Naturals Open 2022 Season in Springfield
April 8, 2022 - Texas League (TL)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release
SPRINGDALE, Ark - The Northwest Arkansas Naturals officially begin the 2022 season and their league title defense this weekend, Friday, April 8th through Sunday, April 10th in Springfield for three games against the Cardinals at Hammons Field.
After the Naturals' breaking roster was released on Monday, the Opening Day roster has been narrowed down to 28, which can be found HERE. Most notably, the entire initial starting rotation for Northwest Arkansas are ranked among MLB Pipeline's Top 30 prospects in the Kansas City Royals organization. Drew Parrish (MLBP Royals No. 30), Anthony Veneziano (MLBP Royals No. 18) and Angel Zerpa (MLBP Royals No. 14) will be the three arms opening the season for the Naturals.
Returning Natural southpaw Drew Parrish will be tabbed with the start in the season opener Friday night at 6:35pm CT. Parrish is coming off a 2021 season where he was named an MiLB.com Organization All-Star, splitting the season between Quad Cities (A+) and the Naturals.
Among qualified Minor League pitchers (96.0 IP) last season, Parrish ranked 14th in WHIP (0.99), 14th in opponents' batting average (.198) and 16th in ERA (2.83). His 118 strikeouts ranked 5th among all Royals minor league arms, 98.2 innings pitched ranked 4th. Among Royals farmhands with at least 70.0 innings pitched, he ranked 1st in ERA and WHIP and 2nd in opponents' average.
Anthony Veneziano will make the start Saturday at 6:05pm CT, making his Double-A debut. The left-hander spent all of 2021 with Quad Cities (A+), where he was named the River Bandits' Pitcher of the Year and High-A Central Pitcher of the Year. He was also recognized as the left-handed starting pitcher representative on the All-Star team, one of five River Bandits to be named a postseason All-Star.
Across 22 starts in 2021, Veneziano went 6-4 with a 3.75 ERA (39 ER in 93.2 IP), while striking out 127 and walking just 37. His 127 strikeouts tied for the league lead and ranked as the most in the Royals' organization, while 22 games started was tied for second and 93.2 innings ranked seventh. Among Royals minor league pitchers who threw at least 90.0 innings, he ranked first with 12.20 K/9 and a 32.3% K% and his 3.75 ERA was fourth, while a .220 opponents' batting average and 1.21 WHIP both placed third in the system.
Venezuelan Angel Zerpa will conclude the series with the start on Sunday. Zerpa's 2021 season can be categorized as nothing less than a meteoric rise, as he began the season in Quad Cities (A+) and after stops with Northwest Arkansas (AA) and Omaha (AAA), made his Major League debut with Kansas City on September 30 vs. Cleveland. The lefty started Opening Day on May 4, for the River Bandits and made eight starts with Quad Cities, before making 13 with the Naturals, one with Omaha and then his final start of the season with Kansas City.
In his Major League debut, Zerpa pitched 5.0 innings at Kauffman Stadium against Cleveland, allowing just two runs with four strikeouts. His 108 strikeouts between the three minor league levels ranked 8th among Royals minor league pitchers, as did 88.1 innings pitched. His 3.86 K/BB and 11.00 K/9 rank as the 5th and 7th-best in the Royals organization among pitchers with at least 70.0 IP. pitchers, as did 88.1 innings pitched, while 3.86 K/BB and 11.00 K/9 rank as the 5th and 7th-best in the Royals organization.
The Northwest Arkansas Naturals will return to Arvest Ballpark for Opening Night on Tuesday, April 12th at 7:05 p.m. CT against the Wichita Wind Surge in a rematch of last year's Championship Series. Left-hander Asa Lacy, the consensus top pitching prospect in the Royals' organization, is expected to make his Double-A debut to open the six-game homestand with Wind Surge.
The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, Ark. For more information, including ticket options, promotions, groups, visit NWANaturals.com, and follow us on Twitter @NWANaturals and Facebook.com/Naturals.
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
