BPKC Hitter of the Day: Jose Marquez 3-4 4R, HR, 4 RBI, BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Emilio Ogando 7 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 5 K 9-1 GO-FO 92p/56k 

Lexington Legends 2 Lakewood BlueClaws 1

Starter J.C. Cloney bounced back from his first loss of the season to position the Legends for a win Tuesday night. The lefty tossed seven scoreless innings, working around a leadoff double in the sixth, a one-out double in the fourth and a two-out triple in the fifth to keep the Phillies Low-A club off the board. A Brewer Hicklen double drove in Nick Pratto in the first inning to give Lexington a 1-0 lead. An insurance run was provided in the seventh inning by Ricky Aracena with a one-out single that scored Cristian Perez after he started the inning with a leadoff single. Reliever Janser Lara gave up a run in the eighth but closer Tad Ratliff shut the door in the ninth to secure the series sweep for the Legends.

Brewer Hicklen: 1-3 2b, RBI
Nick Pratto: 2-3 R, BB, SB, CS
J.C. Cloney: 7 IP 5 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 4 K 7-4 GO-FO 79p/46k

NW Arkansas Naturals 4 Springfield Cardinals 1 

The Naturals Emilio Ogando continued his incredibly odd season by improving his scoreless streak to 31 innings with seven shutout innings in this one. Working seven innings, Ogando gave up just a leadoff single in the seventh with a pair of walks over his seven shutout innings. He was backed by a two run home run by Samir Duenez and a pair of RBI singles by Kort Peterson and Erick Mejia to take a 4-0 lead. Reliever Gabe Speier worked the final two innings, allowing a run in the ninth before securing the win.

Samir Duenez: 1-4 HR, 2 RBI
Kelvin Gutierrez: 1-3 2b
Erick Mejia: 2-4 RBI

Omaha Storm Chasers 13 Oklahoma City Dodgers 2

Another good start for Arnaldo Hernandez as he makes a late push to win Royals minor league pitcher of the year. The right-hander backed up his complete game with a quality start in this one, tossing six innings of one-run ball by retiring 18 of the last 19 hitters he faced with just a walk allowed in that time. The two teams exchanged one-run first innings before Paulo Orlando connected on a solo home run in the third to take a 2-1 lead. With Hernandez tossing up zeroes, the Chasers exploded for eight runs in the fifth inning, getting a grand slam off the bat of Frank Schwindel and a pair of doubles by Ramon Torres and Donnie Dewees that drove in three more. The Chasers tacked on three runs in the ninth inning for the final margin of victory.

Frank Schwindel: 3-5 HR, 5 RBI
Arnaldo Hernandez: 6 IP 3 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 4 K 5-6 GO-FO 90p/57k
Donnie Dewees: 2-5 2R, 2b, 3 RBI

Burlington Royals 13 Johnson City Cardinals 5

A big offensive night by the Royals as they clubbed 17 hits and walked seven times in a blowout win. Four different Royals hitters had at least three hits with Jose Marquez scoring four times and while driving in four runs with his three-hit including his seventh home run. Starter Yerelmy Garcia earned the win despite four runs allowed in five and one-third innings.

Eric Cole: 4-6 2R, 2b, RBI, SB (6)
Brhet Bewley: 3-6 2R, 2-2b
Chris Hudgins: 3-5 2b, 3 RBI, BB

Billings Mustangs 5 Idaho Falls Chukars 4

Idaho Falls Kris Bubic didn’t have his best start, giving up seven hits and a walk in his five innings. A pair of bunt hits in the third inning loaded the bases against him in the third inning before a single to left scored a pair. Two innings later, a two-out single scored a run after a passed ball. Infielder Nathan Eaton drove in a run in the third inning with a sacrifice fly before Chase Vallot homered in the fourth to tie the game back up. Seventh-round pick Tyler Gray gave up two runs in the eighth to put Idaho Falls behind 5-2. In the eighth inning first baseman Nick Hutchins drove in two with a one-out double to pull the Chukars within a run at 5-4. The Chukars would threaten in the ninth by walking the bases loaded but Jose Caraballo would ground out to end the threat and the game.

Kris Bubic: 5 IP 7 H 3 R 2 ER 1 BB 6 K 4-4 GO-FO 65p/46k
Nick Hutchins: 2-4 2b, 2 RBI
Chase Vallot: 1-3 HR, BB

Tuesday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Kelvin Gutierrez 3-3, 2R, HR, 3 RBI, BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Arnaldo Hernandez 9 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, 6-8 GO-FO, 97p/80k

Hagerstown Suns 8, Lexington Legends 3

Starter Charlie Neuweiler was roughed up for the second start in a row as the right-hander couldn’t make it out of the second inning. Neuweiler gave up a run just two batters in when he gave up a single to the leadoff hitter and quickly moved him to third with a balk and a wild pitch. The very next hitter drove him in with a single to tie up the game 1-1. Three singles, a walk and a hit by pitch forced Neuweiler out of the game with just one out in the second inning as the club gave up five runs to dig a hole the offense couldn’t escape. The lineup couldn’t get much going outside of Nick Pratto’s big night at the plate, going 3 for 4 with hit 10th home run of the season while driving in the three Legends runs.

