Royals on the Farm 7/7

AAA -- Omaha: O-Royals 8, Round Rock 2

2B Aviles 3-5, 2 HR (8), 2 RBI (45), 3 RS -- .309
LF Lubanski 1-3, BB, 2B (2), 3 RBI (6) -- .250
CF Maier 2-4, BB, HR (7), RBI (41), RS -- .299
C Tupman 2-4, S, 2B (9), RBI (21), RS -- .293
RF McCarthy 1-4, BB, RBI (10), RS -- .277
SS Berroa 2-5, RS -- .278
DH Brazell 1-5, 2 K, RS -- .316

Nunez 5 IP, 4 H, 5 K, WP, pickoff -- W, 1-1, 2.25 ERA
Wright 2 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, K -- 3.72 ERA
Bale IP, K -- 2.84 ERA
Ray IP, 2 H, K -- 4.26 ERA

Leo Nunez had a good start again and the Royals gave themselves a chance at a 4-game split. The Royals stranded 2 in the 3rd but Mike Aviles kickstarted the offense with a leadoff homer in the 4th for his 7th of the season and Chris Lubanski hit a 2-out 2-run double to give Omaha a 3-0 lead. Nunez stranded 2 in the 5th and Lubanski hit an RBI ground out in the 6th to make it 4-0. Matt Wright came on for the 6th and gave up 2 runs on 3 hits to cut the lead in half. Mitch Maier and Aviles hit solo homers in the 7th for their 7th and 8th homers of the season, respectively, and Omaha rallied for 2 more runs in the 9th on a Bill McCarthy RBI force out and a Matt Tupman RBI single. Round Rock 1B Cody Ransom was 3-4 with 2 doubles (25) and his 55th RBI to move to .275 and starter Chan Ho Park went 6 2/3 IP and gave up 6 ER on 9 hits, 3 walks and 3 Ks to take the loss and drop to 5-7 with a 5.38 ERA.

Omaha is 41-49. The series wraps up today along with the "first half" as the AAA All-Star break begins Monday. Probable starters: Omaha RH Scott Elarton (2-3, 5.86) vs. Express RH Juan Gutierrez (4-7, 3.82). Shane Costa is expected to rejoin the O-Royals after the all-star break.

AA -- Wichita: San Antonio 9, Wranglers 4

1B Kaaihue 2-3, BB, 2B (5), RS -- .270
3B Nettles 1-4, RBI (3) -- .333
DH Espino 1-4, RBI (14) -- .257
CF Greenberg 1-5, RBI (26), K -- .242
RF Valentin 1-3, BB, 2 RS, E (3) -- .307

D. Hughes 6 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 3 K -- 3.59 ERA
Connolly IP, 4 R (3 ER), 3 H, 2 BB, E (2) -- L, 4-5, 5.64 ERA
de la Vara IP, 3 ER, 4 H, BB, K -- 9.00 ERA

A late tie turned into a San Antonio blowout in game 1 of the series. Jeff Nettles hit an RBI single in the 1st but starter Dusty Hughes allowed 2 runs on 3 hits in the Missions 1st. Adam Greenberg tied it with a 2-out RBI single in the 2nd and Wichita left 2 in scoring position in the 3rd as the game stayed tied into the 7th. Mike Connolly took over for Hughes in the 7th and things went south quickly. The Missions churned out 4 runs in the inning on errors by Connolly and Geraldo Valentin and a huge 2-out, bases loaded 3-run double by CF Will Venable that made it 6-2. Valentin scored on a wild pitch and Damaso Espino hit an RBI ground out in the 8th to cut the lead back to 2 but the Missions weren't done as they scored 3 runs on 4 hits off Gilbert de la Vara in the 8th. Venable was 1-4 with his 13th double and 4 RBI (39) to move to .282, SS Luis Cruz was 2-4 with his 3rd double and 2 RBI (4) to move to .247 and SP Josh Geer got the win with 7 IP of 2 runs (1 ER) on 6 hits, a walk and 2 Ks to improve to 9-4 with a 3.38 ERA.

Wichita is 6-10, on a 5-game skid, and 5 games back. Game 2 of the set is tonight. Probable starters: Wichita righty Greg Atencio (3-4, 3.57, 1.24 WHIP is best in current rotation) vs. Missions righty Manny Ayala (0-1, 3.60).

