Baseball America‘s Best Tools issue has come out and there is a bit of a KC Royals feel to it. None of the Royals players were on top of any of the American League categories, but there were a few who cracked the top three.

Outfielder Jarrod Dyson was ranked the AL’s third fastest baserunner. He finished behind LA Angels outfielders Mike Trout and Peter Bourjos.

Mike Moustakas working on some second base.

The Royals corner infielders were also ranked third in terms of defense in the AL. Mike Moustakas was ranked third among AL third baseman (behind Texas’ Adrian Beltre and Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria). Eric Hosmer, despite all the struggles on offense, was named the third best defensive first baseman in the AL. He ranked behind NY’s Mark Teixeira and Boston’s Adrian Gonzalez.

Another of the Royals infielders was honored, shortstop Alcides Escobar. He is considered to have the third best infield arm in the AL, behind Beltre and Oakland’s Cliff Pennington.

After almost winning a Gold Glove in 2011, outfielder Jeff Francoeur is considered to have the third best outfield arm in the AL. He ranks behind Toronto’s Jose Bautista and Cleveland’s Shin-Soo Choo.

The Royals weren’t so lucky in the minor leagues (their four full season affiliates). Uber prospect Wil Myers is considered to be the best power prospect in the Pacific Coast League (with Triple-A Omaha). That was a no-brainer, as he has a total of 34 homeruns, 21 in Triple-A.

Pitcher Jake Odorizzi was considered as one of the best pitching prospects in the PCL, but Reno’s Trevor Bauer (Arizona) won that honor. Another starter, Yordano Ventura, was also considered for the best pitching prospect in the Carolina League, but ultimately, Dylan Bundy won that honor (Baltimore).

*There were no best tools given out to Royals affiliates in the Texas League (NW Arkansas), Carolina League (Wilmington), or Midwest League (Kane County).

It was a good week to be a Kansas City Royal.

The big league Royals went 5-1 last week. They are currently in the midst of a three-game winning streak after sweeping Chicago out of Kauffman Stadium. They continue their stretch of playing playoff contenders, as they begin a three-game road series against Wild Card leading Tampa tonight.

The Royals moved into sole possession of third place in the American League Central, 11 games back.

Omaha clinched their second consecutive American Northern Division title on Saturday night and went 5-2 on the week. Currently, they have the best record in the Pacific Coast League (tied at 77-52). The Storm Chasers continue their long homestand against Nashville tonight.

NW Arkansas was eliminated from postseason competition this week, as they went 1-4. The Naturals are just 17-37 in the second half. They finish up their road trip in Frisco tonight.

Wilmington went 5-2 last week and continue to sit in first place in the Northern Division of the Carolina League (29-26). The Blue Rocks hold a 2.5 game lead over both Frederick and Lynchburg. They begin a BIG road trip tonight, with five in Frederick and three in Lynchburg.

Kane County went 2-4 last week and fell to six games back in the Western Division of the Midwest League (a tie for third place at 28-27). The Cougars continue their road trip in Burlington tonight.

Hitters of the Week

Majors: Alcides Escobar is on FIRE. He went 12-for-25 last week (.480). He scored six runs and stole four bases.

Minors: It is a tie between the left side of the Wilmington infield. Third baseman Cheslor Cuthbert is in the midst of a six-game hitting streak. Last week, he went 11-for-25 (.440) with six runs scored and three RBIs.

Shortstop Orlando Calixte has a hit in five of his last six games, including the game winner on Saturday night. He went 9-for-27 (.333) with two runs scored and four RBIs.

Pitchers of the Week

Majors: Jeremy Guthrie wins this award again, and why not? He carried a no-hitter into the 7th inning on Sunday against the White Sox. In two starts last week (totaling 14.2 innings), he allowed just two unearned runs on six hits and three walks. He struck out 13.

