Chasers win a crazy one

Irving Falu hit his first home run of the season
(Photo: Minda Haas / Royal Blues)

It was a crazy night at Werner Park. With a stiff wind blowing out to left field and the heat index over 100 degrees at first pitch, home runs were sure to follow.

Boy did they – nine total.

The Chasers hit five and the Albuquerque Isotopes hit four. Kila Ka’aihue, Lorenzo Cain, Johnny Giavotella, Mike Aviles and Irving Falu each homered in front of 6,516 fans, enroot to an 18-13 win.

The big inning of the night was the bottom of the sixth, which began with Omaha trailing 12-8. The Chasers sent 12 men to the plate in the frame, with Aviles getting things started with a one out solo homer, his eighth long ball in 19 games with the Chasers. Eight batters later, No. 9 hitter Falu – without a home run to his credit all season – belted a three-run blast onto the right field berm to make it 16-12 Omaha.

The 18 runs, five homers and eight-run inning were all season highs for the Chasers, as were the 10 walks the Omaha pitching staff allowed. Starter Vin Mazzaro came away with a no-decision, despite allowing eight runs on eight hits with six walks in four-plus innings.

Three Storm Chasers headed to the All-Star Game

Luis Mendoza leads the PCL with a 2.75 ERA
(Photo: Gage Matthews / Kings of Kauffman)

Johnny Giavotella, Clinton Robinson and Luis Mendoza will represent the Omaha Storm Chasers and the Pacific Coast League at the 2011 Triple-A All-Star Game in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, July 13. They will play the International League All-Stars.

Giavotella, 23, is hitting .323 with 5 home runs and 53 RBIs. The second baseman has been hitting primarily out of the number two hole. He leads the team in hits with 105 and he has 22 doubles to go along with nine stolen bases. The only knock against him is his defense, but he does currently rank third in fielding percentage among second baseman in the league and manager Mike Jirschele has seen improvement from Giavotella.

Ka'aihue blast keeps Chasers in first place

Kila Ka'aihue smashed a grand slam home run
in the bottom of the ninth to win the game
(Photo: Minda Haas / Royal Blues)

Looking like their 65-day grip on first place was about to come loose, the Omaha Storm Chasers pulled together a late rally and stunned the second-place Memphis Redbirds 6-2 Tuesday afternoon at Werner Park.

Kila Ka’aihue delivered the knockout blow with a two out, bottom-of-the-ninth, grand slam home run on a 3-1 pitch. It was the first home plate celebration in Werner Park history.

The two-out rally in the bottom of the eighth was the catalyst to the comeback, sparked by an opposite field double by Clint Robinson. After Joaquin Arias pinch ran and Ka’aihue was walked intentionally, Lorenzo Cain laid off a couple tough pitches before dropping a single into shallow right field to tie the score at 2-2. Robinson and Cain each entered the game hitless in their last four contests, but had a pair of hits in this one.

Omaha and Memphis split twin bill

Manny Pina homered, doubled and walked in game one
(Photo: Gage Matthews, Kings of Kauffman)

The Omaha Storm Chasers and Memphis Redbirds split a sun-soaked doubleheader Monday afternoon at Werner Park, with the Chasers (42-37) taking game one 2-1 and Memphis (41-37) rallying to win game two 5-2. The seven-inning contests were played in front of 6,917 fans, the most-ever to watch day baseball at Werner Park.

Game one was a tidy 2-1 victory for the Storm Chasers, backed by yet another solid outing from veteran Jeff Suppan. The 36-year-old righthander improved his record to 7-4 on the season, with wins in each of his past three starts and 10-consecutive outings without a defeat. Jesse Chavez came on with a runner on in the seventh, retiring all three batters he faced to earn his ninth save.

The Royalman Report

Thanks goes out to Troy Olsen and Michael Engel at the Royalman Report for having me as a guest last night. I had a great time talking Omaha Storm Chasers baseball. If you missed it, you can listen to it below:



You can also download it here and listen to it later.

Omaha Storm Chasers on Cox Cable today

Omaha (41-36) will play a double header today with Memphis (40-36) to make up for the game that was postponed between the two clubs yesterday. Omaha leads Memphis by a half a game in the PCL American North headed into play.

Pitching match ups:

Game 1: RHP P.J. Walters (6-3, 4.55) @ RHP Jeff Suppan (6-4, 5.11)
Game 2: RHP Brandon Dickson (3-7, 3.95) @ RHP Sean O’Sullivan (0-1, 15.43)

Time Warner Cable Metro Sports will broadcast today’s first game beginning at 12:05 p.m. The game can be found on Cox Cable channel 2 in Omaha, Time Warner Cable Ch. 310 Digital in Lincoln and Time Warner Cable HD 1310 and Digital 310 in Kansas City.

