It seems the Royals found Kila Kaaihue&#8217;s breakthrough season too much to overlook.</p><p>Kaaihue, 24, will be among four players from Class AAA Omaha who will join the roster today as September call-ups. Major-league rules allow rosters to expand in September from 25 to 40 players.</p><p>Ryan Shealy and relievers Yasuhiko Yabuta and Devon Lowery will also join the roster. Omaha completed its season Monday in 13-8 victory at Iowa.</p><p>The Royals are also likely to activate pitchers Jimmy Gobble and John Bale from the disabled list once cleared by the club&#8217;s medical staff.</p><p>More moves are coming today. The Royals must clear space on their 40-man roster for Kaaihue, Lowery and Yabuta and are likely to do so by shifting some injured players to the 60-day disabled list.</p><p>Kaaihue&#8217;s promotion caps a remarkable season in which he batted .314 with 38 homers and 100 RBIs in 124 games at Omaha and Class AA Northwest Arkansas. He had a .252 average in six previous professional seasons while averaging 12.7 homers and 61 RBIs.</p><p>&#8220;He&#8217;s had a great year,&#8221; general manager Dayton Moore said, &#8220;and he was going to go on the roster anyway. This is just another very important phase of his development, to get introduced to the major leagues.&#8221;</p><p>Club officials were initially hesitant to promote Kaaihue because of plans to recall Shealy. Both players are first basemen, and concern existed that too few at-bats were available to make both promotions viable.</p><p>&#8220;If (Kaaihue) doesn&#8217;t get a lot of at-bats,&#8221; Moore said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t know what that means at the end of the day anyway. This will give him a little more comfort level when he comes to spring training. You know we need some sock.&#8221;</p><p>Shealy, 29, batted .282 in 111 games at Omaha with 22 homers and 65 RBIs in 111 games. He is out of options after this season.</p><p>Yabuta, 35, began the season with the Royals after signing a two-year contract as a free agent. He was optioned June 25 to Omaha after going 1-3 with a 5.46 ERA in 26 games. He was 4-3 with a 5.36 ERA in 20 appearances at Omaha.</p><p>Lowery, 25, was once viewed as one of the organization&#8217;s top prospects before his career as a starter flamed out. He retooled himself in recent years as a reliever and gained his summons by going 2-1 with a 1.87 ERA in 40 games at Omaha and Northwest Arkansas.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Checking on Gordon</span></strong></p><p>Third baseman Alex Gordon is scheduled to undergo a follow-up magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) exam Thursday to determine the level of healing in what is now called a torn hip flexor.</p><p>The injury was initially characterized as a torn quadriceps muscle. Gordon suffered the injury Aug. 21 while making a throw after a charging pickup on a slow grounder in Cleveland. Gordon is currently limited to routine activities and cardiovascular work.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Minor details</span></strong></p><p>Perhaps there is hope on the horizon. Three of the Royals&#8217; four full-season affiliates are heading to postseason.</p><p>Class AA Northwest Arkansas won the second-half pennant in the Texas League North Division and opens a best-of-five series Wednesday at first-half winner Arkansas, a Rangers affiliate.</p><p>Class A Wilmington qualified as a wild card in the Carolina League North Division and begins a best-of-five series Wednesday at Potomac, which swept the first- and second-half pennants. Potomac is a Nationals&#8217; affiliate.</p><p>Class A Burlington (Iowa) won the second-half pennant in the Midwest League Western Division and starts a best-of-three series Wednesday at home against Kane County, an A&#8217;s affiliate.