Lamb and Duffy move to Texas League

Wilmington, DE - It is official now, John Lamb and Danny Duffy are both heading West to the Texas League affiliate, Northwest Arkansas Naturals. Just as noted regarding the Lamb move a couple of days ago, John is currently in route to another Royals farm team. According to a press release on the Naturals website, John Lamb is now the youngest player to ever wear a Northwest Arkansas Naturals uniform.

Photo credit - Keith Lovett

Hope this official announcement on both the Carolina and Texas League transactions list puts an end to some of the bull that was spreading around about the AA jump for my son. Any doubt about the integrity of this family will continue to be challenged with complete honesty during his professional baseball journey. We have no reason to spread rumors, lies of deceptions about the wonderful opportunities that the Kansas City Royals have continued to provide John Lamb.




This move marks his fifth since his “Opening Day” start in the Appalachian League with the Rookie affiliate, Burlington Royals, for the 2009 season.



Not sure when John will be placed in the Naturals rotation, but a text message from him earlier today, indicated it will be in the Springfield Cardinals series on the road in Missouri. Lamb will have some familiar faces in the crowd when he arrives in Springfield, MO. Tony Piazza, a previous coach of John in the Southern California area, whom now lives in the immediate area of the St. Louis Cardinals, Texas League affiliate, is planning to check on his hearing from the stands. Also, with some luck members of Colleen’s family might make the trip down from the St. Louis area to say “hi” and be supportive of his recent move.

Wife finds a nice article about John Lamb

My wife Colleen, found a nice short list for pitchers during the 2010 season that was written by a well respected Major League Baseball employee, Jonathan Mayo. I only have one thing to say about the following article…wow!

Article was posted July 22, 2010 by Jonathan Mayo on his B:3 Big, Bald and Beautiful MLBlogs site.

We're on a roll here now and I wanted to keep the momentum going. Over the last two days, I provided 10 potential candidates for Player of the Year in the Minor Leagues. Now it's time to move on to pitchers.

Once again, here's the disclaimer: Pitcher of the Year does not necessarily mean prospect of the year. I'm looking at performance, not status. With that in mind, here are three nominees for your consideration. As always, please interact and give suggestions in comments.

Joe Gardner, RHP, Indians: Not a bad first season for the 2009 third-round selection. The right-hander has held hitters at two levels to a .188 BAA, fourth lowest in MiLB. At the same time, he's been a ground ball machine, topping MiLB with a 3.50 GO/AO ratio. He's struck out 113 in 104 innings and has a 1.07 WHIP to go along with a 2.77 ERA.

John Lamb, LHP, Royals: Other arms in this system may get the attention (Crow, Montgomery), but that should change now. The 2008 fifth-round pick just turned 20 this month and has already jumped a level, from Class A to Class A Advanced ball. And he's pitched better up a level. Overall, he leads Minor League Baseball with a 1.38 ERA and hitters have hit just .197 against him (good for seventh lowest in MiLB). His 0.98 WHIP is eighth lowest. He's seventh overall with 128 K's, doing that while walking just 32 in 110 2/3 IP.

Michael Pineda, RHP, Mariners: Just 21 years old, he's already in Triple-A. Combined, he's gone 11-1 with a 2.72 ERA in 18 starts. Over 106 IP, he's struck out 109 while walking just 26. The right-hander has held opposing hitters to a .219 batting average against (just .196 in his five Triple-A starts thus far).

Photo credit - Keith Lovett

 

With yesterday’s Wilmington Blue Rocks game being postponed due to heavy rains the Blue Rocks will try to play a double-header today in Kinston versus the Indians, Advanced Class A team on the Cleveland Indians.



Next start for John Lamb is set for Monday when the Blue Rocks return home to Frawley Stadium in Wilmington, DE.

Lamb has longest start but Blue Rocks lose in 13 innings!

Myrtle Beach, SC - Wilmington Blue Rocks lost the series and the game tonight following a 27 minute rain delay and a 13 inning contest with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, the Atlanta Braves Advanced Class A team. Despite the solid pitching by Lamb the Blue Rocks suffered from errors and missed opportunities with runners on base.

