<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Royals DFA’d Amir Garrett this morning <a href="https://t.co/XGGpMmF3TU">https://t.co/XGGpMmF3TU</a></p>&mdash; Pete Grathoff (@pgrathoff) <a href="https://twitter.com/pgrathoff/status/1678037745975820291?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

I wonder if they trade in mind and this just frees up a roster spot for the moment. Or they just say **** it your gone

Royals' pick at No. 8 in Baseball America's final mock:

8. Royals — Blake Mitchell, C, Sinton (Texas) HS

Slot Value: $5,980,100

Total Bonus Pool: $12,313,500

There are a lot of underslot rumors for the Royals here at No. 8. Whether that’s a function of draft philosophy or simply where they’ve found themselves on the board is a tougher question. Think back to 2021, when Kansas City pulled a surprise and took lefthander Frank Mozzicato at pick No. 7 and signed him to a $3.55 million deal for almost $2 million in savings. Texas catcher Blake Mitchell is the name that could make sense, though Mitchell is more highly regarded than Mozzicato at the time and I’m not sure how much savings that deal would net. He’s more of a split-camp sort of player given some teams’ aversion to prep catchers, but those who like Mitchell think he could be a star. Florida shortstop Adrian Santana could be another player they like, for this pick or a later one, and they are also linked with Noble Meyer, Rhett Lowder, Chase Dollander and the college hitting trio of Brayden Taylor, Jacob Wilson and Kyle Teel. There’s no shortage of options here and this could also be the high-water mark for Matt Shaw.

Update: No real update here, I’m sticking with Blake Mitchell because he’s so heavily associated with the club for this pick. If he doesn’t go here he could potentially slip down into the back of the first. All of the top arms could make sense here, too.

Dart Throw Later Picks: SS Adrian Santana; RHP TJ Nichols

MLB.com's Final Mock

8. Royals
Callis: Brayden Taylor, 3B, Texas Christian (No. 15)
After the two SEC outfielders, Taylor is the Royals' favorite college bat. High school catcher Blake Mitchell gets mentioned here a lot and could go in the 7-10 range, fit in the teens or drop into the 20s. Lowder or Dollander would make some sense too.

Mayo: Blake Mitchell, C, Sinton (Texas) HS (No. 14)
There’s interest in Meyer, but many in the industry felt they wouldn’t go the high school pitching route again this year. They could look at the college hitters available, like Teel, as well as the college arms mentioned above, but Mitchell could be a money-saver up this high, allowing the Royals to be aggressive later on.

MJ Melendez alone would have gotten people fired in many organizations.

It's almost training camp which means a winning streak is coming. Possibly a winning September

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Has Royals taking TCU&#39;s Brayden Taylor, although also thinks they could take Kyle Teel if he&#39;s available. <a href="https://t.co/AvGzrPK3Io">https://t.co/AvGzrPK3Io</a></p>&mdash; Royals Review (@royalsreview) <a href="https://twitter.com/royalsreview/status/1678160979064913920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I’m on my way to the draft. A couple thoughts:<br>- Teel is the third best college bat in the class imo. He just so happens to also play a premium position. Seems like a no brainer to me. He checks every single box for me. No need to overthink it.</p>&mdash; Preston Farr (@royalsminors) <a href="https://twitter.com/royalsminors/status/1678114521662226432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">- Max Clark falling to 8 is the absolute best case scenario today barring something absolutely insane happening. He’s got an argument for being the best prep bat in the class. True 5 tool CF prospect and if he falls to 8, it’s a lock. Everything else goes out the window.</p>&mdash; Preston Farr (@royalsminors) <a href="https://twitter.com/royalsminors/status/1678114525864919040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Is it conceivable that the Royals could have another run like they did from 2013-16 with their homegrown talent on the roster now like they did then in the very near future? I understand trades were a major part of our success then, but we still had that core of guys at the center of it that came up through the minors. Any shot at that, or is that too much to ask at this point in time?

Alot of the late mocks are giving them Blake Mitchell because of the underslot rumors.

The Royals have 2 players that have played over expectations this year... Garcia and Hernandez..that's it everyone else is below.

The Starting pitching is beyond terrible and on top of that a lot of the hitters are failing...

Let's add on that Quartraro probably wasn't the right hire for this type of team..he's far to laid back. Pratto gets ejected... Melendez argues with the ump in a series where the strike zone was routinely awful for Royals hitters and Q just sits there...doesn't go out to back his players, sometimes you need to get ejected to show the guys you got their backs...

I would say absolutely not unfortunately.

Vegas odds have Langford out of Florida to go first over the LSU boys.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">One name that continues to rise is HS SS Colin Houck. A celebrated HS QB, the thought is that once Houck concentrates fully on baseball, he will explode. Hearing his name has high as 8 to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Royals?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Royals</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Diamondbacks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Diamondbacks</a> at 12 also have strong interest.</p>&mdash; Harris Frommer (@H_Frommer) <a href="https://twitter.com/H_Frommer/status/1678168530250874884?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Longoria is the comp that keeps coming up for Houck.