Major League Baseball announced today that Billy Butler of the Kansas City Royals has been voted the winner of the 2012 Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award.  Butler received 80 first-place votes out of 84 ballots cast to garner the honor for the first time in his six-year career.  He becomes the second Royal to be named the league’s top designated hitter, joining three-time winner Hal McRae who took home the award in 1976, 1980 and 1982 while playing for Kansas City.  Edwin Encarnacion finished second with 35 second-place votes after slugging a career-best 42 home runs and 110 RBI for the Toronto Blue Jays this past season.

Butler batted .313 (192-for-614) with 32 doubles, one triple, 29 home runs, 107 RBI and 72 runs scored in 161 games in 2012.  He notched the eighth season in franchise history with at least a .300 batting average, 25 homers and 100 RBI, the first Kansas City player to do so since Carlos Beltran in 2003, and his 29 homers were the most by a Royal since Jermaine Dye launched 33 home runs during the 2000 season.  Among qualifying designated hitters with a minimum of 100 at-bats at the position, the Florida native finished first in games played (138), at-bats (538), runs scored (61), base hits (170), doubles (29), RBI (93), batting average (.315), on-base percentage (.371) and slugging percentage (.501).  In addition, Butler was second in homers (23) and stood third in walks (42).  The 26-year-old established career-bests in games, at-bats, hits, homers, RBI, slugging and total bases (313), leading his club in all three Triple Crown categories.  The righty-hitting Butler finished fifth in hits, sixth in RBI, was tied for seventh in total bases and was eighth in batting average among all A.L. hitters.

Billy added numerous accomplishments to his career resume after posting one of his finest offensive seasons to date, including being named as the Royals representative in the 2012 All-Star Game in Kansas City; he was named the A.L. Player of the Week for the period ending July 29^th; he earned his first-career Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Award on November 8^th, the first Royals player to win the award since Dean Palmer in 1998; and he was named the Les Milgram Royals Player of the Year by the Kansas City Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) for the third time in his career (also 2009-10), joining George Brett, Amos Otis and Mike Sweeney as the only three-time winners of the honor.

Now in its 38^th season, the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award was renamed by Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig in a September 2004 ceremony at Safeco Field in honor of the retiring Edgar Martinez.  Ballots are cast by club beat writers, broadcasters and A.L. public relations departments with nominees including all players with a minimum of 100 at-bats as a designated hitter.

November 30^th, 2012

Springfield, MO – The Springfield Cardinals have been named by Baseball America as the Minor League Team of the Year in 2012.

Springfield captured their first Texas League Crown by defeating the Tulsa Drillers in the North Division Finals in five games before besting the Frisco RoughRiders in four games.

The St. Louis Cardinals Double-A Affiliate was littered with talent including seven of the Top 30 prospects according Baseball America and Texas League Player of the Year, Oscar Taveras. The 20-year-old outfielder was the first Springfield player to lead the league in batting average (.321), doubles (37), extra-base hits (67) and total bases (273) while finishing in the top five in home runs (23), RBI (93), runs scored (83), triples (7) and slugging percentage (.572).

The Cardinals boasted five Post-Season All-Stars including Taveras, second baseman Kolten Wong, and pitchers Trevor Rosenthal, Keith Butler and Seth Maness.

“We are honored to be named the 2012 Team of the Year by Baseball America,” Vice President and General Manager Matt Gifford said. “This is a tremendous honor for arguably one of the best teams in Springfield Cardinals history. It’s a tribute to player development and the coaching staff for putting together a great club and to the players for their hard work throughout a long season.”

First year Double-A Manager Mike Shildt guided the Cardinals to a 35-35 record in the first half before the team hit their stride in the second half, winning the North Division Second Half crown with a 42-26 record. Overall, Springfield finished a franchise best 77-61, the best record in the North and third best record in the league. For Shildt, the 2012 title was his third straight after capturing back to back Appalachian League titles in 2010 and 2011 with Johnson City.

Springfield will open up the 2013 season on the road in Corpus Christi April 4^th before returning home to Hammons Field April 11^th for a six-game homestand against the Hooks and San Antonio Missions.  Season Ticket Packages are on sale now. Please call (417) 863-0395 or visit www.springfieldcardinals.com for more details on how you can become a season ticket holder.

