The Royals had been mum about his condition at first, but he’s since headed back to Kansas City for an MRI and the early prognosis is that he’ll be ready for a return in 2-to-4 weeks. High ankle sprains can be tricky, and the Royals don’t want Dyson to rush back and re-injure himself. Dyson, at least, is in good spirits:

Thanks everyone for the love, mrzoombiya will be ok and will have a healthy return soon, I want to wish my team the best of luck on the road

— JarrodDyson (@mrzoombiya) May 17, 2013

David Lough filled in fine in his first game back in the big leagues, going 2-4 with the Royals only RBI and he offered an outfield assist on a Brandon Moss double attempt. If the Royals are going to continue to split time between Jeff Francoeur and a left-handed bat, Lough’s first game is at least encouraging.

Jorge Bonifacio with Wilmington in their 2013 home opener (Jen Nevius).

Speaking of right field, key Royals prospect Jorge Bonifacio will be on the shelf for 6-to-8 weeks with a broken bone in his hand. That pauses what was turning into a big season in High A Wilmington, as Bonifacio – ranked sixth among Royals prospects by Baseball America – had a .325/.404/.452 line in 34 games in the Carolina League. With Wil Myers traded and Bubba Starling a level lower and struggling, he’s the next impact outfield prospect the Royals have (or was prior to the injury).

Bonifacio turns 20 years old next month, so the injury doesn’t throw him way off track, but a you still want a top prospect to be on the field rather than recuperating. He’s got an advanced approach for his age and makes good contact. With a few mechanical tweaks, he may turn into a bigger power hitter, as well.

Finally, the only other two Kansas City Royals on the disabled list aside from Dyson are Danny Duffy and Felipe Paulino. Both are on the rehab track after Tommy John surgery last summer.

Duffy recently threw a four inning simulated game on May 16th and continues to do other workouts. Paulino threw a three inning game on the 17th and a four inning game is his next step. It also appears that both pitchers are going on a normal rest schedule to get in line with a regular starting schedule. Duffy’s surgery occurred on June 13th. Paulino’s was on July 3rd. Typically, it’s at least 11 months for a pitcher to come back to regular game action after tearing their UCL. Duffy’s velocity was back into the mid-90s earlier this month, so he may not miss a beat when he comes back.

Cougars first base coach Julio Bruno with Jorge Bonifacio (Craig Wieczorkiewicz/Midwest League Traveler)

With his power, Bonifacio projects as a solid outfielder in right field (he made just four errors in 183 chances in 2012). He also has an above-average arm (14 assists in 2012). His worst tool is his speed, unlike his brother.

Baseball America also placed him in their Midwest League Top 20 Prospects list. He came in at number 13. Bonifacio was the Cougars player of the year, an honor he also took in 2011 in Burlington and 2010 in the Dominican.

According to BA when ranking him as a Midwest League prospect:

An aggressive hitter who swings early in the count, Bonifacio focuses on using the opposite field. His quick wrists give him bat speed, and he likes to stay inside the ball. There’s some violence and length to his swing, but he still controls the barrel well and could have plus power down the road.

Bonifacio is currently playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic, but has received just one at-bat over three games.

John Sickels of SBNation wrote about Bonifacio back in July (including video) and believes he is just getting better.

Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star ranks Bonifacio as the Royals number eight prospect and believes he could be good enough to force Wil Myers out of right field. MLB.com ranks him as the Royals 16th prospect.

Some names aren’t mentioned very often. Some are the first you’d think of among Royals farmhands.

In Omaha, Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi were named Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively, to nobody’s surprise. Both await their callups – though they may be waiting until next season.

The Royals first pick in 2010, Christian Colon, won Player of the Year for Northwest Arkansas following up on a disappointing 2011. He spent some time on the disabled list at Double A, and again after being promoted to Triple A after fouling a pitch off that came back and hit him in the face. He’d hit .301/.376/.413 across all levels.

