• Since there’s so little going on and it’s just so cold, I thought I’d try to warm myself up by finding some optimism with Alex Gordon. He’s under contract for two more years at a truckload of money, so I was hoping to find something…anything. I really couldn’t. You could look at his .261 BABIP compared to his career of .312 and think he’s due for a rebound, but that’s ignoring the underlying factors. He doesn’t have much speed anymore and he doesn’t hit the ball especially hard. His average exit velocity of 85.8 MPH ranked 285th out of 410 players who saw at least 500 pitches in 2017. Exit velocity isn’t everything, but that’s pretty low, especially when he is pulling the ball on the ground way more than any hitter should. If you want to argue that he can’t really be worse, I’d say that Buddy Bell might have some words, but I guess that’s something. And I do expect him to be working diligently this offseason because that’s the only way Gordon knows how. I’ve been saying for awhile that I would bet on him coming to camp in February with a brand new approach. I’m skeptical it’ll work because the numbers just aren’t in his favor, but maybe he’ll unlock something like he did in 2011 when he became the star that deserved the contract he signed.
• There’s been a lot of talk in the last week or so about Mike Moustakas having to take a one-year deal given the way his market has completely cratered, which has led people to think the Royals might be in play for him. And I get it, but I think there’s one thing that a lot of people aren’t considering. If a player is taking a one year deal, they’re doing it to establish some value to get back on the market and make more money the next season. It’ll always be very difficult for the Royals to sign a hitter in that position if that hitter is looking to hit home runs to build his value. It’s just not easy to hit home runs in Kauffman Stadium, and furthermore, there are a couple other pitcher’s parks in the division which means that if you play for the Royals, you’re likely spending about 110-115 of your games in pitcher’s parks. A guy like Moustakas might consider it due to comfort level, but he’d be far better off going to Yankee Stadium for a year and pulling 315 foot fly balls for home runs all season long. On the flip side, I wonder if maybe a guy like Jason Vargas, who has had very little conversation about him, might be more willing to come back to Kansas City on a one-year deal because of the same reasons it doesn’t make much sense for Moustakas. I’m not saying that’s what I’d want (I don’t), but the Royals really love him and he really loves Kansas City. In spite of the fact that there are internal options for the rotation, the Royals might like the idea of gaining some additional depth for the rotation to help give the young guys a little more cushion and to protect themselves against Nate Karns, who is a question mark at this point.
• As I look at the free agent market developing so slowly, I really have to wonder if the Royals don’t end up making some small splashes right before spring like they did last year with Brandon Moss, Jason Hammel and Travis Wood. Obviously a couple of those signings were due to circumstance, but there appear to be some quality free agents left out in the cold and will likely sign for a small deal as it gets closer to spring training. One in particular that I can’t stop thinking about as a possibility is Brandon Phillips to play second base. I’ve mentioned the idea of Whit Merrifield playing center field next season, but maybe they’d also shift him over to third base to make room for Phillips. If Raul Mondesi is playing shortstop next year, I still think the Royals would have interest in pairing him with a veteran who is good defensively and Phillips fits that bill. Plus, they’ve been rumored to have interest in him for years, so it would make some sense. Merrifield could also be dealt, but we haven’t heard much on that front in a little while, so it seems like the talks there have been driven down. I just feel like they’ll be tempted to do something when the market comes back to them on a lot of players, and Phillips is one I think would make a lot of sense to them. I’m not sure I’d agree completely, but there are worse things than pairing their young shortstop with a good double play partner.
• And lastly, I just want to wish everyone a very happy new year. It’s been a pleasure writing for all of you. I’ve been doing this now on different websites for almost a decade (which is crazy to think about) and I still love it and I hope you all still love reading it…or at least tolerate it. Here’s to a great 2018!

• If the Royals do go into 2018 with expectations to compete, the bullpen is going to need to be a major focus for them, which is going to be a difficult task given what they already have committed to the payroll for next season. I think we all feel good about Scott Alexander in the bullpen next year and for all the disappointment of the Padres trade, Ryan Buchter has actually been pretty good for the Royals as well. Kelvin Herrera looked as good as he’s looked all year on Tuesday night, and a bounceback season from him would be helpful. Then you add in Joakim Soria’s solid season (I know there will be arguments on that given the blown saves, but he’s been better than you probably realize) and that’s not a terrible base to work with. Still, I think they need at least one more impact arm. Mike Minor would be perfect if money was no object, but I fear he’ll be looking for a deal like Brett Cecil got last season from the Cardinals and the Royals really don’t need to be spending $30 million plus on a reliever. The odds are that if they don’t spend big, which as a reminder, they shouldn’t, they’ll need to find a surprise either in the minor league system or a free agent. Whatever it is they do, the bullpen will need to be addressed.
• After the free agents leave, assuming they mostly do, this is going to be an organization filled with role players at the top. Having role players is not a bad thing at all. Great teams need role players, but they need stars as well. As much fun as it’s been to watch Whit Merrifield this year, if he’s your best player, you’re probably a bad team. If he’s a supporting player to your other three best, you have a chance to be pretty good. Right now, looking at the 2018 roster, there isn’t a star in the bunch, other than maybe Danny Duffy on the pitching staff, but even he hasn’t shown he can be a true star yet. The key for the Royals both next year and in the near future is Raul Mondesi, and I really wish he’d have gotten more at bats down the stretch. Hitting .305/.340/.539 in Triple-A with 41 extra base hits in just 357 plate appearances has made me hopeful again that he can be that top line player the Royals need so badly. He has looked much more comfortable in this stint in the big leagues, but he’s also played sparingly and had just eight at bats, so I don’t think that tells us much. I just know that if the Royals want to get back to the promised land relatively quickly, they need Mondesi to step up and soon. And realistically, they need someone else to step up as well. I see a few options, but I don’t have a ton of confidence in any of them. Hunter Dozier and Jorge Soler could be those guys if they take huge steps forward, but it might be a couple years while the guys in the lower levels progress through the system before we see someone else who could help support the role players.
• There is a bit of a problem with the Royals needing Mondesi and it’s that I’m terrified of what might happen with Alcides Escobar. Heading into action on Thursday night, he’d hit .333/.353/.512 in his last 56 games, spanning 171 plate appearances. That’s 54 hits with 20 extra base hits. The encouraging thing about it is that he’s only struck out in 10.5 percent of those plate appearances, so the extra contact will help a little bit, but he hasn’t exactly been tearing the cover off the ball with plenty of soft contact in that time. I have about the biggest worry I can that the Royals will look at this stretch and see Escobar as a player who just had a tough start to the season and will re-sign him to a one or two year deal. He was never truly as bad as he was during his horrifically slow start, but at the same time, he is not nearly as good as he’s been lately. If the Royals want Mondesi to develop into a star, he needs to be the shortstop. I have no doubt he could handle second or even center field as some have mentioned, but he needs to play shortstop, so the Royals better not re-sign Escobar or else I’ll write a strongly worded article about it, and ain’t nobody wanting that.
• This season hasn’t gone as we all hoped from the start, but there have been plenty of ups to go along with the downs that we would all like to forget. It’s been a season of wondering how the Royals would handle the core offensive players leaving, and now we’re about to find out. But through it all, you’ve been right there with us, so I just wanted to take this brief opportunity to thank you for going through this ride with us at BP Kansas City. We’ll do it again next year with a whole different cast and crew to get mad at for things out of our control.

