Royals on the Farm 7/31 -- July's a wrap

The Royals got a lot better at the deadline, didn't they? I figured they'd make one move, at least. I don't even know what to think about it. They went nowhere Friday, yet at the same time Dayton wasn't able to pull off another Yuniesky-level trade and further waste team resources. I should know better at this point than to get my hopes up. The Royals had nothing to lose by looking to move Mark Teahen, or to dump Mike Jacobs for a scrub, not that there were probably any takers, or just to dump him, to open a spot for Kila Ka'aihue.

I've always liked to swim, so I spent a great deal of my summers when I was younger, and not in need of a job, at the city pool where I grew up. There were diving boards at the pool, a "low dive" and a "high dive". The high dive was high enough that there were a few broken limbs when kids had mishaps and fell off and hit the cement below. Good divers could do some pretty cool stuff off that board. It's not as high a high dive now as it was then, for obvious legal and insurance concerns, but, when I do visit, I miss the old high dive. Anyway, every once in a while you'd have a kid climb the metal ladder to the high dive, tentatively walk out to the end of the board....and freeze. They'd stand there, looking at the water, looking at the lifeguards, looking at their friends looking back up at them, and they wouldn't do anything. After a minute or so, the prompting from the lifeguards would start, there are kids waiting, c'mon, go already. The kids on the ladder behind would join the prompting, and by that time the entire pool (it's not a huge pool) is looking at the kid, waiting to see if he or she jumps or not. Sometimes it would go so far the pool manager is out there giving the kid a time limit. Maybe sometimes the kid jumps. Most times the kid, near-bawling and embarrassed, trudges slowly back down the board and the ladder and goes back to swim in the 4-foot, or just leaves the pool. My point in this story is, when 4 p.m. ET passed yesterday and the Royals had done nothing, for some reason Dayton Moore reminded me of that kid. If he's not taking stupid chances, he's taking no chances at all. Maybe it's better the Royals held pat...Dayton coulda been the equivalent of the kid who slipped and fell off the side of the board and ended up with a broken limb.

Again, as in June, I'm sticking to the top 5 in OPS and WHIP for each team for the monthly wrapup. Others will be noted as I see fit...

AAA - Omaha: O-Royals 5, Iowa 4

3B Hulett 2-4, HR (8), RBI (43), RS -- .314, 3 HR in series
RF Parraz 2-4, RBI, 2 K, E -- .154
SS Lisson 1-4, RBI (26), K, RS, SB (6) -- .244
CF Raines 1-4, GW RBI (10) -- .217
LF Lubanski 0-3, SF, RBI (16), K -- .289
1B Ka'aihue 0-2, 2 BB, RS -- .258, needs to get some hits

Davies 7 IP, 4 R (2 ER), 10 H, BB, 5 K, 3 WP -- 2.14 ERA
Waechter 2 IP, K -- W, 1-1, 4.32 ERA, rounding into form?

*** Omaha came through with a huge 4-run 9th to get a comeback win and take 3 of 4 from the Cubs. Tug Hulett went long in the 1st for his 8th homer of the season but the Royals' offense ran dry from then until the 9th. Iowa tied it in the 3rd then took the lead with 2 runs in the 5th off Kyle Davies. A run in the 7th made it 4-1 Cubs. Omaha did strand a runner at third in the 7th but the lead held into the 9th. RP Vince Perkins walked the bases full to start the Omaha 9th, then a Chris Lubanski sac fly cut it to 4-2. Jordan Parraz hit an RBI single before a Mario Lisson RBI forceout tied the game. Lisson stole second, then Tim Raines Jr. hit a walkoff single to end it. Perkins blew his 1st save and took the loss to fall to 5-1 with a 2.72 ERA. Starter Esmailin Caridad allowed an ER on 3 hits with 4 Ks over 6 IP to lower his ERA to 4.21. CF Matt Camp and SS Darwin Barney had 2 hits and 2 RS for Iowa.

The O-Royals are 44-61. A 4-game set at the Memphis Redbirds (55-51, AAA Cardinals) starts tonight with Heath Phillips (6-7, 5.92) matched up with Memphis lefty Evan MacLane (4-10, 3.86). Memphis is 9-3 versus the Royals in 2009. RP Kyle Farnsworth's rehab stint has been aborted, as he had some groin pain after last outing.

Omaha's tops in OPS (* denotes leads team, if OBP and slugging % don't exactly add up to OPS, I assume the stats engine rounds it) are led by IF Tug Hulett at .909 (.314*/.399/.510, 47 RS, 21 2B, 3 3B, 8 HR, 43 RBI, 38 BB/51 K, 5/5 SB, 3 E in 69 G/261 ABs, OPS was over 1.000 in 23 July games, .945 OPS overall with RISP); OF Scott Thorman at .878 (.283/.353/.525*, 40 RS, 12 2B, 2 3B, 17 HR*, 50 RBI*, 21 BB/53 K, 2 E in 77 G/276 ABs, has .901 OPS with Omaha, only .720 OPS in 27 July games, hasn't homered in 15 games since AS break, hitting for 1.105 OPS with RISP); 1B Kila Ka'aihue at .860 (.258/.403*/.456, 63 RS*, 25 2B*, 1 3B, 13 HR, 41 RBI, 82 BB* (more than double anyone else on team)/70 K, 3 E in 101 G*/333 ABs, shame he's still in Omaha, only hitting for .645 OPS versus lefties, only hit .224 with .717 OPS in 26 July games, only hitting for .625 OPS with RISP, so could be producing more); OF Cory Aldridge at .842 (.296/.337/.504, 24 RS, 11 2B, 2 3B, 11 HR, 45 RBI, 13 BB/54 K, 2 E in 66 G/230 ABs, injuries hampered him in July, only played 9 games); and IF Mario Lisson is next down at a .691 OPS (.244/.276/.415 (right in Dayton's wheelhouse), 22 RS, 10 2B, 9 HR, 26 RBI, 8 BB/52 K, 10/15 SB, 13 E in 61 G/217 ABs, hit for .637 OPS in 26 July games, hitting for .579 OPS since AS break, still in my mind taking up unnecessary space on the 40-man....how about Bianchi on there instead?). IF Irving Falu leads the team with 5 3B and is 6th in OPS at .659, he also has 40 BB/26 K, and leads the active roster with a whopping 10 SB. C J.R. House leads the team with 95 hits but is hitting for only a .638 OPS.

