PCL1 Omaha Storm Chasers

Royals Game Notes

Published on August 5, 2007 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release


AUGUST 5, 2007, 1:35 p.m.: OMAHA ROYALS (58-57) vs. Tucson Sidewinders (59-54)

HOME: 37-18 (31-41 in '06) AWAY: 21-39 (22-50 in '06) vs. Tucson: 0-0 (1-3 in '06)

TODAY: The Royals host the Tucson Sidewinders in a 1:35 p.m. game at Rosenblatt Stadium. It's the opener of a 4-game series. Omaha began the homestand by sweeping the Las Vegas 51s in a 4-game set. The 1st 500 kids receive an Alex Gordon Replica Jersey, courtesy of Bellevue University! Air-time is 1:15 p.m. on News Talk 1420 KOTK and at www.Oroyals.com.

LAST NIGHT: Ben Hendrickson hurled the 1st 9-inning complete game shutout for a Royals pitcher in almost 3 years - giving Omaha consecutive shutouts for the 1st time in more than 8 years - and Justin Huber became the 1st Royal to homer in 4 straight games since 2005, as the Royals completed a sweep of Las Vegas with a 9-0 romp. Hendrickson (10-5) allowed just 4 hits and no walks, striking out 4. Huber hit a 2-run homer, while Mike Aviles went 4-for-4 with a pair of doubles, a home run and 3 RBI. Ryan Shealy capped the scoring with a 3-run blast in the 7th. Eric Stults (5-6) took the loss after giving up 5 runs - 4 earned - on 6 hits in 4.0 frames.

ROYALS REPORT: Hendrickson's gem last night was the 1st 9-inning complete game shutout for an Omaha pitcher since August 30, 2004, when Chris George tossed a 6-hitter in a 7-0 win vs. Nashville. It was Hendrickson's 2nd career 9.0 inning complete game shutout and his 6th career complete game. Hendrickson has put together a 20.2 inning scoreless streak over his last 3 games (2 starts), trimming his ERA from 6.17 to 5.03. He's now tied for the PCL lead in wins, becoming the 4th pitcher in the league to reach 10 W's. His effort last night marked the 1st 9-inning complete game for a Royals pitcher since August 19, 2005, when Dennis Tankersley went the distance in an 8-3 victory at New Orleans. *** Omaha's pitching staff has posted back-to-back shutouts for the 1st time since August 4-5, 1999, when the club won 4-0 at Iowa and 6-0 at Albuquerque. This season, the Royals have thrown 7 shutouts, while getting blanked just twice. *** Huber is the 1st Royal to homer in 4 consecutive contests since Aaron Guiel did it June 23-26, 2005. Huber, who has 5 home runs in the past 7 games, is averaging 1 round-tripper every 14.5 at-bats (13 HR in 188 AB) and has 50 RBI in 50 games. His home run last night ran his hitting streak to 10 games - now his longest of the season. During the string, he's batting .375 (15-40) with 5 homers and 13 RBI. The last Omaha batter to homer in 5 straight games was Calvin Pickering in June, 2004. *** Shane Costa has reached base in 42 straight games, within 1 game of the longest on-base streak in the PCL this season. Andy Tracy of New Orleans had a 43-game reached-base string snapped last month. Costa owns a .436 on-base percentage, which would be tied for 2nd-best in the league if he had enough plate appearances to qualify. He has scored 18 runs over the past 18 games and is hitting .382 (26-68) over that span. *** Aviles' home run last night was his 14th of the season, matching his career high, set in 2005 at Wichita. His 4 hits Saturday were a season high. Aviles has 20 RBI over the past 18 tilts. During that stretch, he's batting .356 (26-73) and has blasted 6 home runs. *** Shealy has hit in 5 straight games, going 8-for-19 (.421) with 3 homers and 9 RBI. *** Craig Brazell has not gone deep in his last 55 at-bats. His 32 dingers still lead the minors. *** The Royals have won 12 of their last 16 games overall and 10 of their last 12 at home. Omaha is above .500 for the 1st time since June 10, when the Royals were 32-31. *** In the just-completed series, the Royals staff held Las Vegas to a .208 team batting average and 4 runs. *** The Royals scored in the 1st inning last night, improving to 18-9 when scoring in their 1st at-bat this season, including 14-3 at home. *** Omaha has played errorless defense in 7 consecutive contests. The Royals are 40-16 this year in games where they do not commit an error. *** 51s reliever Eric Hull struck out 4 Royals in the 8th inning Saturday. It was the 1st time that 4 Omaha batters fanned in an inning since May 29, 1999, when former Royal Mel Bunch turned the trick, pitching for Tacoma.

STARTERS: LH Greg Smith (1-2, 5.48) vs. RH Luke Hochevar (1-2, 7.08)

Hochevar, who was KC's 1st-ever number one overall pick in the 2006 draft, makes his 5th start for Omaha. The 23-year old right-hander's last outing was last Tuesday at Colorado Springs, when he took the loss in an 11-6 defeat (4.1 IP, 8 H, 9 R, 1 BB, 3 K, 3 HR). Hochevar began the season with Double-A Wichita, going 3-6 with a 4.69 ERA in 17 games, including 16 starts (94.0 IP, 110 H, 26 BB, 94 K, 13 HR). At the time of his promotion, his 94 strikeouts led the Texas League. His best month was June, when he posted a 3.23 ERA in 5 starts, although he went 0-1. On June 26, Hochevar started for the North team in the 2007 Texas League All-Star Game. He also pitched for the U.S. team at the All-Star Futures Game in San Francisco, firing a scoreless inning. After signing with KC on August 4, 2006, Hochevar made 4 starts for Class-A Burlington (IA), going 0-1 with a 1.17 ERA. He also made 2 starts for Wichita in the playoffs last season, going 1-1 with a 9.82 ERA. Hochevar made just 3 starts in the Arizona Fall League for Grand Canyon before being shut down with shoulder soreness; he was 0-0 with an 8.64 ERA in those 3 outings. Entering this season, he was ranked by Baseball America as KC's #2 prospect, behind only Alex Gordon, and was tabbed as having the Best Curveball in the Royals' system. A Colorado native, he was a 3-year standout at the University of Tennessee, finishing his college career with a 25-10 record and a 3.05 ERA and 287 strikeouts, which ranked 2nd in school history. As a junior in 2005, he was 15-3 with a 2.26 ERA, helping lead the Vols to the College World Series. Following the season, he won numerous honors, including the Roger Clemens National Pitcher of the Year award. He was a supplemental 1st round pick of the Dodgers in the 2005 draft, but did not sign. His father, Brian, played pro basketball with the Denver Nuggets in 1979.

PROBABLES FOR REMAINDER OF SERIES:

Mon., 7:05: RH Enrique Gonzalez (6-8, 4.24) vs. LH Tyler Lumsden (7-5, 6.14)

Tue., 7:05: RH Casey Daigle (9-2, 5.79) vs. RH Matt Wright (7-3, 3.93)

Wed., 12:05: LH Bill Murphy (1-3, 3.88) vs. RH Billy Buckner (8-6, 4.07)

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Pacific Coast League Stories from August 5, 2007


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