Starting Pitcher – Foster Griffin

The Royals 2017 representative in the Future’s Game got off to an outstanding start in Wilmington and at NW Arkansas before slowing down toward the end of the season. Finishing the season with 28 starts and 161.1 innings, Griffin has set career-best in those categories as well as strikeouts while going 15-7 on the season.

Honorable Mention – Jace Vines with a 12-8 record and 3.45 ERA across three levels.

Cam Gallagher (Minda Haas Kuhlmann Photo)

Catcher – Cam Gallagher

As most of you saw when Gallagher arrived in Kansas City, the 24-year-old catcher brings a high defensive IQ to the field, controlling the running game (35% caught stealing) and calling a good game as well. The difference in his development this season is he has started to help some on the offensive side, hitting .292 this season for Omaha. Over his last 43 games, which includes time in Kansas City, Gallagher has hit .321/.351/.463 with five home runs.

With a player like Salvador Perez ahead of him, the impact that Gallagher can provide will always be limited. However, he’s shown himself that he’s able to take over the #2 catcher role whenever the front office should deem that necessary.

Honorable Mention – Nick Dini compiled a .381 OBP at Double-A NW Arkansas

First Base – Frank Schwindel

The right-handed power hitter has had a breakout season, combining to put up a .329/.349/.541 line between NW Arkansas and Omaha. The 2013 18th round pick slammed his way to a promotion to Omaha after just 34 games, hitting .350 in that time. Once in Triple-A Schwindel took a little time to adjust, hitting just .221/.236/.346 through his first 35 games in Omaha, then he caught fire. All he’s done since is hit .375 over his last 63 games for the Chasers with 15 home runs and 56 RBI. The 66 extra base hits from Schwindel led all Royals minor leaguers by a country mile and makes this selection as easy as any on this list.

Honorable Mention – Chris DeVito used a hot start in Lexington to connect on 21 home runs in his first full season.

Second Base – Gabriel Cancel

A seventh round selection in the same ’15 draft that brought the third baseman on this list, Cancel has shown off the results at the dish with the flash in the field that could make an impact in the middle of the diamond. Other than Schwindel, there aren’t many players who have been as strong in the second half of the season as Cancel, hitting .309/.367/.548 with nine home runs among his 26 extra base hits. He’s been a catalyst to the Legends second ranked offense in the league.

“Cancel has been a complete player showing the ability to drive the ball; make consistent contact. He turns a great double play and he continues to get better each year. We think he’s developing at a good rate given the age and the performance at the level he’s been at. He’ll continue to get better as he works on the fundamentals of the game as he continues to gain playing experience.” – Ronnie Richardson Royals Director of Minor League Operations

Honorable Mention – John Brontsema hit .323 in 52 games for Lexington before a promotion.

Shortstop – Raul Mondesi

We’ve been writing about Mondesi and his exciting tools for quite a few years, but this is the first season in which we’ve seen him employ those tools for an extended amount of time. True, these numbers – .305/.340/.539 and 41 extra base hits in 85 games – came after significant struggles in Kansas City, but they’re still positive nonetheless. Making a significant impact on offense and defense, Mondesi showed consistent play throughout Omaha’s season with his lowest OPS in a month being his .836 in June.

The numbers in Triple-A hopefully show that the Royals should be ready to pull the training wheels off and let Mondesi compete at the plate at the major league level, instead of asking him to bunt every fourth at bat.

Honorable Mention – Nicky Lopez was impactful at High-A before a promotion to Double-A.

Third Base – Emmanuel Rivera 

The lack of Top 100 players in the Royals system suggests to some that there isn’t talent here. That’s just not the case. Some may not know who Emmanuel Rivera is now, but if he keeps adding to his trophy case they will soon enough. It started the last offseason when Rivera went to winter ball and won the Puerto Rican Winter League Rookie of the Year, hitting well against much older players. Building on that winter, Rivera arrived in Lexington and became the team’s most consistent performer being named to the South Atlantic League’s Post Season All-Star squad as the league’s best third baseman while leading the league in hits and winning the league’s batting title on the finald day of the season.

Along with the impact at the dish, Rivera shows good range and a strong arm at third. The Royals believe he could be an above average defender at the position in the future.

“We’re excited to see the steps that he continues to take. He profiles at the position, showing the ability to make consistent hard contact.”  – Richardson

Honorable Mention – Oliver Nunez continued showing off his on base ability by reaching base at a .382 clip for Burlington.