Omaha's tops in WHIP are led by starter Lenny DiNardo at 1.12 (7*-4, 3.26, 2 SV, 5 HRA, 23 BB/93 K* in 21 games (16 starts)/107 2/3 IP, .244 OAV (opponents' BA) overall, 2.67 ERA in 5 July starts); RP Yasuhiko Yabuta at 1.21 (1-1, 3.53, 3 HRA, 11 BB/40 K in 21 appearances/35 2/3 IP, 2.08 ERA in July, .235 OAV overall); RP Chris Hayes at 1.22 (1-4, 3.33, 1 SV, HRA, 2 BB/12 K in 14 G/27 IP, .295 OAV overall at Omaha, 0-3, 4.22 ERA in July); starter Kyle Davies at 1.32 (4-2, 2.14*, 3 HRA, 14 BB/44 K in 8 starts/46 1/3 IP, .264 OAV, OAV was .298 in July and has been .330 in 4 starts since AS break); and, in a nice surprise (for me), RP Carlos Rosa at 1.34 (1-7, 4.92, 6 SV*, 5 HRA, 26 BB/57 K in 31 G/53 IP, OAV overall is only .234, 2.25 ERA, .151 OAV in July, 1-2 since end of May). Starter Brandon Duckworth has a 1.36 WHIP but no other starter is better than 1.58.

AA - NW Arkansas: Springfield 5, Naturals 3

LF Duarte 2-4, 3B (3), RBI (30), RS, SB (15) -- .256
RF Lough 1-4, HR (5), RBI (18), RS -- .343
CF Dyson 0-3, BB, RBI (8), K, E (3) -- .270
3B Mertins 1-4, K, E (11) -- .283
SS Bianchi 0-3, S, K -- .340

R. Hardy 7 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, 6 K, HRA -- 3.12 ERA
Abreu 2/3 IP, 3 R (2 ER), H, 3 BB, K -- BS, 1, L, 0-1, 2.84 ERA
Castaneda 1 1/3 IP, H, BB, K -- 1.35 ERA

*** NWA was in line for yet another win over Springfield but Juan Abreu and the defense faltered in the 8th. Rowdy Hardy stranded 2 in the 1st but got nicked for a run in the 2nd. NWA stranded 2 in the 4th but Jose Duarte hit an RBI triple in the 5th and scored on a Jarrod Dyson groundout to make it 2-1 Naturals. The lead lasted 1 batter into the 6th as Hardy gave up a leadoff homer to C Steven Hill (his 17th) to tie it. David Lough responded with a 2-out solo shot (his 5th) in the bottom of the inning to regain a 1-run lead for NWA. The Naturals stranded 2 in the 7th and Abreu came on for the 8th. C Jeff Howell was called for catcher interference and made a 2-out run-scoring throwing error to help blow the lead. A wild pitch then a Howell passed ball allowed the lead run to score and Abreu gave up another RBI single, the only hit the Cards got in the inning, to make it 5-3. NWA stranded 1 in the 9th as RP Eduardo Sanchez picked up his 3rd save for the Cards. RP Fernando Salas got 1 out in the 7th for the win to move to 1-0 with a 3.48 ERA. Starter Ryan Kulik allowed 3 ER on 6 hits and 2 walks with 2 Ks over 6 2/3 IP to move his ERA to 5.07. Hill and CF James Rapoport had 2 hits for Springfield. Hill chipped in his 17th double and 52nd RBI.

The Naturals are 21-13 and still a game up on first. Game 2 is tonight as Anthony Lerew (6-5, 4.71) takes on Cards righty Scott Gorgen (1-3, 5.23), whose start was delayed from last night. Dayton Moore was at Friday's game for his first trip to Arvest Ballpark.

NWA's OPS leaders are.....(Jordan Parraz's 1.005 mark in 226 ABs aside), C Vance Wilson at .957 (.330/.400/.557*, 22 RS, 8 2B, 6 HR, 20 RBI, 11 BB/23 K, 0 E in 34 G/115 ABs, should be doing this at age 36 in AA, hit for .927 OPS in 25 July games); C Cody Clark at .926 (.320/.401*/.525, 23 RS, 10 2B, 5 HR, 26 RBI, 14 BB/14 K, 3 E in 44 G/122 ABs, getting bulk of PT at catcher, hitting for 1.018 OPS versus righties, only hit for .807 OPS in 25 July games, hitting for 1.105 OPS with RISP, he's 28 in Sept.); OF David Lough at .891 (.343/.367/.524, 21 RS, 2 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 18 RBI, 2 BB/12 K (needs to walk more), 6/8 SB, 2 E in 27 G/105 ABs, could be minors hitter of year for KC, matched his Wilmington HR total in less than half the ABs, only hitting for .472 OPS versus lefties, hitting for 1.022 OPS with RISP, looking good at only 23); SS Jeff Bianchi at .855 (.340/.390/.465, 23 RS, 9 2B, 3 HR, 23 RBI, 12 BB/27 K, 5/8 SB, 4 E in 35 G/144 ABs, turns 23 in October, only hit for .705 OPS in 25 July games, hitting .429 with RISP, liked what I've seen from him, Lough and, somewhat, Dyson at AA); and IF Ed Lucas at .801 (.282/.378/.423, 43 RS, 12 2B, 2 3B, 6 HR, 33 RBI, 36 BB/55 K, 11/12 SB, 10 E in 68 G/241 ABs, hitting for 1.016 OPS versus lefties, hit for .893 OPS in 27 July games, like Andy Bernard, a proud product of Dartmouth, turned 27 in May and has stunk in his chances at AAA). 1B Corey Smith leads the team in hits with 106 (tied with Kurt Mertins), HR with 18 (only Natural in double digits), RBI with 68 (leads Royals minors), and games with 104, but is hitting for only a .740 OPS and has 16 errors to lead the team. He also has 26 BB/99 K. Mertins is hitting for a .709 OPS but was only at .674 for July. OF Jose Duarte is sitting at a .702 OPS, but hit for a .912 mark in 17 July games. He'll probably get another shot at Omaha in 2010. IF Marc Maddox is only hitting for a .702 OPS in 48 ABs thus far. Dyson is only at a .665 OPS in 115 ABs, but leads the team with 16/17 SB and has 13 BB/25 K. He's hitting a decent .270.