John Lamb tossed a career-best 7.1 innings and allowed just one earned run, his first in six outings and 35.2 innings. (Photo credit - Brad Glazier)

John Lamb was solid again with his longest outing of the year, as he took the ball to the mound in the bottom of the eighth inning with a 3-2 advantage. Lamb was at 81 pitches to start the inning but gave up a lead off single for the third of the night. On a 1-0 count a sacrifice bunt moved the lead off runner to second with the put out throw from Lamb to first base. Lamb finished with 88 pitches, 69 percent in the strike zone, 18 first pitch strikes, 8 first pitch balls, 13 ground ball outs and did not have any fly ball outs. The lack of fly ball outs was really a little unusual for most of his past performances, but still effective none the less.



Blue Rocks went to the bull-pen for Harold Mozingo who promptly surrendered a hit allowing the first earned run to be tallied against Lamb in his last six starts. Mozingo continued to pitch well on his own accord until his removal in the 13th by Barry Bowden.



Lamb finished the longest work of his second professional baseball season with 7-1/3 innings, 3 runs, 1 earned run, 3 hits, 8 strike outs and 0 walks. He managed to shave a little off his current earned run average and continues to lead all levels of Minor League Baseball.



Blue Rocks had plenty of hits through the game put just didn’t get the timely ones needed to blow the game open. Four different Rocks had multiple hits during the extra inning game, including Navarro, Colon, Mejia and Francis. Salvador Perez was the only Blue Rock with a single hit for the night, although there were a few that did not get a hit during the game. The team finished the night going 3-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
 
 
 
Pelicans grabbed the win and the three game series in the bottom of the fourth extra inning. The Blue Rocks suffered only their third loss in an extra inning contest for the Carolina League Northern Division, as the current first place team. Tonight’s blow also put the Blue Rocks back into an even .500 level of wins and losses as they climb into the bus and head for Kinston to play the Indians.

Lamb does it again...Blue Rocks win both games!

Wilmington, DE - Buddy Baumann and John Lamb, both had fantastic starts tonight in the Carolina League double-header against the leagues best hitting team, the Baltimore Orioles Advanced Class A level, Frederick Keys. Both Wilmington Blue Rocks lefties did exceptionally well against a very good hitting club. The Blue Rocks won the first game 10-1 and the second game 2-0, making it their first twin bill sweep of the 2010 season.

John Lamb is 6-2 with a 1.28 ERA in 11 starts for Wilmington. (Keith Lovett/MiLB.com)

John Lamb has now extended his consecutive scoreless frames to 30 and continues to pile up the strike-outs in the process. Lamb only allowed 1 hit during his 6 innings of work including 8 Ks, 1 BB and hit 1 batter that seemed to excite the Keys dug-out following previous warnings to both teams. The Keys batter was struck by a 1-2 count curve-ball, which was obviously not intentional as deemed by the home plate umpire.

My son was interviewed following the game, as the "Player of the Game," and provided a clear perspective that my son continues to work hard and have fun during his second season of professional baseball. He is having a wonderful season and we are very blessed to share the highlights through the Blue Rocks radio broadcast. The only word that comes to mind is...wow!

Lamb set for second game of tonight's DH in Wilmington...

Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks are scheduled to play a double-header today at Frawley Stadium to make-up yesterday’s game that was postponed due to bad weather.

Buddy Baumann is set to start the first game at 5:05 ET against the Frederick Keys and John Lamb will take the ball in the second game of the Carolina League contest.



Tonight’s start for John Lamb, first as a 20 year-old, should easily accomplish the 100 inning mark for the first time in his young professional baseball career, following his move from Burlington, IA earlier this season.
 
 
 
GO BLUE ROCKS!
 
 
 

John Lamb 2010 statistics!

Happy Birthday son...keep up the good work!

My son, John Lamb, celebrates his birthday today and is officially no longer a teenager in professional baseball. We all had the chance to talk with him earlier today and wish him him well on this special day. It is always great to hear his voice and know that he is still enjoying the rigors of his career playing for the Kansas City Royals organization.

Wilmington Blue Rocks game against the Mrytle Beach Pelicans today was postponed due to rain, so they all get an extra day of rest. Enjoy the extra day off guys and continue your push during the second half of the Carolina League season.