Lee after a walk-off home run (Instagram @jetskigirl55)

Right Field – Khalil Lee

The power and speed that Lee has flashed in his first full season have been an exciting addition to the Royals farm system, making an impact in numerous categories. Starting Thursday’s game, Lee has 17 home runs, 20 steals, and a 12% walk rate while being one of the youngest players in the league at just 18 to start the season. On top of the impact on offense, Lee’s cannon for an arm has provided 14 outfield assists on defense leading all Royals players in the system in that statistic.

Are there things Khalil needs to improve? Yes. He’s not afraid to get into long counts and his swing-big-at-all-times approach has him leading the South Atlantic League in strikeouts by a good distance. He’s also been caught on the bases 18 times. Still, in a system that is lacking in impact talent, Lee’s name is definitely one on scouts and writers minds and an appearance in a Top 100 isn’t as far off as one might think.

Center Field – Michael Gigliotti 

Last season Nicky Lopez jumped on this team despite being having less time to establish himself as a draft pick that same year. This year Gigliotti followed the same path, getting on base at a high clip, playing superior defense at a premium position, and making an impact with speed on the bases while showing enough pop to keep pitchers honest. The .320/.420/.456 line in 64 games dwarfs all other possible center fielders that could’ve been chosen for this list.

Left Field – Jorge Soler 

Fans would’ve preferred seeing Soler’s numbers and playing time in Kansas City this season as opposed to Omaha, but it is what it is, and what Soler was for Omaha was an excellent power hitter. He led the Chasers with 24 home runs despite playing just 74 games. It wasn’t just all power for Soler either, as the outfielder reached base at a .388 clip which led all Royals minor leaguers this season thanks to 50 walks earned by the slugger.

Honorable Mention Outfield – Travis Jones has had an excellent introduction to pro ball with a .947 OPS between Arizona, Burlington and Idaho Falls.

Designated Hitter – Chase Vallot

Playing most of his season at 20 years of age, Vallot proved that he wasn’t above his head in the difficult hitting environment that is Frawley field. Continuing to exhibit his power potential, Vallot put up a solid .206 ISO in 89 games in the Carolina League. That number may not stand out as truly special, but no player that has made it to the majors in the GMDM era has put up a higher number in 200+ plate appearances for Wilmington.

The young catcher continued to show that he can get on base at a high clip (.380 OBP), while improving as a receiver and game caller, helping Wilmington to the third best team ERA in the league.

“Chase is still only 21 and every league he’s been in he’s been one of the younger players in those leagues. His overall development is something we are excited with moving forward.” – Richardson

Relief Pitcher Richard Lovelady 

Under the new draft rules, picks in the back half of the first 10 rounds typically go to players that teams feel they can sign at less cost in order to save money to provide to their earlier round selections. Teams don’t punt on those picks, but they don’t expect to see major impact early. That’s not the case for last year’s 10th round selection however, as Lovelady has zoomed through the system to make it to Double-A in his first full season. With a plus fastball that ranges from 93 to 98 mph, next to the makings of a plus slider with good control and command, Lovelady has blitzed High-A and Double-A hitters to the tune of 77 strikeouts in 66.2 innings while allowing just a 0.95 WHIP and 1.62 ERA this season.

“Our scouts did a tremendous job at evaluating him and identifying him as a player that could compete at a high level and move through the system quickly, and he’s done just that. We’re very excited about Richard and the strides he’s made in his first full season.” – Richardson

Featured Photo – Gabriel Cancel Lexington Legends (Photo via Clinton Riddle Minorleagueball.com)

Paulo Orlando
Terrance Gore
Raul Mondesi
Cam Gallagher
Andres Machado

The first four on this list should come as no surprise, but one name that was included and another that wasn’t may surprise some fans.

First, the one name that many of you may not have heard of is right-handed pitcher Andres Machado. A 24-year-old from Venezuela, Machado had Tommy John surgery in 2015 and has been rebuilding his way back since, pitching at Idaho Falls last season before starting this year in Wilmington. The total numbers don’t jump off the page in 2017 for Machado as the righty has a 4.54 ERA in 111 innings between Wilmington, NW Arkansas and Omaha. What those numbers may not tell you is what Machado has pitched like as of late as the righty has started to become more aggressive within the zone, striking out 65 in his last 62.2 innings while putting up a 3.45 ERA over twelve appearances. In that run, he’s struck out more than one per inning in seven of the eleven starts.

He does this with a fastball that can get as high as 98 mph and can sit in the 95-96 range while pairing that with a solid slider and a changeup that features some diving action. The control with Machado is better than average, but from what I’ve seen in my limited video looks, he is a pitcher who still needs to refine his command. That said, this is likely the most exciting young pitcher the Royals could call up at this time.

The noticeable omission of Jorge Soler from this list is pretty surprising to me as the Royals continue to struggle with the offense the fact that they don’t think Soler can help fix that may say quite a bit about what the organization views him as. After all, the Royals are coming off a 10-18 month in which their DH Brandon Moss put up a .173 batting average and their starting corner outfielders of Jorge Bonifacio (.638 OPS) and Alex Gordon (.418 OPS) didn’t perform up to snuff either. The outfielder was put on the inactive list yesterday so maybe that will answer the question, but until we know more, it will remain something to ponder that a player that continues to mash was given so few opportunities in Kansas City while others continue to struggle.

HR Roll Call: Jorge Soler (24), Michael Gigliotti (4), Jose Marquez (2)

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Michael Gigliotti 3-3, HR, 2 RBI, BB, SB (9)

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Jason Adam 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 1-0 GO-FO, 34p/21k

Omaha Storm Chasers 9, Nashville Sounds 3

The Chasers top six hitters all had two or more hits while Christian Binford navigated around five walks allowed in seven innings. This allowed Omaha to beat Nashville for the second night in a row.

After Nashville tied the game up at two apiece after four innings, Omaha answered with three straight innings of two or more runs, starting the scoring with another Jorge Soler home run, his 22nd of the season for Omaha. Those runs gave Binford enough cushion as he navigated around his walks by limiting the damage to just five hits in earning his sixth Triple-A win.

