Royals on the Farm 5/28 & 5/29

Another 2-day post....I don't think I did this many all last season, and this is already my 3rd or 4th this season. My Friday was spent driving 75 miles early in the morning to cover a state tourney high school baseball game (lost by the local team via run rule in 5) then stopping in the doctor's office on the way back to find out, 2 hours later, that I have strep throat. Then I spent another 45 minutes waiting for an antibiotic prescription before driving to a town neighboring mine where my middle daughter played softball and I tried not to infect anyone else. I finally got home around 8:30 p.m. and was in no mood to get a RotF report done, so my apologies. I was also worn out from watching a 21-20 4th grade girls' softball game. We were the 20 but I think we had a no-hitter. The other team scored all its runs via bases-loaded walks and hit batters. Our good pitcher had to leave after the 2nd inning for some reason, so the carnage was on from there. Soooooooo fun to watch, that first year of kid-pitch.

AAA - Omaha: Fresno 4, O-Royals 3 (Thu.)

LF-1B Thorman 2-4, BB, RBI (10), RS -- .217
DH B. Pena 2-5, 2 2B (6), RBI (18), RS -- .321
CF Duarte 2-3, BB, RS, SB -- .176
C House 1-3, BB, 2B (6), RBI (22), E (2) -- .304, 7/7 SB against for what's believed to be a new O-Royals record
1B Ka'aihue 1-2, BB, K -- .286, ejected in 6th
3B Metcalf 0-4, K, E (6) -- .246
SS Lisson 0-4, K -- .231
* Omaha stranded 10.

Hochevar 6 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 8 H, BB, 6 K -- L, 5-1, 1.17 ERA, untriumphant return to AAA
Hamulack 1 2/3 IP, ER, H, 2 BB, K, HRA -- 7.13 ERA
Rosa 1 1/3 IP, H, BB, 2 K -- 7.23 ERA

*** Luke Hochevar's temporary return to AAA started on a sour note as Fresno dealt him his 1st loss of the season. He stranded 2 in the 1st but Fresno got to him for 3 runs in the 3rd on 3 hits, a walk, errors by J.R. House and Travis Metcalf and 3 SB in the inning. Omaha stranded 2 in the 3rd and, after Kila Ka'aihue was ejected for arguing a called strikeout in the 6th, the Royals left the bases full that inning. Tim Hamulack gave up a solo homer to 1B John Bowker (his 3rd) in the 7th and Omaha stranded 2 that inning. Carlos Rosa came in to leave 2 in scoring position in the 8th and Omaha finally broke through with a House RBI double to cut the lead to 4-1. Rosa stranded 2 in the 9th and Brayan Pena hit a 2-out RBI double in the bottom of the 9th before Scott Thorman singled him home to trim the lead to 1 and bring the potential winning run to the plate. Brian Buchanan pinch-hit for Cory Aldridge, who had come in after Ka'aihue's ejection, and flew out to end the game as RP Geno Espineli got his 6th save. Starter Kevin Pucetas allowed 4 hits and 3 walks with 3 Ks over 6 IP to win and move to 5-1 with a 3.47 ERA. Bowker was 4-5 with his 6th SB, 2 doubles (10), his HR, 2 RBI (25), and 2 RS to move to .329. CF Eugenio Velez also had 2 hits and 2 SB (4) for the Grizzlies.

O-Royals 7, Nashville 3 (Fri.)

