The Royals’ history with hitters has too often been built on upside and athleticism, not on the kind of bat control that keeps innings alive and turns counts in a hitter’s favor. That’s been the pattern for a long time. But there’s at least some evidence that the organization is steering in a different direction under scouting director Brian Bridges, with the last two draft classes showing more interest in hitters who arrive with a plan.
That matters in a draft like this one. If Kansas City wants to keep adding to its farm system, the post-round-one college crop offers a few bats that fit the profile: players who work counts, recognize pitches, and don’t give away at-bats.
Logan Hughes of Texas Tech is the loudest name in the group. Baseball America has him at No. 45, and the production backs up the ranking.
He hit .375/.510/.735 with 18 home runs and 50 walks in 55 games this season, earning second team All-American honors. Over the last two years, he has launched 37 homers for the Red Raiders.
The power is obvious, but so is the discipline. Baseball America called him a “patient and selective hitter who does a nice job staying within the strike zone” with a “penchant for putting the barrel on the ball even on the rare occasions when he does expand the zone.”
He also posted a career strikeout rate of just 12.2 percent. Hughes doesn’t bring much size or athleticism, so he’s likely headed for a corner spot, but the bat speed, hit tool, and eye are all real.
Ty Head of North Carolina State brings a different kind of appeal. Baseball America ranks him No. 52, and his contact numbers jump off the page: 88% overall contact and 91% in-zone contact.
He hit .291/.460/.556 with 57 walks and only 23 strikeouts in 56 games this year, and his numbers were similar a season ago. There is some swing-and-miss risk tied to his timing, and evaluators have noted a “slap” approach that can cap the damage, but the belief is that there’s more hit-tool upside if the swing gets cleaned up.
Head is also a plus runner who could handle center field, and he added some pop this year with 14 home runs.
Caden Bogenpohl of Missouri State is built differently. At 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds, he looks the part of a power bat, and his exit velocities were among the best at the MLB Draft Combine.
Baseball America described his batting practice as showing 80-grade power. Still, the game production lagged behind the tools: he hit just six home runs while batting .274/.427/.413 with 52 walks in 55 games.
His groundball rate was also higher than you’d want for someone with his frame. At the combine, he used a more upright stance and a “simpler pre-swing load,” which suggests there may be more power to unlock with pro instruction.
He does draw walks, but scouts have questions about how well he’ll handle secondaries and whether his plate judgment will hold up.
Brayden Dowd of Florida State is much smaller in stature, but the approach is strong. After starting at USC, he posted .293/.456/.527 with 51 walks in 51 games last year for the Seminoles.
At 5-foot-10, he isn’t the kind of player who screams tools, but he has a compact left-handed swing and excellent fastball recognition. Baseball America noted that against pitches at 93 mph or harder, he produced a 96% contact rate.
He hit ten home runs last year, though there are questions about how that power would translate with wood bats after some struggles in the Cape Cod League. Dowd, a Michigan native, also brings above-average speed and may be able to stay in center field.
Brayden Martin of Maryland may be the purest contact bat in the group. Baseball America ranks him No. 225, and his contact rates are elite: 95.6% overall and 97.1% in the zone.
He struck out only 20 times in 286 plate appearances while drawing 56 walks, and his ultra-selective approach shows up in a very low swing rate. The flip side is obvious.
He hit just five home runs in three seasons with the Terrapins, and his small frame doesn’t point to much more power coming. The question is less about whether he can put the bat on the ball and more about whether the passivity and lack of impact contact will hold him back against better pitching.
Joe Tiroly of Virginia rounds out the group as another polished college hitter whose value starts with strike-zone control. Baseball America has him at No.
- He hit .319/.408/.576 with 30 walks and a 16 percent strikeout rate, adding 16 home runs while mostly profiling as a line-drive hitter who makes solid contact.
Tiroly is a right-handed second baseman, which isn’t the most coveted profile, but his swing decisions and bat-to-ball skills give him a chance to outplay that label. If he keeps hitting, teams will have to answer for passing on him.
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What makes that especially interesting is how much flexibility it gives the front office once the board starts taking shape. The early picks around the league could influence the Royals approach, and their own range of possibilities is broad enough to include prep position players or collegiate pitchers, with slot and underslot considerations likely to matter as the draft unfolds. [Read more 🡒]