Guardians Coach Has Message About Royals' Teenage Prospect

The Cleveland Guardians won the American League Central this season and the Kansas City Royals finished last at 69-93, but one coach inside Cleveland's own system thinks Kansas City may have the best player in Arizona this fall.

Daniel Robertson, a former big leaguer who MLB.com says now coaches in the Guardians system, is managing the Surprise Saguaros in the Arizona Fall League, where he has watched outfielder Angeibel Gomez up close.

Robertson laughed when he shared his view with MLB.com, since he knows Cleveland will have to deal with the same player he was praising.

"Unfortunately, I think the best player is going to be Angeibel Gomez [of the Royals]. He's learning how to separate himself," Robertson said.

MLB Pipeline ranks Gomez as the No. 2 prospect in the Royals system, and he does not turn 18 until Dec. 12.

He is 11-for-33 through nine games with the Saguaros for a .333 average with a .906 OPS and four stolen bases, and he last played Tuesday at Peoria.

MLB.com reported he is just the second 17-year-old to play in a Fall League game since 2015.

Robertson said Gomez is overmatched early but then makes the adjustment, as he strings together better at-bats and learns to lay off sliders in the dirt.

That is a big step for a teenager who made his pro debut in June in the Dominican Summer League, where he hit .361/.467/.653 with nine homers, 38 RBIs and 15 steals in 47 games, and that start already had him looking like a possible future star for Kansas City.

Every team talks up its own prospects, so Robertson's view means more to me because he has no reason to hype a player who could give Cleveland trouble for years.

The Royals like the person too, as Daniel Guerrero, their director of international scouting, told MLB.com that Gomez works hard and cares a lot, and that everyone he meets loves him.

His top sprint speed in Arizona was 30.6 feet per second, and MLB.com noted that only two Royals big leaguers topped it this season, with shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. one of them.

The Royals also have outfielder Zion Rose, the sixth overall pick in this year's draft, who has gotten off to a strong start in the desert.

Milwaukee beat Tampa Bay 4-1 on Wednesday to win the World Series, and outfielder Jackson Chourio, who was born in Venezuela like Gomez, reached the majors at 20.

After a season that should push the Royals to rethink how they build, I can see why Kansas City would want a star like that coming up through its own system.

Gomez is still years away and nine Fall League games will not decide his future, but the Royals should be thrilled with how he has handled this jump.

The Saguaros are back at Surprise Stadium from Thursday through Saturday against Scottsdale, Peoria and Salt River.

I would not rush him, but when a manager from a division rival is already picking him as the best player in the league, I think Kansas City has found a real piece of its future.