January's arrival can mean only one thing around these parts: it's time to rank minor-league prospects. Every team across the majors is selling hope to their fans: some are selling it in a more immediate fashion, in the form of active offseasons full of free-agent signings and trade acquisitions. Others, meanwhile, are selling it in the personage of prospects who could make the difference over the coming years.
CBS Sports will spend the next month examining the top three prospects in each organization. Our definition of "prospect" is simple: does that player have rookie eligibility remaining for the 2025 season? If so, they're a prospect; if not, that's probably why your favorite young player is absent from the proceedings.
As always, these lists are formed following conversations with scouts, analysts, player development specialists, and other talent evaluators around the industry. There's a fair amount of firsthand evaluation, statistical analysis, and historical research mixed in, too. Plus a heaping of personal bias -- we all have certain traits and profiles that we prefer over others, there's no sense pretending otherwise.
Keep in mind that there's no one right answer with these sorts of things. Besides, these are merely our opinions, meaning they have no actual bearing on the future. We already published our ranking of the top 25 prospects in all of the minors.
With all that out of the way, let's get to ranking the top three prospects in the Kansas City Royals system.
1. Blake Mitchell, C
The short hook: Can he end the drought?
There hasn't been a prep catcher drafted in the first round who then had a successful big-league career behind the dish since Joe Mauer, more than two decades ago. Mitchell, the eighth pick in 2023, is among the best of those trying to change that factoid. He has above-average raw power and he's shown a willingness to draw walks. Mitchell has also been strikeout prone so far in his professional career, punching out in more than 30% of his trips to the plate in 2024. We can forgive him to some extent based on his youth (he turned 20 in August) and the learning curve that comes with donning the tools of ignorance in pro ball. At the same time, he's going to have to get his strikeouts in check at some point if he wants to become the exception to the rule. MLB ETA: Summer 2027
2. Jac Caglianone 1B/LHP
The short hook: Two-way player with big question marks both ways
Caglianone was the most interesting athlete in last year's draft. He's a two-way player who shattered Florida's career home-run record (previously belonging to Matt LaPorta) and was capable of touching into the upper 90s on the mound. Alas, we're not sold that Caglianone has the command to reliably pitch in the majors. That, in turn, puts pressure on him reaching his offensive potential. While Caglianone has immense strength (he notched a 117 mph exit velocity during the Arizona Fall League) and above-average bat-to-ball skills, his approach is so swing-happy as to threaten his whole operation. In an ideal world, he turns into either a Diet Yordan Alvarez or a Fancy Cat Anthony Santander; in this one, he might have to settle for something lesser. MLB ETA: Spring 2026
3. Carter Jensen, C
The short hook: Lefty-hitting catcher with thump
Jensen is an improving defender behind the plate who ought to remain in the squat for the long haul, but he'll earn his keep by what he does when he's at bat. He's displayed above-average on-base skills and strength as a professional, regularly posting walk rates over 10% while averaging 18 home runs per 162 games. He did scuffle upon reaching Double-A in August, with both his walk and strikeout rates veering in the wrong direction. It's worth giving him a longer look at that level, in part because he was young for the level, and in part because he was still technically an above-average hitter over those 41 games. With a strong open to the 2025 season, it's wholly possible that Jensen finds himself making his big-league debut before the year is out. MLB ETA: Late summer 2025
