Making their second appearance in the South Atlantic League Championship, as they were declared co-champions while holding a 2-0 lead in their inaugural season with the Asheville Tourists when the September 11^th attacks occurred, the Lexington Legends got off to a very good start Monday. They had dominant pitching, inning after inning. Their defense was firing on all cylinders. Everything was going smoothly.

And then, it wasn’t. The Legends went down to defeat against the Lakewood BlueClaws in eleven innings, 6-5.

Starting righty Yefri Del Rosario did his level best over six innings, striking out seven and walking two while giving up a single hit in the process. Lakewood had to wait until the fifth inning for that one-base knock from SS Nick Maton, which ultimately went for naught. After walking lead-off batter Matt Vierling, he got Simon Muzziotti on a high, bounding one-hopper to 1B Nick Pratto, then set down Jake Scheiner and Rodolpho Duran on swinging strikes.

Lexington got on the board first when Pratto walked and Brewer Hicklen crushed a 2-2 pitch over the right-field wall. Del Rosario gave up a walk to Madison Stokes, but induced a couple of fly-outs to left and a pop-up to Ricky Aracena to strand the Lakewood runner.

Cal Jones singled on a fastball on the outer third of the plate, a hard liner to left off of Lakewood starter Damon Jones. Sebastian Rivero went down on strikes and Aracena popped up to his counterpart at second, Dalton Guthrie, but Kyle Isbel reached on a bad throw by Maton and Jones advanced to third. The threat was ended when C MJ Melendez flew out on a 2-0 pitch to Muzziotti in center.

It was two more strikeouts for Del Rosario in the top of the third, when 3B Jose Antequera went down looking, Vierling flew out to Jones, and Muzziotti whiffed on a fastball right down the heart of the plate.

Pratto started the bottom of the third with a shot over the right-field deck that he hit off of an inside fastball, down 0-2 in the count, giving the Legends a 3-0 lead. Hicklen and 3B Manny Olloque grounded out to Antequera, SS Cristian Perez drew the walk but was stranded when Jones swung on a third strike in the dirt and was tossed out at first by Duran.

The top of the 4^th was uneventful, as Scheiner grounded out to Perez, while Duran and Jhailyn Ortiz added to Del Rosario’s “K” collection. The bottom of the fourth saw Lexington tack on another run when Isbel doubled on a 1-2 inside pitch and Melendez brought him home on a short drive to center, extending Lexington’s lead to 4-0.

After Maton finally gave Lakewood their first base hit of the night in the top of the fifth, Stokes was called out on strikes after an eight-pitch battle and Guthrie grounded into a 6-4-3 double play. Lexington faced off against righty reliever Gustavo Armas and got nothing out of him beyond a seven-pitch Hicklen walk. Hicklen was cut down at second on a steal attempt with Jones batting after Olloque popped up and Perez did the same to Scheiner.

Lakewood had nothing going in the top of the sixth, but Jones led off the bottom of the inning a hard-hit single, deep to left, that was cut off quickly by Vierling. Rivero dropped a nice sac bunt to move Jones to second, but only after Armas tried twice in vain to pick him off. Aracena struck out swinging, but Isbel once again came through, driving in Jones to make it 5-0, Lexington. Isbel would be nailed at second on a steal attempt.

As RHP Janser Lara entered the game in the seventh, he got Scheiner on a ground-out to Aracena, walked Duran on four somewhat controversial pitches (at least two could have been strikes), Ortiz struck out swinging. Lara walked Maton, but Stokes struck out on a 2-2 pitch and stranded two runners in the process.

The bottom of the seventh saw walks to Melendez and Hicklen, but little else, as Pratto and Olloque struck out swinging and Perez lined out to Scheiner on what sounded like a much harder-hit ball than it actually was.

The eighth inning was a routine one for both sides. The ninth, however, was not.

With RHP Daniel Duarte on the mound for his second inning of work, Josh Stephen singled on a 3-2 pitch that caught the heart of the plate. Scheiner was first-pitch swinging, swatting a hard-hit grounder to right. Duran followed this with the first of three straight homers for Lakewood. Ortiz hit a solo shot to right, and that would be it for Duarte as he gave way to RHP Tad Ratliff with Lakewood down by one.

Maton chased Ortiz’s homer with his own solo shot to right, and the BlueClaws had tied the game. This all happened before Lexington could get a single out.

Isbel, Melendez, and Pratto went down in order, and it was extra-inning time.

Ratliff retired Vierling, Stephen, and Scheiner in order to start the tenth inning. After Hicklen struck out looking, Olloque shot a laser beam to the center-field wall for a one-out double. SS Jeison Guzman entered to pinch-run for him, and new pitcher Connor Brogdon entered the game for Lakewood. He began by putting Perez on intentionally, but Jones and Rivero couldn’t get the winning run home.

With Garrett Suchey entering the game in the eleventh inning, Duran singled and move to second on Ortiz’s sacrifice bunt. After Maton grounded out to Perez, Duran moved to third. Stokes drove in what would be the winning run on a single to center after Such threw three straight pitches in the same zone and Stokes caught onto it.

Lakewood’s Zach Warren closed it out in the bottom of the inning, striking out Aracena, getting Isbel on a fly-out to right, and walking but stranding Melendez after Pratto ended the game striking out on a pitch in the dirt.

A tough loss for the home team, to be sure, but Game Two will see Jackson Kowar on the hill for the Legends facing LHP Kyle Young. The 6’10” Young has compiled a 13-5 record over four minor-league seasons, with a 2.74 ERA and 26 walks against 141 strikeouts in 151 1/3 innings. He recorded a .230 BAA in 59 1/3 innings this season across three leagues, with the vast majority of his innings at Lakewood. He gave up 9 walks in that span. He has never faced Lexington in his career.

