KC Royals - KIDS Edition

[SubGod22]

No article on the Omaha site from last nights game. There's a bit in the Royals thread since Chen and Davies both pitched in rehab assignments. Omaha won 6-3. Monty is pitching tonight.

Drillers win slugfest in ninth

SPRINGDALE, AR - Drillers' backup catcher Lars Davis took Naturals' closer Patrick Keating downtown for a three run shot in the top of the ninth inning, helping the Tulsa Drillers comeback for a 9-7 victory over the Naturals on Monday evening at Arvest Ballpark.
With one out and runners on the corners Davis took a curveball from Keating (2-3) and cleared the wall in left-center field, sending Keating and the Naturals (29-30) to the loss and Keating his fifth blown save of the season. With the Travelers victory over Springfield earlier, that puts Northwest Arkansas two games out of first place.

Miner pitches tonight.
Seratelli, Perez voted in as All-Stars

SPRINGDALE, AR - Naturals' do-it-all utilityman Anthony Seratelli and catcher Salvador Perez will represent the Naturals at this season's Texas League All-Star Game, set for Wednesday, June 29th in San Antonio, TX.

Seratelli, voted in as the starting designated hitter, has been a primary offensive catalyst for the Naturals this season, batting .320 with six homers and 27 RBI's, second on the club, in 54 games. His six homers double the regular season total from 2010 for the 28-year old from Matawan, NJ. Seratelli has logged time all over the field, at first, second, shortstop, and outfield. He was originally acquired by the Royals in February of 2007 when they purchased his contract from an unaffiliated independent league team.

Perez will serve as a reserve catcher for the North Division squad. The defensive-minded backstop is batting .247 with three homers and nine RBI's on the season as one of the youngest players in the circuit. More importantly, the 21-year old Valencia, Venezuela resident leads all Texas League backstops in games played (44) and assists (39), and leads all Texas League catchers in catching would-be opposing base stealers, gunning down runners at a 44.4% rate (24 CS in 54 opposing SB attempts). Perez was ranked prior to the season by Baseball America as the Kansas City Royals' 17th best prospect.

BLUE ROCKS BLANKED IN LYNCHBURG, 5-0

Lynchburg, VA - Outdone by one. Such was the case in the hits column for the Wilmington Blue Rocks in their series opener with the Lynchburg Hillcats on Monday night. Alas, runs are what matter, and Lynchburg (28-35) held the advantage there as well, 5-0, as the Blue Rocks (32-30) suffered their fourth shutout loss of the season. Combined with Frederick's 5-4 defeat of Winston-Salem, the Blue Rocks have been eliminated from first-half title contention as the Keys secured the Northern Division's first-half crown and a playoff berth.

Pimentel will start game one tonight. Mariot will start the second.

Cougars Edge Dragons, 5-4 on Sunday

Geneva, Ill.-Ryan Stovall and Cheslor Cuthbert each hit two-run home runs as the Kane County Cougars defeated the Dayton Dragons 5-4 on Sunday afternoon. The Cougars avoided a sweep of the three-game series with the win after Dayton had won the first two games of the weekend set.

Dayton took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning when Billy Hamilton reached on a two-base error, went to third on Devin Lohman's sacrifice, and scored on a single to left by Dominic D'Anna.

But Stovall belted a two-run home run in the third to give Kane County the lead, and Cuthbert launched a two-run blast in the fourth to make it 4-1. The Cougars added an unearned run in the seventh to lead 5-1.

The game featured the ejection of Kane County starting pitcher Yordano Ventura after a hit batsman. After Renken hit Kane County's Geulin Beltre with a pitch in the bottom of the fourth, umpires issued a warning to both benches. Ventura hit Berset, the third batter of the next inning, and was thrown out of the game along with Kane County manager Vance Wilson.

The DSL Royals are now 7-7.

Burlington begins play on the 21st.

Idaho Falls begins play on the 20th.

[SubGod22]

Here's the article for Monday's game: Home Runs, Rehabbing Hurlers Lead Chasers

OMAHA, Neb. - The television debut of the Omaha Storm Chasers did not fail to disappoint, as the Chasers powered their way past the Iowa Cubs 6-3 Monday night in front of 5,037 fans at Werner Park. The live broadcast by Kansas City's Time Warner Cable Metro Sports was the first in the club's history at Werner Park, the first of at least three television games that will air this season.
Johnny Giavotella, Mike Aviles and Lorenzo Cain all went deep for Omaha during the game, providing starter Bruce Chen and winning pitcher Kyle Davies (1-0) with enough run support to hold off the I-Cubs. Chen and Davies were in town on big-league rehabilitation assignments, after both throwing for Double-A Northwest Arkansas this past Wednesday.

Chen went the first four frames, allowing two runs on six hits with one strikeout, while Davies closed out the final five innings, giving up a run on four hits while striking out five. Neither pitcher issued a walk, throwing 92 of their collective 136 pitches for strikes.

Giavotella got the Storm Chasers on the board early, powering a two-run home run just two batters into the bottom of the first to make it 2-0. Then, after Iowa pushed ahead 3-2 in the fifth, Aviles came through with a towering three-run blast off losing pitcher Austin Bibens-Dirkx (3-3), putting the Chasers in front for good. An inning later, Cain capped the scoring with a solo drive well beyond the wall in left.