Minors: This is a tie between two pitchers who helped their teams have winning records last week. Ryan Verdugo picked up the victory in Omaha‘s clinching game on Saturday. In two starts last week, he allowed four runs (three earned) on 11 hits and five walks over 13 innings. He struck out 11. Verdugo has won four straight starts.

Brooks Pounders has put together two straight dominant starts, one of which came with a pie in the face. In two starts last week (14 innings), he allowed just one unearned run on seven hits and one walk. He struck out 12.

The KC Royals will once again be well represented in a minor league all-star game. Four members of Triple-A Omaha were named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star team, which will face off against the International League in the Triple-A All-Star Game in Buffalo on Wednesday, July 11th.

It will be a busy few days for outfielder Wil Myers. In addition to traveling to Kauffman Stadium to participate in the Futures Game on Sunday, July 8th, he was voted as a starting outfielder for the PCL. This from a guy that needed to be written in to receive votes (he has played in just 40 games and started the season in Double-A).

Myers leads minor league baseball in homeruns with 25, as he hit his 12th in Triple-A last night. He is hitting .309 with 35 RBIs and 33 runs scored.

Maybe he will head back to Kansas City to make his Major League debut after the Triple-A ASG? 

First baseman/DH Clint Robinson will be in his second Triple-A ASG. This season, he is hitting .313 with 21 doubles, 10 homeruns, 44 RBIs, and 40 runs scored. He has also walked (42) more than he has struck out (33).

Lefties Ryan Verdugo and Tommy Hottovy (who have both seen time this season with the Royals though Verdugo did not pitch) will be making appearances out of the bullpen.

Verdugo, a starter, is 5-2 with a 3.65 ERA in 14 starts (79 innings). Opponents are hitting just .212 against him.

Hottovy is 2-0 in 20 games with seven saves and a 1.69 ERA (which went up after his last outing). He had not allowed a run over his last nine appearances prior to June 25th when he allowed two runs in three innings. In 26.2 innings, Hottovy has allowed just 17 hits and six walks while striking out 36.

The game will be televised live on MLB Network. You can check out the rest of the PCL roster HERE.

Previously known as the Bricktown Showdown and played in Oklahoma City since 2006, the Triple-A National Championship will be played tonight in Albuquerque, New Mexico at the home of the Isotopes. The Championship pits the Pacific Coast League champ against the International League champ for a winner-take-all game. The game will be televised live on Versus beginning at 8pm ET.

The Omaha Storm Chasers took the PCL crown after not reaching the postseason for 13 years. The Columbus Clippers, the reigning Triple-A champions, blew away the competition from the beginning en route to their second consecutive IL championship.

Sean O'Sullivan

PCL Pitcher of the Year Luis Mendoza was expected to start for Omaha, but will instead be making the start for the KC Royals on Tuesday. Sean O’Sullivan will be making the start for Omaha. O’Sullivan last started in the division series clincher against Round Rock, where he carried a no-hitter into the 8th inning before giving up a game-tying two-run homerun.

Zach McAllister had started Game 1 of Columbus’ previous two series, but instead of starting the Triple-A Championship, he will be making the start on Tuesday for the Cleveland Indians. Veteran Mitch Talbot will be making the start for the Clippers (my dad was hoping to see Joe Martinez get the start after his 13 strikeout domination of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs last week). Talbot is 2-0 this postseason with a 1.69 ERA.

UPDATE: Apparently my dad gets his wish because Joe Martinez will be starting for Columbus. Not sure why the change from Talbot to Martinez but it’ll still be an exciting matchup.

Despite all the turnover, both teams used good pitching and timely hitting to capture titles. Omaha has powerful left-handed hitters in Clint Robinson and Kila Ka’aihue. (Kila has eight RBIs this postseason). Outfielder Lorenzo Cain has been hot, going  14-for-32 with four RBIs and seven runs scored. Closer Kelvin Herrera could be key to Omaha’s chances of winning, as he can go multiple innings. The Future’s Game All-Star started the year in High-A Wilmington before forcing his way up to Omaha. The Storm Chasers also have the advantage of playing in Albuquerque this season.

