Royals Minor League Report (8/8): Royals Arms Set The Tone In A Three-Win Saturday

[Kevin O'Brien]

 

Henry Williams spun 5 2/3 scoreless innings with six strikeouts as Omaha rolled in Toledo, and the Royals system took three of four Saturday. Emmanuel Reyes struck out seven over five innings for Quad Cities, which walked its way to a four-run eighth in Peoria. Yeri Perez slammed the door with three scoreless innings for Columbia, and Josh Hammond piled up four hits. Northwest Arkansas piled up 12 hits, stranded 10 runners, and took the only loss.

Kansas City Royals Transactions

• Kansas City Royals released LHP Matt Strahm.

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Matthew Lugo's Three-Run Homer Powers Omaha Past Toledo

The Omaha Storm Chasers beat the Toledo Mud Hens 7-2 on Saturday, scoring in four different innings behind a dominant start from Henry Williams.

Williams worked 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits, walking three, hitting one batter, and striking out six. He threw 99 pitches and picked up his fourth win.

Omaha scored first when cleanup hitter Drew Waters reached on a fielder's choice that brought Gavin Cross home.

 

 

Brett Squires added a run two innings later, coming around when Jack Pineda struck out swinging, and the throw to first got away from the catcher.

 

 

The fifth put the game away. Cross reached on an error, Pineda lined a single, and Matthew Lugo drove his 11th home run to center field for a 5-0 lead.

 

 

Omaha tacked on two more later. Waters singled, Pineda singled to center, and both runners came around when the ball got past the center fielder.

 

 

Luke Little followed Williams and gave up two hits and two runs with a strikeout. Eli Morgan retired all five batters he faced, striking out one. Justin Topa finished the game, allowing one hit and no runs.

The Storm Chasers finished with 10 hits, no errors, and six men left on base. Squires had two hits and a double, Peyton Wilson had two hits, and Pineda had two hits, two runs scored, and an RBI. Lugo added a hit, a walk, and three RBI. Cross scored twice and doubled, and Waters had a hit, an RBI, and a stolen base. Toledo, which committed three errors, pushed across both of its runs in the seventh.

Omaha went 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position and improved its record to 55-57 with the win. 

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Abraham Toro	5	0	0	0	0	1
Gavin Cross	5	2	1	0	0	3
Brett Squires	5	1	2	0	0	1
Drew Waters	5	1	1	1	0	0
Jack Pineda	4	2	2	1	0	2
Matthew Lugo	3	1	1	3	1	2
Elih Marrero	4	0	0	0	0	1
Peyton Wilson	4	0	2	0	0	1
Alejo Lopez	4	0	1	0	0	1

 

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Henry Williams	5 2/3	3	0	0	3	6	0
Luke Little	2/3	2	2	2	0	1	0
Eli Morgan	1 2/3	0	0	0	0	1	0
Justin Topa	1	1	0	0	0	0	0

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Naturals Collect 12 Hits, Strand 10 In Loss To Wichita

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals out-hit the Wichita Wind Surge 12-8 on Saturday and still lost 5-2, leaving 10 men on base.

 

 

Felix Arronde, the Royals' No. 16 prospect, took the loss, working 4 2/3 innings and allowing six hits, three runs, two walks, and one hit batter while striking out five. Wichita scored twice in the first on a double, a hit batter, a single, and a groundout, then added a run in the second on a double.

Northwest Arkansas got on the board when Justin Johnson singled, leadoff man Luke Pelzer walked, a fly ball moved both runners up, and Carson Roccaforte lifted a sacrifice fly into foul territory in right.

The next inning was the one that got away from the Naturals.

Daniel Vazquez, Javi Vaz, and Colton Becker opened with three straight singles to load the bases with nobody out. Unfortunately, Jorge Alfaro struck out, and Johnson grounded into a force out with the runner cut down at the plate. Vaz did score on a wild pitch before Pelzer struck out with two runners still aboard.

Anthony Simonelli followed Arronde and allowed one hit, one walk, and a home run. Frank Mozzicato was the sharpest arm of the night for the Naturals, allowing no hits, walking one, and striking out three. Tyson Guerrero gave up one hit, one walk, and a home run while striking out two.

Pelzer, cleanup hitter Spencer Nivens, Vaz, and Becker each had two hits. Nivens doubled twice, Vaz added a double, and Becker drew a walk. Alfaro went hitless in four at-bats and left seven men on base. Northwest Arkansas played errorless defense, but the Naturals could not turn 12 hits and two walks into more than two runs.

The Naturals went 1-for-14 with runners in scoring position. They are now 44-61 this season. 

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Luke Pelzer	4	0	2	0	1	2
Sam Kulasingam	5	0	1	0	0	1
Carson Roccaforte	4	0	1	1	0	1
Spencer Nivens	4	0	2	0	0	0
Daniel Vazquez	4	0	1	0	0	2
Javi Vaz	4	1	2	0	0	1
Colton Becker	3	0	2	0	1	1
Jorge Alfaro	4	0	0	0	0	1
Justin Johnson	4	1	1	0	0	0

 

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Felix Arronde	4 2/3	6	3	3	2	5	0
Anthony Simonelli	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Frank Mozzicato	1 1/3	0	0	0	1	3	0
Tyson Guerrero	2	1	1	1	1	2	1

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Chris Brito's Bases-Clearing Double Lifts Quad Cities In Peoria

The Quad Cities River Bandits scored four runs in the eighth inning and held on to beat the Peoria Chiefs 7-6 on Saturday, winning a game in which they collected only five hits.