Game Two of the South Atlantic League Championship is Tuesday at Whitaker Bank Ball Park at 6:05 PM.

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Cal Jones 2-4 2R, HR, 2 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Yefri Del Rosario 7 IP 4 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 9 K 4-6 GO-FO 86p/65k

Lexington Legends 7 August GreenJackets 0

The Legends, on the cusp of their first playoff appearance since 2006, used a full team effort got them one step closer on Thursday night. Starter Yefri Del Rosario continued his run of excellent pitching putting together perhaps his best start yet. Twirling seven scoreless innings, Del Rosario set a new career high with nine strikeouts while pounding the zone with 65 strikes on just 86 pitches while working around four hits and a walk. After a pair of scoreless innings, the Lexington offense broke the tie with a Cal Jones home run in the third inning before breaking it open with a six-run fourth frame. Outfielder Kyle Isbel’s two-run double in that fourth inning capped the scoring in the inning and the game. The win combined with a Greenville loss lowered the Legends magic number to just one game.

MJ Melendez: 1-3 R, BB
Nick Pratto: 1-4 R
Kyle Isbel: 1-4 2b, 2 RBI

Wilmington Blue Rocks 5 Lynchburg Hillcats 0

Wilmington’s best starting pitcher, Gerson Garabito, was just that in a must have spot for his club in the finale versus Lynchburg. Going six and one-third innings, the righty worked around four hits and a walk while striking out seven, lowering his ERA to 3.16 while adding on to his career high in innings (142.1). The offense got a pair of runs in the second inning with last night’s hero Vance Vizcaino driving in Emmanuel Rivera and Meibrys Viloria with a single. That score held up until the eighth inning when Rudy Martin plated three with a double to centerfield.

Gerson Garabito: 6.1 IP 4 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 7 K 5-4 GO-FO 91p/60k
Meibrys Viloria: 2-3 2R, BB
Rudy Martin: 1-5 2b, 3 RBI

NW Arkansas Naturals 8 Tulsa Drillers 4

The Naturals offense employed a patient approach to keep their season alive against first-place Tulsa, walking seven times as part of their good night on offense. After giving up three runs in the first three innings, starter Jace Vines settled in to give his club a quality start by working into the seventh inning. Three different Naturals walked twice in the game while they broke open the 3-3 game by scoring five runs between the fourth and fifth innings. Back to back singles by Alex Liddi and Anderson Miller plated three in the fourth before a Mejia groundout and a Duenez single in the fifth pushed the advantage to 8-3. Those eight runs were plenty as the Naturals bullpen of Gabe Speier and Walker Sheller tossed the final two and two-thirds with just a run allowed to secure the win.

Samir Duenez: 2-4 R, RBI, BB
Kelvin Gutierrez: 1-3 R, RBI, 2BB
Jecksson Flores: 0-2 2R, 2BB, SB

Omaha Storm Chasers 11 Colorado Sky Sox 5

After starting pitcher Aaron Brooks got the call to the big league’s prior to the game for Milwaukee, the Sky Sox turned to struggling reliever Tim Dillard to make the spot start. The Chasers took advantage, tagging the sidearm reliever for a run in the first inning and nine more in the second inning to blow open the game 10-0. Chasers starter Jon Dziedzic took advantage tossing four no-hit innings before surrendering his first hit and runs in the fifth. The game was pretty meaningless to the Sky Sox who lead the division going into the night and will decide their season’s fate with a five games series against Tulsa starting tomorrow night.

Jon Dziedzic: 5 IP 2 H 3 R 3 ER 4 BB 3 K 3-8 94p/53k
Frank Schwindel: 1-3 R, 2b, 2 RBI, BB
Nicky Lopez: 3-5 2R

Idaho Falls Chukars 8 Ogden Raptors 6

The Royals 6th round draft selection Zach Haake made his Idaho Falls debut on Thursday, tossing two and two-thirds innings with a hit, a walk and a run allowed while on the hill. Idaho Falls had already given their pitching staff a lead with three runs in the first inning as Nathan Eaton hit his second home run in as many days to plate two runs before a Jose Caraballo double scored Bubba Starling to make it 3-0. The Chukars tacked on single runs in the fourth, sixth and seventh innings after Ogden had pulled with a run to take a 6-3 lead. Reliever Jose Rodriguez struggled in the eighth inning though, giving up two hits, three walks, and two runs before Andrew Edwards, back on a rehab stint, tossed a wild pitch to even the game. The Chukars despite giving up the lead had the answer the very next inning as a pair of doubles from Nathan Eaton and Brady Cox broke the tie before Hunter Strong’s single tacked on an insurance run. Edwards would close out the game with a perfect ninth to keep the Chukars playoff hopes alive.

