Nelson Figueroa has no idea what happened

In Steve Campbell's G20 recap, Nelson Figueroa sounded like his eyes were moving around like the Cheshire Cat:

“One of those nights. There’s no answers for it. There’s no, `What could we have done differently?’ No matter who came in, what the situation was, what the count was, they put the bat on the ball and found a hole or hit it down the line. It kind of steamrolled.”

Barmes to begin rehab assignment Monday

Brian McTaggart says that Clint Barmes will begin a rehab assignment on Monday, getting two games with OKC on Monday and Tuesday, and maybe two games with Corpus on Wednesday and "possibly Thursday."

Barmes:
"The last few days swinging in New York, I felt great. I hadn't had any pain hitting or fielding or catching, so we're on schedule with what we had originally talked about. I just want to get as many at-bats as I can in four days."

Eddie's Farm: April 22

Oklahoma City (4-11)

Good God, I hate Round Rock. Oklahoma City ran their losing streak to six games with a 2-1 loss to Round Rock. Henry Villar allowed 8H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 5IP, Fernando Rodriguez was excellent - again - with 3IP, 1H/0ER, 2K:0BB (now sporting a 0.79 ERA), and Casey Fien gave up the game-winning homer in the top of the 9th to Luis Cruz, who accounted for both Round Rock runs with solo homers.

The RedHawks were out-hit 10-3, with Carlos Corporan going 1x2 with a solo homer and two walks. Anderson Hernandez and Koby Clemens got your other hits. J.B. Shuck was 0x3 (BB) and an outfield assist. Oswaldo Navarro also drew two walks.

Man of the Match: Henry Villar

Corpus (5-9)

Damn you, Rangers! Frisco was all over Corpus in an 11-0 win, getting out-hit 19-4. So yes, Rangers affiliates out-hit Astros affiliates 29-7 last night. It must have just been one of those nights as Dallas Keuchel allowed 12H/7ER, 2K:2BB, 3HR in 5.1IP. Cesar Carrillo allowed 3H/3ER (and one charged to Keuchel) in 1IP, and David Berner allowed 4H/1ER, 0K:1BB in 1.2IP (two charged to Carrillo).

J.D. Martinez was 1x2 with two walks (hitting .353/.419/.608), but as Greg Rajan noted, snapped an (at least) nine-game RBI streak. Jimmy Paredes was 2x4 and Wladimir Sutil had your other hit. David Flores also drew two walks.

Man of the Match: J.D. Martinez (on base three times, that's why)

Lancaster (8-8)

Stockton got a go-ahead two-run double in the top of the 8th for a 5-4 win over Lancaster. Jose Cisnero allowed 6H/1ER, 4K:2BB in 5IP, so Wander Alvino took the BS/L with 5H/4R (2ER), 4K:0BB in 3IP - with a Johnathan Villar throwing error accounting for the two runs. Jose Trinidad allowed 2H/0ER, 2K:1BB in 1IP.

Kody Hinze was 2x3 with his 7th HR of the season and two walks, Jose Altuve was 3x4, Jonathan Meyer was 2x4 with an RBI, and Austin Wates was 1x4 with a walk - he's now riding a five-game hitting streak.

Man of the Match: Kody Hinze

Lexington (8-8)

We were proud to be able to start the If Chris Wallace Tweeted hashtag - check it out, it has appareances from Brad Dydalewicz, Tanner Bushue, and Mike Foltynewicz. Why? BECAUSE CHRIS WALLACE IS THE NEW NOTORIOUS B.I.G. Wallace was 4x5 with another HR, and was a double away from the cycle. Why a double? Because he got two triples. And had 3RBI on the night in a 6-3 win over Savannah. Wallace is now slugging .914. Even with an 0x4 on April 20, Wallace is hitting .415/.455/1.000 in his last ten games. Ben Orloff and Telvin Nash were both 2x5, with Nash providing an RBI.

Juan Minaya was all over the place, allowing 3H/2R (0ER), 4K:7BB in 5IP. Jason Chowning got the win with 1H/0ER, 2K:0BB in 2IP. Murilo Gouvea allowed 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 1.1IP, and Brian Streilein got the final two outs to clamp it down, coming in with the bases loaded and just allowing one run (charged to Gouvea).

Man of the Match: How you livin', Chris Wallace?

From the Office of the County Clerk - G20: Astros @ Brewers

Well, that sucked. So did Nelson Figueroa. The Astros got doubled up by the Brewers, 14-7, to fall to 7-13.

*The two teams combined for 21 runs, 31 hits, and two errors in the longest game the Astros have played this season - 3:44.

*The Astros allowed double-digit runs for the second time this season. The Brewers' 14 runs are the most allowed by the Astros since May 31, 2010, when the Nationals beat the Astros 14-4.

*Dating back to 2010, the Astros are 1-21 when giving up 14+ hits (the Brewers had 17 hits)

*They are 0-13 when allowing four or more runs in 2011.

*Figueroa went 4IP, 6H/6ER, 2K:5BB for the 3rd Disaster Start (More ER than IP) in four attempts this season. The last time he walked five batters in a start was in August 2010 at CitiField.

*Incredibly, he threw 85 pitches - 43 of them were balls. On August 15, 2003, while with the Pirates, Vintage Figgy got the start against Milwaukee and threw 77 pitches - 42 strikes. But he got the win that time. I'm too angry to try to find the last time an Astros starter threw more balls than strikes in an 80+ pitch outing.

*Four Brewers (Gomez, Braun, McGehee, and Kotsay) each had three hits.