Chad Huffman

Last year’s Triple-A Championship MVP, Jerad Head, returns to hopefully help Columbus win another title. In last year’s game, Head went 3-for-4 with two doubles, four RBIs, and two runs scored. He has struggled a bit in the postseason this year for the Clippers. The Clippers offense has been a little inconsistent in the postseason, but they have had a different hero every night. Catcher Luke Carlin, who platoons with Paul Phillips, leads the team with five RBIs. Outfielder Chad Huffman has been hot, as he went 2-for-4 in the clinching game against the IronPigs (overall he’s hitting .370 in the postseason).

The Clippers postseason has been dominated by its starting pitching, as only three relievers have been needed. Their bullpen has faced the most turnover as of late, as their three closers (Josh Judy, Nick Hagadone, and Zach Putnam) have all been promoted to Cleveland over the last few weeks. IL manager of the year Mike Sarbaugh has relied on setup man Chen Lee (who spent part of the season with Double-A Akron), who has had a great postseason (a 1.80 ERA). The rest of the bullpen is a host of Double-A promotions.

There are some people out there who don’t like the idea of a one game overall Triple-A Championship. The two teams have to travel great distances just to go all-out for one game. I don’t understand why the west always gets the championship game. The real title is their league title because it has taken so much hard work and perseverance to accomplish that goal.  I like the idea just because the game is televised and the pressure is off for the players to just have fun (and sure they want to win).

I’m excited to watch the game to see the two teams I picked to win their league titles face off.

Via Sara Molina/Sacramento River Cats

For the second straight night, the Omaha Storm Chasers pounded the Sacramento River Cats. This time it came on the road and this time the Storm Chasers got to celebrate the win with a championship.

Behind the solid pitching performance from prospect Mike Montgomery and the explosive offense, the Storm Chasers swept the River Cats 3-0 to take home the Pacific Coast League Championship.

Omaha got on the board in the top of the 2nd inning against River Cats starter Travis Banwart. With two outs, Irving Falu singled which was followed by back-to-back RBI doubles from Manny Pina and Lance Zawadzki.

They took control in the top of the 5th inning as they scored four more runs, again all with two outs. Zawadzki capped the scoring with a two-run single off River Cats reliever Trey Barham. Omaha tacked on more runs over the next three innings, which was huge.

Montgomery finished his night pitching five scoreless innings. He allowed three hits and three walks while striking out six. It was a great way for him to finish out the season after struggling to stay consistent all year.

The River Cats had shown a penchant for making comebacks. They were down 0-2 at Reno in the divisional series before storming back at home to take the next three and head to the championship. They cut the lead to 8-3 in the bottom of the 6th inning against Omaha reliever Kevin Pucetas. They scored two runs in the bottom of the 7th inning against Omaha reliever Zach Miner to cut the lead to 10-5.

That is why the continued scoring of Omaha’s offense late in the game was so huge.

It even got interesting in the bottom of the 9th inning. Chris Carter homered to lead off the inning against the Storm Chasers’ Kelvin Herrera to cut the deficit to 11-6. With two outs, Herrera walked Grant Green. However he bounced back to get Andy LaRoche to ground out back to him to end the game and set off the celebration.

Omaha pounded out 14 hits and went 6-for-18 with runners in scoring position. Zawadzki went 4-for-4 and was one of five Omaha hitters with a multi-hit game.

*Omaha will face the Columbus Clippers, who won the International League Championship over the Lehigh Valley IronPigs on Saturday night, on Tuesday night on Versus for the Triple-A crown in New Mexico. After getting a chance to see Columbus play a few times this year and watching them dominate the Durham Bulls and the IronPigs in the playoffs, Tuesday night’s game should be fun to watch. The Clippers are the defending champs.