Zach Haake: 2.2 IP 1 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 1 K 3-1 GO-FO 46p/27k
Nathan Eaton: 2-5 2R, HR, 2b, 2 RBI
Hunter Strong: 2-4 2R, BB, RBI

Thursday Boxscores

Saturday BPKC Hitter of the Day: Nathan Eaton 4-5 R, 2b, 3b
Sunday BPKC Hitter of the Day Rudy Martin 3-5 2R, 2b, HR, 3 RBI

Saturday BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Josh Dye 5 IP 4 H 1 R 0 ER 1 BB 6 K 5-3 GO-OF 71p/51k
Sunday BPKC Pitcher of the Day Josh Staumont 2.2 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 5 K 1-1 GO-FO 35p/27k

Saturday Lexington Legends 2 Hagerstown Suns 1
Sunday Hagerstown Suns 10 Lexington Legends 5

Despite a split over the weekend, the Legends find themselves three games up in the loss column with eight to play to win the second half division title. Saturday’s game featured a pair of good starting outputs as Yefri Del Rosario kept his run of good starts (1.98 ERA last 9 starts) with six innings of one-run pitching. For six innings Del Rosario was outdone though as Hagerstown starter Andrew Lee no-hit the Legends until the seventh. In that seventh inning, a leadoff walk by MJ Melendez started the inning before Nick Pratto’s blast to the left of centerfield gave Lexington a 2-1 lead with their first hit of the game. The bullpen shut things down and Lexington earned the win despite just three hits in the game. Sunday’s affair didn’t feature as much pitching with Lexington starter Charlie Neuweiler giving up seven runs in just three and one-third innings including a pair of home runs. The Legend scored five runs off the Sun’s starter in just three-plus innings but it wasn’t enough as the bullpen kept them off the board the rest of the way.

Nick Pratto: 2-6 HR, 3b, BB, 3K
MJ Melendez: 2-7 2R, HR, 2b, 2BB, 2 RBI
Janser Lara: 2 Ip 0 H 0 R 1 BB 2 K 3-0 25p/16k

Saturday Wilmington Blue Rocks 8 Salem Red Sox 2
Sunday Wilmington Blue Rocks 8 Salem Red Sox 3

A sweep of Salem over the weekend ended Wilmington’s abysmal 12 game losing streak that likely cost them a shot at the division title. The offense scored eight runs in all three games with an 11 hit output on Saturday making a winner of Gerson Garabito despite five innings in which he walked three and struckout just one. The righty did limit the damage to just one run while Gabe Cancel and Travis Jones paced the offense with two hits and two runs scored each. Sunday’s game saw Dan Tillo get his first victory since June 17th as the lefty worked into the seventh inning with five strikeouts while navigating seven hits with two runs allowed. Outfielder Rudy Martin did much of the offensive damage, finishing a triple short of the cycle while accounting for four of the Wilmington’s eight runs. Leadoff man Blake Perkins pitched in a four-hit effort as well. The Rocks trail Lynchburg by five games with nine left to play although their next four comes against the first place squad.

Rudy Martin: 5-10 3R, 2b, 3b, HR, 5 RBI, 3K
Emmanuel Rivera: 4-9 R, 2-2b, SB
Dan Tillo: 6.2 IP 7 H 2 R 2 ER 0 BB 5 K 9-2 GO-FO 89p/59k

Saturday NW Arkansas Naturals 3 Arkansas Travelers 1
Sunday NW Arkansas Naturals 4 Arkansas Travelers 3 F/10

A weekend sweep kept the Naturals season alive for now. Both games featured quality starting pitching as Jace Vines gave the Naturals five innings with just a run allowed on Saturday before Emilio Ogando toss his fifth consecutive quality start on Sunday. A throwing error in the third inning on Saturday put a pair of runners in scoring position and first baseman Samir Duenez made the Arkansas pay with a two-run single. A wild pitch gave them insurance in the sixth and the bullpen did some lifting with four scoreless innings. Sunday’s game saw Ogando’s streak of 31 innings scoreless pitching end in the first inning when a passed ball allowed an unearned run. Two innings later the lefty gave up an earned run as he completed six innings of two-run ball with just three hits allowed. Trailing 2-0 into the seventh the Naturals got a run with an Anderson Miller rbi double before scoring two more in the eighth on Jecksson Flores RBI single and Samir Duenez’s sacrifice fly. The Travelers answered that with a run in the ninth off Franco Terrero to send the game into extra innings. In extras, Erick Mejia doubled in the free runner for the Naturals and Grant Gavin secured the win with a pair of strikeouts sandwiched around a groundout. The win pulled the Naturals even with Arkansas for second place with an opportunity to overtake them on Monday before a five-game series with first place Tulsa.

Samir Duenez: 2-7 R, 3 RBI, BB
Jecksson Flores: 3-9 R, 2b, RBI
Emilio Ogando: 6 IP 3 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 5 K 4-4 GO-FO 74p/45k

Saturday Omaha Storm Chasers 3 Iowa Cubs 2
Sunday Omaha Storm Chasers 7 Iowa Cubs 2

The Chasers used home runs to take the weekend games over Iowa. Shortstop Nicky Lopez hit his third home run in six games as part of a three-run sixth inning. That made a winner out of Jon Dziedzic as the lefty didn’t give up a hit until one out in the sixth inning. Reliever Richard Lovelady finished things up with two and one-third innings with just one hit allowed to secure the save. With Glenn Sparkman back from Kansas City on Sunday, the Chasers bats showed they could hit like major leaguers as Paulo Orlando connected on a three-run home run to go with Frank Schwindel’s 23rd home run of the season. Six of the seven runs came late which made a winner out of Josh Staumont who tossed two and two-thirds innings of perfect ball with five strikeouts.