NW Arkansas' WHIP leaders are.... (excepting 0.75 and 1.26 marks from Federico Castaneda and Juan Abreu in less than 10 IP each) starter Rowdy Hardy at 1.27 (2-1, 3.12*, 3 HRA, 6 BB/22 K in 4 starts/26 IP, K rate looking good thus far, .265 OAV thus far for NWA); starter Blake Wood at 1.38 (2-6, 5.27, 1 CG, 7 HRA, 23 BB/46 K in 13 starts/71 2/3 IP, probably shouldn't include him, he's on the DL and didn't pitch in July, .285 OAV); starter Everett Teaford at 1.38 (3-4, 4.99, 1 CG, 7 HRA, 17 BB/22 K (hmmm) in 9 starts/48 2/3 IP, only .254 OAV for NWA, walks have been main problem, righties hitting only .230 off him, only 1-3 but had a better 4.00 ERA and .212 OAV in 6 July starts); reliever Aaron Hartsock at 1.38 (1-1, 3.64, 4 SV, 2 HRA, 13 BB/21 K in 16 G/29 2/3 IP, .239 OAV at NWA, 1.35 ERA, .188 OAV in 7 July appearances, only .146 OAV with RISP); and reliever Chris Nicoll at 1.42 (7*-0, 3.62, 1 SV, 4 HRA, 25 BB/56 K in 32 G/59 2/3 IP, .258 OAV, 9.82 ERA, .331 OAV in June was followed by 2.12 ERA, .227 OAV in July, .238 OAV with RISP). Starter Matt Kniginyzky would be next at 1.48 and has a .283 OAV as lefties are hitting .337 off him. He was better in July to the tune of a 2.82 ERA and .262 OAV in 6 starts. Anthony Lerew leads the team in Ks at 62 in 109 IP but has a 1.54 WHIP and has allowed a team high 120 hits. Dan Cortes was at a 1.58 WHIP prior to his trade. Starter Blake Johnson is sitting at a 1.65 mark with a .320 OAV in 82 IP.

A-Adv. - Wilmington: Blue Rocks 3, Salem 2

DH C. Robinson 3-3, HR (8), 2 RBI (44), 2 RS -- .294
3B Moustakas 0-4, K -- .246
1B Hosmer 0-3 -- .220
CF D. Robinson 0-4, 3 K -- .223
2B Giavotella 1-4, K, RS -- .254
RF Van Stratten 1-3, picked off -- .158

Montgomery 4 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 5 K, E -- 3.00 ERA, having problems with 5th inning
Villa 1 2/3 IP, 2 H, 2 K, WP -- W, 4-6, 3.79 ERA
Gutierrez 2 IP, H, 2 K -- 0.00 ERA
Sisk IP, 3 K -- SV, 12, 2.14 ERA, another dominant save

*** Clint Robinson provided the fuel for the Rocks' 7th straight win. Mike Montgomery got his 2nd Advanced A start and allowed a run in the 1st and another in the 3rd as Salem took a 2-0 lead. Robinson came through with an RBI single in the 4th and scored on an error later in the inning to tie the game. Montgomery was pulled with 2 on and 1 out in the 4th and Kelvin Villa stranded both runners. With 2 out in the Rocks 6th, Robinson stepped up with his 8th homer of the season for a solo shot to make it 3-2 Wilmington. Danny Gutierrez and Brandon Sisk took it from there to finish out the win on the mound. RP Kyle Fernandes took the loss with an ER allowed in 2 IP to fall to 4-2 with a 3.11 ERA. Dave McKae made the spot start as scheduled starter Bryan Price was included in the Victor Martinez trade with Cleveland. McKae allowed 2 runs (1 ER) on 4 hits with 4 Ks over 5 IP to make his ERA 5.17. 3B Jonathan Hee had 3 hits and 2 others had 2 hits. RF Dan Nava had 2 hits and a walk to improve to .361.

The Rocks are 20-14 and still 3 1/2 games out. Game 3 with the Red Sox is tonight as Eduardo Paulino (4-6, 4.22) tries to keep the win streak rolling versus Salem righty Eammon Portice (6-4, 4.26).

