Below is a list of every player drafted by the Royals.
Each club had until 5 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 25, to come to terms with its Draft selections. If a player has exhausted his collegiate eligibility, he can sign at any time up until one week prior to the next year’s Draft.
- Draft Central | Day 1 analysis | Day 2 | Day 3 | Best hauls
Draft-and-follow picks -- high school and junior college players selected after the 10th round who attend a two-year college after the Draft -- can sign with their selecting teams for up to $250,000 up until a week prior to the following year’s Draft.
Players drafted from Round 11 on do not count against the bonus pools unless their signing bonus exceeds $150,000; any amount over that total will count against the pool.
Total bonus pool: $12,313,500
MLB rank: 9
1 (8): Blake Mitchell, C, Sinton High School
Pick value: $5,980,100
Signing bonus: $4,897,500
Considered the best prep catcher in the Draft class by a wide margin, Mitchell is a left-handed hitter with hit and power tools. He's also an agile defender and his strong throwing arm has generated 97 mph heat on the mound. The Royals announced his signing on July 15 at Kauffman Stadium.
As expected, Mitchell signed for below the slot value of the No. 8 pick. The Royals can use that $1 million to help them sign other Draft picks in later rounds.
2 (44): Blake Wolters, RHP, Mahomet-Seymour High School
Pick value: $1,951,600
Signing bonus: $2,800,000
The Royals swung big with their second-round pick with Wolters, a prep righty ranked No. 41 on MLB Pipeline's Draft prospects list, knowing they would have to likely sign him over-slot because of his Arizona commitment. That's exactly how it played out, and they saved with Mitchell to help sign Wolters. The 18-year-old has been compared to Dodgers Top 100 prospect Bobby Miller, but Wolters throws harder, clocking in the upper-90s at showcases this spring. He has a solid breaking ball and potential for a good changeup. Wolters is similar to Frank Mozzicato and Ben Kudrna, the prep pitchers the Royals drafted in 2021, in that he has tons of upside that will take time to develop.
CB-B (66): Carson Roccaforte, OF, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Pick value: $1,158,900
Signing bonus: $897,500
3 (75): Hiro Wyatt, RHP, Staples High School
Pick value: $960,000
Signing bonus: $1,497,500
4 (106): Hunter Owen, LHP, Vanderbilt
Pick value: $634,200
Signing bonus: $631,700
Owen may have been the best lefty in the college class, but arm fatigue and an injury caused his value to drop before the Draft; he pitched just four times after April 7 for Vanderbilt. But Owen proved his health at the MLB Draft Combine and left the event as one of the standouts, and the Royals were thrilled to get him in the fourth round. At 6-foot-6 and 260 pounds, Owen is a physical presence with a mid-90s fastball, average curveball and slider that generates swing-and-miss. If he can't stick as a starter, he has a path to the big league bullpen -- which is why some scouts believe he'll move quickly through the Royals' system.
5 (142): Spencer Nivens, OF, Missouri State
Pick value: $446,700
Signing bonus: $472,500
The Royals went slightly over-slot to lure Nivens, who just finished his redshirt sophomore season, away from Missouri State. The 21-year-old has a legitimate hit tool with good batted-ball data paired with low whiff and chase rates. Nivens, a Columbia, Mo., native, was the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year in '22 and figures to be an offensive-minded corner outfielder, although he possess some quickness to play center field.
6 (169): Coleman Picard, RHP, Bryant University
Pick value: $345,500
Signing bonus: $343,000
7 (199): Trevor Werner, TWP, Texas A&M
Pick value: $269,200
Signing bonus: $350,000
8 (229): Dustin Dickerson, SS, Southern Mississippi
Pick value: $213,500
Signing bonus: $197,500
9 (259): Jacob Widener, LHP, Oral Roberts
Pick value: $183,200
Signing bonus: $137,500
10 (289): Justin Johnson, SS, Wake Forest
Pick value: $170,600
Signing bonus: $57,500
11 (319): Jared Dickey, OF, Tennessee
Signing bonus: $527,500
Considered one of the steals of the Draft, the Royals signed Dickey away from his remaining eligibility at Tennessee with one of the largest bonuses after the 10th round so far. The $527,500 bonus -- $422,500 of which counts toward the Royals' bonus pool -- is roughly the amount a mid-fourth rounder would have received. One of the better hitters in the Southeastern Conference, Dickey makes consistent contact, controls the zone well and repeatedly barrels balls with a smooth left-handed swing. He caught some at the college level, but it's likely he sticks in the outfield at the professional level.
12 (349): Logan Martin, RHP, Kentucky
Signing bonus: $297,500
Martin was limited to just 26 1/3 innings this spring, but he has a lively fastball and hard slider when he's healthy. There's reliever risk with his arsenal and injury concerns, but he made eight starts for Kentucky this season. Because he was drafted after the 10th round, $147,500 of his bonus counts toward the Royals' pool.
13 (379): Ethan Bosacker, RHP, Xavier
Signing bonus: $150,000
14 (409): Mason Miller, LHP, Florida Gulf Coast University
Signing bonus: $150,000
15 (439): Chase Isbell, RHP, Auburn
Signing bonus: $150,000
16 (469): Josh Hansell, RHP, Arizona State
Signing bonus: $150,000
17 (499): Connor Oliver, LHP, Miami University
Signing bonus: $100,000
18 (529): Stone Russell, C, IMG Academy (FL)
Signing bonus: $150,000
19 (559): Donovan LaSalle, OF, Barbe High School (LA)
Did not agree to terms
20 (589): Blake Wilson, SS, Santa Margarita Catholic High School (CA)
Did not agree to terms
Every team's signings:
How bonus pools and pick values work
Each choice in the first 10 rounds comes with an assigned value, with the total for a club's selections equaling what it can spend in those rounds without incurring a penalty. If a player taken in the top 10 rounds doesn't sign, his pick's value gets subtracted from his team's pool. Clubs near the top of the Draft often spend less than the assigned value for those choices and use the savings to offer more money to later selections.
Teams that exceed their bonus pool face a penalty. Clubs that outspend their allotment by 0-5 percent pay a 75 percent tax on the overage. At higher thresholds, clubs lose future picks: a first-rounder and a 75 percent tax for surpassing their pool by more than 5 and up to 10 percent; a first- and a second-rounder and a 100 percent tax for more than 10 and up to 15 percent; and two first-rounders and a 100 percent tax for more than 15 percent.
Bonus pools by club
Pirates: $16,185,700
Tigers: $15,747,200
Nationals: $14,502,400
Twins: $14,345,600
Athletics: $14,255,600
Reds: $13,785,200
Mariners: $13,170,900
Marlins: $12,829,600
Royals: $12,313,500
Rockies: $11,909,800
D-backs: $11,084,300
Brewers: $10,950,600
Rays: $10,872,100
Orioles: $10,534,800
Red Sox: $10,295,100
Rangers: $9,925,300
Giants: $9,916,900
White Sox: $9,072,800
Cubs: $8,962,000
Guardians: $8,736,700
Mets: $8,440,400
Braves: $8,341,700
Angels: $8,328,900
Dodgers: $7,274,600
Astros: $6,747,900
Blue Jays: $6,529,700
Cardinals: $6,375,100
Padres: $5,416,000
Yankees: $5,299,400
Phillies: $5,185,500