Jonathan Sanchez recently gave up five runs before he could record an out. I didn’t think anyone could pitch that poorly.

But the next night, Ryan Verdugo did Sanchez one better (or worse) by surrendering six runs in just 1 2/3 innings.

The most horrifying fact of all is that both pitchers were acquired by trading Melky Cabrera to the Giants. That fact doesn’t need to be belabored, as every Royals fan is well aware of it.

So while Cabrera makes a run at an MVP award, the Royals go once again in search of starting pitching.

Dayton Moore needs no one to tell him that he must move to acquire pitching. He knows it. In fact he’s known it, and has been trying to do just that, for about three years now.

Prior to 2010, Moore made a few questionable moves to acquire position players, even trading away a few promising pitchers. But for the past three years, it’s been all about pitching, and he’s made several attempts to trade position players to get pitchers.

But while the Cabrera-for-Sanchez deal is horrifying in its result, the other attempts by Moore to trade for pitching have been nearly as disappointing. Consider the following other former Royals who were dealt for pitching since 2009:

Wilson Betemit: currently hitting .259 for Baltimore with 10 homers and 32 RBIs.

Betemit was traded for two minor leaguers, one a pitcher – Antonio Cruz, who has pitched a total of 18 games at A ball in the Royals’ organization.

Alberto Callaspo: hit .288 with 6 homers and 46 RBIs last season as the Angels’ starting third baseman. He’s still starting, with a little better power numbers this year.

Callaspo netted the Royals Will Smith and Sean O’Sullivan. The Royals have utilized Smith to save their mangled big league staff, but they gave up on O’Sullivan. They dealt him to Toronto for cash. Perhaps he needed the change of scenery. He’s been great for the Blue Jays’ Triple A club thus far.

David DeJesus: started most of the season for the A’s last year, batting .240 with 10 homers and 46 RBIs. This year he’s started full time for the Cubs.

DeJesus brought in a potential starter in Vin Mazzaro. But Mazzaro has suffered some beatings of historic proportions and isn’t trusted much at the big league level. The trade also brought Justin Marks, an average starter at Double A.

Kila Ka’aihue: has split the season between Oakland and the A’s Triple A club. His big league production has been marginal.

The trade of Ka’aihue netted a 25-year-old minor leaguer named Ethan Hollingsworth. He’s set no worlds on fire to date.

Mike Aviles: batted well at the end of 2011 for the Red Sox and continues to succeed as Boston’s starting shortstop. He’s hitting .263 with 10 homers and 47 RBIs.

Aviles supposedly brought the Royals a utility infielder – Yamaico Navarro. Aviles should have been kept in that role with the Royals. Navarro hasn’t done anything yet. The trade did bring the Royals a pitcher in Kendal Volz, who has been solid at the Single A and Double A levels.

Scott Podsednik: has played little, bouncing around with several teams.

The Royals got pitcher Elisaul Pimentel and catcher Lucas May. The Royals gave up on May, and Pimentel is 23 and still laboring along in the minors

Rick Ankiel: chipping in for the first place Washington Nationals.

Perhaps the only good move was when the Royals got Tim Collins as part of a package deal for Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth.

So Moore can’t be accused of not trying. But for seven big league position players of varying quality, the Royals have gained Tim Collins and some spare parts and minor leaguers. The return has been nothing short of disastrous.

The Royals have tried trading average position players – players who they deemed easily replaceable – and hoped to acquire quality pitchers.

But it appears the exchange rate for a quality pitcher is much higher than expected.

What the Royals have proved is that you must actually trade excellent position players to get passable starters.

They will need to think long and hard about as they attempt to improve their rotation for next year. Do they have the stomach to trade Eric Hosmer, or Wil Myers or some other potential star in hopes of finally acquiring quality starters.

Unfortunately, that may be just what it will take.

Photo Courtesy of Minda Haas

Triple-A
The Omaha Storm Chasers (Pacific Coast League) went 4-2 over the past six days making them 21-10 trailing only the Fresno Grizzlies who are 23-8 on the campaign in the race for the best record in the Pacific Coast League.  The Storm Chasers have remained hot despite sending several more players up to the Royals including Nate Adock and most recently Irving Falu.

Who’s Hot
The offense has continued to carry the Storm Chasers to wins providing walk-off victories on two consecutive nights thanks to home runs by Cody Clark and Johnny Giavotella.  Giavotella has been on fire since the calendar turned over to may hitting .458 (11-for-24) in the first six games of the month.  He has also hit two home runs and knocked in eight, while working six walks over that span.  On the mound for the Storm Chasers a pair of pitchers who returned from the Kansas City Royals have been on.  Everett Teafordtossed five and two thirds innings in his first start of the season in Triple-A.  Louis Coleman has allowed just three hits and one run over five and a third innings of work.

Who’s Not
Sean O’Sullivan looked to have found it working and inning and a third scoreless innings in his last appearance against Oklahoma City, but prior to that he allowed nine hits and five runs over five and a third innings in his previous two relief outings.  Jason Bourgeois has struggled at the plate since being demoted to Triple-A.  He is hitting .200 (6-for-30) in his first seven games of the season, but has hit a home run.

Double-A
The Northwest Arkansas Naturals (Texas League) are back to .500 after at 15-15 and have won the first two games of a four game homestand against the Tulsa Drillers to pull within five games of the Drillers for the North Division lead.  The Naturals have been brilliant at Arvest Ballpark this season going 12-4 at home.