Defensive Miscues Plague Storm Chasers

OMAHA, Neb. - A series of Omaha miscues turned a two-run lead into a six-run loss Tuesday night at Werner Park, spoiling a strong performance by Storm Chasers starting pitcher Mike Montgomery. Iowa tallied three runs in the seventh and five more in the eighth, rallying for the 11-5 win.
The turning point of the game took place in the top of the seventh inning, with one out and the bases full and the Storm Chasers clinging to a 5-4 lead. Iowa catcher Chris Robinson took a hack at a Blake Johnson offering and rolled an easy double play ball to shortstop Mike Aviles, but after a clean relay to second for the second out, Johnny Giavotella's toss to first short-hopped Clint Robinson and skipped toward the Iowa dugout. Two runs came home on the play, adding to an inning that began with the second fielding error of the night by third baseman Lance Zawadzki.

Omaha starting pitcher Mike Montgomery was the story early on, striking out the first three batters he faced and punching out a season-high eight Cubs hitters in his five innings of work. He did allow a pair of runs on two hits and five walks, though only one run was earned. Three Chasers relievers, including Johnson, losing pitcher Robinson Tejeda (0-1) and Blaine Hardy, gave up nine runs (six earned) on 13 hits over four innings. The four Storm Chasers errors equaled a season high.

Mario Santiago pitches tonight.

Naturals break bats out vs. Drillers

SPRINGDALE, AR - The evening started with seven straight runs for the Naturals over the first two frames and the hits just kept coming from there as Northwest Arkansas toppled the Tulsa Drillers by a 16-2 final Tuesday evening at Arvest Ballpark.
As Drillers' starter Josh Sullivan had difficulties with the strike zone right from the start, Naturals' bats were there and pounced on him right away, getting four runs on two hits in the bottom of the first. Christian Colon drew a one out walk and moved to third on a double from Wil Myers. Sullivan (2-4) was able to get Anthony Seratelli to ground out, which scored the Naturals' first run, but the third out proved evasive.

Sullivan issued a free pass to Tim Smith, and then a passed ball by Tulsa catcher Wilin Rosario allowed Myers to come around to score. Jamie Romak was then grazed by a pitch from Sullivan and then Mario Lisson walked to load the bases. Ben Theriot's ensuing single scored both Smith and Romak for the 4-0 lead.

Northwest Arkansas (30-30) kept pouring it on from there as Sullivan continued to unravel. Colon, who was 3-for-3 with four runs scored on the night, drew a one out walk and Myers, who was 3-for-4 with four runs scored, also walked. Sullivan's balk moved them both up 90 feet before Seratelli's triple brought them both in for a 6-0 lead. Tim Smith followed with a sac fly to score Seratelli.

Dwyer pitches next. Myers, Naturals overwhelm Drillers

Wil Myers recorded his first three-hit game since May 4 and tied a career high with four runs scored Tuesday as the Northwest Arkansas Naturals crushed the visiting Tulsa Drillers, 16-2.

Northwest Arkansas won for the fourth time in five games while setting a season mark for runs scored. Three different Naturals drove in three runs, while three more plated a pair.

The Royals' Double-A affiliate jumped all over Drillers starter Josh Sullivan in the first inning, scoring four times on two hits, including a double by Myers, three walks and a hit batter. The Naturals tacked on three more in the second as Sullivan walked two, balked and yielded a two-run triple to Anthony Seratelli.

Myers, MLB.com's preseason No. 16 prospect, doubled and scored again in the fourth, struck out in the sixth and singled and scored for the fourth time in the eighth.

Former first-round pick Christian Colon reached base five times for Northwest Arkansas, going 3-for-3 with two walks and four runs scored. Mario Lisson clubbed a two-run shot, his team-leading 10th, in the seventh and Jamie Romak added a two-run blast in the eighth.

The Naturals went 6-for-9 with runners in scoring position; Rosario singled in Tulsa's lone at-bat in the same situation.

ROCKS SPLIT TWINBILL AT LYNCHBURG

Lynchburg, VA - Starter Elisaul Pimentel (4-3) nearly hurled his first professional shutout in a 3-1 win before the Wilmington Blue Rocks (33-31) nearly pulled off an improbable comeback in a 7-3 nightcap loss. All told, the Blue Crew split a doubleheader with the Lynchburg Hillcats (29-36) at City Stadium on Tuesday night, getting one-hit in the finale.
The Blue Rocks never trailed in the opener. An Andrelton Simmons' throwing error allowed Nick Francis to cross as the team's first of two runs in the second inning. Alex McClure singled John Whittleman in for the second against starter Chris Masters (4-3). The lefty gave up an RBI single to Francis in the third that rounded out Wilmington's scoring.

During that time, Pimentel dominated. He had retired 13 of 14 before Adam Milligan drew a one-out walk in the seventh. Whittleman made an eye-opening leaping catch of a Joey Terdoslavich hard liner to third thereafter and Pimentel attacked. The right-hander got two strikes on Joe Leonard, placing him a pitch away from his third career complete game and his first shutout. Alas, Leonard doubled just fair inside of third, allowing Milligan to score from first for a 3-1 score.

