What a difference a week makes. After starting 0-2, the Royals won their third game against the Chicago White Sox. Next, they took two of three from the Phillies and swept the Twins in three games. Now the Royals are 6-3 and first place in the A.L. Central. The offense is scoring runs, the defense only has one error and the starting rotation is pitching well, despite giving up a combined nine home runs.

But the anchor of the bullpen, Greg Holland, isn’t pitching well. In four games over three innings, Holland faced 20 batters and threw 82 pitches, 43 of them strikes. He gave up five hits, four runs, six walks and five strikeouts. Last Saturday, he blew a save against the Phillies by walking three and giving up a walk-off double. Last Tuesday night against the Twins, Holland threw 27 pitches and faced six batters in the rain before getting his second save.

Royals manager Ned Yost hasn’t gave up on Holland and it’s not time to panic yet, despite Holland’s trouble finding the strike zone. Early last year, an injured rib cage affected his performance. After Holland recovered, he posted a 2.08 ERA and became the Royals closer after the Royals shipped Jonathan Broxton to the Reds. If Holland continues to struggle, Yost has a good backup closer in Kelvin Herrera, who’s fared well this season.

Wade Davis isn’t struggling like Holland, but his first two starts haven’t been stellar. In last Friday’s game against Philadelphia, Davis only pitched four innings, throwing 76 pitches, facing 19 batters and giving up nine hits, and four runs, two of those home runs. He also struck out two and didn’t walk anybody. The Royals ended up winning the game 13-4, so his performance didn’t hurt the team. For his second start, Davis pitched five innings, throwing 96 pitches, giving up four hits and three walks. But he struck out six and held the Twins scoreless, getting the win.

Davis needs to adjust to the starting rotation after pitching out of the bullpen with the Tampa Bay Rays last year. His next couple of starts will show if Davis becomes an effective starter or is better suited as a reliever.

After the 0-2 start, it’s good to see the Royals playing well and leading the A.L. Central. And Holland and Davis’ issues are minor. But the Royals have tough upcoming series against the Toronto Blue Jays and the Atlanta Braves, followed by the Boston Red Sox and the Detroit Tigers. It’s not getting easier for the Royals and the team’s success may depend on the performance of Holland and Davis.

The Royals were likely to call up infielder Johnny Giavotella after the Omaha Storm Chasers season came to an end, but Chris Getz‘s season-ending thumb injury last week gives Giavotella the chance to see if he has what it takes to be a Major League second baseman.

During spring training, a lot of fans expected (and hoped) Giavotella would make the opening day roster. But on March 25 Giavotella was optioned to AAA Omaha and Getz became the Royals second baseman. A lot of Royals fans and pundits were disappointed. But the Royals believed Getz’s defense was superior, his offense had improved and Giavotella needed more defensive seasoning in Omaha.

Giavotella did well in Omaha with a .331/.408/.504 line with five homers, 25 RBI and 152 plate appearances, playing second base. When starter Jonathan Sanchez went on the disabled list with biceps tendinitis, Giavotella joined the Royals May 9.

During his first stint with the Royals, Giavotella played 21 games and split playing time with Getz and Yuni Betancourt. He had an unimpressive .217/.260/.261 line with no homers and six RBI over 73 plate appearances, committing three errors at second base. Giavotella got more playing time at second when Getz went down with a rib injury May 16, but he still split playing time with Betancourt. The Royals sent Giavotella back down to Omaha June 12 when Chris Getz returned from the disabled list.

Giavotella returned to Omaha, ending up with a .323/.404/.472 line with 10 home runs, 71 RBI over 418 plate appearances. He played the majority of the games at second, committing six errors with a .983 fielding average. It appeared Giavotella would be a September call-up, if he was called up at all. Then last Friday, Getz broke his thumb during a bunt attempt and Giavotella was called up for last Saturday’s game against the White Sox.

Plans are for Giavotella to play five to six games a week at second base. So far, Giavotella’s five games since his return haven’t been impressive. His average over the last five games is .167/.211/.167 with three base hits, no RBI with six strikeouts and no walks. In other words, he’s in the lineup, but not really contributing. Of course this is a small sample size and there’s hope his offensive numbers will improve as he gets more playing time.

