While the Royals lost their game to the Colorado Rockies today, there were a lot of items floating around off the field of interest.

The most fun announcement was the listing of potential nominees for the Royals Hall of Fame. Some of the names are to be expected: John Wathan, Kevin Seitzer, Darrell Porter, Jermaine Dye, Bo Jackson. Some, though, wouldn’t be the first, second or twentieth choice to represent the best in Royals history. Players like Jimmy Gobble, Emil Brown and Runelvys Hernandez met the criteria to be on the ballot for nomination.

Really, all it takes is to have been a Royal for three years and reach either 1500 plate appearances or 150 innings pitched. I don’t imagine that anyone really would think that Gobble, Brown or Hernandez should be in the Royals Hall of Fame. Nonetheless, Twitter has taken over and turned Gobble into a favorite, while other names have been suggested (with tongue planted in digital cheek). You can vote for yourself here.

The Royals handed out organizational awards today. Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi, both of whom were traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for James Shields and Wade Davis, earned Royals Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Year Awards for their 2012 seasons. Alex McClure won the Mike Sweeney Award for his community service, Terrance Gore won the Willie Wilson Award as the top baserunner in the organization, and Brett Eibner won the Frank White Award for best defense.

Speaking of Eibner, he’s set to land in Northwest Arkansas after spending last year in High A Wilmington. Maybe moving from the cavernous Frawley Stadium to cozy Arvest Ballpark will help him. He has good power when he makes contact. Unfortunately, he struck out 165 times in 120 games last year. He’s got to make the adjustments and make better contact to keep rising. The Royals like his tools according to comments J.J. Piccolo made to Bob Dutton at the Kansas City Star.

Some other probable assignments include:

• Shortstop Adalberto Mondesi, outfielder Bubba Starling, and infielder (he’ll likely play second alongside Mondesi, according to Dutton) Humberto Arteaga to Lexington in the Low A South Atlantic League. Pitcher Miguel Almonte should be there, too.
• Pitcher Kyle Zimmer and shortstop Jack Lopez to High A Wilmington
• Shortstop Orlando Calixte to Double A Northwest Arkansas along with pitcher Jason Adam
• Left-handed pitcher Sam Selman may start in Lexington or Wilmington.

The group of shortstops are a nice luxury for the Royals, who’ve usually had trouble stocking the position. Zimmer is likely to land in Double A before too long and Almonte is an intriguing prospect who burst onto the scene last year.

Mar 15, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; United States first baseman Eric Hosmer (35) reacts in the eighth inning during the World Baseball Classic against the Puerto Rico at Marlins Park. Puerto won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Eric Hosmer said he saw more curveballs in the World Baseball Classic than he had in spring training. Before the WBC, he was raking but ran into a speed bump during the tournament. Looking over his WBC at bats, he was pitched backward to a lot, seeing breaking balls and offspeed pitches earlier in counts and he showed impatience at times. He hit the ball hard in most of his at bats though, hitting most of his balls towards the left side or centerfield (16 of 19 put into play). Last year, many of his bad at bats ended with feeble groundouts to second base as he tried to pull everything. It’s a small sample size and a unique context, and I’m not sure as many fans would be panicking if he’d gotten two hard shots through the infield. One more hit would have raised his average from .200 to .240, so each at bat had a big impact on his numbers. He can’t continue to struggle though – there’s enough reason for concern after last year’s rough year, but I think most of the fury comes from actually seeing the at bats, rather than relying on radio calls or MLB’s Gameday as in most spring training games. We’ll see…

With the Dominican Republic’s win of the WBC Championship, Kelvin Herrera, Miguel Tejada, Atahualpa Severino and Irving Falu will join the Royals in Surprise. Tejada made a highlight catch in the final game, but landed hard on his hip. There hasn’t been any indication of an injury, however.

via Jen Nevius

Many scouts believed Eibner would take off as a pitcher once he focused solely on pitching after being drafted out of Arkansas, where he was a two-way player. He wanted to hit, so the Royals have catered to that.

But how long will the Royals allow him to hit?

Eibner is a very good centerfielder. His arm is his best tool and I had a chance to see him show it off many times during the 2012 season while he played centerfield for High-A Wilmington.

The problem is, his offense leads A LOT to be desired. Eibner had one of the worst offensive seasons in minor league baseball. He hit just .196 in 120 games and struck out a whopping 165 times (over 423 at-bats). He did walk 57 times, but regularly took good pitches, putting himself into an 0-2 hole. I saw quite a few Blue Rocks games in 2012 (18 total) and there was only one game where he did not strike out.

The power is there, as he homered 15 times and doubled 26 times in a pitchers’ league and pitchers’ ballpark. However, he constantly tries to hit the ball in the air. That doesn’t work well at Frawley Stadium, where the ball does not carry.

He has also spent a good amount of time on the DL over his first two seasons. He hurt his shoulder in 2011 making a diving play and re-injured it in spring training of 2012, delaying his start to the season. He also had some back issues later in the 2012 season.

MLB.com ranks Eibner as the Royals 15th best prospect. However Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star does not even rank him. Does this mean the Royals have lost hope?