The Rocks' OPS leaders are.... (excepting IF Chase Fontaine's .932 mark in only 32 ABs) 1B/DH Clint Robinson at .795 (.294*/.357/.439*, 43 RS, 21 2B, 8 HR, 44 RBI, 26 BB/59 K, 2/5 SB, 4 E in 90 G/310 ABs, bounced back from couple down months to hit .310 with .774 OPS in 84 July ABs); UT Anthony Seratelli at .755 (.288/.360/.395, 26 RS, 11 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 24 RBI, 23 BB/50 K, 14/20 SB, 17 E in 70 G/215 ABs, 26-year-old has been OK, only .686 OPS in 33 games since AS break); 2B Johnny Giavotella at .730 (.254/.366*/.364, 62 RS*, 15 2B, 8 3B*, 2 HR, 36 RBI, 57 BB*/43 K, 18/25 SB, 16 E in 98 G*/338 ABs, hitting for .798 OPS off lefties, .890 OPS with RISP, .829 OPS since AS break, turned 22 in July and celebrated with best month of season -- .306 BA/.785 OPS, 7 SB in 27 games); 3B Mike Moustakas at .701 (.246/.287/.414 (bah), 54 RS, 24 2B*, 2 3B, 12 HR*, 62 RBI*, 22 BB/66 K, 8/14 SB, 18 E* in 98 G*/382 ABs*, only .624 OPS off lefties, .588 OPS at home, only hit .196 with .628 OPS in 112 July ABs, does have .917 OPS with RISP, so he's producing when he gets chances, I think he could be helped with a bump to AA, not hitting well at Frawley); and OF Paulo Orlando at .665 (frightening that OPS is top 5 on the team now with Lough and Bianchi gone, .255/.302/.363, 37 RS, 18 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 28 RBI, 13 BB/66 K, 13/14 SB, 1 E in 79 G/278 ABs, only .547 OPS versus lefties, has picked it up since June 1, .321 BA/.720 OPS in June, .299/.767 in July, .779 OPS since AS break). OF Adrian Ortiz was at a .556 OPS prior to his rightful, if unfortunate, demotion. OF Derrick Robinson is worse, tho, at .548, and is hitting 15 points lower than Ortiz was, but does have 51 SB/65 chances to his credit. He has 26 BB/63 K in 382 ABs. C Ryan Eigsti is at a .544 OPS and C Matt Morizio is even worse at .413, so catcher offensive production is a problem. Both are hitting under .200. Eigsti leads the team with 73 Ks in 239 ABs. 1B Eric Hosmer has a .500 OPS in his first 11 G/41 ABs at the level, including 1 XBH and 2 BB/8 K. OF Nick Van Stratten is at a .437 OPS in his first 11 G/38 ABs with 1 BB/6 K and 2 SB.

The Rocks' leaders in WHIP are.... reliever Brandon Sisk at 0.76 (2-2, 2.14, 12 SV*, 2 HRA, 14 BB/62 K in 33 G/46 1/3 IP, stellar .140 OAV, after 0.79 ERA, .162 OAV, 1 BB/18 K in 11 1/3 June innings, put up a 1.17 ERA, .043 OAV, 6 BB/25 K in 15 1/3 July IP, has a .073 OAV since AS break, hails from same university, Azusa Pacific, as the Nigerian Nightmare Christian Okoye, just turned 24 in July); RP Zach Peterson at 0.95 (1-0, 0.82, 1 SV, HRA, 4 BB/5 K in 12 G/22 IP, .215 OAV for Rocks, .180 OAV in July, 1 ER in 17 1/3 IP in month); I'll exclude Jason Godin's 1.22 mark since he's in AA now, so next is starter Danny Duffy at 1.24 (8*-3, 3.51, 1 CG, 5 HRA, 31 BB/95 K* (wow) in 19 starts/100 IP, .245 OAV, had down June with 4.71 ERA, .294 OAV, 7 BB/16 K in 4 starts but bounced back with a 3.75 ERA, .244 OAV, and 9 BB/26 K in 5 July starts, has 5.27 ERA, .278 OAV in 6 starts since AS break, .301 OAV with runners on); starter Eduardo Paulino at 1.39 (4-6, 4.22, 12 HRA*, 33 BB/56 K in 19 games (15 starts)/91 2/3 IP, .268 OAV, .212 OAV and 3.21 ERA at home, OAV was .229 in June, .220 in July, 3.06 ERA, 2 BB/21 K in 5 July starts, only .220 OAV with RISP); and starter Mario Santiago at 1.41 (5-11*, 4.26, 6 HRA, 30 BB/82 K in 20 starts/114 IP*, ugly .296 OAV, had good June but down July). Ray Liotta is next at 1.41 and has pitched well since June 1. Starter Alex Caldera is sitting at 1.46 with 40 BB/82 K in 102 1/3 IP. He has a .279 OAV but followed up a disastrous June (7.77 ERA, .323 OAV in 5 starts) by posting a 2.40 ERA and .259 OAV in 5 July starts. He has a .237 OAV with the bases empty and .330 OAV with runners on, which is part of the problem. RP Chris Chavez is 6-1 with a 2.08 ERA but has a 1.55 WHIP. He has also been better since the start of June, even with only 11 BB/13 K over that time. Starter Mike Montgomery has a 1.56 WHIP but only a .235 OAV in his first 9 Wilmington innings.

A - Burlington: Dayton 2, Bees 0

2B F. Garcia 2-3, K, CS (9) -- .249
CF Norris 0-4, 3 K, OF assist at second -- .255
LF Ortiz 1-4, K -- .227
3B Taylor 1-3, BB, SB (5) -- .255
RF Francis 1-3, CS (5) -- .255
C Bonilla 1-3 -- .228
SS R. Wood 0-3, K -- .111

Baez 6 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 9 K -- 3.34 ERA, great start, too bad no run support
Thompson 2 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, BB, 2 K -- L, 4-2, 2.90 ERA

*** Manauris Baez had a scoreless night but got a no-decision as Dayton got 2 in the 7th to win the series opener. Both teams had chances in the early and middle innings but the Bees had runners thrown out on the basepaths and Baez was able to keep the Dragons off the board. James Thompson came on to pitch the 7th for the Bees and the Dragons cashed in with 2 runs on 2 singles and a walk. The last 10 Bees went down as RP Scott Gaffney pitched a perfect 9th for his 5th save. RP Ezequiel Infante pitched 3 scoreless frames for the win to move to 1-0 with a 1.72 ERA. Starter Jordan Hotchkiss worked 5 IP of 4 hits and a walk with 2 Ks to lower his ERA to 2.75. Four Dragons had a hit each as Burlington outhit Dayton, 6-4.