But what about Giavotella’s defense at second base? To be honest, his defensive numbers this season haven’t been impressive either, with a .949 fielding percentage and a 3.65 RF/9. Compare that to Getz’s .983 fielding percentage and 4.43 RF/9. Even Betancourt had a .975 fielding percentage and a 4.61 RF/9, and we all know how bad an infielder he was. The league average fielding percentage at second base is .983 and the league RF/9 is 4.62. In other words, all three players are just near or below league average. One is no longer with the team (Betancourt), another is out for the year (Getz), and the one who’s left (Giavotella) is below league average in both categories.

Some Royals fans would like Giavotella to be the second baseman of the future and take Getz’s place. But to be fair, Getz played well with a .275/.312/.360 average and only committed four errors at second, despite having an injury filled season. And since Getz is not going to be a free agent until 2015, he’s probably going to be competing for a second base job in 2013, along with Giavotella.

Unless Giavotella has an injury, he’s going to be the Royals second baseman for the rest of the season. And even if his offense improves, his defense will decide if the Royals think he’s their second baseman of the future. Giavotella is being given a chance. It’s up to him to make the most of it.

In an unexpected move last Sunday, the Royals designated infielder Yuniesky Betancourt for assignment. I’m sure there’s some Royals fans who think this is an elaborate joke being played on them and the Yunibomber will be back. But it’s true. Yuni is no longer a Royal. Really! (I think.)

Remember when the Royals signed Betancourt to a one-year, two million dollar contract, telling shocked and disappointed Royals fans Yuni was going to be a part-time utility infielder? So what happened? Yuni got more playing time than fans wanted and he even had a decent June. But then Yuni became Yuni and went back to his worst everyday player in baseball self.

No team wanted to trade for him or claim him on waivers, so the Royals let Yuni go. Was it for his lack of defensive range? No. Was it for his .228 batting average? No. Was it for his -1.2 WAR? No. Yuni wanted more playing time, so the Royals cut him loose. According to Manager Ned Yost, one of the reasons Yuni was let go was to change the Royals losing culture. Are they serious? Did the Royals think signing Yuni would bring in a winning culture?

It’s things like this which frustrate Royals fans to no end. Never mind the team could have used infielder Tony Abreu, who they signed as a non-roster invitee, as a low-cost utility infielder. Or longtime Royals farmhand Irving Falu, who’s toiled ten seasons in the team’s minor league system. Instead, the Royals signed Yuni for two million and he performed like Yuni.

And the kicker? Abreu, the player who replaced Yuni, has some offensive pop but his defense is suspect. That sounds like a player the Royals just designated for assignment. Oh well, better late than never.

In another move, Doug Sisson was fired last Saturday. Doug who? You know, Doug Sisson, the former first base, base-running, outfield and bunting coach. Taking his place is Rusty Kuntz, who spent the last year and a half as a special assistant to the general manager while Sisson was first base coach. Now Kuntz is back, taking over Sisson’s duties. Why was Sisson fired? It’s hard to say. Maybe the players didn’t like him or his coaching, or perhaps Sisson and Yost weren’t on the same page.

Will this make a difference? Doubtful. It’s true Kuntz helped Alex Gordon convert to left field and he’s worked with outfielders Jarrod Dyson and Lorenzo Cain. But the Royals changing their first base coach in the middle of the season is just a symbolic blip in a long, disappointing season.

Then last Monday afternoon the Royals allowed the San Francisco Giants to claim situational lefty Jose Mijares off waivers. In return, the Royals got a $20,000 waiver claim fee. In other words, the Royals let Mijares go for next to nothing. The Royals did try to trade Mijares, but there wasn’t any takers.

Mijares wasn’t a bad pitcher. He had a 2-2 record with a 2.56 ERA, pitching 38.2 innings in 51 games. But the Royals didn’t see Mijares in their long-term plans. Even though he wasn’t eligible for free agency until 2014, it’s possible Mijares would make $2.5 million in arbitration. The Royals felt that was too much money for a situational lefty.

