Royals prospects: Omaha has sluggers, Finnegan struggles, Brooks Pounder is back

Omaha Stormchasers (AAA)

Carlos Peguero had a big week, smashing four home runs and going 7-18. The 27-year old left-handed hitter is hitting .266/.346/.542 with 24 home runs, and could be a September callup to provide pop off the bench.

Peguero trails catcher Francisco Pena for the team lead in home runs, as Pena added his 25th and 26th dingers of the year this week.

Johnny Giavotella had a rough week going 3-for-19. Cheslor Cuthbert suffered his first week of struggles at AAA also going 3-for-19, although he did hit his first home run for the Stormchasers.

Liam Hendriks tossed seven innings of shutout ball, allowing just four hits with six strikeouts and one walk on Sunday. Since joining the Stormchasers, Hendriks is 3-1 with a 3.67 ERA in four starts.

Budddy Baumann is being stretched out as a starter and had his most impressive outing Saturday, striking out nine over five shutout innings. He has a 2.63 ERA overall with 57 strikeouts in 75 1/3 innings.

Sam Selman has struggled in his first two AAA outings. He has faced ten hitters, giving up four hits, and three walks.

Northwest Arkansas Naturals (AA)

Hunter Dozier, who has struggled since his promotion to AA, began to hit this week, going 6-for-19 with two doubles and a home run. He is hitting .209/.288/.321 with 4 home runs in 50 games since being promoted.

MITCH Maier smacked his second home run with the Naturals, but otherwise struggled going 3-14 with 8 strikeouts. He's hitting .264/.339/.453 in his first 15 games at Northwest Arkansas.

Outfielder Brian Fletcher smacked a home run in his first game since being demoted to Northwest Arkansas, and was 4-for-18 overall with a walk and four strikeouts.

Christian Binford rebounded after a rough outing last week to give up just one run over six innings with eight strikeouts and no walks against Corpus Christi. Binford has a 3.19 ERA in eight starts since being promoted, although his strikeout rate has fallen to 7.1 per nine innings.

Right-hander Andy Ferguson spinned a gem on Friday night, tossing six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and striking out nine. The 25-year old lowered his ERA to 2.96 over 139 2/3 innings.

First-round pick Brandon Finnegan had a rough outing on Wednesday, giving up five runs in 1 2/3 innings, although just one was earned. He gave up four hits and two home runs, but did right the ship with two shutout innings on Saturday.

Wilmington Blue Rocks (High A)

Shortstop Raul Mondesi, who has struggled mightily this year, enjoyed a good week, smacking two home runs and going 6-for-19 with two steals. Mondesi is hitting .222/.266/.368 overall with seven home runs.

The enigmatic Bubba Starling had a rough week, going 2-for-15, but he did draw an amazing eight walks, suggesting either some newfound plate discipline, or pitchers are pitching around him now. Starling is hitting .217/.310/.348 and is tenth in the Carolina League with 46 walks.

Outfielder Fred Ford has struggled since his promotion to Wilmington, going 2-for-14 this week, and hitting .154/.214/.269 in nine games for the Blue Rocks.

Left-hander Sean Manaea had a wonderful start on Wednesday, giving up just two hits and no runs over seven innings of work with seven strikeouts and one walk. Manaea has a 3.25 ERA with 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings in 102 1/3 innings for Wilmington this year.

Glenn Sparkman followed up Manaea in the second game of a doubleheader to toss six innings of shutout ball himself, with just one hit allowed and seven strikeouts. The 22-year old right-hander has a miniscule 1.37 ERA in 105 innings for the Blue Rocks.

Right-hander Miguel Almonte tossed two no-hit shutout innings on Friday night, as they ease him back after he left a game early with forearm discomfort back in July.

Lexington Legends (Low A)

Outfifelder Elier Hernandez, a pricey international signing, smacked two home runs and went 5-for-19 with two triples this week. Overall the right-hander is hitting .230/.264/.355 with 8 home runs for Lexington.

Outfielder Dominque Taylor had a nice week hitting 8-for-19 with his seventh home run.

Catcher/first baseman Frank Schwindel smacked two home runs and hit 6-for-20 with two doubles to boot. His 20 home runs are third in the South Atlantic League.

Alec Mills has pitched well for the Legends since being promoted, with a 1.09 ERA in six starts. The 22-year old right-hander continued that this week, allowing just one run over two starts with twelve strikeouts in eleven innings of work.

Former second round pick Cody Reed tossed three innings, giving up a solo home run, while striking out three. Reed has a 5.87 ERA with a disappointing 6 strikeouts per nine innings.

Idaho Falls Chukars (Advanced Rookie)

Outfielder Brandon Downes hit his second and third home runs this past week, going 4-for-13. He is hitting .345/.394/.538 in 27 games.

Shortstop Courey Toups continued his terrific season, collecting seven hits and three walks, including his third home run. The 21-year old Sam Houston State product is hitting .304/.442/.466.

Right-hander Torey DeShazier tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings striking out a career high eleven. The Arkansas Baptist College draftee has a 3.17 ERA and nearly a strikeout per inning for the Chukars.

Right-hander Brooks Pounder is with the Chukars rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, and gave up one run in 4 2/3 innings of work with six strikeouts on Wednesday.

Burlington Royals (Rookie)

Outfielder Amalani Fukofuka had a rough week going 2-for-11 with six strikeouts. Catcher Chase Vallot also struggled with seven strikeouts in 18 plate appearances, and just four hits.

Right-hander Niklas Stephenson continued his terrific season with just one run allowed over two starts this week. The 20-year old struck out 15 over 13 1/3 innings of work and has a 2.13 ERA overall with just 8 walks in 55 innings.

Supplementary pick Foster Griffin had a rough outing, giving up three runs in 2 2/3 innings on two hits and two walks. The left-hander has a 4.26 ERA overall.

Right-hander Scott Blewitt lived up to his name with six runs allowed in just 2 2/3 innings, with six hits and three walks given up. Blewitt has a 5.50 ERA although has struck out 11.5 per nine innings.