The Bees are 14-19 and 6 games out. Game 2 with the Dragons is tonight as Ivor Hodgson (0-1, 12.60) starts versus Dayton righty Oscar Castro (2-3, 6.95).

Tops in OPS among the Bees are.... OF Shawn Griffin at .827 (only 20 G/66 ABs, .333*/.357/.470*, 6 RS, 6 2B, HR, 8 RBI, 3 BB/16 K, '08 draftee looking all right in A-ball debut, hitting for 1.233 OPS with RISP); IF Fernando Garcia at .737 (.249/.404*/.333, 33 RS, 9 2B, 3 3B, HR, 16 RBI, 52 BB* (double anyone else on active roster)/41 K, 24/33 SB, 13 E* in 69 G/213 ABs, just turned 21 this week, on-base machine, hitting for .867 OPS off lefties, maybe should stick with hitting righty versus switch hitting, numbers took a dive as he hit only .145 with .466 OPS in 19 July games, only .543 OPS since AS break); I'll include here that Eric Hosmer was hitting for a .734 OPS prior to his callup, but next is OF Nick Francis at .733 (.255/.309/.425, 45 RS*, 18 2B*, 2 3B, 11 HR* (only one with more than 5), 50 RBI*, 25 BB/103 K*, 11/16 SB, 7 E in 91 G*/325 ABs*, only .646 OPS versus lefties, after .231 BA/.612 OPS in June, hit .174 with .485 OPS in July, like a switch went off June 1, .277 BA/.812 OPS pre AS break, .214/.582 after, that's bothersome); IF Jason Taylor at .692 (.255/.315/.378, 11 RS, 6 2B, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 8 BB/13 K, 5/10 SB, 9 E in 28 G/68 ABs since return from drug suspension, not quite back in 2008 form); and 1B David Wood at .660 (.245/.297/.363, 30 RS, 12 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 37 RBI, 20 BB/51 K, 6/8 SB, 6 E in 77 G/278 ABs, numbers pretty mediocre all around). C Jose Bonilla is sitting at .615 but is hitting only .228. He looked like he was picking it up with a .700 OPS in June but fell back to .509 in July. Good thing is he's only 21 this week. OF Patrick Norris is at a subpar .605 OPS but is 37/43 in SB and might need to stick to batting lefty. He's hitting for a .698 OPS versus righties and .361 OPS versus lefties. He has improved as the weather has warmed, as he hit .310/.697 in June and .272/.675 in July. He's hitting .278 since the AS break. C Sean McCauley hasn't cut it at A-ball with a .584 OPS. OF Adrian Ortiz is at a .512 mark in the 12 games since his demotion.

WHIP leaders for the Bees are.... RP Blaine Hardy at 1.03 (4-4, 2.33*, 4 SV, 2 HRA, 15 BB/75 K* in 26 games (3 starts)/77 1/3 IP, .234 OAV, .203 OAV out of the pen, righties are only hitting .188 off him, posted a 0.98 ERA and .159 OAV in 18 1/3 IP in July, 1.25 ERA, .197 OAV in 21 2/3 IP since AS break, 22-year-old looks like a keeper); RP Barry Bowden at 1.10 (3-2, 2.68, 7 SV*, 2 HRA, 22 BB/53 K in 31 G/43 2/3 IP, better K rate than Hardy, and Hardy's is good, but he's also roughly 3 years older than Hardy, .171 OAV, had 4.38 ERA in June but bounced back with 1.80 ERA in July); Mike Montgomery was at a 1.14 WHIP in 58 IP prior to his call up, so next is starter Manauris Baez at 1.29 (5-4, 3.34, 1 SV, 4 HRA, 35 BB/63 K in 23 games (13 starts)/94 1/3 IP, turns 24 in August, .248 OAV, .235 OAV as starter, only down month was June, posted marks of 2.29 ERA, .194 OAV in 6 July starts with 12 BB/32 K, has been good sleeper to watch of late); starter Tim Melville at 1.37 (3-5, 3.92, 5 HRA, 28 BB/60 K in 14 starts/64 1/3 IP, .249 OAV, bounced back from .310 OAV in June with .229 OAV in 6 July starts, 13 BB/35 K in July too, so improved there, also doesn't turn 20 until October); and starter Mike Lehmann at 1.46 (3-4, 4.59, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 6 HRA, 31 BB/32 K in 14 games (12 starts)/66 2/3 IP, .272 OAV, been consistently mediocre, not good, not bad). RP James Thompson is at 1.57 but has 39 BB/59 K in only 49 2/3 IP and a 2.90 ERA with 5 saves to go with a .219 OAV. Righties only hit .156 off him. His numbers are skewed up because of a down month (for him) in July. Starter Sam Runion has allowed 144 hits (a .339 OAV) in a team-leading 100 1/3 IP, which when added to 32 BB/44 K gives him a 1.75 WHIP. He also leads the team with 12 HRA. His best month was June but he posted a 7.86 ERA and .364 OAV in July.