Melville pitches this evening. WHITTLEMAN ADDED TO ALL-STAR TEAM

Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks are proud to announce infielder John Whittleman has been added to the 2011 Carolina League All-Star team. Whittleman will be joined on the squad by teammates Jake Odorizzi, Michael Mariot, Rey Navarro and Whit Merrifield, who were all named to the team when the original roster was released last week.
Whittleman is the only Rocks position player to earn Carolina League Player of the Week honors this season. He was recognized by the league on May 16 after recording eight extra-base knocks and driving in five runs in a six-game span. On the season, Whittleman has 22 extra-base hits and leads the team with six home runs. The Houston, TX native, who was acquired by the Royals in a trade for a player to be named later from the Texas Rangers on March 25, 2011, has also provided Wilmington with defensive flexibility. Whittleman has split time almost evenly between first base and third base in the field. He is tied for fourth in the C.L. in walks (32).

KC lost. Royals won.

[SubGod22]

The Starting 9

Week of June 5 thru June 11

Our weekly look at the top performers in the Royals Minor league system.

Relatively tough week in the Royals minor league system without many pitchers putting up performances worthy of a nod on the list. Clint Robinson takes his usual spot on the list claiming the #1 spot with some big power.

[SubGod22]

Bottom Falls Out During Eight-Run Eighth

OMAHA, Neb. - The Omaha Storm Chasers were unable to protect a late lead against the Iowa Cubs, surrendering eight runs in the eighth inning en route to a 9-5 loss Wednesday night at Werner Park. Omaha reliever Jeremy Jeffress (1-3) recorded just one out in the frame, giving up seven runs - six earned - on five hits and a walk, while also committing a fielding error on a bunt and allowing a grand slam.
For a brief moment, it looked like Jeffress might have a chance to recover from his error, which loaded the bases with nobody out and the ballgame still 2-1 in favor of Omaha. But after retiring Augie Ojeda on a pop-up and going 0-2 on catcher Chris Robinson, Jeffress hung a curveball which was looped into shallow left-center for a game-tying single. Three batters later Scales went deep, which was immediately followed by a Bryan LaHair homer, suddenly making it 9-2 Iowa.

Mike Aviles had a big night for the Storm Chasers, going 2-for-3 with a pair of home runs and all four runs batted in. Lorenzo Cain went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in the ninth, his third consecutive game with a homer, while Jarrod Dyson went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and scored twice. Clint Robinson added a pair of base hits to raise his batting average to .347, snapping a two-game hitless string after hitting safely in 12-straight games entering the series.

Dwyer, Naturals shutout Drillers

SPRINGDALE, AR - Chris Dwyer put some of his early season demons in the rearview mirror and the Northwest Arkansas offense backed him up as three Naturals pitchers combined to blank the Tulsa Drillers 4-0 on Wednesday afternoon at Arvest Ballpark.
Dwyer (2-5), who has faced some control problems in nearly every start, entered Wednesday's game with an ERA of 8.44 but mowed down Tulsa batters with consistency through the game's first three frames, limiting the Drillers to just a single hit. In his second three innings he battled through the wildness as his defense made solid plays behind him to secure the win.

In six innings he yielded four hits, three walks and had the nine strikeouts in arguably his best outing for the season. His mound opponent, Friedrich (4-5) suffered the loss, going 5 1/3 and allowing nine hits, three runs (two earned), while walking one and fanning four.

Baumann starts tonight.

BREAKOUT BATS CARRY ROCKS TO VICTORY

Lynchburg, VA - John Whittleman's team-leading seventh home run tied it and Alex McClure's third hit of the night pushed in the go-ahead run as the Wilmington Blue Rocks grabbed a 4-3 eighth-inning lead that went final on Wednesday night. Their offensive heroics combined with two strikeouts and a perfect ninth from hard-throwing lefty Ryan Dennick, who recorded his third save as the Blue Crew (34-31) beat the Lynchburg Hillcats (29-37) on Wednesday night. The win made for a winning road trip as well, coincidentally enough at 4-3.
The Blue Rocks entered the eighth down 3-2 when Whittleman sent a 3-2 pitch from reliever Andrew Wilson (1-2) over the fence in right-center field. It was the third full count of the night for the Carolina League All-Star infielder, and his second extra-base hit of the evening. Tim Ferguson then worked a walk and Jose Bonilla sacrificed him up to second.

It made a winner out of right-hander Dusty Odenbach. In his third outing as a Blue Rock, Odenbach (1-0) allowed one run over three frames. He walked one, struck out two, and allowed two base hits. Starter Tim Melville departed a tie game after five frames of two-run ball. The ranked prospect gave up six hits and no walks while striking out four and issuing a wild pitch.

Arguelles and Sample doing the piggyback thing tonight.

KC lost to league leading Burlington.
Royals defeated the Mets.

[SubGod22]

Idaho Falls Announces Roster Looks like they'll have 9 of our draft picks playing for them. Including two top 10 picks. First game is Monday.

[SubGod22]

Suppan Sparkles on 'Diamond Dig' Night

Before 200 lucky ladies got a chance to dig up the Werner Park infield dirt in search of thousands of dollars' worth of jewelry, the Storm Chasers put this one on "ice" with six unanswered runs through the middle innings. Cody Clark belted his second homer of the year to give the Chasers a 2-1 lead in the second, following a Kila Ka'aihue RBI ground out. Clark, who did not play over the first six weeks of the season, will now serve as the club's primary catcher after Manny Pina was placed on the 7-day disabled list prior to Thursday's game. Ryan Eigsti was called up from High-A Wilmington to provide a backup.