Taking his place is lefty Francisley Bueno, who the Royals signed as a non-roster invitee. For AAA Omaha, Bueno had a 1-4 record with a 2.75 ERA, pitching 55.2 innings over 35 games. He also appeared in three games for the Royals.

The Royals believe Bueno is more of a long-term fit and could be more effective against right-handers than Mijares. Ok, fair enough. But if that’s the case, why did the Royals sign Mijares in the first place? I’m sure Bueno would be more affordable and if he was good, the Royals would have better luck signing him than Mijares. And if Bueno wasn’t bueno, the Royals could cut him loose with minimum fuss.

The Royals 2012 season is sinking into oblivion and these moves aren’t going to turn the team around or reverse what Yost calls a “losing culture.” But it’s doing something, and for the Royals, doing something is better than doing nothing.

SURPRISE, AZ – The Salt River Rafters topped the Surprise Saguaros last Saturday to claim the Arizona Fall League crown. But that doesn’t discount the strides the Royals’ prospects, particularly the offensive players, made during their eight weeks in Arizona.

Surprise finished with the best record in the 20-year history of the circuit, posting a 26-10 record during the Fall League season. The Saguaros lost consecutive games only once, and the Royals’ three offensive players on the squad, Wil Myers, Christian Colon, and Anthony Seratelli, all fared pretty well. But Myers in particular impressed, as he was named to the Arizona Fall League’s All-Prospect Team.

Myers’ accomplishments for the Fall League season came after a injury-riddled disappointing campaign during the regular season with the Naturals, and may have set the Royals’ top hitting prospect on the fast track to Kansas City. During early October, Royals’ brass was quoted in the Kansas City Star indicating the Myers would begin the 2012 season back in the Naturals’ lineup, but might have turned that timetable over after batting .360 with Surprise. Myers tied for the league lead in walks (20), and triples (5), ranked second in on-base percentage (.481), third in slugging percentage (.674), sixth in both average and runs (24). Even more impressive, he reached base safely via hit or walk in 22 of 23 games he played with Surprise, and scored a run in 18 of 23 contests. He also went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI’s, a run, and a stolen base during the Rising Stars Game.

Myers describes his production as a product of better poise in the batter’s box, which has allowed him to lay off of pitches outside of the strike zone and drive the ball when opposing hurlers are forced to throw strikes.

“Basically, I’m having more confidence at the plate,” Myers said. “Just going up there knowing I can get hits is important. This year (in Northwest Arkansas) I swung at a lot of pitcher’s pitches…now I’m recognizing what they’re throwing and going deep into counts.”

Myers’ plate discipline has also caught the eye of J.J. Picollo, Kansas City’s Assistant General Manager of Scouting and Player Development.

“He’s seeing the ball very well right now,” Picollo explained. “He’s really maturing as a hitter, being more patient and not being so anxious. People in Double-A knew how good he was, so he got a lot of pitches off the plate. Now when they pitch him that way he’s getting into 2-1, 2-0 and 3-1 types of counts.”

Picollo pointed out that Myers’ improvement is even more exciting because the talent level in the Arizona Fall League is so high.

“Pitching in the fall league is a little better than Double-A,” he said. “Arm after arm coming out of the bullpen are good arms. To do what Wil is doing against a high-caliber type of pitching is great to see.”

In addition to his improved plate presence, Picollo thinks Myers’ power will catch up shortly.

“We all know he has a tremendous amount of power,” Picollo said. “That he hasn’t put up huge home run totals is just reflective of a young player in an advanced league. Remember, he’s one of just three players from his high school draft class to reach Double-A. The power will come out at some point in time. Right now he just needs to worry about hitting doubles, finding gaps, hitting to all fields. That’s part of the natural progression hitters make.”

Through three full seasons in the minor leagues, Myers has connected on 27 long balls, including eight homers in 99 games this year in the Texas League. He hit five in 22 games in 2009 and belted 14 in 126 games in 2010, while also ripping 37 doubles that season for Advanced Class-A Wilmington.