I expect to see Eibner return to Wilmington for the 2013 season. I’m hoping his time in instructional league fixed some of his hitting flaws. If not, the move to the mound is imminent.

Judy Johnson is a Hall of Famer and the namesake of the field at Frawley Stadium. His statue stands outside the ballpark. He was a key member to some of the best teams in Negro League history. You can find out more about Johnson HERE .

The thing that disappoints me is that they have dropped the ball over the years with honoring the Negro Leagues in Wilmington (just like they have in Kansas City). Back in the day, both teams used to wear Negro League uniforms (I am a sucker for old school uniforms). Then their game worn hats would be auctioned off to support the Negro Leagues. They do have auctions going on throughout the concourse of autographed memorabilia tonight (which are drawing some crowds).

This year is no different. It is also Star Wars Night, with Star Wars characters set to be in attendance. It seems as if the promotional team is more interested in pushing that than the history of the Negro Leagues and Judy Johnson.

Anyway, to the game (and enough of my rambling).

First half Northern Division champion Lynchburg (the High-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves) is in town and the Hillcats are 2.5 games back of the Blue Rocks in the second half standings. The Blue Rocks have taken the first two games of the four-game series, as the pitchers have allowed just two runs to the Hillcats. In Game 1, the Blue Rocks won 2-1 and walked off on a bases loaded walk in the bottom of the 10^th inning. In Game 2, the Blue Rocks scored ten runs in the bottom of the 2^nd inning and rode the arm of Matt Ridings to another victory.

Taking the mound for the Blue Rocks tonight is Brooks Pounders, who the Royals acquired this past offseason from the Pittsburgh Pirates. Despite the fact that Pounders has been with Wilmington since June, this will be the first time I will be seeing him pitch. With the Blue Rocks, he is 5-4 with a 4.83 ERA in 13 games (12 starts). He has allowed more hits (74) than innings pitched (63.1). His last start at Potomac was a great one: 7IP, 4H, 1R, 0ER, 0BB, 5K.

The Hillcats will be sending Dimasther Delgado to the mound. Overall he is 6-6 with a 4.35 ERA in 20 starts. He, like Pounders, allows more hits than innings pitched (125 hits in 107.2 innings). Delgado faced the Blue Rocks in back-to-back-starts (June 29 and July 5) and allowed three runs in each game.

Lineups:

HILLCATS: Mycal Jones (CF), Nick Ahmed (SS), Dan Brewer (LF), Chris Garcia (1B), Edward Salcedo (3B), Adam Milligan (RF), David Rohm (DH), Emerson Landoni (2B), and Chad Comer (C).

BLUE ROCKS: Orlando Calixte (SS), Brett Eibner (CF), Lane Adams (RF), Matt Fields (1B), Cheslor Cuthbert (3B), Nick Van Stratten (DH), Geulin Beltre (LF), Juan Graterol (C), and Luis Piterson (2B).

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Feb 24, 2011; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Ryan Verdugo (76) throws during spring training at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

Omaha has won nine row, with a 4-2 victory at Nashville. The Storm Chasers went just 1-for-10. Wil Myers hit his tenth homerun with the Storm Chasers, a solo shot in the 7th inning (he drove in two runs).

Ryan Verdugo improved to 5-1, as he allowed two runs on five hits and four walks over six innings. Newly demoted Louis Coleman picked up his second save with a hitless 9th inning.

A four-run top of the 4th inning held up, as NW Arkansas ended their four-game losing streak with a 4-3 win at Springfield. Three straight one out singles by Mario Lisson (2-for-3), Rey Navarro, and Sharlon Schoop capped the Naturals scoring.

Michael Mariot picked up the win, as he allowed two runs on seven hits over five innings. He struck out six.

*Earlier in the day, the Texas League named their All-Star teams and there are quite a few Naturals on the North roster. John Whittleman (1B), Yem Prades (OF), Carlo Testa (OF), and Christian Colon (DH) were voted in as starters. Pitchers Patrick Keating and Justin Marks will also be joining them in Tulsa on June 28th.

The Wilmington Blue Rocks ended their eight-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory over Winston-Salem (who was trying to clinch the Southern Division in the Carolina League). An RBI triple by Brett Eibner with the Blue Rocks trailing in the 6th inning and a one out RBI single by Geulin Beltre with the infield in gave the Blue Rocks the lead.

Sam Runion escaped a bases loaded jam in the top of the 6th inning in relief of Jason Adam (who was hurt by two solo homeruns from Cyle Hankerd). Runion picked up the win with 2.1 hitless innings of relief.

Check out the video below of Blue Rocks manager Vance Wilson talking after the game about ending their losing streak, getting a good outing from Adam, getting some timely hits, and Eibner’s ability to run like a deer:

Kane County lost their second straight series (both on the road), as they lost to Quad Cities, 4-3. The River Bandits scored three runs in the bottom of the 7th inning to take the lead that they would not relinquish. The Cougars now return home to play Cedar Rapids for three games to finish the first half.

In the loss, Jorge Bonifacio went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Jason Mitchell took the no decision, as he allowed just one run on three hits over 5.2 innings.