Boxscore Link

Raul Mondesi 2-4, R, 2b, 2 RBI, SB (21)
Jorge Soler 3-5, HR, 2 RBI
Cam Gallagher 2-5, R
Frank Schwindel 2-5, R, 2b, RBI

Tulsa Drillers 9, NW Arkansas Naturals 3

A starter that the Naturals had come to count on struggled on Tuesday as Emilio Ogando gave up seven runs in 3.1 innings, giving up a pair of home runs in the process. A couple of unearned runs in the sixth off Matt Tenuta pushed the deficit to 9-1 which ended up being far too big of a lead to overcome.

Boxscore Link

Nicky Lopez 2-3, R, 2 BB
Ryan O’Hearn 2-4, R, RBI

Augusta GreenJackets 7, Lexington Legends 6

The Legends built a 6-3 lead after four innings only to watch reliever Matt Wynne fail to shut the door in the ninth.

Lexington built their lead with a five-run fourth inning that featured RBI doubles by Meibrys Viloria and Marten Gasparini along with a sac fly by Angelo Castellano. Centerfielder Michael Gigliotti’s RBI single finished the scoring for the Legends as part of his 3 for 3 day that included a solo home run.

The game would stay 6-3 until the ninth when Wynne, pitching his third inning of work, failed to survive the frame when he gave up a two-run home run and allowed two others to reach. With both runners in scoring position and two outs, the reliever gave up a single through the right side that allowed both runners to score and eventually give the Legends another loss.

Boxscore Link

Michael Gigliotti 3-3, HR, 2 RBI, SB (6), CS (4)
Vance Vizcaino 2-4, Hit streak 15 games
Emmanuel Rivera 2-4, R

Ogden Raptors 9, Idaho Falls Raptors 7

The Chukars built a 7-4 lead after the top of the fifth inning, but starter Dillon Drabble couldn’t keep Ogden from coming back. The Raptors scored three runs off the starter in the bottom of the fifth to take a lead they wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the game.

Boxscore Link

Amalani Fukofuka 2-5, 2 R
Travis Jones 1-2, 2b, RBI, BB
Brewer Hicklen 2-5, R, 2b, RBI

Burlington Royals 13, Bristol Pirates 12

Each team in this game had an inning where they scored six runs and an inning with five but it was the Royals’ two innings with one run that made the difference. The Burlington squad had just one more baserunner than Bristol despite outhitting them 17 to 10, thanks to 11 free passes giving by the pitching staff.

Eight of the nine Royals hitters had a hit in the game, with only Seuly Matias going hitless. Outfielder Jose Marquez led the way with a 4 for 5 effort that included a double and a home run.

Boxscore Link

Seuly Matias 0-5, RBI
Jeison Guzman 1-4, 2 R, BB
Cal Jones 1-6, R, 2b, RBI

HR Roll Call: Ryan O’Hearn (21), Dennicher Carrasco (10)

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Ryan O’Hearn 2-3 HR, 3 RBI, BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Anthony Bender 6 IP 4 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 6 K 4-6 GO-FO 80p/54k

Oklahoma City Dodgers 9 Omaha Storm Chasers 1

The Chasers didn’t have much going for them on this night. The offensive squad went 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position while collecting just six hits as they dropped their third straight game.

Boxscore Link

Raul Mondesi 2-4 2b
Cam Gallagher 1-3 RBI
Ramon Torres 0-4 BB
Kevin Lenik 1 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K 26p/18k

NW Arkansas Naturals 4 Springfield Cardinals 2

Lefty Emilio Ogando gave the Double-A squad a fifth quality start in his last six opportunities at that level. The lefty worked seven innings while allowing just four hits, working the first four and two-thirds hitless until giving up a solo home run to Jacob Wilson. Despite that home run, Ogando continued his solid work to earn his ninth win for NW Arkansas and tenth overall.

The win was earned thanks to a four run third inning by the Naturals which featured an RBI single by Samir Duenez and a three run home run by Ryan O’Hearn.

Boxscore Link

Samir Duenez 1-4 R, RBI
Ryan O’Hearn 2-3 HR, 3 RBI, BB
Emilio Ogando 7 IP 4 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 4 K

Frederick Keys 5 Wilmington Blue Rocks 3

The Rocks lost a close game after Frederick plated a pair of runs in the seventh on a two out hit off reliever Justin Camp. The lefty uncorked a wild pitch earlier in the inning to push the two runners into scoring position prior to giving up the hit that scored two runs.

The Rocks pushed a runner into scoring position in each of the next two innings but failed to score in both to drop the game.

Boxscore Link

Brandon Downes 1-3 R, BB

Lexington Legends 4 Rome Braves 0

Legends pitching kept the Braves Low-A squad at bay for the second night in a row to win the three game series.

Starter Anthony Bender hit the zone with 54 strikes on 80 pitches while striking out six hitters against just four hits and a walk. The righty worked around runners in scoring position in three of the six innings, only being forced to get more than one out in just the sixth though.

Reliever Arnaldo Hernandez dominated after Bender with three perfect innings to earn the save while the offense plated four runs with Gabe Cancel scoring two and driving in another.

Boxscore Link

Khalil Lee 0-3 R, BB
Michael Gigliotti 1-4
Emmanuel Rivera 1-4
Gabe Cancel 2-4 2R, RBI
Anthony Bender 6 IP 4 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 6 K 4-6 GO-FO 80p/54k

Ogden Raptors 13 Idaho Falls Chukars 6

A rough night for Janser Lara as the hard throwing starter gave up three home runs in the first inning. Those three long balls were part of the thirteen hits allowed in a nine run performance (6 ER). The one small bright spot for Lara was that he didn’t walk a hitter for just the second time in 22 minor league appearances.

Boxscore Link

Matt Morales 2-4 R, 2b, BB
Travis Jones 1-5 R, RBI
Janser Lara 5.2 IP 13 H 9 R 6 ER 0 BB 5 K 3 HR HBP WP 7-2 GO-FO

Princeton Rays 3 Burlington Royals 2

A pair of errors led to two Rays runs and a defeat of the Royals. A second inning error by Reed Rohlman pushed a runner to third base which led to a second run in the frame despite a double play that could’ve helped starter Sal Biasi get out of the inning later.