Rookie - Idaho Falls: Ogden 4, Chukars 1

C Theriot 2-4 -- .328, has been consistent hitter
DH S. Perez 1-3, BB, RBI (17) -- .278
SS D. Batista 1-4, 2B (4), 2 K -- .315
CF Testa 1-3, BB, 2B (8) -- .318

Lamb 4 1/3 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 7 H, BB, 4 K, 2 E (4) -- L, 0-1, 5.00 ERA
C. White 2 1/3 IP, 3 BB, K -- 1.45 ERA
J. Garcia 2 1/3 IP, ER, 2 H, 3 K -- 1.23 ERA

*** Idaho Falls didn't put up much fight in a do-or-die situation as Ogden scored 2 in the 1st en route to the win to clinch the first half division crown. John Lamb was the victim as he gave up 2 runs thanks in part to his own error on a pickoff throw in the 1st. IF left the bases loaded in the 1st but got on the board on a Salvador Perez RBI groundout in the 3rd. Ogden got the run back off Lamb in the 4th and Justin Garcia gave up an insurance run in the 8th. IF stranded 2 in the 8th and RP Steven Ames stranded 1 in the 9th for his 4th save for the Raptors. RP Antonio Castillo pitched 5 scoreless innings for the win to move to 3-2 with a 4.08 ERA. Starter Brett Wallach allowed an ER on a hit and 3 walks with 3 Ks over 2 1/3 IP to make his ERA 2.70. C Gorman Erickson (parents Brewers' fans?) was 3-3 with a walk, his 11th double and 2 RBI (18) to move to .337. Two others had 2 hits for Ogden.

IF is 19-15 and now out of the first-half race. Game 2 is tonight as Nick Wooley (2-0, 4.07) starts versus an unannounced Ogden SP.

The Chukars' OPS leaders are.... OF Carlo Testa leads the way at 1.019 (.318/.394/.625*, 15 RS, 8 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 18 RBI, 11 BB/24 K, 5/6 SB, 1 E in 24 G/88 ABs, hit well enough at IF last year (.857 OPS) figured he'd get to play A-ball this year, hitting for 1.313 OPS with RISP); SS Deivy Batista at .917 (.315/.319/.598, 25 RS*, 40 H*, 4 2B, 4 3B*, 8 HR*, 31 RBI*, 3 BB/35 K (patience isn't his strong suit), 5/9 SB, 7 E in 30 G*/127 ABs*, 21-year-old tailed off a little bit in July to .859 OPS in 24 games, he's been one of the team's most consistent players, wish he could take some walks, would make him better all-around at the plate); C Ben Theriot at .823 (.328/.409*/.414, 11 RS, 3 2B, 1 3B, 12 RBI, 8 BB/10 K, 2 E in 18 G/58 ABs, despite hitting lefty, ripping lefties for 1.367 OPS in small sample size of 10 ABs, hit .346 in July, 1.272 OPS with RISP); OF Hilton Richardson at .818 (.326/.368/.449, 17 RS, 6 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 6 BB/24 K, 13/13 SB*, 2 E in 27 G/89 ABs, .917 OPS versus righties, only hit for .793 OPS in 21 July games after hot start, paltry .594 OPS with RISP); and IF Jason Morales at .776 (.290/.355/.420, 8 RS, 5 2B, 2 3B, 12 RBI, 7 BB/14 K, 1/2 SB, 4 E in 22 G/69 ABs, like Theriot, killing lefties in short sample size, turns 24 in December, but has produced in shot at Pioneer League). C Salvador Perez, who scuttled at A-ball this season, has hit for a .742 OPS at IF at 19. He hit only .229 with a .640 OPS in July, tho. '08 9th rounder IF J.D. Alfaro has hit for a .746 OPS in his second go-round in IF but isn't hitting for average or power like he did last season. His OBP is better, tho. He only hit .190 with a .547 OPS for IF in July. '09 draftees Ryan Stovall and Chanse Cooper are hitting for OPS marks of .545 and .455, respectively, thus far for the Chukars.

The Chukars' leaders in WHIP are.... (excepting RP Justin Garcia, who has only 7 1/3 IP at IF, or Ivor Hodgson's 1.11 mark since he's in Burlington now) RP Richard Folmer at 1.17 (0-0, 1.50, 4 SV*, HRA, 3 BB/17 K in 10 G/12 IP, .250 OAV, one of best among '09 pitching draftees thus far); RP Patrick Keating at 1.20 (2-0, 3.24, 2 SV, HRA, 7 BB/23 K in 11 G/16 2/3 IP, nice K rate, even better .213 OAV, only .071 OAV versus lefties, .194 OAV in July, .219 OAV with runners on, another '09 draftee getting it done in a hitter-friendly league); starter Nick Wooley at 1.23 (2-0, 4.07, 2 HRA, 5 BB/24 K in 6 games (4 starts)/24 1/3 IP, .255 OAV, .226 OAV as starter, only .236 OAV, 4 BB/22 K in July after rough start to season in 1 start in June); reliever Cole White at 1.29 (3*-2, 1.45*, 3 SV, HRA, 11 BB/19 K in 11 G/18 2/3 IP, .200 OAV, .130 OAV with RISP, another '09 draftee looking good); and RP Carlos Arias at 1.42 (1-3, 5.09, 1 SV, HRA, 9 BB/26 K* in 8 games (1 start)/17 2/3 IP, .239 OAV, .212 OAV versus righties, suffered through 6.08 ERA, .264 OAV in July). '09 draftee RP Brendan Lafferty has a 1.54 WHIP and .289 OAV through his first 23 1/3 pro IP, but had a good outing recently. If you're keeping track, that's 1 active starter with a WHIP under 1.54. And I'm afraid to look at the Burlington Royals' pitching numbers.

