Royals Minor League Report (4/26): Walk-Off Naturals, Slugging Bandits Lead Royals' Farm Slate

Toledo walked off Omaha 2-1 in the eighth, while Northwest Arkansas split a doubleheader with Wichita on Rudy Martin Jr.'s walk-off homer in Game 1. Tyriq Kemp went 3-for-3 with a triple, a home run, and four runs scored as Quad Cities outslugged Lansing 9-5. Columbia split with Augusta behind Stone Russell's three-hit, one-homer Game 1 effort. Henry Williams allowed one earned run over five innings, and Max Martin tossed two scoreless innings.

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Storm Chasers Drop Pitcher's Duel In Toledo

Omaha was held to five hits in a 2-1 loss to the Toledo Mud Hens, with the deciding run coming home on a triple in the bottom of the eighth inning. The Storm Chasers managed only one run in the game and were held scoreless after the second.

Omaha's offense came in the second inning. Abraham Toro reached on a single, then scored when Josh Rojas tripled to right field. Rojas finished 1-for-3 with the triple and the lone RBI. Drew Waters added a single and a walk, Luca Tresh contributed a hit and a walk, and Toro and Elih Marrero each chipped in a hit. The team struck out 12 times and stranded five runners.

Starter Luinder Avila worked a clean opening inning, walking one without allowing a hit. Ben Sears followed with two scoreless innings of one-hit relief, walking one and striking out one. Shane Panzini was tagged with the run that tied the game in the fifth, allowing one earned run on a hit and two walks across 1 2/3 innings while striking out one. Andrew Pérez turned in 1 1/3 scoreless innings with a strikeout. Chazz Martinez took the loss after 1 1/3 innings in which he allowed one earned run on a hit and a walk while striking out two, with the walk-off triple coming off him in the eighth. Eric Cerantola finished by getting two outs, walking one and striking out one.

Martin Walk-Off Homer Caps Naturals' Game 1 Comeback

Northwest Arkansas trailed 5-1 entering the bottom of the fifth and rallied for a walk-off, 6-5 win over the Wichita Wind Surge in Game 1 of the doubleheader. Leadoff hitter Rudy Martin Jr. opened the bottom of the seventh with a solo home run to right-center to end it.

The Naturals broke through in the third when Dustin Dickerson doubled, advanced to third on a Canyon Brown single, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Justin Johnson. They added two more in the fifth on a sequence that featured a Jorge Alfaro double, a Dickerson double, and a Brown single, with leadoff hitter Carson Roccaforte's sacrifice fly bringing Dickerson home and another run also crossing the plate. Alfaro then tied the game in the sixth with a two-run home run that scored Sam Kulasingam from first.

Alfaro finished 2-for-3 with a double, a home run, and two RBI. Dickerson went 2-for-2 with two doubles, two runs scored, and a walk. Brown added two hits, Roccaforte was 1-for-3 with a double and a sacrifice-fly RBI, and Martin Jr.'s walk-off shot capped his 1-for-4 day.

Hunter Patteson started but lasted only 3 1/3 innings, surrendering four earned runs on three hits and two walks while giving up two home runs and striking out one. Caden Monke worked 1 2/3 innings of hitless relief, charged with one unearned run on two walks while striking out three. Chase Jessee added 1 2/3 scoreless innings with a strikeout, and Tommy Molsky retired one batter to earn the win.

Late Homer Sinks Naturals In Game 2

Northwest Arkansas dropped Game 2 of the doubleheader, 3-2, after a two-run home run in the top of the seventh inning broke a 2-1 tie. The Naturals managed only five hits and were held scoreless from the third inning on.

Wichita took an early lead with a solo home run in the top of the first. The Naturals answered in the bottom of the second when Dustin Dickerson doubled, and Connor Scott followed with a two-run home run to right-center. That 2-1 edge held until the seventh, when the Wind Surge connected on a two-run shot off Zachary Cawyer to take a 3-2 lead they would not relinquish.

Scott finished 1-for-2 with a home run, two RBI, and a walk. Dickerson went 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored, Brett Squires, Daniel Vazquez, and Canyon Brown each added a hit, and Vazquez and leadoff hitter Carson Roccaforte each drew a walk. The Naturals struck out seven times and stranded seven runners.

Starter Henry Williams turned in the strongest outing of the night, working five innings while allowing one earned run on two hits and a walk, striking out three. Oscar Rayo followed with a scoreless inning of relief. Cawyer took the loss after two-thirds of an inning in which he allowed two earned runs on two hits and a walk, striking out two and giving up the deciding home run. Andrew Morones finished the seventh with a strikeout.

Kemp Powers River Bandits Past Lansing

Tyriq Kemp went 3-for-3 with a home run, a triple, and four runs scored to lead Quad Cities to a 9-5 comeback win over the Lansing Lugnuts. The River Bandits scored five unanswered runs across the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings after surrendering the lead earlier in the sixth.