Richard Lovelady: 2.1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K
Frank Schwindel: 2-7 HR, 2b, 2 RBI
Glenn Sparkman: 5.1 IP 3 H 2 R 2 ER 1 BB 5 K 9-1 GO-FO 78p/57k

Saturday Burlington Royals 11 Kingsport Mets 2
Sunday Burlington Royals 9 Kingsport Mets 5

A very offensive weekend for the Royals as they piled up 20 runs on 26 hits against the Mets rookie squad. Starter Josh Dye earned the win for his one run (0 ER) five-inning effort that featured five strikeouts while lefty Marcelo Martinez earned Sunday’s win with a quality start over six frames. Saturday’s game featured a seven run sixth frame that included a Michael Emodi three-run home run to blow things open. Looking for the weekend sweep the top five hitters in the lineup each had multi-hit games on Sunday to pace the way for a win.

Jose Marquez: 3-9 3R, 3b, 3 RBI
Eric Cole: 4-10 R, 3 RBI
Isaiah Henry: 3-4 2R, 2 RBI

Saturday Grand Junction Rockies 9 Idaho Falls Chukars 5
Sunday Idaho Falls Chukars 3 Grand Junction Rockies 1

The Chukars defense let down start Jon Heasley Saturday as four defensive miscues led to five unearned runs in just four and two-thirds innings despite just four hits allowed. The offense missed plenty of opportunities, going just 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position in the loss. Sunday’s starter Rito Lugo gave the Chukars his third consecutive outstanding start with six innings with just a run allowed while striking out eight. The lefty has now put away 24 hitters via strikeout in his 18 innings of work in the Pioneer League. The Chukars scored a pair in the fifth on a balk and a Julio Gonzalez double before adding an insurance run in the eighth via a groundout by Kyle Kasser that scored Jesus Atencio after his leadoff double.

Nathan Eaton: 6-9 R, 2-2b, 3b, K
Rito Lugo: 6 IP 6 H 1 R 1 ER 0 BB 8 K HR 4-3 GO-FO 86p/60k
Jon Heasley: 4.2 IP 4 H 7 R 2 ER 2 BB 4 K 8-5 GO-FO 84p/55k

Friday Boxscores
Saturday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Kyle Isbel 3-4, HR, 2b, 2 RBI, BB, SB 

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Yefri Del Rosario 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 5-7 GO-FO, 85p/56k

Lexington Legends 3, Kannapolis Intimidators 1

Since the start of July, Yefri Del Rosario has found his legs at the Low-A level with improved pitching. In his latest start, Del Rosario may have been at his best yet, limiting Kannapolis to just two singles and a walk in six innings. He was very efficient, tossing 56 strikes on 85 pitches while striking out five to keep the opposition bats off the board. On the Legends side, Kyle Isbel started the game with a solo home run before driving in another in the second with a single as part of a two-run inning. Those two hits were part of a three-hit night for Isbel that also included a walk to keep his impressive draft year going. Reliever Tad Ratliff struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to earn his fifth save of the season.

Tad Ratliff: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 13p/9k
Sebastian Rivero: 1-4, R, 2b
Janser Lara: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 2-1 GO-FO, 30p/20k

Oklahoma City Dodgers 10, Omaha Storm Chasers 5

Omaha fell behind a few different times as the Dodgers built leads of 4-0, 5-4 and 6-5 on Monday. The Chasers answered with four consecutive doubles in the fourth inning to tie the game before using another double by Frank Schwindel to even the score back up at 5-5 in the seventh. Unfortunately, reliever Josh Staumont was very wild on this night, uncorking four wild pitches including one that allowed a run to break the tie in the eighth inning. The Dodgers put the game away in the ninth by piling on four runs off newly promoted reliever Pedro Fernandez with three hits, including a bases-clearing triple after the Chasers chose to load the bases in an effort to induce a double play.

Frank Schwindel: 3-5, 2R, 2-2b – 20 game hitting streak
Nicky Lopez: 1-4, BB
Josh Staumont: 2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 2-1 GO-FO, 41p/23k 4 WP

Princeton Rays 6, Burlington Royals 4

The Appy League’s top team took care of one of the league’s best pitchers as the Rays used a four-run second inning to take the lead before tacking on runs later to defeat Marcelo Martinez and the Royals. The lefty who had given up just one hit in his last two starts gave up four in a row to start that second inning, including a home run off the bat of Grant Witherspoon which capped the four-run frame. A pair of two-out hits in the sixth added another run off Martinez and put Burlington behind 5-3, which would prove to be enough to hang onto the win.

Colby Schultz: 3-3
Brhet Bewley: 1-2, 2R, HR, 3 RBI, BB
Marcelo Martinez: 6 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, HR, 7-4 GO-FO

Idaho Falls Chukars 3, Billings Mustangs 0

Newly promoted 22-year-old Rito Lugo made his first start for the Chukars and was up to the task early as the lefty started well. He didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning, with his only blemish coming via a second-inning hit by pitch. In the fifth, Lugo ran into some trouble allowing three consecutive one-out singles, but he managed to induce a double play to get out of trouble and maintain a 2-0 lead. That 2-0 lead was provided by a pair of wild pitches in the fourth inning that allowed a run to score before a second moved a runner to third base where he would score from with a sac fly. The Chukars would tack on a run later while Jose Ramirez would follow Lugo’s six scoreless with three of his own to earn the save and close out the win for the Chukars.

Rito Lugo: 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 5-5 GO-FO, 74p/54k
Jose Caraballo: 2-4, R, RBI
Jose Ramirez: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 6-0 GO-FO, 42p/31k

Monday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Nick Dini 2-3 HR, 2 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Emilio Ogando 6 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 5 K 3-4 GO-FO 87p/55k 

Lexington Legends 4 Asheville Tourists 2

The Legends took down the third place Asheville Tourists for the second day in a row Wednesday afternoon. Starter Yefri Del Rosario gave them another quality start as the right-hander won his third straight decision. The right-hander worked six innings while allowing two runs on four hits, both coming in the fifth inning when he gave up three of those hits including a double and a triple. The Legends had built Del Rosario and early lead with a pair of RBI singles by Seuly Matias and Cristian Perez in the first two innings. Two innings later it was MJ Melendez driving in a run with a single and Nick Pratto quickly following with a single against the shift that pushed the advantage to 4-0. Lefty reliever Robert Garcia worked the final three innings scoreless to secure his first save of the season for Lexington and push their winning streak to three games.

