Royals August 23rd Minors Recap

Omaha busted out in a big way on Thursday night, as they beat New Orleans, 11-1. The Storm Chasers offense picked up 11 hits and went 5-for-13 with runners in scoring position.

Mitch Maier went 3-for-4 and Wil Myers hit his 22nd homerun in Triple-A. Rey Navarro and Adam Moore went a combined 4-for-8 with six RBIs.

Ryan Verdugo was the beneficiary of all that offense, as he picked up his 12th win of the season. He allowed a run on five hits and two walks over six innings while striking out five.

NW Arkansas couldn’t close out a victory, as they lost to Springfield, 12-8. They led 8-2 through five innings. It got so bad that backup catcher Ryan Jenkins had to enter to finish the game for the Naturals.

Leadoff hitter Yem Prades continues to impress, as he went 4-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored, and three RBIs.

Wilmington fell into second place, as they lost their finale in Frederick, 6-5. The Blue Rocks lost 4-of-5 in Frederick, fell 1/2 game behind the Keys for first place, and are now just one game ahead of Lynchburg (who they play over the next three days).

The Keys walked off. With one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th inning, Glynn Davis singled to shortstop, but the throw was bad and two runs scored to set off the celebration. That was the second error of the inning for the Blue Rocks.

Brett Eibner struck out two more times to increase his total to 158, one off the Blue Rocks single season record set back in 2001. His strikeouts lead the Carolina League. He is in an 0-for-21 drought with ten strikeouts. He has the fourth worst batting average in full season minor league baseball (.193).

Kane County lost to Quad Cities, 2-0. The Cougars collected just three hits, two from Justin Trapp. He also stole his 22nd base of the season.

Kyle Smith was the hard luck loser, as he allowed two runs on eight hits over six innings. He struck out five and did not walk a batter.

Bubba Watch: The Appalachian League named its All-Stars on Thursday and four Burlington representatives were on the list. Tommy Shields was named Manager of the Year. Three players were named All-Stars: Patrick Leonard (3B), Bubba Starling (UT OF), and Mark Threlkeld (DH).

Speaking of Starling, he went 0-for-1 with a run scored and three walks in the Royals 6-3 victory.