‘Excited and hectic’: Inside the Royals’ success in signing undrafted players (2024)

Kale Emshoff sat at home Thursday night, watching names appear on the television. The University of Arkansas at Little Rock junior catcher had dreamed about this night, about getting drafted. Finally, he believed, the time had come.

As he watched, the second round became the third, and the third became the fourth. Names continued to pop up, but not his own. Emshoff remained still inside his home in Corpus Christi, Texas, hopeful in the way he has always been. When the fifth round ended and he realized it was all over, he sat back, flooded with emotions, reckoning with what would be next.

“At first, it was really sad,” Emshoff said Monday.

Arkansas-Little Rock coach Chris Curry could hear that sadness through the phone, through texts and spoken conversations. Curry had watched Emshoff develop into a player who in some ways reminded him of big leaguer James McCann. Curry had coached McCann when Curry was an assistant at Arkansas. And talent resembles talent. Unfortunately, a five-round draft, lamented by so many, likely cost Emshoff from being drafted.

“We consoled him and said, ‘Hey, you’re not done. You’re going to get a chance to chase your dreams.’”

Because Major League Baseball’s March agreement prohibited teams from signing undrafted players for more than $20,000, Emshoff’s choice was clear. He could sign or he could return. Curry recommended the former.

“This is a rare opportunity for you to pick your team,” Curry told him.

Emshoff and so many other undrafted players saw value in that idea, knowing he could not only research teams’ minor-league depth at catcher, but he could also take the temperature of certain organizations. What did they have to offer? What did they value? How much did they value him?

Some clubs began answering some of those questions at 8 a.m. Sunday when they were able to reach out to the undrafted players. Others, such as the Kansas City Royals, had been answering those questions for weeks if not months, answering them in ways that made a difference.

In October 2019, when in-person events were normal, Royals area scout Matt Price took a road trip to Little Rock to watch the local university’s scout day at Gary Hogan Field. One player was the focus: Kale Emshoff.

Price had seen Emshoff the year before, in 2018, in the same place and at the same event. The last time Price had shown up, Emshoff felt a pop while making a throw to second base during the intrasquad game, a sound similar to that of a cracked finger. Emshoff immediately knew; Price did, too.

The ball had flopped out of Emshoff’s hand.

“I told the umpire, ‘Pleasure catching in front of you, but I’ve got to go,’” Emshoff said.

Indeed he headed toward the dugout, where Curry was standing and talking to another player. The coach hadn’t been paying attention because, well, the inning hadn’t even started.

“I hear his voice, ‘Coach, my elbow just popped,’” Curry said. “I said, ‘What? You’re joking.’”

No, he wasn’t. Tommy John surgery was necessary. Emshoff took it in stride, rehabbing and receiving an opportunity to sign after the 2018 draft. He chose to pass and returned healthy enough to compete in the 2019 scout day, for which Price had once again arrived.

Once again, Price watched as Emshoff clubbed baseballs toward the light poles. The raw power was rare, as was the speed of his rehab.

Price was curious: Why had Emshoff not signed?

“He started mentioning guys like Adley Rutschman and Shea Langeliers,” Price said. “I started saying, ‘You know you just mentioned two first-rounders?’ He’s like, ‘I understand, but you were going to have a second wave of catchers.’ He knew where he fit before that injury.”

The conversation might have impressed Price, but Emshoff was struck, too. He remembered Price and respected him for his honesty.

Across the country, other players felt similarly. Hard-throwing Texas Tech right-hander John McMillon built a relationship with area scout Chad Lee. Tennessee right-hander Chase Wallace was getting to know Royals area scout Will Howard. Conversations meant bonds, and bonds would mean trust. Trust would ultimately lead to signed contracts.

At that time, though, they were preparing for a full season and full draft, hoping to return to the high-round conversation. This was before the COVID-19 pandemic clouded over the season and seemingly everything else.

Before the draft shrunk from 40 rounds to five.

Last fall, Price, who lives in Kansas City, wanted to verify Emshoff’s progression. The University of Arkansas at Little Rock and Emshoff were playing a game two hours down the road in Columbia against the University of Missouri.

So Price hopped in the car and drove over.

That day, Emshoff sat back on pitches against would-be St. Louis Cardinals fourth-round draft pick Ian Bedell. He also hammered Missouri right-hander Konnor Ash’s fastball. Price watched Emshoff drive in five runs that day.

“I said, ‘That’s all I need to see,’” Price said.

In time, he realized that’s all he would be able to see. The COVID-19 pandemic paused the college baseball season just as Emshoff was heating up. He had already hit seven home runs and was batting .417 when the season abruptly ended.

Similarly, Wallace was set to start for Tennessee in Southeastern Conference play. McMillon was finding his form at Texas Tech. Georgia outfielder Tucker Bradley was rebounding from an injury-laden 2019 season. LSU catcher Saul Garza was contributing to a potential College World Series-contending club. And Washington State left-handed starter A.J. Block was dominating. Each must have thought the pause would be temporary.

Emshoff returned to Texas and started to spend his days fishing. He thought about the draft’s size or lack thereof. He remained optimistic. That’s all he could do.

Meanwhile, as the months continued to pass, MLB clubs were choosing whether to pay minor-league players. The Royals chose to, catching the eye of many, including Emshoff and Curry, who saw Royals general manager Dayton Moore’s quote and smiled.