After the teams traded zeros through the next two innings, Irving Falu ripped a run-scoring single in the fifth and Lorenzo Cain drove in two in the bottom of the sixth after Iowa intentionally walked David Lough to load the bases. Johnny Giavotella later added an RBI single, giving the second baseman his 25th hit and 17th run batted in during the month of June.

Mendoza starts tonight.

Yeah Buddy! Baumann mows down Cards

Working with a 75 pitch limit, Baumann (2-2), from the town of Billings, MO just 15 minutes outside Springfield, established a quick pace right from the start, and after working around a pair of hits in the first inning, limited the Cardinals offense to just two more hits over the next six frames. Only two runners reached second base as Baumann allowed just four hits. He didn't issue a walk, struck out seven batters, and got 58 of his 75 pitches in for strikes.

Smith starts next.

ROCKS ON TOP BY NINE RUNS AS GAME SUSPENDED IN FOURTH INNING

Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks offense unloaded on the Winston-Salem Dash, and then Mother Nature unloaded on Frawley Stadium. In their first three trips to the plate on Thursday night the Rocks scored nine runs on 12 hits, including four doubles and three homers, en route to a 9-0 lead. Then the rains came pouring down in the fourth, finally causing the game to be suspended with two outs and a runner at first base in the bottom-half of that frame.
Wilmington wasted little time at the plate, putting its first two batters of the game on courtesy of a double by Whit Merrifield and a single off the bat of Alex McClure. McClure seemed to kill the Rocks' momentum though when he was picked off first. The shortstop got himself caught in a rundown, and Merrifield broke for home. He got stuck between third and the plate long enough for McClure to circle around to third before the center fielder was tagged out for the inning's first out. Rey Navarro popped the next pitch up to first, and a once promising inning seemed to go down the toilet.

Nick Francis came to the rescue however, lacing an RBI double to deep right that put Wilmington in front, 1-0. John Whittleman followed with a bouncer that snuck just inside the first-base chalk for a run-scoring two-bag knock that made it, 2-0.

Odorizzi will pitch the 2nd game today.

[SubGod22]

Mendoza Masterful in Omaha's win over Round Rock

Round Rock, TX - Luis Mendoza sparkled through eight scoreless innings as Omaha blanked Round Rock, 4-0, Friday night in the opener of a four-game set at the Dell Diamond. The Storm Chasers improved to 38-30 and maintained their 2 1/2 game lead over Memphis in the American Conference North Division with their first win over the Express in five tries this season.

David Lough scored the first run of the game in the fourth inning on a Neil Ramirez wild pitch before Jarrod Dyson singled with one out in the fifth, stole second base and crossed the plate on a Johnny Giavotella double to push the Omaha advantage to 2-0.


Lorenzo Cain lengthened the lead to 4-0 in the sixth with a two-run home run, his fourth long ball in the last five games and his eighth of the season.

Chen will start tonight.

Fantastic Friday: Naturals wallop Cards

SPRINGDALE, AR - Christian Colon hit the first grand slam of his professional career and tallied five RBI's in all as the Naturals came from behind to beat the Springfield Cardinals by a 15-6 final on Friday night at Arvest Ballpark.
Colon's slam into the bullpen café came in the bottom of the fourth, which began with the Naturals down 5-1 after taking an early 1-0 lead and then falling behind.

Northwest Arkansas (33-30) seemed poised to get out to a big lead in the first due to wildness on the part of Springfield starter Kevin Thomas but ended up settling for one run scored by Wil Myers on a wild pitch. Myers walked and moved to second, and then to third on wild pitches by Thomas. After Anthony Seratelli walked, he stole second and Tim Smith also drew a walk to load the bases. Myers scored on Thomas' third wild pitch, but the next batter, Jeff Bianchi lined out to end further damage.

Davies starts tonight.

WILMINGTON SPLITS PAIR WITH WINSTON-SALEM

Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks split a pair of decisions with the Winston-Salem Dash on Friday night at Frawley Stadium. The Blue Crew beat the Dash, 10-5 in the resumption of Thursday's suspended contest, while Winston-Salem rallied to top the Rocks, 3-1 in the nightcap.
Wilmington was one crucial out or one clutch hit away from a potential sweep. The Rocks took a 1-0 advantage into the sixth inning with their ace, Jake Odorizzi, on the mound. But the right-hander loaded the bases with only one out in the frame on a single, a walk and an error by third baseman Rey Navarro.

A fatigued Odorizzi (5-2) showed enough moxie to fan his final batter of the night, getting Luis Sierra on a called third strike. Reliever Ryan Dennick replaced the right-hander, but the southpaw allowed a two-run single to pinch hitter Jose Martinez that put Winston-Salem in front for good.

Marks pitches this evening.
Odorizzi showed he can come back from a tough game... Odorizzi rebounds, strikes out 11

Jake Odorizzi recovered well from his worst outing of the season, but he still couldn't avoid dropping his second consecutive start.
MLB.com's preseason No. 37 prospect struck out 11 over 5 2/3 innings but surrendered two unearned runs as the Class A Advanced Wilmington Blue Rocks lost to the Winston-Salem Dash, 3-1.

Odorizzi (5-2) gave up four hits and two walks while registering his fourth double-digit strikeout game of the season. His career high is 13, established on May 10 in a win over Salem.