2B Falu 3-4, BB, 3B (3), 3 RBI (17), RS -- .281, has been solid out of leadoff spot
C House 2-5, RS -- .306
3B Metcalf 1-3, BB, SF, 2 RBI (26), RS -- .247
CF Duarte 1-2, 2 S, RBI (4), E (3) -- .189
DH B. Pena 0-4, HBP -- .307
1B Ka'aihue 1-5, 2B (13), 2 K, RS -- .283
SS Lisson 0-5, K -- .167
RF Murphy 1-1, 3 BB, 3 RS -- .219

DiNardo 6 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 5 H, BB, 6 K, HRA -- W, 4-1, 3.29 ERA
Marte 2 IP, ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 3 K -- 3.00 ERA
Atencio IP, K -- 5.16 ERA

*** Omaha took an early lead and kept pace with Nashville to take the opener of the 3-day, 4-game set. With 2 out and the bases loaded in the 2nd, Jose Duarte singled home a run and Irving Falu hit a 2-run single to give the Royals a 3-0 lead. Lenny DiNardo stranded 2 Sounds in the 2nd but got touched up for a solo homer by 1B Joe Koshansky (his 10th) in the 4th to get Nashville on the board. Travis Metcalf took a bases-loaded, 2-out walk in the 5th to get the run back and Tommy Murphy scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch in the 6th before Omaha stranded 2. Nashville got an unearned run off DiNardo in the 6th and got a run on 3 hits off Victor Marte before stranding the bases full in the 7th to cut it to 5-3. Falu hit an RBI triple in the 8th and Metcalf added a sac fly in the 9th before Greg Atencio pitched a perfect inning to finish the victory. Sounds SP Chase Wright took the loss with 5 1/3 IP of 5 runs (4 ER) allowed on 7 hits and 3 walks with 3 Ks to drop to 3-5 with a 4.58 ERA. DH Erick Almonte and Nomar's brother SS Michael Garciaparra had 2 hits for Nashville. Garciaparra also had his 4th error.

The O-Royals are 22-26 and 3 1/2 games back of the first-place Sounds (26-23, AAA Brew Crew). The teams play a doubleheader today as Matt Wright (0-1, 8.36) faces Nashville righty Matt Ginter (1-1, 2.79). The Royals are 6-3 thus far versus the Sounds.

AA - NW Arkansas: Midland 12, Naturals 8 (Thu.)

RF Parraz 3-4, BB, 3B (2), 4 RBI (26), CS (5) -- .328
SS McConnell 3-4, 2B (2), RBI (8), 2 RS -- .208, to date, a rare offensive outburst from Chris
CF Strait 2-4, BB, K, RS -- .300
C Suomi 1-5, RBI (12), RS, PB (2) -- .329
3B C. Smith 1-2, 3 BB, RBI (26), RS -- .225, nice night for OBP
DH Mertins 0-4, SF, RBI (21), 3 K -- .262

Kniginyzky 3 1/3 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 3 K, WP -- L, 1-5, 5.31 ERA
Nicoll 2 2/3 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 3 H, BB, 3 K, HRA, balk -- 1.84 ERA, has hit rough patch lately
Hartsock 1 1/3 IP, 3 R (2 ER), H, 3 BB, K, 2 WP -- 13.50 ERA, nerves?
Cevette 1 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 3 BB -- 3.38 ERA
Clark 1/3 IP, nothing -- 0.00 ERA for Cody the catcher

*** Both teams pounded out 11 hits but a couple Nats errors helped the RockHounds win and set up a chance at a 3-game sweep. Matt Kniginyzky stranded the bases full in the 2nd and a John Suomi RBI groundout put the Naturals on top that inning, 1-0. Jordan Parraz hit a 2-out RBI single in the 3rd to make it 2-0 but Kniginyzky ran into trouble in the 4th. He allowed 3 runs on a 2-run triple and RBI double to get pulled for Chris Nicoll, who got out of the inning without further damage. DH Tommy Everidge went long, though, for his 7th of the season to lead off the 5th off Nicoll and make it 4-2 Midland. A Kurt Mertins sac fly in the 5th cut the lead back to 1 but Nicoll was pulled for Aaron Hartsock to make his '09 AA debut with the bases loaded and 0 out in the 7th. The RockHounds scored 3 runs in the inning without a hit off Hartsock as a wild pitch, run-scoring error and sac fly made it 7-3. Corey Smith took a bases-loaded walk in the 7th to cut it to 7-4 but the Naturals left the bases full. Midland responded with 3 runs in the 8th off Hartsock and Dan Cevette to make it 10-4 but the Naturals weren't dead yet. Chris McConnell hit an RBI single and with the bases loaded and 2 out in the 8th, Parraz came through with a bases-clearing triple to cut the lead to 10-8. Midland picked up 2 insurance runs in the 9th, however, and the Naturals stranded 1 in the 9th as RP Sam Demel picked up his 8th save. Starter Carlos Hernandez got the win with 3 ER allowed on 6 hits and 4 walks with 2 Ks over 6 IP to improve to 2-0 with a 4.09 ERA. Four 'Hounds had 2 hits and 1B Chris Carter drove in 3 runs (38) and hit his 18th double. Everidge was 2-5 with his HR, 43rd RBI, a walk, K and 2 RS to move to .306. RF Matt Sulentic also drove in 2 runs (15).