Rookie - Burlington: Elizabethton 2, B-Royals 1

DH F. Cruz 2-4, 2B (8), RS -- .262
1B Kuebler 2-3, BB -- .210
RF Del Rosario 0-4, 2 K -- .285

Hentges 4 IP, ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 2 K, WP -- 6.16 ERA
Kelley 2 2/3 IP, ER, 5 H, 4 K -- L, 0-2, 1.50 ERA
Dennick 1 1/3 IP, H, K -- 3.63 ERA

*** Burlington tied it in the 7th but the Twins took the lead right back and held on to win. Chase Hentges stranded 2 Twins in the 1st and then left the bases full in the 2nd. Elizabethton finally got to Hentges for a run in the 3rd and, as 16 Royals in a row went down, the game stayed 1-0. Fernando Cruz hit a 2-out single in the 7th and 2 Twins errors helped him come around to score to tie the game. Scott Kelley gave up a run on 3 hits in the bottom of the 7th as Elizabethton regained the lead. The Royals put 2 on with 2 out in the 9th but Geulin Beltre flew out to end it. RP Tony Davis picked up his 3rd save in relief of SP Tom Stuifbergen, who worked 8 IP of an unearned run on 3 hits and 7 Ks to move to 4-0 with a 2.90 ERA. SS Brian Dozier and 2B Derek McCallum had 2 hits for the Twins.

The B-Royals are 10-27 and on a 6-game skid. Game 2 with the Twins is tonight as Carlos Fortuna (1-4, 4.22) hurls versus Twins righty Brad Stillings (0-0, 3.49). The Royals had a players-only meeting after a recent game, so, understandably, they're not happy with how the season is going.

The B-Royals' OPS leaders are.... C Miguel Moctezuma at .779 (.267/.313/.467*, 2 RS, 4 2B, 3B, 3 RBI, 2 BB/5 K in only 10 G/30 ABs, hitting better than did in 2008, at least); C/DH Fernando Cruz at .698 (only 1 guy on roster over a .700 OPS, yikes, .262/.300/.398, 10 RS, 8 2B*, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 5 BB/14 K, 1/1 SB, 1 E in 29 G/103 ABs, 19-year-old is also hitting better than he did at Burlington in 2008, only hitting for .579 OPS at home); OF Luis Del Rosario at .692 (.285/.318/.374, 11 RS, 2 2B, 3 3B, HR, 12 RBI, 6 BB/38 K*, 12/14 SB, 2 E in 32 G/123 ABs, OBP down from last year in AZL, only hit .244 with .573 OPS in July, but is hitting for an .884 OPS with RISP); IF Malcom Culver at .681 (.221/.302/.379, 6 RS, 3 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 11 BB/15 K, 4/5 SB, 11 E in 30 G/95 ABs, '08 draftee making switch from pitcher, not hitting lefties much at all, only hit .214 with .608 OPS in July); and IF Yowill Espinal at .652 (.216/.309/.343, 16 RS, 2 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 15 BB/29 K, 12/20 SB, 12 E in 35 G*/134 ABs*, 18-year-old only hit .160 with .503 OPS in July, his numbers are up from his '08 AZL debut). IF Jake Kuebler leads the team with a .352 OBP but his OPS is only .652. He also leads the team with 13 errors. NDFA OF Jovan Pickett has a .647 OPS in his first 84 pro ABs but is hitting .286 and is 12/18 SB thus far. He's picked it up the last couple weeks. OF Geulin Beltre leads the team with 15 RBI and is tied with Espinal for the team lead with 16 RS. He also has 9 BB/38 K in 128 ABs with a .613 OPS. IF Ryan Wood had hit for a .520 OPS in 92 ABs before getting called up to the other Burlington. He did have 16 BB/15 K and a .303 OBP despite only a .174 BA.

The B-Royals WHIP leaders are.... RP Scott Kelley at 0.92 (0-2, 1.50*, 7 BB/25 K in 10 G/24 IP, .179 OAV, .097 OAV with RISP, among tops of '09 draftee pitchers); leaving out '09 draftee RP Dusty Odenbach, who had a good 1.04 WHIP before getting called up to the Bees, next is starter Leondy Perez at 1.07 (1-3, 3.38, 5 HRA*, 7 BB/34 K* in 7 games (6 starts)/34 2/3 IP, liked what I saw from him in AZL in 2008, turns 20 in August, .234 OAV, only .181 OAV versus righties, 3.34 ERA, .222 OAV, 5 BB/30 K in 5 July starts); RP Gary Cuevas at 1.07 (0-2, 3.47, 1 SV, HRA, 5 BB/24 K in 7 games (1 start)/23 1/3 IP, 21-year-old has only .215 OAV, .173 OAV as reliever); starter Greg Billo at 1.14 (1-1, 2.84, 3 HRA, 8 BB/27 K in 7 games (5 starts)/31 2/3 IP, turned 19 in July, .241 OAV, looks improved from AZL showing in 2008); and '09 draftee RP Ryan Dennick at 1.15 (1-1, 3.63, 2 HRA, 6 BB/15 K in 9 G/17 1/3 IP, .230 OAV, .191 OAV in July). SP John Lamb had a 1.21 WHIP before getting called up to Idaho Falls. Starter Keaton Hayenga has been solid with a 1.26 WHIP and 3.18 ERA with a .234 OAV with 10 BB/20 K in 34 IP. Starter Tyler Sample is at a 1.33 WHIP with a 4.87 ERA and .213 OAV. He has 10 BB/22 K in 20 1/3 IP. RP Brett Richardson has been disappointing in his 2nd pro season with a 6.00 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, 1 BB/5 K in 12 IP and a .346 OAV to boot. That wasn't as bad as I thought -- it's the offense that's horrifying.

Rookie - AZL: Giants 5, Royals 1

C Matos 2-3, BB, 2B (3), RBI (5) -- .343
DH Llanos 2-4, BB, 3B (2) -- .324
SS Trapp 1-4, BB, 2 K, E (5) -- .360
1B G. Baldwin 1-3, BB, K, SB -- .316
CF L. Adams 1-3, BB, K, 2 SB (5) -- .263
2B McConnell 0-2 -- .000, rehab
PH-2B Piterson 0-3, K -- .306
* The Royals stranded 11.

