Next weekend, the Royals are proud to send Eric Addis and Oliver Lopez to represent them at the AA All Star Game.  Congrats guys

The Doinks and Dingers took care of business Sunday, sweeping the double header and eliminating the Royals from playoff contention for the second summer in a row.

The Royals bats were mostly quiet all day.  Michael Citro led the way with 4 hits, and Nick Perez and Luis Valencia each had 3.  No other Royal had more than 1 hit.

On the mound, the Royal's shaky defense paired with some fun Sylmar field hops made things challenging, as pitchers had to throw extra outs in 90+ degree heat.  Kyle Tanaka, Mike Miller, Cameron Chavarria, Jake Romo, Luis Valencia and Eric Addis added up to throw 11 innings, striking out 14 while allowing 26 earned runs (and 8 more unearned runs) on 31 hits.

After a week off for Independence Day, the Royals finish the regular season with their 4th doubleheader of the year - this time against The Bats at Verdugo Hills High School, 9:45am and 1:30pm.

The Threshers came out strong on Sunday, putting up 16 runs on 18 hits.  Making the day extra special, 4 Royals went down with injuries in the loss.

Eric Addis continues to swing the hottest bat, going 1 for 1 with a pair of walks and a double that turned into a Little League home run.  Nick Perez had 2 hits, Jake Romo had a 2-run triple and John Stradling had a single.  That was the entirety of the Royals' offense on Sunday.

For the first 6 innings, the Royals kept things within reach with Kyle Tanaka (3 innings, 6 runs/4 earned, 7 hits, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts) and Mike Miller (3 innings, 5 runs/2 earned, 5 hits, 2 walks.)  But with most of their team sitting out injured, Miller went back for the 7th and the Threshers were ready for him, finishing things off with 5 runs on 6 hits and a walk in the final frame.

Next week, the Royals put their season on the line with a doubledip against the Doinks and Dingers (10am and 2pm at Poly High School.)

The Royals defense committed 9 errors, in route to a 17-1 loss to the Rangers.  Kyle Tanaka pitched far better than the score showed, as he only allowed 5 earned runs (but 13 total runs) over 10 hits and 1 walk in 5 innings.  The Rangers played through the mercy, and the Royals only allowed 4 runs over their final 3 innings.

Offensively, the Royals weren't much better.  After getting 4 hits and a run over the first 2 innings, they had only 1 hit the remaining 7 frames.  Mike Miller led the team reaching base all 3 of his plate appearances (including a scary hit by pitch in the helmet), and Eric Addis reached base 3 of his 4 plate appearances.  Jake Romo scored the only run, and swiped a pair of bags.

Next week, the Royals face the Threshers at Sylmar High School in a rare 2pm start time.

The Royals finally broke into the win column, coming back to down the Soldiers 14-10 in the first game of a split doubleheader.  A 12-run 6th inning that saw every Royal either score a run or knock one in was the magic moment!

Oliver Lopez, Jake Romo and Luis Valencia had 2 hits a piece, while Eric Addis and Mike Miller reached base in all 8 of their combined plate appearances.  Addis led the team with 3 runs scored, while Nick Perez had 3 rbis.  On the mound, Kyle Tanaka continues to improve, as he worked 5 solid innings before letting in his first earned run of the day in the 6th (unfortunately, the defense allowed 6 unearned runs while he was throwing.)  Andrew Miller came in and pitched 2 innings to vulture the win.

Game 2 saw the Royals face off with the Threshers.  The fatigue showed in the first, as they allowed 10 runs.  But in the bottom of the frame, they responded with 7 of their own before a contested call (and subsequent protest) put this game on ice for the moment.  More to come...

After 2 promising games, the Royals offense took a step backwards Sunday as they fell to the Jokers 10-4.  They left 9 on base (including the bases loaded in the 2nd), and couldn't get the big hit when they needed (2 for 10 with runners in scoring position.)

Eric Addis continued his hot hitting, going 3 for 4 with a pair of doubles.  Zeke Guzman had 2 hits, while Nick Perez, Giovanni Smith and Andrew Miller had the only other base knocks.