GO BLUE ROCKS!

Last win for the teenager Lamb...Blue Rocks sweep series!

Lynchburg, VA - Three Wilmington Blue Rocks pitchers combined on a shut out performance to make a clean sweep of the Lynchburg Hillcats series and allowing only four hits. John Lamb, Harold Mozingo and Barry Bowden kept the Hillcats from scoring despite the threat when Lamb was pulled from the game with a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning with no outs and two runners on base.

 

Although the Blue Rocks bats were much cooler than last night, they proved more than adequate in helping Wilmington achieve a 43-43 record. The Rocks finished their road trip with a 5-2 mark and sole possession of first place. Nick Francis, Jarrod Dyson, Christian Colon and, the legitimate youngster of the team, Wil Myers drove in all the Rocks runs. Timely hitting, solid defense and good pitching again prove to be the simple formula to win baseball games even with a little moisture falling from the sky.



With John Lamb turning 20 tomorrow, he finished his teenage professional baseball stats on a high note by picking up his fifth win in the ten starts since being called up to the, Advanced Class A level, Carolina League. Lamb threw 75% of his 72 pitches for strikes while allowing 3 hits, 0 runs, 1 walk and striking out 4.



The Blue Rocks return home for an eight day home stand and a day off between the next two series. They will play Myrtle Beach Pelicans for three games starting tomorrow and a four game series against Frederick Keys following a day off the schedule.



GO BLUE ROCKS!

Five Royals farm hands get "POW" honors!

Congratulations to the Kansas City Royals organization and the farm hands that received the current “Pitcher/Player of the Week” honors. The Royals organization had a total of 5 minor league prospects receive the weekly award for the June 28 to July 4 periods.

Mario Santiago in the Class AA, Texas League, with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Jamie Romak in the Advanced Class A, Carolina League, with the Wilmington Blue Rocks (current teammate of John Lamb)

Rene Oriental in the Class A, Midwest League, with the Burlington Bees



Dusty Odenbach in the Class A, Midwest League, with the Burlington Bees

Leonel Santiago in the Rookie level, Appalachian League, with the Burlington Royals



The players and families should all be very proud of the recent accomplishment and the Lamb family wishes you all continued success during your professional baseball careers.
 
 
- - - James Lamb

Blue Rocks and Lamb sit on top...for now.

The Wilmington Blue Rocks win yesterday helped them take the top spot in the Carolina League standings and the performance by John Lamb earned him a nice spot, also.




John Lamb sits on the top of the leader board for his current Earned Run Average that sits at 1.56. With these categories changing daily, it is an unbelievable feeling of pride to see your son’s picture leading the way throughout the Minor League Baseball system in one of the most important areas of pitching.

Although we have not yet connected, through a phone call, following last night’s game, I look forward to reminding him of the left coast pride in his second year of professional baseball in the Kansas City Royals organization. Knowing John, he will be happy but I am sure he will be driven to continue to work hard and get the promotion to the next level of competition.


- - - James Lamb

Rocks bats and Lamb arm spark win in Virginia...

Woodbridge, VA - John Lamb and the Wilmington Blue Rocks had a game full of bang and glitter as they squared off against the Potomac Nationals. The Blue Rocks set the pace early by scoring five runs in the top of the first inning, which proved to be more than enough runs support for the teenage lefty, Lamb.

Lamb matched a season high for the length of his performance last night while he allowed only 3 hits, 0 runs, 10 strike-outs and 0 walks. The 10 Ks also matched his professional baseball career high totals and seemed to put an exclamation point on his recent acknowledgement by Baseball America’s mid season All-Star “honorable mention” award. The Kansas City Royals were the only Major League Baseball team to have 4 players mentioned by the Baseball America honor.



All but a couple of Blue Rocks had hits on "Independence Day" as they pounded the Nationals pitching staff to win by the final score of 13-4. The standouts were Eric Hosmer with two home runs and Salvador Perez with a 4-for-5 effort and a game high 4 runs batted in. Jamie Romak also had 4 hits as the Rocks sent a total of four out of the ballpark. Colon, Francis and Myers all had multiple hits during the lopsided game which allowed for some extra players to get involved, as well.
 
