Royals on the Farm weekend 5/19-5/21

AAA - Omaha: Sacramento 10, O-Royals 6 (Fri.)

RF Allen 3-5, 2B (10), K, 2 RBI (30), RS -- .312
2B Gotay 1-3, 2 BB, K, RS, SB (5) -- .235
3B Teahen 1-3, 2B, BB, K, 2 RBI, E (2) -- .257
LF D. Brown 1-4, RS -- .074

Tamayo 2 2/3 IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 0 BB, 6 K, HRA -- L, 3-2, 4.21 ERA
Loux 3 IP, 4 UER, 4 H, 2 BB, 2 K -- 1.12 ERA
Andrade 2 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 K -- 1.88 ERA

*** RP Shane Loux, manager Mike Jirschele and hitting coach Terry Bradshaw (the other Terry Bradshaw) were all ejected in the loss. A solo homer off Tamayo gave Sacramento a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st but Omaha rallied for 4 in the 3rd on an RBI single by DH Alejandro Prieto, an RBI double by Allen and a 2-run double by Teahen. Unfortunately for the Royals, things imploded in the 3rd. With 2 outs and 1 River Cat run already across the plate, another run was singled home and, for reasons unreported on anything I've seen online, Jirschele got tossed by the first base ump. Three more hits and an error by CF Chip Ambres brought in 3 more runs and chased Tamayo in favor of Loux. Omaha got back within a run in the 5th on an RBI single by Allen but Sacramento put the game away with 4 in the 6th in another 2-out rally sparked in part by a Teahen throwing error. Loux was lifted for Andrade and, during the process, was tossed along with Bradshaw. Andrade walked a run home after the incident and then gave up a 2-run single before getting out of the inning. Omaha scored a meaningless run in the 9th on a sac fly by C Paul Phillips to make the final score 10-6 Sacto. Omaha dropped to 17-23 with the loss. River Cats DH Nathan Espy was 2-4 with his 2nd AAA homer to improve to .408, C John Baker was 1-4 to drop to .311 and 1B Daric Barton was 2-5 with 3 RBI to move to 22 on the season and improved his BA to .270.

O-Royals 2, Sacramento 1 (Sat.)

3B Teahen 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI -- .308, heating up, in Omaha anyway
RF Allen 2-4, RS -- .317
1B Huber 0-4, K -- .286, back with Costa up after two wasted weeks
2B Gotay 1-4, 2B -- .236
LF D. Brown 0-3 -- .067

Keppel 7 IP, ER, 5 H, BB, 3 K -- W, 3-4, 5.00 ERA
Baerlocher 2 IP, 0 ER, H, BB, 4 K -- SV, 1, 2.51 ERA

*** Keppel had a great start and Omaha survived errors by Aviles (no. 10) and Keppel himself (2) to get the win. Sacramento drew first blood with a run in the 3rd but Omaha scored its runs in the 4th on a Teahen 2-run double and Keppel took it from there. He allowed 3 base runners from the 4th through the 7th and Baerlocher did the rest. Omaha moved to 18-23. Sacramento C Jeremy Brown was 0-4 to drop to .316, Espy was 0-4 to drop to .387 and Barton was 0-4 to drop to .262.

Sacramento 4, O-Royals 3 (Sun.)

RF Allen 2-4, 2B (11), K, 2 RBI (32), OF assist at second -- .321
3B Teahen 1-4, 2B -- .302
CF Ambres 2-4, RBI (10), K -- .210
2B Gotay 2-4, BB, 2 RS -- .242
1B Huber 0-4, 2 K -- .272
LF D. Brown 1-3, HBP, K -- .091

Yarnall 4 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, BB, 5 K, 3 HRA -- put on a fireworks display from the mound, L, 1-1, 3.69 ERA
Elder 4 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, BB, K -- 4.91 ERA

*** Yarnall gave up all the damage Sacramento would need to take the 4-game set, 3-1, with the 4-3 win Sunday. An Allen RBI single in the 1st got Omaha off to a good start but Yarnall gave an omen of things to come with a longball given up to the second batter he faced. A leadoff homer by Jeremy Brown in the 2nd for the River Cats gave them the lead and Brown homered again in the 4th -- a 2-run shot -- for a 4-1 Sacramento lead. Allen doubled home a run in the 5th and Ambres singled home a run in the 6th to close the Sacramento lead to 1, but Omaha wouldn't threaten again. Omaha dropped to 18-24 and 6 1/2 games out of first. River Cats SP Shane "Hawaiian Punchout" Komine (I had to report the nickname) got the win despite giving up 10 hits and 3 ER and striking out only 2 over 5 1/3 IP. His ERA is 5.08. Brown was 2-4 for Sacramento and moved his season HR total to 6 with a .325 BA. Espy was 1-4 to drop to .380 and Baker was 0-2 to drop to .303.