Yefri Del Rosario: 6 IP 4 H 2 R 2 ER 1 BB 4 K 6-7 GO-FO 95p/67k
Seuly Matias: 2-3 RBI, HBP
MJ Melendez: 2-4 R, 2b, RBI

Wilmington Blue Rocks 6 Salem Red Sox 2

The Blue Rocks Gerson Garabito continued his string of good pitching while the Rocks offense slugged their way to a win. Eight different Wilmington hitters had at least one hit with Travis Jones and Angelo Castellanos each homering over the final two innings to add on three runs to their 3-2 lead. Wilmington used three different pitchers to limit Salem to just two runs with Garabito tossing his seventh straight start with two runs or less as he worked six innings with five hits and four walks allowed but used eight K’s to limit the damage. Relievers Anthony Bender and Julio Pinto worked the final three innings scoreless with just a walk allowed in securing the win.

Gerson Garabito: 6 IP 5 H 2 R 2 ER 4 BB 8 K 4-4 GO-FO 100p/64k
Travis Jones: 1-4 HR, 2 RBI
Rudy Martin: 2-4 2-2b, RBI

NW Arkansas Naturals 4 Midland RockHounds 3 Gm1
NW Arkansas Naturals 2 Midland RockHounds 0 Gm2

The Naturals swept a doubleheader over Midland to run their winning streak to six games. Game one featured the Naturals scoring four runs including two by Kelvin Gutierrez in the second through fourth innings. Those runs were enough with Jace Vines allowing two in his five innings before Gabe Speier and Andres Machado allowed a run over the final two innings. Lefty Emilio Ogando toss six shutout inning in game two with just two hits allowed with Samir Duenez and Jecksson Flores driving in runs with a pair of early singles to gain the lead and the eventual win.

Kelvin Gutierrez: 2-6 2R, 2K
Anderson Miller: 1-3 R, RBI, BB
Erick Mejia: 2-6 R, 2b, RBI, 2K

Danville Braves 2 Burlington Royals 1

Starter Yerelmy Garcia got off to a slow start, allowing back to back one out singles before a double and a sacrifice fly that pushed two Danville runs across. From there the right-hander found a groove, retiring 17 of the final 18 hitters he would face while tossing just 60 pitches on the evening. Those two runs stood up as the Royals offense failed to score, going 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position and getting their only run on a Juan Carlos Negret ninth inning solo home run.

Juan Carlos Negret: 1-4 HR
Brhet Bewley: 2-2 BB, CS
Freddy Fermin: 1-3 BB

Wednesday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Samir Duenez 3-4 2R, 2b, HR, 4 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Yefri Del Rosario 6 IP 4 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 2K 6-3 GO-FO 86p/58k

Transactions – Eric Skoglund assigned to Omaha for rehab.

Lexington Legends 4 Lakewood BlueClaws 0

After earning his first win of the season last time out, starter Yefri Del Rosario turned out a quality start for the Legends. Working six innings scoreless, Del Rosario was able to scatter four hits and a walk despite just two strikeouts. Outfielder Kyle Isbel paced the Legends offense in backing the starter, scoring a run in the fourth after a single before singling in a run in the fifth and doubling in a run in the seventh to account for three of the four Legends runs. Right-hander Janser Lara was dominant in relief with three strikeouts in two innings before Garrett Suchey tossed a scoreless ninth.

Kyle Isbel: 4-5, R, 2-2b, 2 RBI
Jeison Guzman: 2-4 K
Janser Lara: 2 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 3 K 2-2 GO-FO 31p/22k

Buies Creek Astros 4 Wilmington Blue Rocks 3

The Rocks received another quality start from Gerson Garabito on Thursday night to place his squad in good position to earn a win. For the Dominican born Garabito it was his seventh start in a row of two or fewer runs and his tenth quality start this season. After working five scoreless innings to start his night the righty ran into some troubles in the sixth, walking a pair and giving up two singles to score the run against him. The Rocks offense scored single runs in the second, fourth and eighth innings to build what looked like a big enough lead into the ninth. Unfortunately, in that ninth inning, reliever Tyler Zuber couldn’t keep the opponent off the board, loading the bases and giving up a walk-off bases-clearing double to hand the Rocks a defeat.

Gerson Garabito: 6 IP 5 H 1 R 1 ER 2 BB 6 K 4-4 96p/53k
Emmanuel Rivera: 3-3 2b, RBI, BB
Gabriel Cancel: 2-5 2R, 2b, 2K

NW Arkansas Naturals 9 Springfield Cardinals 1

Six scoreless innings from Emilio Ogando and plenty of hits from the middle of the order built a large lead for the Naturals. Six hits by the 2-3-4 hitters of Samir Duenez, Kelvin Gutierrez and Kort Peterson led to the threesome scoring six of the clubs nine runs. It was Peterson’s fourth consecutive multihit game as the right fielder connected on a double and a triple to give him seven extra-base hits in those games. The Naturals starter worked around four hits and three walks while managing to keep Springfield off the scoreboard. After a three-hit night last night Duenez put three more on the board in this one, including a smash to right for his second home run since coming off the DL.

