The Royals have typically treated Double-A as the extended last stop for top prospects. This year, Carter Jensen played 68 games for the Naturals, Ben Kudrna pitched in 20 games, but Jac Caglianone spent just over a month in Northwest Arkansas. Other former first round picks like outfielder Gavin Cross and left-hander Frank Mozzicato also spent time in the Texas League.
Northwest Arkansas Naturals: 66-72 (.478)
First half: 33-36, 10 games back
Second half: 33-36, 10 games back
Like the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Naturals had a pretty good offense but struggled on the pitching side. Cross got off to a slow start, but a hot second half showed promise he can live up to his prospect billing. He hit .296/.350/.504 over his final 67 games and finished at .241/.291/.413 with 17 home runs and 23 steals. Jensen also had a slow start, but from May 28 to June 22 he hit .375, earning a promotion to Triple-A. Caglianone hit right from the start, hitting nine home runs in his 38 games, many of which were moonshots that went viral on social media.
Javier Vaz suffered a finger injury in spring training and had a slow start, but he continued hit high-contact approach and was seventh in the league with a .360 on-base percentage. His 7.8 percent strikeout rate is the lowest out of any minor league hitter with at least 300 plate appearances. First baseman Brett Squires finished tied for sixth in the league with 26 doubles while stealing 18 bases. Outfielder Spencer Niven led the teams with 70 walks, tied for fourth-most in the league. Carson Roccaforte joined the team mid-season and actually improved upon his promotion, hitting .290/.387/.475 with five home runs in 45 games. Former MLB infielder Jordan Groshans hitt .291/.36/.368 in 59 games. Sam Ruta, Justin Jackson, and Jack Pineda filled in around the field.
They stole 202 bases, second-most in the league, with four players swiping at least 20 bags. Rudy Martin was originally drafted by the Royals, but was playing in the Mexican League in April. The Naturals signed him in May and he stole 39 bases, third-most in the Texas League. Infielder Dustin Dickerson stole 20 bases and was second on the team with 60 walks. Colton Becker swiped 15 bases in just 21 games.
The Naturals struggled on the pitching side, giving up 5.07 runs-per-game, second-worst in the league. Hunter Owen had the best ERA among starters at 3.80, striking out 10.2 hitters-per-nine innings. Top prospect Ben Kudrna had a 4.21 ERA with 96 strikeouts in 94 innings. His best start came on July 22 when he struck out 11, allowing just one hit over six scoreless innings.
Ryan Ramsey led he team with 108 strikeouts in 105.2 innings, although he had a 5.54 ERA. Henry Williams led the team with 108.1 innings, posting a 4.24 ERA. Ethan Bosacker had a solid 3.78 ERA, although with very low strikeout numbers. Shane Panzini pitched well after a promotion with a 3.16 ERA in 13 games. Hunter Patteson was solid with a 4.41 ERA and good strikeout numbers after he was bumped up.
Chazz Martinez and Christian Chamberlain were the top two relievers for the Naturals in the first half. In the second half, Brandon Johnson and sidearmer AJ Causey were fantastic down the stretch. Oscar Rayo, Ben Sears, and Beck Way had mixed results out of the pen.
Mozzicato struggled at Double-A after a promotion, walking 19 percent of all hitters he faced. His 7.46 ERA was second-worst of any pitcher in the Texas League with at least 50 innings. Caden Monke had similar struggles with control out of the bullpen with an ERA over seven. Steven Zobac had an ugly ERA, but very good strikeout and walk numbers, although injuries limited him to just 11 starts.
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