Nick Pratto: 3-4, HR, 2b, 3 RBI
Kyle Isbel: 2-4, 2R
MJ Melendez: 0-4, 2K

Lynchburg Hillcats 4, Wilmington Blue Rocks 0

Wilmington lost their second in a row to the Indians High-A club, with the offense going on hiatus. Lynchburg starter Sam Hentges limited the Rocks to just two hits and two walks over 6.1 innings as he struck out seven hitters. Just one more hit off the bullpen came for Wilmington as they were shut out. The lack of run support made starter Dan Tillo a loser despite a quality start of two runs over six innings for the lefty. A pair of two-out RBI hits in the third inning gave Lynchburg the two runs off Tillo and two more came later off the bullpen.

Dan Tillo: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, 6-6 GO-FO, 91p/58k
D.J. Burt: 1-3, BB, SB
Julio Pinto: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1-1 GO-FO, 10p/8k

NW Arkansas Naturals 8, Midland RockHounds 0

Lefty Emilio Ogando kept his great run of pitching going on Wednesday during a blowout Naturals game. The Naturals piled up four singles with an error in the third to jump out to a 3-0 lead before a pair of home runs blew the doors wide open. In the third inning Alex Liddi homered behind a Kelvin Gutierrez single; an inning later it was Gutierrez tagging his fifth home run with two on base to push the score to 8-0. Those runs were plenty for Ogando who increased his scoreless streak to 24 innings with six shutout frames, allowing just two hits and two walks while striking out six. Reliever Yunior Marte tossed the final three innings perfectly to secure the save.

Yunior Marte: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 5-3 GO-FO, 27p/20k
Emilio Ogando: 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 8-3 GO-FO, 95p/63k
Nick Heath: 2-3, R, 2b, 2 BB

Omaha Storm Chasers 3, Oklahoma City Dodgers 1

One start after taking a perfect game into the sixth, Arnaldo Hernandez was about as efficient as one could be during a complete game victory. The right-hander pounded the strikezone with a ridiculous 80 strikes on 97 pitches over nine innings while working around five hits with six strikeouts. The Chasers offense backed him with 10 hits and three runs to earn the win including the eighth home run of the season by Jack Lopez to push the lead to 3-1 in the sixth inning.

Jack Lopez: 1-3, HR, BB
Frank Schwindel: 2-3, 2b, RBI, BB
Billy Burns: 3-4, R, RBI

Idaho Falls Chukars 6, Billings Mustangs 0

Another double-digit strikeout performance for Kris Bubic as the former Stanford lefty put away 10 hitters for the second time in three starts for Idaho Falls. Working five scoreless innings, Bubic allowed just two singles and a walk while tossing 50 strikes on 80 pitches. The Chukars broke a scoreless tie in the sixth with a pair of doubles by Reed Rohlman and Jose Caraballo to lead to two runs. An RBI single by Nathan Eaton an inning later would tack on another to make it 3-0 Idaho Falls. The Chukars added three more runs in the ninth with a hit by pitch and four singles. Those runs were plenty for Tyler Gray as the fellow 2018 draftee tossed the final four innings with just one hit allowed, striking out six to earn the save.

Kris Bubic: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 10 K, 2-2 GO-FO, 80p/50k
Tyler Gray: 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, 1-3 GO-FO, 57p/33k
Jose Caraballo: 2-5, R, 2b, 2 RBI

Wednesday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Jecksson Flores 4-5 2R, 3b, 2 RBI, SB (21)

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Jon Dziedzic 6 IP 5 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 2 K 6-9 GO-FO 94p/54k

Asheville Tourists 6 Lexington Legends 3

Starting pitcher Charlie Neuweiler had his first rough outing as a member of the Lexington pitching staff as the right-hander got knocked for a pair of home runs in the third inning. After two scoreless innings, Neuweiler ran into some trouble with a walk, a steal, and an RBI single to put Asheville up 1-0. A second walk came in front of a three-run home run that quickly put him down 4-0. A second blast that went over 420 feet came off the bat of the next hitter and Neuweiler’s night was over after finishing off the inning. The Legends countered with a two-run home run by Cristian Perez but missed other opportunities to be limited to three runs in the loss.

