Royals on the Farm 8/2 -- Odd no-hitter in Idaho Falls

AAA -- Omaha: O-Royals 3, Las Vegas 1

RF Costa 1-3, BB, HR (3), RBI (9), RS -- .356, on base in 40 straight games
LF Huber 1-4, HR (11), RBI (46), K, RS -- .271, 100th career minor league homer
CF Maier 1-4, 2B (23), RBI (50), 2 K -- .291
1B Shealy 2-4, 2B (5) -- .273
SS Aviles 0-4 -- .305
DH Brazell 1-4, 2 K -- .316

Wright 7 IP, ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 5 K, WP -- W, 7-3, 3.93 ERA
Giron 2 IP, 2 H, BB, 4 K, WP -- SV, 6, 4.11 ERA

The O-Royals got a good start out of Matt Wright and ensured at least a split of the series with a sweep still intact. Shane Costa went solo for his 3rd homer for Omaha in the 1st and Justin Huber led off the Omaha 2nd with his 11th homer to make it 2-0. Wright allowed a run on a hit, walk and wild pitch in the 3rd but Mitch Maier doubled home a run in the 5th to return the lead to 2 at 3-1. The Royals stranded 2 in the inning. Wright pitched well through 7 and Roberto Giron stranded 2 in the 9th for his 6th save. Vegas LF Wilson Valdez was 2-4 to move to .332 and SP William Juarez took the loss with 5 IP of 3 ER on 5 hits, 3 walks and 3 Ks to drop to 4-6 with a 5.64 ERA.

Omaha is 56-57. Game 3 of the set is tonight. Probable starters: 51s RH Miguel Pinango (7-5, 4.11) vs. Royals RH Billy Buckner (7-6, 4.48). Wright moved to 5-0 at Rosenblatt with the win Thursday. According to the team site, Ryan Shealy is not in fact done with his rehab assignment and has not been optioned to Omaha, as was reported yesterday.

AA -- Wichita: Tulsa 8, Wranglers 3

DH Kaaihue 2-3, HBP, HR (6), RBI (22), RS -- .246
CF Greenberg 2-5, 2 2B (25) -- .265
LF Padilla 1-4, HR (7), RBI (34), K, RS -- .361
1B Stodolka 1-4, 2B (23), RBI (47), K -- .303
RF Valentin 1-4, S, K, RS, E (4) -- .296

Atencio 3 2/3 IP, 8 R (5 ER), 9 H, 3 BB, 5 K, WP -- L, 4-6, 4.96 ERA
Cromer 2 1/3 IP, 3 H, 4 K -- 5.82 ERA
Bausher 2 IP, K -- 7.91 ERA

Greg Atencio got hammered, the Wranglers committed 3 errors and Tulsa came away with a 2-1 series win Thursday. Wichita left Adam Greenberg at third in the 1st and Atencio got touched up for 2 runs in the 2nd on a walk, 2 hits and a Geraldo Valentin error. Greenberg was left at third again in the 3rd and the Drillers scored 5 that inning on 4 hits, 2 walks and errors by Jeff Nettles and Irving Falu. Wichita left 2 in scoring position in the 4th and Tulsa padded its lead with a run on 3 hits and a wild pitch by Atencio to make it 8-0. The Wranglers finally broke through on Tulsa SP Ryan Mattheus in the 6th with back-to-back homers by Jorge Padilla (his 7th for Wichita) and Kila Kaaihue (his 6th at AA this season) to start the inning. Mike Stodolka doubled home a run in the 7th to cut it to 8-3 but was left at second. The Wranglers went down in order in the 9th to end it. Tulsa 1B Aaron Rifkin was 2-3 with 3 RBI (49) and 2 RS to move to .258, RF Jordan Czarniecki was 3-3 with his 15th SB to move to .291 and Mattheus got the win with 7 IP of 3 ER on 9 hits and 5 Ks to improve to 8-8 with a 4.97 ERA.

