Royals draft tracker: KC selects eight players on Day 2, including Randy Johnson ‘clone’

Between opening night of the 2023 MLB Draft on Sunday and the second day starting Monday afternoon, Royals scouting director Danny Ontiveros got roughly two-and-a-half hours of sleep.

But he was feeling energized because of the eight players the Royals selected during Monday’s rounds.

“I’m really excited with what we ended up acquiring here today,” Ontiveros said via conference call. “There’s a couple guys that we had targeted they got taken within the first couple of picks in the fourth (and) fifth round, but we still like the guys we got.

“You always want to get arms, but we got a couple bats mixed in there, a couple of two-way guys, a specialty lefty — we got a really, really high-ceiling high school arm — so I think we did a really good job. We like the players that we picked for different reasons. But they all kind of metrically fit a need that we were looking for, as well as what the scouts’ evaluation was.”

Here’s who the Royals selected Monday on Day 2 of the three-day MLB Draft:

Round 3: High school RHP Hiro Wyatt (No. 75 overall pick)

Wyatt, who’d committed to play at USC, is from Staples, Connecticut, the same state as former Royals first-round pick Frank Mozzicato.

CT Insider notes that Wyatt, who is 6-1 and 185 pounds, had an 8-0 record with a 0.51 ERA and 0.68 WHIP this season. He struck out 107 and walked 11 in 54 2/3 innings.

“The one thing that stands out is the athleticism and the arm speed,” Ontiveros said. “It’s a very quick, whippy arm, great athlete. The ball does a lot of interesting things at the plate in terms of just jump and life and ride with the vertical movement.

“But he’s got feel to spin the ball. He’s got the makings of a change-up that can be at least the average if not better. And he’s just like a baby-faced kid. Like he hasn’t really filled out yet. But we’ve seen him touch 97-98 (mph).”

Round 4: Vanderbilt LHP Hunter Owen (No. 106 overall)

Owen, 6-foot-6 and 261 pounds, is from Maine. He was 4-0 with a 3.52 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 64 innings for the Commodores this season.

He missed time with an injury and Ontiveros said the Royals won’t rush him.

“He just had some shoulder soreness,” Ontiveros said. “There’s a little bit of a strain. He tried to pitch through it. Some of his numbers suffered, but I got a chance to see him ... and he was 92 to 96 (mph) with a plus slider, average curveball and feel for a change-up. And he’s a big man, and he’s athletic.”

Round 5: Missouri State OF Spencer Nivens (No. 142)

Nivens played at Columbia Rock Ridge High before attending Missouri State.

He was the Missouri Valley player of the year for the 2023 season, batting .341 with 14 home runs, 16 doubles and 34 RBIs.

Round 6: Bryant University RHP Coleman Picard (No. 169)

A 6-foot-2, 185-pound native of Auburn, Massachusetts, Picard had transferred from the University of Hartford.

Picard had a 3.43 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 42 innings for Bryant University, which is located in Rhode Island. He had a 2-2 record in 10 starts.

Round 7: Texas A&M two-way player Trevor Werner (No. 199)

In his career with the Aggies, Werner batted .249, scoring 40 runs with 10 doubles, a triple, seven home runs, 45 RBIs and six stolen bases.

He also pitched in relief for Texas A&M and had a 6.55 ERA in 11 games, with 14 strikeouts in 11 innings.

Werner, listed at 6-3, 225 pounds, throws and bats right-handed.

Werner can play left or right field, along with first base, Ontiveros said. Additionally, he has a plus-fastball as a pitcher.

“He’s throwing 98 off the mound with feel for a breaking ball,” Ontiveros said. “He’s an athlete, he’s pitched before, he’s willing to pitch so it’s giving you a little bit more flexibility even more than just his athleticism.”

Round 8: Southern Mississippi SS Dustin Dickerson (No. 229)

Dickerson, who is 6-1 and 180 pounds, was an iron man. He missed just one out of a possible 209 games during his four seasons at Southern Miss, and he was a four-year starter.

During his career, Dickerson batted .311 with 60 doubles, 13 home runs and 112 RBIs. He struck out 113 times and drew 97 walks. Dickerson is the son of Phillies infield coach Bobby Dickerson, the Royals said.

He’s another potential two-way player.

“He had a great year with the bat this year and we think he can play short,” Ontiveros said. “So those are very finicky situations, because I don’t think a lot of teams have done that.

“It’s easy to look at Shohei Ohtani and people start dreaming about that, but I mean, there’s only one Shohei Ohtani. So you’ve got to kind of develop a plan and we’ll sit and talk.

“I think we’re more than happy just to have the players right now and have those options. But we do believe in them as as position players. But we’ll just take it step by step with those two.”

Round 9: Oral Roberts LHP Jacob Widener (No. 259)

The 6-foot-7, 235 pound Widener was 2-2 with 80 strikeouts in 49 2/3 innings last season. He allowed 31 hits and opponents batted just .212 against him.

Widener also walked 21 and hit 18 batters. He has been called a “clone” of Hall of Famer Randy Johnson by FanBuzz.com.

“He’s nasty. I would never want to hit off this guy,” Ontiveros said with a chuckle. “We got a chance to see him a lot. He’s 6-7 and you can see the funk and where he’s throwing the ball from and how he commands the ball.

“This guy, I think, has a chance to get to the big leagues quick.”

Round 10: Wake Forest SS Justin Johnson (No. 289)

Johnson, who stands 5-11, was a first-team All-ACC selection after batting .324 with 16 home runs, 16 doubles and 76 RBIs in 64 games for the Demon Deacons.