{"id":2019138,"date":"2025-09-13T12:33:13","date_gmt":"2025-09-13T12:33:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2019138"},"modified":"2025-09-13T12:33:13","modified_gmt":"2025-09-13T12:33:13","slug":"3-royals-prospects-who-deserve-a-taste-of-triple-a-before-2025-season-ends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/3-royals-prospects-who-deserve-a-taste-of-triple-a-before-2025-season-ends\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Royals prospects who deserve a taste of Triple-A before 2025 season ends"},"content":{"rendered":"

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If Kansas City Royals fans think the regular season’s end is approaching to fast, that has already become a reality for most minor-league affiliates. <\/p>\n

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The Low-A Columbia Fireflies extended their season with some postseason success<\/a>, but the High-A Quad Cities River Bandits and Double-A Northwest Arkansas Naturals are not so lucky. The Naturals season wraps up on Sept. 14 on the road trip against the Frisco Rough Riders. <\/p>\n

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As the Royals have promoted some players to Double-A since the High-A season ended earlier this month, there is room for conversation if some Naturals should get the same bump to Triple-A Omaha before the Storm Chasers’ season ends the following week.<\/p>\n

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It isn’t a make-or-break move for any prospect, rather a reward and way to continue a player’s season. Outfielder Asbel Gonzalez got that treatment to the nth degree in 2024, jumping from the Arizona Complex League following its conclusion to Double-A, where he made four appearances. <\/p>\n

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No one should skip from Double-A to say the majors after the Naturals season ends, but an extra week of baseball and suiting up for a new team can end a player’s season on a higher note.<\/p>\n

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So, if we are looking at the numbers, are there any Northwest Arkansas players screaming they are promotion-worthy? At a glance, there are three strong candidates with both present production and future projection. <\/p>\n

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Note: The Royals also included <\/em>pitchers Luinder Avila<\/em><\/a> and Anthony Simonelli on their Arizona Fall League roster after post-September promotions from Double-A to Triple-A. It makes sense for a team to hold off on such moves if a player is already ticketed for the AFL, but as last year proved, that\u2019s far from a hard rule.<\/em><\/p>\n

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OF Carson Roccaforte<\/h2>\n

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The Naturals started 2025 with two regualrs who are now on the Royals’ 26 man roster: outfielder Jac Caglianone and catcher Carter Jensen. Both are seen as building blocks for Kansas City’s future, but were once just lighting up Double-A competition. <\/p>\n

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After Jensen’s promotion to Omaha, there was some question regarding who would step up and fill his shoes in Arkansas. Outfielder Carson Roccaforte not only did that<\/a>, but he did so emphatically.<\/p>\n

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The Double-A power surge continues for Carson Roccaforte. He\u2019s 3\/5 today with two doubles and this home run. Now hitting .312 with an .894 OPS for the Naturals. pic.twitter.com\/t9VHz5FGci<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Preston Farr (@royalsminors) August 31, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

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The 55th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, Roccaforte was a head-scratching pick at the time. But after lighting up High-A competition to start 2025, he was an undeniable promotion and has 39 games in Double-A this season<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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Like Jensen’s jump from Double-A to Triple-A, Roccaforte hasn’t missed a beat at the plate and is actually producing better. Sure, some batted-ball luck (.425 BABIP in Double-A) may be fueling that, but a .308\/.405\/.491 line and 151 wRC+ are pretty hard to ignore. <\/p>\n

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Overall, Roccaforte already has a 18 home run and 43 stolen base campaign, a combination that puts him in rare air. Only five other players have done that across a whole season since 2020, including former Royals outfielder Brewer Hicklen. Even though five have a massive gap between those who turn into stars, like Jackson Chourio and Anthony Volpe, and those who don’t, like Hicklen or Mike Antico. <\/p>\n

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None of this accounts for Roccaforte’s best tool still being elite: his glove. Roccaforte has been an elite fielder in center field since his collegiate days at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, but it was always the bat holding back his overall propsect profile. Now that production at the plate is coming around in a big way, while he looks like a Minor League Gold Glove Award patrolling Arvest Ballpark
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We can’t decide what Carson Roccaforte catch is better. Game 1 x2 or to start Game 2… the @Royals<\/a> No. 21 prospect already has 3\u20e3 web gems tonight \ud83e\udd2f pic.twitter.com\/kSxRiffu0n<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Northwest Arkansas Naturals (@nwanaturals) August 2, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

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LHP Hunter Owen<\/h2>\n

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Left-hander Noah Cameron wasn\u2019t on many prospect radars, weighed down by injury concerns and stuff that didn\u2019t wow evaluators. Yet his rookie season turned into a resounding success, forcing fans to rethink what a Royals pitching prospect can look like. If you use Cameron\u2019s 2024 Double-A campaign as a benchmark, the best comp in the system right now might be another lefty\u2014Hunter Owen.<\/p>\n

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\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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Name<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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Level<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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Year<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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Starts<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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ERA<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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FIP<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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WHIP<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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K%<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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BB%<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

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SwStrk%<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n

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Noah Cameron<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Double-A<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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2024<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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16<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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3.63<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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3.21<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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1.36<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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27.0%<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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7.8%<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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13.9%<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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Hunter Owen<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Double-A<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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2025<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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18<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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3.57<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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3.94<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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1.29<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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25.6%<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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9.7%<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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12.5%<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

