The 2022 MLB Draft is less than two months away, as teams will be adding new prospects to their organization from July 17-19 this year. For clubs like the Kansas City Royals, a franchise that has yet to emerge from its rebuild, this presents the chance to inject premium talent into a farm system that's still churning out quality prospects.
This week, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline released his most recent 2022 MLB Mock Draft. In the mock, Callis has 12 hitters in a row being taken to open things up. He notes that this development hasn't occurred since the draft began nearly 60 years ago, which makes for a one-of-a-kind set of predictions. The Royals have picks Nos. 9 and 35 in the draft — a relatively early first-round pick and a Competitive Balance Round A selection. With both options, Callis projects that Kansas City will take a high school outfielder.
First up: Bishop Gorman's Justin Crawford. Here's what Callis had to say about the pick:
Crawford's rise up Draft boards continues -- his tools are reminiscent of his father's, four-time All-Star Carl -- and he's starting to move ahead of some of the second-tier college hitters.
Crawford, who turned 18 in January, is the No. 13 prospect in the MLB Pipeline rankings, the No. 19 prospect in Keith Law's rankings on The Athletic, as well as Prospects Live's No. 30 overall prospect. He's the son of former MLB All-Star outfielder Carl Crawford, so he has very obvious big-league DNA. The younger Crawford is a toolsy prospect with tremendous speed and a hit tool that should translate well to the next level.
There's plenty of projection involved in regards to Crawford's power potential, which may give some teams pause. With that said, his frame should be conducive to added bulk and he's so young that there's plenty of time for him to get stronger and improve his power grade. Crawford is a likely center fielder at the next level and has experienced quite the rise up draft boards as of late.
With pick No. 35, Callis has the Royals selecting Henry Bolte of Palo Alto High School. Bolte is the No. 35 prospect in MLB Pipeline's rankings, and he checks in at 31st on the Prospects Live list. He isn't on Law's list. Here's what Prospects Live has to say about the 18-year-old:
Bolte really burst onto the scene at Area Code Games and at WWBA. He's a tall, strong outfielder with thump and a ton of speed on the field as well. Bolte could end up at any of the three outfield positions depending on what trajectory his body takes. He's shown the potential of a pure hitter at several events and tournaments now, with a particular ability to handle good velocity and lay off advanced breaking stuff in 2-strike counts. Bolte has an ultra-projectable body that should only vault his value on draft day as the hit tool is already quite present.
Bolte, who is committed to the University of Texas, possesses great speed and plenty of pop in his bat. At 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds, his body is already filling out quite well. The biggest question mark for Bolte is whether he can make enough contact to be successful, as he does swing and miss often. Callis notes that Bolte's tools "just don't always show up in games," which makes him a high-risk pick — even at 35th overall.
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