[Biggp07]

👑 Monday, July 14 • Draft Day 👑

Royal's Front Office "War Room"
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Draft Day Strategy Memo (General Manager's Desk)

The first thing that greeted me this morning wasn't a scouting report or a mock draft—it was a pop-up reminder about expiring personnel contracts. The kind of message that never cares what day it is. I flagged it for later because today had one job: finalize and execute our First-Year Player Draft plan with discipline, speed, and a clear head.

The official OSA Mock Draft dropped early, confirming what we already believe about draft day: the board never stays still. Jason McLeod pointed out the lone meaningful update since our strategy meeting—19-year-old SS Gabe Boyd (Memphis, TN) moved into the top 25. One change on paper, but it rippled through the top tiers just enough to shift expectations and make our "expected pick" lane feel a little less predictable.

Figure DD.1 — Draft Pool Review Board (All Players Overview)


Perspective: The full draft pool scan with OSA/Scouting overlays—our "wide lens" view that sets the day's context: overall/potential tiers, competition level, and the early signability flags that dictate where we can and can't get aggressive.

We're slotted fourth among the first five choices, and the consensus around the league had the top ten looking like this:
1. Gavin Turley, 21, CF (college)
2. Nolan Schubart, 21, LF (college)
3. Jack Ruckert, 18, SS (HS)
4. Anthony Pack Jr., 18, CF (HS)
5. Noah Franco, 19, RF (HS)
6. Ethan Petry, 21, 3B (college)
7. Wehiwa Aloy, 21, SS (college)
8. Josh Hammond, 18, RHP (HS)
9. Caleb Danzeisen, 19, LF (HS)
10. Dean Moss, 19, LF (HS)

Figure DD.2 — Current Draft Order (Round 1 Context)


Perspective: The league-wide board as Round 1 took shape—who jumped, who fell, and where our slot truly sat once the first three picks went in. This is where the "plan" meets the real draft.

That's the public version. In our room, we had our own truth: we don't draft to win the headline—we draft to win the system.
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By about 7 AM, the war room filled up: front office, scouting, player development, and the voices we need when the board starts acting like a live animal. We reviewed the updated pool, the mock, our signability lanes, and our internal shortlist. I told everyone the same thing: we're staying the course until the board forces us to pivot. Draft day is volatile, but it's only chaos if you don't have a spine.

Figure DD.3 — Draft Shortlist: 2025 Draft Picklist (Primary Targets)


Perspective: Our short, high-conviction target list—players we were ready to take if the board gave us an opening. This is the "don't overthink it" sheet: simple, prioritized, and built for speed when the clock starts moving.

A few of the first-round demands shifted in both directions, which helped keep our pre-planning closer to budget. I was still ready to ask John for extra room if the right player fell into our lap—but I wanted discipline first, not adrenaline.

We circled back to our alternate-pick board and cross-checked it against today's mock draft names, using it as a final decision filter—either take a guy now before the room dries up, or tag him as a later-round target and keep our powder dry.

Figure DD.4 — Draft Shortlist: 2025 Draft Alternate Picks (Pivot Lane)


Perspective: The pivot board—names we liked but didn't want to force. Built to protect us from panic picks when the room gets loud and the board starts shifting under our feet.
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Kansas City Royals Top 5 Picks

We entered the day with one clear organizational priority: middle-infield impact—and enough outfield depth to keep our pipeline athletic. We pivoted when we had to, and we stayed aggressive when value fell.

* The way we drew it up

Rnd/Pick (slot)               Prospect (Alt)                       Pos (Alt)  Age (Alt)  B/T (Alt)    Bonus Demand                 
Rnd 1, pick #4 ($7,680,000)   Caleb Danzeisen (Harrison Didawick)  LF (LF)    19 (22)    L (L)/R (L)  8.5M (hard) (slot)           
Rnd 2, pick #43 ($1,950,000)  Cade Kurland (Brady Neal)            2B (C)     21 (20)    R (L)/R (R)  700K (easy) 330K (norm)      
Rnd 3, pick #74 ($1,010,000)  Sean Gamble (Caden Bodine)           SS (C)     19 (21)    L (S)/R (R)  (5.5M) (X hard) (1.4M) (norm)
Rnd 4, pick #102 ($710,000)   Lucas Franco (Anthony Pack Jr.)      3B (CF)    18 (18)    L (L)/R (L)  Slot (hard) (2.2M) (X hard)  
Rnd 5, pick #131 (540,000)    Jackson Roper (David Mershon)        SS (SS)    19 (22)    R (S)/R (R)  700K (X hard) (550K) (easy)

** The way it went down

Round #1 – LF Caleb Danzeisen — meet demand $9.0M

Round #2 – 2B Kaeden Kent — meet demand $420K (easy signability)
This was our first pivot—2B Cade Kurland went off the board just before our turn. With C Blake Mitchell and C Alex Plias developing, we stayed focused: 2B remains a priority lane for us.

