Royals on the Farm 7/26

AAA - Omaha: O-Royals 5, Round Rock 3

DH Hulett 2-3, BB, 2B (19), RBI (40), RS -- .305
SS Falu 1-2, 2 BB, 2B (12), 2 RBI (32), RS, E (9) -- .262
1B Ka'aihue 1-3, BB, RBI (41) -- .265
LF Thorman 0-4, RBI (47), 2 K -- .279, Omaha honeymoon over for Thorman's bat?
3B Lisson 0-3, BB, 2 K, SB (4) -- .249

Davies 6 IP, 3 R (1 ER), 6 H, BB, 7 K, HRA -- W, 4-2, 2.06 ERA
Hamulack IP, H, K -- 5.58 ERA
Waechter 2 IP, 2 H -- SV, 1, 5.27 ERA

*** Irving Falu had the big hit in the 5th as Omaha won despite 4 less hits than the Express. Omaha wasted no time with 2 runs in the 1st on a Kila Ka'aihue RBI single and Scott Thorman RBI groundout. Kyle Davies allowed a run in the 4th and then gave up a leadoff homer to RR 3B Chris Johnson (his 6th) in the 5th to tie the game at 2. Falu ripped a 2-run double, tho, in the 5th to make it 4-2 Royals. A Falu error helped lead to a Round Rock run in the 6th but Omaha got its cushion back in the 7th on a Tug Hulett RBI double to make it 5-3. Doug Waechter got out of a minor jam in the 8th then pitched a perfect 9th for his 1st save as his rehab continues. Express SP Mark McLemore took the loss with 6 1/3 IP of 5 ER on 4 hits and 5 walks with 5 Ks to fall to 3-6 with a 4.11 ERA. CF Yordany Ramirez was 3-4 with 2 SB (9) to move to .274.

Omaha is 41-59. The series wraps today as Omaha goes for 3 of 4. Heath Phillips (6-7, 5.96) faces Round Rock righty Felipe Paulino (1-0, 1.31).

AA - NW Arkansas: Naturals 16, Springfield 4

SS Bianchi 4-6, HR (3), 5 RBI (23), 3 RS -- .368
RF Lough 4-5, 3 RBI (13), RS -- .349, recent additions producing big time
C Clark 3-5, 2 2B (10), 3 RS -- .327
LF Duarte 2-4, BB, RBI (27), K, 2 RS -- .250
DH V. Wilson 2-5, RBI (17), 2 K, 2 RS -- .340
1B C. Smith 1-5, BB, RBI (67), 2 K, 2 RS -- .255
3B Lucas 1-5, RBI (33), 2 K, RS -- .290
CF Dyson 0-5, BB, 4 K, CS (1) -- .263, only Natural with disappointing night
2B Mertins 0-3, 3 BB, 2 RBI (43), 2 RS -- .287

R. Hardy 6 IP, 3 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 6 K, HRA -- W, 2-1, 3.32 ERA
Godin 0 IP, ER, 4 BB, WP -- ERA is infinite, ungood AA debut
Abreu 2 IP, 6 K -- 0.00 ERA, wow, can't get better than that
Nicoll IP, 2 H, 3 K -- 3.49 ERA

*** The Naturals scored 6 runs early and 10 runs late to continue their domination of the series with Springfield. Jeff Bianchi hit a solo homer in the 1st for his 3rd of the season and Ed Lucas hit an RBI single to spot the Nats a 2-0 lead. NWA heaped on 4 runs in the 2nd on two run-scoring Cards errors, a Bianchi RBI single and David Lough RBI single to make it 6-0. Rowdy Hardy stranded 2 in the 2nd and left 'em loaded in the 3rd. Springfield finally got to him for 3 runs in the 5th, including a 2-run homer by DH Steven Hill (his 16th), as Hill continued his good output in the series. Jason Godin's AA debut was shaky as he came out and went walk, walk, wild pitch, walk, run-scoring walk before getting pulled in the 6th. Juan Abreu came in and pulled the Houdini by striking out the side with the bases loaded as NWA escaped with a 6-4 lead. That changed in a big way in the 8th as the Nats scored 7 runs on a Vance Wilson RBI single, and, with 2 outs, Kurt Mertins took a bases-loaded walk, Bianchi hit a 2-run single, Corey Smith hit an RBI single, and Lough hit a 2-run single to make it 13-4. NWA poured on 3 gravy runs in the 9th as Jose Duarte hit an RBI fielder's choice, Cody Clark scored on a wild pitch and Bianchi hit an RBI groundout. Chris Nicoll notched 3 strikeouts in the 9th as the Nats got the last 9 outs via K. Cards SP Scott Gorgen took the loss with 6 runs (3 ER) allowed on 7 hits and 4 walks with 7 Ks to fall to 1-3 with a 5.23 ERA. Three Cards had 2 hits as Hill was 2-4 with the HR and 2 RBI (51) to move to .272.