Charlie Neuweiler: 3 IP 4 H 5 R 5 ER 2 BB 4 K 3-2 GO-FO 73p/44k
Janser Lara: 3 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 5 K 1-3 GO-FO 58p/34k
Kyle Isbel: 2-4 R SB (7)

Wilmington Blue Rocks 6 Salem Red Sox 5

The Rocks lineup went to work Thursday night, connecting on 12 hits while walking three times. The offense was needed after starter Dan Tillo struggled with walks again with five free passes and six hits allowed to give up five runs (4 ER) in five innings. Trailing 4-2 in the fifth, Meibrys Viloria doubled in a pair of runs to tie the game up. An inning later they trailed again but countered with an Angelo Castellano single to bring in Rudy Martin after his triple. A seventh-inning RBI single by Travis Jones to bring home Emmanuel Rivera gave the Rocks a lead and the bullpen did the rest, tossing the final three innings scoreless to secure the win.

Meibrys Viloria: 2-5 2b, 2 RBI
Rudy Martin: 2-4 2R, 3b, SB (21)
Travis Jones: 2-4 RBI, SB (13)

Midland RockHounds 9 NW Arkansas Naturals 5

Newly acquired Jon Perrin made his first start in the Royals organization Thursday night a couple days after the trade that brought him over. Making just his second start this season, Perrin worked five innings, giving up two runs on three hits and a pair of walks while striking out four while working 70 pitches. As usual, Jecksson Flores was pacing the Naturals offense scoring a pair and driving in two more to help keep the game even after Cristian Castillo gave up two runs. Tied 4-4, the game went into extra innings where the Naturals kept Yunior Marte on the mound his two scoreless innings but the right-hander walked a hitter prior to giving up a groundball single to load the bases. Manager Mike Rojas turned to Franco Terrero, a move that didn’t go well with the right-hander quickly giving up a double that unloaded the bases with a Terrero throwing error. One hitter later Terrero gave up his eleventh home run of the season to push the deficit to five runs at 9-4 which would be too large to overcome.

Erick Mejia: 2-4 2R, SB (31)
Samir Duenez: 1-4 2 RBI
Jon Perrin: 5 IP 3 H 2 R 2 ER 2 BB 4 K 6-4 GO-FO 70p/46k

Omaha Storm Chasers 9 Round Rock Express

The Chasers Jon Dziedzic spun six scoreless innings while getting plenty of offensive backing in the first game of their road series with Round Rock. Working around five singles and a walk, Dziedzic completed his fifth consecutive quality start. The Chasers offense took advantage of former Orioles pitcher Chris Tillman, scoring two runs on him in just two and one-third innings before scoring three more off Austin Bibens-Dirks who made his major league debut last season. The Chasers tacked on three more late to take a commanding 8-0 lead as all nine hitters in the lineup reached base at least once while pounding out 15 hits and earning seven walks

Donnie Dewees: 4-5 2R, RBI, SB
Frank Schwindel: 1-4 R, BB – 16 game hitting streak
Jack Lopez: 2-4 2b, 4 RBI

Pulaski Yankees 3 Burlington Royals 1

Burlington right-hander Malcolm Van Buren can reach the mid to upper 90s with his fastball but is still learning what he can do with it and this night proved that. The opening hitter of the night took a 2-0 pitch and deposited it over the wall, but from there Van Buren held his own, striking out five over four innings with just another hit allowed against three walks. Reliever Kelvin Gonzalez couldn’t match Van Buren’s effort, giving up two runs (1 ER) in his four innings while the Burlington offense scored just one run on three hits in the loss.

Malcolm Van Buren: 4 IP 2 H 1 R 1 ER 3 BB 5 K 4-0 GO-FO 75p/41k
Juan Carlos Negret: 1-3 BB
Jose Marquez: 1-4 R, 2 SB, K

Great Falls Voyagers 11 Idaho Falls Chukars 7

The Chukars took a big early lead only to see the pitching staff give it up in the middle innings. The Chukars took advantage of former Royals lefty Matt Portland, scoring six runs off him in the first four innings to take a 6-1 lead. Things looked great until the fifth when starter Kris Bubic couldn’t escape the inning, loading the bases with a pair of singles and a defensive error. After the manager turned to Tyler Gray to try to escape the damage things went awry after the ’18 draft pick got a couple of outs when a second defensive error kept the inning alive. From that point, the next three hitters would reach base to lead to a seven-run lead and an Idaho Falls deficit. The White Sox affiliate would continue to pad their lead with three runs over the next two innings while Idaho Falls could only answer with a Chase Vallot home run in the loss.