*Jose Valdez got another Ugly, allowing 3H/4ER, 2K:2BB, HBP in 1IP. And Enerio Del Rosario's wonderful magical outings streak came to an end. Prior to Del Rosario's 1IP, 4H/3ER, 1K:0BB performance last night, he had allowed 4H/0ER (1R) with 3K:2BB in his previous five outings (6.1IP).

*Brett Wallace was 3x5, and has had multi-hit games in three of his last four games (.471/.471/.588 - .571 BABIP in that span), and is now hitting .313/.387/.418 for the second-highest OPS among starters.

*Bourn leads the team in OPS (.840) after his own 3x5 (2B, SB) game, and is hitting .319/.395/.444 - and has a seven-game hit streak in which he's hitting .444, with a .522 BABIP.

*Our long national nightmare is over! Carlos Lee got an extra-base hit, going 1x5 with a double. It's his 2nd XBH in his last 52PAs. But it's still been 77PAs since he hit a homerun. It's not quite the 106PAs it took him to hit a homer to open the 2010 season, but it's PRETTY FREAKING RIDICULOUS.

*Hunter Pence was 1x5 with 2RBI, but more impressive is that he had two outfield assists.

*Man of the Match: Going with Brett Wallace and Michael Bourn

*Goat of the Game: Nelson Figueroa. I don't know how short your leash is, Vintage Figgy, but it better be growing shorter by the minute.

Tranzactionz!

Brian McTaggart says that OKC infielder Jose Vallejo has been placed on the 7-Day DL thanks to a left shoulder issue, retroactive to April 21.

Minor League Leaderboard

Here are your Eddie's Farmhands in the Top 10 of various statistical categories /most boring opening sentence ever.

Pacific Coast League

Triples: Brian Bogusevic - 1 (T-8th)
Walks: Bogusevic/J.B. Shuck - 8 (T-6th)
Strikeouts: Tommy Manzella - 15 (T-7th-most)
Stolen Bases: Bogusevic - 6 (T-3rd)
Caught Stealing: Shuck - 5 (1st)

Saves: Jose Valdez - 2 (T-3rd)
Strikeouts: Nieve - 17 (4th)

Texas League

Runs: Jimmy Paredes/Wladimir Sutil - 13 (T-2nd)
Hits: Sutil - 23 (T-1st)
Doubles: J.D. Martinez - 7 (T-1st) / Jon Gaston and T.J. Steele - 4 (T-4th)
HR: Brandon Barnes/Federico Hernandez/Martinez - 2 (T-4th)
RBI: J.D. Martinez - 19 (1st) / Brandon Barnes - 8 (T-8th)
Total Bases: Martinez - 30 (T-4th)
Strikeouts: Steele - 14 (T-3rd) / Martinez and Paredes - 11 (T-6th)
Stolen Bases: Paredes - 9 (1st) / Steele and Sutil - 6 (T-3rd)
Caught Stealing: Sutil - 2 (T-1st)
Average: Sutil - .397 (5th) / Martinez - .347 (10th)
OBP: Sutil - .444 (7th)
SLG: Martinez - .612 (10th)
OPS: Martinez - 1.009 (11th, but still...)

ERA: Dallas Keuchel - 1.29 (3rd)
Strikeouts: Jonnathan Aristil - 13 (T-6th)
WHIP: Dallas Keuchel - 0.64 (1st)

California League

Runs: Jay Austin - 16 (2nd) / Jose Altuve - 14 (T-3rd) / Jake Goebbert - 13 (T-4th)
Hits: Altuve and Austin - 24 (T-3rd)
Triples: Altuve - 3 (2nd)
Homers: Kody Hinze - 6 (1st) / Goebbert - 5 (T-2nd) / Heath - 3 (T-4th)
RBI: Hinze - 15 (T-3rd) / Johnathan Villar - 13 (T-5th) / Goebbert - 12 (T-6th)
Total Bases: Hinze - 38 (T-3rd) / Altuve - 36 (T-5th) / Austin - 34 (T-7th)
Walks: Hinze - 11 (T-2nd) / Austin - 9 (T-4th)
Stolen Bases: Austin and Villar - 8 (T-3rd)
Caught Stealing: Austin - 3 (T-3rd)
Average: Altuve - .393 (5th)
OBP: Altuve - .449 (10th)
SLG: Hinze - .691 (6th)
OPS: Hinze - 1.117 (6th)

ERA: Jake Buchanan - 1.61 (6th)
Strikeouts: Jose Cisnero - 22 (1st)
WHIP: Buchanan - 0.76 (3rd)

South Atlantic League

Runs: Chris Wallace - 13 (T-3rd) / Jiovanni Mier - 12 (T-4th)
Hits: Wallace - 19 (T-4th) / Adam Bailey - 17 (T-6th) / Dan Adamson - 16 (T-7th)
Doubles: Wallace - 5 (T-3rd)
Triples: Mike Kvasnicka - 2 (T-2nd)
Homers: Wallace - 6 (T-1st) / Bailey - 5 (T-2nd) / Nash - 4 (T-3rd)
RBI: Wallace - 19 (1st)
Total Bases: Wallace - 42 (T-1st)
Walks: Mier - 11 (T-4th)
Caught Stealing: Delino DeShields - 3 (T-3rd most)
Average: Wallace - .358 (6th)
SLG: Wallace - .792 (2nd) / Bailey - .647 (6th)
OPS: Wallace - 1.226 (2nd) / Bailey - .999 (7th)

ERA: Tanner Bushue - 1.80 (6th)
WHIP: Bushue - 0.85 (6th)

Article on Telvin Nash

MiLB has a nice article on Telvin Nash.

