Report: Butler down: Aviles up

Really don't understand this move, when Gordon was struggling they didn't send him down. But what can you do, hopefully Bill is up in KC before too long.


KANSAS CITY -- Billy Butler, a fixture in the Royals lineup since last June, was optioned to Triple-A Omaha on Thursday.

Butler's spot on the roster was taken by infielder Mike Aviles, who was Omaha's hottest hitter with a .338 average and 42 RBIs. Aviles has never played in the Majors.

Butler was batting .263 and was not hitting with much power. He had just one home run along with 11 doubles and 18 RBIs.

A designated hitter and first baseman, Butler hit safely in his last five games, 5-for-18, but all five hits were singles with no RBIs. His only home run occurred on April 14 at Seattle.

Butler, 22, has been considered one of the Royals' rising stars, but with the club locked in a 10-game losing streak and run production lacking, he was sent out for more seasoning.

Aviles, 27, has played 32 games at second base and 18 at shortstop for Omaha and made six errors. With regular Mark Grudzielanek out of the past two games with a sore back, he could get a shot at second base. Or, with Tony Pena Jr. struggling at the plate, he might be tried at shortstop. He was in Thursday's lineup at short.

A right-handed batter, Aviles had 10 home runs, six triples and 21 doubles. In 213 at-bats, he had struck out just 23 times.

Aviles is in his third season with Omaha. Last year he batted .296 with 17 homers and 77 RBIs and was named Kansas City Minor League Player of the Year. He also did well last winter in Venezuela as he batted .299 with six homers and 27 RBIs in 56 games for Aragua.

After playing at Middletown, N.Y., High and Concordia, N.Y., College, he was selected by the Royals in the seventh round of the 2003 Draft. That summer he played for the Surprise Royals in the Arizona League and hit .363, leading the league in runs (51) and doubles (19) in 52 games.

Aviles' contract was purchased from Omaha.

Butler, after a successful Minor League career, was called up from Omaha on May 1, 2007, for a 16-day stay. He returned to Omaha for another month, was recalled on June 19 and thereafter hit .298 with eight homers and 48 RBIs in 82 games.

Butler is more of a gap plugger than a home-run blaster but the Royals obviously expected more punch that he's shown so far.

This year he was batting .302 on April 25, but in 31 games since, he has hit just .231 (24-for-104) with seven doubles and eight RBIs. With runners in scoring position, his average is .311 (14-for-45), fourth-best on the team.

Butler was held out of the lineup twice recently, on May 22 at Boston and on Tuesday night against Minnesota. In both games he was used as a pinch-hitter and singled each time.

Although he began the season as the regular DH, he worked hard at playing first base and was being used more frequently at that position this month. However, Mark Teahen has been playing first base, moving in from right field to make room for Joey Gathright in the outfield.

The Royals also made it official that right-hander Leo Nunez was placed on the 15-day disabled list. His bullpen spot was filled by left-hander Neal Musser, recalled from Omaha. The move was announced after Wednesday night's game.

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