The Kansas City Royals have not gotten off to the start they were hoping for. Going into Friday’s games, they sit with a 5-8 record, three back of the Cleveland Guardians, who lead the AL Central.
The offense has looked a bit shaky, and the pitching staff has not done the team many favors. While it could be worse, the club has to figure out what’s holding them back ASAP.
They could look at calling up some of their top prospects. They have quite a few waiting to make their mark in the big leagues, especially on the pitching side of things.
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Luinder Avila and Ben Kudra sit as two prospects who are likely to see their names called at some point this season. The same can be said about Shane Panzini, who was taken as a high schooler in the fourth round during the 2021 MLB Draft.
What sets him apart from some of the other pitching prospects is his ability to spin the baseball. He has a ton of ride on his four-seam fastball, and a curveball that can make opposing batters look foolish with how much it drops.
He is someone that MLB Pipeline has circled as a potential impactful call-up for the Royals this year.
“Working as a multi-inning option in the Omaha bullpen, he could be pishing for that elusive MLB look. Panzini has shown 18-20 inches of ride on his low-90s fastball in the early going this season and has played off that with a mid-70s curveball that’s averaged five feet of drop. If he can keep his K rate going around its current level of 30 percent over a larger sample, a spot with the Royals won’t be far off.”
While Panzini doesn’t throw too hard, his pitches rarely end up where batters think they are going to. That multiplied his command and strikeout rate could be enough for the front office to at least give him a shot at some point this season.
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