Michael Mariot, who was recently promoted to Triple A, was named the Pitcher of the Year at for the Naturals. He’s a right-handed pitcher who the Royals took in the 8th round in 2010 and has consistent numbers since joining the organization. He threw 113.2 innings in Double A this year with an ERA of 3.40 with a 1.240 WHIP.

Yordano Ventura is a rising prospect in the system. After striking out 98 batters in 76.1 innings for Wilmington and accumulating a 3.40 ERA, he was promoted to Double A, where he’s been since mid-July. He’s the High A level’s Pitcher of the Year, though a case could be made for Jason Adam (3.61 in 152 IP), though he wasn’t as dominant as Ventura.

Whit Merrifield, who was recently tabbed as one of the Royals Fall League players, is the Blue Rocks Player of the Year.

At Kane County, Angel Baez put up a 3.17 ERA in 96.2 innings. He’s a tall righty from the Dominican Republic who signed in 2008. He’s also the Cougars Pitcher of the Year. You can check out a scouting report here.

One of the prospects expected to break out this year, Jorge Bonifacio followed up winning Player of the Year in the Dominican Summer League in 2010 and last year’s Burlington Player of the Year. He hit .282/.336/.432 as a 19-year-old outfielder. Along with that, he hit ten homers, 20 doubles and six triples in 448 plate appearances. He’s an easy top ten prospect next year.

A couple of 2012 draftees earned the Idaho Falls Chukars distinctions. Ethan Chapman is the Player of the Year after a .313/.384/.409 line in 62 games in the short season league. The Royals second round pick, Sam Selman, ran away with the Pitcher of the Year honor. In all 12 appearances, the lefty has struck out more batters than innings pitched, totalling 84 in 55.1 innings since turning pro. He has a 2.11 ERA and is sure to be put at a more challenging level next season.

Colin Rodgers was the Royals third round pick in 2012. He’s also Burlington’s Pitcher of the Year as an 18-year-old after a 2.05 ERA in 48.1 innings. He didn’t strike out a lot (4.7 K/9) but batters couldn’t make good contact off of him (.226 batting average against).

Bubba Starling was the Player of the Year for Burlington after a promising first pro season. He had 10 homers in 53 games and finished the regular season with a .275/.371/.485 line and a big reason why the B-Town Bomb Squad is playing for the Appalachian League championship.

The Surprise (AZ) Royals named Matt Tenuta the Pitcher of the Year. He’s a 25th round pick from this year’s draft who didn’t have amazing numbers, but he only allowed one homer in 39.1 innings pitched. The AZL Royals also named Alexis Rivera the Player of the Year. He turned 18 in June, then went and hit .341/.413/.477 in his first pro league over 206 plate appearances. He’s 6’2″ and 225 pounds and could be an impact prospect in a couple of seasons.

Finally, the Dominican League’s Pitcher of the Year was Miguel Almonte, who was dominant over 50 innings of work, striking out 46 batters and walking only eight in the DSL. He threw another 27 innings and struck out 28, walking just five. Overall, he had a 1.75 ERA after both levels, with a 74/13 K/BB ratio.

The Player of the Year is Wander Franco, who won’t even be 18 years old until December. In 66 games, he drove in 38 runs, scored 44 of his own and had 21 extra base hits.

Some names are familiar, and some you may just be learning, but there were some impressive performances over the minor league season across all levels of the organization. Most of these players will be moved up a level next season. Some will move higher on prospect rankings, and hopefully, the strong performance continues. Selman could use a challenge, as he outmatched the Pioneer League. Bonifacio was a trendy breakout pick last year and didn’t disappoint. Rodgers jumped right into pro ball out of high school and had no problems at all.

Kyle Zimmer is one of many young Royals players with promise.

The Royals are a cushy 1000 games out of first in the AL Central. They’ve been injured, ineffective, and impotent. I feel safe in predicting that they will not make the playoffs for the 26th straight season (not counting 1994).

So, as is the custom with Royals fans, it’s time to once again turn our gaze to the future. With that in mind, I give you five Royals low minor leaguers I’m particularly excited about. Some of them you probably know a lot about. Some of them, maybe not so much. But lately I’ve taken solace tracking their progress to let hope spring eternal in my badly wounded heart. I hope you can do the same.

