Omaha Royals game notes
July 28, 2005 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release
JULY 28, 2005, 9:05 p.m.: OMAHA ROYALS (46-59) @ Portland Beavers (51-53)
HOME: 19-28 (39-33 in â04) AWAY: 27-31 (32-40 in '04) vs. Portland: 1-1 (2-2 in '04)
TONIGHT: The Royals take on the Beavers in game 3 of a 4-game series at PGE Park in Portland. Air-time is 8:45 p.m. on Magic 1490 and at www.Oroyals.com.
LAST NIGHT: Omaha left fielder Matt Diaz banged out six of the Royals' 20 hits in a 16-8 rout of the Beavers. Diaz singled and scored in the Royals' four-run 1st inning, doubled in the 3rd and hit a leadoff triple to ignite a four-run 5th. Needing a home run for the cycle, Diaz added two more singles and a double. Calvin Pickering smacked a three-run homer, Aaron Guiel hit a two-run blast and Paul Phillips had three hits including a solo shot. Danny Tamayo (5-7) got the win, despite giving up five earned runs in 5.2 innings. Chris Oxspring (7-6) tied a season high for an opposing pitcher by allowing eight earned runs in 4.1 frames and took the loss.
ROYALS REPORT: Diaz became the first Omaha batter to collect six hits in a game since Les Norman reached that mark on June 8, 1999 in a 17-2 romp at Tacoma. Diaz' season average jumped 31 points to a team-leading .386. In nine games since coming down from KC, he's hitting .475 (19-40). *** The Royals' 20 hits last night were the most in a game since July 26, 2004, when Omaha had 22 hits in a 17-8 win at Albuquerque. *** First baseman Justin Huber has been promoted to Omaha from Wichita, where he was leading the Texas League in batting (.343) and RBI (74) and was tied for fourth in home runs (16). He also ranked first in slugging (.570) and second in on-base percentage (.432). Huber was just named the Texas League Player of the Week for July 18-24, when the 23-year old Australian hit .400 (10-25) with three home runs and eight RBI. In 21 games with Wichita this month, Huber was hitting .382 with seven homers and 24 RBI. He made his big league debut with KC on June 21 and played in five games, going 3-for-12 (.250) with a double and three RBI. Huber, who was named to the Texas League All-Star team but was unable to play because of his promotion to KC, was sent back to Wichita on July 2. To make room on Omaha's roster for Huber, outfielder Cory Aldridge was sent back to the Wranglers. *** Guiel is riding a season-best nine-game hitting streak. He's hitting at a .447 pace (17-38) with six home runs and 13 RBI during the streak. Guiel is second in the PCL in home runs (24) and tied for third in RBI (75). *** Adrian Brown, who scored three runs last night, has scored eleven runs in his past ten games and now ranks fifth in the PCL with 71 runs scored. *** Pickering has driven in 22 runs over his last 19 contests (.324, 23-71, 6 HR). *** Prior to his three-hit game last night, Phillips had been in a 10-for-62 (.161) slump. *** Chris Truby owns a .326 average (15-46) over his last dozen tilts, with four homers, nine RBI and ten runs.
STARTERS: RH Mike Wood (0-0, 0.00) vs. RH Mike Thompson (1-0, 0.00)
Wood makes his 1st-ever start for Omaha, having just been sent down from KC to make the switch back to a starter - a role he occupied as recently as last season. This season, in 37 relief appearances for KC, the 25-year old righty was 3-4 with a 4.03 ERA and 2 saves. KC acquired Wood from the Oakland A's along with third baseman Mark Teahen on June 24, 2004 in exchange for reliever Octavio Dotel and cash. At the time of the deal, Wood was 11-3 with a 2.80 ERA in 15 starts for Sacramento, earning a selection to the PCL All-Star team. In 17 starts with KC last season, Wood went 3-8 with a 5.94 ERA. He was Oakland's 10th round pick in the 2001 draft out of the University of North Florida. Wood came to UNF as an infielder, but was converted to a pitcher in 2000 and moved full-time to the bullpen in 2001, setting a school record with 16 saves.
PROBABLES FOR REMAINDER OF SERIES:
Fri., 9:05: RH Dennis Tankersley (7-6, 4.94) vs. RH Brian Whitaker (0-0, 0.00)
Pacific Coast League Stories from July 28, 2005
- Isotopes fall to Stingers, 5-2 - Albuquerque Isotopes
- "Birds complete comeback, 8-7 - Memphis Redbirds
- Sounds drop pair to Grizzlies - Nashville Sounds
- Memphis comes back to defeat River Cats - Sacramento River Cats
- Z's fall to Vegas - New Orleans Baby Cakes
- Oklahoma July 28 Notes - Oklahoma City Comets
- Beavers, Timbers team up with First Franklin to make a difference - Portland Beavers
- Omaha Royals game notes - Omaha Storm Chasers
- Diaz' six-hit night spoils spotlight in Royals' 16-8 rout of Beavers - Portland Beavers
- RedHawks blanked in Tucson 1-0 - Oklahoma City Comets
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