The Kansas City Royals struggled to develop pitchers for years before they tabbed J.J. Picollo to lead the organization and hired new pitching coach Brian Sweeney. The team was determined to flip the script and change their reputation when it came to developing young arms. The 2024 MLB draft was loaded with pitching talent from top to bottom, and the Royals organization made sure to capitalize on it, coming away with 15 pitchers, 12 of whom were college arms.
My favorite pick of the draft was Tennessee pitcher Drew Beam, who had been one of the best pitchers in college baseball since arriving on campus in 2022.