The top of the order, Derrick Robinson and the rehabbing Chris Getz, went 6-for-8 with three RBIs and four runs scored. Irving Falu hit a two-run homerun in the 5th inning with two outs (he went 2-for-3). Anthony Seratelli hit his 11th homerun of the season. He has homered in three of his last four games (two straight).

That made a winner of Ryan Verdugo, who was recently sent back to Omaha from the big leagues (where he didn’t pitch). He allowed two unearned runs on four hits and three walks over six innings. He struck out four.

NW Arkansas has now won seven in a row with a win against Arkansas, 6-4 on Saturday night. They moved into first place in the Texas League’s North Division (as Tulsa lost again).

The Naturals scored four runs in the first inning on three hits, three walks, a passed ball, and a sac bunt. The big first inning held up, as Ryan Dennick picked up his first save in Double-A (3IP, 2H, 1R, 0BB, 3K).

Jason Adam

The Wilmington Blue Rocks dropped to third place in the Carolina League’s Northern Division (four games back) with about a week to go in the first half. They lost at Winston-Salem, 7-2. Jason Adam fell to 1-9 on the season, as he was bit by the long ball. He allowed three homeruns, two of which were the firsts of the players’ season. Adam struck out six over six innings and did not walk a batter.

Brett Eibner returned to the lineup and hit a solo homerun (his 8th of the season) and drove in the other run with a double. He also did not strike out.

Prior to the game, starter Greg Billo was placed on the DL with a stiff elbow and Brooks Pounders was promoted from Kane County.

Kane County lost the first game of their road trip, 4-1 to Peoria. Starter Scott Alexander lasted just 2/3 of an inning and allowed four runs (though only one was earned).

Jason Mitchell followed with 5.1 shutout innings of relief while striking out six. However the Cougars only collected four hits.

At this point during the rebuilding process the Royals had been drafting high picks with high upsides, capitalizing on their misfortunes in Major League standings by picking players with skills that they couldn’t normally acquire. It was one of the great traits of this Royals regime compared to the regimes of the past where standout tools actually took precedent over probability. Tools, that wouldn’t ordinarily be available to the organization in the open market, were available if they were willing to pay for them, in the draft. (more…)

He homered in his first game for Kane County – his first at bat, no less. In his second game, he dove for a fly ball and broke his thumb. The injury kept him out until June.

Once he was able to get back onto the field, Eibner’s numbers resembled those of a Three True Outcomes kind of hitter
(think Jack Cust, Adam Dunn or Mark Reynolds). He walked a lot, struck out a lot and showed good power.

Clipped from: kingsofkauffman.com (share this clip)

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I figure it’s a good time to get caught up on a few things that have been happening over the past few days.  Kila Ka’aihue is killing the ball.  Mike Aviles is looking like 2008 was the real deal, and Alex Gordon…well he’s walking a lot, at least.

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It’s significant because a few big-time prospects will get a taste of major league spring training action.  With all the talk about prospects all winter, getting a chance to see some of them (at least in the boxscore in my case) who weren’t original invitees is exciting.

The notable additions to today’s lineups are:

Today vs. Arizona:

• Wil Myers
• Christian Colon
• Kurt Mertins
• Geulin Beltre
• Tim Smith
• Paulo Orlando

Tonight vs. San Diego:

• Brett Eibner
• Nick Francis
• Jamie Romak
• Rey Navarro
• Alex McClure
• Adrian Ortiz

As David Holtzman points out, all ten of the Royals top prospects are in camp today and could end up in games.  Maybe they’ll only get an at bat or two, or just be defensive replacements, but if Myers goes yard or Colon has a solid at bat, or Eibner hits a 450-foot bomb, it’s just going to ratchet up the acclaim the prospects have already received this offseason.

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I set out with the goal of covering our full list of 25 prospects here at Kings of Kauffman this month and ended up finishing with our number one prospect Eric Hosmer on Sunday.

You can view the entire list of 25 (with an honorable mention) along with profiles on our 2011 Prospect Rankings page.

I also wanted to look at the way our rankings break down.  As I compiled the list and wrote about each player, I noticed a few trends that I found interesting and also thought it’d be a good idea to look at the balance of the rankings.

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Rankings:
~ Baseball America: #10
~ Royals Prospects: #9
~ Royals Review: #12
~ Kevin Goldstein: #14
~ John Sickels: #10 B
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We knew that was coming back around July.

But Jim Callis responded to an interesting question, and his answer was surprising. Not in a bad way but more in that “Wow. I…can’t believe I hadn’t noticed that before” way.

First, the question itself:

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Crediting a “willingness to spend large amounts of money in the draft and a solid player-development system” the Royals enjoy the deepest and most talented minor league system in baseball.  This distinction was one that Royals fans who follow the minors has been expecting since somewhere around May or June, but the validation feels good, doesn’t it?

In what must have been a difficult decision, Eric Hosmer was selected as the top prospect in the Royals system.
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UPDATE: Bob Dutton reports a few details: The deal contains a $2.75 million signing bonus, and is not a Major League contract, so he will not be on the 40 man roster.
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The newest signings are (by round):
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