Midland 7, Naturals 2 (Fri.)

SS McConnell 3-4, RS, SB (5), CS -- .237, bat is "en fuego"
RF Parraz 2-4, CS (6) -- .333
2B Mertins 2-5 -- .266
1B C. Smith 2-4, K, E (10), picked off -- .231
DH McFall 2-3, BB, K -- .275
C Suomi 1-2, 2 BB, HR (6), RBI (13), RS -- .333

B. Wood 4 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 6 H, 4 BB, 4 K, 3 WP -- L, 2-3, 6.31 ERA
Hayes 4 1/3 IP, 4 UER, 6 H, 2 K -- 0.53 ERA, 65 pitches in relief

*** Four late runs helped Midland stave off the Naturals for the 3-game sweep Friday. Both teams stranded 2 in the 1st but John Suomi put the Naturals on top in the 2nd with his 6th homer of the season for a solo shot to make it 1-0. The RockHounds got a run on 2 hits off Blake Wood in the 4th and, after NWA stranded 2 in the 4th, Midland scratched out 2 more runs in the 5th on 2 hits, 3 walks and 2 Wood wild pitches to take a 3-1 lead. Chris Hayes came in to strand 2 and an error on a Kurt Mertins single in the 5th brought in a run to trim the advantage to 3-2. That was the score entering the 8th when the 'Hounds posted 3 runs on 3 hits and a Josh Johnson error at third. The Naturals stranded 2 in the 8th and Midland scored another run in the 9th thanks in part to a Corey Smith error. Midland SP Jason Fernandez allowed 2 ER on 9 hits and 2 walks with 6 Ks over 6 IP to improve to 5-4 with a 4.37 ERA. C Josh Donaldson was 3-5 with 2 doubles (15) and 2 RBI (35) along with his 6th passed ball, a K and RS to improve his BA to .281. Two other 'Hounds had 2 hits. 2B Adrian Cardenas was 1-4 with 2 RBI (29) to drop to .381.

The Naturals are 22-24 and 5 games back. A 3-game home set with the Frisco RoughRiders (23-22, AA Rangers) starts tonight. Dan Cortes (2-4, 3.86 ERA) will take on Frisco lefty Michael Kirkman (0-0, 5.40 ERA). The Frisco roster features Rangers prospects 1B Justin Smoak (top positional prospect, I kinda woulda liked to see the Royals pick him last season, .325 BA/.947 OPS, 28 RS, 9 2B, 6 HR, 25 RBI, 32 BB/30 K, 1 E in 41 G/151 ABs), lefty Kasey Kiker (3-2, 2.72 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 2 HRA, 26 BB/52 K in 9 starts and 46 1/3 IP), righty Omar Poveda (5-3, 3.10, 1.24, 3 HRA, 20 BB/27 K in 9 starts and 52 1/3 IP, one CG shutout), and SS Marcus Lemon (Chet's son and a Pipeline minors favorite, would LOVE to see KC swing a deal for him, .282/.710, 21 RS, 8 2B, 2 3B, 12 RBI, 16 BB/19 K, 2/3 SB, 12 E (oy) in 41 G/156 ABs). OF "The Other" Chad Tracy leads the Riders with 8 HR and 37 RBI but has only a .747 OPS with a sub-.300 OBP. OF Joe Dickerson was placed on the DL with a sore shoulder.