*These are in no particular order. I just write them as they enter my lunatic mind.

1. Kyle Zimmer - SP

He was recently promoted to Kane County after pitching 10 innings in the Arizona Rookie League. In those 10 innings he gave up one run, struck out 13 and walked zero. That’s right, he hasn’t walked anyone. This type of domination is to be expected from a guy who was facing good college talent very recently and performing well against that talent.

Zimmer excites me so much for a few reasons. He has a very smooth, easy delivery, which could point to his ability to throw upwards of 200 innings a season. He has incredible polish for a guy who’s only been pitching for roughly two seasons. He doesn’t turn 21 until September. And everyone talks about what a great athlete he is, which is a big plus for a number of reasons, including his ability to stay healthy, a problem the Royals have dealt with too much this year.

Zimmer should blow away the Midwest League. His first real challenge will come when he hits Wilmington, but many Royals have found success in Wilmington because it’s a pitcher friendly league. I hope the Royals aren’t too cautious with him and prevent him from making the leap from low A to high A this season if he shows he can handle it.

2. Kyle Smith - SP

Two Kyle’s on the list. This Kyle isn’t quite the flamethrower the other Kyle is, but he’s showing he can deal at low A Kane County. In 28.2 innings, he’s got 39 strikeouts; that’s 12.4 K/9. His ERA is 3.77, which is really good but doesn’t necessarily drop jaws. This could be due to a high number of hits given up (27), which may be due to a small sample size or the free swinging nature of low minors hitters.

Smith is a strikeout pitcher. He doesn’t get too many ground balls, and right now, he walks a few too many. But if he can refine his command a little, he could be an answer to a team that desperately needs starting pitching. It will be a while before he makes it to the big leagues; he’s only 19. But it’s worth watching the box scores to see how Smith progresses.

3. Jorge Bonifacio - OF

This guys is really, really good for as little publicity as he gets. He just turned 19 in June, and like the two Kyle’s currently plays with Kane County. How talented is that team? Though young for his level, he’s hitting .296/.354/.461 with 10 home runs. That’s pretty impressive.

The question I have about Bonifacio is whether or not he’ll develop a distinguishing tool. Is he going to develop more power? Is he going to start hitting at a .330 clip? I’m not sure because I can’t tell the future. If I could I’d be slapping Warren Buffett with a stack of hundred dollar bills while drinking gold flavored chocolate milk. But we know from guys like Rany Jazerilli that players who produce while being young for their level are worth paying attention to.

4. Alexis Rivera - OF/1B

People are already talking about Rivera as a steal in this year’s draft. The Royals picked him up in the 10th round out of Puerto Rico. He just turned 18 in June, and he’s hitting at a very impressive rate in 24 games in Arizona—.411/.454/.537. He’s a big left-handed hitter at 6’2” 225 and already has seven extra base hits and seven steals.

Like many young hitters, Rivera doesn’t walk much, just nine times so far. But plate discipline is often the last thing to develop, and he’s got plenty of time. It’ll be interesting to see what kind of identity he takes on as a player, and he could end up being a good value pick for the Royals.

5. Bubba Starling - OF

I’m going to put Bubba on this list because he’s still very exciting. He just hit his fourth homerun of his career. He’s hitting .288, but the patience and power people thought might take a lot of time to develop is showing nicely. He’s got a .400 OBP and a .513 SLG.

He’s only played in 20 games so there aren’t many numbers to get too excited about. But the word on the super highway is that he takes to coaching very quickly and that his swing has transformed in a very short period of time. So far, it seems he’s been the embodiment of the type of prospect his is, showing flashes of brilliance and a lot of inconsistency; he’s struck out 27 times in those 20 games.

As usual for the Royals, the future looks pretty good. I’m going to remain optimistic, as always, but only because the alternative is pretty dark. If you have the energy, keep track of these guys. They could be the next wave of players you’re cursing and throwing things at.

