Kansas City Royals Top 15 Prospects: 6-10

We continue our dive into the Royals Top 15 Prospects with 6-10

We continue our rankings of the top prospects in the Royals’ farm system with #6-10. You can read previous rankings here:

• Honorable Mentions
• #11-15

The middle of the rankings features a number of Royals pitching prospects and a former first-round pick.

Wolters was a curious case in 2024. Coming out of the draft, Wolters was heavily compared to Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Bobby Miller due to his electric fastball. Wolters debuted in Low-A in 2024 and touched 98 MPH on the mound. He got it up to 99.4 MPH as well at one point. This was after hitting triple digits in camp. Many considered it one of the best fastballs in the entire farm system. After a rough first outing in Low-A, Wolters looked like the top pitching prospect the Royals envisioned in his next three starts, where he compiled 13.1 innings, giving up 12 hits, three earned runs, and striking out 16. Granted the walks were a bit more than desired as he walked four in that time period.

After his May 3rd start, Wolters didn’t throw until May 15th, and then he pitched every sixth day until July. On July 11th, Wolters was finally placed on the developmental list, and the Royals were focused on managing his innings. Preston Farr from Farm to Fountains noted a noticeable dip in velocity (93-95 MPH) as the season went on, and Wolters spent his remaining time in Arizona.

Outside of his electric fastball, he pairs it with two secondaries, a slider, and changeup. His mid-80s slider is obviously his best pitch and flashes plus, when everything is on. Wolters has some mechanical issues to iron out, and if he can, he should be able to maximize that pitch to make it consistently a plus pitch that generates tons of swing and miss. His changeup is a work in progress and he doesn’t have a ton of feel for it. It’s a firmer pitch coming in at 86-88 MPH.

Wolters has everything you want regarding arsenal for a young pitching prospect. He will need to make some significant improvements in his mechanics and show that he can maintain his velocity for long periods of time. The Royals front office seems to be highly optimistic about his future, and hopefully, 2025 will lead to more success for the right-hander.

Outside of newcomer Drew Beam, Noah Cameron might have one of the highest floors in the Royals farm system. While he doesn’t possess the upside of the younger prep arms, Cameron is highly intriguing nonetheless. For a seventh-round pick, you have love that if you are the Royals.

Cameron set some career highs in 2025, but he was breaking out as a top prospect well before that. When he debuted in 2022, he posted a 3.56 ERA with 99 strikeouts over 65.2 innings pitched. In 2023, he started off the same, finding tons of success in High-A, but really struggled when being promoted to Double-A. Enter 2024, where Cameron split time between Double-A and Triple-A, posting a 3.08 ERA while striking out 149 batters in 128.2 innings pitched. His numbers even improved after being promoted to Triple-A.

Cameron possesses a solid four-pitch mix, which is highlighted by his plus changeup. He has an excellent feel for the pitch and can throw it for a strike whenever he wants. It plays off his fastball well and has tons of late fade to it. Cameron can generate a ton of Whiff with this pitch. He also has a much-improved fastball that sat more in the low 90s this year and topped out a 94 MPH. It was nice to see a solid increase in his fastball velocity, which has been a significant question for Cameron over the years.

He also has a curveball that has some hard bite to it. The newly tweaked curveball allowed him to throw it for more strikes and became a legitimate weapon for him. Cameron also developed a cutter this year giving him a fourth pitch in his arsenal. Cameron has a shot to debut in 2025 and is likely a back-end of the rotation starter type, especially if he can maintain is velocity and with his new arsenal. He will be a fun one to watch next year.

While Shields was assigned to the Arizona Complex League in August, he did not make his professional debut. This is typical for most prep pitching prospects taken in the draft that year. Shields is your prototypical Brian Bridges draft pick - a polished prep arm with lots of room for growth.

Shields was one of the youngest players in the 2024 MLB Draft. He has one of the most polished deliveries I’ve seen and he just attacks the strike zone. His fastball has been in the 88-92 MPH range, but he still has projection left at his age that gives you tons of confidence that he might see a velocity tick up as he starts in pro ball. On top of throwing lots of strikes, he can cover all quadrants of the strike zone with his fastball.

His fastball also tends to have some cutterish action and has tons of ride up in the zone. He’s got an above-average sweeper that he can also land for strikes and can expand the strike zone on hitters with it as well. He rounds out his arsenal with a changeup that sometimes flashes above average but sits more as average right now. The sky is the limit for Shields and with a strong start to his pro career, he could rise up the Royals board of top prospects pretty quickly.

Thanks to his impressive contact skills, disciplined plate approach, and defensive versatility, Javier Vaz has quickly become one of the most intriguing prospects in the Royals’ farm system. During the 2024 season at Double-A Northwest Arkansas, Vaz posted a .266/.378/.382 slash line, highlighted by a standout 1.24 BB/K ratio and a .120 ISO. His ability to consistently put the ball in play is reflected in a 12.5% whiff rate and an 89.3% zone contact rate, placing him among the minors’ best in those categories. Vaz’s sharp eye at the plate, evidenced by his 18.6% chase rate, complements his knack for drawing walks, making him an ideal top-of-the-order hitter. Although his power remains limited, his speed and aggressive base-running provide a unique spark, adding value to his overall game.

Defensively, Vaz spent most of 2024 at second base, where his reliable glove and solid range make him a dependable option, projecting as at least league average at the position. Coaches and teammates have praised his leadership and adaptability, qualities that earned him the inaugural Alex Gordon Heart & Hustle Award.

While his lack of power and reliance on a high BABIP may cap his ceiling, his strong contact skills and steady defense give him a solid floor. With continued development, Vaz could make his Major League debut as early as 2025, likely as a versatile fourth outfielder or utility infielder with the potential to fill gaps for Kansas City’s roster.

Royals fans and the front office were extremely excited about the 2022 MLB Draft when they snagged two polished college bats in Gavin Cross and Cayden Wallace. Unfortunately, Wallace was traded last summer, and Cross has struggled to take off. That said, Cross did experience the best year of his professional career and brought a lot of hope back into his potential as a prospect. The significant adjustments Cross made in 2024 were at the plate. The lefty cut his strikeout rate and groundball percentage significantly while posting a 115 wRC+. He put the numbers you’d like to see on the board, launching 15 home runs, driving in 59, and stealing 30 bases in 101 games.

Despite the success, Cross still showed areas where he can improve his game. For one, he hit much better against righties (.278 AVG) than lefties (.211 AVG), leaving some concern that he’s likely destined for a platoon in the future. Most of his production came against right-handed pitching. While he cut his strikeout rate by a couple of percentage points, there are still some hit tool concerns. He can be quite aggressive but offsets that at times with his ability to recognize spin and a decent feel for the strike zone. Power was a calling card for Cross, but he often struggled to tap into it during games as he struggled to handle velocity up in the zone.

He’s a good runner on the bases and gets extremely good reads. He has plus instincts and can make things happen. Defensively, he handles the outfield well and has an average arm that should put him in a corner outfield spot. Cross’ success in 2024 was great to see, but there still is a lot more he needs to build on offensively to hit his full potential truly. At best, he seems like a platoon-type bat in the big leagues and would make a possible good bench bat.