Just 3 months ago, the Royals completed their first season back in the PCBL with an 0-17 record.  As the calendar turns to November, the Royals return to the postseason as the 5-seed after defeating the Doinks and Dingers 14-11.

Starter Jake Romo kept the Royals in the game, striking out 6 in his best start of the season.  He went 6 innings, allowing 7 earned runs on 12 hits and only 2 walks.  Matthew Guerrero allowed no earned runs and struck out 3 working the final inning.

At the plate, rookie sensation Josh Holmes led the charge with 3 hits, 3 runs and 3 rbis.  Guerrero had 2 hits, 3 runs, an rbi and 3 stolen bases, and Romo, Giovanni Smith and John Stradling each had 2 hits in the victory.

Next week, the Royals and Doinks will face off in a first-round rematch.  Location and time TBD.

After losing 3 straight games to the Kings by more than 20 runs, the Royals were looking to keep it closer against the top team in the division.  Strong pitching kept them in the game, but the offense showed up a little too late in the 10-3 loss.

Vince Miller started strong, keeping the Kings to 3 runs over the first 3 frames.  However, a few clutch hits in the 5th would give the Kings a strong 10-0 lead and chase Miller from the game.  Jake Romo came in to stop the bleeding and pitched 3.1 innings of hitless relief, striking out 3.  Matthew Guerrero finished things off in the dwindling daylight, striking out 1 in the 9th.

Jake Romo led the offense, going 2 for 4 with a double, and scoring a run.  Alex Contreras drove in a pair on a hit and a sac fly, and Mike Miller and Josh Holmes each had a hit and scored a run.

In the final week of the regular season, the Royals face the Doinks and Dingers at 8:30am at Poly High School.  They still control their own postseason destiny - win and they're in!  A loss means they need help from other teams to extend their fall season.

The Royals pitching was a little off Sunday, which paired with a challenging mound (and a small strike zone) led to a season high 18 walks allowed.  The Bats came through with a few big hits in big moments, and the end result was a resounding win against the Royals.

Rookie Gabriel Sherman started for the Royals, and worked 2 pretty quiet innings before the Bats got their offense moving.  Andrew Miller relieved, but had a rough first inning before putting up a zero in his second frame.  Mike Miller came in with the bases loaded and the mercy-inducing run on first in the final inning, and gave up 2 hits on 2 pitches to close things out.

At the plate, Josh Holmes led the way with 2 hits and an rbi.  A pair of John's (Mendoza and Stradling) each had a double, and Oliver Lopez and Andrew Miller each singled.  Lopez, Mendoza and Gio Smith scored the 3 Royals runs.

Next week, the Royals return home to Verdugo Hills High School to take on the first place Valley Kings.  Game starts at 9:45am.

The Royals' offense has been on vacation the last few weeks, and with a skeleton crew this week (in honor of Halloween maybe), the Royals couldn't get much going against the Doinks and Dingers, losing 8-1.  The game finished in a speedy 2 hours and 30 minutes, allowing everyone to get home in plenty of time to see the Dodgers and Mets in the NLCS.

The pitching staff has been getting progressively betters, as starter Vince Miller worked 5 solid innings, allowing only 2 earned on 7 hits, striking out 3 and walking 3.  A 5-error 3rd inning cost Vince any chance of pitching deeper, as the Doinks plated 5 runs in the frame.  Andrew Miller closed out the final 3 innings, allowing only 1 run on 3 hits while striking out 2 and walking none.

At the plate, Andrew Miller led the way, going 1 for 4 and scoring the lone run.  All of the Millers (related or otherwise) chipped in as well, with Vince Miller walking and hitting a double, Mike Miller lining a single into right center, and Daniel Miller laid down a sac bunt and singled (his first hit in the PCBL!)  John Mendoza and Angel Preciado accounted for the other 2 hits, while Alex Contreras took one for the team ("knocking" in the only run.)

Next week, the Royals play an EARLY game against the Bats - 8:30am at Poly High School.

For the 3rd game in a row, the Valley Kings have mercied the Royals, this time 24-0.  In the last 3 games, the Kings have outscored the Royals 64-6.

Vince Miller took the mound, but a sore shoulder kept his effectiveness to a minimum, as he allowed 8 runs on 4 hits and 4 walks while recording only 1 out.  Jake Romo came in for a solid 2.2 innings of relief, allowing only 3 hits, but one of those was a 3-run fly ball that cleared the short porch in right field at Verdugo.  The Royals ran 4 relievers out after that for an inning each, with varying degrees of success (Andrew Miller - 6 runs/6 hits/3 walks/3 strikeouts, John Stradling - 1 run/0 hits/2 walks/1 hit by pitch, Josh Holmes - 4 runs/3 hits/2 walks/1 hit by pitch, Mike Miller - 0 runs/1 hit).

At bat, it was equally as dismal for the Royals.  Gio Smith had 2 hits and Mike Miller had a hit and a walk to lead the team. Rookie Josh Holmes got the only other hit on the day - his first PCBL hit!

On defense, Vince Miller grabbed a hard ground ball, tagged first and turned a nifty double play with a short hop grab-and-tag by shortstop Andrew Miller (no relation) on the back-end of the play.  Outside of that, there was little to cheer about for the Royals.