Quad Cities scored first when Kemp homered in the third for a 2-0 lead, then stretched the advantage to 4-0 in the fifth on a Kemp run-scoring single and a Ramon Ramirez sacrifice fly. Lansing answered with five runs in the top of the sixth to take a 5-4 lead. The River Bandits responded in the bottom half: Chris Brito singled, Kemp walked, Nolan Sailors singled, Ramirez was hit by a pitch to force in the tying run, and Luke Pelzer punched a two-run single to right to put Quad Cities back in front 7-5. They tacked on two more in the seventh when Austin Charles reached on an error and Kemp tripled him home, with another run scoring on a groundout.

Kemp drove in two and reached four times. Pelzer was 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI, and a stolen base. Ramirez finished 1-for-3 with two RBI, and leadoff hitter Sailors added a hit and a run. The team finished with 11 hits and 9 runs, and stranded nine runners.

Starter Josh Hansell worked three scoreless innings, allowing two hits and three walks while striking out three. Tanner Jones went four innings and was charged with five earned runs on four hits and two walks, striking out two before earning the win when his team rallied. Hunter Alberini and Nick Conte each tossed a scoreless inning of relief.

Russell, Vanek Lead Fireflies Past Augusta In Game 1

Columbia opened the doubleheader with a 6-2 win over the Augusta GreenJackets, powered by an 11-hit attack and a three-hit night from Stone Russell. The Fireflies scored in five of seven innings.

Columbia struck first in the bottom of the first when Sean Gamble singled and later scored on a single by cleanup hitter Brooks Bryan. Russell led off the second with a solo home run for a 2-0 lead. The Fireflies broke the game open in the bottom of the fifth, scoring three runs as leadoff hitter Henry Ramos singled, Gamble doubled him to third, Josh Hammond brought Ramos home with a sacrifice fly, Yandel Ricardo walked, and JC Vanek lined a two-run single to right that scored Ricardo and pushed the lead to 6-2.

Russell finished 3-for-3 with a double, a home run, and an RBI. Vanek went 2-for-3 with an RBI, Gamble was 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, and a stolen base, and Ricardo went 1-for-2 with a walk and a run. Ramos and Bryan each added a hit, with Bryan driving in a run, and Hammond drove in another on his sacrifice fly. The Fireflies struck out three times and stranded six.

Starter Jose Gutierrez worked 4 1/3 innings, allowing one earned run and one unearned on a single hit while walking four and striking out four. Max Martin earned the win with two scoreless innings, walking two and striking out three. Jhon Reyes recorded the final two outs with two strikeouts and no hits allowed.

Fireflies Held To One Hit In Game 2 Loss

Columbia mustered only one hit and was shut out 4-0 by the Augusta GreenJackets in Game 2 of the doubleheader. The Fireflies' lone hit came from Brooks Bryan, and the team struck out six times.

Augusta took an early lead with a solo home run in the top of the first inning. The GreenJackets put the game out of reach in the top of the fourth with a three-run rally that included a fielder's choice that scored a run, a bases-loaded walk, and a sacrifice fly. Columbia threatened with a pair of walks to leadoff hitter Henry Ramos and Yandel Ricardo, who walked twice in the game, and a Daniel Lopez free pass, but the team stranded seven runners and could not push a run across.

Bryan was 1-for-3 with two strikeouts. Ramos drew a walk, Ricardo walked twice, and Lopez added a walk. No other Fireflies hitter reached base safely.

Starter Shane Van Dam took the loss after 3 1/3 innings, allowing four earned runs on three hits and two walks while giving up a home run and striking out two. Henson Leal followed with 2 2/3 scoreless innings of relief, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out one. Andy Basora capped the night with a scoreless seventh, surrendering two hits and striking out one.

Top-20 Prospect Performance

1. Carter Jensen: DNP
2. Blake Mitchell: DNP
3. David Shields: DNP
4. Kendry Chourio: DNP
5. Ben Kudrna: DNP
6. Sean Gamble: 2-for-7, 2B, 2 R, SB, K
7. Josh Hammond: 0-for-2, RBI, BB
8. Ramon Ramirez: 1-for-3, 2 RBI
9. Drew Beam: DNP
10. Asbel Gonzalez: DNP
11. Yandel Ricardo: 1-for-3, R, 3 BB
12. Felix Arronde: DNP
13. Luinder Avila: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
14. Daniel Vazquez: 1-for-5, BB, 2 K
15. Steven Zobac: DNP
16. Carson Roccaforte: 1-for-6, 2B, RBI, BB, 4 K
17. Blake Wolters: DNP
18. Michael Lombardi: DNP
19. Warren Calcaño: DNP
20. Frank Mozzicato: DNP

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