Royals on the Farm 7/9 -- Lamb has another good outing

AAA - Omaha: Albuquerque 8, O-Royals 4 (7/G1)

SS Falu 2-3, 3B (4), RBI (26) -- .277
LF Gordon 2-3, 2B (18), RS -- .315
1B Ka'aihue 1-3, HR (18), 2 RBI (59), K, RS -- .310
C Pina 0-2, SF, RBI (2), E (2) -- .273
CF Lough 0-4, 2 K -- .262
DH Ankiel 0-3, K -- .275
2B Lucas 0-2, BB, RS -- .324
RF Parraz 1-3, RS -- .272

Humber 5 IP, 6 R (5 ER), 9 H, 2 BB, K, 2 HRA -- L, 4-5, 4.60 ERA
C. Hayes 2 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, K -- 3.95 ERA

* Phil Humber got lit up in the first of 2 with the Isotopes Friday. He gave up a leadoff homer in the 2nd and then a 2-out, 3-run homer in the 3rd to make it 4-0. Nary a Royal had reached base through 3 2/3 innings, but Alex Gordon hit a 2-out single and Kila Ka'aihue was strong like bull and ripped a 2-run homer to right for his 18th of the season. The momentum didn't last long as Humber allowed the 2 runs back in the 5th. Irving Falu hit an RBI triple in the 5th but Disco Hayes allowed 2 RBI doubles in the 6th to help the 'Topes pull further away. Manny Pina hit a sac fly in the 7th but the rally fizzled there in the shortened game. Starter Seth Etherton allowed 3 ER over 5 IP to improve to 3-2. Five Isotopes had multiple hits led by 3 from 3B Russ Mitchell. 1B Jay Gibbons had the 3-run homer (his 13th).

O-Royals 4, Albuquerque 3 (7/G2)

CF Miller 2-3, HR (10), RBI (36), RS -- .235
DH Thorman 1-2, BB, RBI (55), K, RS -- .279
LF Gordon 1-2, BB, 2B (19), RS -- .316
1B Ka'aihue 0-3, K -- .306
RF Parraz 1-3 -- .273
C Cody Clark had a pickoff at third.

Castaneda 4 1/3 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 3 K, 2 HRA -- 3.68 ERA
Herges 2 2/3 IP, 2 H, BB, 3 K -- W, 4-3, 4.86 ERA

* The O-Royals came back from 2 runs down to split the twinbill. Federico Castaneda gave up a leadoff homer in the 2nd and the same batter - DH John Lindsay -- came back up in the 4th and tagged Castaneda again for his 13th homer of the season and 2nd of the game. Scott Thorman singled in a run and a wild pitch scored the tying run in the bottom of the inning as the Royals responded. Castaneda gave up another run in the 5th before Matt Herges escaped a jam thanks in part to Cody Clark picking off the third base baserunner. Another wild pitch from knuckleballer Charlie Haeger let the O-Royals tie it again in the 5th. Jai Miller broke it in Omaha's favor with his 10th homer of the season to lead off the 6th. Herges pitched a perfect 9th. RP Ramon Troncoso allowed the ER in an IP to drop to 0-1. Haeger allowed 3 ER over 5 IP. Lindsay and RF Trent Oeltjen had 2 hits, but Oeltjen was the runner who got picked off at third. Omaha is 47-40. Manauris Baez starts game 4 Saturday. If the Royals can somehow get 8 games over .500 with another win, it'd be the first time for the franchise since 2002. Alex Gordon will take part in the AAA Home Run Derby Monday in Allentown, PA.

AA - NWA: Naturals 6, Missions 2

3B Romak 3-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 2 RS -- .750, nice 2010 AA debut
CF D. Robinson 2-5, HR, 3 RBI (35), K, RS, SB (37) -- .305, rare power stroke from Derrick
2B Giavotella 1-5, K, SB (12) -- .285
1B C. Robinson 1-5, 2 K -- .316
RF Orlando 1-4, 2B (12), K, RS -- .322

Caldera 5 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 4 K, 2 HRA, pickoff -- W, 2-0, 4.76 ERA
R. Hardy 2 2/3 IP, H, 6 K, WP -- 4.57 ERA, old school Rowdy night
Swaggerty IP, H, 2 BB, 2 K -- 4.25 ERA

* The winning streak reached 8 games for the red-hot Naturals. The Nats stranded 2 in the 1st and Jamie Romak homered in his 1st AA at-bat of the season to put them up in the 2nd. Derrick Robinson also struck a rare homer for his 1st of the season for a 2-run shot to make it 3-0 before the dust settled on the half-inning. Alex Caldera gave up a homer in the 2nd and another in the 4th as the Missions trimmed the lead to 1. Romak hit an RBI single in the 6th as he ended up a triple shy of the cycle, and an error and Derrick Robinson single in the 6th made it 6-2. Rowdy Hardy stranded 2 for Caldera in the 6th and combined with Ben Swaggerty to hold the Missions to 2 hits over the last 3 2/3. Starter Corey Kluber took the loss for SA with 6 runs (4 ER) allowed over 6 IP to fall to 3-6. 1B Matt Clark had 2 hits for the Missions, including his 17th HR. The Naturals are 12-2. The series ends Saturday.