Did you know Nash had a football offer from Tha U?
"Griffin has always been a football powerhouse in Georgia. The town breeds football players. My dad played football and there were a lot of people telling me I should keep everything in the family. But I saw him go through two knee surgeries because of football, and I decided to go with the sport I felt I could play the longest and still be able to walk straight when I'm old."

Bernie Miklasz: The Astros are the loser from high school

Bernie Miklasz has a pretty great post imagining the NL Central as a high school.

The Astros?
They used to be your rival. You battled each other like hell to become student council president, and to be the No. 1 quarterback, and the cleanup hitter on the baseball team. But he couldn't keep up. After high school, his parents ran low on money, and couldn't afford to send him to college. He knows that he's bottomed out, and doesn't seem to know what to do about it. He hasn't lost hope, and you still respect him in a way. But dang, he's looking for a direction in life. He keeps talking about starting a band, and keeps babbling about opening some Tex-Mex restaurant. It's kind of sad. Some of his best friends, like Berkman, don't hang out with him anymore.

The Constable: On Carlos Lee

The Constable has his weekly post about releasing Carlos Lee, sort of.

DeFrancesco trying to build a "winning environment"

The Oklahoman has an article on the 4-10 RedHawks, discussing the climate around the clubhouse - presumably in an effort to make OKC fans forget that the opponent who took three straight from the home team, was the home team last season.

DeFrancesco:
“What we’re trying to do here is build a winning environment. The Astros minor leagues have struggled over the past few years. We’re trying to change the culture around here.”

But what they're going through now is nothing compared to that L16 streak Corpus had last year. Clemens:

“We were battling for the first-half title and had a couple of tough losses to knock us out. After that, there was nothing we could ever do right. If we scored 10, we’d give up 11. If we got a well-pitched game, we couldn’t hit. It was every possible scenario. There were times we would come into the clubhouse and just sit around with looks like, ‘What is the heck is going on?’"

Eddie's Farm: April 21

Oklahoma City (4-10)

Jeebus, I hate Round Rock. Hate them so much. Express win again, 6-3. Fernando Nieve allowed 12H/5ER, 3K:3BB in 5IP. Gustavo Chacin allowed 2H/1ER, 2K:1BB, HBP in 2IP (but got out of a bases-loaded jam without allowing a run, left to him by Nieve), and Sergio Escalona struck out three in 1.1IP.

Carlos Corporan hit a homer for the second straight game, and Brian Dopirak added a double. J.B. Shuck was 1x2 with 2BB and a SB. Koby Clemens posted his third straight 0x4 - all against Round Rock.

Man of the Match: J.B. Shuck

Corpus (5-8)

Corpus got three in the 3rd for a 5-2 win over Frisco. Suck on that, Rangers. Ross Seaton threw 7IP, 4H/2ER, 3K:1BB, while Patrick Urckfitz and David Carpenter combined to throw 2IP, 2H/0ER, 4K:0BB.

Jimmy Paredes (RBI), J.D. Martinez (two 2Bs, RBI), Jon Gaston, and Brandon Barnes (HR, 2RBI) had two hits each - and the Hooks were 2x12 w/RISP.

Man of the Match: Ross Seaton

Lancaster (8-7)

High scoring affair last night as Stockton and Lancaster were tied at 7-7 going into the 8th, with Stockton leading by the final margin of 13-10 by the time the inning was over. Bobby Doran allowed 8H/7ER, 5K:2BB in 4.1IP; Wes Musick took the loss, giving up 5H/4ER, 5K:2BB in 3IP; Mike Ness allowed 4H/2ER (including 2ER charged to Musick), 1K:3BB in 1IP, and Colton Pitkin got the final two batters of the game without incident.

Jose Altuve was 3x5, Erik Castro was 2x2 with a HR, 2RBI, 2BB, and Kody Hinze was 2x5 with a double and his 6th HR of the season. Jay Austin was 1x4 with a walk and 3RBI.

Man of the Match: Erik Castro

Lexington (7-8)

For the second game in a row, Savannah took advantage of a big late inning, this time scoring four in the 8th for a 6-5 win over Lexington. Carlos Quevedo threw 5IP, 8H/1R (0ER), 3K:1BB; Jorge De Leon got lit up for 4H/3ER, WP, Balk, in 2IP, and two of those ER came courtesy of Alex Sogard, who allowed 1H/2ER, 1K:2BB of his own in 0.2IP. David Martinez gave up a hit that allowed two runs charged to Sogard in 0.1IP.

Mike Kvasnicka was 3x4, with a double/triple/RBI; Roberto Pena was 2x4 with a double; Chris Wallace hit his 6th homer and added another RBI.

Man of the Match: Mike Kvasnicka

From the Office of the County Clerk - G19: Astros @ Mets

Hey, at least the Astros were 2-1 on a road series. Astros lose to the Mets 9-1.

*Coming into this series, the Astros were 1-5 on the road. At least they leave with a 3-6 road record.

*The Mets scored nine runs on eight hits. The last time an opponent scored 9+ runs on fewer than nine hits against the Astros was September 30, 2009, when the Phillies scored ten runs on nine hits and six walks.

*I still think there's something not right with Happ. Dude went 4.2IP, 6H/6ER, 5K:2BB, WP. That said, he got the first seven batters he faced before giving up the solo shot to catcher Mike Nickeas - his first career HR.

*Happ was just what David Wright needed. After coming into the game on a 16AB hitless streak, Wright homered and doubled off Happ. He's now 6x11 with two doubles and three home runs against Happ for a .545/.636/2.125 slash line. You read that slugging percentage right.

*It's Happ's second disaster start in four games.

*Except for Jose Reyes and Angel Pagan, every Met starter had a hit.

