Three Naturals Recognized by Royals for 2024 Season

SPRINGDALE, Ark. – The Kansas City Royals honored their 2024 Minor League Organizational Award winners Friday night at Kauffman Stadium, with three of the six winners donning Naturals uniforms in 2024. RHP Steven Zobac (Paul Splittorff Pitcher of the Year), Javier Vaz (Mike Sweeney Community Impact Award), and UTL Tyler Tolbert (Willie Wilson Baserunner of the Year) were all a part of the celebration in Kansas City during the Royals’ final homestand of the regular season.

RHP Steven Zobac – 2024 Paul Splittorff Pitcher of the Year

Steven Zobac, 23, began the 2024 season with the Quad Cities River Bandits, making 14 appearances in the Midwest League while posting a 3.95 ERA while opponents hit .246, striking out 58 in his 70.2 innings of work with a 5-5 record. He earned Midwest League Pitcher of the Week in late April and Pitcher of the Month in June. The righty kicked it into a totally different gear after his July 9 promotion to Northwest Arkansas. Zobac earned a record of 6-3, winning six-consecutive starts in the month of August. Over 11 games and 10 starts, the 2022 fourth round draft pick had an ERA of 3.25, striking out 65 with just 14 walks over 55.1 innings. Zobac held opposing hitters to a .222 batting average with a WHIP of 1.08. Steven’s signature performance was historic for a Naturals pitcher on August 7^th in Amarillo. He tied for the second-most strikeouts in a single game in club history with 12, needing just 80 pitches to two-hit the Sod Poodles over seven innings without issuing a walk or allowing a run. Zobac is the 11^th Natural to win the award.

INF Javier Vaz – 2024 Mike Sweeney Community Impact Award

Javier Vaz, 23, spent the entire season with the Naturals in 2024 after joining Northwest Arkansas in early August of 2023. Vaz won the inaugural Alex Gordon Heart & Hustle Award that season and follows up that honor with the Mike Sweeney Community Impact Award. During his time with Northwest Arkansas, Vaz made numerous community appearances while constantly interacting with fans around the league. On the field, Vaz played in 115 games with the Naturals this season, tying his career-high in homers (8) and slashing .263/.375/.379, walking 73 times with just 60 strikeouts while scoring 80 runs as NWA’s leadoff hitter. Vaz is the seventh Naturals player to win the Mike Sweeney Award and the first since Vinnie Pasquantino earned the honor in 2021.

UTL Tyler Tolbert – 2024 Willie Wilson Baserunner of the Year Award

Tyler Tolbert, 26, is one of the most accomplished base stealers in Naturals history. The Alabama native swiped 40 bags with Northwest Arkansas this season along with eight more when he began the year with AAA Omaha. Tolbert has a total of 90 steals in 227 games with the Naturals, the third-most for a Naturals’ career behind Terrance Gore (91, 2015-17) and Derrick Robinson (105, 2010-2011). His 48 total steals this season were the most among Royals minor leaguers and no one has stolen more bases in the entire organization than Tolbert since 2022. Last season, Tyler earned the George Brett Hitter of the Year Award. Tolbert is the fifth Naturals player to earn the award and 2024 is the sixth time a Naturals player has won the Willie Wilson Award (Nick Heath won twice).

The Naturals are the Double-A Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals and play at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, Arkansas. For more information, including tickets, groups, stats, and more, visit NWANaturals.com, and follow us @NWANaturals (X/Instagram) and Facebook.com/Naturals.

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