Who’s Hot
Wil Myers who was named the Texas League Player of the week (April 23-29) has continued to be the best player on the field nearly every night.  Myers has homered in three of his last four games and is hitting a healthy .336 on the season to lead the Texas League.  He is also tops on the Naturals with 22 RBI, knocking home seven runs in his last four games.  On the mounc Jake Odorizzi has been just as good as advertised winning the Texas League Pitcher of the week (April 30-May 6) and turning in a seven and a third inning eleven strikeout performance his last time out on the mound.

Who’s Not
Julio Rodriguez is still trying to find his rhythm at the plate going 7-for-36 in his first ten games of the season.  He has delivered some key hits knocking in three runs in ten games on the season.  On the mound for the Naturals Chris Dwyer is coming off his worst start of the season and will look to rebound later in the week.  Last time out Dwyer went three innings allowing five hits and ten runs, seven of which were earned, while walking a season high six.

Class-A Advanced
The Wilmington Blue Rocks (Carolina League) went just 2-4 last week and after getting back and are now 12-17 on the season sitting in third place in the Carolina League’s Northern Division trailing the Potomac Nationals by just one game for second.

Who’s Hot
Brian Fletcher has been giving opposing pitchers nightmares so far in the month of May.  The former Auburn Tiger is hitting .348 in the month of May lifting his average to .314 on the season.  Nick Rogers turned in what has become a run of the mill performance out of the bullpen on Saturday going two innings allowing just one hit and fanning three.  Rogers has yet to allow and run this season and have fanned 12 in 11 innings of work.

Who’s Not
Catcher Kenny Swab is still trying to find himself at the plate this season in limited playing time.  The backstop has appeared in ten games for the Blue Rocks and is hitting .094 (3-for-32) on the season.  Sam Runion had a couple of tough appearances in the last week allowing four runs in five and a third innings of work, but for the season he has now allowed just five runs over 13 innings.

Class-A
The Kane County Cougars went 3-2 over the past week and they now sit at 14-16 on the season.  The Cougars are sitting in fifth place in the Midwest League’s Western division, but are just 4.5 games behind the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers for the division lead.

Who’s Hot
Outfielder Lane Adams has continued to be one of the focal points of the Cougar offense.  He is hitting a cool .330 with a home run and 18 RBI on the campaign.  On the mound for the Cougars, Santiago Garrido is undefeated on the season, going 3-0 with a 0.68 ERA over 26.1 innings of work.

Who’s Not
First baseman Murray Watts is still trying to hit for a better average, but his power swing has definitely been there.  Despite hitting just .191 on the season Watts has popped five home runs and driven home 13.  Aaron Brooks is coming off of a pair of rough starts allowing seven runs in his last 11 innings of work to go along with 15 hits.

Alumni Report (Former Naturals outside the Kansas City organization)

Who’s Hot
Corey Smith turned in a great week for Double-A Birmingham posting a .407 batting average, to go along with four doubles and four RBI.  Blake Johnson made three scoreless appearances for Double-A Chattanooga in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.  He logged two and a third innings surrendering just one hit and striking out two.

Jeff Bianchi posted a .300 average for the week while with Double-A Huntsville in the Milwaukee Brewers organization, and earned his first career promotion to Triple-A on Saturday.

Who’s Not
Dusty Hughes got knocked around this past week working a third of an inning allowing two hits, walking two, and surrendering three runs.  Hughes had been one of the hottest pitcher for the Atlanta Braves Triple-A affiliate prior to that outing.  Jordan Parraz, also with the Gwinnett Braves had a rough week at the plate going 0-for-16 with six strikeouts.

Josh Johnson who is now with Triple-A Syracuse in the Washington Nationals organization is 1-for-16 with a walk and three strikeouts.

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.

The Royals’ minor league clubs moved quickly into action as soon as the big league club broke camp. No sooner were the minors rosters set than they were on the field, starting games on April 5.

The Royals had the top rated farm system in all of baseball just over a year ago. But much has changed since then, and most of those top prospects are now doing battle in KC.

That doesn’t mean, however, that the cupboard is now bare. The minor league rosters are peppered with another crop of elite prospects. And though the games going on in KC should actually mean something this year, the minor leagues bear watching as the next wave of prospects matures.

Noticeably absent from the minor league rosters is John Lamb, Baseball America’s #18 prospect in 2011. Lamb is still rehabbing his surgically repaired elbow in Surprise. Still, Baseball America thought enough of Lamb to rank him sixth among Royals prospects.

Pitching prospects in the system ranked by Baseball America in 2012 are Mike Montgomery, #23, and Jake Odorizzi, #68.

Omaha:
Triple-A rosters are usually stocked at least in part with veterans who are ready to jump to the big leagues in a moment’s notice. KC’s Omaha farm team has a handful of starters who have already failed once (or more times) at the big league level.

Zach Miner fits that description. The 30-year-old who owns a 25-20 record in the bigs is still trying to work his way back from an injury that knocked him out of the entire 2010 season.

Also on Omaha’s staff will be Vin Mazzaro and Sean O’Sullivan, two who failed miserably in their chances in KC. No longer considered prospects, Mazzaro, O’Sullivan and particularly Miner will need to seize this as possibly their last opportunity.