Wichita is 15-24 and 8 games out. A 4-game set at the Arkansas Travelers (21-18, AA Angels) starts tonight. The Wranglers are 10-14 versus Arkansas. Probable starters: Wichita right Carlos Rosa (4-6, 5.38) vs. Travs hot prospect righty Nick Adenhart (8-4, 3.28).

A-Adv. -- Wilmington: Blue Rocks 4, Frederick 2

3B Lisson 2-4, 2B (23), RBI (52), SB (18) -- .267
2B Maddox 2-5, 2B (12), 2 RS -- .264
1B McCann 1-3, SF, 2B (8), RBI (16), RS -- .211
LF Bigler 1-2, 2 BB, 3B (2), RBI (24) -- .238
C Thibault 0-4, RBI (27), K, RS -- .275
CF Duarte 0-5, SB (29) -- .283
RF McFall 0-2, 2 BB, K, SB (6) -- .264
SS McConnell 1-3, S, E (2) -- .260

Cortes 5 IP, ER, 3 H, 4 K, HRA -- W, 4-8, 4.14 ERA
Humen 2 IP, UER, 3 H, K -- 2.79 ERA
Oliveros 2 IP, 2 K -- SV, 5, 2.93 ERA

The Blue Rocks held off the Keys to take the series opener Thursday. The Rocks scored twice in the 2nd on a Kiel Thibault fielder's choice and a Brett Bigler RBI triple. Brad McCann added a sac fly in the 3rd to make it 3-0 and SP Dan Cortes took a 2-hit shutout into the 5th before giving up a solo homer to former Royals farmhand 2B Pete Maestrales to cut it to 3-1. The bullpen took over in the 6th and RP David Humen allowed a run in the 7th on 2 hits and a Chris McConnell error to cut the lead to 3-2. Mario Lisson doubled in a run in the 8th to give Wilmington some insurance and Rayner Oliveros pitched 2 perfect innings for his 5th save. Maestrales was 2-3 for the Keys with his 4th homer and 29th RBI to move to .233 and SP Brandon Erbe took the loss with 8 IP of 4 ER on 7 hits, 3 walks and 4 Ks to drop to 6-6 with a 5.93 ERA.

Wilmington is 25-15 and 4 games up on first. Game 2 of the set is tonight. Probable starters: Rocks ace Rowdy Hardy (13-3, 2.22) vs. Keys right-hander Brad Bergesen (1-3, 6.41).

A -- Burlington: Kane County 9, Bees 5

SS Bianchi 3-4, SF, RBI (26), RS, SB (10) -- .229, wish Royals fans got more than flashes of this
RF Walton 3-4, BB, 2B (6), RBI (13), K, SB (3) -- .320
2B Mertins 2-4, HBP, SB (25) -- .262
CF Robinson 0-4, BB, RS, SB (26) -- .242
LF Dickerson 0-4, BB, 2 K, SB (22) -- .295
DH Everett 1-4, BB, RS -- .293
*The Bees stranded 11.

Cegarra 4 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, 3 K, HRA, WP -- L, 1-4, 4.24 ERA
Mozingo 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 3 BB, WP -- 4.75 ERA, not pretty in first outing off DL
Teaford 3 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 K, HRA -- 5.48 ERA

A 4-run 5th was the key frame for Kane County in taking 3 of 4 from the Bees. Jeff Bianchi was stranded at third in the Bees 1st and the Cougars scored 2 off SP Ed Cegarra that inning on 4 hits. Cegarra gave up a 2-run homer in the 2nd to make it 4-0 before the Bees broke through in the 3rd on a Bianchi sac fly but left another runner at third in the inning. Harold Mozingo made his first appearance back from the DL to start the 5th and gave up 3 walks, a wild pitch and a sac fly before Everett Teaford came in with 2 on and 2 out and right off the bat gave up a 3-run homer to 2B Alex Valdez to make it 8-1. Jamar Walton singled home a run in the 8th but the Bees left 2 in scoring position and the Cougars got the run back in the bottom of the inning on 3 hits off Teaford. The Bees made the final score look a little better with a 3-run 9th on 2 wild pitches that scored runs and a passed ball that scored another run, but Jeff Howell struck out with the bases loaded to end the game as Derrick Gordon notched his 6th save for Kane County. Valdez was 3-4 for the Cougars with 2 doubles (12), his 6th homer and 3 RBI (38) to move to .246 and SP Henry Rodriguez got the win with 5 IP of an ER on 3 hits, 3 walks and 5 Ks to move to 5-6 with a 3.13 ERA.