His last time out, Odorizzi gave up a season-high seven runs on four hits and four walks over a season-low three innings against the Dash. That outing marked the only time this year that he yielded more than three runs. It was also the only outing in which he walked more batters than he struck out.

On Friday, the 21-year-old right-hander's performance was more in line with his season numbers. He found his groove relatively quickly, retiring nine straight batters -- six via strikeouts -- between the second and fourth innings.

"Jake was good. It was good to see," Wilmington manager Brian Rupp said. "He had a tough game in Winston-Salem and he had to bounce back like he did, made some tough pitches when he had to. The strikeout he got for his last out was huge."

[SubGod22]

Homer Happy Express Handle Storm Chasers

Omaha scored first for a second straight night when David Lough led off the second with a triple and scored on a Davis throwing error. Lance Zawadzki's two-out single later in the inning drove in Lorenzo Cain to make it 2-0.


The Express, who had been blanked in their prior two contests, cut the lead in half in the bottom of the frame on a solo shot by Luis Cruz before the visitors answered right back in the third when Mike Aviles tripled and scored on a Clint Robinson sacrifice fly.

Bruce Chen allowed four runs on five hits, while walking one and fanning seven, over five frames in his second rehab start with Omaha and was followed to the hill by Kevin Pucetas, pitching for the first time in 11 days.

Round Rock Pounds Out Another Win Over Chasers

Montgomery was charged with nine runs on 10 hits over three frames in his shortest outing of the year and remains winless over nine turns since May 4.


Omaha broke through for four runs in the fourth, highlighted by Kila Ka'aihue's two-run double, to trim the deficit to 9-4 but would get no closer than four the rest of the way. Johnny Giavotella and Lorenzo Cain paced a 17-hit attack with three singles apiece while Ka'aihue added a two-run home run in the ninth to account for the final margin.

Santiago starts tonight.

Naturals' bats come up short in loss

Davies pitched better than his final line indicated. He yielded five hits and the three runs in six frames while fanning four. Between two Double-A rehabs and a start with Triple-A Omaha, Davies hasn't issued a walk. Schneider (3-5) began the sixth inning by striking out Wil Myers before giving way to Jose Rada who followed with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief.

Naturals win slugfest over Springfield

SPRINGDALE, AR - The Naturals offense exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, putting an exclamation point on a wild affair that ended in a 15-10 Northwest Arkansas victory at Arvest Ballpark.
Northwest Arkansas (34-31) plated a franchise record eight runs in the eighth inning, besting the previous record of seven, which incidentally has occurred several times, most recently on Friday evening. The back-and-forth affair featured six lead changes, several contested calls, an ejection to Springfield skipper Pop Warner, 32 hits, and 25 runs. Every starter in the Naturals' lineup recorded a hit and scored a run.

After Naturals' starter Zach Miner worked around a hit batsman and a walk in the first, the Naturals got out to the early lead in the bottom of the first. Anthony Seratelli singled with two out and Tim Smith drew a walk before Jeff Bianchi singled through the left side to score Seratelli, putting the Naturals in front 1-0. For Seratelli, it was the first of four hits on the night.

Dwyer starts tonight.

WILMINGTON DUO LEADS TO LOPSIDED WIN

Wilmington, DE - Justin Marks was overpowering on the mound and Rey Navarro put on a power display at the plate. The duo's dynamic performance helped lead the Wilmington Blue Rocks to a 7-2 victory over the Winston-Salem Dash on Saturday night at Frawley Stadium in the penultimate game of the 2011 season's first half.
Marks (3-5) established a new career-high by registering 12 strikeouts in his 6.1 frames of work. The southpaw set the tone early, fanning the side in the first and recording five of the contest's first six outs on strikes. He retired the side in order three times and at one point set down eight straight batters. He left with only two runs, five hits and two free passes on his line.

Marks' departure came with Wilmington on top by three runs thanks in large part to Navarro, who finished the night 3-for-5 with two homers, a double and three runs scored.

The third baseman jumpstarted a two-out rally in the opening frame when he launched a solo dinger that snuck just inside the right-field foul pole. b>Nick Francis, John Whittleman and Yem Prades followed with successive singles to make it, 2-0 Blue Crew.

ROCKS DROP FIRST-HALF FINALE

Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks had their Father's Day spoiled by the Winston-Salem Dash on Sunday as they dropped a 3-2 decision in the 2011 season's first-half finale.
All of the offense came early at Frawley Stadium. Winston-Salem took a 1-0 lead in the opening frame thanks to a triple by Jared Mitchell and an RBI infield single by Jose Martinez. The Rocks responded with a pair in their half of the first. Carlo Testa laced a single to left and Rey Navarro followed with a two-run homer that easily cleared the right-field fence.

Blue Rocks won't play again until Thursday. Rocks' Marks fans career-high 12

Outings like Saturday night will make the Blue Rocks consider keeping Justin Marks in the rotation.
Marks recorded a career-high 12 strikeouts over 6 1/3 innings for his first win in a month as the Wilmington Blue Rocks cruised to a 7-2 victory over the Winston-Salem Dash.

The Royals prospect allowed two runs on four hits in his longest outing since May 31 against Kinston. He set down eight in a row at one point and lowered his ERA from 5.12 to 4.91.

"Keeping the ball down, that's been my problem all year," Marks said. "Getting ahead of guys, whether it's a first-pitch curveball, slider or changeup."