Avinazar 5 IP, 4 R (1 ER), 6 H, BB, 2 K, E (2), pickoff -- L, 2-3, 6.31 ERA
Keck 3 IP, UER, H, 2 BB, 3 K, 5 WP (!) -- 7.62 ERA, um, plate's over there
S. De La Rosa IP, 2 K -- 8.68 ERA

*** A 3-run 2nd was all the Giants needed to drop Willian Avinazar and the Royals to another loss. The Royals squandered an Alex Llanos leadoff triple in the 1st and the Giants got to Avinazar for 3 runs on 2 hits, a hit batsman and an Avinazar error in the 2nd. Mauricio Matos hit an RBI double in the bottom of the 2nd. The Royals stranded 2 in the 4th and Avinazar and Jonathon Keck combined to allow another run in the 6th. Lane Adams was thrown out at the plate to end the Royals 6th and Keck allowed the final Giants run in the 7th. The Royals left 2 in scoring position in the 7th and stranded 2 more in the 9th. RP Brennan Flick pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings to get the win and move to 1-2 with a 3.48 ERA. Starter Cameron Lamb pitched 3 2/3 innings of an ER allowed on 2 hits and 5 walks with 4 Ks to move his ERA to 2.14. C Jesse Shriner had 2 hits for the Giants to improve to .310. He also made his 1st error.

The 1-4 Royals play the 2-2 A's tonight.

The AZL Royals' tops in OPS are.... 1B Geoff Baldwin at .902 (.316/.412/.490*, 16 RS, 6 2B*, 3B, 3 HR, 15 RBI, 14 BB*/36 K*, 1/2 SB, 8 E in 29 G/98 ABs, '09 draftee showing promise, turns 19 in November, hit .338 with .968 OPS in 22 July games, hitting for 1.308 OPS with RISP, I'm glad he signed and didn't go to the Huskers); IF Justin Trapp at .869 (.360*/.429*/.440, 10 RS, 2 2B, 3B, 10 RBI, 4 BB/12 K, 5/7 SB, 5 E in 13 G/50 ABs, another '09 draftee holding his own at the plate, turns 19 in October); OF Alex Llanos at .869 (.324/.382/.486, 23 RS*, 5 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 16 RBI, 10 BB/30 K, 12/17 SB, 2 E in 29 G/111 ABs, turns 19 in September, vastly improved from '08 showing, hit .337 with .956 OPS in 21 July games, hitting for .945 OPS with runners on); C Mauricio Matos at .780 (.343/.351/.429, 4 RS, 3 2B, 5 RBI, 1 BB/9 K, 2 E in 11 G/35 ABs, turns 19 in September, also outperforming '08 debut thus far, hit .357 with .831 OPS in July, hitting for 1.117 OPS with RISP); and 1B Edwin Henriquez is at .726 (.261/.292/.435, 4 RS, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB/8 K, 1 E in 11 G/23 ABs, hard to tell much from 23 total ABs). IF Luis Piterson is hitting .306 with a .690 OPS with 8 SB in 30 games. '09 draftee DH Ryan Stovall was hitting for a .690 OPS with a team-leading 9 E in 22 games before getting called up to Idaho Falls. He had the hottest start of any Royals rookie-leaguer but has cooled considerably. OF Lane Adams has posted a .263 BA and .679 OPS in his first 38 pro ABs, and fellow '09 draftee OF Anthony Howard is right behind at a .672 OPS. IF Yunior Figueroa leads the team with 19 RBI but has only a .641 OPS in 119 ABs.

The Royals' tops in WHIP are.... '09 draftee RP Claudio Bavera at 0.97 (2-0, 0.79*, 1 SV, 5 BB/9 K in 8 G/11 1/3 IP, .162 OAV, pretty small sample size, but so far so good); NDFA RP Jack Adams at 1.00 (0-1, 2.77, 2 SV*, HRA, 1 BB/12 K in 8 G/13 IP, .240 OAV, old for AZL at 23, only allowed an ER in 1 appearance, where he allowed 4); starter Brian Peacock at 1.18 (0-1, 3.27, 2 HRA, 0 BB/14 K (nice) in 5 games (4 starts)/11 IP, another '09 draftee doing all right on the mound thus far, .271 OAV); NDFA RP Lee Roberts at 1.22 (1-0, 1.46, 1 SV, 2 BB/11 K in 8 G/12 1/3 IP, .289 OAV not pretty, .353 OAV in July); and starter Luis Ortega at 1.40 (0-1, 4.63, 3 HRA, 2 BB/24 K very nice in 7 games (5 starts)/35 IP, turns 24 this week, .322 OAV yeesh, .298 OAV in July, K/BB is great, tho). RP Josh Worrell is 0-3 with a 2.35 ERA and 1.43 WHIP in his first 7 2/3 pro IP, along with a .269 OAV. Willian Avinazar leads the team with 5 HRA and has a 1.49 WHIP. RP Starling De La Rosa has a 1.50 WHIP but 5 BB/16 K in only 9 1/3 IP. Starter Leonel Santiago leads the team with 36 Ks in 33 IP but also carries a 1.52 WHIP. RP Eric Diaz has posted a 3.12 ERA, 1-1 record, 1.67 WHIP and 9 BB/20 K to go with a .303 OAV in his first 17 1/3 pro IP. Keck is struggling with a 1.69 WHIP in his first 13 pro IP. Harold Mozingo's comeback from injury is on hold, seemingly, after he posted a 2.57 WHIP in 2 1/3 IP.