Kort Peterson: 2-4 2R, 2b, 3b, RBI, 2K
Kelvin Gutierrez: 2-3 2R, BB, SB (7)
Jecksson Flores: 2-4 2R, SB (17)

Las Vegas 51s 6 Omaha Storm Chasers 3

Things didn’t go too great in Eric Skoglund’s rehab appearance in Omaha as the left-hander gave up a pair of home runs early before being carted off late. Former Royals infielder Christian Colon hit the first home run in the second inning before Bryce Brentz followed with a two-run shot that same inning. After a scoreless third, the left-hander tried to retrieve a bunt single, twisting his ankle in the process to the point where he needed to be carted off. After Skoglund was forced out, Josh Staumont had to replace him, giving up a double and a sac fly to allow two runs in. The Chasers offense scored three runs but couldn’t come all the way back with six hits on the night.

Frank Schwindel: 1-4 R, 2b, 3K
Cam Gallagher: 0-2 2BB, K
Elier Hernandez: 1-4 K

Pulaski Yankees 13 Burlington Royals 7

A difficult pitching night for the Royals as three different pitchers gave up multiple runs. Starter Yerelmy Garcia coming off an outstanding start last time out was knocked around for a pair of home runs and five runs total in five innings. The offense tried to keep pace, connecting on 13 hits including three from Freddy Fermin and Rafael Romero but the squad went just 4 for 18 with runners in scoring position to be limited to the seven runs in the loss.

Eric Cole: 1-3 R, 3 BB
Juan Carlos Negret: 0-3 RBI, BB, 2K
Jose Marquez: 2-5 R, RBI, 2K

Grand Junction Rockies 8 Idaho Falls Chukars 6

The Chukars grabbed an early lead in this one with a pair of first inning runs on Jose Caraballo’s double. From there the club attempted to hang onto the lead, getting five innings of four run ball by Connor Mayes. The Chukars held a 6-4 lead after an insurance run in the seventh as the team collected 13 hits including four doubles but that would not be enough as the defense and reliever Jaret Hellinger struggled in the ninth. The left-handed reliever gave up three hits, a walk and the defense and shortstop Offerman Collado committed a fielding error as part of a four run inning that would put the Chukars behind by two runs and ultimately hand them the loss.

Nathan Eaton: 2-5 R, 2b, 2 RBI
Jose Caraballo: 2-4 R, 2b, 2 RBI, BB
Daniel Duarte: 3 IP 3 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K 5-1 GO-FO 24p/13k

Thursday Boxscores

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Manny Olloque 4-5 2-2b, HR, 3 RBI

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Austin Cox 5 IP 3 H 1 R 1 ER 0 BB 9 K 2-3 GO-FO 75p/52k

Greensboro Grasshoppers 11 Lexington Legends 10 F/11

The Legends built a big lead and received a quality start from young Yefri Del Rosario but the bullpen was unable to hang on to the lead in an extra-innings loss. The two teams slugged five home runs in the first five innings of this one with Manny Olloque breaking up the scoreless tie in the second with a three-run home run. Following a pair of solo efforts by Greensboro in the third inning, the Legends countered with a pair of home runs by Seuly Matias and Sebastian Rivero during a five-run inning that gave Lexington an 8-2 lead. That lead was built thanks to Del Rosario’s best outing since joining the club as the right-hander tossed six innings with the two solo home runs allowed among his five hits while striking out eight with just one walk. The bullpen of Collin Snider and Tad Ratliff couldn’t match Yefri’s outing with the two pitchers giving up six runs over the final two innings to send the game into extras. In the tenth, the two teams exchanged two runs innings before Greensboro scored a run in the eleventh that Lexington couldn’t counter in the loss.

Seuly Matias: 2-6 HR, 2K
Brewer Hicklen: 1-4 R, 2b, 2 RBI, BB
Yefri Del Rosario: 6 IP 5 H 2 R 2 ER 1 BB 8 K 2-4 GO-FO 84p/59k

Lynchburg Hillcats 4 Wilmington Blue Rocks 0

The Wilmington lineup was dominated by the Indians Eli Morgan as the Indians right-hander spun six innings of three hit ball while striking out 10 hitters. Wilmington starter Ofreidy Gomez kept pace with five shutout innings before a four run sixth handed him and his team a loss. Three consecutive singles started that frame before a bases loaded walk and a throwing error by Emmanuel Rivera opened the door to the multiple run inning. The Rocks failed to threaten the rest of the way in defeat.

Gabe Cancel: 0-4 3K
Emmanuel Rivera: 0-4 2K
Blake Perkins: 1-3 SB, Sac

Corpus Christi Hooks 9 NW Arkansas Naturals 2

The Naturals and Foster Griffin jumped out to a 2-0 lead through four and a half innings with an Alex Liddi solo home run and an RBI groundout in the fifth. Unfortunately, the lefty who fought his control most of the outing walked a pair before a single and a two out bases loaded double put him in a position to lose. The Astros Double-A squad piled on from there scoring six runs over the next three innings off the NW Arkansas pen to put the game away.