 
The Advanced Class A Carolina League contest was seen by more than 9,000 minor league baseball fans and surely most were happy to see it end for the second phase of fireworks following the game. Tonight’s win has positioned the Rocks on top of the standings and with their amount of talent it should be a productive balance to the season.

Lamb will have his last scheduled start as a teenager on Friday, July 9 at the Lynchburg to conclude the recent seven day road trip by the Wilmington Blue Rocks.
 
 
- - - James Lamb

Lamb grabs his 2nd "POW" honor...

Very proud of my son, John Lamb, and his second "Pitcher of Week" Award during his young professional baseball career. The weekly honors were announced much earlier today on Minor League Baseball and throughout all of the leagues.

Lamb will get the ball tomorrow night in Frederick, MD against the Keys, Advanced Class A team of the Baltimore Orioles organization. Tuesday's start will be his 16th of the season and just another day at the ballpark for him, I am sure. However, it will match his number of starts in the Midwest League earlier this year prior to his call-up to the Wilmington Blue Rocks.

Congratulations again to all of those minor league players that received the honors today for their recent performances.



- - - James Lamb

Baseball Prospect Guide

Next Carolina League start on Tuesday for Lamb...

John Lamb is back on the road again, Tuesday, in Frederick against the Keys for his 16th start of the season. Radio broadcast will be available on the Wilmington Blue Rocks site at http://www.bluerocks.com.

Meanwhile, I am staying busy with scouting and coaching in the Southern California area. Recently, following permission by the Marlins, I have returned to the dugout with a Connie Mack baseball team called the OC Giants. We have a wide variety of talent on the team and continue to struggle with the "one bad inning" bug almost every game.

Our family has also decided to welcome a 16 year-old from Florida into our home and the opportunity to play in California during the summer, on the OC Giants team. We felt a sense of responsibility to the game when asked to help and we are grateful for the chance to give back, as so many have done for our son over the years.


- - - James Lamb

http://www.4-domain.com/

RC Organizational Report: June 24, 2010

RC Organizational Report: June 24: "Six affiliates were in action on Thursday, but only the Wilmington Blue Rocks and Arizona Royals managed wins. The Blue Rocks were led to victory by starter John Lamb, who was brilliant while picking up his third win of the season. Click inside to read Thursday's minor league report."

Just another opinion out there about his most recent professional baseball perfomance in the Carolina League as a teenager!

Lamb and Blue Rocks solid to start second half of season!

A solid start to the second half of the Advanced Class A level season for the Wilmington Blue Rocks, Kansas City Royals affiliation, came off the arm of John Lamb. You can’t do much better than the 2-0 win over the Salem Red Sox in front of the home crowd on Zack Greinke bobble-head night.

John Lamb pitched his longest outing of the season by going six and two-thirds and starting the combined shut-out effort with the Blue Rocks bull-pen. Lamb matched a season high mark of 9 strike-outs during tonight‘s contest, with 2 walks and 4 hits. He did receive some solid help with a defensive effort on an 8-4-2 play at the plate which saw Salvador Perez hold onto the ball following a collision at the plate early in the game. Just enough hitting during this Carolina League pitching duel gave the Blue Rocks the win, which included a big-fly from Eric Hosmer.



Got some encouraging news from the stands, via text messages, that Lamb was 90-94 on the radar guns and commanding all 3 pitches in his pocket during his 15th start of his first full season assignment in professional baseball. The news came from one of the Royals best retired pitchers, Bret Saberhagen, so I am comfortable sharing the back-stop updates on the velocity of my son’s pitches.



The household took a big sigh of relief as Lamb begins the uncharted territory of his minor league career. This is his first full-season since signing with the Kansas City Royals following the 2008 draft selection and we couldn’t be more proud of his 19 year-old efforts.



So now we get to sit back and relax for the next four days until his next start on the hill.



GO BLUE ROCKS!


- - - James Lamb


Baseball Prospect Guide

A little Father's Day reflection...

As a professional baseball fan, scout and father of a prospect, yesterday was more than just a Father’s Day celebration to me. My son, John, started my day off with a phone call from Wilmington, DE. It is always great to hear his voice as he continues his journey in professional baseball. He sounded a little eager to relax following Sunday’s afternoon game with a 3 day mid-season break from the first full-season of his career. Sure, I wish he had received some love from the Carolina League coaches that determined the All-Star roster, but he has plenty more years for that type of acknowledgement for his performance on the field.