Burlington dropped to 18-21 and 5 1/2 games back. A 4-game set at the South Bend Silver Hawks (21-18, A D-Backs) starts tonight. No announced starters on the team site. The Bees are 2-2 versus South Bend. P George Biddle got demoted to the other Burlington to make room for Mozingo.

Rookie -- Idaho Falls: Chukars 6, Casper 1 (6/rain/no-hitter)

1B Robinson 1-3, HR (8), 3 RBI (38), RS -- .336
RF Seratelli 1-3, 3B (4), RBI (25), RS -- .338
2B Garcia 1-2, BB, RBI (1) -- .077
3B Van De Keere 2-2, BB, 2B (12), 2 RS -- .288
CF Gonzalez 1-3, 2 K, RS -- .311
DH Evangelho 0-3, K, RS -- .330

Leonard 4 IP, ER, 4 BB, 4 K -- W, 3-2, 5.12 ERA
Swaggerty IP, 3 K -- 3.00 ERA

Two 3-run innings made an offbeat game a Chukar win with rain finishing a truncated no-hitter for Idaho Falls. Clint Robinson stepped up in the 1st and hit a 2-out, 3-run homer for his 8th of his career to give the Chukars and SP John Leonard a 3-0 lead. IF scored 3 in the 3rd on an Anthony Seratelli RBI triple, an error that scored Seratelli and a Fernando Garcia RBI single to make it 6-0. Leonard walked the bases loaded with 1 out in the 4th and allowed a run on a force out before getting out of the jam. Ben Swaggerty pitched a perfect 5th before rain ended it before the 6th got started. Casper SP Parker Frazier took the loss with 3 IP of 6 runs (4 ER) on 6 hits, 4 walks and 2 Ks to drop to 1-2 with a 13.26 ERA.

IF is 4-0 and 2 games up on first. The series continues tonight with IF's Ben Norton (1-3, 3.03) going against Casper's Robert Paschal (0-3, 6.38). Thursday's no-hitter was the first for IF since 1996.

Rookie -- Burlington: B-Royals 5, Johnson City 0 (7/G1/2-hitter)

RF Tucker 1-4, 2B (10), 3 RBI (27), K -- .275
LF Lough 2-3, HBP, RBI (10), RS, CS -- .328
CF Norris 0-3, BB, RS -- .287
1B Amyx 0-4, K -- .229

Bradley 6 IP, 2 H, BB, 3 K -- W, 2-1, 1.34 ERA, great start from NDFA
Belanger IP, 2 BB, K -- 0.00 ERA

The Royals bookended their scoring to take the first of 2 with the Cardinals Thursday. Wilson Tucker hit a 2-run double in the 1st and starter Anthony Bradley retired 12 of 13 from the 3rd through the 6th. The Royals added 3 runs in the 7th on a David Lough RBI single, Tucker RBI force out and balk that scored the final run. Ryan Belanger stranded 2 in scoring position in the bottom of the 7th to finish off the win. Cards LF Adron Chambers was 1-3 to move to .310 and SP Omar Javier took the loss with 4 IP of 2 ER on 5 hits, 3 walks and 2 Ks to fall to 0-4 with a 6.91 ERA.

