TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Kaaihue, Royals Caravan Returning to Springdale

Published on January 6, 2009 under Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are excited to welcome the Kansas City Royals 2009 Winter Caravan as it makes its stop in Northwest Arkansas. The signature event of the caravan will be a lunch held on Tuesday, January 20th at the Holiday Inn in Springdale at 1500 S. 48th Street. The lunch will begin at 11:30 and the program will begin at 12 Noon. Several Royals of past and present will be on hand to meet and greet fans, sign autographs, and take questions and answers from Naturals fans. Admission is $20 per person, and fans are encouraged to call (479) 927-4900 or visit the box office at Arvest Ballpark to reserve their tickets.

Naturals' season ticket holders and mini-pack holders may purchase tickets for a discounted rate of $10 over the phone or at the box office. Reserved tables for ten are available for $150. A ticket order form is available on our official website, nwanaturals.com, and can be printed out and returned via email or fax to our office.

Former Naturals' first baseman Kila Kaaihue along with Kansas City Royals starting pitchers Gil Meche and Kyle Davies will be among the Royals' delegates. Former major leaguer Dennis Leonard and Dayton Moore, the Kansas City Royals' Senior VP-Baseball Operations/General Manager, also will be on hand.

Kaaihue, the 24-year old Hawaii native, wowed fans at Arvest Ballpark with his constant display of power during the 2008 season. The first baseman hit .314 with 26 homers and 79 RBI en route to winning Texas League Player of the Year honors. After his promotion to Triple-A Omaha, he continued his powerful body of work, clubbing 11 homers in just 33 games before finishing his 2008 campaign in the major leagues.

Meche, the 30-year old Royals' ace has won 25 games in the past two seasons, both times turning in sub-4.00 ERA's. The right-hander was named as a 2007 Major League All-Star and has a career 78-68 record. Davies, a 25-year old right-hander, appeared to cement himself a spot in the Royals' rotation by winning nine of his 21 starts in 2008 and posting a 4.06 ERA. He was acquired from the Atlanta Braves in a 2007 trade-deadline deal for reliever Octavio Dotel.

Leonard was a model of consistency for the Royals, spending his entire 12-year career with the club and winning 20 games three times (1977, 1978, 1980). The right-hander from Brooklyn, NY won 144 games in his career, turning in a 3.70 lifetime ERA and topping the 200 inning mark in seven consecutive seasons.

Moore became the sixth general manager in Royals' franchise history on June 8th, 2006. Moore, a native of Wichita, KS., brought an impressive resume to the Royals in 2006. He had previously worked for the Atlanta Braves organization since 1994, most recently serving as Assistant General Manager/Baseball Operations since August 2005. He currently resides in Leawood, KS.

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals and will open the home portion of their 2009 season on Thursday, April 16th against the San Antonio Missions. For season ticket packages please call (479) 927-4900 or visit nwanaturals.com. There are only 100 days until the 2009 Home Opener!

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Texas League Stories from January 6, 2009


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