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

LF Lough 2-3, BB, RS, E -- .341
1B C. Robinson 1-3, BB, 2 RBI (25), RS -- .304
RF Walton 0-4, RBI (6), 3 K -- .268
C Morizio 1-3, RBI, K -- .154
DH Ortiz 1-3 -- .270
3B Moustakas 0-2, BB, S (???), CS (4) -- .282, had him bunt to move eventual winning run into scoring position in 8th
2B Giavotella 1-3, BB, RS -- .214
CF D. Robinson 0-4, K -- .232
SS Bianchi 0-3, BB, K, RS -- .315

Santiago 7 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 2 K -- 4.99 ERA
Abreu IP, BB -- W, 1-1, 6.75 ERA
Sisk IP, K -- SV, 4, 4.08 ERA

*** The Rocks fell behind late but rallied back to win the finale with the Keys. The Rocks stranded 2 in the 2nd as the game went scoreless into the 7th. Frederick finally got to Mario Santiago that inning for 2 runs on 2 hits, 2 walks and a sac fly as Santiago had a 4-hit shutout going into the inning. A single and Keys error gave Wilmington 2 in scoring position with none out in the 7th and Jamar Walton hit an RBI groundout before Matt Morizio singled in the tying run and the Rocks would strand 2. With 2 on and 2 out in the 8th, Clint Robinson had the big knock with a 2-run single and Brandon Sisk pitched a perfect 9th for his 4th save. RP Brett Bordes took the loss with 2 ER allowed on 2 hits and a walk and K over an inning of work to drop to 2-3 with a 9.28 ERA. Starter Zach Britton worked 7 IP of 2 runs (1 ER) allowed on 4 hits, 4 walks and 5 Ks to move his ERA to 2.45. C Caleb Joseph was 2-4 with his 23rd RBI to move to .326. 3B Tyler Henson was 1-2 with a sac fly, his 15th double and 26th RBI to move to .226.

Myrtle Beach 4, Blue Rocks 3 (13/Fri.)

2B Giavotella 2-4, BB, S, 2B (6), 2 RS, E (9) -- .221
CF D. Robinson 2-6, RS, SB (24) -- .236
DH Lough 1-6, 2 RBI (22), K -- .333
3B Moustakas 0-6, 2 E (13) -- .273, night to forget
SS Bianchi 1-5, BB, 2 K -- .311
1B C. Robinson 1-5, 2 K -- .301
LF Ortiz 1-5, 2 K, SB (7), OF assist at third -- .267

Teaford 6 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 4 K, HRA -- 2.65 ERA
Godin IP, 3 H -- 2.19 ERA
Swaggerty 2 IP, UER, H, BB, 4 K, pickoff -- BS, 2, 1.96 ERA
Sisk 2 IP, 5 K -- 3.66 ERA
Villa 2 IP, ER, 2 H, 4 K -- L, 1-4, 3.48 ERA

*** The Pelicans got the game tied in the 8th and then won it in 13. Both teams got out to a hot start as Myrtle Beach scored a run in the 1st on 2 hits and a walk off Everett Teaford before stranding 2. David Lough flipped the lead around, though, with a 2-out, 2-run single in the 1st to give the Rocks the lead. Teaford gave up a solo homer to C Matt Kennelly (his 1st) to lead off the 2nd but an error on a Jeff Bianchi single in the 3rd scored Johnny Giavotella to give the Rocks a 3-2 lead. Teaford stranded 2 in the 6th but left the lead to the pen in the 7th. Jason Godin returned from the DL to pitch a shaky 7th as the Pelicans got 3 hits but Adrian Ortiz helped throw a runner out at third to kill the threat. Mike Moustakas' 2nd error of the game started the 8th and Ben Swaggerty allowed a 1-out RBI single to tie the game. The Rocks stranded 2 in the 8th and squandered a leadoff double by Paulo Orlando in the 9th. Brandon Sisk struck out 5 of the 6 batters he faced in extras and the Rocks left 2 in scoring position in the 12th. With 2 on and 1 out in the MB 13th, a Giavotella error allowed the lead run to cross the plate and RP Thomas Palica pitched a perfect inning for his 3rd save. RP Lee Hyde pitched 2 scoreless innings to get the win and move to 1-0 with a 1.42 ERA. Starter Edgar Osuna allowed 3 runs (2 ER) on 6 hits and a walk with 3 Ks over 7 IP to move his ERA to 3.19. CF C.J. Lee and 1B Freddie Freeman had 3 hits each for the Pelicans. Freeman had a walk, his 11th double and a RS to improve to .299. RF Jon Owings had an OF assist at second and drove in 2 runs (7).

