‘Electric’ Myers continues torrid pace

Baseball is a game of failure, but Kansas City Royals prospect Wil Myers hadn't experienced it before last season.

Sidelined for part of the year at Double-A Northwest Arkansas with a wound on his left knee that became infected and required surgery, Myers - rated baseball's No. 19 prospect by mlb.com - slumped to a .254 batting average with eight home runs and 49 RBIs in 99 games.

"Really that was the first time I struggled. I definitely learned a lot from it," he said. "It was a good year for me because I learned how to deal with failure, so all in all it was one of the best years I could've had."

Myers, 21, quickly exorcised his Double-A demons this season, batting .343 with 13 homers and 30 RBIs in 35 games before getting promoted to Triple-A Omaha.

"I was really glad to go back to Double A and actually prove that I can hit there, because that was the only level I've been to that I haven't done well at in pro ball," he said.

The 6-foot-3-inch Myers has continued his torrid pace for the Storm Chasers, batting .300 with 21 homers and 67 RBIs.

He started in center field and hit cleanup for Omaha (74-50) at Cashman Field on Tuesday, going 0-for-4 with four flyouts and making a nice sliding catch in the seventh inning of a 7-0 win over the 51s (69-54).

"He's an electric-type player, a five-tool guy," Storm Chasers manager Mike Jirschele said. "He has an above-average arm, above-average power, he does everything. He can run them down in the outfield. He's just an exciting guy to watch.

"Every time he steps up there, you know he's got a chance to hit the ball out of the ballpark because he's got power to all fields."

Batting .313 this season, Myers leads professional baseball in homers, with 34, and has 97 RBIs in 115 games.

The latest in a recent line of highly touted Royals prospects - along with Kansas City's Alex Gordon, Billy Butler, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Salvador Perez - Myers got a glimpse of what life could be like for him with the Royals last month at the All-Star Futures Game at Kauffman Stadium.

He was greeted with a standing ovation from the sellout crowd of 40,095 before his first at-bat and didn't disappoint, delivering two hits and three RBIs to lead the United States to a 17-5 rout of the World team.

"That was fun for me. I like to play in front of a lot of people," he said. "It was real cool playing in front of the home crowd. I could really get used to that."

Myers also led the Pacific Coast League to a 3-0 victory over the International League in the Triple-A All-Star Game in Buffalo, N.Y., finishing with two hits, an RBI and run scored en route to being named "Star of Stars."

Kansas City's 2009 third-round draft pick, Myers played catcher in his first full season in 2010 before moving to right field last season and to center field this year.

"I actually feel better in center field. It's my favorite position," he said. "I'm not the fastest guy on the field, but I feel like I take good jumps after balls."

Myers said he's ready for the majors. Whenever his time comes, Jirschele is certain he'll succeed. "There's no doubt he's going to play in the big leagues, and he'll play for a long time," he said.

■ NOTE - Right-hander Jake Odorizzi, the Royals' No. 4 prospect, allowed two hits in seven scoreless innings, with four strikeouts and two walks. The 22-year-old improved to 9-2 with a 2.92 ERA this season for Omaha.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354.