Josh Staumont

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #25 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: Ever since taking him in the second round in 2015, the Royals have waited for Staumont to harness his command to best utilize his triple-digit fastball. After returning to Triple-A Omaha for a third season, Staumont made it to Kansas City for his major league debut last year and delivered 16 fairly effective relief appearances.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Staumont is hard to hit when he throws strikes, but therein lies the problem. He walked 6.49 batters per nine innings with Omaha, about the same as the previous year. Staumont's fastball explodes out of his hand from an easy delivery and arrives in the upper 90s with natural sinking action. When thrown for strikes, it's a devastating pitch. Staumont also gets swings and misses on a low-80s curveball that has 11-to-5 tilt. Because he doesn't get his fastball in the strike zone enough, however, opposing hitters don't often find themselves in unfavorable counts.
  
  THE FUTURE: Staumont has settled into a relief role but has made a few starts at Omaha in an opener's role. The Royals need pitching, so he has a strong chance to break camp on their Opening Day roster.
• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #24 prospect in 2019
  Track Record: Staumont has long struggled to improve his command and control. He continues to frustrate, with his electric stuff playing down because of his lack of control, although he slightly lowered his walk rate from 7.8 walks per nine innings in 2017 to 7.0 walks per nine in 2018. Staumont spent the entire 2018 season in Triple-A, pitching mostly out of the bullpen. The Royals worked him in relief, primarily to simplify things and have him pitch out of the stretch.
  
  Scouting Report: Staumont continually entices with an electric, 91-97 mph fastball that touches 100 mph. The ball jumps out his hand, regularly recording a high spin rate. The biggest issue is that Staumont's control is a 20 on the scouting scale. Staumont attacked hitters better in 2018. He struggles to land his fringe-average, 76-80 mph curveball, but it can be a plus offering with swing-and-miss potential on the rare ocassions when he does command it. His 82-84 mph changeup is a firm, below-average pitch.
  
