Asa

Lacy

It’s been a tough road for Lacy, who was drafted fourth overall by the Royals in the 2020 draft. The Texas A&M product already missed all of last year, and he had a 10.61 ERA with 42 walks in 28 innings during 2022. The Royals declined to put him on the 40-man after last season, exposing him to the Rule 5 draft, but he went unpicked.

Lacy, 22, also gave up an unearned run, and he walked two to go with the aforementioned seven punchouts. The fourth-overall pick of the 2021 draft out of Texas A&M, Lacy was a disappointment in his first professional year, as he posted a 5.19 ERA in 52 innings before a shoulder injury stopped his season in July. When he’s at his best, this is a hurler that has four pitches that can miss bats, but his control was awful last year (41 walks in those 52 frames), and there are question marks about whether he can throw enough strikes to reach his ceiling. You can’t give up on a 22-year-old of Lacy’s talent just yet, but there’s just as much risk in his profile as there is reward.

Lacy allowed just one hit, and he walked three. The former has not been an issue; Lacy is allowing just a .214 average against in 35 innings. The latter has been a significant one; the fourth pick of last year’s draft has already walked 28 hitters, and has not shown the command that had many believing he was the best pitching prospect in last year’s class. It’s a small sample, however, and Lacy has four pitches that get plus grades. Assuming the command gets better -- and it should, Lacy is still just 22-years-old -- he has a chance to be an excellent fantasy option. The control is going to have to get significantly better for him to reach his lofty potential.

Lacy allowed just one hit, but had issues throwing strikes in his professional debut; walking five in the contest before being pulled in the third. He also struck out five, and showed off the stuff that made him the fourth pick of last June’s draft. It’s a disappointing effort, but certainly not one that should concern fantasy managers too much; Lacy still has tremendous stuff and has shown the ability to command it prior to this outing. Expect better efforts from the 21-year-old southpaw going forward.

Lacy was selected fourth overall in June’s 2020 MLB Draft after posting a 2.07 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and 224/68 K/BB ratio over 152 innings during his three-year college career at Texas A&M. Kansas City has been very aggressive with promoting young pitchers in this condensed campaign, but it would be a real shock to see the 21-year-old left-hander get into a major league game at any point this summer. He’ll work out at the Royals’ alternate training site in Piper, Kansas. Hernandez, 23, might eventually be tried as a long relief option.

The team also confirmed deals with the rest of its draft class and seven undrafted free agents. Lacy, a 21-year-old out of Texas A&M, will have a chance to move quickly next year if he keeps his walk rate under control. He went 14-5 with a 2.07 ERA and a 224/68 K/BB ratio in 152 innings during his college career.

Lacy, 21, has been the ace of the Aggies for the last two years, and after posting a 2.13 ERA in 2019 in 88 2/3 frames, he posted a 0.75 ERA with 46/8 K/BB ratio in just four starts before the season came to an end due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound southpaw can get his fastball up to 97 mph, and he has the same arm speed on a change that gets 60 grades on the 20-80 scouting scale. On top of that, Lacy will also show a curve and slider, and they’re at least above-average offerings for the 21-year-old as well. If there’s a concern here, it’s that Lacy’s command isn’t great, but as long as he throws strikes at an average rate, he has a chance to pitch at or near the top of a rotation.