The Express comeback negated the solid start from Doug Davis, who allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits over six innings. He struck out five. Tommy Hottovy then followed with two hitless innings of relief before Round Rock got to the rest of the Storm Chasers bullpen.

David Lough, Anthony Seratelli, and Derrick Robinson each picked up two hits. Tony Abreu went 3-for-6 in the loss.

NW Arkansas lost again to Springfield, this time by a score of 8-3. The Cardinals scored four runs in the first and eighth innings. Sugar Ray Marimon took the loss, as he allowed four runs on four hits (two homeruns) and two walks over five innings.

The Naturals collected six hits with Paulo Orlando and Brian Fletcher having two each. Jason Kendall started behind the plate and went 0-for-1 (he caught three innings).

Whit Merrifield

Wilmington picked up the sweep at Salem with a 4-1 victory on Sunday. Whit Merrifield led off the game with a homerun for the Blue Rocks. Matt Fields (2-for-3) hit a two-run homerun in the Blue Rocks three run 4th inning.

Brooks Pounders picked up his third Carolina League victory, as he allowed two runs on four hits and four walks over 5.2 innings.

Kane County scored four runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back en route to their 6-2 win at Dayton. Jorge Bonifacio hit the first of his two homeruns in the first inning (a three-run shot).

Aaron Brooks picked up the win, as he allowed two runs on six hits over seven innings. He struck out six. Jason Mitchell followed with two scoreless innings of relief to pick up the save (he allowed just one hit).

Bubba Watch: Bubba Starling went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts in Burlington’s 9-3 win.

They used to say that the All-Star Game itself was a chance to see players from the other league that would otherwise only match up in the World Series. With interleague play, that aspect has diminished. In the Futures Game, though, fans can see prospects they’ve likely never seen in person.

Last season, the Royals showcased their Omaha and Northwest Arkansas rosters after a home game, and for me, who can’t always travel to the minor league affiliates (in fact I’ve yet to make it to Omaha or Springdale – but I’m working on it), it was a chance to see Mike Montgomery, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Wil Myers in person for the first time on the field. It’s the same situation with the All-Star Futures Game.

With that in mind, I want to take a shot at guessing who will land on the roster for the Royals. Futures Game rosters are split into World and U.S. teams and every team gets a representative (just like the big leagues All-Star Game).

Last season, the Royals were represented by Kelvin Herrera and Myers.

This year’s candidates:

Wil Myers

By this point, what else is there to say about Myers’s season? He was mashing in Double A and he’s still socking the ball in Triple A. It doesn’t seem as if there’s a practice of non-repeat participants but that or a big league call up would be the only things preventing him from being the big name in the game. He was among the best young hitting prospects in baseball before the year. Now he’s the next big bat with callup speculation surrounding him.

Jake Odorizzi

Like Myers, questions of when Odorizzi will be called up have been swirling since he tore through Double A and impressed right away in Omaha. Rosters are generally filled with A ball and Double A players, but many Triple A players will make it in and Odorizzi has been strong and consistent all season. He’s also a name, having been ranked highly in prospect countdowns even back when he was in the Brewers organization. He’s earned the opportunity if they come calling.

Yordano Ventura

Ventura’s drawn attention since before the 2011 season, gaining praise for his high velocity and dominating performance. He was a Carolina League All Star after posting a 3.10 ERA in 61 innings for Wilmington. He’s struck out 78 batters in that span which is the sort of number that catches a lot of attention in these sorts of exhibitions. If Myers is part of the U.S. team, Ventura could jump ahead of Odorizzi as part of the World team. He has the mix of raving scouting reports, a name with some buzz connected to it, and current performance to make the team.

Sugar Ray Marimon

Marimon doesn’t have the same prospect luster that the others have, but he had a good 2011 (that was cut short by rotator cuff issues) and he’s built on it at the High A level. Like Ventura, Marimon was part of the Carolina League All-Star Game after a 2.12 ERA in 68 innings. He doesn’t have the same stuff or strikeout numbers as Ventura, so he’s a longshot to get into the game.