Kris Bubic: 4 IP 3 H 5 R 2 ER 3 BB 6 K 4-2 GO-FO 85p/50k
Angel Medina: 2-3 2R, HR, 2 RBI, BB
Tyler James: 3-5 R, 2 SB (33)

Thursday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Kyle Kasser 6-6, 4R, 3 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Marcelo Martinez 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 12 K, 1-1 GO-FO, 75p/53k PO

Transaction: Jorge Lopez added to Omaha Storm Chasers roster.

Hagerstown Suns 2, Lexington Legends 1

The umpire in this Low-A game had places to be and things to do, creating a strikezone that had hitters questioning the results for most of the game. The Lexington hitters were especially flummoxed with Hagerstown starter Andrew Lee striking out a career-high 12 Legends batters including six on called strikes in just six innings. Lexington starter Carlos Hernandez took advantage of the strikezone as well, striking out six in his seven innings while working incredibly efficiently with 55 strikes on his 74 pitches thrown. The game was 0-0 into the seventh when the Legends loaded the bases off reliever Jorge Pantoja, scoring a run on a sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead. That lead didn’t last long, as Hernandez got touched for a solo home run by Jake Scudder to leadoff the Hagerstown seventh inning. From there the bullpens held the two teams scoreless into extra innings. In the tenth, free baserunner Marten Gasparini got caught stealing third to help squash any kind of scoring effort prior to a Legends error allowing Hagerstown to walk the game off in their half.

Outfielder Seuly Matias tweaked his lower back on a swing in his second plate appearance in this game, leaving during the at-bat. No news as to the extent of the injury just yet.

Seuly Matias: 0-1, K
Nick Pratto: 0-4, 2K
Carlos Hernandez: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, 5-6 GO-FO, 74p/55k

Wilmington Blue Rocks 2, Buies Creek Astros 1

The Rocks and Astros, much like in a couple of their games in their previous series, had a pitching duel going on Wednesday. The Rocks were held hitless for 7.2 innings until Vance Vizcaino broke up the no-hitter with an infield single. The lack of hits left the Rocks down 1-0 after Ofreidy Gomez gave up a leadoff home run to Corey Julks before finding a groove that got him through seven innings with just that run allowed. Trailing 1-0, the Rocks finally got things going in their final turn at-bat of the night, getting a one-out walk by Rudy Martin and a single by D.J. Burt to threaten. After a pair of stolen bases by Martin and Burt, the Rocks manager gave Gabriel Cancel a green light with a 3-0 count and he came through with an infield single to even the game at 1-1. One hitter later, the Rocks would gain their first lead after Emmanuel Rivera drove in Burt with a sac fly. That lead would be plenty for Tyler Zuber with the right-hander working a perfect final inning to earn the save.

Ofreidy Gomez: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 8-3 GO-FO, 96p/58k
Rudy Martin: 0-3, R, BB, SB (19)
D.J. Burt: 1-4, R, 2K, SB (27)

Arkansas Travelers 13, NW Arkansas Naturals 7

The Naturals built a 6-1 lead on Wednesday only to watch the bullpen get knocked around and turn the game lopsided the other way. Starter Jace Vines gave a quality start with three runs allowed in his six innings, leaving with a 7-3 lead for Cristian Castillo. That lefty reliever couldn’t get much done at all, allowing five runs in two-thirds of an inning. The work on the Naturals bullpen continued an inning later with five runs off the combination of Franco Terrero and Grant Gavin, turning a once 7-3 lead into a 13-7 deficit and an eventual Naturals loss.

Jace Vines: 6 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 6-4 GO-FO, 95p/60k
Samir Duenez: 3-3, 2R, RBI, 2 SB
Kort Peterson: 2-3, 2b, HR, 3 RBI, BB

Omaha Storm Chasers 7, Las Vegas 51s 4

The Chasers got their first look at pitcher Jorge Lopez after the Milwaukee Brewers trade Wednesday night. The right-hander made his first start after working from the bullpen for the Sky Sox and Brewers the entire season. After a pair of shutout innings, Lopez gave up a couple of home runs in the third inning, then left after a single in the fourth that came around on his reliever replacement. The Chasers had jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first on a pair of doubles by Cam Gallagher and Elier Hernandez. It was a Hernandez triple that put the Chasers up 5-4 prior to a couple more insurance runs late with Jon Dziedzic tossing the final four innings to secure the win.

