Royals Pick up Four Arms and Four Bats on Day Two

After choosing five college pitchers on day one of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, the Kansas City Royals selected three outfielders, one infielder and four pitchers on day two of the draft. Seven of the eight selections were college players, making it 12 of Kansas City's first 13 picks coming from the college ranks.
The Royals took their first position player of the draft when they selected UNLV infielder Kyle Isbel with the 94^th overall selection. Isbel started every game for the Rebels and led the team with 14 home runs and 56 RBIs. He was second on the team with a .357 batting average and six stolen bases. Isbel was named First Team All-Mountain West at the end of the season.
Over his career in Vegas, Isbel hit 21 home runs, drove in 110 runs, had 226 hits and had a career on base percentage of nearly .400. As a freshman, Isbel was named a Freshman All-American, Second Team All-Mountain West and the Mountain West Freshman of the Year.
Isbel was an all-star in the Cape Cod Baseball League last summer, which helped earn him MLB.com's 75^th best prospect ranking in this year's draft. Scouts say the left-handed hitter has a tremendous approach at the plate and the potential to come into 12-15 home run power.
Kansas City went with an outfielder in the fourth round, choosing Arkansas' Eric Cole with the 122^nd overall pick. Through 60 games this season, Cole is hitting .328 with a team leading 13 home runs. He has driven in 47 runs and leads the Razorbacks with 81 hits, earning him Second Team All-SEC honors.
Cole has 45 extra-base hits over his three-year career, including 17 home runs. A switch-hitter, Cole makes consistent contact and has gotten stronger as his career has progressed. Scouts believe he could hit 15-20 home runs per season at the next level.
The Royals went back to the mound with their fifth-round selection, going with left-hander Austin Cox from Mercer College with the 152^nd overall pick. Cox won seven games this year for Mercer and struck out 124 batters, giving him the second-best K/9 rate (12.7) in the country.
Cox has won 13 games in his career at Mercer and struck out 234 batters in 179.2 innings pitched.
Kansas City chose Zach Haake with the 182^nd overall pick in the sixth round. Haake, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Kentucky, struggled a bit during his junior season, but did strike out more than one batter per inning pitched for the Wildcats.
Haake spent 2017 at John A. Logan College where he went 8-1 with a 2.52 ERA and averaged more than 10 strikeouts per nine innings. Haake began his career at Arkansas State University in 2016.
In the seventh round, the Royals chose Tyler Gray with the 212^th overall pick, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Central Arkansas. Gray was the ace of the Bears' staff this season, posting a 6-2 record with a team-leading 3.32 ERA in 97.2 IP and was named the Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year. He struck out 116 batters on the season and pitched two complete games, including a shutout against UT Martin. Gray had four starts this season with double-digit strikeouts.
During his four-year career at Central Arkansas, Gray won 19 games, pitched six complete games, logged 268.2 innings and struck out 284 hitters. Gray was drafted last year by the Minnesota Twins in the 20^th round but elected not to sign.
The Royals went back to the outfield in the eighth round, choosing Jackson Lueck from Florida State University with the 242^nd overall pick. Lueck, a junior, showed big power this season for the Seminoles, leading the team with 15 home runs while driving in 45 runs for the ACC Tournament Champions.
Lueck hit over .300 as a sophomore in 2017, hit nine home runs, and was named the Most Valuable Player of the ACC Tournament. After that season, Lueck earned a spot on the USA Collegiate National Team. Over his three seasons in Tallahassee, Lueck is a .309 hitter with 28 home runs and an on-base percentage over .400.
The first high school selection for Kansas City came in the ninth round when they chose Kevon Jackson with the 272^nd overall pick. Jackson, an outfielder from Queen Creek High School in Arizona is most noted for his speed, as he received multiple Division I track scholarship offers.
This season, Jackson hit .364 in 99 at bats with 2 home runs and 14 RBIs. He also stole 24 bases. Jackson is committed to Cochise Community College in Douglas, AZ.
The last pick of day two was used in the tenth round on Austin Lambright, a left-handed pitcher from the University of Central Oklahoma. Lambright pitched predominantly out of the bullpen for UCO this season, but picked up four wins and three saves in 43.1 innings on the hill. Opponents hit just .191 against the southpaw who struck out 52 batters on the season.
Lambright started his career at Abilene Christian and missed the 2016 season after having Tommy John Surgery.
The Burlington Royals are the Appalachian League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.
The Burlington Royals' season will begin with an exhibition game on Father's Day - Sunday, June 17th. Special Father's Day activities and promotions to be announced soon. Single-game tickets are on sale now.
 
Call 336-222-0223 or visit www.burlingtonroyals.com for more information.