Jorge Bonifacio

Every year when prospect rankings come out, there’s usually one guy who everyone pegs as their big riser. Bonifacio is that guy. He’s rewarded the experts with a fine season in Low A Kane County, leading the team in OPS (and the Cougars have been hitting well as a team all year). He’s 19 years old as of two weeks ago and is showing promises of a bright future. If the roster construction dictates an outfielder on the World side, Bonifacio would be a good fit. He’s shown pretty good plate discipline by the numbers, walking a career high 7.8% of the time and cutting his strikeout rate down to 16.6% after a 36% rate in 2010 in the Arizona’s Rookie League and striking out 22.5% of the time in short season Burlington last year. The skills look to be there and he has some buzz but it may be a year early for Bonifacio.

Unlike other All-Star Games, the rosters for the Futures Game are selected by Baseball America, Major League Baseball and the 30 teams – so the status of a prospect matters as much as their performance. For that reason, fine seasons by John Whittleman in Northwest Arkansas or Edwin Carl in Low A just don’t get noticed because neither are considered impact prospects.

Wil Myers - looking to the future. Photo: Minda Haas

My guess is that Wil Myers will be named to the U.S. team. He’s just hitting too well to keep him from being a part of the exhibition. Some have suggested that the Royals are leaving Myers in Omaha to allow him to take part in the the Futures Game in front of the hometown crowd. Even if that’s the case and it’s a consideration, it can’t be much more than a small percentage of consideration. That’s my take, anyway. It’s all rendered moot if the Royals go for it and call him up.

Along with Myers, I think Ventura will be invited to take part. He can regularly hit triple digits and when he’s on, he dominates. He was among the top ten Royals prospects on many preseason lists coming into the season, so the hype is with him too. Odorizzi definitely has a case, but my guess is that those selecting rosters will try to diversify it a bit.

The Royals are likely to have two representatives no matter how they line up. All five players above have strong cases to make the team so even if Odorizzi and Myers get called up, other candidates are available to be step in.

The game itself is scheduled at 4 p.m. CST on July 8th.

July 10, 2011; Phoenix, AZ, USA; USA outfielder Wil Myers drives in a run with a ground out during the 2011 Futures Game at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-US PRESSWIRE

Wil Myers broke a 7-7 tie in the top of the 9th inning with a two-run homerun (his ninth in Triple-A), and Omaha held on for the 9-7 victory over Iowa. That made a winner of the rehabbing Everett Teaford, who blew the save as he allowed one run on four hits over three innings.

In other rehabbing news, Chris Getz played second base and went 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Salvador Perez was the DH and went 3-for-5 with three RBIs. Neither played the whole game.

Irving Falu moved to the leadoff spot and went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. He also played right field.

NW Arkanas collected just two hits, as they lost to Tulsa, 6-0. The loss dropped the Naturals into second place in the Texas League’s North Division. The Naturals had more errors (three) than hits.

Yem Prades picked up the Naturals first hit with one out in the 6th inning.

Wilmington returned home and came out flat, with poor pitching and no offense. Salem took the first game of the series, 8-0. The three Blue Rocks pitchers walked 12 with just one strikeout. The offense collected just three hits.

Following the game, Blue Rocks hitting coach Damon Hollins talked about the loss, the adjustments the team has made with all of the roster changes, and the team’s two All-Stars:

Kane County lost in walk-off fashion to host Peoria, 10-9. Jason Dooley took the loss, despite giving up just that one unearned run over 3.2 innings.

It was all offense early, as the score was tied at 9-9 after five innings. Five Cougars collected multi-hit games, with Jorge Bonifacio having the biggest day. He went 3-for-5 with a homerun and four RBIs.

April was a good month for a lot of the higher profile prospects and some less-touted players had strong performances. That’s what we’ll look at today.

Omaha Storm Chasers (17-8)

Hitter of the Month: Tony Abreu

Abreu put up a .340/.364/.491 line and drove in 17 runs. He scattered extra base hits all month, with a pair of triples and homers and six doubles. He could be an option if the Royals find themselves facing an injury at the big league level. He’s played exclusively at shortstop (save one game at DH) but he could play any infield position if necessary.

