Royals prospect Zimmer makes season debut

KANSAS CITY -- Right-hander Kyle Zimmer, the Royals' first-round pick in the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, made his season debut on Sunday.

Zimmer's first action came for Rookie League Idaho Falls against Missoula, where he started the game and faced the first three batters. He allowed one hit, one walk and retired one hitter before departing in Idaho Falls' 4-1 win.

"He was excited to be out there and felt great," Royals assistant general manager J.J. Picollo said. "Zim was 96-98 [mph] and threw a couple of good curveballs. Everything was down in the zone. The hit he gave up was on a curveball. He threw 11 pitches."

On May 27, the Royals announced that their No. 2 prospect, according to MLB.com, would miss six-to-eight weeks with an injury to his right lat.

The club had hopes of Zimmer pitching at the Major League level this year after an impressive 2013 season. Zimmer recorded 140 strikeouts in 108 1/3 innings across two levels last year, and ended the season at Double-A Northwest Arkansas by logging a 1.93 ERA in four starts.