Brandon Sisk, a 26-year-old who has received very little attention to this point, had a very good season split between NW and Omaha in 2011. Ryan Verdugo, 25, came over in the Melky Cabrera trade from San Francisco.

In the Omaha bullpen are three familiar faces to KC – Louis Coleman, Nathan Adcock and Jeremy Jeffress. Coleman has to be the most disappointed to not be on the big league roster. Coleman pitched well for the Royals last season, posting a 2.87 ERA and a 1.173 WHIP in 48 games.

Adcock was overmatched last year, but he has a chance now to prove who he truly is as a prospecT. Jeffress spiraled from KC all the way down to Double-A, struggling at every level. But his enviable physical ability keeps him in the “top-prospect” category.

Much to Ned Yost’s dismay, Montgomery solidified his spot in Omaha quite early in the spring. KC hoped to give the big righthander every opportunity to crack the big league rotation. But Montgomery failed miserably in spring training and took himself out of the running. Still ranked #1 among Royals prospects by Baseball America, Montgomery needs to improve on an awful 2011 in Omaha (5-11, 5.32 ERA), or he’ll be in danger of becoming a bust.

NW Arkansas:
Double-A tends to be the “proving ground” for prospects. Therefore it shouldn’t be surprising that most of the Royals’ premier pitching talents (aside from Montgomery) will start the season in Northwest Arkansas, even though many of them ended 2011 there.

Probably the team’s top pitching prospect at this point is 22-year-old lefty Odorizzi, the Royals’ #4 prospect according to Baseball America.  A key piece in the Zack Greinke trade, Odorizzi has moved slowly but steadily through the ranks. Odorizzi’s performances were spotty at Northwest Arkansas after dominating at Wilmington in the first half of 2011. He will probably get a promotion if he pitches well at Double-A.

The Royals’ #9 rated prospect, Chris Dwyer, will also start the same place he finished 2011. Dwyer was marginally successful last season, going 8-10 with 5.60 ERA. He will also be gunning for a mid-season promotion.

Northwest Arkansas will have an abundance of starting pitchers, and the most intriguing prospect is Noel Arguelles. The Cuban signee finally made his appearance in Wilmington last year after hiding in the shadows of a huge contract and mysterious arm troubles. Opinions of his ability vary greatly, but Arguelles had a 3.20 ERA and a 1.125 WHIP in his first professional season.

Other marginal prospects Tim Melville (22-years-old), Justin Marks (24) and Kendal Volz (24) will have a chance to prove themselves as prospects or just warm bodies against the tough Texas League competition.

Wilmington:
The Royals #8 prospect, Jason Adam and #10 prospect, Yordano Ventura, will begin the season in Wilmington. Both 20-year-olds had losing records and high ERAs at Kane County last year, but both have highly-regarded talent.

Keep an eye on 21-year-old Greg Billo. He went 9-5 with a 1.93 ERA and a 1.022 WHIP at Kane County. Billo struck out 7.9 batters per nine innings.

Spring Training Report #5: Finding the right combination
Sorting out the last few roster spots

Other Injury Notes: Salvador Perez is expected to miss 12-14 weeks setting him up to return in late May or early June barring any setbacks in his recovery process.  It is possible that he could see some rehab time in Northwest Arkansas before being called back up to Kansas City.   Manny Pina is expected to miss the rest of spring training and possibly into May, while recovering from his own knee surgery.  Blake Wood has been shut down for a week with what team officials are calling elbow soreness.  Once the week has passed; Wood will begin a throwing program before returning to live game action.

Check nwanaturals.com for our Spring Training Report, where we’ll continue to follow Royals’ minor leaguers in spring training as well as cover other baseball information that pertains to the Naturals and the Texas League.

On we go, with our analysis of the trades of the Dayton Moore era as General Manager of the Kansas City Royals.  When combined together, the results up until 2010 have not been altogether flattering.  As was mentioned in the previous piece, as we get closer in years to the present day, the data becomes less reliable as many of the players involved in these trades are still in the minor leagues so there are no statistics with which to come up with their WAR.  Due to the number of trades made in the 2010 year, this year will be split into 2 columns with the next and final piece also including the conclusion to this evaluation.  So without any further ado, the GMDM trades of 2010:

May 1, 2010: The Kansas City Royals traded Carlos Rosa to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Rey Navarro (minors).

In 2 forgettable seasons with the Royals, Rosa compiled a 0.3 WAR, which is right around replacement level.  He was clearly expendable, and was out of baseball after the 2010 season.  Navarro spent last season in Double A Northwest Arkansas, and at best, projects out to be a slick-fielding utility infielder who can’t hit.  He will likely spend 2012 in Triple A Omaha.  So while Arizona technically wins this trade on WAR, the Royals have a chance to come out on top still.

Rosa: 0.1 WAR with Diamondbacks (2010)

Navarro: 0.0 WAR (has yet to appear for Royals)

Diamondbacks win trade by 0.1 WAR

July 22, 2010: The Kansas City Royals traded Alberto Callaspo to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for Will Smith (minors) and Sean O’Sullivan.