At home, the Omaha Storm Chasers took Game 1 of the Pacific Coast League finals over the Sacramento River Cats, 3-2.

With the game tied at 2-2 and David Lough on first base with two outs, Lorenzo Cain popped a ball up into shallow right field. Cain thought that River Cats second baseman Wes Timmons was going to make the catch, but it kept drifting away from him and dropped in for a hit. Lough hustled all the way around and scored the go-ahead run.

That made a winner of Omaha starter Luis Mendoza, who allowed two runs on three hits and four walks over seven innings. He struck out eight. Kelvin Herrera followed with two perfect innings of relief to record the save.

Offensively for Omaha, Cain had three hits, as every Storm Chasers starter except Clint Robinson and Kila Ka’aihue collected hits.

The best-of-five series continues on Wednesday for Game 2 in Omaha as Vin Mazzaro gets the start for the Storm Chasers against the River Cats Tyson Ross.

The Triple-A Pacific Coast League Championship Series will be a mix of old and new. The Sacramento River Cats always seem to reach the finals, as they are hoping for their fifth title. The Omaha Storm Chasers won their first playoff series when they defeated the Round Rock Express over the weekend since 1990. Thus, Omaha is hoping for their first PCL title.

The River Cats struggled to start their playoff series against the Reno Aces, as they lost the first two games in Reno. However the veteran group stormed back to take the next three games and head to the finals. Omaha defeated Round Rock 3-1 in their playoff series.

The two teams only faced off four times during the 2011 season, with a four game series played in Omaha in August. They split the season series 2-2. All four games were close (1 or 2 run differential) as the Storm Chasers outscored the River Cats 14-13.

The River Cats added Oakland A’s prospect Grant Green to their roster for the playoffs. So far, the infielder/outfielder is hitting .571 in the playoffs.

The Storm Chasers first two starters, Luis Mendoza and Vin Mazzaro, won the first two games of their series versus Round Rock. The River Cats first two starters, Graham Godfrey and Tyson Ross, lost the first two games of their series against Reno. The River Cats have just one left-handed reliever, so the big boppers for Omaha (Clint Robinson and Kila Ka’aihue) could feast.

The first two games will be played in Omaha. They will then have a travel day on Thursday before playing the final games in Sacramento.

Pitching Matchups:

Tuesday 9/13 in Omaha: Luis Mendoza vs. Graham Godfrey

Wednesday 9/14 in Omaha: Vin Mazzaro vs. Tyson Ross

Thursday 9/15: off

Friday 9/16 in Sacramento: Mike Montgomery @ Travis Banwart

Saturday 9/17 in Sacramento *if necessary: Sean O’Sullivan @ TBD

Sunday 9/18 in Sacramento *if necessary:

The minor league playoffs begin on Wednesday night for three of the KC Royals affiliates.

Triple-A Omaha begins its quest for the Pacific Coast League title against the Round Rock Express. It is a best-of-five series. Despite losing quite a few impactful players to the big leagues, the Storm Chasers have still excelled this season. It is unfamiliar territory for Omaha, as they will be playing their first playoff game in 13 years. Round Rock won the season series 11-5 and posted a club record 86 wins. The Express actually wanted to play Omaha because they feel they match up better against the Storm Chasers and have had success against them.

Omaha is dominated by left-handed hitters like Kila Ka’aihue, Clint Robinson, and Jarrod Dyson. The Express feel they can counter with lefty relievers like Beau Jones and big leaguer Michael Kirkman. Round Rock has come from behind to win 44 games in 2011.

