Steven Zobac’s name jumps off the page from a week that featured a little bit of everything across the Royals’ system. The right-hander was one of the bright spots for Northwest Arkansas, and he wasn’t alone. There were big power numbers in Omaha, a strong run from Quad Cities, and a solid pitching week in Columbia.
Omaha’s offense did plenty of damage even as the Storm Chasers dropped 4 of 6 to the Indianapolis Indians. Abraham Toro led the way with an 8-for-23 week that included 3 doubles, 3 home runs and 7 RBI.
That pushes his season line to .274/.347/.540, with 15 homers and 56 RBI. Luca Tresh also chipped in, going 5 for 13 with a pair of homers, while Rudy Martin Jr. kept his strong Omaha start rolling after his promotion from Double-A, finishing 7 for 15 with a homer.
The pitching staff had some useful work too. Mitch Spence turned in the club’s lone quality start of the week, working 6 innings and allowing 6 hits, 1 run, 1 walk and 5 strikeouts.
Oscar Rayo added 5 scoreless innings across 2 relief outings, giving up 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3. Rayo, a 24-year-old lefty from Nicaragua, has bounced between Double-A and Triple-A this season and now sits at 51 innings pitched, 49 strikeouts and a 3.88 ERA.
Northwest Arkansas didn’t have the same kind of team success, losing 4 of 6 to Corpus Christi, but Zobac gave them something to build on. He made a pair of starts, and the second one stood out: 4.1 innings, 2 hits, 2 runs and 8 strikeouts.
Zobac has been working back after time on the IL, and the 25-year-old righty, a 4th round pick in 2022, looked sharp in that outing. Drew Beam also delivered a strong start, going 7 innings with 4 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk and 8 strikeouts.
Hunter Owen was even more dominant in his lone start, firing 5 innings of 1-hit ball and striking out 9.
At the plate for the Naturals, Jack Pineda had the loudest week, going 7 for 20 with 3 home runs. Carson Roccaforte added a 9-for-22 line with a homer and a double. Beyond that, the offense had a rougher time.
Quad Cities was on the other side of the ledger, winning 5 of 6 against Cedar Rapids. Kendry Chourio continued to stack quality work, tossing 6 innings with 3 hits, 1 run and 1 walk allowed while striking out 3.
Blake Wolters went 4 innings and gave up 4 hits and 2 runs, with 4 strikeouts. Jordan Woods worked 3 relief innings, allowing 3 hits and 2 runs while striking out 3, and David Shields had a tougher day in his lone start, giving up 4 runs over 4.2 innings with 3 walks and 7 strikeouts.
The River Bandits also got production throughout the lineup. Derlin Figueroa snapped out of a recent slump by going 5 for 17 with 4 doubles and a homer.
Luke Pelzer put together an 8-for-19 week with 3 doubles, a homer and 2 stolen bases, giving him 24 on the season. Ramon Ramirez added 5 hits in 14 at-bats, including 3 doubles.
Columbia finished with a split in its 6-game set against Fredericksburg, and the pitching staff did enough to keep things steady. Michael Lombardi allowed 3 hits and 1 run over 5 innings in his start, striking out 6.
Darwin Rodriguez also worked 5 innings and didn’t allow a run, giving up 4 hits and striking out 4. Coleman Picard matched that scoreless theme, going 5 innings and allowing just 1 hit while striking out 6.
The Fireflies’ bats were quieter overall, though there were a few notable lines. Josh Hammond went 4 for 18 and drew 3 walks.
Sean Gamble finished 4 for 20 with a double, a homer and 6 walks. JC Vanek was 4 for 12 with a triple and 6 walks.
Vanek, a 21-year-old first baseman drafted in the 14th round last year out of Chipola Junior College in Florida, is hitting .238/.373/.382 in 193 at-bats this season.
In Other News...
Jac Caglianones Home Run Derby Moment Just Got Even More Personal
Jac Caglianones rise has already given Royals fans plenty to track, and now the first basemans All-Star week will come with a little extra spotlight. The 2024 first-round pick announced he will take part in the Home Run Derby ahead of the MLB All-Star Game, a nod to the kind of power that has made him one of the most watched young hitters in the organization.
His June surge helped push him onto that stage, and the Derby will now carry a personal twist that makes the moment even bigger for him and his family. Caglianone has made clear how much this means beyond the baseball itself, and the setup adds another layer to what should already be one of the more intriguing events of All-Star week. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Fans Finally Get The Jac Caglianone Power Show They Wanted
Jac Caglianone is getting the kind of stage Royals fans have been waiting for. The rookie power bat announced he will take part in the 2026 T-Mobile Home Run Derby in Philadelphia, his first time in the event, after turning his raw strength into a regular fixture in Kansas Citys lineup this season.
It also gives the Royals a familiar kind of summer spotlight, since Caglianone is the clubs first Derby participant since Bobby Witt Jr. in 2024. For a team that has spent much of the year leaning on his everyday presence and loud contact, the Derby offers a national showcase for the part of his game that has already made him one of the most watchable hitters on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Turned A Routine Comebacker Into Their Worst Nightmare
A routine comebacker in the first inning at Citi Field turned into a mess the Royals will want to forget, with Kansas City handing the Mets an opening that should have been harmless. Carson Benge put the ball in play, and what followed was the kind of defensive sequence that can unravel a game before it ever settles in, especially for a club trying to keep early innings from getting away.
The odd part is how rare it was, too. Three errors on one play is the sort of breakdown that almost never shows up on a major league scorecard, and for the Royals it left an immediate stain on a night that had barely begun. Even in a sport built on routine, this was the kind of mistake cluster that can linger long after the inning ends. [Read more 🡒]