Royals Minor League Report (7/9): Affiliates Win Three Of Four Behind Big Nights At The Plate

The Royals' system went 3-for-4 on Thursday. Carson Roccaforte homered and drove in three as Northwest Arkansas rolled, with Hunter Patteson earning the win over five innings. Blake Wolters picked up the win behind Quad Cities' 18-run outburst, powered by Blake Mitchell and Ramon Ramirez. Jose Gutierrez earned the win as Hyungchan Um drove in four runs for Columbia. Brett Squires homered, but Omaha fell at Louisville. Sam Kulasingam added a home run for Northwest Arkansas.

Royals Transactions

No Roster Moves

Storm Chasers Rally Falls Short In 11-7 Loss At Louisville

The Omaha Storm Chasers erased a four-run deficit with a five-run fourth inning, but the Louisville Bats regained the lead an inning later and pulled away for an 11-7 win on Thursday.

Trailing 4-0 in the fourth, Omaha put together its biggest inning of the night. With one out, Vinnie Pasquantino singled, Matthew Lugo doubled, and Squires followed with a three-run home run, his 11th of the season, to pull the Storm Chasers within 4-3.

Abraham Toro singled later in the inning, Elih Marrero doubled, and Andrew Velazquez drove both home with a two-run single, giving Omaha a 5-4 lead.

The lead did not last. Louisville tied the game in the bottom of the fourth on a double, then scored three runs in the fifth on a forceout, a bases-loaded hit by pitch, and a sacrifice fly. The Bats added three more in the eighth on three consecutive run-scoring singles.

Starter Ryan Ramsey struggled with his command, allowing five runs on three hits and five walks, with four strikeouts, over 3 1/3 innings. Oscar Rayo took the loss, allowing three runs in 2 2/3 innings.

Squires finished 2-for-5 with three RBIs. Marrero went 2-for-5 with a double and drove in a run in the eighth, and Brandon Drury added an RBI single in the ninth.

Omaha left 10 runners on base and went 5-for-15 with runners in scoring position. The Storm Chasers are now 38-51. 

Roccaforte's Three-Run Homer Powers Naturals Past Wichita, 13-6

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals jumped on the Wichita Wind Surge early and never trailed, rolling to a 13-6 win behind a five-run fourth inning on Thursday.

Northwest Arkansas scored three times in the first. Roccaforte, the Royals' No. 8 prospect at Royals Keep, walked to open the game. Later, Sam Kulasingam doubled him home, Spencer Nivens singled in Kulasingam, and Daniel Vazquez, the Royals' No. 18 prospect, added an RBI single. Canyon Brown made it 4-0 with a solo home run in the second.

The Naturals broke the game open in the fourth. Alberto Rodriguez doubled and scored on a double by Brown, a pitch hit Justin Johnson, and Roccaforte hit a three-run home run, his 17th of the season.

Kulasingam followed two batters later with a solo homer, his seventh, to make it 9-1.

Roccaforte finished 1-for-3 with three runs scored, three RBIs, two walks, and a stolen base. Kulasingam went 2-for-3 with two walks, and Brown went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and two stolen bases.

Patteson earned the win, allowing two runs on five hits with three walks and three strikeouts over five innings. Frank Mozzicato allowed two runs in one inning of relief, and Augusto Mendieta threw two scoreless innings.

The Naturals tacked on two in the sixth, when Brown came home on a catcher's error during a single by Jack Pineda, and Roccaforte scored on a sacrifice fly by Nivens. Jorge Alfaro tripled in a run in the ninth, and Vazquez singled him home.

Northwest Arkansas left only four runners on base and went an eye-popping 8-for-10 with runners in scoring position. The Naturals improved to 34-48 after the victory, their second straight. 

River Bandits Pile Up 18 Runs And 19 Hits In Rout Of Peoria

The Quad Cities River Bandits collected 19 hits, scored in six different innings, and beat the Peoria Chiefs 18-8 on Thursday.