Selected by the A's in the third round of the 2009 Draft, Marks (3-5) was acquired by the Royals last November in the trade that sent David DeJesus to Oakland. He struggled in his previous two starts in the Class A Advanced Carolina League, surrendering nine earned runs on 17 hits over 11 innings.

Looks like Jonathan Dooley will be the starter for the Chukars today.

[SubGod22]

Prospect Montgomery poised despite struggles

So what's wrong with Montgomery? The short answer -- and correct one -- is "nothing."

"You're going to have struggles," Montgomery said. "Me having to deal with these and now starting to see, 'OK, maybe if I use my fastball a little more and attack the zone more, I'm going to have more success.' That's really all I'm trying to do, is perform well and help the team win. I think the more I pitch here and the more I pitch as I get older, the better I'm going to get."

What gets lost in the hype over the left-hander's talent and his up-and-down performances is he's only 21 years old, playing at a level at which most of the hitters he's facing are 25 or 26.

"It's something that really, to me, has helped his career, is coming to this level and finding out it's not that easy," Omaha manager Mike Jirschele said. "He's had a taste of that, and he knows what he has to do now as far as getting better and getting more consistent with command of the strike zone."

[SubGod22]

Six-run Fifth Sinks Storm Chasers

Clint Robinson's two-out RBI double in the first inning gave the Storm Chasers an early lead that didn't last very long after Davis smashed a solo homer in the bottom of the inning to tie the game.


Omaha regained the lead in the fourth when Lorenzo Cain tripled home Robinson and scored on an errant pickoff attempt. Kila Ka'aihue then smacked his second home run in as many days to extend the margin to 4-1.


Storm Chasers starter Mario Santiago had retired nine in a row before being engulfed by the long ball in the fifth. A leadoff walk and two singles loaded the bases for Robinson Diaz, who launched a grand slam to move the hosts in front for the first time. Davis belted his second of the night, a two-run clout, three batters later, to increase the advantage to 7-4 with Round Rock's 11th round tripper over the final three games of the series.

Naturals shut out in Tulsa Monday

Chris Dwyer (2-6) began his start well, striking out Tim Wheeler to open the game and working around Mike Mitchell's one-out double in the bottom of the third.

The Drillers got to Dwyer in the bottom of the fourth. Ben Paulsen led off with a single and Darin Holcomb followed with a double to center, scoring Paulsen to give Tulsa a 1-0 lead. With the help of catcher Salvador Perez, who caught Holcomb trying to steal second, Dwyer managed to escape a big inning.

Dwyer again got into a tight spot in the sixth, loading the bases with one out. He exited after 5 1/3 innings of work, recording three walks and three strikeouts. In relief of Dwyer, Kevin Chapman got James Cesario to ground into a double play to end the inning. Chapman then fired a scoreless seventh to lower his ERA to 0.96.

Buddy Baumann to pitch today.

Kane County is 28-41

Burlington Pounds Kernersville for Exhibition Win

The Royals broke the game open in the bottom of the seventh as they batted around. Burlington put up six runs on three hits including a pinch hit homerun from Justin Trapp. Trapp, who has never homered as a professional, took a pitch from Zach Russell-Myers deep over the left field fence. The two-run shot gave the home team a four run lead. Later in the inning, with runners on the corners, right fielder Jovan Pickett smacked a ball to the fence in right-center. With a play at third looming, Pickett slid, and the relay throw got passed third baseman Dario Little. Pickett would jump to his feet and slide safely home to score. It was a two-RBI triple with an error that put the Royals up 9-1, a score they would take final.

Robinson Yambati will be the opening day starter today for Burlington.

Ouch...Chukars Drop Season Opener 20-0

The Opening Day crowd of 3,513 saw the Raptors start the game with five straight singles and two runs before a single out was recorded. Ogden would go on to score another run in the third inning, two more in the fifth, seven in the sixth, four in the fourth and four more in the ninth.

The 24-hit barrage left the Chukars offense helpless to keep up. The team did manage eight hits in the shutout, with second baseman Luis Piterson leading the way going 3-4 with a triple in the sixth inning.

Robert Penny will start for the Chukars tonight.

AZL Royals lost to the Rangers 7-8. DSL Royals won in extras 5-4 and are now 11-7.

Looks like info on AZL, DSL and KC will be hard to come by.

[SubGod22]

The Starting 9

Week of June 12 thru June 18

Our weekly look at the top performers in the Royals Minor league system.

Three players who could be challenging for major league roster spots next season lead the way for a starting 9 that is loaded with Naturals players thanks to a stellar homestand.

[SubGod22]

Suppan Superb as Storm Chasers Shut Down Nashville

The Chasers would provide all the offense Suppan would need in the fourth when Clint Robinson walked, moved to second base on a balk and scored on a two-out ground-rule double by Lance Zawadzki, who extended his hitting streak to 11 games.

Omaha created a little distance by adding three runs in the fifth on a run-scoring hit by David Lough and a two-run double by Johnny Giavotella, who entered the game sharing the lead throughout all of minor league baseball with 34 hits during the month of June.

Lorenzo Cain, who played for Nashville last season as a member of the Milwaukee organization, delivered a two-run single in the eighth inning that increased the visitors lead to 6-0. Cain would add an RBI hit in the ninth to score Robinson, who crossed the plate all three times he reached base.