Kansas City, MO (November 8, 2012) – Louisville Slugger announced this evening that Royals player Billy Butler is the 2012 Silver Slugger™ Award winner at Designated Hitter in the American League.  Butler becomes the seventh-different Royals player to win a Silver Slugger award (10^th time overall), the first since third baseman Dean Palmer in 1998.

The Silver Slugger award winners were determined by a vote of Major League Baseball coaches and managers who named the players they felt were the best offensive producers at each position in both the American and National leagues in 2012. Selections were based on a combination of offensive statistics, including batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, as well as the coaches’ and managers’ general impressions of a player’s overall offensive value.  Managers and coaches were not allowed to vote for players on their own teams. Tabulation of the balloting was verified by the accounting firm of Mountjoy Chilton Medley LLP.

Butler, 26, was awarded his third Les Milgram Royals Player of the Year award (also 2009 and 2010) yesterday.  Appearing in 138 games as the Royals designated hitter, Butler batted .315 (170-for-539) with 23 home runs, 29 doubles and 93 RBI.  He led all designated hitters with 61 runs, 170 hits, 29 doubles and 93 RBI while ranking second in average and home runs.  Overall, Butler batted .313 with 32 doubles, 29 home runs and 107 RBI in 161 contests.

Royals Silver Slugger Award winners (award was instituted in 1980):
George Brett – 1980, 1985 and 1988 (1980 and 1985 at third base, 1988 at first base)
Willie Wilson – 1980 and 1982 (outfield)
Hal McRae – 1982 (designated hitter)
Frank White – 1986 (second base)
Gary Gaetti – 1995 (third base)
Dean Palmer – 1998 (third base)
Billy Butler – 2012 (designated hitter)

I have to admit I was a little surprised Billy Butler was the Royals representative for the 2012 All-Star Game (unless Jonathan Broxton is voted in as the Final Vote) instead of Mike Moustakas or Alcides Escobar. After all, Moose was getting a lot of deserving All-Star voting attention and Escobar is having an All-Star kind of year. But I shouldn’t be surprised Butler got the All-Star nod over Moustakas and Escobar.

One, Butler is having another good year, which is Billy being Billy. It’s easy to take Butler for granted because he’s consistently good. His batting average is at .290 and his on base percentage is at .366. He leads the team in slugging percentage at .500, home runs with 16 and RBI with 48. Yes, his defense is bad and Eric Hosmer is a much better defensive first baseman. But the designated hitter is an offensive position, and Butler is an excellent hitter.

Another reason why Butler was picked over Moustakas and Escobar was the makeup of the American League All-Star roster and fan and player voting. For third base, Texas Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre is a starter, voted in by the fans. Detroit Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera was voted in by the players, managers and coaches as a reserve. And compared to Moustakas, Cabrera is having a better year offensively, even if Moose’s defense is better than Cabrera’s.

As for shortstop, the Yankees Derek Jeter will be a starting A.L. All-Star shortstop until he retires. Cleveland Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera was voted in by players, managers and coaches as a reserve shortstop. And Texas has a good shortstop in Elvis Andrus, who is one of the reserves picked by Rangers manager Ron Washington. In Escoabar’s case, he didn’t have the player votes Cabrera had, and it was natural for Washington to pick Andrus.

Three designated hitters are on the A.L. All-Star roster. Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz, another fan favorite like Jeter, is having a good year and will start. Next is Butler, who was selected by Washington. Finally, the Comeback Kid, Chicago White Sox DH Adam Dunn, who was voted in by the players, managers and coaches.

Butler is a first time All-Star and a deserving one. Moustakas is having a great year, but Miguel Cabrera is having a better year and is better known among his peers. One could argue Escobar was snubbed, but the players were more familiar with Asdrubal Cabrera and voted for him. If the Royals had a better record and more national attention, Escobar would have had a better chance to make the All-Star roster.