At the time this trade was made, the consensus was that the Royals sold high on Callaspo and made out well.  O’Sullivan was pegged as a solid, young back of the rotation starter, and Smith was a lower level minor leaguer with a little more upside.  A year and half later, the consensus is that O’Sullivan isn’t very good, Smith is still a few years away, and Callaspo has continued to be an effective player for the Angels, sporting a stellar .366 OBP and 4.5 WAR (near all-star level) in 2011.  However, at the time he was traded, the Royals needed to find a way to get Wilson Betemit in the lineup, and knew they had Mike Moustakas coming up soon, so Callaspo needed to be dealt while his stock was high.  While O’Sullivan has shown some flashes, he has been more bad than good.  He is however, still just 24 years old so it is possible he could turn the corner and become a useful major league pitcher.  Smith is just 22 and pitched at Northwest Arkansas in 2011.  He will likely make the jump to Omaha in 2012.  He is not currently on the 40-man roster, but is slated to be a non-roster invitee to spring training.  Just going by the numbers and the productivity that each team has received at the major league level up to this point, this trade qualifies as the single biggest fleecing of the Dayton Moore era…and not the kind of fleecing you want to see if you’re a Royals fan.

Callaspo: 5.0 WAR with Angels (1/2 of 2010 and 2011)

Smith: 0.0 WAR (has yet to appear for Royals)

O’Sullivan: -2.0 WAR with Royals (1/2 of 2010 and 2011)

Angels win trade by 7.0 WAR

July 28, 2010: The Kansas City Royals traded Scott Podsednik to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Elisaul Pimentel (minors) and Lucas May.

When Moore signed Podsednik as a free agent prior to the 2010 season, the best case scenario would have been for Pods to play at a high level for half a season, allowing the Royals to flip him at the deadline for some useful pieces for the long-term.  And that is exactly what happened.  Podsednik, at the age of 34, was in the midst of putting up statistically the second best season of his lengthy career with a line of .310/.353/.400.  Moore then predicatbly found a taker for him at the deadline in the Dodgers.  In return the Royals received Pitcher Elisaul Pimentaul and Catcher Lucas May.  Pimentel spent 2011 at Double A Northwest Arkansas and has yet to establish himself as anything more than organizational depth.  May appeared with the Royals in 2010 for an uninspiring 39 plate appearances, before being dealt in 2011 to the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Podsednik did little for the Dodgers after this trade, but judging off of WAR, the Royals once again came out on the short end.

Podsednik: 0.0 WAR with Dodgers (1/2 of 2010)

Pimentel: 0.0 WAR (has yet to appear for Royals)

May: -0.6 WAR with Royals (1/2 of 2010)

Dodgers win trade by 0.6 WAR

July 31, 2010: The Kansas City Royals traded Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth to the Atlanta Braves for Gregor Blanco, Jesse Chavez and Tim Collins.

What was said above about best case scenario for Podsednik, can also be applied to the signing of Rick Ankiel.  However, it ends there as Ankiel was far from effective in his half-season with the Royals.  In fact, at times it seemed he might be attempting his best Juan Gonzalez impersonation with all of the time he spent on the DL.  It was a miracle the Royals were able to unload him on anyone.  Farnsworth was brutal in 2009, his first year with the Royals.  However, in 2010, he bounced back in a big way making himself a very attractive chip at the trade deadline.   Of the 3 players the Royals received in exchange for these 2, Tim Collins is the only one still with the Royals and will be battling for a spot on the 2012 opening day roster pitching out of the bullpen.  With him being the only player in the entire trade still on the roster of the team they were traded to, this trade could get even better for the Royals as time goes on.

Ankiel: 0.3 WAR with Braves (1/2 of 2010)

Farnsworth: -0.3 WAR with Braves (1/2 of 2010)

Blanco: 0.4 WAR with Royals (1/2 of 2010)

Chavez: -1.0 WAR with Royals (1/2 of 2010 and 2011)

Collins: 1.1 WAR with Royals (2011)

Royals win trade by 0.5 WAR

Please come back next week for the conclusion of this evaluation.  So far, it is not looking good for Dayton…

If, as Dayton Moore is so fond of saying, “pitching is the currency of baseball,” then the Royals drew pretty heavily from their account this season, dipping into the minors for nearly every capable reliever they could find.

Aaron Crow, hardly ready for the big leagues at this time last year, was promoted to the big league bullpen, as were several others who could probably have benefited from a little more work at Triple-A. Any of the cast of newbies – Tim Collins, Everett Teaford, Louis Coleman and Greg Holland – probably should have been on the list of 2012 top prospects, were it not for the big league club’s urgent need for arms. Throw in Nate Adcock and it was basically a Triple-A cast of characters.

But they held their own. The bullpen is now the strength of the pitching staff, and the team needs desperately to find some starters worthy of the collection of talent now manning the fielding positions.

There may be some help on the horizon, but nothing in the Royals’ farm system looks like a sure thing for 2012. In this, the second part of a post-season evaluation of the Royals’ top minor league prospects, I-70 Baseball.com highlights the pitchers. See the first part of the series for a look at the top prospects at the fielding positions for 2012.

(This article will ignore many of the pitchers who might well play a role in the Royals’ future, such as Robinson Tejeda, Vin Mazarro and Sean O’Sullivan. They’ve had their chances, and they are at this point nothing more than interchangeable parts.)

Right-handed starters:

There is a need for more top-flight righties in the system. The top righty however, Jake Odorizzi, might wind up being the best prospect in the entire organization. Will he be another Greinke, as was originally advertised?

Jake Odorizzi – he will rate very high in the next version of Baseball America’s rankings. Is he ready to make the jump to Kansas City? He will most likely be given at least a shot at a rotation spot in the spring.