Recently, I have returned to the dugout in the Southern California area with a local Connie Mack team. Our game yesterday, brought some emotions while watching some of the Dads get hugs from their boys following the order by the head coach. Bobby Gould, a long time friend, through professional baseball, has always been a true pleasure to share a dugout with through some of his special antics he is known for.



Reflecting on the drive home, I remembered that I have not had my son, or daughter for that matter, around me on Father’s Day for the last five years. John was busy playing baseball in Ohio with the Midland Redskins organization, on their Mickey Mantle team the Braves, for two years, starting in 2006 and obviously on the road in pro ball the last three years. My daughter, Cayla, is another long story, but not for this site. I am very proud of both of my kids for their accomplishments.



Not sure when John Lamb will be on the bump again, but you can be rest assured we will be listening on the radio with tremendous pride and excitement as he starts the second half of the 2010 season. Our left coast side of the family wishes the Blue Rocks well during the break and a successful second half of the season in the Carolina League.



GO ROCKS!
 
 

- - - James Lamb
Baseball Prospect Guide, Inc.
Founder and CEO  
Baseball Prospect Guide

Lamb good in Salem, but not not enough for the win...

With John Lamb getting the ball tonight on the bump against the Salem Red Sox in Salem, VA he has matched last year’s effort of 14 starts. Although still a pup by most professional baseball standards, Lamb continues to perform at all levels in the minor leagues.





Wilmington Blue Rocks versus Salem Red Sox was seen by more than 3,763 fans with two of the league’s best pitchers. Lamb and Huntzinger both did their jobs entertaining the crowd and giving their respective team an opportunity to win.

The Rocks have struggled all year to beat the Sox and tonight was no different. Lamb pitched well to hold the Sox to only 2 runs, 1 earned, 6 hits, 6 strike-outs and 1 walk during his six innings of work. Lamb handed the ball to Mozingo with a 2-1 deficit in the bottom of the 7th. Mozingo took the loss later in the game when the Sox took back the lead in the 8th inning.




Huntzinger pitched exceptionally well for his seven inning performance. Without taking anything away from his strike throwing ability, it must be mentioned that the Blue Rocks continued aggressive approach at the plate allowed Huntzinger to use only 56 pitches to get his 21 outs. Not sure why he did not continue to throw in the 8th inning with such a low pitch count, but surely a surprise when the Sox went to their bull-pen.




Adam Frost who was just recently called up from Burlington, IA tied the game with a solo home-run in the top of the 8th inning for the Blue Rocks. However, the lead was short lived due to the Sox taking back the lead in the bottom of the same inning. The Rocks lost the game and were swept in the series to put an end to the eight day road-trip.




The Blue Rocks return home tomorrow for a short series and the All-Star break before another short series with the same Salem Red Sox in Wilmington, DE to start off the second half of the professional baseball season in advanced a level.




LETS GO ROCKS!

 
 
- - - James Lamb

 
https://baseballprospectguide.com

Tonight, Lamb will be pitching on six days of rest!

John Lamb is scheduled to be the starting pitcher for tonight’s game in Salem, VA against the Red Sox. This start will match last year’s efforts for Lamb with his 14 appearance on the mound. With an extra day off between starts due to an off day this past Monday, we are looking forward to hearing the game on the Blue Rocks radio broadcast starting at 7:05 ET.

Kansas City Royals affiliates page!

Wilmington has struggled in all of the previous games versus Salem this year. The Sox have taken eight of their nine meetings with Wilmington this season. The lone loss for Salem came in the first meeting, by one run. Two of its subsequent seven straight successes also saw a one-run final margin. Salem has averaged 7.6 tallies per game against the Blue Crew in nearly doubling Wilmington's scoring output, 68-35.


The Lamb family wishes all the Blue Rocks the best tonight as they conclude their last road trip before the All-Star break.
 
GO ROCKS!
 
 
- - - James Lamb

Lamb runs into 1 tough inning and suffers loss...

