Royals Game Notes
Published on August 3, 2007 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release
AUGUST 3, 2007, 7:05 p.m.: OMAHA ROYALS (56-57) vs. Las Vegas 51s (53-59)
HOME: 35-18 (31-41 in â06) AWAY: 21-39 (22-50 in '06) vs. Las Vegas: 2-0 (2-2 in '06)
TONIGHT: The Royals host the Las Vegas 51s in a 7:05 p.m. game at Rosenblatt Stadium. It's game 3 of a 4-game series, which Omaha leads 2-0. It's Werner Enterprises Fireworks Friday, also presented by KETV-Channel 7 and KAT 103! Air-time is 6:45 p.m. on News Talk 1420 KOTK and at www.Oroyals.com.
LAST NIGHT: Royals starter Matt Wright went 7.0 strong innings and Roberto Giron finished off the Royals' 3-1 victory. Wright (7-3) gave up 1 run on 5 hits, walking 2 and striking out 5. Giron earned his 6th save with 2.0 scoreless innings, surviving a scare with 2 runners on base and 2 outs in the 9th when Luis Maza flied out to the warning track in left-center field. Shane Costa and Justin Huber each belted solo homers and Mitch Maier ripped an RBI double off Las Vegas starter William Juarez (4-6), who took the loss.
ROYALS REPORT: Wright has won 4 consecutive decisions, although last night marked the 1st time he had been involved in the decision in his last 6 outings. He remained unbeaten at Rosenblatt, where he's 5-0 with a 3.51 ERA (compared to a 2-3 mark and 4.36 ERA on the road). *** Giron struck out 4 in a row at one point last night in logging his 4th straight appearance without allowing a run. Over his last 10 outings, he owns a 0.76 ERA (2 ER in 23.2 IP) and has racked up 33 strikeouts, while walking just 6 batters. *** Huber's home run last night was the 100th of his professional career, all coming in the minors. He has gone deep in back-to-back games and has hit 3 homers in the past 5 contests. Huber now has 11 home runs in just 181 at-bats with Omaha and has 46 RBI in 48 games during his injury-plagued campaign. *** Costa's home run last night extended his streak of reaching base to 40 games. It's the 2nd-longest such streak in the PCL this season - New Orleans' Andy Tracy had a 43-game on-base string snapped last month. Costa has scored 16 runs over the past 16 contests and is hitting at a .383 clip (23-60) over that span. *** The Royals have won 10 of their last 14 games overall and 8 of their last 10 at home. Thursday night's victory improved Omaha's record when scoring in the 1st inning to 17-9, including a 13-3 mark when scoring in the 1st at home. With a win tonight, the Royals would be at .500 for the 1st time since June 11, when they dropped the opener of their 16-game CWS road trip to fall to 32-32. *** Contrary to recent reports of KC transactions by various media, Ryan Shealy remains on a rehab assignment for KC and has not been optioned to Omaha and Leo Nunez remains with KC and has not been sent back to Triple-A. *** Matt Tupman has hit in 6 straight games (.409, 9-22, 2 RBI) and in 9 of the last 10 (.395, 15-38, 3 RBI). *** Chris Lubanski, who missed last night's game due to illness, has had a trio of 2-hit efforts in his last 4 games. He's 6-for-12 with 2 RBI and 3 runs scored over that stretch, which has jumped his average from .171 to .220. *** Mike Aviles has 17 RBI over the past 16 contests. During that period, he's hitting .333 (22-66) with 5 doubles, 2 triples and 5 home runs. *** Billy Butler yesterday was named A.L. Rookie of the Month for July. Butler batted .341 with 3 homers and 24 RBI in 24 games for KC last month. KC pitcher Brian Bannister - who like Butler opened the season with Omaha - won the award in June.
STARTERS: RH Miguel Pinango (7-5, 4.11) vs. RH Billy Buckner (7-6, 4.48)
Buckner makes his 13th start and 24th appearance of the season. The 23-year old right-hander's last outing was last Saturday at Colorado Springs, when he took the loss in a 4-1 defeat (6.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R-3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HR). In his last 6 starts, Buckner is 0-4 with a 5.65 ERA (18 ER in 28.2 IP). That follows a stretch when he won 3 consecutive starts, posting a 1.29 ERA in the process. Since moving into Omaha's rotation in late May, Buckner is 3-5 with a 4.76 ERA, after going 4-1 with a 3.60 ERA as a reliever. He's 3-3 with a 5.70 ERA at home, while going 4-3 with a 3.78 ERA on the road. Buckner began this season with Double-A Wichita, going 1-3 with a 4.66 ERA in 4 games (3 starts). Entering this season, he was named as the 9th-best prospect in KC's organization by Baseball America. In 2006, Buckner pitched for High Desert and Wichita, compiling a 12-4 record with a 4.24 ERA in 29 starts combined. He was 7-1 with a 3.90 ERA in 16 starts for High Desert, earning a spot on the California League's mid-season All-Star team. After being promoted to Wichita on July 1, he went 5-3 with a 4.64 ERA in 13 starts for the Wranglers. Buckner pitched at Young Harris (GA) College in 2002-2003. He was selected by Tampa Bay in the 9th round of the 2003 draft, but did not sign. Instead, he attended the University of South Carolina in 2004 and helped lead the Gamecocks to the College World Series, going 7-2 with a 3.32 ERA. He was KC's 2nd round pick in the 2004 draft.
PROBABLES FOR REMAINDER OF SERIES:
Sat., 6:05: LH Eric Stults (5-5, 7.05) vs. RH Ben Hendrickson (9-5, 5.49)
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