Jason Adam – one of the Royals’ most prized developmental projects, Adam made 21 starts for Kane County in his first professional season. Though his numbers weren’t great, the potential is there.

Greg Billo – turned 21 at mid-season for Kane County. Pitched well as a starter and out of the pen, registering a 1.93 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP.

Left-handed starters:

Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas got most of the ink last winter, but it was the Royals’ wealth of left-handed pitching that made their farm-system truly phenomenal. With Danny Duffy, Collins and Teaford in this mix, they were simply loaded with top-flight lefties. But now the Royals need some of the remaining talent to give their big-league starting rotation a makeover.

Mike Montgomery – going into 2011, he was without a doubt the Royals’ most dynamic pitching prospect. But Montgomery never quite harnessed his tremendous ability this year. He battled the organization over training methods, and his 5-11 record, 5.32 ERA and 1.500 WHIP were all disappointments. Nonetheless, he will probably start the season in the KC rotation, and the team desperately needs him to develop into a quality big league starter.

Chris Dwyer – was up and down, but probably has a shot at making the Royals’ rotation next season. If not he will probably be second only to Odorizzi amongst the Royals’ top farm hands next season.

John Lamb – possibly the biggest disappointment in the whole farm system was the arm injury suffered by Lamb early in the season. Going into the year, there were many who considered Lamb the Royals’ top pitching prospect and one of the best in game. Now Lamb begins the long (approximately one year) road back from Tommy John surgery. According to the customary timeframe, he could be pitching by June of next year.

Noel Arguelles – many doubted this guy would ever wear a uniform, so secret and mysterious were his arm problems. But the Cuban signee finally did take to the field and he was solid if not spectacular. Time will tell if he can recover the arm strength that made him a coveted international prospect.

Right-handed relievers:

Former big-leaguers Tejeda and Jeremy Jeffress remain options at this spot in spite of their struggles.

Kelvin Herrera – the best prospect that never showed up on anyone’s radar, neither before the season nor during it. He quietly put together a dazzling season, jumping from Wilmington to Northwest Arkansas to Omaha in a whirlwind campaign. Batters at each of the three levels failed to hit .200 against him. His WHIP was an uncanny .842. Herrera will turn 22 on New Years Eve, and could make next year a happy one for Royals’ fans.

Jeremy Jeffress – everyone else acquired in the Greinke trade had a great season. This guy went the wrong direction, getting demoted twice in one year.

Kendal Volz – came over in a mid-season trade. He’ll be given a crack at the Omaha pen next year.

Left-handed relievers:

There aren’t many lefty-relievers at the top levels of the farm system. Considering the shakiness of Collins and Teaford, more help may be needed, sooner rather than later.

Kevin Chapman – at Wilmington and Northwest Arkansas he struck out a combined 13.1 per nine innings. Due to the lack of lefty relievers ahead of him, Chapman should play a key role in the Omaha pen, just a phone call away from KC.

The big story come spring training will be who will make up KC’s starting rotation. Montgomery, Dwyer and Odorizzi should all receive a very long look. Judging by the rocky season Duffy just suffered through, fans should brace for the steep learning curve facing any rookie who makes the rotation. The bullpen looks more set, but Herrera and Jeffress will probably get a shot at making the big club.

Columbus Clips Chasers in Triple-A Title Game
PCL Champion Omaha can’t capitalize on early 3-0 lead, drops season finale

Mike Feigen / Omaha Storm Chasers

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — With the ice cream sundae of a Pacific Coast League Championship already served, the Omaha Storm Chasers fell just short of putting the cherry on top in a 8-3 loss to the Columbus Clippers Tuesday night in Albuquerque. The Cleveland Indians’ affiliate won its second-straight Triple-A National Championship Game, rallying from an early 3-0 hole to cruise to victory.

The one-game, nationally-televised playoff showcase started out well for Omaha, but the offense and pitching stalled out after a first-inning display reminiscent of performances throughout this year’s championship run.

Irving Falu got things started with a one-out walk in the first, followed by a single by David Lough to put two runners on. Lorenzo Cain then drilled a two-run triple to the right-center gap, his third three-base hit of the postseason to the exact same spot on the field. One out later, John Whittleman came through with an RBI single in his first playoff at-bat, giving the Chasers a 3-0 advantage.

Omaha starter Sean O’Sullivan (0-1, postseason) retired the side in order in the bottom half of the first, but ran into trouble in his next two frames, allowing six runs on six hits. The big blow was a tape-measure three-run homer by Luke Carlin on a two-strike, two-out pitch in the second, knotting the score at 3-3. O’Sullivan and the Chasers would go on to lose for the first time in the right-hander’s final 10 starts of the season.

Clippers’ right-hander Joe Martinez (3-0, postseason) and reliever Chen Lee held Omaha scoreless on five hits after the early outburst, giving the International League champ’s offense time to tack on insurance runs in the fourth off Willy Lebron and the eighth off Kelvin Herrera. Former first-round draft pick Beau Mills took Herrera deep to start the bottom of the eighth, getting around just enough on a hard fastball to lift it the opposite way over the left field wall.

Lance Zawadzki had another fine offensive showing in the contest, going 2-for-4 to improve his batting average to .444 (8-for-18) in four playoff starts. The Chasers got hits from seven of the nine men in the lineup, with Zawadzki’s performance going down as the only multi-hit contest.