Reyes gave Quad Cities five innings, allowing three hits and two runs, walking two, hitting one batter, and striking out seven. Asbel Gonzalez, the Royals' No. 8 prospect, doubled, stole third, and scored on an error to open the scoring. Peoria answered with two runs on a double and a single, and Jose Cerice put the River Bandits back in front with a two-run double that scored No. 4 prospect Blake Mitchell and cleanup hitter Chris Brito. Peoria tied it again on another double.

The eighth decided it. Pedro Roque, leadoff man Nolan Sailors, and Gonzalez all walked to load the bases, and Mitchell drew a walk to force in the go-ahead run. Brito followed with a bases-clearing double to center field for a 7-3 lead.

Mason Miller worked two innings behind Reyes, allowing two hits, one run, and one hit batter while striking out two, and he earned the win despite a blown save. Tommy Molsky was charged with three runs on two hits, including a three-run homer, while striking out two. Yimi Presinal allowed one hit and one walk with a strikeout to record his fourth save.

Gonzalez had two hits, a double, a walk, a stolen base, and two runs scored. Brito had two doubles and three RBI. Cerice had a hit and two RBI. Mitchell walked twice, scored twice, and drove in a run without a hit. Quad Cities went 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position, left three men on base, and played errorless defense.

The River Bandits are now 53-50 this season. 

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Nolan Sailors	4	1	0	0	1	3
Asbel Gonzalez	3	2	2	0	1	1
Blake Mitchell	2	2	0	1	2	1
Chris Brito	4	1	2	3	0	1
Jose Cerice	4	0	1	2	0	2
Erick Torres	4	0	0	0	0	1
Tyriq Kemp	4	0	0	0	0	1
Stone Russell	3	0	0	0	0	2
Pedro Roque	3	1	0	0	1	3

 

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Emmanuel Reyes	5	3	2	2	2	7	0
Mason Miller	2	2	1	1	0	2	0
Tommy Molsky	1	2	3	3	0	2	1
Yimi Presinal	1	1	0	0	1	1	0

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Hammond's Four-Hit Night Carries Columbia Past Myrtle Beach

The Columbia Fireflies rallied from a three-run deficit and beat the Myrtle Beach Pelicans 10-8 on Saturday, scoring in five different innings.

Jose Gutierrez started and was charged with five runs on nine hits over 4 1/3 innings, walking two and striking out five.

 

 

Columbia jumped ahead when No. 3 prospect Hammond singled, and cleanup hitter Sean Gamble, the Royals' No. 6 prospect, tripled him home.

 

 

The Fireflies added four more the next inning on a wild pitch, run-scoring singles from leadoff man Henry Ramos and Hammond, and a sacrifice fly from Camden Johnson for a 5-0 lead.

 

 

Myrtle Beach answered with six runs in the fifth on a wild pitch, three doubles, a throwing error, and a single, then pushed the lead to 8-5 with a home run.

The Fireflies came all the way back despite the deficit.

Hammond singled home Daniel Lopez, then Lopez singled with two outs and two runs scored as the throws got away, tying the game 8-8. Johnson singled Hammond home for the lead, and Johnson later scored on a wild pitch for the final margin.

 

 

Jhon Reyes followed Gutierrez and allowed four hits and three runs, two of them earned, including a home run, with one walk, one hit batter, and two strikeouts. Yeri Perez was the difference out of the bullpen for Columbia, throwing three scoreless innings on one hit with four strikeouts and no walks to earn his first win.

Hammond had four hits in five at-bats, scored three runs, and drove in two. Ricson Gonzalez had two hits and a double. Lopez had two hits, a walk, two stolen bases, and two runs scored. Johnson had a hit, two RBI, and two stolen bases, and Gamble had a hit, a triple, and an RBI.

Columbia finished with 13 hits and made two errors in the field. They went 7-for-16 with runners in scoring position and left eight runners on base.

The Fireflies are now 55-50 this season. 

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Henry Ramos	4	1	1	1	1	1
Josh Hammond	5	3	4	2	0	0
Camden Johnson	4	1	1	2	0	1
Sean Gamble	5	0	1	1	0	3
Jhosmmel Zue	4	0	1	0	1	1
JC Vanek	4	1	1	0	1	1
Connor Rasmussen	2	1	0	0	1	1
Ricson Gonzalez	4	1	2	0	0	0
Daniel Lopez	3	2	2	0	1	1

 

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Jose Gutierrez	4 1/3	9	5	5	2	5	0
Jhon Reyes	1 2/3	4	3	2	1	2	1
Yeri Perez	3	1	0	0	0	4	0

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Top-20 Prospect Performance

1. Kendry Chourio: DNP
2. David Shields: DNP
3. Josh Hammond: 4-for-5, 2 RBI, 3 R
4. Blake Mitchell: 0-for-2, 2 BB, RBI, 2 R, K
5. Sean Gamble: 1-for-5, 3B, RBI, 3 K
6. Ramon Ramirez: DNP
7. Zion Rose: DNP
8. Asbel Gonzalez: 2-for-3, 2B, BB, SB, 2 R, K
9. Carson Roccaforte: 1-for-4, RBI, K
10. Taylor Rabe: DNP
11. Yandel Ricardo: DNP
12. Justin Lamkin: DNP
13. Drew Beam: DNP
14. Michael Lombardi: DNP
15. Jack Slightom: DNP
16. Felix Arronde: 4 2/3 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K (L)
17. Angeibel Gomez: 1-for-4, 2 RBI
18. Ben Kudrna: DNP
19. Steven Zobac: DNP
20. Blake Wolters: DNP

 

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