With the parent club's quick start capturing our collective attention, it's been easy to forget what held our excitement prior to the season: the promise of our farm system. That changes today, possibly, with the kick off of the minor league season.
Match-ups after the jump.
Today's Games:AAA Omaha Storm Chasers (SP Mike Montgomery) vs. Albuquerque Isotopes (SP Dana Eveland)
Quick Take: After Gaby Hernandez received the starting nod for Omaha in 2010, it's good to see the Royals have the option of two top 100 prospects (Montgomery, and Danny Duffy) as possible opening day starters. Eveland, coincidentally, was part of the enormous haul (Carlos Gonzalez, Brett Anderson, Chris Carter) the A's received in return for trading Dan Haren a few years back.
AA Northwest Arkansas Naturals (SP Chris Dwyer) vs. San Antonio Missions (SP Anthony Bass)
Quick Take: The offense likely won't be quite as exciting without Hosmer or Moustakas in the fold, but we will finally get to see how Wil Myers performs against AA pitching. This one could very well be a pitchers duel as both Bass (two-time minor league all-star) and Dwyer (Baseball America's #83 rated prospect) are highly regarded.
Tomorrow's Games
A+ Wilmington Blue Rocks (SP Tim Melville) vs. Myrtle Beach Pelicans (SP Neil Ramirez)
Quick Take: Speaking of unexciting offenses, the Blue Rocks only have two guys on the roster that cleared a .750 OPS last season (Carlo Testa and Nick Francis) and even those might have been flukes. Fortunately, this team is loaded with pitching prospects (Odorizzi, Arguelles, Melville, Sample, Herrera) so if a few have breakout seasons, this could still be a fun team to watch.