Some 800 miles to the northeast, Storm Chasers’ ace right-hander Luis Mendoza and a handful of 2011 Omaha alumni were busy defeating the A.L. Central champion Detroit Tigers by a score of 10-2 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Mendoza, the PCL Pitcher of the Year and PCL Playoff MVP, earned his first Major League victory since August 3, 2008, when he was a member of the Texas Rangers. He was aided by Chasers’ Opening Day first baseman Eric Hosmer, who went 5-for-5 at the plate with his 18^th home run of the season.

Following the game, the Royals announced that six additional members of the 2011 Storm Chasers – Cain, Herrera, O’Sullivan, Jarrod Dyson, Vin Mazzaro and Manny Pina – would be joining the team in Kansas City. The occasion will mark Cain’s first appearance in the majors with the Royals and will be Herrera’s first taste of big-league action after starting the season in Class-A ball.

The PCL Champion Storm Chasers will open their title defense Thursday, April 5, 2012, when they host the Albuquerque Isotopes in the first game of a four-game series in the second full season at Werner Park.

Over the weekend, the Royals AAA affiliate moved forward to their league’s championship series while the AA affiliate’s season came to a close. Below are the respective press releases from both clubs:

Ka’aihue Powers Chasers into PCL Championship Series
Dramatic walk-off home run in 10th gives Omaha American Conference Title

Mike Feigen / Omaha Storm Chasers

OMAHA, Neb. — Kila Ka’aihue has been a man of few words this season, so it was no surprise that with the Chasers on the brink of a playoff series victory, he let his bat do the talking. Ka’aihue’s 316-foot drive down the right-field line had just enough juice to hit the foul pole, giving the Storm Chasers a dramatic 4-2 series-winning victory over the Round Rock Express in 10 innings Saturday afternoon at Werner Park. Video clip of Ka’aihue HR

Long before the Chasers celebrated their win, the hero of the day was Omaha right-hander Sean O’Sullivan. Tasked with holding back the potent Express offense, O’Sullivan carried a perfect game into the seventh inning and a no-hitter into the eighth, with the Chasers clinging to a 2-0 lead.

However, with just six outs to go, disaster struck. Joey Butler hit a grounder directly at second baseman Kurt Mertins, who was unable to field it and was charged with an error. No-hitter still intact, O’Sullivan then served up a mammoth two-run home run to Luis Cruz, knotting the game at 2-2 and giving Round Rock its first hit of the day.

O’Sullivan bounced back to close out the inning, but the damage had been done. Not only had the dream of a no-hitter been dashed, but the Chasers were in jeopardy of losing the game altogether. O’Sullivan finished his day with eight innings pitched, giving up two runs (one earned) on two hits, with one walk and seven strikeouts.

After each team got two runners on in the ninth but couldn’t score, Kevin Pucetas (1-0) pitched a 1-2-3 top of the 10th to set up the game-winning sequence.

With one out, Clint Robinson drew a five-pitch walk, bringing Ka’aihue to the plate. He worked the count to 1-1 before connecting off Round Rock’s Tanner Scheppers (0-1) to end the game, setting off a celebration at home plate and an even more wild party in the clubhouse moments later.

The walk-off home run was Ka’aihue’s second of the season at Werner Park, also delivering on June 28 against Memphis. Over his last two games, the left-handed swinging first baseman has gone 3-for-6 with two homers and six runs batted in, picking up a two-run homer and two-run double in Friday night’s extra-inning loss.

With the 3-1 series victory, the Chasers advance to their first-ever PCL Championship Series in their 14th season in the league. They also earned their first postseason series victory since 1990, when they won the Triple-A Championship as a member of the American Association.

The Chasers will begin the PCL Championship Series at home, as they host either the Reno Aces or Sacramento River Cats. Games 1 and 2 will be played Tuesday, September 13 and Wednesday, September 14 at Werner Park, with both games scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

Travs win, bounce Naturals from playoffs
Jimenez’ two homers, four RBI end up the difference

SPRINGDALE, AR – The Naturals, like so many times late this season, fell behind early and mounted a spirited comeback. But unfortunately the magic ran out as they fell 9-5 to their in-state rival Arkansas Travelers, as the Travs advance to the Texas League Championship Series.

A first inning error gave the Travelers an extra out to work with and they capitalized as Luis Jimenez gave the Travs the early lead with a three-run homer off Jeremy Jeffress with two out in the frame.

That put the Travs up 3-0 and gave their starter Eddie McKiernan some backing. McKiernan, who had a dubious start to the season for North Little Rock had limited the Naturals to just four runs in his past three starts against Northwest Arkansas. In the past two his team had staked him to a lead before he toed the rubber, and Saturday was no different.

North Little Rock got three more in the fourth before the Naturals began to claw their way back. But in the top of the fourth, Jeffress allowed a leadoff single to Alberto Rosario who would come around to score on an RBI single from Matt Long. An RBI groundout later and the Travs owned a 5-0 lead. Gabe Jacobo also added a two-out RBI single to score another run which chased Jeffress, who was on a limited pitch count and was relieved by Kendal Volz.

The Naturals finally began to get to McKiernan in the bottom of that same frame as Tim Smith led off the inning with a solo homer to right to cut the lead to 6-1. Jamie Romak and Paulo Orlando followed with back-to-back singles and Wil Myers was plunked. Jeff Bianchi followed and one of the pitches to him went wild to score Romak for a 2-0 lead. Bianchi grounded out to score Orlando and cut the Travs’ lead to 6-3, but McKiernan was able to get Mario Lisson to strike out and Ryan Eigsti to fly out to prevent further damage as the Naturals failed to claw closer in the frame.