They play a DH tonight with Mendoza and SOS starting.

Bitter aftertaste comes with Tuesday win

Northwest Arkansas plated two runs in the second and never trailed as Buddy Baumann (3-2) turned in another solid start as he emerges into one of the Naturals' most reliable starters. The southpaw pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing one run on just three hits. He issued only one walk and fanned eight.

An RBI groundout by Anthony Seratelli helped the Naturals cash in on Christian Colon's one out double in the first, and Tim Smith's ensuing RBI single brought in Wil Myers, who had singled behind Colon.

Myers, who was 3-for-4 on the night, added an RBI double in the third that put the Naturals up 3-0.

Smith led off with a single in the fourth and came in on an RBI double from Salvador Perez, who moved to third on a Jamie Romak single and scored on an RBI hit from Kurt Mertins that gave the Naturals a 5-0 advantage.

Will Smith pitches tonight.

FRANCIS WINS PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS

Francis batted .458 (11-for-24) with five doubles, a homer, three RBIs and eight runs scored over the seven-day stretch that led up to the All-Star break. Since returning from a three-week stint in Double-A, the Tallahassee, FL native is hitting .383 (18-for-47) with six doubles, a triple, two home runs and nine RBIs.

On the season in Wilmington, Francis has a .302 average with six homers, 30 RBIs and 18 doubles. He has worn out right-handed pitching, batting an astronomical .435 (27-for-62) on the year against righties. Defensively his arm has been a force, as he leads the Carolina League with 10 outfield assists in only 45 games.

Rocks play tomorrow. Starter TBD

KC will play again on the 24th. They finished the first half in 7th (out of 8) and 16.5 games out with a record of 28-41.

Bad Start Dooms Royals in Opening Night Defeat

Yambati's night got off to a horrendous start, as he only recorded one out, while giving up five runs, four of which were earned. The righty allowed three hits and three walks in his short time on the hill. Following his third walk, Burlington Manager Nelson Liriano would go to his bullpen, bringing in California native, Tyler Graham. He would finish the first, and pitch through the third inning. After the bottom of the first, the Royals trailed 5-0, a deficit they would not overcome.

Shortstop Michael Antonio homered to left in the fourth inning to get the road team on the board. Burlington would come close to a comeback in the late innings posting two runs in the eighth and ninth innings. Murray Watts got his first homer of the year in the top half of the eighth inning with an inside-the-park home run. The Royals would not go away in the ninth as Justin Trapp, who homered in the exhibition game on Sunday, went deep for his first home run as a professional to make it a two run game. Burlington could not dig up two more runs, as they open the season with a loss.

Jovan Pickett had three hits, all singles, in four at bats, while Antonio and Watts finished with two hits apiece.

Matt Ridings to start.

Chukars Fall 12-4 to Slugging Raptors

The Raptors picked up right where they left off with Monday night's 20-0 victory, as they scored four runs in the first inning and two more in the second. The Chukars offense meanwhile finally got their first run of the season in the bottom of the first, thanks to a leadoff triple from Tyler Chism and an RBI sacrifice fly from Luis Piterson.

Following a another Raptor run in the top of the fourth, the Chukars offense actually made a charge of their own as they plated three runs to draw to within three at 7-4. The rally started when third baseman Mark Threlkeld reached on a leadoff error my Raptors shortstop Charlie Mirabal. First baseman Dean Espy followed with a single before Ysmelin Alcantara drove in a run with an RBI base knock of his own. After a strikeout from catcher Lance Harper, shortstop Adrian Martinez drove in a run with an RBI single. The final Chukar run scored on a throwing error by Ogden third basemen Jeff Hunt.

The tight game would be short lived however, as Ogden would score another run in the fifth before putting up two runs in both the sixth and ninth to end the game.

Still no word on a starter

DSL lost 4-10.

[RoyalShock]

Should we start mentioning Buddy Baumann's name along with Montgomery, Lamb and Odirizzi? He's been solid this year - 3.58 ERA, 55 IP, 52-24 K/BB (walks a little high, but not awful). Last year at Wilmington - 2.24 ERA, 100 IP, 113-36 K/BB with opponents only hitting .212 against him.

[SubGod22]

Storm Chasers and Sounds Split Twin Bill

Sean O'Sullivan took the hill for Omaha on a rehab start in the nightcap and was touched for run-scoring hits by Erick Almonte and Mat Gamel in the first inning that put the visitors in an early 2-0 hole. Taylor Green led off the second with a home run, his third against the Storm Chasers this season, and another run came across on a wild pitch later in the frame. O'Sullivan was tagged with the loss after giving up four runs on six hits over 2 1/3 innings.

Mazzaro takes the mound today.


Naturals top Tulsa to open half

The decisive blow came in the top of the sixth. With Tulsa (33-38, 0-1) ahead, 2-1, Jeff Bianchi and Anthony Seratelli opened the frame with back-to-back singles. Three batters later, Ben Theriot laced a single up the middle that plated both runners and gave the Naturals (36-32, 1-0) a 3-2 advantage.

That lead stood up, thanks in large part to a quality start from Will Smith (5-6). The left-hander did not allow a hit until the third inning and kept the Drillers off the board through four.

After giving up the home run, Smith recovered and worked through the end of the sixth inning. Smith allowed just two runs on five hits, striking out three batters while walking just one.