After the Royals had tied the game the Rays got the eventual winning run in the eighth after Jeison Guzman made a throwing error on a possible force out.

A pair of walks in the ninth put the tying run in scoring position for Burlington but a Jose Marquez ground out ended the night.

Boxscore Link

Sebastian Rivera 2-4 R
Seuly Matias 0-4
Jeison Guzman 1-3 BB

DSL Dodgers1 9 DSL Royals 0

Starter Adriam Castillo didn’t have much control for the strikezone in a short outing, walking four hitters and allowing three hits in a seven run outing. The offense collected just three hits and three walks in getting shutout.

Boxscore Link

Adriam Castillo 2.1 IP 3 H 7 R 7 ER 4 BB 2 K
Kember Nacero 0-2 2BB

HR Roll Call: Frank Schwindel (22), Khalil Lee (17), Joe Dudek (9), Reed Rohlman (4), Cal Jones (3)

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Frank Schwindel 3-3 2R, HR, BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Travis Eckert 7 IP 2 H 1 R 1 ER 3 BB 3 K 7-6 GO-FO 86p/50k

Round Rock Express 10 Omaha Storm Chasers 3

Chasers pitchers didn’t have much luck limiting Round Rock’s offense on Monday night, allowing 18 hits and a pair of walks in a 10-3 romp. Starter Onelki Garcia got touched up early and often, allowing eight runs in the first three innings of this one. It was a run of singles with just two extra base hits allowed, but it was death by many cuts of the two Chasers pitchers.

On offense Frank Schwindel led the way with another big night on offense, going 3 for 3 while hitting his 22nd home run of the season.

Boxscore Link

Frank Schwindel 3-3 2R, HR, BB
Raul Mondesi 0-3
Ramon Torres 0-4
Hunter Dozier 1-3 R, 2b, BB

Lexington Legends 3 Asheville Tourists 2

Starter Travis Eckert had a solid night, allowing just a second inning run while allowing only two singles over seven innings. With that quality pitching, the Legends offense rewarded him with three runs. After Vance Vizcaino scored on a two out error in the fourth inning Joe Dudek homered in the fifth and Khalil Lee went deep in the sixth to give Lexington a 3-1 lead.

Reliever Collin Snider gave up a solo home run in the eighth, but finished off the game to secure his first save for Lexington.

Boxscore Link

Emmanuel Rivera 1-3 BB
Khalil Lee 1-4 HR
Gabe Cancel 0-4 K

Grand Junction Rockies 17 Idaho Falls Chukars 6

A rough night of pitching for the Chukars with all three pitchers giving up four runs or more in a blowout at the hands of the Rockies rookie squad.

The Chukars squad couldn’t match the power the opposition put up connecting on four doubles compared to the nine extra base hits by Grand Junction including three home runs.

Boxscore Link

Amalani Fukofuka 0-4 R, BB
Travis Jones 3-5 2R, 2b, RBI

Bluefield Blue Jays 12 Burlington Royals 4

The Blue Jays kept the Royals offense at bay thanks to 15 strikeouts spread among their four pitchers.

The Royals hit a pair of home runs, but had limited opportunities to score beyond that, going 1 for 4 with runners in scoring position. This while Bluefield connected often with an 8 for 18 effort, scoring a run on all four Royals pitchers.

Boxscore Link

Cal Jones 2-5 HR, 3 RBI
Seuly Matias 1-4 3K

AZL Royals 5 AZL Padres 1

A couple relievers followed up starter Charlie Neuweiler with scoreless work after the 2017 draftee tossed four and one-third innings of one run ball. The right-handed 5th round pick allowed five baserunners in his time, allowing the one run allowed on three mistakes that he made in the third inning. In that inning, Neuweiler hit the leadoff man, Denzell Gowdy, advanced him on a pickoff throwing error and then uncorked a wild pitch that allowed him to score once he had moved to third on a groundout.

The game was tied at 1-1 until the ninth when the Royals plated four runs, two of which came in on a Cristian Perez double.

Boxscore Link

Cristian Perez 2-4 2b, 3 RBI
MJ Melendez 1-4 3b, BB
Nick Pratto 0-3 BB

DSL Astros Blue 3 DSL Royals 2

The Royals fell behind when three straight singles in the third inning led to a pair of Astros Blue runs. After a fourth inning sac fly and a rbi single in the seventh by Paul Mondesi tied the game up the Astros reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the seventh on their own sacrifice fly. The Royals threatened in the eighth but failed to score before going down in order in the ninth to take the loss.

Boxscore Link

Angel Zerpa 3.2 Ip 2 H 1 R 1 ER 4 BB 2 K HBP 2-2 GO-FO
Kember Nacero 0-4

HR Roll Call Paulo Orlando (2), Mauricio Ramos (10), Khalil Lee (15), Manny Olloque (6), Seuly Matias (6), Parker Morin (2)

BPKC Hitter of the Day Khalil Lee 4-5 3R, HR, 2-2b, 5 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day Sal Biasi 5 IP 0 H 0 R 0 Bb 7 K 7-1 Go-FO

Omaha Storm Chasers 10 Oklahoma City Dodgers 1

The Chasers offense assured the team of a fourth win in five games versus the Dodgers Triple-A squad. All nine members of the lineup had at least one hit as the Chasers pounded out 17 on the night including six members with multiple hits. The hits combined with three walks led to 10 runs while the offense three pitchers limited the Dodgers to just one run on seven hits.

Outfielder Paulo Orlando got the scoring started in the first with a three run home run to bring in Ramon Torres and Raul Mondesi. The Chasers would add three more multiple run innings with Mondesi and Orlando capping the scoring on a Frank Schwindel single in the eighth.

