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Kansas City Royals Prospect Kyle Zimmer Re-Injures Shoulder

By Ed Carroll

May 16, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of baseballs before a game between the Kansas City Royals and the Baltimore Orioles at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
May 16, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of baseballs before a game between the Kansas City Royals and the Baltimore Orioles at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports /
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The number-two prospect for the Kansas City Royals, right-hander Kyle Zimmer, re-injured his shoulder in his most recent Arizona Fall League start, the same shoulder injury that limited Zimmer to fewer than five innings this season.

The Kansas City Royals are in the World Series, so everything is right in the world of the big-league club; but the farm system got some horrible news after right-hander Kyle Zimmer, the team’s top pick in 2012 MLB Draft and the Royals’ number-two prospect, left his start for the
Peoria Javelinas in the Arizona Fall League with a shoulder injury. The team fears it’s the same injury that held Zimmer to just 4.2 innings in the minors this season, a huge blow to the 23-year-old and to the Royals’ hopes for him.

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The news on Zimmer is even more disheartening considering the performance he was showing in the AFL thus far. His last start was a five-inning, 11-strikeout performance that was quite encouraging, as he barely pitched in 2014 due to a lat strain and tendinitis.

Zimmer hasn’t been pitching for very long, as he was a third baseman for the University of San Francisco before converting to pitcher in his sophomore year. Still, it has to be frustrating for both the Royals and Zimmer, whom scouts claim has the potential to be a front-of-the-rotation starting pitcher, with a chance at four above-average MLB pitches when he’s fully developed.

“More than likely, we’re not going to push [Zimmer] any further this fall and just try to get this under control,” said assistant general manager J.J. Picollo. “I think it’s more disappointment in the sense that we know how hard Kyle’s worked. We don’t have any images or anything like that right now. We think it’s very similar to what he’s been battling, and we’ve just got to keep working to figure it out.”

If Zimmer is healthy enough to pitch at the beginning of the 2015 season, he will likely begin his year with the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers, the same level he was at last season.

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