Once Smith departed, Natural manager Brian Poldberg turned the game over to the bullpen. Reliever Willy Lebron worked around a hit and a walk in tossing a scoreless seventh inning, fanning a pair of Drillers in the process.

The Naturals' offense gave its 'pen some insurance with a three-run eighth inning. Mario Lisson knocked in a pair of runs with his second double of the game before Nick Van Stratten capped the scoring with an RBI single that put Northwest Arkansas ahead, 6-2.

Kelvin Herrera continued his dominance of Texas League batters, striking out three over two scoreless innings to close out the game. Herrera has now struck out 28 batters and walked just one since being promoted to Double-A.

Osuna is on the mound tonight.


Wilmington starts the 2nd half today. Still no news on who's starting.


Kane County plays tomorrow.


Royals Fall in Princeton for Second Straight Night

Ridings pitched four and a third innings, giving up six runs, four earned, on seven hits, while striking out six. His counterpart, Kendall, went six innings, while allowing three runs on five hits. Marcus Jenson pitched the final three innings with a three run lead and recorded the save. Out of the bullpen for the Royals, Malcom Culver pitched two and two third innings and allowed two hits, and Nick Rogers threw one inning, giving up one hit, and fanning two.

Matthew Murray starts tonight


Chukars Get First Win 7-6 in 10 Innings

In a true reversal of fortune the Chukars were the ones who jumped out to an early lead, as they scored 3 runs in the first, albeit none of them earned. The big hit in the inning came from first baseman Dean Espy who slapped an RBI single. The score would remain 3-0 until the third inning when Ogden answered back with three runs of their own to tie the score.


The Chukars retook the lead in the fifth when second baseman Luis Piterson drove in left fielder Runey Davis with an RBI double, but Ogden would come right back with two runs in the bottom half of the frame to take a 5-4 lead.


After both teams exchanged runs in the seventh, right fielder Ysmelin Alcantara blasted the first Chukars home run of the season over the left field wall, with the solo shot tying the score once more at 6-6.


Fast forward to the top of the tenth inning, and it was center fielder Darian Sandford who came up with the clutch hit, as his RBI base knock drove in third baseman Daniel Mateo for the winning run.


Sandford finished the night with three hits and three stolen bases to accompany his game winning RBI. Alcantara and Mateo also had good nights at the plate, with each batter picking up two hits.


On the mound, Idaho Falls starting pitcher Brian Peacock turned in the best Chukars start of the season so far, as the southpaw hurler went five innings allowing five runs, three earned on six hits with four strikeouts. He would not earn the win, however. That honor went to right-handed reliever Mike Giovenco (1-0) who pitched a scoreless ninth, striking out the side with one hit allowed.

Brennon Martin starts tonight for the Chukars


The AZL Royals won 17-1


The DSL Royals won 6-5 in 12.

[SubGod22]

I wasn't sure where to put this piece. Pitching Help On The Way? It deals with the kids and some of the current guys, but has more talk on the kids so I'm placing it here.

The Royals possess the worst record in the American League, but they at least seem better than some of Kansas City teams of the near past. This group fields better, runs better and pretty much hits better than probably any Royals’ team of the past eight or ten years. Despite being dinged for two losses over the weekend and a less than perfect Joakim Soria, the team’s bullpen is viewed as a strength right now and likely to become even better. Alas, as we all are well aware, there exists a big, gaping, borderline hideous void on this team called the starting rotation.

Nine different pitchers have started games for the Royals and they have combined for an American League worst 5.13 ERA, more than a half run worse than the next worst starting rotation (Toronto, by the way). They have struck out just 214 batters, 52 less than the next lowest total compiled by Baltimore and opposing hitters have hit .290 against KC starters, 14 points higher than against any other team.

As bad as the rotation has been, Royals’ fans have been able to comfort themselves with the thought that help was on its way. After all, Kansas City began the season in possession of baseball’s best farm system: an analysis whose foundation was largely based on the talent and number of good, young arms in the system.

Nearing the halfway point of the season, things have not exactly gone as planned when it comes to many of the young starters and left many of us wondering if help is truly on the way.

Here to Help Now – Danny Duffy

There is an ever growing possibility that Duffy might be sent back to Omaha to make room for the apparently inevitable return of Kyle Davies to his birthright: a spot in the Royals’ rotation. While more Davies is hardly a good thing, sending Duffy back to AAA is not the end of the world, either.

Having thrown just 62 regular season innings in 2010, Duffy is likely to run into a major inning’s crunch as the season progresses. Between Omaha and KC thus far he has already thrown 70 innings and one would think the Royals really cannot feel comfortable pushing the 22 year lefty much beyond 120 innings total in 2011.

No matter where Duffy gets his work, he has gotten a taste of major league action. While you might wonder if, given what we have seen out of Danny thus far, actually qualifies as ‘help’, you might be interested to see what a few other pitchers did in their first seven major league starts:

The Lamb injury hurts, but things could look decent in '13. A lot of ifs going on but there's potential for a decent rotation in '12 with guys like Hochevar, Duffy, Crow, Monty, Paulino, Adcock, Chen and Francis. In '13 you may be able to add names like Dwyer, Odorizzi, Marks, Sample, Theriot, Pimentel, Arguelles, Smith, Melville... You figure a couple of these guys will pan out. And I know there's some other young arms in Wilmington and KC that I've missed.