UPDATE: Time Warner Cable Metro Sports will televise GAME TWO of the doubleheader between the Omaha Storm Chasers and Memphis Redbirds today, beginning at 2:30 p.m. Originally, game one (12:05 p.m.) was to be aired.

Cleto outduels Davies in Redbirds win

Kyle Davies went 7 innings, allowing just 4 hits,
striking out nine. (File Photo: Lee Warren)

Memphis starter Maikel Cleto shook off a leadoff home run by Mike Aviles in the bottom of the first inning, flashing an upper-90s fastball and a devastating curveball in a 3-1 Memphis win in front of 8,658 fans Saturday night at Werner Park.

He out-dueled Omaha starter Kyle Davies, who matched the youngster pitch-for-pitch but suffered the loss thanks to a pair of Storm Chasers throwing errors.

Cleto (1-0) fired 7.1 excellent innings in his Triple-A debut – though he previously made two appearances in the big leagues with St. Louis this season. The 22-year-old Dominican allowed just one run on four hits, struck out nine and did not walk a batter. His dominating performance marked another key milestone in his time with the St. Louis organization after being acquired from Seattle for infielder Brendan Ryan in the offseason.

Three-run first is enough for Nashville

Kevin Pucetas had a rough first inning but he
recovered to toss four scoreless innings
(Photo: Lee Warren)

Chase Wright spun 7 2/3 solid innings and Mat Gamel homered to lead the Sounds to a 3-2 victory over Omaha Friday night in the last of a five-game set at Greer Stadium.

The Storm Chasers wound up going 4-5 on their road trip to Round Rock and Nashville and return home at 41-35 – still leading the PCL American North by 1.5 games.

Gamel's two-run homer capped a three-run first inning rally for the Sounds, who struck in their initial at-bat for the second time in the series. Storm Chasers starter Kevin Pucetas recovered from the rough opening frame to finish his night with four scoreless innings before departing the hill but did suffer the loss after yielding three runs on five hits.

Clint Robinson's fielder's choice grounder in the fourth got the visitors on the board before the Storm Chasers couldn't fully take advantage of a big opportunity in the sixth.

Three singles loaded the bases with nobody out for Robinson, who grounded into a force play at the plate. Kila Ka'aihue followed with a single that plated Mike Aviles to trim the lead to 3-2 but Johnny Giavotella was thrown out at the plate attempting to score the tying run.

Omaha powers past Nashville

Cody Clark (Photo: Lee Warren)

Cody Clark and Mike Aviles slugged solo home runs in a decisive four-run seventh inning to power Omaha past Nashville, 8-2, Thursday night in the fourth of a five-game set at Greer Stadium.

The Storm Chasers quieted the Sounds for a ninth time in 11 meetings to improve to 41-34 and increase their lead to 1 1/2 games over Memphis in the American Conference North Division. 

Lance Zawadzki smashed a two-run home run in the second to put the Chasers ahead 2-0 and extend his hitting streak to 14 games, the longest for any Omaha hitter this season.

Reminiscing at the Rosenblatt auction

Cathy and Vic Volkart watched the auction and took
in the sights and sounds for one last time at Rosenblatt.
(Photo: Lee Warren)

Everything felt out of sorts at Rosenblatt Stadium today – from the security fence, to the lack of activity inside the gates to the weather.

On a cloudy, dreary, unseasonably cool day in June, baseball fans didn’t hear the ping of aluminum bats as they’ve grown accustomed to at this time of year. Instead, they heard auctioneers encouraging them to take a piece of Rosenblatt home with them.

Auction Solutions, Inc., the entity in charge of the auction, provided a 35-page catalog filled with items fans could bid on.

Photos from Rosenblatt Stadium auction

Here are a few photos from the Rosenblatt Stadium auction today ... two of the unique items included a pair of shoes left behind by Phil Humber and a photo that will be auctioned off in the future, thought to be an original showing Babe Ruth posing with Father Flanagan.

Omaha takes opener in Nashville, comeback falls short in game 2

Clint Robinson singled home Irving Falu with two outs
in the seventh inning of game two to bring Omaha to within
a run, but they ended up falling short. (Photo: Lee Warren)

Frankie De La Cruz was solid through 6 1/3 innings and helped to make early offense stand up as Nashville fended off Omaha, 5-4, in game two to earn a doubleheader split Wednesday night at Greer Stadium. The Storm Chasers claimed the opener, 4-1, and head into the final two games of the five-game series at 40-34.