Omaha moves on to Fresno to take on the Grizzlies (16-27, AAA Giants) for 4 games starting Monday. Pitchers: Omaha RH Kyle Snyder (0-2, 4.24) vs. RH Brian Cooper (2-3, 4.80).

AA - Wichita: Tulsa 3, Wranglers 2 (8/Fri. game 1)

3B Gordon 0-3, BB -- .308
RF Butler 2-4, 2B (12), RBI (23) -- .287
LF Lubanski 0-4, 2 K -- .265
C Tupman 0-1, 3 BB! -- .351, on-base machine
CF Maier 0-2, BB, K -- .282
SS Sanchez 3-3, BB, RS -- .284
2B Murphy 0-4, K -- .241
1B Kaaihue 2-3, BB -- .207

Song 5 1/3 IP, ER, 4 H, 3 BB, K -- wasn't the most beautiful start but had the win in hand, ND, 3.68 ERA
Nunez 2 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, BB, 4 K -- BS, 3, L, 1-2, 4.50 ERA

*** Nunez blew his 3rd save and Wichita dropped a game they could have won in the opener of a 7-inning twinbill with Tulsa Friday. The Drillers scraped together a run in the 3rd but Wichita took the lead with an RBI single by DH Adam Keim in the 4th and a 5th-inning RBI double by Butler. 2-1 Wranglers was the score entering the 7th and set-to-be-final inning when Tulsa SS Troy Tulowitzki came through with a clutch 2-out RBI single off Nunez to tie the game. A double and triple back-to-back in the 8th off Nunez gave Tulsa the lead and Wichita squandered two base runners in the bottom of the inning to end it. Wichita dropped to 17-24. Tulowitzki was 1-4 with his 17th RBI to drop to .292, Tulsa DH Joe Gaetti was 0-3 to drop to .316, 3B Ian Stewart was 1-4 to drop to .252 and CF Jordan Czarniecki was 0-1 with 2 BB to drop to .295.

Wranglers 3, Tulsa 2 (8/Fri. game 2, deja vu)

3B Gordon 1-4, 2B (13) -- .306
RF Butler 1-3, HR (6), 2 RBI (25), BB -- .287
LF Lubanski 0-4, K -- .259, ice cold
CF Maier 1-4, K, RBI (29) -- .281
SS Sanchez 2-3, BB, 2 RS -- .291
2B Murphy 2-3, K -- .261

Bass 8 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, BB, 8 K, HRA -- W, 1-0, 2.25 ERA, looked much better in AA than he did in Omaha

*** The Wranglers turned the tables on Tulsa in game 2 with a late inning comeback of their own. Bass got a complete game in his '06 AA debut and Butler did the heavy work on offense. There was 1 hit in the game going into the 5th with Bass working on a perfecto when a double and 2-run homer made that vanish and gave the Drillers a 2-0 lead. After a Sanchez single off Tulsa SP Enmanuel Ulloa in the 6th, Butler hit a 2-out, 2-run longball for his 6th of '06 to tie the game. The game went into "extras" in the 8th when a Sanchez walk and Gordon double put runners at second and third with 1 out. Butler was intentionally walked to bring up Maier, who made the Drillers pay with a walkoff single/grand slam?. The slash and question mark are there because Maier rounded first and joined the celebration at the plate. He said he thought the ball bounced on the warning track and the outfielder tossed it over the fence in frustration while some said it cleared the fence. Anyway, Wichita won the game and Maier got credit for a single. The Wranglers were 18-24 after the twinbill. Ulloa went 7 IP and K'd 6 to move his ERA to 3.43 with the 2 ER. Gaetti was 0-3 to drop to .305, Stewart was 0-3 to drop to .247 and Czarniecki was 1-3 to move to .295.

Tulsa 7, Wranglers 6 (Sat.)

