Royals on the Farm 6/18

AAA - Omaha: Round Rock 4, O-Royals 3 (10)

RF Costa 4-5, 2B (16), 2 RBI (34), RS -- .302
DH Shealy 2-3, BB, CS -- .240
C B. Pena 2-5 -- .300
1B Butler 0-4, BB -- .373
CF Maier 1-5, RS -- .307
LF Lubanski 1-4, 3 K, RS -- .254, still having trouble putting bat on ball to some extent

H. Ramirez 7 IP, 2 UER, 6 H, BB, K, E -- 1.42 ERA
Lowery 2 2/3 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, BB, 3 K, HRA -- BS, 1, L, 0-1, 1.96 ERA

*** Reliever Devon Lowery got his 1st AAA blown save in the 9th then gave up a walkoff shot in the 10th as Omaha lost its 5th straight. An error by Omaha starter Horacio Ramirez in the 1st helped lead to the Express' 1st run of the game on a sac fly. An Ed Lucas error in the 2nd led to another run as Round Rock took a 2-0 lead. The game stayed at that score into the 6th when Omaha finally got on the board on a bases-loaded Ryan Shealy double-play ball that scored Shane Costa. Omaha left runners at the corners but surged ahead in the 7th as Costa ripped a 2-run double to make it 3-2 Omaha. Lowery sat down the first 4 batters he faced before giving up a 1-out walk and RBI double in the 9th to tie the game. Billy Butler grounded into his 2nd double play of the night to end the Omaha 10th and Lowery served up a 2-out solo homer to 2B Edwin Maysonet in the 10th to end it on Maysonet's 4th homer of the season. RP Jorge Sosa got the win with an IP of 1 hit allowed to move to 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA. Starter Chad Reineke went 6 IP and allowed an ER on 6 hits with 3 walks and 2 Ks to move his ERA to 5.69. DH J.R. House and LF Ray Sadler had 2-hit games for Round Rock, including Sadler having the big RBI double in the 9th.

Omaha is 33-38 and 8 games out. Game 3 with the Express is tonight. Probable starters: Omaha RH Matt Wright (1-4, 5.89) vs. Round Rock RH Ron Chiavacci (1-1, 10.80). O-Royals hitting coach Terry Bradshaw has been named to the staff for the AAA All-Star Game as the PCL hitting coach.

AA - NW Arkansas: Tulsa 4, Naturals 3

LF Falu 2-4, HR (2), RBI (14), 2 RS -- .277
2B Maddox 2-3, BB, 2B (12), RS, SB (11) -- .295
SS Sanchez 2-4, 2B (7) -- .273
C Donachie 1-4, 2B (5), RBI (14), 2 K -- .225, haven't typed his name much this season
1B Richardson 0-4, RBI (34), K, E (3) -- .289
CF Duarte 0-5, K -- .250
DH Kaaihue 1-3, BB -- .278

Cortes 7 IP, ER, 3 H, BB, 10 K -- 3.58 ERA, tough no-decision
Nicoll IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 3 K -- BS, 1, L, 0-1, 27.00 ERA, rough AA debut
Crist IP, 2 K -- 4.54 ERA

*** Dan Cortes pitched a great game only to watch the bullpen let it slip away as Tulsa set up a chance at a 4-game sweep. Irving Falu slammed his 2nd homer of the season in the 1st and, right away, the Naturals had a 1-0 lead. Adam Donachie hit a 2-out RBI double in the 2nd and Juan Richardson hit an RBI groundout in the 3rd to make it 3-0 NWA. Cortes gave up his first hit of the game in the 4th and Tulsa scratched out a run thanks also in part to a Juan Richardson error on a pickoff attempt. The 3-1 lead held into the 8th when Chris Nicoll came in for his AA debut. With 2 outs and a man on second, Nicoll hit a batter then gave up a 2-run double and RBI single to give the Drillers the 4-3 lead. A strike-'em-out, throw-'em-out double play ended the NWA 8th and the Naturals went down in order in the 9th as Tulsa's Ryan Mattheus got his 11th save. RP Adam Bright got 1 out for the win to move to 3-2 with a 1.73 ERA. Starter Alan Johnson went 6 2/3 IP and allowed 3 ER on 8 hits, 2 walks and 3 Ks to move his ERA to 4.85. DH Matt Miller was 2-4 with his 13th double and 3 RBI (57) along with his 3rd SB and a run scored to move to .356.