Round #3 – CF Anthony Pack Jr. — meet demand $1.2M
Another pivot that felt like value: Pack didn't go in the first two rounds, and we weren't letting that athletic upside drift past us again.

Round #4 – 3B Lucas Franco — meet demand $710K

Round #5 – C Brady Neal — meet demand $270K
Third pivot of the day: we grabbed a framing-minded catcher to support a pitching pipeline that's going to keep arriving in waves.

After the first five rounds, I handed the reins to AGM J.J. Picollo and Scout Jason McLeod to fill out the rest of our Draft Day log. The goal was simple: stay disciplined, fill needs, and avoid chasing. The real verdict will come in the development years—not in a one-day recap.

Figure DD.5 — Draft Day Picks Log (Royals Selections by Round)


Perspective: The running selection log—our day captured in one frame: rounds, names, positions, and the signability reality attached to each pick. This is the page that tells the truth about discipline.

Our immediate priority now is the unglamorous part: cull the farm system—move on from slow-burners who don't fit our plan, promote the ones who do, and make sure these new draftees land in a system that's clear about identity. Rinse, repeat. That's how you build something that lasts.
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Front Office Note / Takeaways

Draft day is a strange combination of adrenaline and paperwork. The "war room" has to be loud enough to challenge assumptions—but calm enough to execute a plan.

I'm proud of the discipline we showed. We didn't chase. We didn't panic. We pivoted when the board forced it, and we stayed aligned with our organizational priorities: athletic outfield upside, infield reinforcement, and a catching layer that supports the pitching pipeline we're building. Once we finish the system "purge," we'll hit the road to Rookie ball and Columbia—get eyes on our top prospects up close, confirm the reports, and make sure the next wave in the pipeline is tracking the way we think it should.

Now the real work begins: development, placement, coaching, and patience. Draft day is the seed. The system is the soil.
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Around the League

Power Rankings Check-In (MLB):
The league's current temperature has Arizona and Tampa at the top, but what caught my eye was this: Kansas City sitting third with an upward trend. That's not a trophy, but it's a signal—our floor is real, and the league feels it.

Teams (Total Points, Tendency):
1) Arizona Diamondbacks (112.0, o)
2) Tampa Bay Rays (112.0, o)
3) Kansas City Royals (109.4, ++)
4) Cleveland Guardians (109.0, o)
5) St. Louis Cardinals (108.8, +)
6) Atlanta Braves (106.1, --)
7) Baltimore Orioles (103.8, -)
8) Chicago Cubs (103.0, ++)
9) Boston Red Sox (100.9, -)
10) Cincinnati Reds (98.8, -)
11) Detroit Tigers (97.9, ++)
12) Texas Rangers (96.1, -)
13) Minnesota Twins (95.8, ++)
14) Milwaukee Brewers (92.0, +)
15) San Diego Padres (87.1, ++)

Trade Noise:
The rumor mill keeps circling Minnesota and Seattle—nothing concrete yet, but enough smoke to suggest both clubs are testing the market as the standings harden.

Player of the Week Notes:
Toronto 2B Connor Norby took AL Player of the Week after a blistering stretch at the plate, while Washington 2B Luis García grabbed NL honors with a week that looked like a video game—power, average, the whole package. Summer baseball always has a way of putting one name on the league's loudspeaker.

Minor League Pulse (Carolina League):
Columbia sits on top of the Carolina League power board right now—another reminder that development isn't one headline prospect; it's an entire system moving in the same direction.

Teams (Total Points, Tendency):
1) Columbia Fireflies (120.1, o)
2) Salem Red Sox (118.3, +)
3) Charleston RiverDogs (111.4, -)
4) Carolina Mudcats (103.1, o)
5) Lynchburg Hillcats (95.3, o)
6) Fredericksburg Nationals (94.6, +)
7) Fayetteville Woodpeckers (87.4, -)
8) Myrtle Beach Pelicans (85.6, +)
9) Down East Wood Ducks (81.3, -)
10) Augusta GreenJackets (77.4, o)
11) Delmarva Shorebirds (56.9, o)
12) Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (48.9, o)
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👑 FOR THE CROWN — ALWAYS 👑

Kansas City Royals | Regular Season 2025 – First Year Player Draft Day

(OOTP25 Royals Journey — GM/Manager's Dual Log)