  The Future: Staumont could be a high-leverage reliever using just his four-seam fastball and curveball if his control improves. If not, it's hard to envision him being able to contribute in a big league bullpen.
• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #4 prospect in 2018
  Ranked as the Royals' top prospect a year ago, Staumont continued to frustrate with his combination of premium velocity and the chance for two plus pitches playing down due to inconsistent command and control. He regularly strikes out well over a batter per inning, but his 7.6 walks per nine innings indicates that he's still got plenty of work to do. The Royals' second-round pick in 2015, Staumont started the year with an aggressive assignment to Triple-A Omaha before heading back down to Double-A Northwest Arkansas in mid-July to work on using a more consistent release point. Staumont has top-of-the-rotation stuff, and he dominates hitters when he's repeating his delivery and commanding his pitches. It's very easy upper-90s velocity, a plus-plus four-seamer that touches triple digits. A power curveball is his out pitch, thrown from a high three-quarters slot at 78-82 mph with depth and 11-5 tilt; it's an above-average pitch now with the potential of being a plus offering. Rounding out his arsenal is a changeup that is developing into an average pitch as the Royals encourage him to use it more effectively. The key to Staumont's success is developing consistency of his control and not trying to be too fine with his pitches. While some observers point to a future as an eighth-inning reliever, his stuff plays up as a starter and the Royals will keep him in that role for now.
• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #1 prospect in 2017
  A little-noticed high school arm who grew from being a short and thick underclassman to a tall-and-lean senior at La Habra (Calif.) High, Staumont earned a spot in NAIA Biola (Calif.) University's rotation as a freshman (he worked 10.2 innings in one marathon outing), but he transferred to Division II Azusa (Calif.) Pacific to follow coach John Verhoeven. It says something about Staumont's stuff that he posted a 3.67 ERA in his junior season at Azusa Pacific despite walking more than seven batters per nine innings. It says even more that he was a second-round pick despite his wildness. And in his first full season as a pro, Staumont led the minors with 104 walks, but he also ranked second in strikeouts (167) and first among full-season starters with 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings. He went 2-0, 1.57 with 53 strikeouts and 12 walks in his final 40 innings between the regular season and playoffs and was effective as a starter in the Arizona Fall League. Staumont creates extremely easy top-of-the-scale velocity. He's touched triple digits with a delivery that looks almost effortless. Staumont's right arm has allowed him to pitch successfully at a level beyond his current understanding of the craft. This year his understanding of pitching started to catch up to his stuff, though it still has a ways to go before he's consistently setting up hitters. His plus-plus four-seamer sits anywhere from 92-98 as a starter and has touched 102 when working out of the bullpen. It is a rather true pitch without much life. The only thing keeping it from an 80 grade is its lack of life. He also throws a two-seamer with sink, but the Royals have had him focus on commanding the four-seamer first before letting him rely on the harder-to-control two-seamer. His 11-to-5 curveball isn't consistent but is a plus pitch at some point in most every outing and will flash plus-plus at its best. His changeup is below-average and he uses it more at this point because he knows he needs to rather than because it's a reliable weapon. Staumont's control improved as the season progressed in part because of a mechanical tweak. He now brings his hands above his head in his windup instead of the simple hand break he used earlier. It improved his timing. He is focused on using his legs in his delivery more instead of the "tall and fall" delivery he used in college. He is somewhat stiff, which limits his below-average control and command and his ability to diagnose and correct delivery issues quickly as they crop up. Staumont has work to do on holding runners. He was easy to steal on and four of his five errors in 2016 came on errant pickoff throws. Staumont's rapid improvement has raised Royals' hopes that he could stay in the rotation, although his feel doesn't always match his stuff. Staumont's ceiling is that of a front-end starter if he can improve his control with a fallback option of serving as an impact reliever. His strong finish in Double-A in 2016 has him positioned to challenge for a spot in Triple-A to start 2017.
• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #15 prospect in 2016
  There was no easier velocity in the 2015 draft than Staumont's. He tickles triple-digits regularly with a low-effort delivery. Staumont sits 96-98 and has touched 102 mph with a four-seamer. It grades out as an easy top-of-the-scale 80 on the scouting card. In a system that has long coveted power relievers, Staumont throws harder and does it easier than anyone else wearing a Royals uniform. He also has thrown a 96-99 mph two-seamer, but the Royals want to see him master the four-seamer first. Staumont's 82-85 mph 12-to-6 curveball also grades out at plus-plus when he stays on top of it. When he does that, it has a diving finish that would make a Stuka proud, but it's inconsistent. While his delivery is clean, he has long struggled to throw strikes consistently in part because he hangs over his rear leg in his windup which makes it tough to keep his timing. He will miss by feet at times. Staumont will never need to paint corners but he can't keep walking nearly a batter an inning. Staumont showed some improvement as the season progressed. He'll head to low Class A Lexington to start 2016 but he could move quickly from there. The only thing keeping Staumont from a speedy arrival in Kansas City is consistency.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #80 prospect in 2015 draft
  Good luck figuring out Staumont, one of the most fascinating players in the draft. He's an Anaheim prep product who spent one season at NAIA Biola (Calif.) before transferring to Azusa Pacific (Calif.), which is transitioning from NAIA to Division II, to follow pitching coach John Verhoeven, who made the same move. He's been throwing a fastball in the upper 90s the last two years after sitting in the upper 80s as a high school pitcher, and at his best in short stints, he's hit 100 mph with his heater. Scouts grade Staumont's fastball as a 70 pitch when he starts, as he looks like he's playing catch at 93-97 mph even as a starter. His curveball has low-80s power and snap at its best and can grade out as a plus pitch as well. Staumont's delivery has no obvious red flags and his arm action is clean; he has a solid pitcher's body at a listed 6-foot-2, 205 pounds and passes every eye test. Scouts can only speculate about Staumont's consistent inability to throw strikes, chalking it up to lack of focus and difficulty in corralling his premium velocity. The last two seasons at Azusa, he had 189 strikeouts but 94 walks in 144 innings (5.9 BB/9 IP), and he walked 23 in 26 total Cape Cod League innings. One of the draft's biggest enigmas also is one of its biggest arms.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked Arizona Fall League #18 prospect in 2016
  Staumont was inconsistent in his AFL stint, recording a 4.50 ERA with 30 strikeouts in 24 innings. He allowed only 15 hits but also walked 16 batters. At times he was lights out, with three outings in which he pitched four scoreless innings. The strength of Staumont's game is his plus-plus fastball, with very easy velocity getting into triple digits. A recent change to his delivery in which he brings his hands above his head in the windup is still a work-in-progress. He's got good feel for his breaking ball that he uses to get swings-and-misses, but the key to his success is commanding it better. He doesn't often go to his below-average changeup. Many scouts believe that long-term Staumont will be better suited to the bullpen if the command of his pitches doesn't improve.
• 
  Ranked Carolina League #18 prospect in 2016
  Staumont continued to battle control problems that were evident in college, but he has a plus fastball that few possess, throwing up to 98 mph with ease as a starter. He pitched better at Double-A Northwest Arkansas, where he went 2-1, 3.04 with 73 strikeouts and 37 walks in 50 innings, than at Wilmington, where he exhibited command graded by scouts as a 30 on the 20-to-80 scouting scale. "He has the biggest arm of our group," Wilmington manager Jamie Quirk said. "Once again, it's just a matter of controlling it, throwing enough strikes. He has some feel for the game and just needs to continue to get more innings in, understand the strike zone and what he needs to do. Arm-wise--he has a plus curveball and plus fastball. It's just a matter of getting it in the strike zone consistently."
• 
  Ranked Pioneer League #9 prospect in 2015
  Staumont delivers some of the easiest triple-digit velocity in the minor leagues. Lack of command kept him out of the first round, but he showed steady progress in that regard during his pro debut. He struck out 14.6 batters per nine innings and allowed opponents to hit .168 at Idaho Falls, hinting at his potential. Staumont has an absolutely overpowering fastball that generally sits at 96-97 mph and touches 101. He generates such easy velocity from a good pitcher's frame that it looks like he's just playing catch. When his power curveball at 82-84 mph flashes plus break and he's commanding his pitches, Staumont can be unhittable. Even though he walked 6.9 per nine, he throws with a clean arm action and has a consistent delivery. The Idaho Falls coaching staff worked with him on his front-side direction to help his command, but he's still very much a work-in-progress. Staumont doesn't yet have a changeup, with the development of that pitch his next lesson to be learned. "If he develops another pitch he'll be a serious weapon," Idaho Falls manager Justin Gemoll said.

• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Ever since taking him in the second round in 2015, the Royals have waited for Staumont to harness his command to best utilize his triple-digit fastball. After returning to Triple-A Omaha for a third season, Staumont made it to Kansas City for his major league debut last year and delivered 16 fairly effective relief appearances.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Staumont is hard to hit when he throws strikes, but therein lies the problem. He walked 6.49 batters per nine innings with Omaha, about the same as the previous year. Staumont’s fastball explodes out of his hand from an easy delivery and arrives in the upper 90s with natural sinking action. When thrown for strikes, it’s a devastating pitch. Staumont also gets swings and misses on a low-80s curveball that has 11-to-5 tilt. Because he doesn’t get his fastball in the strike zone enough, however, opposing hitters don’t often find themselves in unfavorable counts.
  
  THE FUTURE: Staumont has settled into a relief role but has made a few starts at Omaha in an opener’s role. The Royals need pitching, so he has a strong chance to break camp on their Opening Day roster. BA GRADE 40 Risk: Medium BA GRADE 40 Risk: Medium
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Ever since taking him in the second round in 2015, the Royals have waited for Staumont to harness his command to best utilize his triple-digit fastball. After returning to Triple-A Omaha for a third season, Staumont made it to Kansas City for his major league debut last year and delivered 16 fairly effective relief appearances.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Staumont is hard to hit when he throws strikes, but therein lies the problem. He walked 6.49 batters per nine innings with Omaha, about the same as the previous year. Staumont's fastball explodes out of his hand from an easy delivery and arrives in the upper 90s with natural sinking action. When thrown for strikes, it's a devastating pitch. Staumont also gets swings and misses on a low-80s curveball that has 11-to-5 tilt. Because he doesn't get his fastball in the strike zone enough, however, opposing hitters don't often find themselves in unfavorable counts.
  