A-Adv. - Wilmington: Blue Rocks 5, Lynchburg 0 (4-hitter)

RF Francis 2-4, 2B (11), HR (4), RBI (19), K, 2 RS -- .259
DH Myers 1-4, 2B (3), RBI (7), 2 K -- .417
SS Colon 1-4, RBI (2), K -- .171, slowly finding his "sea legs" so to speak
CF Dyson 1-2, 2 SF, 2B (6), 2 RBI (9), K, RS -- .342
1B Hosmer 0-4, K -- .349
C S. Perez 0-4 -- .247

Lamb 5 IP, 3 H, BB, 4 K -- W, 5-2, 1.41 ERA
Mozingo 3 IP, H, K -- 3.90 ERA
Bowden IP, K -- 1.84 ERA

* John Lamb didn't pitch very long, just enough for the win, but did well when he was on the mound as the Rocks swept the Hillcats. The Rocks got a run before they had an out as Jarrod Dyson led off the game with a double and scored on a Christian Colon single. Dyson came back up in the 3rd and hit a sac fly to make it 2-0. Lamb was pulled after putting the first 2 on in the 6th and Harold Mozingo stranded them in scoring position. Nick Francis smacked his 4th homer of the season in the 7th and Dyson added another sac fly in the 8th. Wil Myers doubled in a run in the 9th and Barry Bowden finished it in the 9th. Lynchburg SP Jordan Hotchkiss allowed 4 runs (3 ER) over 7 2/3 IP to drop to 5-3. Four Hillcats had a hit each. The Rocks are 11-5 and 2 1/2 games up on first. A 3-game home set with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (6-10, A-Adv. Braves) starts Saturday. Tim Melville starts the opener.

A - Burlington: Cedar Rapids 6, Bees 2

1B Lewis 2-3, BB, 2 2B (20), RBI (43), RS -- .253
3B D. Batista 1-3, RBI (17) -- .230
CF Testa 0-3, BB, K, RS -- .252
LF Del Rosario 0-3, K, OF assist at third -- .200

Wooley 5 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, HRA -- L, 2-6, 6.75 ERA
Sirrett 2 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 2 K, HRA, WP -- 6.10 ERA
Barrow IP, 2 K -- 4.05 ERA
Kelley IP, ER, 4 H -- 4.72 ERA

* The Bees managed only 4 hits as the Kernels took home the series finale. The Kernels scored 2 in the 2nd off Nick Wooley before leaving the bases full. Cedar Rapids got a solo homer in the 4th and Onassis Sirrett served up a 2-run homer in the 6th. The Bees offense failed to ignite until the 7th when Joey Lewis doubled in a run and Deivy Batista RBI single. Scott Kelley gave up a run in the 9th and the last 7 Bees went down after Batista's RBI base hit. Kernels SP Garrett Richards pitched 6 scoreless innings of 2-hit ball to improve to 7-4. 3B Jeremy Cruz and SS Jon Karcich had 3 hits and a HR each. CF Mike Trout was 1-3 with a walk and his 45th SB to drop to .362. The Bees are 8-6 and a game out. A 3-game set at the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (6-9, A Brewers) starts Saturday.

Rookie - Idaho Falls: Chukars 7, Orem 6

DH Kuebler 2-5, 2 RBI (13), K, RS -- .313
RF Monger 2-4, 2 RBI (6), K, RS, E, OF assist at third -- .378, had assist on same play as error, instant redemption
3B Culver 2-3, BB, 2 RBI (6), CS (2) -- .231
1B Watts 2-3, 2 BB, 2B (5), RBI (17), RS -- .305
LF Ferguson 0-5, 2 K -- .318
2B Espinal 1-3, BB, S, K, RS, SB (5), E (10) -- .313
C David 1-4, K, RS -- .355

Alexander 5 IP, 3 R (1 ER), 5 H, BB, 6 K, balk -- 5.21 ERA
Graham 2 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, BB, WP -- BS, 1, W, 1-0, 4.09 ERA
Rivers 2 IP, ER, 2 H, 2 K -- SV, 4, 1.08 ERA