Those numbers were enough to rank him No. 10 on Baseball America’s Top-100 Prospects list entering the 2011 season, just behind fellow Royals’ cornerstones Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas. While it’s too early to tell if Myers will make the same type of year-four jumps those two made, his confidence is bolstered because of Kansas City’s willingness to call guys up when they are deserving.

“The Royals have a plan for me,” Myers said. “It’s cool to see those guys (Hosmer and Moustakas) move up, knowing that they like to promote from within.”

Picollo said Myers’ work ethic will serve him well as he tries to make his case for a promotion to Kansas City in the future.

“Wil’s competitive nature will help him. He wants to get to the big leagues, but at this point he just needs to worry about things he can control. He needs to work hard every day and play hard every day.”

Both Seratelli and Colon also finished with solid numbers. Colon, playing mostly second base, heated up late and lifted his average from the low-.200s to nearly .300, while Seratelli faded a bit with more playing time late but still finished with a .317 average and .436 on-base percentage against more advanced pitching. Seratelli hopes that the solid showing in the fall league can help his chance to make Triple-A Omaha next spring.

On the pitching end, Jeffress and Lafferty both fanned over a batter per inning but had a couple of rough outings that tainted their numbers. Jeffress was also victimized for four runs in a relief outing during the Championship Game that put the game squarely out of reach for Surprise.

Here is a look at the final statistics for all of the Royals prospects in Surprise.

Naturals/Texas League Notes

Springfield names new manager: Mike Shildt was named Monday as the new skipper of the Springfield Cardinals. He replaces Ron “Pop” Warner, who advances up a level to manage their Triple-A affiliate in Memphis. The remainder of the Springfield field staff remains intact from 2011. Shildt comes to Springfield after three seasons managing their rookie-level Appalachian League club in Johnson City. With Springfield’s announcement, four teams in the Texas League have announced their staffs for next season, with two of them bringing in new managers.

Winter League Report

Several other current and former Naturals are honing their craft this off-season playing in various winter leagues that span the globe.

Puerto Rico: Rey Navarro (Crillos de Caguas) appeared in just one game this past week but his hitless streak continues as his average slumped to .053… Irving Falu (Indios de Mayaguez) has a three-game hitting streak, with three-hit efforts in two of those games including three RBI’s on Sunday… Angel Sanchez, teammates with Falu in Mayaguez, is batting .237 in ten games thus far. He may be in line for more duty next year with the Astros as their starting shortstop from 2011, Clint Barmes, signed with Pittsburgh.

Venezuela: Mario Lisson (Navegantes de Magallanes) had a 2-for-3 effort Sunday to raise his average to .258… Former Natural Jose Duarte (Leones de Caracas), who is currently a minor league free agent, hasn’t had a hit since November 8^th, but during that time his playing time has dried up and he’s received only three at-bats, being used primarily as a defensive sub… Ernesto Mejia (Aguilas del Zulia) has hit in five of six games, a couple being multi-hit efforts, as his average lifts to .297. As typical, Mejia is feasting on winter league pitchers, as he has four homers and has 23 runs driven in so far…Manny Pina (Bravos de Margarita) has struggled in 14 games thus far, batting .129.

Dominican Republic: Manauris Baez (Estrellas de Oriente) fanned seven in six scoreless innings in his most recent start, and now has a 1.64 ERA in six outings, including five starts… Mario Santiago (Tigres del Licey) allowed a pair of runs in five innings in his start on Sunday. Santiago has 27 strikeouts and eight walks in 35 1/3 innings…Willy Lebron, Santiago’s rotation-mate in Licey and fellow Royals’ farmhand, hasn’t pitched since leaving a game with an arm injury on November 6^th … Kelvin Herrera (Leones del Escogido) continues to mount a resume for 2012, as he’s gone scoreless in all nine of his outings. He’s teammates with Everett Teaford, who pitched 5 2/3 scoreless in his last outing on November 16^th to lower his ERA to 3.57 in four starts.

Mexico: Federico Castaneda (Tomateros de Culiacan) continues to be one of the busier relievers in winter ball, as his outing Friday was already his 15^th of the winter league season. After a couple rough early outings, Castaneda has settled in, keeping the opposition scoreless in his last five games to lower the ERA to 6.97.