Boxscore Link

Raul Mondesi 3-5 2R, 2b, 3b
Paulo Orlando 2-4 3R, 2b, HR, 3 RBI
Ramon Torres 2-5 R
Jorge Soler 1-5 R, 2b, RBI
Hunter Dozier 2-3 R, 2b, 2BB
Kevin Lenik 3 IP 0 H 0 R 0 BB 2 K

NW Arkansas Naturals 4 Frisco RoughRiders 0

The Naturals got a first inning grand slam from Mauricio Ramos and some assistance Frisco and their inability to cash in on opportunities. First inning singles from Humberto Arteaga, Samir Duenez, and Ryan O’Hearn came in front of the Ramos blast. From there starter Foster Griffin struggled with his control with five walks in five and two-third innings but kept Frisco off the board with just four hits allowed.

Reliever Tim Hill worked the final three and one-third innings scoreless with just a hit and walk allowed while striking out three. Combined the two pitchers limited Frisco to 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position while the Naturals added just three hits after the first inning.

Boxscore Link

Samir Duenez 1-4 R
Ryan O’Hearn 1-4 R
Nicky Lopez 1-4
Foster Griffin 5.2 IP 4 H 0 R 0 ER 5 BB 3 K 7-2 GO-FO 90p/49k

Lexington Legends 14 Asheville Tourists 3

After back to back nine run games the Legends offense took up another notch, scoring fourteen runs on 22 hits. Outfielder Khalil Lee and Meibrys Viloria paced the offense with Lee driving in five and Viloria knocking in four while both collecting four hits along the way.

The Legends pitching staff kept the Rockies Low-A squad off the board until the eighth inning as starter Ofreidy Gomez worked seven shutout innings before turning the game over to the bullpen.

Boxscore Link

Khalil Lee 4-5 3R, HR, 2-2b, 5 RBI
Meibrys Viloria 4-5 2R, 2b, 4 RBI
Michael Gigliotti 3-6 R, 2b, RBI
Vance Vizcaino 3-3 4R, 3BB
Ofreidy Gomez 7 IP 7 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 3 K 75p/52k 11-3 GO-FO

Burlington Royals 3 Princeton Rays 1

The Royals kept the Rays off the bases which led to a quick victory on Friday. Starter JC Cloney gave up a run on three hits in his three innings before turning things over to a shutdown bullpen. The run Cloney gave up was countered by a two-run single from Oliver Nunez in the second and a solo home run by Seuly Matias in the third inning.

After Cloney left Sal Biasi came in and was perfect four five innings, striking out seven while the only base runner that Burlington gave up while Biasi was in was via a Jeison Guzman error. Closer Tyler Zuber gave up a single in the ninth but struck out the final two hitters he faced to close the game in just 2 hours and 3 minutes.

Boxscore Link

Seuly Matias 1-5 HR
Jeison Guzman 1-3 BB
Sal Biasi 5 IP 0 H 0 R 0 Bb 7 K 7-1 Go-FO

AZL Padres2 6 AZL Royals 4

The Royals defense let a 4-3 lead slip away and lead to a defeat. A three-run home run by Parker Morin in the sixth inning gave the Royals that one run lead but a throwing error by Cristian Perez in the seventh gave the Padres2 the lead back. Then in the ninth, another throwing error, this one by Tyler James, plated another Padres2 run to give them a two run lead and eventual win.

Boxscore Link

MJ Melendez 0-1 R, 3 BB
Nick Pratto 2-4 R
Marlin Willis 4 IP 6 H 3 R 3 ER 0 BB 3 K 5-3 GO-FO

DSL Royals 2 DSL A’s 1

Starter Adriam Castillo continued his solid run of pitching, limiting the A’s to five hits in five shutout innings. The right-handed starter lowered his ERA to 0.85 ERA on the season while keeping his WHIP at just 0.71 for the season.

A bases loaded walk to Kember Nacero in the fifth and a rbi double by Brayant Aponte in the sixth provided the Royals all the offense that they would need.

Boxscore Link

Adriam Castillo 5 IP 5 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 4 K 6-2 GO-FO
Kember Nacero 0-3 RBI, BB

HR Roll Call: Angelo Castellano (8), Reed Rohlman (2)

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Julio Gonzalez 4-5, R, 2b, 3b, 6 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Garrett Davila 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, HBP, 10-2 GO-FO, 83p/49k

Oklahoma City Dodgers 4, Omaha Storm Chasers 3 

The Chasers built an early lead only to watch it slip away in the fourth of five games with the Dodgers. Back to back second inning doubles by Bubba Starling and Frank Schwindel led to two runs in the second to give Omaha a 2-1 lead. In the third inning, Raul Mondesi doubled, stole third and scored on Jorge Soler’s ground out.

The Dodgers answered with two runs in the fourth off starter Andre Machado, hitting a solo home run and getting an Alex Verdugo RBI single to tie the game up. A walk and a pair of singles off Mark Peterson gave the Dodgers a lead. The Chasers would get at least one hitter on base in every inning from the fifth onward, but they were unable to push another run across.

Boxscore Link

Raul Mondesi 3-5, R, 2b, 3b, SB (20)
Paulo Orlando 1-3, BB
Frank Schwindel 1-4, R, 2b
Bubba Starling 1-2, R, 2b, RBI

Midland RockHounds 6, NW Arkansas Naturals 0

The Naturals were shut out by Heath Fillmyer and company on Thursday night. The A’s righty worked seven innings scoreless, working around four singles and earning 12 Naturals groundouts in the process. While their starter was keeping the ball on the ground, Josh Staumont gave up five runs on seven hits and three walks in just 4.2 innings to take another loss.

Boxscore Link

Josh Staumont 4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 3-2 GO-FO, 92p/53k
Yunior Marte 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2K, 23p/13k
Ryan O’Hearn 0-3, BB
Samir Duenez 0-4
Nicky Lopez 1-4

Frederick Keys 9, Wilmington Blue Rocks 2

The Wilmington pitching foursome got roughed up for 16 hits and nine runs in another defeat at the hands of the Keys. Starter Jared Ruxer gave up six hits and five runs in just 1.2 innings. Reliever Franco Terrero gave up three runs in 2.1 innings, putting the Rocks down 8-0 after four.