Sean O'Sullivan took the hill for Omaha on a rehab start in the nightcap and was touched for run-scoring hits by Erick Almonte and Mat Gamel in the first inning that put the visitors in an early 2-0 hole. Taylor Green led off the second with a home run, his third against the Storm Chasers this season, and another run came across on a wild pitch later in the frame. O'Sullivan was tagged with the loss after giving up four runs on six hits over 2 1/3 innings.

Almonte was involved in the Chasers two runs in the fifth as he committed an error on an Irving Falu grounder that allowed Paulo Orlando to score before Johnny Giavotella singled home Falu with two outs to halve the deficit.

Homer happy Express Handle Storm Chasers

From the Omaha Storm Chasers ...

Chris Davis slammed two home runs to power Round Rock past Omaha, 7-5, Saturday evening in the second of a four-game set at the Dell Diamond. The Storm Chasers fell to 38-31 and lost to the Express for the fifth time in sixth meetings this season.

Omaha scored first for a second straight night when David Lough led off the second with a triple and scored on a Davis throwing error. Lance Zawadzki's two-out single later in the inning drove in Lorenzo Cain to make it 2-0.

The Express, who had been blanked in their prior two contests, cut the lead in half in the bottom of the frame on a solo shot by Luis Cruz before the visitors answered right back in the third when Mike Aviles tripled and scored on a Clint Robinson sacrifice fly.

Round Rock grabbed the lead for the first time in the home third when Davis blasted a three-run homer. A leadoff long ball by Aviles in the sixth evened the game at four.

Defensive miscues plague Storm Chasers

From the Omaha Storm Chasers ...

Manny Pina hit his second home run of the
season tonight. He also had a double.
(Photo: Lee Warren)

A series of Omaha miscues turned a two-run lead into a six-run loss Tuesday night at Werner Park, spoiling a strong performance by Storm Chasers starting pitcher Mike Montgomery. Iowa tallied three runs in the seventh and five more in the eighth, rallying for the 11-5 win.

The turning point of the game took place in the top of the seventh inning, with one out and the bases full and the Storm Chasers clinging to a 5-4 lead. Iowa catcher Chris Robinson took a hack at a Blake Johnson offering and rolled an easy double play ball to shortstop Mike Aviles, but after a clean relay to second for the second out, Johnny Giavotella’s toss to first short-hopped Clint Robinson and skipped toward the Iowa dugout. Two runs came home on the play, adding to an inning that began with the second fielding error of the night by third baseman Lance Zawadzki.

Omaha starting pitcher Mike Montgomery was the story early on, striking out the first three batters he faced and punching out a season-high eight Cubs hitters in his five innings of work. He did allow a pair of runs on two hits and five walks, though only one run was earned. Three Chasers relievers, including Johnson, losing pitcher Robinson Tejeda (0-1) and Blaine Hardy, gave up nine runs (six earned) on 13 hits over four innings. The four Storm Chasers errors equaled a season high.

Home runs, rehabbing hurlers lead Chasers

From the Omaha Storm Chasers ...

The television debut of the Omaha Storm Chasers did not fail to disappoint, as the Chasers powered their way past the Iowa Cubs 6-3 Monday night in front of 5,037 fans at Werner Park. The live broadcast by Kansas City’s Time Warner Cable Metro Sports was the first in the club’s history at Werner Park, the first of at least three television games that will air this season.

Johnny Giavotella, Mike Aviles and Lorenzo Cain all went deep for Omaha during the game, providing starter Bruce Chen and winning pitcher Kyle Davies (1-0) with enough run support to hold off the I-Cubs. Chen and Davies were in town on big-league rehabilitation assignments, after both throwing for Double-A Northwest Arkansas this past Wednesday.

Chen went the first four frames, allowing two runs on six hits with one strikeout, while Davies closed out the final five innings, giving up a run on four hits while striking out five. Neither pitcher issued a walk, throwing 92 of their collective 136 pitches for strikes.

Late sacrifice fly lifts Chasers over RedHawks

From the Omaha Storm Chasers ...

Mike Aviles brought home pinch runner Jarrod Dyson with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth inning, giving the Storm Chasers a 5-4 win over visiting Oklahoma City Sunday afternoon at Werner Park. The win puts Omaha at seven games over .500 (35-28) for the fifth different time this season.

Clint Robinson had a big day for the Chasers, belting two home runs and doubling to the gap – all three extra-base hits went to left-center – before being replaced by the pinch-running Dyson after the two-base hit. His two-run, opposite-field home run in the first inning made it 2-1 Omaha, while his nearly identical solo blast in the third inning increased the Storm Chasers margin to 3-1. His leadoff double in the bottom of the eighth was followed by a groundout by Kila Ka’aihue and the Aviles sac fly.

