One afternoon an intrasquad game interrupts the routine. Allard Baird, the Royals assistant general manager, is here from Kansas City to observe. He eventually will recommend which players to promote, which to let go. Royals officials sit behind home plate with a radar gun to measure the speed of pitches. Anything over 90 mph is good.
Scouts also take notes on how players hit, field, run and throw.
The game is a showcase for top prospects such as Junior Guerrero, the team's minor-league pitcher of the year. After a while, however, coaches and scouts grow bored. Then Pena takes the mound. His first pitch plunks the batter in the helmet. But as he keeps pitching, the Royals officials stir.