The Rocks offense was kept off the board until the ninth when Chris DeVito scored on a Wander Franco triple prior to him scoring via Travis Maezes single.

Boxscore Link

Chris DeVito 3-4, R, 2b
Brandon Downes 0-3, 2K

Lexington Legends 9, West Virginia Power 0

A pair of Legends pitchers who have struggled at times in ’17 combined to limit West Virginia to just two hits in a convincing win. Lefty starter Garrett Davila worked six shutout innings with just a pair of walks and a single allowed in earning his eighth win of the season.

The offense rewarded Davila with plenty of backing, getting a run in the second on an Angelo Castellano single to drive in Meibrys Viloria. The game stayed at 1-0 until the sixth when Castellano again came through, this time with a three-run home run as part of a four-run inning.

The Legends would continue to pile on, scoring four more runs while reliever Nolan Watson worked the final three innings scoreless to earn his first career save.

Boxscore Link

Garrett Davila 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 10-2 GO-FO, 83p/49k
Michael Gigliotti 3-5, R, 2b, RBI, SB/CS
Khalil Lee 2-5, R, 2b, RBI
Gabe Cancel 1-4, R, BB

Idaho Falls Chukars 17, Billings Mustangs 2

The Chukars put up double digit runs for the second night in a row in a romp against the Mustangs. The story of the night besides the runs was the outstanding effort from starter Janser Lara. The fireballing right-handed pitcher that one scout told me has 20 control had it working on this night, retiring the first eight hitters he faced and not allowing a hit until the fourth inning. Working a career best 6.2 innings, Lara would give up just a two-run home run during his outing while striking out six hitters on the night.

While Lara was spinning good baseball, the offense was working over the Billings pitchers with 22 hits and 17 runs as eight different Chukars batters had two or more hits on the night.

Boxscore Link

Matt Morales 2-6, 2 RBI
Amalani Fukofuka 2-5, 3R
Julio Gonzalez 4-5, R, 2b, 3b, 6 RBI

Princeton Rays 6, Burlington Royals 5

The Royals took a 5-4 lead in the eighth inning on a solo home run by Reed Rohlman, but reliever Yarelmy Garcia gave it up in the bottom of the ninth. In that inning, the first two hitters reached via a double and a sac bunt that the hitter reached on. A fly out where Seuly Matias threw home advanced the runner from first, leaving Burlington’s manager to load the bases. A sac fly to center would tie the game before Princeton would walk it off with a single to right.

Boxscore Link

Seuly Matias 1-4, 2b, 2K
Jeison Guzman 1-4, R, 2b, RBI
Sebastian Rivero 1-4, RBI

AZL Royals 9, AZL Angels 1

Royals second round pick Evan Steele made his pro debut on Friday working a clean inning on just 12 pitches while striking out all three hitters he faced.

Excellent 1st inn by AZL #Royals LHP Evan Steele. 3 Ks on 12 pitches. FB 89-91, CB 78. 3rd rndr from Chipola.

— Bill Mitchell (@billazbbphotog) August 18, 2017

After Steele left, reliever Randy Acevedo kept the Angels hitless until the seventh inning before giving up a pair of hits and a run in that inning. Despite that run, the offense had already given Acevedo and company a big lead with a four-run frame after single runs in the first and third before capping the scoring with a three-run eighth inning. All nine hitters reached base at least once while Tyler James had two hits and two walks while scoring three runs on the night.

Boxscore Link

MJ Melendez 2-5, R, 2 RBI, 3K
Nick Pratto 1-4, R, RBI, 3K
Evan Steele 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

Cam Gallagher Profile

Cam Gallagher (Minda Haas Kuhlmann)

What should you expect to see from the former 2nd round pick should he get the opportunity to help out with the Sal Perez injury. Defensively is where Gallagher shines as the big bodies catcher shows good receiving skills with accepting hands at the dish that are strong enough to exhibit quality framing skills. Despite the big body and lack of quick twitch athleticism Gallagher shows no wasted movement in his footwork and can put together decent pop times in the 1.85 range which are adequate for a backup catcher.

Offensively Gallagher doesn’t stand out other than the fact that he doesn’t strikeout much and can control his bat working the ball to all fields in the correct situations. The power is pull side and is less than average while the speed is well below average.

The total package is that of a quality backup catcher who provides quality defense, good came calling skills and a quality person in the clubhouse who you hope can run into a pitch here and there.

HR Roll Call Samir Duenez 2 (15), Gabe Cancel (13), Angelo Castellano (7), Amalani Fukofuka (5), Benji Cash (2)

BPKC Hitter of the Day Samir Duenez 3-6 2 HR, 3 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day Andres Sotillet 6 IP 3 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 4 K 8-4 GO-FO

Sacramento River Cats 5 Omaha Storm Chasers 4

The River Cats scored three unearned runs in the second inning off starter Eric Skoglund to open the scoring Saturday after a throwing error by Brayan Pena opened the inning. The Chasers answered with three runs of their own in the third after a pair of walks to Billy Burns and Raul Mondesi opened the frame. A pair of singles by Cheslor Cuthbert and Jorge Soler scored them before Cuthbert scored on Ryan O’Hearn’s groundout. The two teams exchanged runs with Sacramento hitting a solo home run in the fourth off Skoglund and Omaha answering with a rbi single by Brayan Pena in the sixth.

The game remained tied until the eighth when Giants top prospect Chris Shaw hit a home run off reliever Kevin Lenik to give the River Cats a lead and the eventual win.