In a conference call with local media members today, Royals GM Dayton Moore said this about the club's decision to stand by their minor league players: pic.twitter.com/8ZfWWx95Jh

— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) May 29, 2020

Curry is a living testament to Moore’s thought process. A ninth-round pick in the 1999 MLB Draft, Curry played seven years in the minors. (One season, playing with the San Francisco Giants, then-Giants catcher Mike Matheny wowed Curry with his willingness to take the time to get to know him.) In 2006, Curry received a spring training invite with the Royals and showed up to Surprise, Ariz., hoping to give it one last go.

“I had the best spring training of my life,” Curry said.

It was so good that one day, during an intrasquad game, he centered a pitch and lined it off the pitcher’s ankle. The pitcher’s name? Luke Hochevar, the club’s first pick. Curry thought the club was going to cut him on the spot.

The Royals didn’t; they kept giving the seasoned pro chances until the bitter end.

Curry hasn’t forgotten the final day. Moore, a fresh general manager at the time, called Curry to his office. Assistant general manager J.J. Picollo was sitting there, too.

“They said, ‘Chris, we’ve been trying to cut you for the last four weeks and all you’ve done is produce and hit,’” Curry said. “They said, ‘Chris, you’ve done everything the right way. You’re a class act. Would you like to scout with us or coach with us?’ I said, ‘Guys, I appreciate it so much. I appreciate the opportunity. This brings closure to my pro career.’”

That day, he called his wife and returned to Arkansas, embarking on a career to inspire and help kids — to coach. He began at Arkansas, where he watched McCann develop; he coached at Northwestern State, where a young hitter named Nick Heath was developing; he got the job at Arkansas-Little Rock.

Back home, Emshoff was fishing, thinking about the draft. The Royals, wanting to gauge interest, set up a Zoom call. In Georgia, Bradley sat in front of the computer, speaking to Royals staffers.

“It was just comfortable,” Bradley said. “I was able to just relax and have a good conversation with those guys. Every one of ’em was joking around on there.”

On Emshoff’s Zoom call with Price, Royals Midwest regional scout Greg Miller and scouting director Lonnie Goldberg, they weren’t joking so much as they were talking about hunting and fishing. Miller, a “country boy,” according to Price, was loving it.

“I really enjoyed that,” Emshoff, “and they were straightforward guys, straight shooters. Not too many teams were like that.”

After the Zoom call, Emshoff sent Curry a text: “Just got off a phone call with the Royals. What a first-class organization.”

Curry again smiled, keeping his Royals story to himself. This was Emshoff’s decision. The coach wanted his player’s decision to come from the heart.

All of the Zoom calls led to 8 a.m. Sunday morning, the day clubs were able to reach out to undrafted players.

Before the draft, some analysts dubbed the process “The Wild West.” Others likened it to the college recruiting process, with clubs pitching all of their advantages in hopes for a commitment. What was the process actually like?

“The best few words I know to describe it are excited and hectic,” Emshoff said.

“It was like Kawhi Leonard (free agency), dude,” Tennessee coach Tony Vitello said about Wallace. “Teams were blowing us up.”

Price was up early, anxious as ever, as were many other Royals staffers.

“They were relentless,” Vitello said. “If you count my text messages with the Royals and our staffers, it was 107 text messages.”

Price’s first call to Emshoff, whom Baseball America ranked as the top undrafted prospect, went to voicemail. Frantically typing, knowing how much Emshoff’s services could mean for the club’s depth at catcher, Price called Emshoff’s adviser, who said Emshoff was on the phone with another team.

“He’s talked to two teams already,” Price said, “and they’re setting up calls.”

The games began and did not stop.

“What a day of whirlwind activity,” Price said. “We were going through a roller coaster of emotions, basically waiting.”

The wait continued as players accepted calls from clubs, some of which were reaching out for the first time. The Royals, though, had telegraphed their interest from the beginning. Emshoff joined Zoom calls with front-office executives and scouting directors. He even received a call from former big-league catcher AJ Ellis, who works as a special assistant to San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller.

During each call, Emshoff would text Curry his thoughts about teams. Every couple of hours, he would also text Price, who stayed by his phone, waiting things out. As the hours passed, Price became concerned, thinking maybe Emshoff would take the bait from another club.

In the afternoon, Emshoff’s adviser reached out, asking whether another Royals staffer could hop on a call with Emshoff. They loved Price but wanted to hear from someone else from the Royals. Price, on a whim, coaxed Royals director of hitting performance Alec Zumwalt on a call. Both Royals staffers were watching their sons’ Little League baseball games; Price was pacing in center field.

“We were on a three-way call and basically showing passion, the whole team,” Price said. “We talked about career path and approach. And it wasn’t anything about what we’re going to give him. He knew what he was going to get.”

Indeed, he did. At sundown, Curry, who had taken his kids out to fish at a pond nearby, received a text.

“Royals,” it read.

“The calls with Matt and my experience with them in the past,” Emshoff said, “it seemed different. They weren’t like a used car salesman. Matt was straight to the point.”

Later in the night, the Royals celebrated the signings of McMillon, Bradley, Wallace, Garza and Washington State lefty A.J. Block. On Monday morning, Miller texted Emshoff a photo of a bass he had caught.

“Kale thought it was just about the fish,” Price said, laughing.

The photo had nothing to do with the fish. The Royals had reeled in Emshoff the way good fishermen operate: with time and persistence.

(Photo of Kale Emshoff: Mark Wagner / University of Arkansas at Little Rock)