An odd schedule this summer means the Omaha Royals are out of town almost as much in July as they were in June. After the eternal CWS-induced road trip, the Royals were back in town for just two games last weekend, then immediately hit the road again for a series at New Orleans. After this weekend’s series, it’s the All Star break and then another 8-game road trip.
In other words, home games this month are at a premium, but if you plan well you can see a lot of baseball. How? The Royals are playing THREE doubleheaders at home this month – tomorrow, the 24th and the 25th. As far as I know, we’re not emptying the stadium between games, so if you’re looking for a weekend with a LOT of baseball, this weekend or the 23rd-26th would be ideal.
And of course, if the rumors are true, you’ll get to see what Mike Moustakas can do at the Triple-A level during at least some of those games. It may not be this weekend – although I’ve got my fingers crossed that it is – but Moustakas’ moving here is imminent. And why not? There is not a single thing he still needs to “prove” at NWArk, and it would do the organization a lot of good to show that one of GMDM’s top draft picks can make progress and become a star. It has to be agonizing for a new-ish GM to wait for his first draft pick to make the Majors. And as we know, Dayton Moore is still waiting.
It’s likely that Moustakas will be that first guy for Moore, and that Omaha fans will get to see him soon.
Per Kevin McNabb, here are this weekend’s pitching matchups.
- Thur., 7:05 p.m.: RH Jesus Castillo (0-2, 12.86) vs. RH Gaby Hernandez (5-5, 6.10)
- Fri., 5:30 p.m.: RH Seth Etherton (2-2, 4.84) vs. RH Philip Humber (4-4, 4.38)
- Fri., Gm. 2: TBA vs. TBA
- Sat., 7:05 p.m.: LH Alberto Bastardo (3-0, 3.23) vs. RH Manauris Baez (1-1, 4.79)
- Sun., 1:35 p.m.: RH James McDonald (5-1, 4.74) vs. RH Bryan Bullington (6-1, 2.85)
Remember that MiLB double-headers are 7-inning games, so the 2nd game tomorrow will likely be pitched by committee for both teams, depending on how much of each bullpen gets used in the first game.
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