Boxscore Link

Eric Skoglund 6 Ip 6 H 4 R 1 ER 1 BB 7 K 7-1 GO-FO 101p/68k
Raul Mondesi 0-1 R, BB, HBP
Cheslor Cuthbert 2-5 R, RBI
Jorge Soler 1-4 RBI
Ryan O’Hearn 1-4 RBI, BB, SB

Springfield Cardinals 8 NW Arkansas Naturals 7 F/12

The Naturals were outslugged in another loss to Springfield in the third of four games versus the Cardinals affiliate. First baseman Samir Duenez did all he could early to help the club, connecting on a pair of home runs in his first two at bats. The first homer was a pull shot that scored Duenez and Paulo Orlando to put the Naturals in front 2-0. Two innings later after starter Corey Ray had given up the lead it was Duenez tying the game back up with a home run to left. Outfielder Donnie Dewees doubled and scored on Mauricio Ramos single quickly in the same inning to reclaim the lead that was pushed to 5-3 at the end of the frame.

From there the two teams would exchange runs with the game ending up tied at 7-7 at the end of nine innings into extras. The Naturals would put the lead run on in the all three extra innings but fail to push them around and would drop the game when Springfield’s Randy Arozarena walked it off with a home run to lead off the bottom of the twelfth inning.

Boxscore Link

Samir Duenez 3-6 2 HR 3 RBI
Nicky Lopez 2-6, CS
Donnie Dewees 3-5 R, 2b, BB
Paulo Orlando 0-3 R, RBI, BB
Anderson Miller 2-6 RBI

Wilmington Blue Rocks 3 Frederick Keys 1

Recently promoted starter Jace Vines put together his best start for Wilmington as yet, working five scoreless innings while working around three hits and three walks. The former Texas A&M pitcher was given the lead in the second inning with a two run double by Colton Frabasilio and added on with a rbi triple by Wander Franco in the fourth.

Relievers Justin Camp and Franco Terrero would make sure that lead would hold up as the two allowed just one run over the last four innings to secure the Blue Rocks win.

Boxscore Link

Brandon Downes 1-4 2b
Jace Vines 5 IP 3H 0 R 0 ER 3 Bb 4 K 5-3 GO-FO 91p/48k
Franco Terrero 1.2 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 2 K 0-3 GO-FO 23p/12k

Game 1
Hickory Crawdads 3 Lexington Legends 1

Royals prospect Gerson Garabito continued to work his way back to full strength Saturday afternoon in game one of the doubleheader for Lexington. The Dominican right-handed pitcher tossed four innings of scoreless baseball on 45 pitches while allowing just a second innings single and striking out three hitters.

Second baseman Gabe Cancel gave the Legends the lead in the fourth inning with his thirteenth home run of the season. That lead was short-lived once Garabito left the game when reliever Vance Tatum gave up a pair of singles around a walk to tie the game. One inning later hit their own home run, a two run shot to give them a 3-1 lead which would be enough after Lexington stranded two runners to end the game.

Boxscore Link

Khalil Lee 0-3 2K, BB
Gabe Cancel 1-3 HR
Emmanuel Rivera 0-3 3K
Gerson Garabito 4 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 3 K 45p/30k 4-3 GO-FO

Game 2
Lexington Legends 9 Hickory Crawdads 3

The Legends broke open a 3-3 game in the ninth inning of game 2. In the ninth Gabe Cancel started the inning off with a single and quickly scored following a walk and another single by Manny Olloque. A fielding error on Margen Gasparini’s groundball to first pushed their lead to two runs. With runners on second and third Vance Vizcaino would walk to load the bases for shortstop Angelo Castellano. The shortstop has struggled since the start of July hitting just .123 in that time but it didn’t stop him from unloading the bases with a grand slam to left to put the game out of reach.

Boxscore Link

Emmanuel Rivera 1-5 R, 2K
Gabe Cancel 1-3 R, K
Marten Gasparini 2-4 R, RBI

Great Falls Voyagers 8 Idaho Falls Chukars 4

The Chukars starter David McKay was roughed up in his six innings allowing 11 hits and eight runs including a pair of home runs. One night after showing off his speed with four stolen bases Amalani Fukofuka flashed his power with a home run and a double in his four plate appearances.

Boxscore Link

Amalani Fukofuka 2-4 2R, HR, 2b, 2 RBI

Burlington Royals 4 Elizabethton Twins 3

Centerfielder Michael Gigliotti accounted for the first three runs of the game for Burlington before Benji Cash gave them the deciding run. Trailing 1-0 Gigliotti connected on a triple to center that scored Oliver Nunez from first to tie the game. After the Twins took the lead back in the sixth Gigliotti was at it again in the seventh this time with a two run double to claim the lead.

The Twins would knot it back up in the bottom of the seventh but the Royals would claim the last lead of the night with a Cash home run to center. Closer Tyler Zuber would give up a pair of singles in the ninth before striking out the side to end the game.

Boxscore Link

Michael Gigliotti 2-5 2b, 3b, 3 RBI, K, SB (15)
Seuly Matias 1-3 2b
Tyler Zuber 1 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 3 K 21p/13k

AZL Royals 5 AZL D-Backs 1

The Royals received another good start from Andres Sotillet as the Venezuelan tossed six shutout innings around three hits and a walk. After struggles in the Pioneer League Sotillet as calmed things down in Arizona with three quality starts in five tries. Errors or wild pitches helped the Royals to all five runs on offense to cruise to the win with the solid pitching.

A familiar face returned after nearly two years away from the game as former 2013 3rd round pick Carter Hope worked two perfect innings with two strikeouts for the Royals.

Boxscore Link

Nick Pratto 2-5
Brewer Hicklen 1-4 R, BB, SB (13), CS (3)
MJ Melendez 0-3 BB, 0-1 CS/Att

DSL Royals 4 DSL Astros Blue 2

The Royals two pitchers struck out 11 Astros on Saturday to salvage a win in the series with them. Outfielder Reynin Reynoso doubled in a pair of runs in the second inning and Felix Familia doubled in another in the fourth. Those runs would be plenty for Adriam Castillo and Adrian Alcantara as the two worked the nine innings with Alcantara dominating over the final three and one-third innings with seven strikeouts.

Boxscore Link

Adriam Castillo 5.2 IP 3 H 2 R 2 ER 0 BB 4 K 8-1 GO-FO
Adrian Alcantara 3.1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 7 K 0-1 GO-FO
Reynin Reynoso 1-4 2b, 2 RBI