NW Arkansas is 0-1. The series is concluding today as Blake Wood got the start for NWA. C Cody Clark was activated from the DL. A story in the Springdale Morning News states the Royals have signed supplemental draft pick lefty Mike Montgomery, so that's good news. The same story says it's a matter of "when" not "if" the Royals will sign #3 overall pick 1B Eric Hosmer. A look at the Baseball America '08 Royals draft database shows 2 other top 10-round picks signed -- 8th round righty Malcolm Culver and 10th round C Mauricio Matos. Now let's get Hosmer and Melville and then whatever else is gravy.

A-Adv. - Wilmington: Blue Rocks 4, Frederick 3

SS McConnell 3-5, K, RS, E (16) -- .269, wasn't he supposed to have a good defensive rep?
3B Mertins 2-4, RBI (27) -- .281
RF Dickerson 0-3, BB, RBI (42), 2 K -- .316
2B Bianchi 0-3, BB, RBI (28) -- .239
CF D. Robinson 1-4, BB, K, 2 RS -- .257
DH J. Johnson 0-4, K -- .275

Cegarra 6 IP, UER, 3 H, 2 BB, 5 K -- 3.62 ERA, good start
Swaggerty 1 2/3 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 3 K, WP -- 3.29 ERA
Hartsock 1 1/3 IP, H, K, WP -- W, 5-4, 4.61 ERA

*** The Rocks won in dramatic fashion as 4 Keys errors helped the cause, including one in particular. The Rocks started their half of the 1st with 3 straight singles as one from Kurt Mertins drove home Derrick Robinson to make it 1-0 Wilmington. The Rocks stranded 2 then and in the 3rd and starter Ed Cegarra stranded 2 Keys in the 4th. Frederick finally tied it in the 5th as a Chris McConnell error and Jeff Howell passed ball helped lead to the tying run. The Keys broke the 1-1 tie in the 8th as Ben Swaggerty was pulled for Aaron Hartsock with the bases loaded and 2 out and Hartsock gave up a 2-run single before stranding 2 in scoring position. Two Keys errors helped the Rocks rally in the bottom of the 8th as Joe Dickerson drew a bases-loaded walk and a Jeff Bianchi RBI forceout tied the game. The Rocks loaded the bases with 2 walks and a single with 1 out in the 9th and McConnell grounded into a would-be forceout only to see Keys 3B Billy Rowell make a throwing error as the winning run scored. RP Ryan Ouellette took the loss with 1/3 IP of an unearned run on a hit and 2 walks with a K to drop to 2-6 with a 4.54 ERA. Keys starter Tim Bascom went 6 IP and allowed an ER on 5 hits, a walk and 6 Ks to make his ERA 3.90. RF Brandon Tripp was 2-4 with a run scored to move to .239 and C Matt Wieters was 1-3 with a walk and run scored to fall to .347.

Wilmington is 1-1 and 1 game back of first-half champ Potomac. The series with the Keys ends tonight. Probable starters: Rocks right-hander Mario Santiago (5-3, 4.08) vs. Frederick righty Kyle Schmidt (1-3, 3.82).

A - Burlington: all-star break

*** The Bees start the second half tonight with the first of 4 at the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (A Mariners). Probable starters: Bees' Alex Caldera (4-5, 3.21) vs. Wisconsin's Ed Paredes (4-6, 4.01). The Bees are 5-3 versus the Rattlers and swept the last 4-game set from them.

Rookie - Idaho Falls: Chukars 11, Casper 6

2B A. Perez 3-5, 2B, 3B, 4 RBI, K, 2 RS -- .333
RF Francis 2-5, 3B, 2 RBI (5) -- .364
3B Jimenez 3-5, RBI, K -- .364
CF Norris 2-4, SF, RBI, K, 2 RS -- .222
SS Alfaro 3-5, K, 2 RS, SB -- .600, not bad in first pro start
1B Espinosa 2-5, RBI -- .222, first pro RBI
DH Van De Keere 2-4, BB, 2B, 2 K, 2 RS -- .333
LF Griffin 1-4, BB, 2B, RBI, K, 2 RS, SB -- .222, also his first RBI and steal
C McCauley 1-4, SF, RBI, RS, E -- .125

Cota 4 2/3 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 5 H, BB, 5 K, HRA -- 3.86 ERA, shaky, but first start in looooong time
Carver 1 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, K -- 13.50 ERA
J. Garcia 3 IP, ER, 2 H, 3 K, WP -- W, 1-0, 3.00 ERA