Foster Griffin: 4.2 IP 4 H 3 R 3 ER 5 BB 8 K 0-5 GO-FO 105p/58k
Khalil Lee: 0-4 K
Elier Hernandez: 1-4

Memphis Redbirds 4 Omaha Storm Chasers 3

With Glenn Sparkman in Kansas City, the Chasers were forced to use a bullpen start for another game. Each team collected nine hits, each of which had two with runners in scoring position, but Memphis did a tad more with their hits. The Cardinals Triple-A squad doubled in a run in the first inning before getting a run scoring single in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead. After the Lopez’s, Jack and Nicky, drove in runs with singles in the second inning the teams remained tied until the sixth. In that frame, Josh Staumont gave up a solo home run and a one-out double that was converted into a run with a hit later in the inning gave Memphis a 4-2 lead. The Chasers got within a run with a Billy Burns solo home run and twice put runners in scoring position over the final two innings but failed to push them across in the loss.

Billy Burns: 2-4 HR, BB
Frank Schwindel: 1-4
Nicky Lopez: 1-5 2K

Burlington Royals 4 Greeneville Reds 2

The Royals 5th Round pick, Austin Cox continued his stellar start in Rookie ball despite failing to earn a decision. The lefty worked four perfect innings to start before three singles fell in during the fifth inning to break up his 10.2 innings scoreless streak. Despite that one run, Cox ended his day with 14 swinging strikes among his 52 strikes thrown while striking out nine in that time. The Royals loaded the bases in the sixth, getting a hit by a pitch and a walk to score two runs prior to a pair of runs scoring hits in the seventh to build a 4-1 lead that was enough to earn the win.

Rhett Aplin: 1-3 2R, 2BB
Brhet Bewley: 1-1 3BB, 2 SB
Marlin Willis: 2.2 IP 1 H 1 R 1 ER 2 BB 1 K 5-0 GO-FO 37p/18k

Orem Owls 7 Idaho Falls Chukars 5

Idaho Falls pitchers Jon Heasley and Domingo Pena couldn’t hang on to a 4-1 lead that the offense had handed them, giving up three in the fifth to tie the game before allowing three more in the loss. The Idaho Falls offense had plenty of opportunities with seven hits and six walks but went scoreless from the fourth through eighth innings to fall behind.

Kyle Isbel: 2-3 2 RBI, BB
Reed Rohlman: 2-4 R, 3b, RBI
Jon Heasley: 4.1 IP 5 H 3 R 2 ER 1 BB 5 K

Sunday Boxscores

Monday Probables
NW Arkansas – TBD
Wilmington – Gerson Garabito 3-6 4.05 ERA 1.45 WHIP
Lexington – Carlos Hernandez 5-3 3.76 ERA 1.20 WHIP
Burlington – Elvis Luciano 0-3 8.25 ERA 1.75 WHIP
Suprise – Angel Zerpa 1-2 3.77 ERA 1.05 WHIP

BPKC Hitter of the Day: Rosell Herrera 2-4 2R, 2b, RBI, SB (4)

BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Richard Lovelady 2 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 3 K 1-1 GO-FO 30p/20k

Columbia Fireflies 9 Lexington Legends 4

The Legends bats had trouble making contact on Thursday while their starter had difficulty hitting the strikezone. Starter Yefri Del Rosario in his second start with the squad walked four hitters while giving up four runs while the defense struggled behind him, allowing seven (3 ER) runs to cross against him. With Del Rosario walking hitters and the defense giving up extra outs the Legends hitters were struggling to make contact, striking out fifteen times in the game while losing an early lead and failing to score during the final six innings.

Nick Pratto: 2-4 R, BB, SB (9)
Seuly Matias: 2-5 R, 2B
Cristian Perez: 3-4 RBI, 2E, hitting .388 with a 16 game hitting streak

Winston-Salem Dash 8 Wilmington Blue Rocks 2

One of the White Sox top pitching prospects kept the Wilmington offense in check while the Wilmington pitching staff couldn’t do the same. Right-handed Dylan Cease yielded just five hits against the Rocks with Nick Heath coming up with three of those. With a fastball that can touch 99 mph, it was the groundball contact that impressed the most with 12 groundouts created along with four strikeouts in his eight-inning performance while allowing just two runs. Wilmington’s starter Ofreidy Gomez gave up six runs in five innings (5 ER) with three free passes and five hits allowed including a big two-run blast to Yermin Mercedes. The game got away from the Rocks during a three-run fifth that put Wilmington behind 6-1.

Khalil Lee: 0-4 RBI, K
D.J. Burt: 1-3 RBI
Nick Heath: 3-4 R, K, SB (14)

Tulsa Drillers 5 NW Arkansas Naturals 2

The Naturals offense was limited to just five hits by Tulsa pitching while the Drillers used a three run fourth to take command of the game. After exchanging runs in the first inning, Alex Liddi’s fourth inning home run gave the Naturals a brief lead. The Drillers quickly countered in the home half of the inning with four extra base hits off Pedro Fernandez to plate three runs. From there the Naturals went down in order, hitting in a pair of double plays to eliminate the only two baserunners they had. The loss moved them back into a tie with Arkansas for first place with Springfield sitting a game back and Tulsa just two back with four to play in the first half.

Nicky Lopez: 1-4
Elier Hernandez: 1-4 RBI
Erick Mejia: 1-3 R

Omaha Storm Chasers 5 Tacoma Rainiers 3

Three players who have made appearances in the majors already paced the Chasers offense for a win. Newcomer Rosell Herrera reached base three times, scoring two runs when Jorge Bonifacio drove him in with a pair of hits. It was Bonifacio who was driven in during a three run fifth inning by Cam Gallagher who also drove in another run late with a safety squeeze. The five runs were enough as Heath Fillmyer gave up three runs in his six innings and the bullpen tossed the final three innings scoreless with Richard Lovelady tossing two scoreless in the win.