The Naturals are 19-9 and 2 games up on first. They go for the 4-game sweep tonight as Anthony Lerew (5-5, 4.94) takes on Cards righty Lance Lynn (9-3, 3.22). Bianchi was named TL Player of the Week for July 20-26 after hitting 18-30 (.600) with 11 RBI on the week.

A-Adv. - Wilmington: Blue Rocks 5, Kinston 4

DH C. Robinson 3-5 -- .285, Moustakas took all his RBIs
3B Moustakas 2-5, HR (11), 4 RBI (61), K, 2 RS, E (18) -- .246
LF Walton 2-3, BB -- .262
1B Hosmer 1-3, BB, RBI (2) -- .304
CF D. Robinson 0-5, 2 K -- .226
2B Giavotella 0-3, 2 BB, 2 RS, SB (18) -- .255
RF Van Stratten 0-4, 2 K -- .095, transition to high-A hasn't gone well for Nick

Montgomery 4 2/3 IP, ER, H, 4 BB, 3 K, 2 WP -- 1.93 ERA, one out short of earning win
Liotta 2 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 3 H, BB, 2 K -- W, 4-2, 3.86 ERA
Z. Peterson 2 1/3 IP, BB -- SV, 1, 0.90 ERA

*** Mike Montgomery had a jittery line but held the Indians in check in his Advanced-A debut for the Rocks. The Rocks stranded 2 in the 2nd but plated 3 in the 3rd on a 3-run jack by Mike Moustakas for his 11th homer of the season. Wilmington added 2 in the 5th on a Moustakas RBI single and Eric Hosmer RBI single to chase Tribe starter Alex Perez. Montgomery took a no-hitter into the 5th but allowed a leadoff single, then wild pitch, before 2 groundouts brought home Kinston's 1st run of the game. Montgomery walked the bases loaded thereafter and was pulled for Ray Liotta, who got out of the jam. Liotta loaded the bases with 1 out in the 7th and a run-scoring passed ball and 2-run single cut the lead to 5-4. Zach Peterson came in to strand 1, and the Rocks left the bases full in the 8th. Peterson pitched 2 more quiet innings for his 1st save. Perez allowed 5 ER on 7 hits and 3 walks with 4 Ks over 4 1/3 IP to drop to 1-2 with a 3.09 ERA. Four Indians had a hit each and 3B Lonnie Chisenhall drove in 2 runs (69).

The Rocks are 15-14 and 4 1/2 games out. A 3-game home set with the Lynchburg Hillcats (11-18, A-Adv. Pirates) starts tonight with Eduardo Paulino (3-6, 4.57) facing 'Cats lefty Chi-Hung Cheng (7-3, 4.16).

A - Burlington: Ft. Wayne 11, Bees 2

SS Y. Molina 2-4, RBI (2), E (2) -- .217
CF Norris 2-4, 2B (3), RS -- .255
DH Griffin 2-4, K -- .294
RF Francis 1-3, BB, RBI (49), RS -- .265
3B Taylor 0-4 -- .262
LF Ortiz 0-4, OF assist at home -- .240
C Bonilla 0-3, BB -- .222
* The Bees turned 4 DPs.

Hodgson 4 IP, 6 ER, 10 H, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 WP -- L, 0-1, 12.60 ERA, A-ball debut
R. Pena 2 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 3 H, 3 BB -- 5.31 ERA
Coleman IP, H, 2 K -- 0.00 ERA, pro debut
Odenbach 2 IP, ER, H, 2 BB, 2 K -- 10.80 ERA

*** Fort Wayne poured it on early and often to even the series at a game each. Ivor Hodgson made his level debut and allowed a run in the 1st, then stranded 2 in the 2nd before giving up 4 runs in the 3rd on 5 singles and a walk with 2 outs. The Bees stranded 2 in the 3rd and the TinCaps added another run in the 4th before Adrian Ortiz ended the inning by gunning down a runner at the plate. Riquy Pena allowed a run in the 5th and 3 in the 6th as the TinCaps made it 10-0. Royals 5th round draftee P Louis Coleman made his pro debut with a scoreless 7th and the Bees got a bases-loaded RBI single from Yeldrys Molina before leaving 'em loaded in the 7th. Nick Francis hit an RBI single in the 8th but the Bees would get no more runs. TinCaps starter Erik Davis got the win with 6 2/3 IP of an ER on 5 hits and 2 walks with 3 Ks to improve to 10-4 with a 3.83 ERA. Five TinCaps had multiple hits and 3 drove in 2 runs. 3B Brayden Drake had 3 hits and 2 RBI (5) to move to .304, and DH Jaff Decker had 2 hits and 2 RBI (43) to move to .289. LF Dan Robertson had 2 hits and 2 RS to improve to .314.