*** Four multi-run rallies were the recipe for the Chukars' first win of 2008. Patrick Norris tried to score on a 2-out error in the 1st but was thrown out at the plate to keep the game scoreless. Casper struck first in the 3rd with a run on 2 hits and a throwing error by C Sean McCauley. Norris tied it with a sac fly in the bottom of the 3rd and the Chukars poured on 2 more runs on an Alwin Perez RBI double and McCauley sac fly before stranding 2. The Chukars loaded the bases to start the 4th and Perez hit a 1-out triple to bring 3 more runs in to make it 6-1 Idaho Falls. IF starter Luis Cota, who was making his first official start in a comeback from arm surgery, gave up a solo homer in the 5th and was pulled with 1 on and 2 out. P Jesse Carver, making his pro debut as an undrafted free agent out of Mississippi State, then allowed 3 more runs to come in on 3 hits and the lead was closed to 6-5. Idaho Falls got some breathing room back in the 6th with 3 runs on an RBI double by Shawn Griffin and a 2-run triple by Nick Francis to make it 9-5. P Justin Garcia also made his debut as a non-drafted FA out of the U of New Orleans and, after pitching a perfect 7th, allowed a run on a triple and wild pitch in the 8th. The Chukars struck back with 2 in the 8th on RBI singles by Antonio Jimenez and Tito Espinosa before stranding 2. Garcia stranded 1 in the 9th to nail down the win. Casper starter Marco Duarte took the loss with 4 IP of 6 ER on 9 hits, a walk and 3 Ks to fall to 0-1 with a 13.50 ERA. CF James Sims and C Nick Valdez had 3-hit games for the Ghosts while RF Orlando Sandoval also chipped in 2 hits.

Idaho Falls is 1-1 and 1 game back. The series ends tonight with no announced starters on the team site.

Rookie - Burlington: Danville 10, B-Royals 3

RF Caldwell 2-3, HBP, 3B, RBI, K, CS -- .286, first pro RBI
LF Aparicio 1-4, 2B, RBI (2), K, RS, OF assist at home -- .286
C Moctezuma 0-2, SF, RBI -- .000, first pro RBI as well
CF Richardson 1-4, K, OF assist at first -- .250
2B Franco 1-4, 2B, K, RS -- .375
DH Testa 0-3, 2 K -- .000, first pro start
3B F. Cruz 0-2, HBP -- .167
SS Gutierrez 0-3, E -- .000, pro debut for NDFA out of Lipscomb U

G. De La Cruz 4 IP, 4 ER, 9 H, BB, 2 K, HRA -- L, 0-1, 9.00 ERA
Garrido 3 2/3 IP, 4 R (1 ER), 7 H, 3 K, HRA -- 2.45 ERA
Bryant 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, K, HRA -- 54.00 ERA, gave up granny in pro debut

*** The Braves put the game on ice in the 8th to keep the B-Royals winless. Allen Caldwell hit a 1-out triple in the 2nd and scored on a Miguel Moctezuma sac fly to put Burlington up early. Danville went to work on Royals starter Giancarlo De La Cruz in the 3rd and ended up with 4 runs on 4 hits and a 3-run homer, although LF Julio Aparicio did save one run with an OF assist at the plate. The Royals tightened it up with 2 runs in the 4th on an Aparicio RBI double and Caldwell RBI single to cut it to 4-3. De La Cruz stranded the bases full in the 4th and handed the ball to Santiago Garrido in the 5th. Garrido gave up a solo homer in the 6th and the Braves got to him in the 8th with 2 2-out singles and a run-scoring throwing error by shortstop Jorge Gutierrez. Carson Bryant made his pro debut to relieve Garrido and loaded the bases with a single before serving up a grand slam to 1B Gerardo Rodriguez for his 2nd homer of the game to make it 10-3 Danville. The Royals went down meekly in the 9th as RP Craig Kimbrel marked his 1st save. Danville SP Julio Teheran went 5 IP and allowed 3 ER on 5 hits with 3 Ks to move to 1-0 with a 5.40 ERA. Rodriguez was a one-man wrecking crew as he went 3-5 with 2 HR (3) and 7 RBI (10) to move to .556. Three other Braves had 3-hit games while two others had 2-hit games.

The B-Royals are 0-2. The set with the Braves ends tonight with no announced starters on the team site.