*Carlos Lee was 0x3 with a walk. He now has one XBH in his last 47 PAs, and is hitless in his last ten ABs.

*Brett Wallace got himself a hit - a double off the lefty Capuano. That's his 4th hit off a lefty this season, and his second XBH. He had six XBHs against LHPs in 2010.

*Man of the Match: Michael Bourn - 1x3 with a walk.

*Goat of the Game: JA Happ!

For Sale By Owner update

The Chronicle's High School Sports Editor, Michael Peters, got some information that sounds a little bit above his pay grade regarding the sale of the Astros:

Peters:
Bud Selig says no deal has been presented to him for sale of Astros, but he talks to Drayton almost every day.

Then:
Selig says he has reason to believe an Astros sale is 'not too far off.'

Know Your Enemy: Chris Capuano

Old Brewers foe Chris Capuano takes the mound for the Mets to try and stop a 1-9 skid, and prevent an Astros sweep. Here's what you need to know:

*Capuano throws an 87.4mph fastball (59.2%), and a changeup that sits at 77.9mph (22.9%). He'll mix in a 79.4mph slider (17.9%), as well. He's been throwing a first-pitch strike 66.1% of the time, and pounds the strike zone - throwing 51.4% of his pitches this season in the zone (up from 42.3% in 2010).

*This season, he's pitched in two games, allowing 18H/12ER, 13K:4BB, 3HR in 12.2IP for a robust 8.53 ERA/1.74 WHIP.

*We have to go back to 2005 to get to Capuano's fifth game against Houston. In one 2010 start, he threw 6.1IP, 5H/3ER, 3K:3BB in a loss.

*Capuano doesn't like righties (.375/.444/.650), but loves him some lefties (.188/.235/.188) in 2011. This holds up for his career, too. RHBs have a .276/.342/.477 line against him, while LHBs have hit .230/.293/.327.

*In 2011, if you take out PAs by pitchers, opponents are hitting .360/.429/.580 (.429 BABIP).

*Get to 2nd base. With RISP, Capuano has given up four hits and three walks for a .333/.529/.583 line.

*Capuano has yet to give up a first-inning hit.

*Only three Astros have two hits against Capuano - Carlos Lee (2x9), Jason Michaels (2x7), and, yes, Wandy Rodriguez (2x6). Collectively, the Astros are 9x44 for .205/.286/.295.

Two losses to the Astros have the Mets thinking they might actually not be good

It took two losses to the Astros, but R.A. Dickey thinks maybe it's a reality check:

“We have to find a way to be honest with ourselves about what kind of team we are. We can’t keep telling ourselves, ‘Oh, we’re a better team than this.’ We may not be.

“We’ve got to be honest about that and identify what we’re doing wrong and do it better. That’s the only way you have any real growth. If we want to reach the destination that we have set out, then we’ve got to be honest with ourselves about how can we take more ownership and what’s going on around us.”

Eddie's Farm: April 20

Oklahoma City (4-9)

Round Rock pitcher Zach Jackson took a no-hitter into the 8th before Carlos Corporan broke it up, and then scored three runs. It wasn't enough and Round Rock wins 5-3. Ryan Rowland-Smith threw well, going 5IP, 5H/2ER, 2K:1BB, and Ross Wolf threw two perfect innings. Andy Van Hekken allowed 3H/3R (2ER) in 1IP, and Casey Fien allowed 1H/1BB in 1IP.

Brian Bogusevic was in the lead-off spot for (what I think is) the first time this season, and went 0x4. Manzella and Dopirak were each 1x3 with a walk, Drew Locke and Carlos Corporan had RBIs, and Oswaldo Navarro provided the other RBI on a sac fly. Anderson Hernandez was 1x3 with two errors.

Man of the Match: Ryan Rowland-Smith.

Corpus (4-8)

Off.

Lancaster (8-6)

Lancaster won a close one over High Desert, 3-2. Jake Buchanan threw 7.1IP, 4H/2ER, 5K:1BB. In all three of Buchanan's starts, he has thrown 7+ IP, and opponents are hitting .188 with 15K:2BB on the season. Kirk Clark struck out three, walked one, in 1.2IP.

Jonathan Meyer and Ben Heath were each 2x4, with Heath getting double and a homer. Johnathan Villar was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI, and Austin Wates was 1x3 with an RBI. Grant Hogue, Jay Austin, and Villar stole bases, with Wates and Altuve getting caught stealing.

Man of the Match: Jake Buchanan

Lexington (7-7)

Savannah scored four runs in the 5th, to overcome a 4-1 deficit, and ended up winning 5-4 over Lexington. Brad Dydalewicz allowed 9H/5R (4ER), 1K:3BB in 4.2IP, and Gabe Garcia allowed just 1H/0ER, 3K:0BB in the final 3.1IP.

Roberto Pena was 2x2 with a walk, a two-run homer, and 3RBI. Adam Bailey added his 5th HR of the season. Delino DeShields was 1x4 with a walk, and Tyler Burnett was 1x2 with 2BB.

Man of the Match: Roberto Pena

From the Office of the County Clerk - G18: Astros @ Mets

*With the 4-3 win over the Mets last night, the Astros are now 7-6 since their lousy 0-5 start. If we take out the first five games (which is something you obviously can't do), the standings would be as such:
Brewers: 8-5
Cardinals: 7-6
Astros: 7-6
Cubs: 6-6
Pirates: 5-8
Reds: 4-9

*Bud Norris' outing (6IP, 10H/3ER, 6K:1BB) lowered his ERA to 4.91, passing Wandy for 2nd-best in the rotation.

