PCL1 Omaha Storm Chasers

5/4 Royals Game Notes

Published on May 4, 2008 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release


MAY 4, 2008, 4:05 p.m.: OMAHA ROYALS (15-12) at Fresno Grizzlies (15-14)

HOME: 9-5 (45-27 in ‘07) AWAY: 6-7 (28-44 in '07) vs. Fresno: 1-1 (2-2 in '07)

TODAY: The Royals visit the Grizzlies in game 3 of a 4-game series at Chukchansi Park in Fresno. The series is tied 1-1; Omaha is 2-4 on the road trip. 1st pitch is 4:05 p.m., with the pre-game show on the air at 3:45 p.m. on News Talk 1420 KOTK and at www.oroyals.com.

LAST NIGHT: Both teams scored early and often, but the Royals used a 5-run 7th inning to pull away for a 13-7 victory. Omaha banged out 18 hits, including 3 home runs. The Royals scored 4 runs in the 1st inning - all of them unearned - on Jason Smith's grand slam. Omaha starter Brandon Duckworth surrendered 7 runs (6 earned) over the 1st 2 innings, with Scott McClain's 3-4un homer in the bottom of the 2nd giving Fresno a 7-5 lead. Mitch Maier had 5 hits for the Royals, including a 2-run single off Grizzlies starter Victor Santos in the top of the 3rd that tied the game at 7-up. Duckworth (2-1) earned the win, after pitching into the 6th inning and not allowing another run. Shane Costa greeted Erick Threets (1-1) with a home run leading off the 6th, to put the Royals ahead to stay, 8-7. Angel Berroa's leadoff homer ignited the big 7th stanza, with the 5-run outburst capped by Ryan Shealy's 2-run double. Neal Musser got credit for his 6th save after working 3.1 innings of 1-hit, scoreless relief.

ROYALS REPORT: The Royals put an emphatic end last night to their season-long, 3-game losing streak - as well as Fresno's 5-game win string - by setting season highs in runs (13) and hits (18). *** The Royals have bashed 28 home runs in the past dozen contests. In 27 games this season, Omaha has hit 48 homers, tying the Royals with Albuquerque for most round-trippers in the PCL. *** Smith's grand slam was the 1st for Omaha since July 30, 2007, when Shealy smacked a salami in the Royals' 9-5 win at Colorado Springs. Smith has homered in back-to-back games and has hit 3 dingers in the last 5 contests. With 8 home runs this season, Smith shares the team lead with Shealy and the Royals duo is tied for 4th in the PCL. *** Mike Aviles had 2 more hits Saturday night, including his club-leading 14th double, which ranks 2nd in the league. The 2-bagger was his PCL-leading 25th extra-base hit. He also picked up his 26th RBI, tied for 3rd in the loop. Aviles is riding a 15-game hitting streak, 2nd-longest this season in the PCL. During the hit string, he's batting .388 (26-for-67) with 8 doubles, 3 triples, 4 homers, 14 RBI and 16 runs scored. Aviles also owns a 20-game on-base streak - tied for the 3rd-longest such streak in the league this year - and has a .409 on-base percentage over that span. *** Maier last night became the 1st Royal to have more than 3 hits in a game this season and is the 1st Omaha batter with 5 hits in a contest since Fernando Cortez had a 5-hit effort last June 12 at Iowa. Since returning from a left wrist injury that kept him on the shelf from April 6-25, Maier has hit in 8 straight games, batting .378 (14-for-37) with 2 homers and 5 RBI. *** Berroa, who has homered in 2 straight games and has 3 homers in his last 7 tilts, matched his season high with 3 hits last night. Berroa has hit in 3 straight, going 6-for-12 (.500), after hitting just .129 (4-for-31) in his previous 8 games. The cold spell dropped his average from .364 to .279, but his 3-game hitting streak has it back up to .306. *** Costa had 3 hits - including his 6th home run of the season - as well as 3 RBI and 3 runs scored batting out of the #3 hole last night. Costa has hit in 9 of the past 10 contests, hitting .333 (14-42) with 4 home runs, 15 RBI and 10 runs scored. *** Jorge De La Rosa made an inauspicious debut for the Rockies last night at Coors Field. The 27-year old lefty, traded by KC to Colorado this week, tied his career high by allowing 9 runs, all of them earned, on 9 hits in 4.0 innings vs. the Dodgers. He took the loss as LA won its 8th in a row, 12-7. Prior to the trade (for a player to be named), De La Rosa was one of the PCL's best pitchers, going 3-0 for Omaha. His 1.64 ERA still ranks 2nd in the league.

STARTERS: RH Kyle Davies (3-1, 1.80) vs. RH Nick Pereira (2-2, 5.47)

Davies makes his 6th start of the season. The 24-year old right-hander's 1.80 ERA ranks 4th in the PCL. His last outing was Tuesday at Sacramento, when he got the win in the Royals' 12-4 triumph (5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 6 K). All 3 of the runs he allowed in that start came in the 1st inning, which ended his streak of 12.0 innings without giving up an earned run. Omaha also won 12-4 in Davies' previous start on April 22 vs. New Orleans, when he fired 7.0 scoreless innings, yielding just 2 singles and no walks, striking out 3. Davies was acquired by KC from Atlanta in exchange for reliever Octavio Dotel on July 31, 2007. He began last season with the Braves and was 4-8 with a 5.76 ERA in 17 starts. Following the trade, he went 3-7 and posted a 6.66 ERA in 11 starts for KC. Davies made his KC debut last August 4 at Yankee Stadium, allowing 5 runs on 6 hits in 3.0 innings and surrendering Alex Rodriguez' 500th career home run. He earned a win in his Kauffman Stadium debut vs. Minnesota, firing 6.2 shutout innings in a 1-0 victory. In 2006, he opened the season in the Braves starting rotation, but underwent surgery to repair a torn right groin on May 19 and was on the D.L. until September 1. Davies began his big league career with Atlanta in 2005 by recording 14.0 straight scoreless innings, the most by a Braves rookie starter to open his career since Larry McWilliams (14.1) in 1978. In 2004, he was named the Phil Niekro Award Winner as the top pitcher in the Braves organization and was selected to Baseball America's minor league All-Star 2nd team. Davies was selected by Atlanta in the 4th round of the 2001 draft out of Stockbridge High School in Georgia. Kyle is his middle name - his given name is Hiram.

PROBABLES FOR REMAINDER OF SERIES:

Mon., 2:05 p.m. LH Tyler Lumsden (1-2, 8.59) vs. RH Matt Palmer (1-3, 6.67)

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Pacific Coast League Stories from May 4, 2008


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