Adalberto Mondesi: 0-4 RBI, K
Jorge Bonifacio: 2-4 R, 2b, 2 RBI
Heath Fillmyer: 6 IP 5 H 3 R 3 ER 3 BB 4 K 6-3 GO-FO 93p/54k

Thursday Boxscores

Friday Probables
Omaha – Josh Staumont 1-1 1.59 ERA 1.35 WHIP
NW Arkansas – TBA
Wilmington – Gerson Garabito 2-5 4.35 ERA 1.52 WHIP
Lexington – TBA
Idaho Falls – TBA

BPKC Hitter of the Day Frank Schwindel 3-4 3R, HR, 3 RBI, BB

BPKC Pitcher of the Day Josh Staumont 4.2 IP 5 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 5 K 4-2 GO-FO 75p/48k

Game 1 Lexington Legends 4 Asheville Tourists 3
Game 2 Asheville Tourists 2 Lexington Legends 1

In game one the Legends shortstop Cristian Perez singled in a pair in the fourth inning as part of a three-run frame to take a 3-0 advantage. The nineteenth home run of the season by Seuly Matias came two innings later to go up 4-0 before a couple unearned runs came across on Andres Sotillet cut the lead in half. Closer Tyler Zuber gave up a run but held on for the win to snap Lexington’s three-game losing streak.

In the second game the player the Royals acquired after the Braves international cheating scandal, Yefri Del Rosario took the mound for his first time with the organization. The hard-throwing Latin product was on his game early, throwing four scoreless with six strikeouts in that time before yielding back to back solo home runs in the fifth to fall behind 2-0. The Legends offense was put on ice until the seventh and last inning when Perez doubled and scored before Matias struckout to end the game.

Seuly Matias 1-5 2R, HR, 4K, BB
Yefri Del Rosario 5 Ip 5 H 2 R 2 ER 1 BB 6 K 4-2 GO-FO 70p/47k
Cristian Perez 3-6 R, 2b, 2 RBI, CS (3)

Frederick Keys 3 Wilmington Blue Rocks 2

The Keys stopped Wilmington’s six-game win streak after limiting them to a 1 for 8 effort with runners in scoring position on Friday night. The Orioles High-A squad got after starter Ofreidy Gomez for three runs in the first three innings, collecting six hits off Gomez in that time. The right-hander was able to navigate his final four innings without allowing another run to give Wilmington a quality start. Wilmington’s only two runs came in the seventh on back to back doubles by Xavier Fernandez and Chase Vallot but the squad could muster nothing else in the loss.

Khalil Lee 1-4 E (4)
DJ Burt 1-4 SB (16)
Ofreidy Gomez 7 IP 9 H 3 ER 3 BB 3 K 10-3 GO-FO 98p/58k

NW Arkansas Naturals 7 Springfield Cardinals 6

The Naturals Scott Blewett gave up plenty of hits, ten, in his time on the hill but the offense backed him up to take a win against Springfield. The big right-hander fell behind in the first inning when he allowed four hits to the first five batters, allowing two Cardinals runs in the frame. The lead stood at 3-1 into the sixth when the NW Arkansas offense got a jolt from Jecksson Flores rbi double. A Nick Dini single tied it up and John Brontsema’s second home run of the season quickly gave the Naturals their first lead of the game. Infield Nicky Lopez drove in another run in the inning after Donnie Dewees had triple to push the lead to 6-3. After Blewett tossed a scoreless seventh prior to his battery partner, Luis Villegas homering to add to the lead before Blewett gave up a home run after starting the eighth with a pair of outs. Reliever Sam Selman failed to get an out against the three batters he faced which cut the advantage to two but closer Jake Newberry got out of the jam and finished the game without allowing the Cardinals to tie it despite giving up a run on three hits in the ninth.

Nicky Lopez 2-4 2 RBI
Donnie Dewees 3-5 R, 3b
Scott Blewett 7.2 IP 10 H 4 R 4 ER 0 BB 5 K 9-5 GO-FO 95p/69k

Omaha Storm Chasers 16 Albuquerque Isotopes 5

The Chasers used nine free passes to have a big scoring night in Omaha. In the early going it was Frank Schwindel pacing the offense, scoring Adalberto Mondesi with an infield single in the first before hitting a two-run home run in the third to help Omaha build a 5-0 lead. Later in the game infielder, Humberto Arteaga was doing the damage with a rbi double in the seventh and a three-run home run in the eighth inning as the Chasers put together four different multiple run innings in the sixteen run explosion. Starter Josh Staumont, still stretching out, gave the Chasers four and two-thirds innings of scoreless ball while he navigated five hits with five strikeouts and just one free pass.

Adalberto Mondesi 0-3 2R, 2 SB, 2 BB
Humberto Arteaga 2-4 R, HR, 2b, 4 RBI
Ryan O’Hearn 1-2 2R, 3 RBI, 2 BB

Friday Boxscores

This week, Jeff returned at 100% and we covered a little bit of the offseason action that’s happened in the last week. The Royals signed two pitchers: Wily Peralta and minor leaguer Yefri Del Rosario. What were our first impressions? Just so happens that we tell you in the first half of the show!

Then, as promised, we each picked three free agent targets for 2018 and why we chose those guys over other potential options. We tried to stay pretty realistic to what would be possible for the Royals, but there’s always room to dream a little.

Subscribe to the podcast via iTunes and BlogTalkRadio. You can also download this episode here (mp3).

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to KansasCityBaseballVault@gmail.com. Email us a question and if we answer it on the air, we’ll send you a gift certificate to our friends at Kelly’s Westport Inn.