Tyler Gentry

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #13 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 45/High
  
  Track Record: The Royals drafted Gentry in the third round in 2020 after a collegiate career split between Tennessee junior college powerhouse Walters State followed by two seasons at Alabama. He hit .253/.370/.421 with 16 homers in 129 games in a full season with Triple-A Omaha in 2023. His strong performance further validated his 2022 breakout season, which came after an abbreviated debut in 2021 that was slowed by a knee injury. Gentry really broke out in the second half of 2023 after a slow start. He hit .282/.416/.485 in his final 60 games while increasing his walk rate and cutting his strikeouts.
  
  Scouting Report: Gentry’s improvement was sparked by finding more consistency with his toe tap and making better swing decisions at the plate. He has above-average power from the right side with a low-maintenance swing that helps him stay consistent. He continued to show improved plate discipline, increasing his walk rate to 14.2% from 12.4%, though some of that could be entangled with the automated ball-strike system at Triple-A. With an above-average arm, Gentry should be able to stay in right field. He’s aggressive chasing after balls hit to the outfield and is at least an average defender. An average runner who will likely slow down as he matures, Gentry stole 14 bases and has sound instincts on the bases.
  
  The Future: Gentry was added to the 40-man roster after the 2023 season. With a successful run at Triple-A under his belt, he’ll head to spring training with a chance to make the big league roster as an extra outfielder or in a platoon role.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 50 | Power: 50 | Run: 50 | Field: 50 | Arm: 55
• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #7 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: Gentry started his collegiate career at junior college powerhouse Walters State in Tennessee, leading the team with 18 home runs as a freshman. He continued to hit during two seasons at Alabama and led the team in many key categories. The Royals drafted Gentry in the third round in 2020, signed him for $750,000, then got him on the field for instructional league. No Royals prospect took as big of a jump forward in 2022 as Gentry. Hampered by a knee injury that limited him to 44 games in his first pro season at High-A Quad Cities in 2021, Gentry returned to the level and hit .336/.434/.516 against Midwest League pitchers. Promoted to Double-A Northwest Arkansas on June 14, he took no time at all adjusting to Texas League pitchers and compiled a .972 OPS with 16 home runs in 73 games. Key to Gentry's breakout at Double-A were improvements to his strikeout rate--26% at High-A to 20% at Double-A--and a spike in power production that saw his isolated slugging percentage climb more than 50 points.
  
  Scouting Report: Gentry shows plenty of pop from the right side with a low-maintenance swing that keeps him consistent at the plate. He's patient in the box with a good knowledge of the strike zone. Gentry bought into the Royals' revamped hitting program, becoming a patient hitter with the ability to pick the part of the zone in which to be aggressive. He's a capable defender at both corner outfield spots, with an above-average arm that is suited for right field. He stole 10 bases in 2022, but as an average runner who may slow down as he matures, speed isn't expected to be a big part of his game.
  
  The Future: Gentry has a chance to be a corner outfield regular with more experience, and he should be ready for Triple-A in 2023.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hitting: 55. Power: 55. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 55

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #177 prospect in 2020 draft
  A 6-foot-2, 210-pound outfielder, Gendry has shown intriguing power potential throughout his collegiate career, and has solid-average or better supplemental tools to go along with that juice. After spending his freshman season at Walters State (Tenn.) JC, where he led the team with 18 home runs, Gentry transferred to Alabama, where he led Crimson Tide starters in average (.310), hits (65), home runs (13) RBI (42) slugging (.552) and total bases (116). Scouts believe Gentry has 60- or 65-grade raw power, enough to profile as an everyday outfielder in a corner, but scouts have some hesitation about his hit tool thanks to high strikeout rates. He whiffed 51 times in 210 at-bats as a sophomore and also struggled with strikeouts last summer in the Cape Cod League, where he whiffed 26 percent of the time in 44 games. Defensively, Gentry is a solid-average runner and an instinctual defender, with above-average arm strength that is also consistently accurate. He throws well enough to profile as a right fielder, but his ultimate role will be determined by the progress of his hit tool and strikeout rate.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: Gentry started his collegiate career at junior college powerhouse Walters State in Tennessee, leading the team with 18 home runs as a freshman. He continued to hit during two seasons at Alabama and led the team in many key categories. The Royals drafted Gentry in the third round in 2020, signed him for $750,000, then got him on the field for instructional league. No Royals prospect took as big of a jump forward in 2022 as Gentry. Hampered by a knee injury that limited him to 44 games in his first pro season at High-A Quad Cities in 2021, Gentry returned to the level and hit .336/.434/.516 against Midwest League pitchers. Promoted to Double-A Northwest Arkansas on June 14, he took no time at all adjusting to Texas League pitchers and compiled a .972 OPS with 16 home runs in 73 games. Key to Gentry's breakout at Double-A were improvements to his strikeout rate--26% at High-A to 20% at Double-A--and a spike in power production that saw his isolated slugging percentage climb more than 50 points.
  