*In his last two starts, Norris has thrown 12IP, 12H/3ER, 13K:4BB, and that's even with a .324 BABIP.

*Norris allowed ten hits in an outing for the second time in his career, and the first time since August 12, 2009 (5IP, 10H/4ER) at Florida.

*Daniel Murphy's 6th inning homer off Norris was the 4th HR Norris has allowed this season. Three of those homers either tied the game or put the opponent ahead.

*Brandon Lyon got his 4th save of the season, but for the second appearance in a row, had the game-winning run at the plate.

*Michael Bourn, Brett Wallace, and Chris Johnson had two hits each on the night. For Bourn, that was his sixth multi-hit game of the season, and he has a five-game hitting streak in which he's hitting .421/.476/.421 (.500 BABIP).

*Brett Wallace was 2x4 with a double. He didn't draw a walk, but he didn't strike out either. He's gone 10 PAs without a K. That's his longest streak since a 12PA K-less streak from Aug 30-Sept 3.

*In his last four games, Chris Johnson is hitting .313/.353/.625.

*Carlos Lee's 0x4 broke a six-game hitting streak, and he's now hitting .236/.267/.361. Lee has drawn two walks in 75 PAs, hasn't walked in 20 PAs, and has GIDP'd in two straight games.

*Hunter Pence hit a line-drive 8th inning homer to give the Astros the last lead they would need. Pence has hit 94 HRs in his career, and 21 of them have come in the 8th inning or later. 38 of those HRs have been go-ahead homers.

*Man of the Match: Tough one - but going with Pence, 1x3 with a walk and the game-winning HR.

*Goat of the Game: Carlos Lee! Bill Hall was on his way to the goat, seeing six pitches in two PAs. Then he hurt his ankle.

Know Your Enemy: R.A. Dickey

The Astros try for the 6th time to win two games in a row this evening at CitiField against the Mets, this time against knuckleballer R.A. Dickey. Here's what you should know.

*That knuckleball. Dickey throws it 78.3% of the time in 2011, mixing in (21.7%) a four-seam fastball that sits about 83.4mph - down .5mph from 2010.

*In two starts against Houston - both in August 2010 - he's 1-0 with a 1.76 ERA, allowing 15H/3ER, 8K:3BB in 15.1IP. He only needed 108 pitches to get through 7IP on August 29, 2010.

*He's 1-2 with a 3.93 ERA in 2011 (overall), but has allowed 14H/8ER, 7K:9BB in his two starts (11.1IP) at home this season against Colorado and Washington.

*Current Astros are hitting .283/.317/.417 against Dickey. Carlos Lee is 7x14 with three doubles, a homer, and five RBIs. Joe Inglett is 4x6 with two doubles. Chris Johnson, Michael Bourn, and Hunter Pence are a combined 2x21 against Dickey.

*In nine total 1st-3rd innings, opponents are hitting .200/.359/.233. In eight 4th-6th innings, opponents are hitting .333/.405/.424. Wait him out, and don't get frustrated.

*The 1st time he goes through the order, the opponent's OPS is .625. 2nd time? .431. 3rd time, though? 1.100.

Eddie's Farm: April 19

Oklahoma City

Round Rock only scored in two innings. Problem was, they were both 3-run innings, and the RedHawks drop, 6-2. Sergio Perez got the start, allowing all six runs in an 8H/6ER, 1K:1BB performance in 4IP. Fernando Rodriguez, Sergio Escalona, Gustavo Chacin, and Wesley Wright held the Express to 2H/0ER, 5K:3BB over the rest of the 5IP.

Tommy Manzella was 3x3 with a walk and two SBs, and Collin DeLome was 0x4, with 3Ks, but the lone RBI. Brian Bogusevic (BB, SB) and Robinson Cancel had the other two walks, while J.B. Shuck and Anderson Hernandez had the only other hits.

Man of the Match: Tommy Manzella

Corpus

Corpus trailed twice in the game, but rallied each time for a 5-3 win over NW Arkansas. Jonnathan Aristil threw 6.2IP, 6H/2ER, 6K:4BB, allowing two homers in the win, while Erick Abreu allowed a run in 1.1IP. David Carpenter got his second save with a perfect 9th inning.

Jimmy Van Ostrand was 2x3 with a double, RBI, and a walk; and Jimmy Paredes hit a two-run, two-out homer in the 3rd inning (and added 2SBs). Wlad Sutil was 1x5 (and is hitting .386/.438/.477 over his last ten games), and Federico Hernandez and J.D. Martinez offered up the other RBIs.

Man of the Match: Jimmy Paredes

Lancaster

The sound effect of the game was a "Boom!" Lancaster hit six homers in a 13-3 win over High Desert. More on that in a second. Robby Donovan got his first win of the season with 6IP, 3H/2ER, 9K:0BB; Zach Grimmett threw 2IP, 3H/1ER, 2K:1BB, and Jose Trinidad walked one and struck out one in the 9th inning.

Seven JetHawks had two hits each: Jay Austin (RBI), Jose Altuve (SB), Kody Hinze (2HR, 2RBI, BB), Jake Goebbert (2HR, 2RBI), Ben Heath (HR, 2RBI), Miguel Arrendell (RBI), and Grant Hogue (RBI). Austin Wates also popped a 3-run shot and added a walk for a 4RBI day. Goebbert and Hinze are tied atop the CAL League with five homers each, and eight of the JetHawks 13 runs were with two outs on the board.

Man of the Match: Goebbert and Hinze

Lexington

Tanner Bushue improved to 3-0 with a solid 2-0 win over Savannah. Bushue allowed 2H/0ER, 2K:2BB in 6IP to lower his ERA to 1.80, and Brian Streilein allowed two baserunners (1H, 1HBP) in 3IP to close it out.