These teams and respective leagues will play the round-robin Caribbean Series which takes place in February just before early reports for Major League Spring Training.

Transaction log: Ryan Verdugo, the southpaw the Royals acquired from the Giants in the trade that also brought southpaw Jonathan Sanchez to Kansas City was added to the 40-Man roster on Friday, protecting him from the Rule 5 Draft which will occur December 8^th at the Baseball Winter Meetings in Dallas.

Check nwanaturals.com every two weeks beginning Friday, December 2^nd for our Hot Stove Report, where we’ll continue to follow Royals’ minor leaguers in winter ball as well as cover other off-season baseball information that pertains to the Naturals and the Texas League.

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals and play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark, located in Springdale. Visit our website, nwanaturals.com, for information on season tickets and ticket plans.

While it is certainly Royals fans hope that Bubba Starling will eventually sign with KC, it would be fun to get some feel for how he would perform as a college quarterback.

It looks like we may never know.

The Nebraska Cornhusker signee has yet to see the field.

After much hullabaloo over his attendance of off-season workouts in Lincoln, Starling has yet to engage in actual football practice. Message boards buzz and the Nebraska media keeps close tabs, but Starling has yet to throw a pass, run an option, or take a hit as a collegian.

The Cornhuskers started working out last Saturday – the first contact coaches were allowed to have with players. Coach Bo Pelini said afterward that Starling won’t participate in team activities until at least Aug. 15, the signing deadline for recent MLB draftees.

While his attendance at NU is certainly a bargaining chip in contract negotiations, it also seemed Starling wanted to be in Lincoln to experience, if only briefly, the life of a college football player.

It looks now like that won’t happen. He’s not listed on the team roster and isn’t working out with the squad. He may hang out with football players in the dorm, in the cafeteria or around town, but he’s not a football player. Not now. And maybe not ever.

Coach Pelini even went so far as to say that it “would not make sense for him to practice as long as there is uncertainty about his future.”

One has to wonder if the “I might play football, I might not…” game alienates Starling from his NU coaches and teammates. In a sport where commitment is paramount, Starling appears to be manipulating the Cornhuskers strictly for his own benefit.

Real football players are not the type who shun contact or avoid the potential for injury. Starling, wisely, is doing just that, but it’s just one more way he’s not truly “one of them.”

Bubba Starling fans (not necessarily Royals fans) would like to have some idea how Starling would stack up on the gridiron. A couple of intense weeks of competition would give them at least something.

Certainly Starling has no chance of cracking the Cornhusker lineup. Not with Taylor Martinez firmly entrenched for the next three seasons. His best hope would be to show in practice that he could beat out red-shirt freshman Brion Carnes, sophomore Ron Kellogg III, and true freshman Jamal Turner on the depth chart.

But now it looks like not even that will happen. It is generally assumed that Starling won’t dare turn down the $7 to 10 million that he will get for signing with KC. Not when his success at quarterback is far from guaranteed. And not when new labor agreements in both baseball and football could decrease his earning potential in future years.

Many fans hoped to follow reports from Lincoln of Starling’s daily work at quarterback over this week, adding to the drama leading up to Aug. 15.

But unless the Cornhuskers pull some major upset, we’ll always wonder just how good Starling the quarterback could have been.

When Aaron Crow got blasted last Saturday, giving up three straight hits, including a home run, it ended a string of thirteen appearances without surrendering a run.

That run of success to kick off his major league career left Crow tied for the Royals record of consecutive scoreless appearances to start a career. He tied a team rookie record held by another current Royal.

No, it was not Joakim Soria. And you know it was not Luke Hochevar or Kyle Davies.

It was none other than pitching coach Bob McClure, who began his playing career with KC back in 1975.

As a coach, McClure has done a fine job coaxing positive results out of his young bullpen this season. He’s made a star out of Soria. And he probably deserves some credit for Zack Greinke’s Cy Young Award.

But he’s not exactly worked wonders with Hochever and Davies.

You win some, you lose some. Nobody’s perfect.

But as a rookie pitcher, McClure was flawless.

