Royals left-hander Mike Minor will continue rehab at Class AAA Omaha

As the calendar pushes toward June, left-hander Mike Minor represents a dose of insurance for the Royals’ ailing starting rotation. On Tuesday, he was en route to a stint at Class AAA Omaha, where he will continue his rehab process after making two rehab starts at Class AA Northwest Arkansas.

Minor allowed three runs in 7  2/3 innings at Northwest Arkansas. It was his first action in a professional setting since having surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder last May.

Minor added 12 strikeouts across two appearances while elevating his pitch count to 72 on Sunday. He would be slated to debut at Omaha on Friday. Royals general manager Dayton Moore said Tuesday that Minor could be ready to join the big-league pitching staff by early June.

The Royals signed Minor, 28, to a two-year, $7.25 million deal on Feb. 19. A former first-round pick, Minor posted a 4.10 ERA in 111 games for the Braves from 2010 to 2014.

Zimmer exits after one inning at Northwest Arkansas

Right-hander Kyle Zimmer, the Royals’ top pitching prospect, lasted just one inning while making his first start at Class AA Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday.

Zimmer allowed one earned run while finishing with two strikeouts and two walks against the Arkansas Travelers, the Class AA affiliate of the Los Angeles Angeles. He threw just 22 pitches.

Zimmer was making his first appearance of the season for Northwest Arkansas. In two outings at Class A Wilmington, Zimmer had allowed one earned run in 4  2/3 innings. His pitch count hit 52 in his first outing and 47 in his second.

Zimmer is in the process of building up his workload after battling through shoulder fatigue during spring training.

This story was originally published May 17, 2016 at 9:18 PM with the headline "Royals left-hander Mike Minor will continue rehab at Class AAA Omaha."