Nicky Lopez: 1-5, R
Elier Hernandez: 2-3, 2b, 3b, 2 RBI, BB
Cam Gallagher: 2-4, 2 R, 2b, RBI

Burlington Royals 3, Pulaski Yankees 0

Starter Marcelo Martinez tossed an absolute gem before the rains came and ended he and his teammates’ night early. The Mexican left-hander dominated the Yankees lineup for six innings, allowing just a fourth-inning infield single. From the first inning on, he dominated the lineup with 12 strikeouts including the final five he faced on the night. Working efficiently in those six innings, Martinez had just one three-ball count while earning 23 swinging strikes. The offense backed the young pitcher with a run in the third inning on a Juan Carlos Negret single before scoring a pair in the fifth on a Matt Morales triple and a wild pitch. With Martinez dominating, that was more than enough to take the victory when the rains washed the game away after the sixth inning.

Juan Carlos Negret: 1-3, RBI, SB (2)
Matt Morales: 1-3, R, 3b, RBI
Montae Bradshaw: 1-2, R, SB (2)

Idaho Falls Chukars 20, Orem Owlz 5

The Chukars offense combined with first round pick Kris Bubic to build a lead that was insurmountable in this one. From a six-run second inning until the 20th run crossed in the ninth inning, the Chukars just kept on scoring while connecting on 23 hits. Infielder Kyle Kasser led the offensive barrage with six singles, three runs scored and four driven in. For Bubic, that was plenty of runs on the board as the lefty struck out 10 hitters along the way while giving up just a home run after an infield error in the second inning. The lefty overpowered the Orem lineup during his five innings, getting 17 swinging strikes on the night before turning things over to the bullpen. 2018 draftee Tyler Gray finished the final four innings with three runs scored (2 ER) with five hits and a walk allowed.

Kris Bubic: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 K, 3-3 GO-FO, 70p/48k
Reed Rohlman: 2-4, 3 R, 2-2b, RBI, BB
Tyler James: 2-7, 2 R, HR, 3 RBI

Wednesday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Brewer Hicklen 2-4 2R, HR, 2 RBI, BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day Kris Bubic 4 IP 2 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 5 K 5-2 GO-FO 57p/35k

Transactions – RHP Jackson Kowar assigned to Lexington, RHP Andres Sotillet promoted to Wilmington

Augusta GreenJackets 7 Lexington Legends 4

Royals draftee Jackson Kowar made his debut for Lexington on Thursday night after a three weeks hiatus. Perhaps that layoff lent to some rustiness on Kowar’s part as the right-hander gave up three singles and walked two hitters before recording his first out, allowing three runs on 27 pitches. Lefty Garrett Davila struck out nine hitters in relief of Kowar but ran into trouble in the fifth inning, giving up all five of his hits allowed including a pair of home runs during a four-run frame. Those seven runs would be enough to take the victory over Lexington despite a two-run home run by Brewer Hicklen.

MJ Melendez: 2-3 R, 2b, RBI, 2BB
Nick Pratto: 2-4 BB
Jackson Kowar: 0.1 IP 3 H 3 R 3 ER 2 BB 1 K 27p/15k

Wilmington Blue Rocks 3 Frederick Keys 2

Centerfielder Blake Perkins led the way again for the Rocks on Thursday as he played a role in all three runs which is all the combined pitching effort would need. A leadoff double for Perkins in the first inning allowed Wilmington to take a quick 1-0 lead after Gabe Cancel brought him home with a sacrifice fly. An inning later the bases were loaded for Perkins when he grounded a ball through the right side to bring home Rudy Martin and Oliver Nunez to push the advantage to 3-0. Starting pitcher Jace Vines worked just three innings, allowing one run before giving way to Cristian Castillo who also allowed a run in three innings. With no margin left to give, lefty Josh Mitchell and Julio Pinto worked the final three innings scoreless to secure the Wilmington win.

Blake Perkins: 2-4 R, 2b, 2 RBI
Gabe Cancel: 1-3 RBI
Travis Jones: 2-4 CS

Tulsa Drillers 14 NW Arkansas Naturals 3

Another rough start for Emilio Ogando as the lefty gave up nine hits, walked five while allowing nine runs in just three innings. The Drillers hit three home runs off Ogando in those three innings, running his total to 20 on the season. The relief corps didn’t do a whole lot better with the next three on the hill all allowing at least one run each while Dodgers prospect Mitchell White limited the Naturals to just a single tally in the lopsided loss. One of the Dodgers top prospects, Keibert Ruiz had a big night at the plate going 3-4 with a pair of home runs and a double.

Khalil Lee: 1-5 2b, K
Kelvin Gutierrez: 3-4 2R
Jecksson Flores: 2-4 2b, RBI, BB, 2K

Memphis Redbirds 6 Omaha Storm Chasers 3

Starter Zach Lovvorn struggled in his five innings, giving up nine hits including a pair of home runs during his six-run outing. The Chasers offense countered with a three-run home run in the sixth by Cam Gallagher to cut the lead in half. They could get no closer though after two Memphis relievers struckout eight hitters over the final three and two-thirds innings.

