Two-way star Caglianone ready to work after signing with Royals

KANSAS CITY -- Not 10 minutes after Jac Caglianone heard the Royals call his name No. 6 overall in the 2024 MLB Draft, his phone dinged with a text from a number with a Texas area code.

It was Bobby Witt Jr., the face of the Royals’ present and future. A day before Witt embarked on the All-Star festivities in Texas, he wanted to congratulate Caglianone on becoming a Royal and say how excited he was to have the Florida two-way star in the organization.

“The feeling’s definitely mutual,” Caglianone said Wednesday with a grin.

The Royals officially inked Caglianone to his first professional contract and introduced him at Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday. Terms of the deal were not announced by the club, but sources told MLB.com that Caglianone signed for $7.5 million, slightly above the $7,213,800 slot value of the No. 6 pick.

“Ever since I could grasp the concept of playing Major League Baseball was when I knew that was exactly what I needed to do,” Caglianone said. “Just being out there feels right. Feels like that’s where I belong.”

? Royals Draft signings tracker

Caglianone will head to Arizona on Thursday to get his pro career started. He will only hit this season, likely playing first base or serving as the designated hitter, first in the Arizona Complex League before a potential promotion to Single-A Columbia. In the fall, Caglianone and the Royals will re-evaluate what the best plan is to potentially hit and pitch, as the 21-year-old is eager to try and do both at the next level.

On Wednesday, Caglianone soaked up the experience of The K. After all, it’s not hard to imagine him hitting here one day -- maybe soon, too, if things go well -- splashing baseballs into the fountains and hitting behind Witt in the lineup.

“We think the world of Jac’s talents, abilities and what he can do for our big league club,” general manager J.J. Picollo said. “From our perspective, we start thinking about future rosters and lineups and what this is going to look like and how it’s going to work. You don’t want to put the cart before the horse because there’s a lot of work that needs to be done. But with the core that we have, who will be here when Jac’s ready to play in the Major Leagues -- it’s pretty good. We’re happy to add him to the mix and excited to just get him going, more than anything.”

Caglianone was listed as a two-way player when the Royals drafted him, after he posted a 5.10 ERA over two seasons at Florida with a mid-90s fastball that climbs up to 99 mph. The Tampa native was originally recruited to Florida as a pitcher before undergoing Tommy John surgery right before college.

But any discussion about his talent has to start at the plate. The 6-foot-5, 250-pound slugger has 70-grade power and bashed 68 home runs over his final two seasons with the Gators. His 35 homers as a junior this season trailed only the 37 from Georgia’s Charlie Condon, who was selected No. 3 overall by the Rockies.

The power was real when Caglianone was in high school, too, Royals area scout Nick Presto said. But it really blossomed when he was a sophomore at Florida.

“He was coming together in games where he was affecting the other dugout,” Presto said. “... The metamorphosis and change that he went through as a hitter was amazing. Everybody in the whole league and country gunning for him, with not much protection behind him, and he just carried them. Put them on his back and brought them to the [College] World Series. Which is not easy to do.”

Now Caglianone will try to help carry the Royals into sustainable winning, but he’ll have some help. The Royals are encouraged by their homegrown core that includes current big leaguers like Witt, who will be in Kansas City through at least 2030, and Vinnie Pasquantino, and top prospects like Blake Mitchell and Gavin Cross, among others.

“When you go through a Draft, and definitely at the top of the Draft, you want to get middle-of-the-order bats or one, two or three starters,” said scouting director Brian Bridges, who just completed his first Draft with the Royals. “It doesn’t always end up that way. But if you shoot your goals for those types of players, you’re probably not going to be that far off from where they are. And if you get lucky to draft a few of them, you’re going to be pretty good in a short amount of time.”