If I had to guess…..here’s how I think I’d rank the first 7 of these guys…
1) Ben Kudrna
2) Peyton Wilson
3) Frank Mozzicato
4) Dayton Dooney
5) Carter Jensen
6) Eric Cerantola
7) Parker Bates
Drew rounded up the day three picks.
15.439 River Town – OF – Dallas Baptist University
Speedy outfielder who fits a leadoff profile, LHH, .326/.436/.519, 15 doubles, 10 home runs, 32 walks, 14 HBP, 35 strikeouts, 20 stolen bases in 23 attempts at DBU this spring, gritty player who gets on base and can make things happen.
Here’s the roundup of our weekly Royals MiLB leaderboard.
On-Base Percentage
1.) Rudy Martin – .452
2.) Tucker Bradley – .425
3.) Edward Olivares – .424
4.) Maikel Garcia – .411
5.) Nick Pratto / Logan Porter – .407
Photo of MJ Melendez: Ken Inness / MiLB.com
AAA Omaha (37-22): L 2-3
The Storm Chasers offense has been pretty inconsistent since losing Emmanuel Rivera and Ryan O’Hearn. Edward Olivares stayed hot, finishing 2-3 with a walk last night, but that’s about it. The team as a whole had just 6 singles, 5 walks, and struck out 12 times. Marcelo Martinez allowed 10 hits in 4.2 IP, 3 runs, 0 BB, and struck out 5. Grant Gavin struck out 1 in 2.1 perfect innings of relief. Tyler Zuber struck out 2 in a scoreless inning. He’s been dominant since being sent back to Omaha. It looks like Brandon Barker (don’t ask, I don’t know) will start for Omaha tonight.
AA Northwest Arkansas (32-27): W 9-4
In their last 5 games with Bobby Witt Jr. and Nick Pratto in the lineup, the Naturals have scored 47 combined runs. The offense has been firing on all cylinders lately and showed no signs of slowing down last night. Yefri Del Rosario had a weird night, striking out 6 with 0 BB, but also allowing 6 hits (2 HR) and 4 runs in 3.2 IP. Carlos Sanabria was pretty good in relief again. Daniel Tillo will open the game for NWA tomorrow night in his first non-rehab outing since having Tommy John Surgery last summer.
Box Score:
– Dairon Blanco: 5-5, 2 2B
– Bobby Witt Jr.: 3-5, HR, K
– Nick Pratto: 3-5, 2 K
– MJ Melendez: 2-4, HR, 2B, BB
– Freddy Fermin: 2-5, 2B, 2 K
– Yefri Del Rosario: 3.2 IP, 6 H, 0 BB, 6 K, 4 ER
– Carlos Sanabria: 2 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 0 R
A+ Quad Cities (39-20): W 6-5
This River Bandits offense is absolutely relentless. Michael Massey hit his 10th HR. William Hancock, Eric Cole, and John Rave all homered. Vinnie Pasquantino finished 3-4 with a 2B and a BB. Anthony Veneziano struck out 7 and allowed just 2 ER through 4 IP. Peyton Gray struck out 2 in 2 scoreless innings to close things out. AJ Block looks to keep it rolling tomorrow night. (Quad Cities is in Beloit again this week so there will be no video until next Tuesday.)
A- Columbia (30-27): W 4-3
It wasn’t super eventful, but it was enough. Herard Gonzalez finished 2-4 with a 2B and a BB. Felix Familia doubled twice. Ismael Aquino and Emilio Marquez were brilliant in relief. Anderson Paulino starts things off for Columbia tonight.
ACL Royals Gold (3-8): L 3-10
Edgar Martinez continues to be pretty solid in Arizona. He finished 2-3 with a 2B, a 3B, and a BB. Roger Leyton hit his 2nd HR of the year and finished 1-3 with a BB, pushing his season OPS to .940. Ashe Russell threw another 0.2 IP, striking out both of his outs. Good to see him pitching live again. Not going to worry about results with him unless he shows he can stay healthy for the remainder of 2021. We’ll see what happens, just good to see him healthy in any capacity.
ACL Royals Blue (6-4): L 7-9
Another good night for Erick Pena at the plate. After hitting his first HR on Monday night, Pena finishes 1-4 with a 2B and a BB last night, pushing his season OPS back up to .858. Nate Eaton finished 1-3 with a pair of BB and K each. Foster Griffin struck out 4 in 2.1 innings of 1-run ball in his rehab start. Good to see him back and healthy. Dario Peralta, a 20-year old RHP from the DR, struck out a pair of batters in 3 perfect innings to close things out.
DSL Royals
The DSL got started yesterday. Some names to keep an eye on:
– Top prospect Daniel Vasquez finished 0-3 with a BB and a K
– Lizandro Rodriguez finished 2-4 with a HR and a K
– Junior Calderon, back for his 2nd tour of duty in the DSL, finished 2-3 with a BB and a K
– Jose Chacon finished 1-4 with a HR
– Weskendry Espinoza fired 3 scoreless innings, allowing 1 hit, striking out 4
Royals Farm Report 