Kansas City Royals Select High School Catcher No. 8 Overall in MLB Draft

Picking No. 8 in the MLB Draft on Sunday night, the Kansas City Royals selected catcher Blake Mitchell out of the Texas high school ranks.

MLB.com had him ranked as the No. 14 overall prospect in their draft system, so to take him at No. 8, the Royals likely have secured a financial agreement that will get him out of his college commitment to LSU.

The following is a portion of his MLB.com draft profile:

He has tools on both sides of the ball, a fallback option as a pitcher and a long track record of performance. He played for the U.S. junior team the last two summers, winning the gold-medal game at the 18-and-under World Cup with 2 2/3 scoreless innings against Taiwan in September. He also led Sinton HS to the Texas 4-A title as a junior and won Gatorade state player of the year honors in both 2022 and 2023.

Mitchell's strength, bat speed and patient approach should allow him to hit for power and average from the left side of the plate. A Louisiana State recruit, he shows the aptitude to work counts in search of pitches he can drive and attacks them with a left-handed stroke with loft that produces pop to all fields. He doesn't have the smoothest swing and his power comes with some strikeouts, but he still makes a lot of hard contact.

His selection follows Paul Skenes (No. 1, Pirates), Dylan Crews (No. 2, Nationals), Max Clark (No. 3, Tigers), Wyatt Langford (No. 4, Rangers), Walker Jenkins (No. 5, Twins), Jacob Wilson (No. 6, A's), and Rhett Lowder (No. 7, Reds).

At the major league level, the Royals are 26-65 and in last place in the American League Central.

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