The only Royals affiliate with a winning record currently is the Dominican squad at 3-1 while Omaha and Lexington continue to play abysmal baseball.
HR Roll Call Brandon Downes (4), Jose Carabello (1)
BP KC Hitter of the Day Alfredo Escalera 3-4 2b, R, RBI, CS (3)
BP KC Pitcher of the Day Brian Flynn 3.1 IP 0 H 0 R 2 BB 5 K 3-2 GO-FO 62p/36k
New Orleans Zephyrs 3 Omaha Storm Chasers 2
The Royals continue to stretch out lefty Brian Flynn as he’s worked up to 62 pitches which were effective if not efficient Friday. Flynn worked just 3.1 innings while striking out five, walking two and not allowing a hit. Zephyrs starter and former Chaser Paul Clemens was working over the Omaha offense, giving his team seven shutout innings. It was a far different performance for Clemens than his opening day outing versus Omaha in which he gave up six runs in just 1.2 innings. The two teams matched zeroes up until the bottom of the 7th when a three run home run by Destin Hood gave New Orleans a 3-0 lead. The Chasers would draw within a run in the 8th with three singles and a pair of walks but were unable to close the comeback door all the way. Trailing 3-2 Omaha was unable to mount a rally in the 9th inning to drop their fourth consecutive game and their tenth in eleven tries.
Hunter Dozier 1-3 BB
Angel Franco 2-4 2b, R
Travis Snider 1-3 2b
Tulsa Drillers 3 NW Arkansas Naturals 1
Starter Ashton Goudeau gave up a pair of solo home runs early while the Naturals offense was held under wraps for most of the night. The righthander gave up those two home runs prior to another tally allowed in the 5th to give the Drillers a 3-0 lead. NW Arkansas had just two hits until the 9th inning when a Mauricio Ramos double followed a Corey Toups single to give them their only run on the night. Outfielder Bubba Starling’s pull only approach this season continues to be his downfall as he’s seen his average dip to a microscopic .193 after another 0 for 4 performance.
Ryan O’Hearn 1-4 2b
Mauricio Ramos 2-3 2b, RBI, BB
Ashton Goudeau 6.2 IP 5 H 3 ER 0 BB 5 K 4-8 GO-FO 81p/57k
Wilmington Blue Rocks 5 Salem Red Sox 4
The Rocks offense scored four runs late to comeback and take the lead to take a game over the Sox. Starter Zach Lovvorn was solid again giving the Rocks two run ball over six innings on just four hits and a pair of walks. The former sixth round pick has done a nice job despite the winless record, giving the Rocks five quality starts in his last eight while lowering his ERA to 3.54. The Wilmington offense made sure he wasn’t stuck with a hardluck loss, scoring four runs in the 7th to take the lead. A Brandon Downes two run home run in the 7th capped the scoring in the inning and gave the Rocks their first lead. An Alfredo Escalera insurance run single in the 8th would give Wilmington what they would need to win the game after Salem scored a run in the 9th to close the gap but couldn’t finish the comeback against Derek Gordon.
Brandon Downes 1-4 HR 2 RBI 3 K
Wander Franco 1-4 R, RBI
Humberto Arteaga 1-3 R
Hagerstown Nationals 4 Lexington Legends 3
The Legends closer Nik Stephenson got knocked around for four runs in the bottom of the ninth to continue Lexington’s losing ways. A three run third inning combined with decent pitching from Julio Pinto and Daniel Concepcion gave Lexington a 3-0 lead into that ninth inning. The three run inning came via a Roman Collins RBI double and a two run two bagger from Anderson Miller. The Lexington offense would stall out from there but Pinto’s best performance of the year, a four inning scoreless combined with just one walk and four singles allowed before giving way to the pen. After Concepcion worked 3.2 scoreless the Legends closer got in immediate trouble after a leadoff throwing error by DJ Burt. Stephenson would hit the next batter to bring the tying run to the plate. The righthander would give away single, a walk, another single and a walk before a fielders choice, his first out in the inning would score the winning run to extend the Legends losing streak to seven games.
Anderson Miller 2-4 2b, 2 RBI
Roman Collins 1-4 R, 2b, RBI
Julio Pinto 4 IP 4 H 0 R 1 BB 4 K 1 HBP 2-4 GO-FO 73p/39p
DSL Phillies 4 DSL Royals 3 F/11
The Dominican Royals dropped their first contest of the season after blowing a late lead. The Phillies DSL squad would tie the game in the eighth after the Royals had reclaimed a 3-2 lead but a run sent the game to extra innings. The Phillies would score in the bottom of the 11th to hand the Royals a 4-3 loss.
Sebastian Rivera 2-5 RBI
Jeison Guzman 0-5 2 Errors
Esteury Ruiz 3-5 R