McClure came up at the end of 1975, making his first appearance out of the bullpen on Aug. 13. In that game he pitched an inning of scoreless relief. He would be unscored upon for the next 11 outings.

In his final performance that season, on Sept. 23, McClure relieved an ailing Doug Bird in the second inning. McClure pitched the next six frames, surrendering just one hit and striking out eight. He earned the first win of his career that night.

McClure ended the season having finished four games and notched one save. In 15.1 innings, he gave up just four hits. He walked 14, but somehow managed to prevent any runners from reaching the plate.

He would record one more scoreless outing in 1976. The record of 13 straight appearances without surrendering a run still stands, shared now by his pupil, Crow.

McClure would surrender four earned runs in the four innings he spread out over eight appearances on the big league level in 1976. McClure spent most of that season at Double-A, trying to re-establish himself as a starter.

Following the 1976 season, the Royals dealt Jamie Quirk, Jim Wohlford and a player to be named later to Milwaukee for Darrell Porter and Jim Colborn. During spring training of 1977, McClure was named as that player to be shipped to the Brewers.

McClure spent the next 17 seasons honing his skills and developing a wealth of knowledge that he now shares with his Kansas City protégés.

In the highlight of his career, McClure served as an integral cog on the Milwaukee team that went to the World Series in 1982. Converted to a starter that season, went 12-7 with a 4.22 ERA. His performance out of the bullpen in the series with St. Louis was significant, if not ultimately successful. He posted two saves, but also was saddled with two losses in relief.

McClure finished a solid, if not spectacular, career in 1993. In 19 seasons, he suited up for seven different teams and finished with a 68-57 record and a 3.81 ERA. He pitched in 698 games, nearly all in relief, and he recorded 52 saves.

McClure would seem to be able to relate to nearly every pitcher on his staff. He experienced being a rookie reliever thrown into a pennant chase, and he experienced starting, working in long relief, and closing games. He struggled with control. And he survived the demise of his natural talents to prolong his career as a crafty veteran. And he pitched on the biggest stage – the 1982 World Series.

I bet McClure enjoyed seeing his exploits as a young rookie be relived this year. He can tell the young kids on his staff “Yeah, that was me. I did that.”

Let’s hope McClure can work magic with the young talent he will see matriculate to his club over the next few seasons. Let’s hope he can help several youngsters like Crow to forge successful major league careers and lead the Royals back to a World Series of their own.

Even though last Saturday’s Farm Report was the final Farm Report of the season, that does not mean Matt Kelsey and myself are going to step away from the Minor Leagues all together. In fact, Matt and I plan on keeping you informed about all of the Cardinals and Royals Minor League clubs and players even though most of them will not be playing. So don’t worry, we will still be ranting about prospects well into the offseason.

I think I speak for both Matt and myself when I say that the Farm Reports were certainly a learning experience. My MiLB-knowledge right now compared to when we first started the Farm Report feature is night and day. Since we did the FR’s every week, we had to stay on top of all Minor League news.

While doing that, I quickly realized that there are promising players in the system that the casual fan has no idea about. Fans have studied Shelby Miller and Allen Craig all throughout the season, but what about the diamond in the rough playing in Batavia, or Johnson City? Most do not pay any attention to them whatsoever.

That is about to change. Here are 10 players that I feel have plenty of upside, but do not always get the respect that they deserve.

Oscar Taveras, OF
This is one of the guys that the Cardinal scouts are extremely high on. Luhnow said he was easily one of the top 10 prospects in the system, and could move through the ranks very quickly. He’s an 18-year-old outfielder in his first year with a United States farm team. In the 2010 season Taveras hit at a .322 clip with a .526 slugging percentage and an OPS near .900 in over 200 at bats. For a player in his first year in the United States, that is extremely impressive. The only thing that really sticks out to me as something he must work on is his plate discipline. He swings at a lot of bad pitches and rarely walks (12 BB in 229 PA). He does have power potential, even though most think of him as more of a scrappy kind of player. In Johnson City he hit 8 home runs, drove in 43 runs, had a .204 ISO, and of course that high SLG.