3B Gordon 3-4, 2 RS, SB (11) -- .317
RF Butler 0-3, BB, RBI (26) -- .282
LF Lubanski 1-5, 2 K, RS, E (4) -- .257
CF Maier 2-4, K, RS -- .287
C Tupman 1-4, 2 RBI (15) -- .343
2B Keim 3-4, HR (1), RBI (10) -- .221
SS Sanchez 1-4, K, RS, E (13) -- .290
DH Murphy 0-2 -- .256, left game with sore shoulder after Friday collision at home plate, day-to-day

Cedeno 4 2/3 IP, 7 R (6 ER), 8 H, 2 BB, K, 2 WP -- L, 0-4, 5.45 ERA
C. Smith and Braun 4 1/3 IP, 2 H combined

*** Tulsa's damage was done early and often in the series finale. A Lubanski fielding error helped the Drillers to a 1st-inning tally but Wichita scored 2 in the 1st on a single by Gordon and ensuing fielding error that allowed Lubanski to score, and an RBI DP ball by Maier for a 2-1 lead. Tulsa tied things in the 3rd and surged ahead with 2 in the 4th off Cedeno but Wichita retied it in the 4th with 2 runs on a Butler RBI ground out and Tupman RBI fielder's choice. Cedeno again couldn't hold on as Tulsa rallied for 3 in the 5th for a 7-4 lead. Keim went solo in the 5th for his 1st homer of '06 and Tupman singled home a run in the 8th to cut the lead to 1 but Wichita couldn't get the equalizer. Wichita dropped to 18-25 with the loss and is 8 games back of first. Tulowitzki was 3-5 with his 14th double and 18th RBI to move to .302, Stewart was 1-5 with his 5th triple to drop to .245, Gaetti was 2-5 to move to .310 and Czarniecki was 1-4 with his 21st RBI to drop to .294.

Sunday: off day

*** The Wranglers got a day off before starting a 3-game set at the Corpus Christi Hooks (26-16, AA Astros) Monday. With Bass getting sent down to Wichita, IF Walter Sevilla went back to High Desert.

High-A - High Desert: Lake Elsinore 10, Mavs 2 (Fri.)

LF Valentin 1-4, 2 K -- .310
DH Stodolka 0-4, K -- .319
1B R. Brown 2-3, HR (5), 2 RBI (19), BB -- .301
RF McFall 2-4, K -- .212
CF Senreiso 1-4, 2 K -- .261
C Donachie 0-3, BB, K -- .274
3B Lucas 0-4, K, E (6) -- .265

Cota 3 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, BB, 4 K, HRA -- L, 1-5, 7.83 ERA, bad season stays that way, I say move him to Burlington and let him join the stud rotation there until he gets his crap together
Weeden and Woodrow ugly 6 IP

*** Lake Elsinore came into Adelanto as the division leader and played that way in running the Mavs off the diamond in scoring in all but 3 innings. High Desert took a 2-1 lead on Brown's 2-run homer in the 1st but, unfortunately, that was it for the Mavs. Cota got shelled again and so did the two relievers put in against the Storm and High Desert only threatened in the 6th when the Mavs loaded the bases but couldn't make anything happen. High Desert was 21-20 after the loss. Storm SP Mike Ekstrom moved to 4-2 with a 2.32 ERA with 5 2/3 IP of 2 runs allowed with only 1 ER. Storm LF Javis Diaz was 3-6 to move to .321, 1B Tim Brown was 3-4 with 2 RBI to move to 20 on the season and improved to .286 and Pads' 3B prospect Chase Headley was 2-4 with 2 doubles to improve to .259.

Lake Elsinore 6, Mavs 2 (Sat.)

1B Stodolka 1-3, SF, RBI (19) -- .319
LF Valentin 1-1, RBI (19), SB (1) -- .316, injured leg
SS Falu 2-4, 2B, 2 RS, SB (9) -- .253
CF Senreiso 0-4, 2 K -- .250
3B Lucas 0-4, K -- .257

Christensen 6 2/3 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 7 H, BB, 5 K, 3 HRA -- L, 1-4, 4.80 ERA, like Yarnall, a launching pad on the mound

*** The Storm pulled away late to get in position for a possible sweep with the 6-2 win Saturday. After Lake Elsinore got a solo homer in the top of the 1st, Falu led off the High Desert 1st with a double and scored on a Valentin single. The Mavs were in business with 0 out when Valentin hurt his leg at third base and left the game and High Desert could do no further damage that inning. From the way it sounded on the team site, it was something like a hammy or quad injury. Another homer put the Storm back in front in the 2nd but a Stodolka sac fly knotted it back up in the 3rd. Lake Elsinore's third homer of the game off Christensen in the 4th gave the Storm the lead for good as they added 1 in the 7th and 2 in the 9th. The Mavs only had 2 base runners after the 3rd. High Desert dropped to 21-21 with the L. Headley was 4-4 with 2 HR (4 on the season) and 4 RS to improve to .280, Diaz was 0-5 to drop to .295 and 2B Sean Kazmar was 2-4 with his 3rd homer to improve to .262.