Road starts for my son always seem to ignite more nerves than usual. Following the Blue Rocks Thursday night beating, of the Dash, only added to my fears based on a typical occurrence that bats seem to sleep after those types of performances.

A large crowd was not an issue for John Lamb in North Carolina Friday night, I am sure. The challenge of a successful minor league line-up turned into some reality in the 2nd inning, as witnessed by more than 6,000 fans. The Winston-Salem Dash, High A team of the Chicago White Sox, has the 3rd highest team batting average throughout all levels of professional baseball and they simply proved that stature in one inning.


Lamb was unscathed in the first inning, but needed every bit of the 33 pitches in the second inning to get three outs for the Wilmington Blue Rocks. The four earned runs matched all runs allowed in four previous outings by the 19 year-old since coming to the Carolina League. Despite giving up the runs, Lamb did record 3 strike-outs in the frame. The second inning was the only blemish of the lefty's five inning performance, but certainly nothing to be ashamed of by most standards.


During the shortest start of his Carolina League career, Lamb threw 84 pitches with seventy percent as strikes. He allowed 7 hits, 2 walks, 4 earned runs and struck out 5 before handing the ball off to the bull-pen to finish the game.


The Blue Rocks 4-3 loss also witnessed the hitting streak for Jamie Romak come to an end, at 18 straight games. Romak is now a single game shy of equaling the longest hitting streak in franchise history. Corey Hart established the franchise mark by hitting safely in 19 straight from July 30-September 1, 2001. His streak was matched by Justin Cowan from June 29-July 26, 2002.
 
 
Good luck Blue Rocks trying to stay alive for a first place finish in the first half of the season.
 
 
 
- - - James Lamb

Lamb dazzles again as Blue Rocks take the series!

Wilmington Blue Rocks took the series from the Potomac Nationals in front of a nearly 4 thousand fans earlier today with a 9-4 victory. Starter John Lamb (2-1, 1.50) was given an early lead by his team. Lamb matched a season high nine strike-outs and allowed only one run during the six inning performance.

Five of the six frames Lamb faced the minimum to get the outs. The only inning of miscue started with a lead-off triple in the fourth, but the threat was closed by a couple of strike-outs to leave two Nationals’ base-runners on the pond. Lamb finished the game strong by retiring the last eight batters he faced and getting five consecutive whiffs in that process.



I believe that every Blue Rocks hitter contributed with a hit during today’s win, except one. Salvador Perez was a home-run shy of hitting for the cycle. Eric Hosmer continues to hit the Carolina League pitching and Jamie Romak extended his streak to hitting safely in 14 games.



Next series will start tomorrow night in Wilmington, DE against the Kinston Indians at 7:05 ET.



GO BLUE ROCKS!



Some extra thoughts:



We were all simply losing our mind today, just prior to the scheduled first-pitch, due to the technical troubles on the Blue Rocks radio broadcast. Fortunately, the Nationals feed of the game was working and we would sincerely like to thank them for the kind words rendered during the game, while my son was shutting them down. I have always believed that the game of baseball encompasses a tremendous class of people and the opposing broadcast crew, reassured that stance.



The Lamb family would like to thank all of you that are involved with professional baseball, both on and off the field. Without your efforts the challenges associated with the lives of young men in professional baseball would be even more difficult. We look forward to meeting some of you in the very near future to thank you in person for all your services to the game.



- - - James Lamb

http://www.4-domain.com/

Lamb will debut in Carolina League Friday night in Wilmington, DE...

Tomorrow nights game for the Wilmington Blue Rocks will have some excited listeners from the West coast tuned in for the recently called up southpaw John Lamb and his debut start. It has been said on the Minor League Baseball site that Lamb is officially the youngest player in the High A level Carolina League, just by a couple months of another Royals prospect, Salvador Perez. Might get the chance to see/hear both young men playing together, as the battery, on the first game of the six game home stand.

All our family and friends are extremely proud of this new challenge for Lamb to wear his 4th hat in less than twelve months of playing professional baseball for the Kansas City Royals organization. He missed the entire 2008 season following the 5th round draft selection while he continued to rehab his throwing arm from the injury suffered in an automobile accident in February, prior to the draft.

Good luck Blue Rocks and son!


- - - James Lamb