Mark Hamilton, 1B
I know, he doesn’t exactly fit the prospect description. I understand that he is 26 years old, kind of injury-prone, and strikes out a lot, but this guy can hit. Most do not give him the “prospect” label simply because there is not much hype around him. You can thank Albert Pujols for that one. It’s not Mark’s fault that he is blocked by one of the best hitters of all time. If he was an outfielder, he would probably have made his debut much sooner than earlier this month. Hamilton is currently playing for the big league club, but spent most of the season in Memphis. In 306 plate appearances, he hit .298/.389/.585 with 18 home runs and a .287 ISO that was good for sixth-best in the league.

Hector Corpas, RP
Here’s another guy much like Taveras. The 2010 season was the first the 20-year-old spent in the country, after dominating in Venezuela in ’09. Corpas only pitched 25.2 innings for Johnson City, but they were certainly effective. Hector ended the season with a 2.10 ERA and a 0.85 WHIP while only allowing one home run and three walks in over 25 innings. He throws a mid/high-90s fastball and a high-80s splitter that has been described as MLB-caliber.

Aaron Luna, LF
I’ll be honest, it is really hard to put a finger on this guy. As I said earlier in the season over at Rising Redbirds, Aaron Luna is without a doubt one of the most interesting prospects I’ve ever come across. He’s only 5’11” and his nature position is second base. That usually doesn’t indicate power, correct? While his 14 home runs in 289 at bats in Springfield aren’t extremely impressive, his .201 ISO (great estimate of true power) is the eighth best mark in the league. However, the most interesting thing about Aaron is his abnormally high rate of being hit by pitches. To say the least, it is odd. If you combine the numbers from 2009 and 2010, Luna has been hit by a pitch 55 times in two seasons. That, and his good plate discipline have led to the best OBP in the Cardinals Minor League system.

Thomas Pham, CF
I’ve had mixed feelings about this guy all along, but I’m starting to like what he brings to the table. He spent most of the season in Palm Beach where he struggled to hit above .260, but quickly impressed people when he got the call-up to Springfield. In 140 appearances, Pham hit .339/.429/.537. While he does strike out a lot, his patience at the dish accounts for his 14% walk rate. For example, even though he only hit .262 in Palm Beach, his patience led to a .375 OBP.

Michael Blazek, SP
Shelby Miller receives all the attention in Quad Cities, and rightfully so. He’s phenomenal. But Michael Blazek, Miller’s teammate, has been awfully good so far in his young career as well. Management has been very cautious with Michael in the past, but it seems as if they loosened the leash on him in 2010. In the last two seasons, Blazek pitched a total of 107 innings. In 2010, he pitched 103 innings, and it sure did pay off for the River Bandits. Blazek went 8-4 with a 2.71 ERA and 1.05 WHIP while only allowing five home runs in 32 games. He also struck out 104 batters in those 103 innings.

Brandon Dickson, SP
This guy is starting to become one of my favorites. Like I said on I-70 Radio last Monday night, Dickson has been the most effective and most consistent pitcher in the Cardinals system when looking at the entire season. That is exactly why I named him the Pitcher of the Year in last week’s Farm Report. The 25-year-old led the PCL in FIP, was sixth in ERA, fifth in GB%, fifth in innings pitched, sixth in TBF, and second in strikeouts. He will likely make his debut with St. Louis in 2011, and we should all be looking forward to that.

Scott Gorgen, SP
After the start of the 2010 season, Gorgen was considered one of the top prospects in the system before he injured his throwing elbow. Before he was benched for three months with the injury, Gorgen made eight starts and only allowed six earned runs. Even though he was no longer starting, Scott was just as good after the surgery. All together, Gorgen put together a 5-1 record while sporting a 1.26 ERA and striking out 46 batters in 50 innings pitched.

Rainel Rosario, LF
All I need to say about this one is .933. That is is OPS. It’s extremely good, but not a number that just jumps of the page, right? Wrong. In the past 18 seasons, there have been only 12 players with at least 100 at bats that ended the season with an OPS higher than .900 in Quad Cities. Nine of those 12 players have played for a Major League team. Only one of the 12 did not make it to the Majors in his career. The other two are Xavier Scruggs and Rainel Rosario. Says a lot, wouldn’t you say? The only thing that concerns me about Rosario is his strikeout rate. He K’s in about 25% of his at bats.