Nicky Lopez: 3-4 3b
Ryan O’Hearn: 2-4 R
Cam Gallagher: 2-4 HR, 3 RBI

Danville Braves 8 Burlington Royals 1

Lefty Marcelo Martinez had his roughest start of the season, allowing nine hits and three runs in six-plus innings. After a leadoff triple in the first inning led to a run against Martinez he twirled five scoreless innings while striking out five hitters. With the game tied 1-1 the Burlington starter allowed a leadoff double before giving up a two-run home run to fall behind 3-1. Reliever Ismael Maldonado gave up four runs in relief and the Royals offense collected just five hits in the loss.

Marcelo Martinez: 6 IP 9 H 3 R 3 ER 0 BB 5 K 5-3 GO-FO 81p/64k
Eric Cole: 0-4
Juan Carlos Negret: 1-4 R, 2b

Idaho Falls Chukars 6 Helena Brewers 4 

Lefty Kris Bubic was impressive in his second start for the Chukars, allowing just one run over four innings while striking out five. The lefty gave up a leadoff single that the Brewers worked around to score in the first inning on Bubic’s wild pitch. The league’s top hitting offense took charge early, scoring five runs from the 2nd through the 4th innings with extra-base hits by Kyle Kasser and Jose Caraballo factoring in while Nick Eaton connected on a solo home run. Right-hander Tyler Gray couldn’t quite match Bubic’s effort, giving up a three run (1 ER) seventh that allowed the Brewers to draw within a run but Kyle Kasser connected on an RBI double and Gray got five outs prior to Daniel Duarte getting the final strikeout to secure the win. The win secured at least a split of the series for the Chukars while keeping them one game out of first place.

Thursday Boxscores

Friday Probables
Omaha – Jake Kalish 5-5 4.13 ERA 1.33 WHIP
NW Arkansas – Scott Blewett 4-5 5.48 ERA 1.59 WHIP
Wilmington – Ofreidy Gomez 2-8 3.87 ERA 1.55 WHIP
Lexington – TBD
Burlington – Yerelmy Garcia 1-1 5.25 ERA 1.42 WHIP
Idaho Falls – Connor Mayes 3-1 5.21 ERA 1.74 WHIP

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Angel Medina 2-3 4R, HR, 3b, 3 RBI, 2 BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Daniel Lynch 5 IP 3H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 5 K 3-4 GO-FO 51p/40k

Wilmington Blue Rocks 7 Lynchburg Hillcats 6

Rocks starter Daniel Tillo struggled with his control once again as he walked five hitters in five innings and hit one more during his five-inning start. Two of those free passes helped toward a three-run first inning in which Tillo gave up a two-run triple and an RBI double before settling some. In the fourth, he allowed his tenth home run of the season to put the Rocks down 4-1. In the fifth inning, Wilmington countered with an RBI double by Blake Perkins and Gabe Cancel’s single that scored him. The Rocks trailed 6-3 into the ninth but they countered with four runs getting rbi hits from Vance Vizcaino and Blake Perkins to score two before Gabe Cancel doubled in two more to take a 7-6 lead. Reliever Julio Pinto loaded the bases with no outs with two hits and a walk allowed but his replacement Tyler Zuber entered and saved the game for the Rocks, getting a forceout at the plate, a strikeout and a flyout to right to end it in winning fashion.

Blake Perkins: 2-4 2R, 2b, 3b, 2 RBI
Dan Tillo: 5 IP 4 H 4 R 4 ER 5 BB 4 K HBP 7-3 GO-FO 88p/53k
Gabe Cancel: 3-5 2-2b, 3 RBI

Game 1 San Antonio Mission 4 NW Arkansas Naturals 3 F/8
Game 2 San Antonio Mission 4 NW Arkansas Naturals 3

Starter Arnaldo Hernandez struggled with his control, walking four while allowing seven hits in six innings. Five of those hits were singles that led to three runs against him to put NW Arkansas down 3-0. The Naturals countered with a run scoring single by Khalil Lee and a two-run home run by Alex Liddi to tie things up, but the Naturals couldn’t score in extras and reliever Andres Machado walked in a run for a Padres affiliate win.

The second game was much like the first except the Naturals built a 3-1 lead through eight innings only to watch struggling relievers Franco Terrero and Bryan Brickhouse give it away in the last two innings. The young Terrero has given up five runs in his last two outings after four scoreless while Brickhouse has yet to collect himself at the Double-A level with seven runs given up in two and one-third.