The Bees are 12-16 and 5 games out. Craig Rodriguez (0-0, 0.00) makes a rehab start tonight in the finale versus TinCaps lefty Michael Watt (5-2, 3.55).

Rookie - Idaho Falls: Chukars 8, Ogden 7

C Theriot 3-5, 3 RBI (11), RS -- .349
2B Stovall 2-5, 3B, 2 RBI, K, RS, 2 E -- .286
3B Alvaro 1-4, BB, 3B, RBI (9), 2 K -- .280
SS D. Batista 1-4, BB, K, RS, CS (2) -- .306
DH Testa 1-3, 2 BB, K, RS, SB (4) -- .304
CF Cooper 0-3, BB, K, SB (4) -- .163

Lamb 4 2/3 IP, 5 R (3 ER), 5 H, 2 BB, 5 K, HRA, 2 E -- 5.79 ERA, IF debut
Morgan 1/3 IP, 2 ER, H, BB, HRA -- 3.52 ERA
C. White 3 IP, H, BB, K -- W, 3-2, 1.65 ERA
Keating IP, H, BB -- SV, 2, 3.45 ERA

*** A 5-run 7th keyed a Chukar comeback win. John Lamb got off to a rough Idaho Falls debut as Ogden 3B Brian Ruggiano took him deep to leadoff the 1st for his 4th homer of the season. Tito Espinosa singled and scored on a 2-out Ogden error in the 2nd to tie it, but the Raptors regained the lead thanks to 2 IF errors in the 2nd. The Chukars stranded 2 in the 3rd and Ogden widened its lead with 2 runs on two extra-base hits and another Chukar error to make it 4-1. J.D. Alfaro hit an RBI triple in the 5th to cut the lead to 2 but Lamb was pulled with 1 out and 2 on in the 5th. Ryan Morgan came in and gave up a walk, then a 3-run homer to 1B Chris Jacobs to make it 7-2 Ogden. Ben Theriot hit an RBI single in the 6th and the rally began in earnest in the 7th. With 2 out and the bases loaded, Theriot hit a 2-run single and Ryan Stovall followed with a big 2-run triple to tie the game at 7. Stovall then scored on a passed ball to give IF an 8-7 lead. Patrick Keating stranded 2 in the 9th following 3 good innings of relief from Cole White, who got the win. Ogden RP Fredy Quintero took the loss with 2 runs (1 ER) allowed over 1 2/3 IP to fall to 0-1 with a 1.32 ERA and also got his 1st blown save. Starter Brett Wallach allowed an unearned run on a hit and 2 walks with 3 Ks over 2 2/3 IP to move his ERA to 2.35. Jacobs and LF Brian Cavazos-Galvez had 3 hits each for Ogden. Jacobs drove in 4 runs (11) in improving to .315 and Cavazos-Galvez hit 2 doubles (15) and his 2nd triple and added an OF assist at second in improving to .318.

IF is 18-11 and tied for first. First place will be decided tonight in the series finale as Pernell Halliman (2-0, 4.15) faces an unannounced Ogden SP.

Rookie - Burlington: Greeneville 4, B-Royals 3

LF Pickett 2-3, S, 3B, 2 RBI (5), K, RS, CS (5), E -- .265
3B Culver 2-4, K, CS, E (8) -- .256
SS R. Wood 0-2, 2 BB, E (5) -- .180
C F. Cruz 0-4 -- .261
2B Espinal 0-3, HBP, K, 2 SB (10), CS (5) -- .224

Hentges 3 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, BB, 2 K, WP -- L, 0-1, 7.20 ERA
Kelley 5 IP, 2 H, BB, 3 K -- 1.27 ERA

*** The teams combined for 7 errors but the Astros came out on top to salvage the series finale. Yowill Espinal was caught stealing home in the 1st and the Royals left 2 in scoring position. Chase Hentges gave up a 2-out RBI double in the 2nd and then 3 runs in the 3rd on 4 hits and a walk to make it 4-0 Astros. Jovan Pickett hit an RBI single in the 5th to get Burlington on the board but ended up getting caught stealing third to end the inning. With 2 out, it's gonna take some kind of base hit to get you home anyway, why pull a Berroa there? Pickett recovered to hit an RBI triple in the 8th and scored on an error on the play to cut the lead to 4-3. He would be the last Royal to reach, however, as RP Nathan Pettus picked up his 6th save. Starter Jose Cisnero allowed an unearned run on 2 hits and 3 walks with 4 Ks over 5 IP to move to 3-1 with a 3.95 ERA. DH Aaron Bray was 2-4 and 3B Jonathan Meyer drove in 2 runs (14).