There is one more chance for the Royals to add another player to the All-Star roster. Closer Jonathan Broxton is on the A. L. Final Vote ballot. As of this writing, starting pitcher Yu Darvish is leading the A. L. Final Vote tally. To be honest, I doubt a lot of Royals fans will vote for Broxton. Yes, he has 20 saves. But those saves didn’t come easy and when he’s on the mound, fans wish for the halcyon days of Joakim Soria.

It’s a little disappointing the Royals have only one player on the roster, since the game is being played in Kansas City. But the Royals brought this on themselves. If they were playing better, there would be more Royals on the All-Star roster. The best way to get more players on an All-Star roster is the win the American League Pennant. For the Royals, let’s hope that’s sooner than later.

When the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals begin defense of the title they won in one of the most exciting postseasons in recent memory, it might be easy to focus on who isn’t around anymore. They’ve had to replace the winningest manager in franchise history, Tony La Russa, as well as one of the greatest players to ever wear a Cardinals uniform, Albert Pujols.

If you were searching for the ideal replacement for Albert Pujols, then move along, because you won’t find it. There is only one Pujols, and he’s gone.  Albert Pujols had manned this position full time for the past eight seasons. But he is now with the Los Angeles Angels, and Lance Berkman moves from the outfield to a spot where, at 36, he’s better suited for. Berkman earned NL comeback player of the year honors by hitting .301 with 31 homers and 94 RBI last season. When he needs a day off, Carlos Beltran and even Yadier Molina will be there to help.

Brian LaHair, Cubs. The long-time Minor Leaguer was last up in the bigs back in ’08 with the Mariners. In his latest go-round, the 28-year-old has made an impression on manager Mike Quade, batting a blistering .500 with a .950 slugging percentage. While too old to be considered a prospect, LaHair launched 38 homers and drove in 109 for Triple-A Iowa this season and could provide some decent power returns over the final few weeks of the season.

Joey Votto, Reds. Votto is still one of the best players in the National League, and obviously the best first baseman in the league. His 14.2 fWAR over the last two years leads all NL first basemen, and the reigning 2010 MVP isn’t just one of the best in the NL, but in all of baseball. Votto will be heading to free agency after 2013, but he’ll be 30 at that point in time, and probably won’t get as crazy of a deal as Fielder and Pujols. But he should still get a solid contract, if not from the Reds, then from another team that needs a first baseman.

Carlos Lee, Astros. Lee’s behemoth contract comes to an end after this season, but after a pair of down years, Lee had a really good campaign in 2011, though one that wasn’t worth his eight figure salary. He hit .275/.342/.446, and walked nearly as much as he struck out. He won’t be getting $18.5 million in 2013 from another team, but he’s a guy that could actually hang on for a few more years like Jim Thome has, as a DH that occasionally plays first base.

Mat Gamel, Brewers. Milwaukee still doesn’t have a replacement for Prince Fielder at first, and it’s generally believed that Gamel will be taking over there this season. He’s no longer a young, studly prospect at 26 years-old, and in his only extended tour in the majors in 2009, he OPSed .760 in 148 plate appearances. He’s spent parts of the last four seasons at AAA Nashville, and has hit well there, tallying a .310/.372/.540 line there last year with 28 homers. Milwaukee needs to find out what they’ve got with him, and 2012 would be the best opportunity for him and the Brewers to see what they have here.

Garrett Jones, Pirates. Jones’s splits last year were startling: he had a .460 OPS against lefties, and an .808 OPS against righties. If Pittsburgh plans on starting him, they’ll need a platoon partner. One option would be former top third base prospect Pedro Alvarez….who has the same deficiency against lefties that Jones has. It could be a rough year for the Pirates if they roll with Jones as their starter.

Lance Berkman, Cardinals. Berkman will be taking over at first base for the Cardinals this season following the departure of Albert Pujols after a fantastic 2011 season that saw him OPS .959, hit 31 homers (his highest total since 2007), and accrue 5.0 fWAR. His defensive inadequacies should be masked at first base, and if his health holds up, Berkman could be a great replacement for Pujols (though not nearly as good overall as the former MVP). But remember, injuries have been an issue for Berkman lately, missing 66 games in 2009 and 2010.