Robinson has now hit five home runs over his past five games, increasing his team-leading totals to a .356 average with 17 home runs and 50 runs batted in. It was his third multi-homer game of the season and 11th of his minor league career, dating back to 2007.

J.J. Picollo talks about KC's youth movement

J.J. Picollo, the Kansas City Royals assistant general manager, has been at Werner Park the past couple of days. On Friday, he was Brett Pollock's guest on Storm Chasers Live! – a video program that runs before Omaha home games. The Storm Chasers provided Omaha Baseball 360 with a copy of the interview:

Pollock: There was so much talk about the talent on this team this year and about who would be the first to get the call to go up. Hosmer was first and Moustakas joined him about a month later. When you looked at Moustakas’ progression over the last month, what did you see that warranted the call?

Picollo: Well, all year long Mike has really been swinging the bat fine. He’s been a run producer which is really the number one thing we need Mike to do. He was knocking in runs all year. I think over the last couple of weeks, he started swinging the bat a little more consistently. And the roving coaches – some of our front office personnel kind of thought he hit his stride and it was just a matter of time.

Eric Hosmer (Photo: Minda Haas / Royal Blues)

Pollock: I mentioned Eric Hosmer. He was batting over .400 here and he did it with the glove as well. He seemingly had a very smooth transition to the big leagues. Picked up right where he left off and I think one of the interesting things about Hosmer – the thing that really jumped out at you, aside from his talent on the field was the way he carried himself. And it seems like already he’s kind of taken up the mantel of being the face of the franchise.

Picollo: He’s a very mature guy. He’s been that way since high school. He’s just continued from the time he signed until the time he got called up to the major leagues. He’s been the same guy he always has been. He’s a winner. He’s a competitor. We’re excited about having him there. We look forward to having him in the middle of our lineup for a long time.

OKC wins the battle of the bullpens

Jeff Suppan prepares to throw a
pitch in the early innings tonight.
(Photo: Lee Warren)

In a battle of bullpens tonight at Werner Park, Omaha’s blinked when Blaine Hardy gave up two runs in the top of the eleventh inning to give the RedHawks a 6-4 win.

Omaha took a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Johnny Giavotella blasted his fourth home run of the season to left field. The Chasers added single runs in the fourth and fifth innings on a Clint Robinson home run – his 15th – and a wild pitch by RedHawks starting pitcher Sergio Perez.

Jeff Suppan got the start for Omaha and looked strong early on. He sat down the first eight hitters he faced. He gave up a run in the fifth inning and made it to the seventh inning before running into real trouble. He walked the leadoff hitter Brandon Barnes setting the stage for a two-run home run by the RedHawks number nine hitter, Oswaldo Navarro – who had a big night, going 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Suppan went 6.1 innings, giving up three earned runs on seven hits and two walks. He struck out five.

“I thought he threw the ball real well tonight,” said Storm Chasers manager Mike Jirschele after the game. “And then he gave up the home run. That’s part of the game. You make one bad pitch and it ruins your night. Overall though I thought he mixed his pitches well and kept the ball down. And really, they were struggling against him.”

Moustakas gets the call to KC

Mike Moustakas puts his game face on before
a home game recently (Photo: Lee Warren)

The Kansas City Royals promoted Mike Moustakas to Kansas City and optioned Mike Aviles to Omaha. Moustakas will join Kansas City today in Anaheim.

After the Royals game yesterday, manager Ned Yost commented about the moves.

“He’s [Aviles] kind of stuck in a rut offensively, defensively” Yost said. “We know what kind of player Mike Aviles is. He’s very athletic. He’s a .300-type hitter. And it’s been a struggle for him. It’s been a struggle for him offensively. It’s been a struggle for him defensively. We felt that in order to get him back to where he could be productive for us he needs to take a step back and just get down at Omaha and play every day. He’s not going to have that opportunity here.”

Lucas May traded to Arizona for Andrea Pizziconi

Lucas May in action last month for Omaha
(Photo: Lee Warren)

The Kansas City Royals traded Lucas May today to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Andrea Pizziconi and assigned him to Idaho Falls.

May hit two home runs last night for the Storm Chasers -- one of which was a grand slam, but he really struggled this season, hitting just .176/.263/.329 with 3 HR and 13 RBIs in 25 games. He was relagated to backup duties with Omaha recently, with Manny Pina getting the majority of the starts. Pina hasn't faired much better, hitting .187/.321/.242 with 1 HR and 8 RBIs in 30 games.

Pizziconi is a 19-year-old RHP who was 2-1 with a 2.57 ERA and 1.224 WHIP in 17 games (6 starts).

Cody Clark was activated off the DL and placed on Omaha's roster.