The B-Royals are 10-22. A 1-game/3-game away/home set with the Danville Braves (21-12) starts tonight. Greg Billo (1-1, 3.65) is starting versus Braves lefty Brett Oberholtzer (1-1, 1.61). The Royals are 0-3 versus the Braves thus far. The Braves roster features ATL prospect righty J.J. Hoover, plus '09 draftees 3rd round righty David Hale, 4th round SS Mycal Jones (.858 OPS in 123 ABs), 5th round righty Thomas Berryhill (6 saves thus far), 7th round OF Robby Hefflinger, 9th round IF Matt Weaver, 11th round lefty Chris Masters (1.01 WHIP, 2.84 ERA, outstanding 3 BB/39 K in 31 2/3 IP thus far) and others. 16th round 1B Riann Spanjer-Furstenburg has stood out not only for his name but also for his 1.095 OPS and .411 BA in 112 ABs thus far.

Rookie - AZL: Padres 19, Royals 8

LF Lubanski 2-5, 2B (5), HR, 3 RBI (8), K, 2 RS -- .500, bat is ready, hope he's back in Omaha soon
1B G. Baldwin 2-5, RBI (12), K -- .302, most impressive positional '09 draftee all-around thus far?
C Matos 2-4, RS -- .333
SS Trapp 1-4, BB, RBI (8), K, 2 RS, CS (2), 2 E (4) -- .343
3B Figueroa 1-4, BB, 2B (3), RBI (18) -- .264
RF Polonia 1-4, 2B (2), RBI (11), K, RS -- .274
DH Llanos 1-5, 3 K -- .290
CF L. Adams 1-3, 2 BB, 3B, RS -- .214

Avinazar 2/3 IP, 5 ER, 5 H, 2 K, 2 HRA -- L, 2-2, 7.04 ERA
Keck 2 2/3 IP, 7 ER, 10 H, HRA -- 9.90 ERA
L. Ortega 4 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 4 K, HRA -- 4.63 ERA
S. De La Rosa 1/3 IP, 5 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, K, WP -- 9.72 ERA
Worrell IP, H, 2 K -- 3.00 ERA

*** The Royals didn't start matching runs with the Padres until the 6th and, by then, it was way too late. The Friars struck for 5 runs in the 1st as 2B Jonathan Galvez hit a 2-run homer for his 3rd of the season and CF Rymer Liriano took Willian Avinazar deep for his 4th homer, a 3-run shot to help chase Avinazar before the inning was done. Jonathon Keck got lit up for 4 runs in the 2nd on a 2-run triple, then a 2-run homer by Liriano for his 5th of the season and 2nd of the game. Yunior Figueroa hit an RBI double in the 2nd but the Pads matched it in the 3rd on 2 hits off Keck. The Padres then poured on 2 more runs in the 4th on 4 hits off Keck and Luis Ortega to make it 12-1. Liriano led off the 6th with yet another homer for his 6th of the season and 3rd of the game, but the Royals matched the run in the inning on a Geoff Baldwin RBI single. The Padres chased Ortega with a run in the 8th, and the Royals again matched it with a run scored on a wild pitch. The Padres finished the slaughter with a 5-run 9th off Starling De La Rosa and Josh Worrell. The Royals scored 5 meaningless runs in the 9th on a Juan Polonia RBI double, run-scoring Padre error and 3-run homer by Chris Lubanski for the 1st of his rehab assignment. Starter Simon Berroa got the win for the Pads with an ER allowed on 4 hits and 2 walks with 4 Ks over 5 IP to improve to 1-3 with a 4.43 ERA. Seven Padres had multiple hits with 6 having 3 or 4. Liriano was 4-4 with a walk, 3 HR, 6 RBI (29) and 6 RS to improve to .369. That's the best line I've seen in a long time. Galvez also had 4 hits and 2 RBI (17) to move to .340. Three others also had 2 RBI.

The Royals are 0-1 to start the second half. They play the 0-1 Indians tonight.