Lake Elsinore 6, High Desert 5 (Sun.)

Stodolka and Valentin DNP
2B Perez 3-4, SB (2) -- .289
1B R. Brown 2-5, 3B, RBI (20), 2 RS -- .298
CF Senreiso 2-5, HR (7), 2 RBI (17), 2 K, E (3) -- .258
C Donachie 2-3, BB, RBI -- .286
DH Lucas 1-4, K -- .257

Plummer 5 IP, 5 R (4 ER), 9 H, BB, 3 K, HRA -- ND, 5.93 ERA
Barnes 4 IP, ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 5 K -- L, 1-2, 3.81 ERA

*** Things looked rosy after a 3-run Mavs 1st but it was downhill from there as Lake Elsinore got the sweep. A Brown RBI single, wild pitch and RBI single by Donachie helped High Desert to the 3-0 advantage. Lake Elsinore immediately begin chipping away with 1 in the 2nd off Plummer and 2 more in the 3rd to tie the game. A leadoff triple by Rusty Brown in the 3rd was followed by an RBI single by Senreiso to help the Mavs back into the lead but a 2-run homer in the 5th after a key error by Senreiso in which he and LF Michael Galloway let the ball drop between them gave the lead back to the Storm. High Desert tied it once more in the bottom of the frame on a redemption homer by Senreiso (his 7th) but the Storm scraped together a run off Barnes in the 9th and High Desert went down in order in the bottom of the 9th to end it. The sweep dropped High Desert to 21-22 and 4 1/2 games out of first. Headley was 2-3 with his 19th RBI to improve to .288, Diaz was 2-4 to move to .308 and LF Drew Davidson was 2-5 with his 1st homer of '06 to improve to .246.

The Mavs open a 4-game home set with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (22-21, High-A Angels) Monday. According to the team site, LH John Gragg III, who had been at Wichita, is slated to start in his return to the California League. He was arguably the team's best starter in '05 in leading the team with 13 wins.

Low-A - Burlington: Bees 3, Lansing 2 (Fri.)

CF Duarte 2-4, SB (8) -- .252
DH Vega 0-3, BB, 2 K -- .260
SS McConnell 0-3, HBP, 2 K, RS -- .179
C Thibault 1-4, K, RS -- .230
LF Santana 0-4, 2 K -- .274

Kniginyzky 7 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, BB, 8 K, HRA -- W, 4-2, 3.04 ERA
Garcia and Hayes 2 hitless IP, Hayes 2nd save

*** Burlington got the sweep of the Lugnuts as 3 1st-inning runs was good enough for SP Matt Kniginyzky and the Bees got the gift of 5 Lansing errors. Two errors on a ground ball by Thibault for a potential force play in the 1st allowed the Bees' first run to score and a sac fly by 1B John Lowen and an RBI single by 3B Jeremy Jirschele put the Bees up, 3-0. Lansing scored runs off Kniginyzky in the 4th and 7th to cut the Bees' lead to 1 but RPs Eliszer Garcia and Chris Hayes locked it down and Burlington won its 6th straight. The win and 4-game sweep of Lansing (first time since '99 that happened) moved the Bees to 18-21. On a sour note, Thibault left the game in the 9th after getting spiked in the leg sliding into second and needed seven stitches to close the cut. He's expected to be out 2 weeks and C Brady Everett, who was supposed to play at High Desert but broke his hand late in ST, will start out in Burlington while Thibault is on the shelf. Lansing SP Billy Carnline took the hard luck loss with 6 IP of 3 unearned runs to drop to 3-2 with a 2.09 ERA. Lansing 2B Sean Shoffit was 0-4 to drop to .295, CF Cory Patton was 1-4 with his 14th double to drop to .282 and DH Joey Metropoulos was 1-4 to drop to .282.

Bees 4, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low-A Mariners) 1 (Sat.)