The Rocks are 24-23 and 7 games back. Game 2 of the 3-game set with the Pelicans (18-29, A-Adv. Braves) is tonight with Alex Caldera (0-2, 5.44) facing MB lefty Jeff Locke (1-3, 4.20). The Rocks are 4-4 versus the Pelicans.

A - Burlington: Bees 4, Lansing 2 (7/G1, Thu.)

1B Hosmer 2-4, 2 2B (10), RBI (19) -- .254
LF Van Stratten 2-4, 2B (10), RBI (19), RS -- .333
2B Franco 2-3, S, RBI (2), RS -- .211
RF Francis 1-4, 2B (14), RBI (31), K -- .322
CF Norris 2-3, RS -- .221
C Bonilla 0-2, 2 BB, K -- .235

Baez 5 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 K, HRA -- W, 3-1, 3.05 ERA
Bowden 1 2/3 IP, H, 2 K -- SV, 5, 2.18 ERA

*** Four 1-run rallies got the Bees a win in the first of two with the Lugnuts Thursday. Nick Francis put the Bees in front with a 2-out RBI double in the 1st and Nick Van Stratten hit an RBI groundout in the 2nd to make it 2-0 Burlington. Eric Hosmer hit an RBI double in the 5th to make it 3-0 and an Angel Franco RBI single in the 6th made it 4-0. Manauris Baez had a 3-hit shutout into the 6th but served up a 2-run homer to LF Brian Van Kirk (his 8th) that inning to give way to Barry Bowden with a 4-2 lead. Bowden stranded 1 in the 7th for his 5th save. Lansing SP Josh Wells allowed 4 ER on 10 hits and 3 walks with 2 Ks to drop to 2-5 with a 7.71 ERA. Van Kirk was 2-3 with his homer and 2 RBI (19) to improve to .288.

Lansing 7, Bees 2 (7/G2, Thu.)

CF Van Stratten 1-3, RBI (20), picked off -- .333
2B F. Garcia 1-3, RBI (5), CS (5), E (9) -- .292
1B Hosmer 0-2, BB, K -- .250
RF Francis 1-3, K, OF assist at second -- .322
DH Bonilla 1-3, K -- .238
C McCauley 0-3, K -- .196

Montgomery 3 IP, ER, 3 H, 4 BB, 5 K, WP -- 3.27 ERA
Lehmann 2 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 2 H, 3 BB, 2 WP, E -- L, 0-1, 4.22 ERA
Bryant IP, 2 UER, H, BB, K -- 4.39 ERA

*** Six late runs gave the Lugnuts a split of the doubleheader. Mike Montgomery stranded 2 in the 1st and the Bees took a 2-0 lead in the 3rd on a Nick Van Stratten RBI groundout and Fernando Garcia RBI single. Montgomery allowed a run on 2 hits and 2 walks in the 3rd before leaving the bases loaded. Lansing broke through with a 4-run rally off Mike Lehmann in the 5th on 2 hits, 2 walks and 2 Bees errors, not to mention 2 Lehmann wild pitches. Carson Bryant allowed 2 runs in the 6th on an Antonio Jimenez error and the Bees didn't threaten again. Lansing SP Chase Lirette got the win with 2 ER allowed on 5 hits and a walk with 3 Ks over 5 IP to improve to 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA. RF Johermyn Chavez was 3-4 with his 7th double and 2 RBI (28), his 4th error, K and 2 RS to move to .285.