Adam Bailey (currently leading the Adopt-A-Player poll) was 2x4, with Delino DeShields (SB), Chris Wallace, and Telvin Nash adding the other hits. Mike Kvasnicka had your lone RBI of the game.

Man of the Match: Tanner Bushue.

From the Office of the County Clerk - G17: Astros @ Mets

Wandy looks like "2nd Half 2010" Wandy, and the Astros take a one-game lead on the Mets with a 6-1 win last night.

*The Astros are 6-6 since opening the season 0-5, and are 4-3 in their last seven games.

*Last night's win was the second straight series opening win the Astros have earned.

*The Astros allowed just four hits to the Mets. After giving up double-digit hits in each of their first eight games, opponents have had 10+ hits in just three of the last nine games.

*Wandy's 71 Game Score was the highest since August 31, 2010, when he posted a 76 against St. Louis.

*According to ESPN's box score, Wandy had 28 called strikes and 14 swinging strikes. Those 42 non-contact strikes are a career high.

*The Astros drew six walks last night, giving them 44 on the season, and bringing them up to a tie for last place in the NL with the Dodgers and Phillies.

*Michael Bourn stole his 8th base of the season - taking third base in the 1st inning - matching his SB pace in 2010 (he stole three bases in G17 v. PIT)

*J.R. Towles was 2x2 with a double and two walks. He has at least one hit in every game he has started.

*Carlos Beltran scored the only Mets run on a solo shot to lead off the 7th inning. That was his 20th homer since the beginning of the 2009 season.

*Bill Hall struck out three times in five PAs, going 0x2 with 2Ks with RISP. He has 21Ks in 61PAs, putting him one K behind Pedro Alvarez for the NL lead, and 5th overall. Of the four players ahead of Hall, he has the fewest walks (1BB) by three walks.

*Angel Sanchez was 1x2 with 2BB. After the first 12 games of the season, Sanchez was hitting .383/.423/.489 - with a .436 BABIP. In his last five games (including last night), he's hitting .111/.200/.111 - with a .125 BABIP.

*Man of the Match: WANDY!

*Goat of the Game: Tie between Bill Hall and Chris Johnson, who was 0x5 to drop his OPS to .542

Meat Wagon Updates

Alyson Footer and Steve Campbell tag-teamed some Twinker updates today:

Arias has had "a setback" in that he still has some soreness in his shoulder. He's flying back to Houston to see Dr. David Lintner.

Clint Barmes is "ahead of schedule" at the four-week mark of the breaking of his hand. He took "30-35" soft toss swings today and could begin a rehab assignment as early as this weekend.

Nash and Wallace speak!

Telvin Nash and Chris Wallace talked to Stephen Goff about their performance on Sunday.

Wallace:
"I have felt really good at the plate to start the season. On Sunday, I was getting great pitches to hit and I wasn't missing them."

Nash:
. "I guess you can say I was in the zone. I was just trying to concentrate on every at-bat. My philosophy when I play is I never want to make the last out of an inning or a game. I kept going with the pitches and it just turned out the way it did."

Another writer circles the Astros like a vulture, looking for a gamey dinner

This time it's MASN.com's Phil Wood, who thinks that Michael Bourn would look good in whatever color the Nationals wear. But he sees a challenge:

Here's the rub: Bourn is a Houston native, and is one of Houston general manager Ed Wade's all-time favorite players. One of Wede's priorities upon taking the Astros' job was getting Bourn from his former employer, the Phillies. Desperate whatever struggles the Astros may encounter, it's believed that Bourn might be the last player he's willing to deal. The wild card might be that Bourn is represented by Scott Boras, who has a fairly solid relationship with the Nationals.

Of course the Yankees might be interested in Myers

Jayson Stark says that the yankees could be interested in Brett Myers come the trade deadline.

Stark:
• Now that we've got that off our chest, though, it doesn't mean teams aren't already trying to anticipate players who might be available. One name we've heard connected with clubs like the Yankees is Houston's Brett Myers. But according to FanGraphs, there isn't a right-handed starter in the AL East whose fastball has averaged under 89 mph. And Myers' average velocity is down to 87.7 --3 mph under his career norm. "If he's in the AL East, he's a fifth starter," one NL scout said of Myers. "I don't see him being a [difference-maker]. The only thing he'd have working for him, besides his curveball, is lack of familiarity with him over there."

So one of the best pitchers in the National League has been relegated to a spot behind A.J. Burnett and Daisuke Matsuzaka? Got it.

Eddie's Farm: April 18

Oklahoma City

Jordan Lyles got the start, and it didn't go so well as Albuquerque scored eight straight runs for an 8-6 win over OKC. Lyles threw 6IP, 8H/6ER, 3K:2BB, taking the loss and leaving him winless at Triple-A (45.2IP, 69H/30ER, 30K:15BB in nine Triple-A starts). Wesley Wright allowed two unearned runs, but struck out two, and Andy Van Hekken struck out four in 2IP.

Anderson Hernandez was 2x3 with a HR/3RBI, Carlos Corporan was 2x4 with a HR/2RBI. J.B. Shuck was 2x4 with a walk. The RedHawks will take on Round Rock starting tonight, and OKC - I expect rioting.

Man of the Match: Anderson Hernandez

Corpus

Corpus got a first-inning run...and that was about it in a 5-1 loss to NW Arkansas. Xavier Cedeno's struggles continued with 4.2IP, 8H/5ER, 3K:2BB. Arcenio Leon has yet to allow an earned run in relief, going 2.1IP, 3H/0ER, 4K:2BB, and Shane Wolf allowed 1H/0ER, 0K:2BB in 2IP.

