Royals, Jac Caglianone Earn Disappointing Spot In Recent MLB Farm System Rankings

Behind Caglianone, the system still needs a lot of work

Jul 24, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals first round draft pick Jac Caglianone poses with his mother Johanne Caglianone for photos on the field prior to a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals are hoping the 2024 season was the start of a sustained run as playoff contenders. But the future is a somewhat cloudy picture.

As long as the Royals have Bobby Witt Jr. at shortstop, they'll have a chance to compete. Witt is one of the truly special players in Major League Baseball and single-handedly pushed the Royals to the postseason in 2024 with a 10-win season.

In comparison to the true contenders around the league, though, the Royals' roster is somewhat lacking. That wouldn't be as big an issue if Kansas City had a big group of top prospects waiting to make their mark at the big-league level, but instead, they really have just one.

First baseman Jac Caglianone has Royals fans salivating with his impressive feats of exit velocity and home run distance so far this season. But beyond Caglianone, the rest of the farm system is somewhat underwhelming, and the other top prospects aren't as close to big-league readiness.

On Wednesday, Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter ranked the Royals' farm system 27th out of 30 MLB teams, while highlighting catcher Carter Jensen as one of the players behind Caglianone who could eventually make an impact.

"Jensen is the consensus No. 3 prospect in the Royals system behind their two Top 100 guys, and his stock is on the rise following a run in the Arizona Fall League where he hit .425/.582/.800 with four home runs and 11 RBI in 12 game," Reuter wrote.

"The 21-year-old has a 50-hit, 55-power offensive profile with a real chance to stick behind the plate thanks to a strong arm and improving receiving skills."

Kansas City's system, in addition to its lack of depth overall, is a bit overreliant on catchers (Blake Mitchell, Jensen, Ramon Ramirez). And the Royals' top pitching prospects, righty Ben Kudrna and lefty Noah Cameron, aren't slam dunks to be successful in the majors.

If Caglianone comes up and mashes this season, fans will give the Royals a pass for the rest of the farm system not grading out well. But improving the player development machine in Kansas City has to be one of the organization's top objectives for the next few seasons.

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