A-Adv. -- Wilmington: Myrtle Beach 1, Blue Rocks 0 (2-hitter)

SS McConnell 1-3, BB, 2 K -- .276
LF Jirschele 1-3, K -- .269
CF Duarte 0-4, K -- .281
2B Maddox 0-4, K -- .269
3B Lisson 0-3, BB, 2 K -- .260

Cortes 5 IP, ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 6 K, WP -- L, 1-6, 4.03 ERA, very tough loss
D'Amico 3 IP, H, BB, 2 K -- 3.58 ERA

Three Pelicans pitchers mystified the Blue Rocks and Dan Cortes lost with only 1 run allowed. The Rocks stranded 2 in the 2nd and Cortes started the 3rd by allowing a single and double before a sac fly gave Myrtle Beach a 1-0 lead. Cortes stranded the bases full in the 4th and Pelicans starter Jonathan Venters handed a 1-hitter to the bullpen in the 7th. The Rocks stranded 2 more that inning and didn't threaten again. MB CF Jordan Schafer was 2-4 with his 16th double to move to .294 and Venters got the win with 6 IP of a hit, 3 walks and 5 Ks to improve to 2-3 with a 3.08 ERA. RP Sung Ki Jung got his 10th save.

Wilmington is 12-5 and 3 games up on first. The series ends tonight. Probable starters: Rocks ace Rowdy Hardy (10-2, 1.87) vs. Pelicans righty Jairo Cuevas (5-8, 4.00).

A -- Burlington: Clinton 6, Bees 3

RF Walton 1-4, HR (1), 2 RBI (7), K, RS -- .231
1B Castillo 1-4, HR (1), RBI (2), RS, E (1) -- .250, first A-ball homer
SS Bianchi 2-4, RS, SB (7) -- .222
CF Robinson 0-4 -- .254
LF Dickerson 1-4, K -- .296

DiPietro 5 1/3 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 10 H, 2 BB, 3 K -- L, 4-5, 4.50 ERA
Santiago 3 2/3 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 4 H, 3 K, HRA -- 2.67 ERA

Clinton cranked out 14 hits to get the win in the opener with the Bees. Two doubles gave the LumberKings their first run in the 3rd off Ryan DiPietro but Luis Castillo led off the Bees 3rd with his 1st homer to tie the game. A 2-out rally of 2 runs on 3 hits and a passed ball on C Jeff Howell gave the lead back to Clinton in the 4th but Jamar Walton hit an RBI force out in the 5th to cut it back to 3-2. Mario Santiago came in with 1 on and 1 out in the 6th and gave up a 2-run jack to the first batter he faced -- 3B Jay Heafner -- to make it 5-2. A run on 2 more hits made it 6-2 Clinton in the 7th and Walton hit his 1st homer for the Bees in the 8th but the Bees stranded 2 in the inning en route to the 6-3 loss. Clinton SS Marcus Lemon (Chet's son) was 3-5 with his 15th double and 20th error to move to .252, Heafner was 2-4 with his 1st homer and 3 RBI (12) to move to .198 and SP Jeremiah Haar went 6 IP of 2 runs (1 ER) on 6 hits, a walk and 4 Ks to get the win and move to 3-0 with a 1.61 ERA. RP Chris Dennis got his 1st save for the LumberKings.

Burlington is 9-8 and a game back. Game 2 is ongoing. Starters: Bees RH Harold Mozingo (7-7, 4.41) vs. Clinton LH Zach Phillips (8-2, 2.89).

Rookie -- Idaho Falls: Ogden 2, Chukars 0

RF Van Stratten 2-4, SB (5) -- .280
CF Ortiz 1-4 -- .296
3B Van De Keere 1-3, BB, K, E (5) -- .308
1B Robinson 0-4 -- .394
DH Evangelho 1-3, BB -- .348

Chavez 4 IP, ER, 6 H, BB, 3 K -- L, 1-1, 2.35 ERA
Secott 1 1/3 IP, ER, 2 H, 3 BB -- 2.16 ERA
Roach 1 2/3 IP, 3 H, 2 K, WP -- 0.96 ERA
Swaggerty IP, BB, K, WP -- 2.70 ERA

Ogden starter Michael Gardner pitched a complete-game 5-hitter to deal the Chukars their 6th loss. IF starter Chris Chavez allowed a run on 2 hits in the 3rd and the Chukars stranded 2 in both the 4th and 5th. RP Dane Secott allowed a run on a walk and 2 hits in the 6th before giving way to RP Jason Roach, who had the bases loaded with 1 out and got 2 Ks to escape the jam. IF loaded the bases in the 9th with 1 out but Zach Evangelho lined into a game-ending double play as Rubi Koko was doubled off second. Ogden 3B Brian Mathews was 2-4 to move to .235 and Gardner allowed 5 hits, 3 walks and 4 Ks in improving to 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA.