Pitcher of the Month: Nathan Adcock

In his first appearance of 2012 at the big league level, Adcock stepped in for Bruce Chen after a rough day and continued solid pitching that started in Omaha. Across four starts for the Storm Chasers, he covered 26.1 innings and gave up just four runs. He’s been difficult to hit but he hasn’t struck many batters out. His career minor league strikeout rate is 7.1 K/9 but he’s only struck out 4.8 per nine innings in one month. He held his own at the big league level as a Rule 5 pick last year so he could be a good emergency starter/long relief option, though he may not be someone with a high ceiling. That’s okay. There’s always a spot somewhere for an organizational warrior.

Northwest Arkansas Naturals (12-12)

Hitter of the Month: Wil Myers

It’s great news to have Wil Myers in the running for a monthly recognition considering the way his 2011 started. After a strong fall league performance, Myers is keeping the momentum going and then some. He’s a slugging machine and has been improving on already strong numbers. In his first 11 games, Myers struck out 18 times. In his last ten he’s only struck out seven. He has 14 extra base hits – eight doubles and six homers. Last year, he had eight homers all season in Double A. If he keeps up this pace, I’d be very surprised to see him anywhere but Omaha come mid-June if not sooner. He’s been playing some center field too, and if he can adjust to a more demanding outfield position defensively, he’ll be even more valuable as a prospect.

Pitcher of the Month: Jake Odorizzi

Another big prospect name. Odorizzi gets this nod because he’s held back by one bad outing. On April 12 he threw just .2 innings and gave up four runs. Without that start, though, his ERA would stand at 2.74. Even at his 4.18 ERA with the bad game, his FIP is a solid 2.47. He hasn’t allowed many runners – he only has a 1.14 WHIP – but they’ve scored at a high rate. Only 55.6% have been stranded. As long as Odorizzi is avoiding allowing runners, the innings will climb and the runs against will even out and he’ll look a lot better on paper. He’s struck out 29 in 23.2 innings.

Wilmington Blue Rocks (10-13)

Hitter of the Month: Angel Franco

Franco has been hanging around the Royals system for a few years after signing in 2006. His career line to this point sits at .271/.339/.353 but in limited time in High A, he’s hitting a strong .375/.453/.446 in 18 games. He’s not going to be a power hitter, but he’s been a base-stealing threat at every level. So far this year, he’s walking more than he has typically and striking out less as well. He’s getting to an age where he can fill out and mature and if he keeps it up, could be a sleeper prospect going forward.

Pitcher of the Month: Jason Adam

His last start wasn’t great (six earned runs in four innings) but Jason Adam’s overall numbers still look great. In five starts, he threw 26.2 innings, striking out 25 and walking just eight. He’s impressed scouts and writers while pitching in a higher level in his second season of pro action. Control was a strong point last year in Kane County (2.2 BB/9) and so far it’s still a strong point (2.7 BB/9). He’s been striking out more batters per nine innings though, and has been inducing more ground balls than last year (54% vs. 45%). Adam has given up a hit 37% of the time when the ball is put into play, which suggests he may have been unlucky to this point if that regresses to the norm of around 30% historically. Those are fantastic signs for a young pitcher. Limiting walks + increased strikeout rate + increased ground ball rate is a recipe for potential breakout.

Kane County Cougars (11-14)

Hitter of the Month: Jorge Bonifacio

There have been many candidates for best hitter in Kane County. Lane Adams, Justin Trapp and Daniel Mateo are all hammering the ball right now. Bonifacio, though, gets the nod because he’s the most highly regarded of the group. Many picked him as a sleeper breakout candidate and he’s lived up to the acclaim. His .340/.415/.443 line is strong and his plate discipline has improved. In 2011 he walked 6.2% of the time. This year, he’s drawing a walk 10.8% of the time but it hasn’t caused him to get passive at the plate. He’s still ripped 32 hits.