Bees 11, Fort Wayne 5 (Fri.)

1B Hosmer 3-5, 2B (11), 4 RBI (23), 2 K, 3 RS -- .262, keep it up
LF-CF Van Stratten 3-4, 2 BB, RBI (21), 3 RS -- .349
RF Tucker 2-5, 2 RBI (9) -- .147
2B F. Garcia 2-6, 2 K, RS -- .295
DH D. Wood 1-4, BB, 2B (8), 2 RBI (16), RS -- .291
C McCauley 1-4, SF, 3B, 2 RBI (11) -- .198
SS-3B Jimenez 2-5, K, 2 RS -- .216
CF Norris 0-2, HBP, 2 K, OF assist at home -- .218

Casey 5 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, BB, 5 K, HRA -- W, 4-4, 2.74 ERA
B. Hardy 3 IP, 3 ER, 6 H, 4 BB, 2 K -- 3.00 ERA, didn't have best stuff Friday
J. Garcia IP, H, BB, K -- 5.87 ERA

*** The Bees built an 11-2 lead and held on to win the opener with the TinCaps. The Bees got to Padres prospect Simon Castro for 3 runs in the 1st on an Eric Hosmer RBI single and 2-out, 2-run single by Wilson Tucker to jump out to the 3-0 lead. Bryan Casey struck out the side in the 1st and the Bees added 3 in the 2nd on a 2-run Hosmer double and Sean McCauley RBI triple to stretch the lead to 6-0. Casey got nicked for 2 runs in the 2nd on a solo homer by LF Jaff Decker (his 7th) and 2 other hits. Casey worked out of a 2-on, none-out jam in the 4th and then got an OF assist from Patrick Norris at the plate before stranding 2 in the 5th. The Bees loaded the bases with none out in the 6th and ended up with 4 runs on a Hosmer RBI single, 2-run David Wood double and McCauley sac fly to make it 10-2. Blaine Hardy left the bases loaded in the 6th and Nick Van Stratten singled home a run in the 7th to make it 11-2. Hardy gave up 2 runs in the 7th on 3 hits and a walk, including 2 doubles, and then allowed another run in the 8th before leaving 2 in scoring position. Justin Garcia stranded 2 in the 9th to finish it. Castro took the loss with 5 IP of 6 ER allowed on 8 hits and 2 walks with 5 Ks to drop to 2-3 with a 4.18 ERA. Three TinCaps had 3 hits and another had 2 hits. RF Dan Robertson had 3 hits with his 2nd double and 2 RBI (21) to move to .292. SS Andrew Cumberland improved to .341 with a 3-hit game.

The Bees are 20-27. The series with the TinCaps (29-19, A Padres) continues tonight as Tim Melville (1-1, 4.50) makes his 3rd pro start versus TinCaps lefty Nick Schmidt (1-0, 5.55). Ft. Wayne's roster features Friars prospects OF Jaff Decker (.303 BA/1.067 OPS, 23 RS, 7 2B, 7 HR, 20 RBI, 31 BB/24 K, 4/5 SB, 1 E in 31 G/99 ABs), 3B James Darnell (.276/.896, 26 RS, 8 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 25 RBI, 45 BB/41 K, 4/7 SB, 13 E in 46 G/152 ABs), 1B Allan Dykstra (.219/.783, 26 RS, 10 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 44 BB/40 K, 6 E in 44 G/146 ABs), righty Castro (2-3, 4.18 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 3 HRA, 19 BB/48 K in 10 games (9 starts) and 47 1/3 IP), and OF Blake Tekotte (.203/.561, 26 RS, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 16 BB/35 K, 11/14 SB, 3 E in 45 G/177 ABs).