By the time 2012 is said and done here is how I see things shaking out amongst the NL Central second basemen

1. Joey Votto
2. Lance Berkman
3. Carlos Lee
4. Garrett Jones
5. Bryan LaHair
6. Mat Gamel

The Royals of 2012 will be young.  With veterans sprinkled throughout the roster the Royals will be able to find their club house leader. But who will step up and be the leader on the field.  That responsibility could be placed on the shoulders of up and coming catcher Salvador Perez.

One of the biggest surprises of the 2011 season was not only the call up but the success of young catching prospect.  A player who by all accounts has shown in the past that defensively he has what it takes to be a premiere catcher for a long time in the Major Leagues.  But his offense was lacking.  Lacking is the only attribute that cannot describe the short season that Perez had last year. He showed that he had the ability to drive the ball to all fields, which at such a young age is nothing but positive. Yes it was a small sample size, but let’s look at what could have been in Perez had played a full season.

Seeing that he would have had around 500 at-bats in a full season here is what his stat sheet would have consisted of in 2011.

At-Bats: 500
Runs:68
Hits:166
Doubles:27
Home Runs:10
RBI:71
Strikeouts:68
Average: .332
Slugging Percentage: .470

If this were true, saying that he overachieved would have been an understatement.  Now although this would be wonderful production from behind the plate, Perez cannot be expected to put up these kinds of numbers for a full season.  He will digress, but his intangibles are what make him such a great commodity to have on this year’s ball club.

His knowledge of the game and how to handle his pitchers will be crucial if the Royals want to make a run for the division title in 2012.  Knowing what pitches to call, when to call them, and when to take a little risk with his battery mate.

Defensively, he just has to stay consistent.  One problem with players today is if they have a little trouble at the plate their defense will show their frustrations. But a leader has to be able to forget when things are not going his way with the bat and just play the game.  This will be the biggest test for Perez in 2012 because he will surely go through the growing pains of any young player. His response to adversity is what will put him on a “captain of the team” like pedestal.

With all this being said here are some projections for the Royal’s young Venezuelan catcher in the 2012 season.

At-Bats: 485
Runs:65
Hits:138
Doubles:24
Home Runs:15
RBI:66
Strikeouts:74
Average: .285
Slugging Percentage: .443

If Perez can produce these kinds of numbers at the plate, add in his stellar defense behind the plate, and step into the leadership role in the 2012 season the Royals could have a truly valuable piece to their puzzle for future success in Kansas City.

ROYALS AGREE TO TERMS WITH THIRD BASEMAN Kevin Kouzmanoff ON A MINOR LEAGUE CONTRACT FOR 2012
Contract includes invitation to Major League Spring Training

KANSAS CITY, MO (January 14, 2012 — The Kansas City Royals announced today that the club has agreed to terms with third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff on a minor league contract for the 2012 season.  The contract includes an invitation to Royals Major League Spring Training camp in Surprise, Ariz<

The 30-year-old Kouzmanoff (KOOZ-mah-nahf) combined to play 73 games for the Oakland Athletics and Colorado Rockies in 2011, batting .235 with seven home runs, 33 RBI and 24 runs scored.  The right-handed hitter is a career .255 batter with 85 home runs and 361 RBI over six Major League seasons with the Indians (2006), Padres (2007-09), A’s (2010-11) and Rockies (2011).

He is a career .279 hitter with a .453 slugging percentage against left-handed pitchers.  The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder is known as a strong defender, leading all N.L. third baseman with a .990 fielding percentage in 2009, and averaged nearly 19 home runs a season from 2007-2010.

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.

SURPRISE, AZ – The Arizona Fall League has announced that a pair of 2011 Naturals, Wil Myers and Christian Colon will participate for the West Division in the league’s Rising Stars Game this Saturday (November 5^th) at 7 P.M. Central Time. Right-hander Nate Adcock, who spent the season as a big league reliever due to his Rule 5 status, also was selected as a representative of the Royals.

Accredited online colleges have information about sports management and sports medicine degrees for fans who want to get behind the scenes of the games.

The game will be televised nationally by the MLB Network and online via MLB.com.