On the hill, Kyle Tanaka pitched 4 solid innings before losing his command in the 5th.  He struck out 2 and spread 6 hits over the outing, allowing 7 runs (5 earned) (3 of those runs came in his final inning.)  Mike Miller relieved and put together a vintage outing, throwing 33 pitches over 4 innings, allowing 3 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits while striking out a pair.

Next week, the Royals play a split doubleheader at Poly High School - 8:30am vs the Soldiers and 12:00pm vs the Threshers.

The Royals continue to improve, but a late inning rally propelled the Jokers to a 12-9 win over the boys in royal blue.

Andrew Miller started, but had trouble finding the strike zone (0 hits, 8 walks over 1.1 innings.)  However, he held the Jokers to 4 earned before turning things over to Gabe Sherman.  Sherman threw his best game as a Royal, allowing 2 earned over 4.1 innings (including 3 strikeouts), before Jake Romo came in to close.  Romo worked a quiet 2 innings, before some timely hitting (and an untimely error) in the 8th inning gave the Jokers a 6-run cushion.

Offensively, the Royals bats continue to heat up,as they pounded out 12 hits, with all but 2 Royals getting a hit.  Mike Miller and Eric Addis broke out of their slumps, combining for 4 hits, 3 runs and 3 rbis at the top of the lineup.  Michael Citro, Zeke Guzman and Nick Perez also had mutli-hit games, while Andrew Miller and Jake Romo combined for 5 stolen bases.

On defense, Luis Valencia made a Sportscenter top play by throwing out a runner at 2nd from deep right-center!

The Royals get a few weeks off to heal up before finishing their season with 9 games over 6 Sundays!

The Royals played one of their best games of the year, but came up just short against the 2nd place Bats.  In a see-saw game, the Royals took a 6-5 lead in the 6th, but couldn't keep up as The Bats plated 5 runs over the final 3 innings.

Kyle Tanaka took this loss, but put up impressive numbers.  3 earned (7 total runs) over 5.1 innings, allowing 9 hits and 4 walks while striking out 9 (including 6 over the first 2 frames.)  Andrew Miller relieved and worked 2.2 solid innings, allowing 3 earned on 2 hits and 3 walks while striking out 1.

Offensively, the Royals bats are finally showing signs of life.  Oliver Lopez led the way with 3 hits and 2 runs scored, while Michael Citro and Alex Contreras had 2 hits each.  Giovanni Smith had 2 rbis, and Luis Valencia reached base 4 times.

Next week, the Royals face off with the Jokers on Mother's Day, 10am at Conejo Creek.

Just when the Royals looked to be playing better baseball, a 9-run 4th inning sunk their chances of victory.

Kyle Tanaka had a stellar debut going for the Royals, allowing just 1 runs over his first 3 innings in blue.  But shaky defense and timely hitting in the 4th gave the Rangers a nearly insurmountable lead.  Gabe Sherman relieved and threw 3 innings of 2-run ball, before handing it over to Jake Romo for late inning mop-up duty.

The Royals' bats still aren't quite firing on all cylinders, as they only put together 6 hits on the day.  Nick Perez had a double and walked twice, driving in 2 to lead the offense.  Sherman's hot bat continued, with a hit in 2 plate appearances, and catcher John Stradling lined a double to deep left for his first hit of the season.

Not a whole lot to say about this weekend, as the Royals were swept in both halves of the doubledip with the Outlaws.

In game 1, Mike Miller started on the bump and kept things close through 4, trailing only 4-2, until the wheels fell off in the 5th.  8 runs allowed over the next 2 frames spelled the end of the day for the Royals.  Andrew Miller, Olivery Lopez and Gabriel Sherman each had 2 hits in the loss.

In game 2, the Royals tied the game 2-2 in the first, but the Outlaws scored in every remaining inning, including a 9 run 6th, while the Royals only scored 1 more time.  The team only had 5 total hits, with Andrew Miller notching 2 of them.  On the hill, Gabriel Sherman looked better than the statline showed, allowing 9 runs (but only 3 earned) over 3 innings.  Poor infield defense extended innings and allowed the Outlaws the cruise for the victory.