* A 5-run 1st slipped away from the Chukars but they fended off the Owlz to split the short 2-game series. The 5-run rally came with 2 outs in the 1st as Jake Kuebler singled in a run, Cameron Monger hit a 2-run single, and Malcom Culver hit a 2-run single. Scott Alexander held the Owlz at bay through 2 but he gave up 2 runs in the 3rd, another in the 5th, and Tyler Graham gave up 2 runs in the 6th to tie the game. Murray Watts regained the lead for Idaho Falls with an RBI double in the 7th and Kuebler drove in an insurance run with a 9th-inning single. The run came in handy as Alex Rivers allowed a run in the 9th before closing out his 4th save. RP Dakota Robinson allowed an ER over 1 2/3 IP to fall to 0-1. Starter Brian Diemer allowed 5 ER over 5 IP. LF Andrew Heid had 3 hits and 3B Thomas Nichols had 2 hits for the Owlz. IF is 11-8 and a game up on first. A 3-game set at the Ogden Raptors (9-10, Rookie Dodgers) starts tomorrow.

Rookie - Burlington: Danville 4, B-Royals 3

C Jenkins 1-3, BB, HR (2), 2 RBI (7), RS, SB -- .306
LF MacDougall 0-3, SF, RBI (8) -- .161
CF Llanos 0-3, BB, 2 K, RS -- .284
2B Piterson 1-4, K -- .362
SS McClure 1-3, K, SB (3) -- .211
1B Baldwin 0-4, 2 K -- .092
3B Stovall 1-4, 2B (7), 2 K, RS, SB (6) -- .359

Giovenco 5 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 4 K, WP -- 2.95 ERA
Penny 2 IP, 3 H -- 4.66 ERA
Lohden IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, K, 2 WP -- BS, 1, L, 0-1, 2.45 ERA

* The Royals blew a late lead as Danville took the rubber match. Ryan Jenkins got Burlington started on the right foot with a 2-out, 2-run homer in the 1st for his 2nd as a pro. Mike Giovenco got off to a rough start, tho, as the Braves matched those runs on 4 hits in the 1st. Danville left 'em loaded in the 2nd and the game stayed tied at 2 into the 7th. Ryan Stovall led off that inning with a double and scored on a Gabe MacDougall sac fly to make it 3-2 Royals. Cole Lohden came on for the 8th and gave up a game-tying forceout and go-ahead run-scoring wild pitch to give the lead to the Braves. The Royals got 2 on in the 9th but Geoff Baldwin's struggles continued as he flew out with 2 in scoring position to end it. RP Kyle Farrell allowed an ER over 3 1/3 IP but picked up the win at 2-1. Starter Willie Kempf allowed only 1 hit but 2 ER over 5 IP with 7 K. DH Jakob Dalfonso had 3 hits and SS Andrelton Simmons had 2 hits for the Bravos. Simmons swiped 2 bags (5). The Royals are 10-8 and 1/2 a game up on first. A 3-game home set with the Princeton Rays (8-10) starts Saturday.

Rookie - AZL: Reds 1, Royals 0 -- The Brewers ended up taking out the Royals, 11-3, on Thursday

CF Sandford 2-3, BB, 2B (2), CS -- .423, Park U product doing well
3B Cuthbert 0-4, 2 K -- .277, just realized today he isn't even 17 yet
DH Shin 0-2, BB, K, picked off -- .282
RF Costa 1-4, 2 K -- .304
SS Antonio 1-3, 2 K, E -- .333, pro debut
C Marquez 0-2, BB -- .400

E. Diaz IP, ER, H, HRA -- L, 0-1, 11.57 ERA
Ventura 5 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 2 K -- 2.65 ERA
R. Brown 3 IP, H, 3 K -- 1.54 ERA

* Both teams had 5 hits but the Reds got a run in the 1st and made it stick. A 2-out solo homer by 3B David Vidal was the only run of the game in the 1st. The Royals' best shot came in the 6th when Darian Sandford hit a 1-out double but was caught stealing third before Daniel Mateo hit a would-be game-tying double that wasn't. RP Mitchell Clarke struck out the side in the 9th for his 2nd save. Starter Ismael Guillon K'd 6 over 6 scoreless to improve to 1-0 for the Redlegs. Vidal had 2 hits, including his 1st homer, and LF Stephen Hunt also had 2 hits. The Royals are 9-6 and tied with the Rangers for first, 2 1/2 games up on the Pads.