Here are the pitching matchups for the first three games (Games 4 & 5 are if necessary):

• Game 1 (Wed 9/7): PCL Pitcher of the Year Luis Mendoza (12-5, 2.18 ERA) @  Eric Hurley (8-3, 5.55 ERA)
• Game 2 (Thurs 9/8): Vin Mazzaro (7-2, 4.29 ERA) @ Martin Perez (4-4, 6.43 ERA)
• Game 3 (Fri 9/9): Mike Montgomery (5-11, 5.32 ERA) vs. Neil Ramirez (4-3, 3.63 ERA)

Double-A NW Arkansas begins its quest for a repeat in the Texas League against the Arkansas Travelers. The Travelers won the first half division title, but struggled much of the second half after losing Mike Trout to the big leagues. Arkansas won the season series over the second half champion Naturals, 15-14.

Here are the pitching matchups for the first three games (Games 4 & 5 are if necessary):

• Game 1 (Wed 9/7): Chris Dwyer (8-10, 5.60 ERA) @ TL Pitcher of the Year Matt Shoemaker (12-5, 2.48 ERA)
• Game 2 (Thurs 9/8): Jake Odorizzi (5-3, 4.72 ERA) @ Chris Scholl (4-3, 2.32 ERA)
• Game 3 (Fri 9/9): Mario Santiago (5-1, 2.23 ERA) vs. Orangel Arenas (9-10, 4.48 ERA)

*UPDATE: Elisaul Pimentel and Kevin Chapman were taken off the Naturals playoff roster to make room for Ryan Dennick and Justin Marks from Wilmington. Congrats to Dennick and Marks!

The Kane County Cougars begin their playoff season with a best-of-three series against the Western Division first half champion Burlington Bees (who last year was the Royals Low-A affiliate). The Bees won the season series 8-7 over the Cougars. Brian Fletcher of the Cougars won the Midwest League batting title and pitcher Greg Billo will be counted on to give the Cougars a win. Billo led minor league baseball in ERA for most of the season and struck out 119 batters (compared to just 25 walks) in 135 innings pitches.

Here are the pitching matchups for the three game series (Game 3 is if necessary):

• Game 1 (Wed 9/7): Greg Billo (9-5, 1.93 ERA) vs. Blake Hassebrock (7-8, 2.64 ERA)
• Game 2 (Thurs 9/8): Yordano Ventura (4-6, 4.27 ERA) @ Josh Bowman (8-6, 3.55 ERA)
• Game 3 (Fri 9/9): Jason Adam (6-9, 4.23 ERA) @ Jose Macias (8-4, 3.46 ERA)

It’s my final Weekly Awards given out to the KC Royals All-Stars. This past week, baseball held both the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday and the Triple-A All-Star Game on Wednesday.

Best All-Star Performance without Playing: Aaron Crow, KC Royals. Crow was selected as the only Royals representative in the MLB All-Star Game in Phoenix (home of the National League’s Arizona Diamondbacks). He was feeling a little under the weather, so I don’t know if that contributed to American League manager Ron Washington not calling his name in the bullpen or not. Despite not playing, he did a nice wave to the crowd during pre-game introductions.

Best All-Star Offensive Performance: It is a tie between two Omaha Storm Chasers players, Johnny Giavotella and Clint Robinson. With the Triple-A All-Star Game being held in Salt Lake City and the fact that playing in the Pacific Coast League elevates everyone’s ERA, I was expecting a high-scoring game. Instead, the International League pitchers came in and completely shut down the PCL’s offense. Except for Giavotella and Robinson. The PCL collected just three hits in the game and Giavotella and Robinson had two of them. Giavotella singled with one out in the first inning against IL starter Zach McAllister (Columbus) and reached on an error in the bottom of the third. Robinson singled in the 4th inning against Adam Warren (Scranton).

Best All-Star Pitching Performance: Luis Mendoza, Omaha Storm Chasers. As a member of the PCL All-Star pitching staff, Mendoza entered in relief of starter Brad Mills (Las Vegas), who had allowed a three-run homerun to Russ Canzler (Durham) in the second inning. Mendoza pitched a scoreless third inning. He did allow two hits, which made the inning interesting, but induced a double-play grounder to end the inning.