Wladimir Sutil was 1x4 with a run and a stolen base, J.D. Martinez drove him in, and Brandon Barnes and David Flores had your only two other hits.

Man of the Match: Wladimir Sutil

Lancaster

A day after losing to High Desert 15-8, the JetHawks turned the tables for a 12-8 win. Andrew Robinson got the win, despite a 5.1IP, 12H/6ER, 4K:1BB performance. Mike Ness went 2IP, 4H/2ER, 3K:1BB, HBP, and Kirk Clark did what Kirk Clark does - didn't allow a run - going 1.2IP, 1H/0ER, 3K:1BB.

Jay Austin was 4x6 with three doubles and 2RBI, and Jose Altuve was 3x5 with a 1B/2B/3B/RBI. Kody Hinze was 2x3 with a HR/2BB, and Jake Goebbert and Erik Castro each added homers to the total.

Man of the Match: Jay Austin

Lexington

A day after trying out-Roy Hobbs each other, Wallace and Nash went for a combined 1x8 in a 4-1 loss at Asheville. Mike Foltynewicz is still looking for that first professional win despite a quality start (6IP, 6H/3ER, 3K:3BB), and Jorge De Leon allowed his first earned run of the season, throwing 2IP, 1H/1ER, 1K:1BB.

Lexington was held to three hits - all singles - from Delino DeShields, Chris Wallace, and Jhonny Medrano. DeShields, Wallace (who was also caught stealing home), Mike Kvasnicka, and Bryce Lane each struck out twice.

Man of the Match: Mike Foltynewicz

Ed Wade Isn't Worried

Brian McTaggart talked to Ed Wade, who doesn't have a care in the world about this 5-11 start.

"It's all against the backdrop of another slow start out of the gate, and you're scrutinized more heavily because of that occurring, but I still think we've got the components to be a really solid ballclub, and [we] have to go out there and prove it each game."

There are a lot more Wade quotes, each basically saying, "There's a lot of potential. Please God, let them live up to their potential."

Bob Choate's doughnut saga makes it's way to New York

Because what else is the New York Daily News going to report on?

And like any good tragedy, there's a resolution:
Instead of drowning his sorrows in a bag of free treats, however, Choate eventually convinced the store owner, Lawrence Shipley, to write him a check to make up the differences in his taxes.

And thanks to the doughnut shop's goodwill, Choate decided to give the story an even happier ending: he donated the money to Shipley's charity, the newspaper said.

Chicago writer nixes the "Astros to the AL West" idea

Chicago Tribune columnist Paul Sullivan answered a frustrated fan about shipping the Astros off to the AL West:

Fan:
Am I the only one who sees how much harder it is to win the NL Central with six teams in it? All other divisions have five teams except the AL West which only has four teams. A simple fix would be to put the Astros in the AL west. This would even out all the divisions and create a terrific natural rivalry between the Rangers and Astros.

Yeah, the presence of the Astros and Pirates are really killing the Cubs.

Sullivan, excellently:
Actually, this was brought up by fans at least twice at the Cubs Convention, to Crane Kenney and Jim Hendry. Both said it was an inequity that should be addressed by MLB. But if you had 15 teams in each league, there would have to be an interleague game every day, which is another scheduling issue that would lead to some team feeling they were getting the short end of the stick. I don't see any changes forthcoming.

Will Carroll, on Wilton Lopez

Just as we had hoped, baseball's Dr. House addressed Wilton Lopez' injury.

Chris & Telvin's Excellent Adventure

A separate Eddie's Farm post will come later, but it's certainly worthy of a separate post to highlight the huge day that Chris Wallace and Telvin Bash had for Lexington in an 18-9 win over Asheville.

Long story short: Chris Wallace and Telvin Nash EACH went 5x6 with a double and three home runs. Wallace finished the day with 9RBI, and Nash had 4RBI. He would have had more, but since he was batting in the clean-up spot - right behind Wallace, there weren't a whole lot of opportunities for him to drive baserunners in.

Huge day, and for once, people who keep up with that sort of thing actually took notice of Eddie's Farm.

From the Office of the County Clerk - G16: Astros v. Padres

So the Astros completely gave this game away, with crap defense and a crap late-inning offense blowing a three run lead. Padres win 8-6.

*The Astros are now 0-5 in games following a win.

*They had a 6-4 lead to end the 7th. In seven games where the Astros have been ahead at the end of seven, they're now 4-3.

*Myers again threw a quality start - 6IP, 8H/3ER, 5K:2BB - but got nothing to show for it. Thanks to the bullpen, he's 1-0 when he should be 3-0.

*The Astros committed three errors - two by Abad on the same play where he fell all over the ball and then, once he had regained consciousness, threw the ball to Sealy and one by Sanchez, where he let the ball go right through him, ultimately letting the go-ahead runs get across.

*In the 7th, Melancon allowed a leadoff single to Nick Hundley. Then Ryan Ludwick hit a ball right at Sanchez for an easy double play. This would have meant a 6-5 Astros lead with two outs and nobody on. Instead, there were two on and nobody out. The Padres got two hits and three walks in the rest of the inning (Fulchino walking in the 8th Padres run). Ball game.

*Congratulations to Jose Valdez, who made his Major League debut after nine seasons in the minors, and struck out Ryan Ludwick and Cameron Maybin (on six total pitches) to start his ML career.