One thing that ultimately kept the Naturals from closing the gap was struggles with runners in scoring position as the team was 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position Saturday as opposed to 5-for-16 for North Little Rock.

One of the other things was Luis Jimenez. The Travelers’ third baseman drove in his fourth run of the game to leadoff the fifth as he took Volz deep to extend the lead to 7-3.

Christian Colon’s one out single in the fifth ultimately chased McKiernan and prevented him from collecting the win. Instead that went to the tallest pitcher in the minors, Loek Van Mil, who relieved to pitch to Tim Smith, who had taken McKiernan deep earlier in the game. Smith lined out sharply as Travs’ shortstop Darwin Perez speared the ball and took away a hit from Smith and, with Colon at second after a wild pitch, likely a run from the Naturals.

One inning later the Naturals did get a pair and close to within 7-5, the closest they’d get in the ballgame. Jeff Bianchi had an RBI double and Eigsti plated a run on a groundout.

But in the top of the eighth, North Little Rock put two more runs on the board and that seemed to take the wind out of the Naturals’ sails. Facing Ryan Dennick, a lefty reliever making his Double-A debut after spending all season with Advanced Class-A Wilmington, Dennick allowed a one-out single to Darwin Perez and a two-out RBI double to Roberto Lopez. Dennick walked pinch hitter Chris Pettit and then Gable Jacobo doubled to the left-field wall to score Lopez.

An eighth inning single by Paulo Orlando was the lone hit the Naturals recorded the rest of the way as their season ended at the hands of the Travelers, who earn their second trip to the Texas League Championship Series in the past four seasons. They beat the Frisco RoughRiders to win the league title in 2008, a playoff run that began with a three-game sweep of the Naturals.

The series will be remembered somewhat for the absence of Naturals’ Pitcher of the Year Will Smith, who led the league in both wins and innings pitched. Smith was shut down at the behest of the Royals and the Naturals had to work without one of their most reliable arms down the stretch. As it was, should the Naturals had forced a game five, they’d have turned the ball over to southpaw Justin Marks, another pitcher who would have been making his Double-A debut.

The 2012 season opener will be on the road as the Naturals open the season with a six-game road trip beginning Thursday, April 5th. The home opener at Arvest Ballpark for the fifth season of Naturals Baseball will be on Thursday, April 12th as the Naturals host the Corpus Christi Hooks. The Naturals would like to thank all their fans and corporate partners for their continued support this season!

Omaha Chases Down Division Crown
Chasers blow out Round Rock, wait out Memphis loss

Mike Feigen / Omaha Storm Chasers

Photo Courtesy of Erika Lynn

OMAHA, Neb. — Mike Jirschele stood on a folding chair in the clubhouse, surrounded by the smiling faces of his Storm Chasers players. He gave his remarks, made a toast and was ceremoniously doused in a shower of champagne and beer. Division champs, at long last.

The Storm Chasers blasted the Round Rock Express 12-2 Wednesday night at Werner Park, then waited out a nail-biting 3-2 victory by Albuquerque over Memphis that ultimately gave the Omaha franchise its first postseason berth since 1999. The jubilant clubhouse reaction ranged from Sean O’Sullivan’s Michael Jackson dance exhibition to the playful antics of fan-favorite Irving Falu to the knowing smile of Jeff Suppan, a veteran of clubhouse celebrations on the grandest stage.

Nearly four hours earlier, the short-handed Chasers found themselves in a 2-0 hole to the Express just three batters into the game. Without Clint Robinson or Kila Ka’aihue in the lineup and with PCL Pitcher of the Year Luis Mendoza on the ropes, the chances of a clinch on this night looked bleak.

But one by one, role players from top to bottom collected base hit after base hit. When it was all said and done, the Chasers had amassed 18 hits, more than they had collected in any previous game at Werner Park this season. Lineups featuring Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Johnny Giavotella could not match the output of a lineup starring Joaquin Arias, Kurt Mertins and Yamaico Navarro.

Rightfielder Lorenzo Cain went 5-for-5 on the night for the Chasers, contributing five of the team’s 14 singles. Mertins went 3-for-5 with a run-scoring triple, Falu singled, tripled and drove in three and Jarrod Dyson went 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBI of his own.

Mendoza (12-5) settled down after allowing doubles to the first three batters of the game, surrendering just one more hit over six innings of work. He finished the game with an ERA of 2.19, still more than a run better than his nearest competitor in the PCL. Eric Hurley (8-3) took the loss for the Express, allowing 10 runs in five innings pitched.

The Chasers and Express will finish up their four-game series on Thursday at Werner Park on Fan Appreciation Night. First pitch from Werner Park is set for 7:05.

Meanwhile, tickets for the Omaha vs. Round Rock American Conference Championship Series went on sale immediately. The first game of the post-season at Werner Park is scheduled for Friday, September 9 at 7:05 p.m., with “if necessary” games set for Saturday, Sept. 10 at 1:05 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 11 at 2:05 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the Werner Park ticket office, by phone at (402) 738-5100 or online at www.omahastormchasers.com. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

A mid-season evaluation of the pitching in the KC farm system won’t be much cause for encouragement.