Next Sunday, the Royals look to get their season back on track against the Doinks and Dingers.  Game starts at 10am at Conejo Creek.

The final score of this one definitely doesn't tell the full story, as the Royals and Bats were tied 2-2 with 2 outs in the bottom of the 5th.  Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the Bats woke up and strung together a streak 8 hits, 3 walks and an untimely error to put the game away.

Jake Romo pitched great up until the wheels fell off in the 5th, allowing no hits over his first 4 innings pitched.  Matthew Guerrero came in to stop the bleeding in the 5th, but didn't record an out.  Andrew Miller eventually got a pop out to end the frame, but the damage was already done.

On offense, Guerrero had 2 hits and scored a run to lead the charge.  Romo and John Mendoza had the only 2 rbis on the day for the Royals, with Mendoza scoring the other run.

The Royals continue their seesaw season next week against the first place Valley Kings.  Game starts at 9:45am at Verdugo Hills High School.

The Royals continue to look better, batting around in the first inning then holding off the surging Jokers for a 12-7 victory.

Matthew Guerrero led the way with 3 hits, and Mike Miller and Jake Romo had 2 hits each.  Andrew Miller continued his MVP campaign with a pair of runs and a pair of rbis, and Oliver Lopez also came through with a pair of rbis in the victory.

While the hitters were strong, great pitching has defined this season's squad.  Vince Miller started the game and went 3 innings, striking out a pair while allowing 3 earned (the defense gave up 6 errors over the span, cutting his day shorter than it should have been.)  Jake Romo came in to relieve, and through 4 effectively wild innings (0 earned runs on 2 hits and 8 walks while striking out 6.)  Matthew Guerrero closed things out with 2 scoreless innings, allowing 1 hit and striking out a pair.

On defense, catcher John Stradling kept busy tagging out runners trying to score - first on an Alex Contreras-to-Matthew Guerrero relay in the 2nd, and then on a Giovanni Smith "rocket" all the way to the plate in the 6th.

Next week, the Royals go on the road for their first non-VHHS game of the season, visiting the Bats at College of the Canyons, 10am start time.

After the offense exploded for 22 runs last week, the bats went quiet Sunday as the Soldiers swept the Royals in their doubleheader.

In Game 1, Vince Miller took the mound for the Royals and worked 4 solid innings.  But the Soliders capitalized on some poor Royal defense to take an early 10-0 lead.  Oliver Lopez kept the game close, allowing 5 runs over the last 4 innings, and the bats came alive for 6 runs late.  Matthew Guerrero and David Flores each had 3 hits, and Andrew Miller had 2 hits and a walk.  Flores led the squad with 2 runs scored, and Sean Spires had 2 rbis.  Unfortunately the loss wasn't the worst part for the Royals, as a freak injury diving back into first base cost new Royal Nick Perez his season.

Game 2 featured newly-minted ace pitcher Matthew Guerrero, who threw a complete game, 95 pitch 6-hitter, allowing just 3 runs (2 earned) while striking out 6.  Unfortunately, the bats weren't any hotter.  Sean Spires, Andrew Miller and Giovanni Smith got the only 3 Royals hits in a 3-0 loss.

Next week, the Royals are hoping their offense shows up against the Jokers, 9:45am at Verdugo Hills High School.

After an abismal return to the league in the spring, the Royals looked to start fresh in the fall.  In close to 110 degree heat, the Royals offense scored early and often against the Threshers, scoring 6 runs over the first 2 innings before batting around in the 3rd and 4th, eventually winning 22-2.

Offensively, long-time Royal Sean Spires led the charge, getting 4 hits, knocking in 1 and scoring 3 times.  Not to be outdone, Andrew Miller had 2 hits, a walk and a HBP to score 3 times himself while knocking in 3.  Rookie Nick Perez had a 3 hit day as well (could have been 4 hits if not for a close call at first base), and Oliver Lopez, John Stradling and Alex Contreras each scored 3 runs.  Giovani Smith swiped 2 bags before the heat (and the score) stopped the run game.

On the mound, Jake Romo looked like his old self, throwing 3 hitless innings before giving up a single in the 4th.  Oliver Lopez relieved him and retired the only batter he faced, and Andrew Miller did his best Satchel Paige impression, walking the bases loaded in the 5th before striking out the side to close things out.

Defensively, Lopez was the star, picking off 2 runners - at 2nd while catching and at 1st while pitching!

Next week, the Royals begin a new rivalry as they face the Soldiers for the first time.  Since the weather is supposed to be cooler, they've decided to play 2 games - 9:45am and 1:45pm, both at Verdugo Hills High School.

The Royals' first season back in the league in 4 years didn't go as well as hoped for, but a solid core of players are returning to fight another day this fall.  Gio Smith took home the MVP (38 points), and Matthew Guerrero was the team's Cy Young (36 points.)  Outfielder Michael Green led the team with a .414 batting average, outfielder Gio Smith led the team with 15 hits and 8 runs, catcher (!!!) Mike Miller led the team with 10 rbis, and middle infielder Andrew Miller led the team with 10 stolen bases.  On the mound, Matthew Guerrero led the team with 19 strikeouts, Ric Pozo led with 23.1 innings pitched, and Luis Valencia led the team with a 5.19 ERA.