Royals name MiLB Pitchers, Players of the Year
Omaha Royals, Triple -A
Left-handed pitcher Lenny DiNardo has been named the Omaha Pitcher of the Year. DiNardo, who will turn 30 on Sept. 19, went 10-5 with a 3.32 ERA and two saves in 29 games (23 starts) for the O-Royals. A resident of Gainesville, Fla., DiNardo paced the staff in wins, innings (151 2/3) and strikeouts (127) while limiting opponents to five home runs. His strikeout total tied for third in the PCL, while his ERA ranked fourth. DiNardo, a 2009 All-PCL team selection, had his contract selected by Kansas City on September 8.
Outfielder Cory Aldridge is the Omaha Player of the Year. The 30-year-old batted .316 while leading Omaha with 22 home runs and 71 RBIs in 98 games. A resident of Abilene, Texas, Aldridge paced the PCL with 11 home runs in August. He batted .348 with 22 RBIs during the month.
Northwest Arkansas Naturals, Double-A
Left-handed reliever Ben Swaggerty, 27, has been named the Northwest Arkansas Pitcher of the Year. Swaggerty, signed in 2007 as a nondrafted free agent, started the season at Wilmington, going 3-1 with a 1.64 ERA and two saves in 16 appearances. The Bristol, Tenn., resident was promoted to Northwest Arkansas in June and finished with a 4-1 record, a 4.33 ERA and one save in 26 outings.
David Lough of Clinton, Ohio, is the Northwest Arkansas Player of the Year. The 23-year-old Lough began 2009 at Wilmington, where he batted .320 with five home runs and 30 RBIs in 65 games. His success led to a promotion to Double-A Northwest Arkansas, where he batted .331 with nine home runs and 31 RBIs in 61 games. Lough hit safely in his final 11 games as he helped the Naturals reach the playoffs.
Wilmington Blue Rocks, Class A Advanced
Left-handed reliever Brandon Sisk was named Wilmington Pitcher of the Year. Sisk appeared in 45 games, going 2-3 with a 1.92 ERA and 21 saves in 24 opportunities. He was sharp during Wilmington's playoff push, going 15-for-15 in save opportunities in the second half, while posting a 1.10 ERA. The 24-year-old from Elkhart, Texas, signed as a nondrafted free agent in 2008, after spending parts of two seasons with the Bay Area Toros in the independent Continental Baseball League.
Mike Moustakas, who will turn 21 on Sept. 11, is the Wilmington Player of the Year. The left-handed hitting Moustakas, the No. 2 overall selection in the June 2007 First-Year Player Draft, batted .250 with 16 home runs, 86 RBIs and 10 stolen bases while playing in the spacious confines of Wilmington's Frawley Stadium. The 86 RBIs ranked third in the Carolina League. The Northridge, Calif., resident and 2008 Burlington Player of the Year earned a Carolina League All-Star nod in June.
Burlington Bees, Class A
20-year-old Mike Montgomery, the Surprise (Ariz.) Pitcher of the Year in 2008, was named the Burlington Pitcher of the Year in his first full Minor League campaign. The 6-foot-5 left-hander, a resident of Mesa, Ariz., went 2-3 with a 2.17 ERA and a .206 opponent batting average in 58 innings (12 starts) with the Bees. Montgomery, Kansas City's supplemental pick in the 2008 Draft, limited opponents to one run or fewer in 10 of his 12 starts. He was promoted to Wilmington on July 22, where he went 4-1 with a 2.25 ERA in nine starts.
Birmingham, Mo., native Nick Van Stratten was named the Burlington Player of the Year. The 24-year-old outfielder batted .318 with one home run, 38 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 69 games with the Bees. He was promoted to Wilmington in July. The Winnetonka High graduate compiled a .337 (29-for-86) average in August as he helped the Blue Rocks make the playoffs.
Idaho Falls Chukars, Rookie
Left-handed pitcher John Lamb is the Idaho Falls Pitcher of the Year. The 6-foot-3, 185-pounder from Laguna Hills, Calif., started the year with the Burlington Royals (Rookie), where he went 2-2 with a 3.95 ERA in six starts. Lamb was promoted to Idaho Falls on July 22. He was 3-1 in eight starts for the Chukars, posting a 3.70 ERA. Lamb earned Pioneer League Pitcher of the Week honors for Aug. 10-16 after recording two wins, including seven shutout innings on Aug. 16, when he fanned 10, a season-high for an Idaho Falls pitcher.
Infielder Deivy Batista, a resident of Santiago in the Dominican Republic, has been named the Idaho Falls Player of the Year. Batista is currently batting .270, leading the Chukars with 13 home runs and 55 RBIs. He started the year with an 11-game hitting streak in which he hit five home runs and drove in 20 runs. Batista earned Pioneer League Player of the Week honors for June 22-28.
Burlington Royals, Rookie
Right-handed pitcher Greg Billo has been named the Burlington Pitcher of the Year. The 19-year-old He finished with a 2-2 mark and a 1.81 ERA in 13 games (eight starts), recording 51 strikeouts in 54 2/3 innings pitched. A native of Orland Park, Ill., Billo allowed just one earned run over his last 30 innings pitched.
Outfielder Luis Del Rosario is the Burlington Player of the Year. The 22-year-old from San Cristobal in the Dominican Republic batted .268 with three home runs, 17 RBIs and 19 stolen bases in 57 games with Burlington. Del Rosario finished the year with the Wilmington Blue Rocks.
Arizona League Royals, Rookie
Claudio Bavera, a 22-year-old left-hander from Maturin Monagas, Venezuela, has been named the Arizona League Royals Pitcher of the Year. Bavera, selected in the 33rd round in 2009, was 4-0 with a 0.44 ERA and two saves in 15 appearances with the Surprise, Ariz., based team. He compiled 21 strikeouts in 20 2/3 innings pitcher. Bavera was promoted to the (Rookie-level) Burlington Royals, where he made one appearance.
Outfielder Alex Llanos of Caguas, Puerto Rico, has been named the Arizona League Royals Player of the Year. Llanos, who will turn 19 on Sept. 21, batted .311 with three home runs, 16 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 31 games for the Surprise-based club. The 2008 sixth-round pick was promoted to Idaho Falls on Aug. 3.
Dominican Summer League Royals, Rookie
Right-handed pitcher Jonathan Rodriguez is the Dominican Summer League Royals Pitcher of the Year. The 20-year-old from Santiago in the Dominican went 3-1 with a 0.80 ERA and two saves in 17 outings (four starts), striking out 36 and walking 15 in 45 innings. Rodriguez completed his third season with the DSL Royals after signing as a nondrafted free agent on Nov. 17, 2006.
Catcher Rainier Bello, signed by Kansas City as a nondrafted free agent on Dec. 10, 2008, is the DSL Royals Player of the Year. Bello, 17, from Bani, Dominican Republic, hit .293 (53-for-181) with eight doubles, 25 RBIs and 24 runs scored.