Storm Chasers play Cubs tough, lose four games by one run – Farm to Fountains

The Storm Chasers improved in many ways compared to two weeks ago but couldn’t close out games to secure a winning week. Their last winning week was June 11^th-16^th. The bullpen has blown 7 saves in the past 30 days, tied for 2^nd most in the International League in that span. There is no one pitcher to blame, as six different Storm Chasers have contributed to the blown saves. Despite the lackluster performance, the offense showed some signs of life last week, finishing 10^th in batting average, t-1^st in home runs and 2^nd in slugging percentage in the league. The pitchers finished with a 4.41 ERA last week and were good for 2^nd in WHIP, holding a 3.61 K/BB in the process. Those are really solid numbers for a team that has struggled to strike out batters at an above-average rate and holds a 2.20 K/BB on the season. The struggles this week mainly came down to timely hitting, as the team went 3-35 with RISP in their four losses.

Nick Pratto has been an enigma for much of the past three seasons. He shows glimpses of why he was once a top 100 prospect in the MLB with his impressive power and patient approach at the plate. Conversely, he will also have stretches of immense struggles at the plate, striking out over 30% of the time in the process. We have seen some of the same in 2024, albeit a more consistent version overall. Here are his splits for each month of the season thus far:

March: 3 G, .417/.500/.583, 1.083 OPS

April: 18 G, .179/.300/.313, .613 OPS

May: 25 G, .253/.330/.444, .774 OPS

June: 20 G, .267/.309/.453, .762 OPS

July: 5 G, .368/.435/1.000, 1.435 OPS

He has been relatively consistent since the beginning of May and is now sitting at a 100 wRC+ with a 28.4 K% and 11.0 BB% for the season. He went on a tear this past week (see Hitter of the Week below) and Royals fans are again asking the question of whether it’s worth giving him another opportunity in Kansas City this season. Although he spends most of his time at first base, he has spent 78 innings in left field in 2024, and a corner outfield spot is probably where he slots in best in the current Royals’ roster construction. A fully locked-in Nick Pratto could do wonders for the Royals’ lineup.

Nick Pratto – 7 for 19, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 3 BB, 8 K

Season Stats: .254/.332/.460, .792 OPS

Runner-up: Nelson Velázquez: 6 for 13, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 2 K, 1 SB

Austin Cox: 5.1 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K

Season Stats: 4.03 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, .270 OBA, 1.71 K/BB

Runner-up: Andrew Hoffmann – 5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K

July 9^th-14^th vs. Toledo Mud Hens

Image credit: Nishant Brahme/Omaha Storm Chasers