1B Vega 1-4, 2 K -- .259
RF Arroyo 1-1, RBI (12), RS -- .235
CF Duarte 0-3, BB, RBI, RS, CS -- .245
3B Lisson 0-2, 2 BB, K, RBI (23), HBP, 2 SB (10) -- .183
SS McConnell 0-3, BB, K, RBI (12), HBP, SB (5) -- .174

Henninger 6 IP, UER, 5 H, BB, 6 K -- ND, 4.63 ERA
Harkcom and Schambough 3 IP scoreless relief, Schambough (SV 3, 1.23 ERA)

*** A 4-game set at Wisconsin (17-24 entering the series) started well for the red-hot Bees as they won their 7th in a row after entering the 9th being shutout with 1 hit. A throwing error by C John Lowen trying to nail a stealing base runner at third led to the Rattlers' only run in the 1st and the Bees couldn't figure out either Wisconsin SP Jose Escalona or RP Joseph Woerman through 8 IP. A 6th-inning single by Lowen broke up the no-hitter but the Bees were still struggling to start the 9th when RP Edgar Guaramato took the mound for the Rattlers. Vega singled and advanced to second on a throwing error and, after a walk to Jirschele and HBP on DH Valentino Arce loaded the bases with 1 out, a fielder's choice by Duarte tied the game. The bases stayed loaded thanks to the throw for the force at home by 1B Chao Kuan Wu being late. Arroyo followed with an RBI single to give the Bees the lead before Arce was forced at home on the next play. The Bees padded the lead in an unusual way as McConnell and Lisson got hit with pitches with the bases loaded to bring home 2 runs and make the score 4-1 Bees. Kraig Schambough came in to pitch the 9th for Burlington and had no trouble. The Bees improved to 19-21. Escalona went 6 IP and allowed only 1 hit but walked 5 and K'd 8 in dropping his ERA to 2.95. 2B Jeff Dominguez was 3-4 for Wisconsin to move to .304 but also made his 13th error, SS Robert Hudson was 1-4 to drop to .294 and 3B Ron Garth was 1-4 to drop to .270.

Wisconsin 4, Bees 3 (11/Sun.)

DH Lisson 3-6, 2B (12) -- .198
C Lowen 2-4, 2 2B (6), K, 2 RBI (17), RS, E (4) -- .228
3B Jirschele 2-5, K -- .188
1B/C Everett 1-5, K, E (1) -- .200, season debut
2B Johnson 1-1, 5 BB!!!, 2 RS -- .228, great eye, I guess
SS McConnell 0-4 -- .168
1B Vega 0-2, K -- .255
LF Santana 1-5, K, SB (10) -- .269
* Bees left 13 on base

Rosa 4 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 7 H, 2 BB, 3 K -- ND, 2.40 ERA
de la Vara 2 IP, 0 ER, H, 5 K -- BS, 1, 2.37 ERA
Garcia 1/3 IP, ER, H, HRA -- L, 0-2, 3.86 ERA

*** The winning streak finally snapped for Burlington with one pitch -- a pinch-hit walkoff homer by Garth in the 11th. The teams literally matched runs in the 1st, 4th and 7th before Garth's homer ended it. A Lowen force out scored Johnson, who drew 1 of 5 walks for him in the game in the 1st, to get the Bees on the board. A Lowen throwing error was part of Wisconsin's run scoring rally in the 1st to tie the game and a Wisconsin 2nd inning rally was thwarted when Bees RF Carlos Arroyo threw a runner out at the plate via Johnson's relay. Burlington moved ahead in the 4th on a Duarte RBI single but the Rattlers put together a 2-out rally in the bottom of the frame to once more tie the game. A Lowen RBI double gave the Bees a third lead in the 7th but RP Rayner Oliveros gave up a 1-out double in the bottom of the inning to get pulled in favor of de la Vara, who struck out the next batter before giving up an RBI double to tie it at 3. The Bees got runners at first and third with 1 out in both the 9th and 10th but could do nothing with the chances so, after an uneventful Bee 11th, Garth came up to lead off the Wisconsin half and homered off Garcia to left to end it. Burlington dropped to 19-22 and 5 games back of first. RP Woerman got the win for Wisconsin with a hitless IP to drop his ERA to 2.01. Dominguez was 4-6 for the Rattlers with his 11th RBI to move to .319, 1B Bryan Sabatella was 3-5 to improve to .170 and Hudson was 1-5 to drop to .290.

Game 3 of the series got an early start Monday and the Bees won, 12-5. Michael Penn got the start for Burlington. That game will be detailed in the next RoF report.