Khalil Lee: 2-6 2 RBI, 2 BB, SB
Anderson Miller: 2-7 2 R, 2b
Jecksson Flores: 2-7, BB, SB

Omaha Storm Chasers 3 Memphis Redbirds 0

The Chasers needed Zach Lovvorn for a start to replace Trevor Oaks after his promotion. The right-hander worked around four hits and three walks with just one strikeout over six scoreless innings. Outfielder Paulo Orlando hit a two-run home run and scored his second run after doubling to help towards the Chasers three runs. Relievers Josh Staumont and Richard Lovelady tossed the final three scoreless in between a rain delay to earn the win.

Richard Lovelady: 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 BB 0 K 2-0 GO-FO 13/8 p/k
Paulo Orlando: 2-4 2R, 2b, HR, 2 RBI
Cam Gallagher: 1-4 RBI

Suspended Gm Princeton Rays 11 Burlington Royals 10 F/11
Princeton Rays 11 Burlington Royals 9 F/10

The Rays scored three runs in the 11th inning of the suspended game after tying things up in the ninth to take a commanding lead. The Royals got within a run with a Jose Marquez RBI single with one out single but they failed to tie the game with a strikeout by Juan Carlos Negret and a Freddy Fermin groundout.

In the regularly scheduled game, Daniel Lynch tossed five scoreless with just three singles with five strikeouts to position himself for his first win. The offense capably backed Lynch with a pair of home runs by Angel Medina and Jose Marquez in the first two innings to put four runs on the board. The Royals added a pair of runs in the third inning and another in the fifth to build a 7-0 lead. The bullpen couldn’t hold that lead, giving up eight runs over the final three innings to even the game at 8-8. In extras, the bullpen continued their struggles, giving up three runs in the tenth to lead to another Burlington loss.

Jose Marquez: 2-5 HR, 2 RBI

Orem Owlz 7 Idaho Falls Chukars 0

Newcomer Kris Bubic gave up three runs (2 ER) in his first appearance in the Royals org. The lefty gave up three hits and walked a pair while the defense struggled behind him. His replacement Tyler Gray gave up four runs in two and one-third innings while the Chukars offense mustered just six hits in the shutout.

Kyle Isbel: 0-4
Kris Bubic: 2.2 IP 3 H 3 R 2 ER 2 BB 1 K 6-1 GO-FO 47p/28
Reed Rohlman: 2-3 BB

Thursday Boxscores

Friday Probables
Omaha – TBD
NW Arkansas – Emilio Ogando 4-5 6.71 ERA 2.19 WHIP
Wilmington – Jace Vines 2-8 5.25 ERA 1.62 WHIP
Lexington – Charlie Neuweiler 0-1 4.20 ERA 1.40 WHIP
Burlington – Marcelo Martinez 0-2 1.64 ERA 0.73 WHIP
Idaho Falls – Connor Mayes 2-1 6.08 ERA 1.73 WHIP

Take a look at the top 10 rounds for the Royals in the Dayton Moore era and you’ll actually see a fair amount of college guys taken. It was certainly more than I expected coming in.

I don’t know if this tells us anything, but, like I said, it was not what I was expecting to see given all the talk about the Royals and Dayton Moore drafting high school players so often. Clearly early in his tenure they were high school heavy early, but it’s sort of evened out over the past few years before swinging drastically to the college side this year. I think what makes this year’s draft so interesting is that it went against basically anything anybody was saying heading into it. And obviously mock drafts aren’t a science, especially once you get beyond the first few picks where things are more defined, but nobody saw this coming.

I don’t profess to be a draft expert like Clint Scoles, who does an amazing job covering that for us, but I do have some takeaways from the first two days of the draft and what it might mean for this organization. I believe it’s pretty clear the mindset in the organization was to get pitching, pitching, more pitching and then even more pitching. And I understand why the team might have some interest in that tactic. As it stands right now, the best starting pitching prospect in the system is probably Carlos Hernandez, a pitcher very few have even heard of. He has 86.1 career minor league innings and is at least two or three years away and that’s if everything works perfectly.

After him, Daniel Tillo is likely the best bet to be a quality starter among Royals prospects and while I like Tillo, that’s a good sign it’s a very thin system when it comes to pitching. So the Royals drafted nine pitchers, and nine college pitchers at that. No, not all of them will end up in the starting rotation, but I would guess the vast majority will at least begin their big league career starting games. I expected them to go for plenty of pitching, but to lean toward upside plays. High school arms like Ethan Hankins, Mason Denaburg or Shane McClanahan were names I thought were decent bets to be called by the Royals. They most definitely were not.