Ryan Jackson, SS
I saved one of the best for last. Ever since he was drafted last season, I’ve been high on this kid. He may not hit .330 in the big leagues, but you can bet that he is going to be a reliable option. The main thing that I love about Ryan Jackson is how hard he hits the ball. After watching video of him tearing the cover off of every ball thrown at him in 2009, I checked his line drive percentages. Sure enough, Jackson led the FSL with a 28% LD rate.

Justin Hulsey covers the Cardinals for i70baseball and his blogs, Cardinals Front Office and Rising Redbirds that are also dedicated to Cardinals baseball and their minor league system.You may follow him on Twitter @JayHulsey by clicking here.

All-Star week is over, and it is back to a full week of fantasy baseball. The Royals match up at home with Toronto for three games and then travel to take on the Yankees for a four game set. Let’s look at the Royals roster to see who should start, who should sit, and who to watch this week.

Start em:

Zach Greinke got lucky this week, pitching against the Blue Jays instead of pitching at Yankee Stadium. If he was pitching at New York I would suggest putting him inactive but since he will pitch at home, he should be active in all formats. In his last outing against Toronto, he got a no decision and gave up two earned runs. He has pitched much better of late and I expect that to continue. Joakim Soria has been very consistent this season. When the save opportunity has called, he has delivered 25 of 27 chances, up to last Saturday, which also includes 18 straight. Soria has only allowed 3 earned runs in the last 23 innings and needs to be active in all formats. When facing Toronto and New York, Billy Butler has a .267 career average (BA), 12 2B’s, 2 HR’s, 13 RBI’s in 40 games. His power still hasn’t taken off as owners would like but as long as his BA is .321, he should be active in all formats. Jose Guillen has had decent career numbers against Toronto and New York. He could be set for a productive week. Guillen has a career .247 BA, 24 2B’s, 19 HR’s, and 59 RBI’s in 122 games. I would not start him if your outfield is set but if you are looking for a bat to fill a spot this week, Jose could be your guy. If you are in a fantasy league which awards stolen bases, Scott Podsednik should be active only if your lineup has enough offense to give you the power numbers. Other than that, he should be inactive.

Sit em:

As I mentioned last week, David DeJesus has had zero production as of late. He has a career .228 BA vs Toronto and .242 BA vs New York. Until DeJesus shows signs of life, he needs to continue being inactive. Alberto Callaspo has a career .302 BA in the second half. Not sure if that means much going into All-Star break cold as he still has not produced lately. Callaspo does have a .304 career BA against Toronto, but it is not enough to get through the week. The only thing that benefits him now is that he qualifies at second and third base. He holds a similar situation as DeJesus so until he starts to produce, he needs to be inactive.

Watch list:

Put Yuniesky Betancourt (SS) on the watch list. I’m not recommending picking him up at the moment. He has little value in mixed leagues but there is a value in AL only leagues. Betancourt currently has 41 R, 7 HR, 40 RBI’s, 0 SB, and .263 BA. Watch how he performs this week, and he could be a pick-up if your team needs shortstop help.

Fantasy Minor League Profile of the week:

The Fantasy Profile of the Week is Eric Hosmer. He was selected in the 1^st round (No. 3 overall) of the June 2008 First-Year Player Draft. Hosmer was just promoted from Single-A Wilmington and is currently playing First Base (1B) for the Double-A Northwest Arkansas Naturals in The Texas League. He had a depressing first season after being drafted and did not live up to expectations but once he had lasik eye surgery, everything seems to be turning around. The Royals drafted him hoping he would turn into a power hitting first baseman. All the tools are there and the power will eventually come. He’s a big kid (6’4” – 215 lbs) with initial plans to stay at first base, but there is an outside chance he could be converted to play outfield. Hosmer is not expected to crack the big leagues until late 2012 at the earliest but if he’s available, he is one to pick up immediately. He’s a prospect worth holding onto. Side Note: In his first at bat in Double-A on Saturday he hit a home run. He hit three over the weekend.