Pitcher of the Month: Santiago Garrido

Garrido has been in the Royals organization since early 2007 and this is his first sign of success. So far he has a 4.87 career ERA and Kane County is his highest level of competition, but so far, he has a 0.84 ERA in 21.1 innings. He’s shown the ability to get ground balls (50% or better GB rate since 2009), but walks too many to be the real deal so far (4.2 BB/9 career). He’s worth keeping an eye on though just in case he’s put it all together.

It’s been a rough week.

But fret not. There are some things to be positive about, even some at the big league level. But first, a few Royals farmhands are having excellent starts to their 2012 seasons.

Jason Adam (photo via Clint Scoles at PinetarPress.com

Most impressive early on is Jason Adam. The 2010 fifth round pick out of Kansas City spent most of last year in Low A Kane County and had an up and down but reasonable season. For starting out in A ball shortly after high school, he held his own.

Adam was assigned to High A Wilmington to start the season and has been great so far. Through three starts, he has a 0.51 ERA in 17.2 innings pitched. With that, he has a 16/5 K/BB ratio and in today’s start, he was a ground ball machine. Before the season, he talked about improving his delivery to the plate and controlling the running game and it seems his delivery may be faster to the plate than it was last year. According to Jason Parks, he broke five bats in Wednesday’s start and two of the hits against him could have been ruled errors. Impressive stuff.

In Adam’s old stomping grounds, the Kane County Cougars are hitting the ball all over the place. The quartet of Lane Adams, Daniel Mateo, Justin Trapp and Jorge Bonifacio have a combined 69 hits in 196 at bats. Adams has driven in 14 runs to the lead the team and Bonifacio – a popular breakout pick – has found a new patience at the plate. Last year he walked 16 times in 258 plate appearances. In 2012 he’s already walked nine times. On the pitching side of things, Edwin Carl is following his up his ridiculous 2011 (76 strikeouts in 36 innings). He has 14 strikeouts through 13.1 innings with a 2.70 ERA and only three walks allowed.

Thankfully, Alan Barrington’s scouting report on Wil Myers and the Naturals seems to be the anomaly, as the Royals top hitting prospect is off to a good start in Double A. He leads Northwest Arkansas with three homers and has a .318/.348/.614  line. The only downside is that he’s struck out 17 times in 44 at bats. That could catch up to him if he doesn’t adjust. Yem Prades has hit as well, with a .342/.375/.421 line in 10 games.

The defending Pacific Coast League champion Omaha Storm Chasers are off to another good start, lead by Tony Abreu and Max Ramirez. Abreu has a 1.003 OPS through 13 games with eight extra base hits. Ramirez has 19 RBI and five homers. The Robinsons – Clint and Derrick – are doing well too. Clint Robinson is still mashing minor league pitching, carrying a .903 OPS into tonight’s game and Derrick Robinson has a .364 average during a 10 game hitting streak.

On the mound, Nathan Adcock has had three good starts, putting up a 1.27 ERA in 18 innings. We can hope that continues, as he’s  walked seven batters, hit three more, and only given up 11 hits. If the control continues to be an issue, he may regress. But we’re staying positive here, so he may be an emergency option if the Royals suffer injuries in the starting rotation. In 60.1 big league innings as a Rule 5 pick, Adcock had a 4.62 ERA, which isn’t good, but considering his situation, it’s not bad either. Jeremy Jeffress and Franciseley Bueno are doing well out of the bullpen in Omaha too. Jeffress has 11 innings pitched and has given up just two runs. Bueno  has a 9/1 K/BB ratio in 8.1 innings. His ERA stands at 1.08 after four appearances.

So it’s not all doom and gloom in the Royals organization. There are some significant names doing some damage in the minors. While the big league team tries to get out of a losing streak, there’s still good baseball down on the farm.

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Pay attention to some of these names as they may be tomorrow’s top Royals prospects:

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And just like building a piece of furniture out of the box from Walmart, there are a lot of other pieces laying about, and I have a feeling they’re important.

These are a handful of prospects who I think warrant mentioning, but fall just short of getting a full profile:

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