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MLB Pipeline ranks Owen 26th on Kansas City\u2019s top-30 prospect list<\/a> after a so-so first full season with High-A Quad Cities. The former Vanderbilt arm came with some injury red flags in his final college year, but the Royals still nabbed him in the fourth round of the 2023 MLB Draft. <\/p>\n

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His first task as a pro was proving he could stay healthy for a full season\u2014he did that in Quad Cities, then carried it forward with stronger production after moving up to Northwest Arkansas. Like Noah Cameron, Owen doesn\u2019t rely on a dominant fastball but makes it work by spotting it up in the zone and leaning on his secondaries to induce weak contact and rack up strikeouts.<\/p>\n

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A southpaw with a 21-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio and an outfielder who is scorching when the temps are high.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Congratulations Hunter Owen and Spencer Nivens, NW Arkansas August Pitcher and Player of the Month!#RaisingRoyals<\/a>\ud83d\udc51 pic.twitter.com\/6QmNY7uTBA<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Raising Royals (@KCRoyalsPD) September 3, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

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Owen has the prototypical starter\u2019s frame at 6-foot-6, 261 pounds, very reminiscent of Royals reliever Jonathan Bowlan. Unlike Bowlan, though, Owen hasn\u2019t had the kind of major injury that can derail a starting career. <\/p>\n

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It\u2019s fair to assume he\u2019d see a velocity bump if shifted to the bullpen full-time, but his above-average slider and a curveball that\u2019s still coming along give him more than a reliever\u2019s profile. Pair that with a 28.5% CSW%<\/a>, and there\u2019s plenty of reason to keep Owen in the rotation conversation.<\/p>\n

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Owen started on Sept. 9 for the Naturals, keeping him in line for one, two max, Triple-A starts. It isn’t much, but Kansas City did something similar to close out the 2024 season with Avila. It would be advantageous to have some publicly available data on Owen after a Triple-A appearance and get a look at how the 23-year-old might factor into the 2026 Triple-A roster chase, if the Royals so choose to promote him.<\/p>\n

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1B Brett Squires<\/h2>\n

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Football fans love the story of an NFL undrafted free agent, but in baseball, the odds are even steeper. Early Royals like Frank White and U.L. Washington beat those odds, but with today\u2019s analytics and expansive scouting, it\u2019s rare for true big-league talent to slip through 20 rounds of the draft. <\/p>\n

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In Kansas City, the most notable undrafted free agents in recent memory are pitcher Walter Pennington and catcher Logan Porter, and made it but didn\u2019t leave a lasting mark. Sure, baseball has its outliers like Bobby Bonilla and Larry Walker<\/a>, but they\u2019re the exceptions. This isn\u2019t to say first baseman Brett Squires is destined to join them, but the Texas native is clearly trending further than most of his undrafted peers.<\/p>\n

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Kansas City signed Squires in 2022 after two strong seasons at Oklahoma, and he wasted no time making an impression. He debuted with Columbia in 2023 and earned MiLB.com Organization All-Star honors at first base, pairing surprising speed (32 stolen bases for a corner infielder) with a .263\/.381\/.430 line and 128 wRC+. <\/p>\n

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The Royals bumped him to High-A in 2024, where he took another step forward, posting a 151 wRC+ over 62 games and earning Midwest League All-Star honors. The steady rise made starting 2025 in Double-A the natural next move.<\/p>\n

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Squires finally hit a production roadblock to start off the season, slashing .222\/.301\/.383 in 45 games through the end of May. The 36.0% strikeout rate in that span was untenable, and the stolen base production was not there anymore. But Squires has turned things back around in a big way in the second half<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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His 120 wRC+ is more in line with expectations, while his walk rate came in at 11.9% to an 18.6% strikeout rate across the last 47 games. It is much more of the form that the Squires showcased in the previous two seasons, and it begs the question of whether Kansas City would consider pulling the promotional trigger early and giving Squires a taste of Triple-A.<\/p>\n

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\ud83d\udcaa Brett Squires hammers HR No. 8\u20e3! #GoNats<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/ClHlpIDHMP<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Northwest Arkansas Naturals (@nwanaturals) August 17, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

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At 25, time isn\u2019t exactly on Squires\u2019 side, but he\u2019d still be the youngest first baseman on Omaha\u2019s roster. The Storm Chasers already carry organizational depth pieces like Jordan Groshans and Nick Pratto, while veteran Bobby Dalbec has been on a tear at the plate<\/a> and can handle the position for now. <\/p>\n

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Still, the farm system is thin at first base beyond the big-league level. Expecting Squires to become a future everyday contributor may be unfair, but he\u2019s consistently proven he can handle the position and hit above average at every stop. <\/p>\n

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Half of our 12-game homestand is in the books so it’s time to look at our @ArkBlueCross<\/a> Play of the Series against the Travelers and it’s this diving backhand stop by 1B Brett Squires against Lazaro Montes. <\/p>\n

The Naturals are back in action on Tuesday night against Tulsa. #GoNats<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/mEmmdZYmFT<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Northwest Arkansas Naturals (@nwanaturals) August 18, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

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With his Rule 5 Draft eligibility looming this winter, Squires is set to be 26 on Opening Day and deserves a chance to show what he can do.<\/p>\n

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