  THE FUTURE: Staumont has settled into a relief role but has made a few starts at Omaha in an opener's role. The Royals need pitching, so he has a strong chance to break camp on their Opening Day roster.
• July, 2018 Scouting Report
  Staumont has jumped between the rotation and the bullpen this season, continuing to tantalize with a plus fastball that jumps out of his hand, sitting 91-97 mph. He’s been more confident this year, attacking hitters and filling the zone better. His power curveball is a plus pitch when he commands it. Staumont’s stuff is too good to not give him every chance to succeed as a starting pitcher, but some observers still think he’ll eventually wind up being a power arm at the back of the Royals bullpen because his control remains poor.
• December, 2016 Scouting Report
  Background: A little-noticed high school arm who grew from being a short and thick underclassman to a tall-and-lean senior at La Habra (Calif.) High, Staumont earned a spot in NAIA Biola (Calif.) University's rotation as a freshman (he worked 10.2 innings in one marathon outing), but he transferred to Division II Azusa (Calif.) Pacific to follow coach John Verhoeven. It says something about Staumont's stuff that he posted a 3.67 ERA in his junior season at Azusa Pacific despite walking more than seven batters per nine innings. It says even more that he was a second-round pick despite his wildness. And in his first full season as a pro, Staumont led the minors with 104 walks, but he also ranked second in strikeouts (167) and first among full-season starters with 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings. He went 2-0, 1.57 with 53 strikeouts and 12 walks in his final 40 innings between the regular season and playoffs and was effective as a starter in the Arizona Fall League. Scouting Report: Staumont creates extremely easy top-of-the-scale velocity. He's touched triple digits with a delivery that looks almost effortless. Staumont's right arm has allowed him to pitch successfully at a level beyond his current understanding of the craft. This year his understanding of pitching started to catch up to his stuff, although it still has a ways to go before he's consistently setting up hitters. His plus-plus four-seamer sits anywhere from 92-98 as a starter and has touched 102 when working out of the bullpen. It is a rather true pitch without much life. The only thing keeping it from an 80 grade is its lack of life. He also throws a two-seamer with sink, but the Royals have had him focus on commanding the four-seamer first before letting him rely on the harder-to-control two-seamer. His 11-to-5 curveball isn't consistent but is a plus pitch at some point in most every outing and will flash plus-plus at its best. His changeup is below-average and he uses it more at this point because he knows he needs to rather than because it's a reliable weapon. Staumont's control improved as the season progressed in part because of a mechanical tweak. He now brings his hands above his head in his windup instead of the simple hand break he used earlier. It improved his timing. He is focused on using his legs in his delivery more instead of the "tall and fall" delivery he used in college. He is somewhat stiff, which limits his below-average control and command and his ability to diagnose and correct delivery issues quickly as they crop up. Staumont has work to do on holding runners. He was easy to steal on and four of his five errors in 2016 came on errant pickoff throws. The Future: Staumont's rapid improvement has raised Royals' hopes that he could stay in the rotation, although his feel doesn't always match his stuff. Staumont's ceiling is that of a front-end starter if he can improve his control with a fallback option of serving as an impact reliever. His strong finish in Double-A in 2016 has him positioned to challenge for a spot in Triple-A to start 2017.
• August, 2016 Scouting Report
  Staumont was inconsistent in his AFL stint, recording a 4.50 ERA with 30 strikeouts in 24 innings. He allowed only 15 hits but also walked 16 batters. At times he was lights out, with three outings in which he pitched four scoreless innings. The strength of Staumont's game is his plus-plus fastball, with very easy velocity getting into triple digits. A recent change to his delivery in which he brings his hands above his head in the windup is still a work-in-progress. He's got good feel for his breaking ball that he uses to get swings-and-misses, but the key to his success is commanding it better. He doesn't often go to his below-average changeup. Many scouts believe that long-term Staumont will be better suited to the bullpen if the command of his pitches doesn't improve.
• December, 2014 Scouting Report
  Good luck figuring out Staumont, one of the most fascinating players in the draft. He's an Anaheim prep product who spent one season at NAIA Biola (Calif.) before transferring to Azusa Pacific (Calif.), which is transitioning from NAIA to Division II, to follow pitching coach John Verhoeven, who made the same move. He's been throwing a fastball in the upper 90s the last two years after sitting in the upper 80s as a high school pitcher, and at his best in short stints, he's hit 100 mph with his heater. Scouts grade Staumont's fastball as a 70 pitch when he starts, as he looks like he's playing catch at 93-97 mph even as a starter. His curveball has low-80s power and snap at its best and can grade out as a plus pitch as well. Staumont's delivery has no obvious red flags and his arm action is clean; he has a solid pitcher's body at a listed 6-foot-2, 205 pounds and passes every eye test. Scouts can only speculate about Staumont's consistent inability to throw strikes, chalking it up to lack of focus and difficulty in corralling his premium velocity. The last two seasons at Azusa, he had 189 strikeouts but 94 walks in 144 innings (5.9 BB/9 IP), and he walked 23 in 26 total Cape Cod League innings. One of the draft's biggest enigmas also is one of its biggest arms.