Royals At Risk Of Losing 25-Year-Old Speedster In Rule 5 Draft

Always an interesting day in the MLB offseason

Aug 23, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; A view of a Kansas City Royals ball cap and logo during the game between the Texas Rangers and the Royals at Globe Life Park in Arlington. The Royals defeated the Rangers 6-3. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals will be an interesting team to watch in next week's Rule 5 Draft, which takes place on Wednesday at the winter meetings in Orlando.

Kansas City currently has 38 players on the 40-man roster, so in theory, they have space to add talent if they like the pool of candidates. But like all 29 other teams, the Royals also left some talented minor-leaguers exposed to the possibility of being poached.

It's always difficult to predict who will and won't be taken in the Rule 5, because teams know they have to carry those players on the active roster all year or immediately ship them back to their former clubs. But a pair of MLB Pipeline site experts believe there's one Royals player who is particularly enticing.

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Will Royals lose Javi Vaz to Rule 5 Draft?

Apr 10, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals batting helmets in the dugout after the game against the Houston Astros at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

On Thursday, Sam Dykstra and Jesse Borek projected 25-year-old second baseman/outfielder Javi Vaz as the Royals' most likely Rule 5 candidate, as the 5-foot-7 speedster would bring a lot of valuable qualities big-league teams like to see from young bench players.

"The Vanderbilt product already faced questions about his power heading into 2025, and fractured fingers in his right hand (suffered in Spring Training) didn’t help that cause as he slugged just .326 with three homers in 103 games for Double-A Northwest Arkansas after his return," wrote Dykstra and Borek.

"That said, the lefty hitter walked more than he struck out for a fourth straight pro season and added 25 steals in 28 attempts thanks to his plus speed. Vaz has experience at both second base and left field, aiding the possibility he’s taken as a speedy, high-contact utility option off an MLB bench."

Run, Javi, Run! 🏃‍♂️💨@Royals #22 prospect, Javier Vaz, scores on a little league home run in the third to give the Nats a 1-0 lead! pic.twitter.com/zmGOMN7wEL

— Northwest Arkansas Naturals (@nwanaturals) July 26, 2025

Vaz, who MLB Pipeline ranks as the No. 25 prospect in the Royals system, stole 25 bases and racked up 99 hits in his 103 games this past season. The fact that he has no Triple-A experience, though, could certainly diminish the odds of another team swiping him next week.

In the bigger picture, the Royals likely aren't too pressed about the possibility of losing Vaz, given his age and odds of contributing to a big-league team this year, but one never knows what other teams may think.

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