Royals move on from million-dollar outfielder, former top international prospect

The international free agent pool can be a fickle source of talent for any MLB franchise. With academies and thousands of personnel on the ground in various countries, teams invest plenty of resources in the hopes of finding that one teenager who turns into a career-defining star.

The Kansas City Royals have found a few current stars that way, namely third baseman Maikel Garcia and catcher Salvador Perez. El Capitán has been the shining star of what fruits the international free agent pipeline can unearth, and will set the standard for years to come. That was an unfair standard for anyone to hold outfielder Tony Ruiz against, and one the Dominican ballplayer will unlikely realize.

The Royals reportedly released Ruiz, their crown jewel of the 2023 international free agent class, earlier in September. Kansas City signed Ruiz for $1.19 million in January 2023, after seemingly being poised to sign with the Boston Red Sox until “a broken leg that required surgery in 2022 slowed his progress,” according to Baseball America.

MLB Pipeline said the power-hitting righty was drawing comparisons to Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodríguez while having him ranked 30th in the 2023 international free agent pool. That potential and comparison was obviously wildly overblown.

The Royals were right to move on from prospect Tony Ruiz.

The 19-year-old was still mired in the Dominican Summer League ranks in his third professional season, totaling 116 games at that level from 2023-2025. His first season was his strongest statistically, but with little progress at the plate or in the field, Ruiz’s time in the Royals organization came to an end.

He slashed .228/.315/.399 across 449 plate appearances, with 11 home runs, 65 RBI, and five stolen bases. Ruiz was celebrated for his good feel of the strike zone as a prospect, but his 142 strikeouts to 41 walks tell a different story.

The 2023 class is not all a loss, from a Royals perspective. Kansas City notably signed outfielder Asbel Gonzalez and catcher Ramon Ramirez in that same class, for much cheaper deals compared to Ruiz.

Gonzalez ranks as Kansas City’s ninth-best prospect according to MLB Pipeline, breaking several records this season during his time at Low-A Columbia. Thanks to his elite basestealing production and above-average fielding in centerfield, Gonzalez has the prototypical build of a leadoff hitter. However, he still has plenty of development ahead of him in 2026 and beyond.

Ramirez ranks 12th in his own right, thanks to his profile as a bat-first catcher. The Venezuelan slashed .244/.339/.442 in his first season in Colombia, but missed considerable time after nearly a month and a half on the injured list.

Ruiz is another prime example of how volatile prospect watching can be, but doubly so in the international field. Instead of scouting and investing in high schoolers or more advanced college players, often these international players are signing at age 16, many years before any evaluator would put big-league expectations on them. It is always a gamble, and the chips did not fall Kansas City’s way when it came to Ruiz.