Royals Vs. Isotopes Game Notes
April 4, 2008 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release
APRIL 4, 2008, 7:05 p.m.: OMAHA ROYALS (0-0) vs. Albuquerque Isotopes (0-0)
HOME: 0-0 (45-27 in â07) AWAY: 0-0 (28-44 in '07) vs. Albuquerque: 0-0 (5-11 in '07)
TONIGHT: After being postponed by rain and cold last night, the Royals open their 40th season at Rosenblatt Stadium, hosting the Albuquerque Isotopes, Triple-A affiliate of the Florida Marlins, at 7:05 p.m. On Saturday, the two teams will play a 5:05 p.m. doubleheader - two seven-inning games - to make up for last night's postponement. The 1st 2,500 fans tonight receive an Omaha Royals magnet schedule, courtesy of CarMax. Werner Enterprises fireworks follow the game, also presented by KFAB, KETV and The City Weekly! Air-time tonight is 6:45 p.m. on News Talk 1420-AM KOTK and at www.Oroyals.com. The game will also be televised on WOWT-620 (Cox Channel 120), starting at 7:00 p.m.
THE FIELD STAFF: Mike Jirschele will manage Omaha for a 6th consecutive season and 9th overall, having also skippered the club from 1995-1997. In eleven seasons as a minor league manager, "Jirsch's" teams have posted a record of 768-712 (.519). His eight Omaha clubs have gone a combined 555-596 (.482). He was selected to manage the Pacific Coast League All-Star team in the 2006 Triple-A All-Star Game. Tom Burgmeier returns for a 3rd season as Omaha's pitching coach. Burgmeier pitched for Omaha from 1970-1973 and enjoyed a 17-year big league career, compiling a career record of 79-55 with a 3.23 ERA and 102 saves. Terry Bradshaw, who was an outfielder with Omaha in 1998, rejoins the team for a 5th season as its hitting coach - his 9th season as a hitting coach in KC's organization. Drew Van Dam joins the Royals organization as Omaha's trainer and Justin Annin is back for an encore season as the club's new strength coach.
THE PLAYERS: Omaha's Opening Day roster includes six of Kansas City's Top 30 prospects, as rated by Baseball America. Those players are starters Luke Hochevar (#3) and Tyler Lumsden (#13), reliever Neal Musser (#20), outfielders Chris Lubanski (#16) and Mitch Maier (#23) and infielder Mike Aviles (#29). Following Hochevar in the rotation is Kyle Davies, who already has 63 games of big league experience under his belt at age 24. Lumsden is slated to start game #3, followed by Matt Wright, who was 10-5 with a 4.06 ERA for Omaha last year. Lefty Mike Maroth rounds out the rotation. Joining Lubanski and Maier in the outfield are Shane Costa and Damon Hollins. Aviles, named as Kansas City's Minor League Player of the Year in 2007, is joined on the infield by Ryan Shealy, who's looking to rebound from an injury-marred season in 2007. Angel Berroa, the A.L. Rookie of the Year with KC in 2003, opens with Omaha for a second straight season. Mike Stodolka begins his third season as a first baseman after spending his first six seasons in the Royals organization as a pitcher.
NEW AT THE âBLATT: For every Royals home run and victory, a pair of 20-foot high flames will leap from the top of the SOS Heating & Cooling sign above the left-center field bleachers. The front plaza features many new additions, including: MoJo - a teenage and adult-oriented pitching cage; Omaha Steaks Grand Slam Grill, which is 22 feet long and 12 feet high; GazeBAR, with a full line of cocktails and specialty beers available; a new T-ball inflatable game in the Coca-Cola Fun Zone, along with many new concessions items.
LAST SEASON: The Royals posted their first winning season since 2002, going 73-71 and finishing in 3rd place in the Pacific Coast League's American Conference North, 16.0 games behind the Nashville Sounds. Omaha was 42-49 in the first half, before going 31-22 following the All-Star break. The Royals' 45-27 home record was tied for 2nd-best in the PCL in home winning percentage (.625), while the club's 28-44 road mark (.389) ranked 13th. The Royals lost their 2007 season opener, 9-3 on April 5 at Albuquerque and were blanked 5-0 by the Isotopes in their home opener on April 13. Omaha has gone 5-11 vs. the Isotopes in each of the past two seasons and is 57-71 (.445) vs. Albuquerque all-time.
STARTERS: RH Bobby Keppel (NR) vs. RH Luke Hochevar (NR)
Hochevar, selected by KC with the 1st overall pick of the 2006 draft, enters his 3rd professional season. The 24-year old right-hander began the 2007 season with Wichita and wound up in the Majors. Hochevar was 3-6 with a 4.69 ERA in 17 games (16 starts) for Wichita. He started the Texas League All-Star Game and pitched for the U.S. team in the Futures Game on July 8 in San Francisco. He led the Texas League with 94 strikeouts at the time of his promotion to Omaha on July 11. In ten starts for Omaha, he went 1-3 with a 5.12 ERA. Hochevar was recalled by KC on September 4 and made his big league debut on September 8 in relief vs. the Yankees, tossing 3.0 shutout innings. He owned a 0.93 ERA (1 ER in 9.2 IP) in 3 relief appearances before starting KC's season finale vs. Cleveland on September 30, when he took the loss allowing 2 runs in 3.0 innings. In 2006, he became KC's 1st-ever #1 pick overall in the June draft and signed on August 4. In 2005, he was 15-3 with a 2.26 ERA as a junior at the University of Tennessee, helping lead the Volunteers to the College World Series and winning the Roger Clemens National Pitcher of the Year Award. He was selected in the 1st round of the 2005 draft by the Dodgers, but did not sign. Hochevar's father, Brian, played pro basketball with the Denver Nuggets in 1979.
PROBABLES FOR REMAINDER OF SERIES:
Sat., 5:05: RH Gaby Hernandez (NR) vs. RH Kyle Davies (NR)
Sat., G2: RH Doug Waechter (NR) vs. RH Matt Wright (NR)
Sun., 1:35: RH Daniel Barone (NR) vs. LH Tyler Lumsden (NR)
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