Their club, the Surprise Saguaros, the Royals’ co-op team in the six-team AFL circuit, has certainly made its mark on the circuit. At 17-6 (.738), the Saguaros are on pace to break the AFL win percentage record (.705). In order to complete the feat, they need to go 10-4 or better in final 14 games.

The offense provided by the three Naturals on the Saguaros has been a big reason why. Myers drove in a run on a double Monday during a 1-for-4 effort. Last Tuesday’s 3-for-5 effort capped a four-game stretch that saw him get three hits in three separate games. Entering play Tuesday Myers is sixth in the league in batting average (.367), second in on-base percentage (.506), and second in slugging percentage (.700). He’s also tied for third in triples (3), tied for fourth with 42 total bases and has 17 walks, ranking him second in the loop.

Anthony Seratelli has also continued to hit. In his most recent appearance Saturday, Seratelli went 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Although his playing time has been limited, he’s second in the AFL with a .395 batting average, and leads the pace with a .510 on-base percentage. He’s batting an impressive .450 (9-for-20) with the bases empty.

Myers and Seratelli’s hot hitting has evidently rubbed off on Colon, who has lifted his average to .280 (14-for-50). Colon logged multiple hits for the third consecutive game Saturday, going 2-for-6, and homered for the second time in three starts last Thursday.

On the hill, Jeremy Jeffress has had two scoreless frames in the past week and has now been unscored upon in his past four outings. The hard-throwing righty has recorded five of his past six outs via the strikeout and now has 11 strikeouts to just four walks in 7 2/3 innings tossed for Surprise. Brendan Lafferty tossed a scoreless frame with a strikeout Saturday that broke a string of four outings in which the southpaw had allowed at least one run. Bryan Paukovits also had two scoreless innings of relief during the past week.

Check back on nwanaturals.com for updates on the progress of these players. You can also get updates by following the Naturals on Facebook and Twitter.

Naturals/Texas League Notes

Former Natural Hosmer wins award: The Kansas City Royals have announced that rookie first baseman Eric Hosmer was selected as the 2011 Joe Burke Special Achievement Award winner. The award was voted on by the Kansas City Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). The Joe Burke is awarded to an unsung player who contributed above and beyond what was expected, or someone who the writers felt deserved some recognition for an outstanding season.

Hosmer, who turned 22 on October 24^th, began the 2011 season with Triple-A Omaha before making his Major League debut on May 6. The Royals first-round selection (third overall) in 2008 hit .293 (153-for-523) with 27 doubles, three triples, 19 home runs, 78 RBI and 66 runs scored. He led all qualified MLB rookies (min. 3.1 PA/game) in batting average, go-ahead RBI (26) and game-winning RBI (13). Hosmer also paced A.L. rookies in hits, runs and multi-hit games (42) while ranking second in RBI, doubles, total bases (243) and extra-base hits (49), third in home runs, walks (34) and slugging (.465), and fourth in on-base percentage (.334). The July A.L. Rookie of the Month either tied the game or gave the Royals the lead on 12 of his 19 home runs.

Dyson hurt, leaves winter ball: Jarrod Dyson returned to Kansas City last week to be examined after banging up his right shoulder while colliding with a wall during a game in the Venezuelan Winter League. The outfielder is expected to be OK. Royals’ General Manager Dayton Moore said that Dyson, playing for Caracas, will take a couple of weeks to heal from a contusion and slight strain of the shoulder. He is not likely to return to Venezuela, where he was batting .227 (5-for-22) in seven games.

Naturals no-hitter, triple-play game wins MILBY: Minorleaguebaseball.com selected the Naturals’ July 19^th game against the Arkansas Travelers as both the best Double-A game of the year as well as the minors’ game of the year. That day in North Little Rock, Will Smith and Kelvin Herrera combined to throw the Naturals’ first no-hitter of the season. Smith allowed just two baserunners, back-to-back walks to start the bottom of the sixth that would be erased by the first triple play in Naturals’ history. It was the first time the feat of turning a triple play during a no-hitter had ever been accomplished in the long history of the Texas League. It also has never happened in over 250 no-hitters twirled at the Major League level.