Johnson City 5, B-Royals 4 (7/G2)

1B Lane 2-2, 2 HBP, 2B (8), RBI (26), RS -- .304, seems like he takes a HBP every game
2B A. Perez 2-3, S, RBI (18), E (8) -- .300
3B Jimenez 1-4, RBI (16), 2 K -- .207
C Beacham 2-2, BB, 3B (1) -- .250
LF Norris 1-3, BB, RS -- .288
CF Lough 0-1 -- .324
RF Tucker 0-3 -- .269

Augustine 4 1/3 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 4 H, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 HRA -- 2.02 ERA
Rollins IP, 2 H, BB -- 3.86 ERA
Lopez IP, ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 K -- L, 1-1, 5.30 ERA

The Cards got a walkoff base hit in the 7th to split the doubleheader. Jake Lane doubled in a run to spot Burlington a 1-0 lead in the 1st and the Royals stranded a runner at third in the 2nd before Joe Augustine allowed 2 runs that inning on a homer by LF Travis Mitchell. Two walks and a double in the 3rd helped make it 3-1 Johnson City. The Royals tied it in the 4th on a balk and then an RBI single by Alwin Perez. Antonio Jimenez singled in the go-ahead run in the 5th but Augustine gave up a leadoff homer in the bottom of the frame to retie it. Both teams stranded 2 in the 6th and RP Yensi Lopez loaded the bases with 1 out in the 7th before allowing a game-ending single to DH Robert Sanzillo. Mitchell was 2-3 for the Cards with his 1st homer and 2 RBI (8) to move to .278 and RP Eduardo Sanchez got the win with 2/3 IP of 2 Ks to move to 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA.

Burlington is 23-18 and 6 games back. The series wraps tonight and no starters have been announced on the team site.

Rookie -- AZL: Royals 7, Cubs 6 (16)

C S. Perez 3-7, RBI (10), CS, E (5) -- .250
DH Wood 2-4, 3 BB, SF, 2B (14), 2 RBI (23), RS -- .357
1B D. Cruz 2-7, HBP, 2B (6), RBI (17), K, RS -- .289
CF Richardson 2-7, HBP, HR (4), RBI (12), K, 2 RS, SB (5) -- .223
3B F. Cruz 1-7, BB, 2B (2), RBI (11), 3 K -- .216
2B Angel 1-4, RBI (12), 2 E (3) -- .224
LF Pennell 2-6, BB, S, 2B (3), K, RS -- .322
PR-LF Craze 2-4, RS -- .293
*The Royals stranded 17 (compared to 18 for the Cubs).

Runion 4 2/3 IP, 5 ER, 9 H, BB, 6 K, 2 HRA -- 6.41 ERA
Hodgson 2 1/3 IP, ER, 4 H, K -- 5.59 ERA
Feickert 2 IP, H, 4 K -- BS, 2, 7.94 ERA
Santerre, Van Slyke and Rada 6 1/3 IP scoreless relief
J. Sanchez 2/3 IP, BB, K -- W, 1-0, 12.79 ERA

The Royals blew the lead in the 8th and then, 8 innings later, got the win in 16. Starter Sam Runion gave up a 3-run homer to Cubs C Carlos Perez in the 1st but Hilton Richardson led off the Royals 1st with his 4th homer to cut it to 3-1. Runion gave up a 2-run homer in the 2nd and the Royals again knocked a run off the lead with a Salvador Perez RBI single in the bottom of the inning. Runion stranded 2 in the 3rd and the Royals tied the game in their half on a David Wood sac fly and RBI doubles by Diego and Fernando Cruz. The Royals took the lead in the 7th as Wood hit a 2-out RBI single to make it 6-5. Ivor Hodgson and Casey Feickert gave up a hit each for a blown save in the top of the 8th and the Royals stranded 2 in both the 8th and 9th. The Royals had a runner thrown out at the plate in the 10th and the bullpen started a long stretch of scoreless relief. Eric Van Slyke left the bases loaded in the 12th and the Royals loaded the bases with none out in the 14th only to squander the chance to end the game there. Juan Sanchez left the bases loaded with Cubs in the 16th before David Wood led off the Royals' half with a double and scored on a 1-out Ryan Angel single to end it. Perez was 4-7 for the Cubs with 2 doubles (8), his 2nd homer, 3 RBI (22) and his 6th passed ball to move to .376. RP Craig Muschko took the loss with 1/3 IP of an ER on 2 hits to drop to 0-2 with an 8.74 ERA.

The Royals are 4-1 and 1/2 a game up on first. They play the 2-2 A's tonight. OF Astin Jacobo left the game Thursday after getting beaned in the 7th.