The Arizona Complex League Royals are a Rookie-level affiliate of the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

, competing in the

Arizona Complex League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it f ...

of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at

Surprise Stadium Surprise Stadium is a baseball venue located at the Surprise Recreation Campus athletic facility in Surprise, Arizona, United States. The stadium opened in 2002 and seats 10,714 people. It is the spring training facility for the Kansas City ...

Surprise, Arizona Surprise is a city in Maricopa County, in the U.S. state of Arizona. The population was 143,148 at the 2020 census, up from 117,517 in 2010 and just 30,848 in 2000. The city has a Aquatics Center and Maricopa County's northwest regional libra ...

. The team is composed mainly of players who are in their first year of

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

either as draftees or non-drafted free agents.

History

The team first competed in the

Arizona League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it f ...

(AZL) in 2003, succeeding the

' Florida-based rookie team, the

Gulf Coast League Royals The Gulf Coast League (GCL) Royals were a minor league baseball franchise in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League from 1971–1978, 1982–1983 and 1985–2002. The club was owned and operated by the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball. Th ...

. That season, the team fielded two squads in the league, differentiated by numerical suffixes (1 and 2). The Royals 1 squad won the league championship, defeating the

AZL Rangers The Arizona Complex League Rangers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Texas Rangers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona. The team is composed ...

in the title game. Starting in 2004, the team fielded a single squad in the league, except for the 2014 season when the team did not compete. The team returned to the league in 2015. Prior to the 2021 season, the Arizona League was renamed as the

(ACL). For the 2021 season, the team is again fielding two squads, differentiated by color suffixes (Blue and Gold).

Roster

References

External links

Official website
{{Arizona Sports Baseball teams established in 2003 Arizona Complex League teams Professional baseball teams in Arizona Kansas City Royals minor league affiliates 2003 establishments in Arizona Sports in Surprise, Arizona