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

In the Venezuelan Winter League, Mario Lisson (Navegantes de Magallanes) hasn’t seen playing time in the past week but is 1-for-5 on the season with three RBI’s. Former Natural Jose Duarte (Leones de Caracas) has been cold of late, recording just one hit over the past week in three starts. Ernesto Mejia (Aguilas del Zulia) had a homer and two RBI’s on Saturday as well as a hit Sunday, while Manny Pina (Bravos de Margarita) is batting .214 (3-for-14) in seven games thus far…In the Dominican League, David Lough (Aguilas Cibaenas) is riding a four-game hitting streak and has lifted his winter-ball average to .229. Naturals’ right-handerManauris Baez (Estrellas de Oriente) has had a great start to his winter league season, having allowed just five hits and a run in 9 1/3 innings covering three starts. Mario Santiago (Tigres del Licey) gave up three runs on five hits over 5 2/3 innings in his most recent start, while Willy Lebron, his rotation-mate in Licey and fellow Royals’ farmhand, allowed two runs, both of which were unearned over five innings in his last start. He gave up just one hit but walked four. SouthpawBrandon Sisk (Gigantes del Cibao) plunked the only batter he faced in his last appearance and owns a 2.84 ERA in five outings, while Kelvin Herrera (Leones del Escogido) continues to impress, tossing 4 2/3 scoreless relief thus far with a save. Herrera has fanned four and walked one. He’s teammates with Everett Teaford, who was roughed up to three runs in 3 1/3 in his last outing. Also on Leones is Elisaul Pimentel, who joined the Naturals late in the season and will likely be in the 2012 rotation. Pimentel recorded one out in his first winter league outing of the year.…in the Mexican League, former Natural Federico Castaneda(Tomateros de Culiacan) has a 1-1 record and 7.71 ERA in nine outings thus far.

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: Former Naturals infielder Chris McConnell re-signed with the Washington Nationals organization for his second season. A Natural in 2009 and 2010, the sure-handed McConnell split 2011 between Triple-A Syracuse and Double-A Harrisburg…Former Naturals outfielder Brian McFall retired from professional baseball after the 2011 season. McFall was with the Naturals in 2008 and 2009 and has bounced around to several unaffiliated independent league teams in the two seasons since following his release from the Royals’ organization in March 2010.

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 following post was originally written for and published on BaseballDigest.com.

Legends are made in October.

That is the slogan that Major League Baseball has used through most of the postseason. Commercials that recount no hitters, hitting performances, great plays and moments that echo through baseball fans’ memories for all their lives. It was a marketing ploy inspired by Cliff Lee‘s dominant performance in the 2010 postseason. Network broadcasters FOX and TBS were hoping to catch lightning in a bottle and, to most, they found their thunder strike during game three of the World Series.

For those of you that are living under a rock and have no idea what happened in game three, Albert Pujols stepped onto baseball’s greatest stage and wrote himself into the game’s lore. The run down of his single game:

• Five Hits (ties Paul Molitor for most hits in a World Series Game)
• Three Home Runs (ties Reggie Jackson and Babe Ruth, who did it twice)
• Six Runs Batted In (sets a World Series Record)
• Fourteen Total Bases (sets a World Series Record)
• Totaled line is considered the greatest offensive performance in the history of the Fall Classic

Legends are born in October.

Are they, though? For eleven years, Albert Pujols has defied logic. His career has been littered with “first player ever to…” footnotes. The Cardinal first baseman has become known around the league, nation, and possibly world as the “best player in the game”. Many have questioned if his career is on the decline after the 2011 season closed. The slugger produced career lows in runs batted in, triples, doubles, hits, walks, on base percentage, total bases, and slugging percentage. His home run total was the third worst season he has produced. He grounded into a league high 29 double plays. All of that considered, he was still one of the best players in the league. If his 2011 stats are a player on the decline, it simply reveals just how high he has set the bar.

Albert Pujols may be the only player in Major League Baseball, possibly in the history of the game, that could take the field and have a game similar to the performance he turned in during game three of the World Series and not become a legend.

Legends are made in October.

Albert Pujols was a legend before he even took the field this October. On October 22, 2011, he simply reminded the world that he was still here and still a force to be reckoned with.