Quad Cities led 3-2 before breaking the game open with five runs in the fourth. Jose Cerice singled, Erick Torres doubled, and Angel Acosta was hit by a pitch, which loaded the bases. Diego Guzman cleared two runners with a double, Asbel Gonzalez, the Royals' No. 9 prospect, singled in Acosta, and Guzman scored on a wild pitch during Mitchell's walk. Ramirez, the Royals' No. 6 prospect, capped the inning with an RBI groundout, making it 8-2.

The River Bandits added five more in the seventh. Gonzalez tripled and scored on a single by Nolan Sailors, Ramirez hit a two-run home run, his 11th of the season, and Acosta lined a two-run single.

Mitchell, the Royals' No. 4 prospect, hit a two-run homer in the eighth, his 16th of the season, and finished 2-for-4 with a double, two walks, and three runs scored. Sailors went 3-for-5 with a triple and four runs scored, Gonzalez went 3-for-6 with a triple and a stolen base, and Ramirez drove in four runs. Every River Bandits starter recorded at least one hit.

Wolters, the Royals' No. 15 prospect, earned his first High-A win of the season, allowing four runs on seven hits with two walks and five strikeouts over five innings. Jordan Woods allowed four runs, three earned, over three innings, and Yimi Presinal threw a scoreless ninth.

The River Bandits stranded 12 runners and went 8-for-23 with runners in scoring position. The win was the seventh in a row for Quad Cities, and they are back to .500 at 40-40. 

Um Drives In Four As Fireflies Top Salem, 10-5

Um drove in four runs, and Roni Cabrera hit a three-run home run as the Columbia Fireflies beat the Salem Ridge Yaks 10-5 on Thursday.

Columbia trailed 3-2 in the fourth when it took the lead for good. JC Vanek was hit by a pitch, and 10th-ranked Royals prospect Yandel Ricardo walked before Cabrera hit a three-run home run, his sixth of the season, to put the Fireflies ahead 5-3.

The Fireflies added four more in the fifth. Sean Gamble, the Royals' No. 5 prospect, walked, Josh Hammond, the Royals' No. 3 prospect, singled, and Ricardo drew a two-out walk to load the bases. Um followed with a single to left that scored all three runners, and Um came around to score on a throwing error during Cabrera's single, making it 9-4. Um added an RBI single in the seventh, bringing home Ricardo.

Ricardo walked three times, stole a base, and scored three runs despite going hitless. Leadoff man Henry Ramos went 3-for-4 with two doubles, and Vanek hit a solo home run in the first, his eighth of the season, after Hammond's RBI groundout opened the scoring for Columbia.

Gutierrez earned the win, allowing four runs, two earned, on six hits with three walks and three strikeouts over five innings. Two of those runs scored on a third-inning throwing error. Randy Ramnarace struck out three over two scoreless innings, and Yeri Pérez allowed one run over the final two innings.

The Fireflies stranded four runners and went 4-for-8 with runners in scoring position. The win propelled Columbia back to .500, bringing them to 42-42 this season. 

Top-20 Prospect Performance

1. Kendry Chourio: DNP
2. David Shields: DNP
3. Josh Hammond: 1-for-4, RBI, K
4. Blake Mitchell: 2-for-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, K
5. Sean Gamble: 0-for-2, 2 BB, SB
6. Ramon Ramirez: 1-for-5, HR, 4 RBI, BB, K
7. Drew Beam: DNP
8. Carson Roccaforte: 1-for-3, HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB, K, SB
9. Asbel Gonzalez: 3-for-6, 3B, RBI, SB
10. Yandel Ricardo: 0-for-1, 3 BB, K, SB
11. Michael Lombardi: DNP
12. Ben Kudrna: DNP
13. Justin Lamkin: DNP
14. Felix Arronde: DNP
15. Blake Wolters: W, five innings, 7 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
16. Steven Zobac: DNP
17. Austin Charles: DNP
18. Daniel Vázquez: 2-for-5, 2 RBI, K
19. Kamden Edge: DNP
20. Warren Calcano: DNP

Interested in learning more about the Kansas City Royals' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!