The Kansas City Royals announced tonight that they have signed all 21 selections from the 2021 First-Year Player Draft, completing the list with the signing of catcher Luca Tresh (17th round, 499th overall). The Royals have also agreed to terms with undrafted free agent left-handed pitchers Parker Harm and Leo Palacios and first baseman Dillan Shrum.
Tresh hit a career-high 15 home runs with 43 RBI this spring at NC State, catching all 56 games as a junior. The right-handed hitter graduated from Clearwater Central Catholic High School (Safety Harbor, Fla.), where he hit .380 with nine doubles and three homers as a senior in 2018.
Harm appeared in 22 games out of the bullpen for North Dakota State this spring, recording 62 strikeouts in 37.0 innings (15.08 K/9), while going 1-2 with a 1.70 ERA and 12 saves, which tied the school record. He was named a Third Team All-America selection by ABCA/Rawlings as well as the All-Central Region First Team honoree.
Palacios made 12 appearances (1 start) for Central Arizona College this year, going 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA, recording 41 strikeouts in 21.2 innings (17.03 K/9). He was teammates with the Royals’ sixth-round selection, Dayton Dooney and helped the Vaqueros reach the Junior College World Series Championship Game.
Shrum was named the Tony Gwynn Mountain West Player of the Year as well as a Second Team All-America selection by D1Baseball and ABCA/Rawlings in his final season at the University of Nevada-Reno. He hit .468 (58-for-124) with 15 doubles, a triple, 15 homers and 47 RBI in 35 games for the Wolfpack, ranking second among qualifying NCAA Division I hitters in batting average.
