Royals sign four selections from 2011 Draft

 The Kansas City Royals announced today that the club has signed four selections from the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft.  The Royals inked right-handed pitcher and fourth-rounder Kyle Smith, third baseman and fifth-rounder Patrick Leonard, right-handed pitcher and 29th-rounder Jake Junis and right-handed pitcher and 30th-pick Christian Binford.

Smith, 18, is a 6-foot, 180-pound pitcher from Santaluces High School in Lantana, Fla.  Smith, who signed with the Royals in lieu of pitching for the University of Florida, was 9-1 with a 0.40 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 69.1 innings for the Santaluces Chiefs.

The 18-year-old Leonard is a right-handed hitting third baseman from St. Thomas High School in Houston, Texas.  The 6-foot-2, 190-pounder led his high school to the Texas state 5-A private school title in the spring and was headed to play baseball at the University of Georgia before signing with Kansas City.

Junis, 18, is a 6-foot-5, 210-pound right-handed pitcher from Rock Falls (Ill.) High School.  The two-way standout posted a 1.10 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 51.0 innings pitched while batting .485 with 10 home runs and 54 RBI.  Also a first-team All-State basketball player, Junis has forgone a baseball scholarship from North Carolina State University to sign with the Royals.

The 18-year-old Binford is a 6-foot-7, 215-pound right-handed pitcher from Mercersburg (Pa.) Academy. A native of Hagerstown, Md., Binford was 8-1 with a 0.40 ERA and 74 strikeouts against just four walks in 52.0 innings and was signed away from a commitment to the University of Virginia.