  Scouting Report: Gentry shows plenty of pop from the right side with a low-maintenance swing that keeps him consistent at the plate. He's patient in the box with a good knowledge of the strike zone. Gentry bought into the Royals' revamped hitting program, becoming a patient hitter with the ability to pick the part of the zone in which to be aggressive. He's a capable defender at both corner outfield spots, with an above-average arm that is suited for right field. He stole 10 bases in 2022, but as an average runner who may slow down as he matures, speed isn't expected to be a big part of his game.
  
  The Future: Gentry has a chance to be a corner outfield regular with more experience, and he should be ready for Triple-A in 2023.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hitting: 55. Power: 55. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 55
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: Gentry started his collegiate career at junior college powerhouse Walters State in Tennessee, leading the team with 18 home runs as a freshman. He continued to hit during two seasons at Alabama and led the team in many key categories. The Royals drafted Gentry in the third round in 2020, signed him for $750,000, then got him on the field for instructional league. No Royals prospect took as big of a jump forward in 2022 as Gentry. Hampered by a knee injury that limited him to 44 games in his first pro season at High-A Quad Cities in 2021, Gentry returned to the level and hit .336/.434/.516 against Midwest League pitchers. Promoted to Double-A Northwest Arkansas on June 14, he took no time at all adjusting to Texas League pitchers and compiled a .972 OPS with 16 home runs in 73 games. Key to Gentry's breakout at Double-A were improvements to his strikeout rate--26% at High-A to 20% at Double-A--and a spike in power production that saw his isolated slugging percentage climb more than 50 points.
  
  Scouting Report: Gentry shows plenty of pop from the right side with a low-maintenance swing that keeps him consistent at the plate. He's patient in the box with a good knowledge of the strike zone. Gentry bought into the Royals' revamped hitting program, becoming a patient hitter with the ability to pick the part of the zone in which to be aggressive. He's a capable defender at both corner outfield spots, with an above-average arm that is suited for right field. He stole 10 bases in 2022, but as an average runner who may slow down as he matures, speed isn't expected to be a big part of his game.
  
  The Future: Gentry has a chance to be a corner outfield regular with more experience, and he should be ready for Triple-A in 2023.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hitting: 55. Power: 55. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 55
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 50/High
  
  August Update: Now one of the Royals fastest rising prospects, Gentry showed no trouble adapting to Double-A pitching.
  
  Midseason Update: Healthy for the first time since joining the Royals organization, Gentry started off hot in High-A and has continued raking in Double-A. He stands out most for the consistency of his hit tool, and a plus arm suits for right field.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  A 6-foot-2, 210-pound outfielder, Gendry has shown intriguing power potential throughout his collegiate career, and has solid-average or better supplemental tools to go along with that juice. After spending his freshman season at Walters State (Tenn.) JC, where he led the team with 18 home runs, Gentry transferred to Alabama, where he led Crimson Tide starters in average (.310), hits (65), home runs (13) RBI (42) slugging (.552) and total bases (116). Scouts believe Gentry has 60- or 65-grade raw power, enough to profile as an everyday outfielder in a corner, but scouts have some hesitation about his hit tool thanks to high strikeout rates. He whiffed 51 times in 210 at-bats as a sophomore and also struggled with strikeouts last summer in the Cape Cod League, where he whiffed 26 percent of the time in 44 games. Defensively, Gentry is a solid-average runner and an instinctual defender, with above-average arm strength that is also consistently accurate. He throws well enough to profile as a right fielder, but his ultimate role will be determined by the progress of his hit tool and strikeout rate.
• December, 2019 Scouting Report
  A 6-foot-2, 210-pound outfielder, Gendry has shown intriguing power potential throughout his collegiate career, and has solid-average or better supplemental tools to go along with that juice. After spending his freshman season at Walters State (Tenn.) JC, where he led the team with 18 home runs, Gentry transferred to Alabama, where he led Crimson Tide starters in average (.310), hits (65), home runs (13) RBI (42) slugging (.552) and total bases (116). Scouts believe Gentry has 60- or 65-grade raw power, enough to profile as an everyday outfielder in a corner, but scouts have some hesitation about his hit tool thanks to high strikeout rates. He whiffed 51 times in 210 at-bats as a sophomore and also struggled with strikeouts last summer in the Cape Cod League, where he whiffed 26 percent of the time in 44 games. Defensively, Gentry is a solid-average runner and an instinctual defender, with above-average arm strength that is also consistently accurate. He throws well enough to profile as a right fielder, but his ultimate role will be determined by the progress of his hit tool and strikeout rate.