But before being too harsh, it needs to be noted that there are a host of youngsters receiving on-the-job training in KC.

Several guys who probably should be gaining experience on the Double-A and Triple-A level, far away from the white-hot spotlight of the big leagues, are instead taking their lumps every night against the best hitters in the game.

And for the most part, they have held their own.

The number of young pitchers who have made their big league debut this season is astounding: Nate Adcock, 23; Louis Coleman, 25; Tim Collins, 21; Danny Duffy, 22; and Everett Teaford, 27.

Throw in 23-year-olds Jeremy Jeffress and Sean O’Sullivan, 24-year-old Vin Mazzaro, and 25-year-olds Greg Holland and Blake Wood, and you have staff that’s barely old enough to celebrate the occasional win with a beer.

The KC bullpen has skimmed the cream off the top of the farm system. So it’s no surprise that there doesn’t appear to be a lot of prospects ready to make the move up. The best ones are already up.

That said, however, the results are grim at the halfway point of the minor league season. For all the acclaim the KC farm system garnered (even being called the best accumulation of talent in the history of rankings by Baseball America) there don’t seem to be any difference makers on the horizon.

The best way to evaluate the first half performance of the Royals pitching prospects is to utilize the spaghetti western ranking system of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Unfortunately there is just too much ugly to feel real great about the future of pitching in KC.

Listed below are the prospects in the order of how much was expected from them coming into the season:

John Lamb: Bad – Tommy John surgery doesn’t seem like the death-knell that it once was. But it certainly is a setback for Baseball America’s #18 prospect. Lamb can expect about 9 to 12 months of recovery time, so hopefully he can be ready to go next spring.

Mike Montgomery: Ugly – I watched him pitch in the Futures Game in KC on April 2, and was ready to anoint him a “can’t miss” prospect. He couldn’t have looked more dominant. But something is definitely amiss with Montgomery. Baseball America’s #19 prospect gave up four homers in his last outing. He now has a WHIP of 1.551, and his ERA has climbed to 5.83. He may still get a call up at some point this fall, but he certainly seems to have some issues to resolve.

Jake Odorizzi: Good – I don’t know what the Royals are waiting for, but it would seem a promotion for the 21-year-old righty is imminent. He’s been about as dominant as you could be at High-A level Wilmington. His walks per nine innings is 2.7, while his strikeouts per nine is 12.6. It’s time for a new challenge.

Chris Dwyer: Ugly – Baseball America’s #83 prospect has had only two good outings since May 1. His ERA is now over 6.00. If Montgomery is stalled, then Dwyer is going in reverse.

Jeremy Jeffress: Good – I’m sure Jeffress isn’t thrilled to be in Omaha when he started the season as a member of the KC pen. But it’s not as bad as it might appear. If he can get his walks under control, he certainly has the talent to be an effective reliever. The good news is that in his last 10 innings, he’s only surrendered three walks. Rumors that he would be tried as a starter were either unfounded or the plan was quickly abandoned.

Noel Arguelles: Good – Many wondered if the guy would ever pitch, much less pitch this well. I think many were starting to question whether this Cuban defector even existed. For all the time he took off to recover from injuries, he’s hardly rusty. He’s giving up less than a walk per nine innings, and has a WHIP of just 1.031. Wilmington has limited his work to about five innings per outing. Odorizzi and Arguelles have probably benefited from playing at pitcher-friendly Wilmington. They’ll be tested when they get to the less forgiving Texas League.

Tyler Sample: Bad – The gigantic third-round pick from 2008 is still giving up too many walks to look like he’s ready to move up to Northwest Arkansas.

Jason Adam: Good – The fifth-round selection from Blue Valley Northwest is off to a great start at Kane County. The Royals need some prospects from the lower levels to climb quickly, and Adam is one to watch.

Kelvin Herrera and Kevin Chapman: Good – These two relievers jumped to Northwest Arkansas and have continued to lock down games in the bullpen. The 21-year-old Herrera has recorded 25 strikeouts and just one walk in 13 innings since the promotion.

Yordano Ventura: Good – A little guy with a hot fastball, Ventura just turned 20 and is striking out more than a batter per inning at Kane County.

Justin Marks: Bad – The guy would seem to have talent (witness the 12 K’s in six innings in his last start), but it would be nice to get at least one good pitcher from the David DeJesus trade. So far he’s been too hit and miss.

Timothy Melville: Bad – He has been ugly at times, but not nearly as ugly as last year. So much more was expected, however. His walks are still too high and his strikeouts are still too low, and his bad outings are still too frequent. He’ll be 22 in September and still doesn’t seem ready to move beyond A ball. I don’t think much is expected out of him any more, and his window of opportunity is closing.

The early results from the farm system are troubling. The Royals are in desperate need of starting pitchers. When three of your top guns – Lamb, Montgomery and Dwyer – have fired off duds thus far, your future looks grim.

But when you factor into the picture that 11 of the 12 pitchers on your current big league team are under 28 years of age, it tells you much of your young talent is already at the highest level.

Dayton Moore believes that “pitching is the currency of baseball.” The Royals don’t look as poor as they used to, but they won’t ever be truly rich unless they can find, somewhere, some quality front end starting pitching. They currently have a staff full of #4 and #5 starters and middle relievers.

The second half of the season for Montgomery and Dwyer, the advancements of Odorizzi and Arguelles, and the rehabilitation of Lamb are crucial to the long-term transformation of the team.