Of the picks on day one, the only one I really don’t like much in a vacuum is Daniel Lynch. I can’t pretend to know how things are going to turn out, but I’m just not enamored with what he brings to the table. The rest I understood. I’m not sold on the strategy as I’d have much rather they gone with a higher upside play to Lynch (like Hankins) at the 34^th pick, but I do like what they did there. Brady Singer at the top of the draft seems like a pretty safe bet (as safe as pitchers can be) to be a big leaguer. I’m not sure he’s a top of the rotation guy, but if he’s a three, you’d certainly take that at 18. Jackson Kowar is intriguing to me. He’s not a finished product, but he’s the guy I think could be the ace of the group if one does come out of it.

But honestly, you’re better off leaving the analysis of the actual players to Clint and those who follow much closer than I do. What I found intriguing is what this seems to represent for the organization. For one, I think it’s clear they wanted to add pitching to a very pitching poor organization. I think that’s a big reason why they went the way they did, but it also appears that they went with college pitching for a reason, for better or for worse.

I believe the Royals look at their lower levels (and some of the big league roster probably) and see the makings of a big league starting nine. With M.J. Melendez, Nick Pratto, Nicky Lopez, Adalberto Mondesi, Michael Gigliotti, Khalil Lee, Seuly Matias, Jorge Soler, Jorge Bonifacio, Hunter Dozier and Salvador Perez  (and there are certainly others), I think the Royals see a 2021 line-up featuring many of those names. Who’s going to pitch on that team though? If what the Royals have done on the first two days works out, we have the answer. Some combination of Singer, Kowar, Bubic, Lynch, Bowlan and others are the answers to join Jakob Junis and maybe a surprise or two to make up the rotation of the next good Royals team.

That’s if it all works out. My concern here is that the Royals are putting all their eggs in the basket of the current prospect group. As much as I like these guys, there just aren’t enough sure things for me to really be a fan of that strategy. That worries me. I can’t pretend to know for sure that the future would have been brighter had the Royals selected Nolan Gorman, Hankins and Griffin Roberts on day one and made a splash to try to keep Cole Wilcox or Kumar Rocker from going to college. I do think the upside of those picks would have been higher, so the potential reward would have been as well.

What I know is I understand why the Royals have gone in the direction they have, and I think it has a chance to work. If it does and they get two or three starting pitchers and a couple bullpen pieces from this group, they’ll be geniuses. If they end up with a fringe big leaguer or two out of this, well, it’s not going to look good in the end. It’s an interesting strategy. Now we sit back and wait to see what they do on day three and if it all works.

With their first two picks, Lonnie Goldberg and company selected Florida Gators right-handers Brady Singer and Jackson Kowar. Those two were key cogs in the Gators run through the College World Series and national championship last season. Despite being college arms, both pitchers still exhibit upside. Currently, Singer is the better and more consistent pitcher with better control and command while having two pitches he can turn to every time out. Kowar might actually have the higher ceiling with three pitches that all flash plus in his fastball, curve, and changeup. Prior to the draft, I said the Royals need to examine the psychological element of the picks they were making; in these two pitchers I believe they have more than done that, adding a pair of highly motivated and ultra-competitive pitchers.

Next to the two Gators, the two pitchers the Royals took at the 34th and 40th slots share similarities in that they both pitched quite well in the Cape Cod League last summer. The Cape is the premier summer league for college players and the performances of Kris Bubic and Daniel Lynch truly stood out, with Bubic being named the League’s most outstanding pitcher. While Bubic maintained a level he had already put on the field at Stanford, Lynch established a new benchmark in the Cape and then took that performance over to the Virginia college season. Both lefties work on pitchability with Lynch hanging his hat on his four-pitch mix and Bubic with three pitches topped by an excellent changeup. In addition to those two, the Royals added a Memphis big-bodied right-hander that works 91-97 mph in Jon Bowlan. At his best Bowlan can dominate with his fastball-slider, but he also exhibits outstanding control with just 18 walks in 85 innings against 11 K per inning. It’s a two-pitch mix mostly that might ultimately send him to the bullpen, but the control is good enough that you let him go out and try to refine that changeup in an attempt to land as an innings-eating pitcher.

This strategy was a shocker no doubt as we thought at the 18th spot the Royals would likely be looking at high-risk high ceiling prep players and there were a couple on the board in Nolan Gorman and Brice Turang. Instead, the Royals looked at the board, looked at their weaknesses and went a route that they haven’t previously, drafting five college arms, two with good ceilings and two more with high floors in an attempt to load up a position that is nearly devoid of talent. Given their lack of pitching development in the past, it could be considered a risky play or it can be considered a safe play. Whichever side you land on, it was a surprising move indeed by Lonnie Goldberg and Dayton Moore to push all their chips in on five college arms.