 years old, Chamberlain boasted a big 12-6 curve and a 95 mph fastball. Baseball America ranked him #117 on their board while MLB Pipeline had him #174. Chamberlain missed all of last season following Tommy John surgery, and has returned to post a 1.45 ERA in 20 relief outings at Double-A, but with 18 walks in 18 2/3 innings.
With their final pick, the Royals selected reliever Will Klein out of Eastern Illinois in the fifth round. The right-hander had a mid-90s fastball that could reach the upper-90s, but had some control issues. Baseball America ranked him #204 while MLB Pipeline ranked him #177. Klein pitched in eight games for the Royals in 2024 before he was sent to the Athletics in the Lucas Erceg deal. He currently pitches for the Dodgers.
The Royals also took advantage of the short draft by being aggressive in signing many undrafted free agents. But among a group that includes catcher Saul Garza and Kale Emshoff, outfielder Tucker Bradley, and pitchers AJ Block and Chase Wallace, only hard-throwing right-hander John McMillon reached the big leagues. He was designated for assignment by the Royals last summer and is now in the Phillies organization.
If the 2019 Royals draft class was among the best in club history, the 2020 draft class is among the worst. But some of that is understandable considering the weird circumstances. Many of the top picks have had cursed careers filled with injuries, and none of the top ten picks have accumulated more than 4 career rWAR.
The Royals have been criticized in the pastfor going their own way and drafting a “reach” or going underslot. In 2020 they went chalk, drafting the best player available and paying him more than full slot. But sometimes things just don’t work out the way you want.