Jac Caglianone is sent to the minors

The Royals top prospect is among roster cuts.

We knew the move was coming. It doesn’t make it any less disappointing. On Monday, the Royals sent Jac Caglianone to their minor league camp.

All together now: Booooooooooo!

Bah. As fun as it was watching Caglianone hit monster home runs in Arizona, this was the correct move. He needs to show he’s ready for the big leagues and that doesn’t happen in 17 Cactus League plate appearances. No matter how impressive those 17 Cactus League plate appearances were.

Here’s what manager Matt Quatraro had to say about the Royals’ top prospect:

I think he did an incredible job, not only on the field but in the clubhouse. The way that he responded to the other guys, the way they responded to him. You could tell he earned their respect very quickly for the way he goes about it. He's a pro and it happened quickly.

Watching him play, his at bats have been phenomenal. Yesterday was a great example. I mean that guy is throwing 100 and he did a good job laying off tough pitches, worked that walk. The power has been obvious. He's made good strides defensively.

It was an outstanding camp for him.

I’m glad Quatraro referenced that plate appearance from Sunday. It’s the one I posted about on Monday. Just an impressive battle that Caglianone eventually won.

Caglianone will head to Double-A Northwest Arkansas, which was the plan for him heading into camp. Quatraro wouldn’t put a timeline on his progression, but it wouldn’t be surprising if moves to Omaha by mid-year—If he continues to rake.

General Manager JJ Picollo was likewise noncommittal on a timeline. From Anne Rogers:

“The quality of the at-bats were really good,” general manager J.J. Picollo said. “You can see why our scouts felt so good about him and are so high on him. He just needs to keep building that foundation to become a ready Major League hitter. ‘When’ is a tough question to answer, but clearly what we saw this camp was very impressive.”

Again, the Royals are handling this in the right way. They won’t—and they shouldn’t—even talk about where Caglianone will be playing and when, other than the right now. That’s Northwest Arkansas. How fast he moves through the system is pretty much up to Caglianone. Hit and he moves. Simple as that.

Quatraro didn’t address where Caglianone would play in the field, but the expectation remains that he will get most—if not all—of his defensive reps at first base. When he moves to Omaha, it’s possible he will get some time in the outfield.

Unless he just rips the cover off the ball on the regular—which, after what we saw this spring, is a possibility—I doubt we’ll see him in Kansas City this year. The likely scenario seems to be that he gets a full season of professional ball under his belt and then comes to camp next year with every opportunity to make the club.

Hat tip to the prospect for making Spring Training interesting.

In other Monday roster moves, the Royals reassigned Gavin Cross, Cam Devaney and John Rave to their minor league camp. None of those guys are on the 40-man roster, so even though they had varying degrees of success in the Cactus League, it was always something of an uphill battle for any of them to make the Opening Day roster.

More from Rogers:

Rave, according to team officials, was one of the harder decisions in camp. He might have made the team if he was right-handed -- and able to pinch-hit for the everyday lefties when a tough lefty is on the mound -- because the 27-year-old can play all three outfield spots, steal a bag and make solid contact. He should get an opportunity in Kansas City this season.

In 578 plate appearances for the Storm Chasers last year, Rave hit .259/.346/.470 with an 11 percent walk rate and a 22 percent strikeout rate. It was an offensive season that was good for a 111 wRC+, meaning his production was 11 percent better than the average International League hitter. He was named the player of the year for Omaha.

As yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day, the Royals dressed semi-appropriately.

I have to say, I like that look.

With the cuts on Monday, there are now just seven non-roster invitees in camp. Taylor Clarke and Ross Stripling are the two pitchers. Luke Maile and Brian O’Keefe are the catchers. Cavan Biggio, Harold Castro and Tyler Tolbert are the position players.

As for the guys on the 40-man, there are 17 pitchers and 16 position players still in camp.

There are still plenty of moves to come. Guys will get placed on the injured list. Guys will be optioned. And those who are out of options will be placed on waivers. While the Royals roster is close to being set, there remains some intrigue around the club.

In the aftermath of Cole Ragans being named Opening Day starter, the assumed number two, Seth Lugo, took the bump on Monday and shoved. In five shutout innings, Lugo allowed three hits and one walk while striking out five. Through his first four frames, he required just 45 pitches. He started to “nibble” in the fifth and needed 20 additional pitches to get those three outs.

“Really efficient. Got swings and misses. Located. Low pitch count, working quickly. So a lot like we usually see with him.

It doesn’t surprise me (that he nibbled in the fifth inning) because I looked up and saw 20 pitches in the last inning. I figured he was trying to do something. Probably because he didn’t want to go to the bullpen and throw more.”

Lugo, like the rest of us, is ready for the regular season.