Idaho Falls is 13-6 and 2 games up on first. The series continues this afternoon. No announced starters on the team site.

Rookie -- Burlington: B-Royals 6, Greeneville 4

1B Lane 2-4, BB, 2 RBI (13), 2 RS -- .388
C Doscher 1-4, 3B (1), 2 RBI (9), K -- .190
LF Severino 1-3, BB, RBI (9), K -- .292
SS Martin 0-3, SF, RBI (3), K -- .204
CF Norris 1-3, 2 BB, K -- .200
RF Tucker 0-4, HBP, K -- .313

Paulino 5 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, BB, 4 K -- 4.42 ERA
Hastry IP, H, BB, WP -- 0.00 ERA
Lopez 1 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, K, E (1) -- BS, 2, W, 1-0, 8.64 ERA
Gjeldum 1 2/3 IP, 2 K -- SV, 1, 7.56 ERA

The Royals lost a lead in the 7th but regained it in the 8th to get the win. Burlington took the lead in the 2nd on a Neder Severino RBI ground out and Kyle Martin sac fly and added a Jake Lane RBI force out in the 3rd before stranding 2 that inning. Starter Eduardo Paulino got touched up for 2 runs in the 3rd on 3 hits and a walk but a Lane RBI single in the 5th helped Paulino hand a 4-2 lead to the pen in the 6th. RP Bobby Hastry stranded 2 in the 6th but Yensi Lopez coughed up the lead in the 7th with 2 Astros runs on 4 hits and a Lopez error. With 2 on and 2 out in the 8th, Nick Doscher stepped to the plate and hit a 2-run triple to make it 6-4 B-Royals. Lopez and RP Ted Gjeldum retired the last 8 in a row to end it. Astros LF Axel Gonzalez was 2-3 with his 4th double , 2nd SB and 2 RBI (8) to move to .286 and RP Jordan Powell got the loss with 3 IP of 2 ER on 2 hits, 2 walks and 3 Ks to drop to 0-1 with a 7.11 ERA.

The B-Royals are 10-6 and 1/2 a game back. The series ends tonight. No announced starters on the team site.

Rookie -- AZL: Royals 6, Angels 4

SS Donovan 3-4, HBP, 2 2B (4), RBI (7), 2 RS, E (5) -- .300
DH D. Cruz 2-4, 2 RBI (6) -- .342
2B Angel 1-5, HR (1), 2 RBI (8), RS -- .273
LF Pennell 2-4, BB, 2B (2), RBI (3), K, RS -- .357
CF Richardson 1-5, K, 2 RS, SB (1), picked off -- .146
C S. Perez 2-2, 2B (2) -- .250
1B D. Wood 1-4, BB, K -- .311
3B F. Cruz 1-4, K -- .156

B. Wood 2 IP, 4 K -- 0.00 ERA, nice rehab outing
Hodge 3 1/3 IP, 2 UER, 2 H, 3 BB, 4 K, WP, E (1) -- W, 1-1, 0.00 ERA
Feickert 1 2/3 IP, 2 K -- 14.29 ERA
Santerre IP, 2 H, BB, K -- 4.15 ERA
Belanger IP, 2 ER, 3 H, HRA -- 6.75 ERA

A flurry of late scoring ended up with the Royals on top in a 6-4 win. The Royals stranded 2 in the 2nd but took a 1-0 lead in the 3rd on a Dennis Donovan RBI single. Mitch Hodge came in to pitch the 3rd for the Royals after Blake Wood pitched 2 perfect innings and Hodge gave up a run on a walk, error, single and wild pitch to tie the game. The Royals moved back ahead with 2 in the 6th on a Vinny Pennell RBI double and Diego Cruz RBI single to make it 3-1. Two Royals errors and a single gave the Angels another run off Hodge in the 6th to cut the lead to 3-2 but Casey Feickert pitched out the inning with the lead intact. Donovan led off the 8th with a ground-rule double and scored on a Cruz single to give the Royals some padding. After RP Josh Santerre left the bases full in the 8th, more padding came in the 9th as Ryan Angel hit a 2-run homer for his 1st career homer to make it 6-2. RP Ryan Belanger gave up a 2-run, 2-out homer in the 9th but got the final out to hold on for the Royals win. Angels 2B Ivan Contreras was 3-5 with his 1st homer, 4th E and 3 RBI (6) to move to .420 and RP A.J. Ford took the loss with 2 IP of 2 ER on 4 hits to drop to 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA.

The Royals moved to 5-8. They were set to play the 6-7 Giants today.