*To the offense, which can only be highlighted by missed 9th inning opportunities. With Heath Bell on the mound again, Jason Michaels led off with a single (and is 7x13 against Bell for his career). Chris Johnson struck out swinging, and pinch-hitter Brett Wallace drew a walk. Humberto Quintero bounced it off Venable's glove to load up the bases with one out. Matt Downs struck out, but really should have drawn a walk if it wasn't for Greg Gibson apparently wanting to go home, and calling it a strike. Jason Bourgeois grounded out to third base to end the game. They Are Our Astros, after all.

*Wallace's walk was his eighth of the season, in his 15th game/58th PA. He had eight walks in 51 games (159 PAs) in 2010.

*Amazingly, the Astros have 13 hits and four walks in the 9th inning. But have only scored four 9th inning runs all season. Wallace is 4x7 with 2BB in the 9th. Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence, Bill Hall, and Angel Sanchez are a combined 1x10, 3K:0BB in the 9th.

*Chris Johnson was 2x4 with an RBI, raising his batting average from .196 to .208. But the other two ABs were Ks, and he has 15Ks in 50 ABs.

*Man of the Match: Could go to either Carlos Lee or Bill Hall. Whatever.

*Goat of the Game: Angel Sanchez. 0x4, and committed a crucial error.

Carlos Lee can't believe how well the Padres have done their homework

Over at the Padres' MLB site, reporter Corey Brock got some feedback on the effectiveness of the Padres' pitching staff from Carlos Lee:

"I think if you look back the last few games, they've got a good scouting report on us, I guess, because everybody is pitching us the same -- backwards and just keeping the ball away from us...If you look at the game [Friday], I don't think the catcher sat inside one time. They were keeping the ball away from us and going soft when they were ahead in the count and going hard when they were ahead. They're pitching good, hitting the spots."

Eddie's Farm: April 16

Oklahoma City

Just couldn't hold on to a lead - Albuquerque wins 6-5. Henry Villar threw well, allowing 2H/1ER, 2K:1BB in 4IP - and why he came out after 62 pitches is not yet known. Andy Van Hekken allowed 3H/2ER, 0K:2BB in 1.1IP - though Ross Wolf allowed the hits resulting in runs charged to AVH. Casey Fien blew the save opportunity, giving up a two-run homer in the 8th, with Gustavo Chacin allowing the game-winning homer in the 9th. OKC hitters did get to, yes, Tim Redding, where he allowed 8H/4ER, 2K:4BB in 4IP. Bogusevic was 2x4 with a 2B, BB; Drew Locke was 2x4 with 3RBI, and Tommy Manzella was 1x2 with 3BB (.314/.375/.543).

Man of the Match: Drew Locke

Corpus

Have we mentioned lately how much we like Dallas Keuchel? He threw 8IP, 4H/1ER, 5K:0BB, getting 14 groundouts to three flyouts in an 8-1 win over Tulsa, needing just 88 pitches to get it done. Erick Abreu struck out the side in the 9th to wrap it up. J.D. Martinez was 1x2 with two walks and a three-run homer, and T.J. Steele was 2x4 with 3RBI. Wladimir Sutil was 1x2 with a 2B, RBI, 3BB, and SB (now hitting .436/.500/.564), and the top third of the lineup was 2x7 with five runs scored, 4RBI, 2K:7BB.

Man of the Match: Dallas Keuchel

Lancaster

Lancaster dropped the series finale to Rancho Cucamonga, 5-4, as RC scored the final four runs of the game. Bobby Doran threw 5.2IP, 7H/3ER, 2K:0BB and Wes Musick took the BS/L with 2.1IP, 3H/2ER, 3K:0BB. Jay Austin was 2x4 with two solo homers, Jake Goebbert added a homer and an outfield assist, and Kody Hinze was 2x4 with an RBI and a double. Jose Altuve was 0x3 with a walk, snapping a five-game hitting streak.

Man of the Match: Jay Austin

Lexington

Dadgum. The Legends put up seven in the 5th inning to pop Asheville 13-7. That'll teach you to call a game early, Tourists! Carlos Quevedo threw 5IP, 7H/5ER, 2K:1BB; Murillo Gouvea allowed 4H/2ER in 2.1IP but struck out four, and Jason Chowning allowed only a walk in 1.2IP. On to the offense. Adam Bailey was 3x5 with 2HR/3RBI, Chris Wallace hit a 3-run HR, and Jiovanni Mier (2x3, 2RBI, 2BB) hit his 1st HR of the season. Delino DeShields was 2x4 with a double and a walk. Telvin Nash had 2RBI and a walk, and Roberto Pena had two doubles.

Man of the Match: Adam Bailey

From the Office of the County Clerk - G15: Astros v. Padres

The Astros were able to put themselves in a position to at least not lose the first series of the season after Figueroa held it together in a 5-3 win over San Diego.

*Astros pitching has held San Diego to 19H/6ER, 21K:8BB in 27IP this series.

*Figueroa threw 116 pitches in 6.2IP, allowing 6H/3R (2ER), 5K:2BB, and coming an out away from the win. It's the most pitches he's thrown in an outing (obviously) since September 22, 2009, when he threw 126 pitches against the Braves while with the Mets.

*As previously mentioned, Melancon got the One Batter, One Decision role - retiring Orlando Hudson with runners on the corners and two out in the 7th in a 3-3 game.

*Some notes on Melancon: He has yet to allow a hit at MMP (0x12). With RISP, hitters are 0x7 with a walk. With 2 Outs/RISP, hitters are 0x5. And his BABIPa is .211.

*Jeff Fulchino threw a scoreless 8th inning. It was the 3rd time in his last four appearances to not allow a baserunner.

*And Brandon Lyon made things interesting yet again, but still came away with a Save. He allowed two singles, and so for the 3rd time in six appearances, Lyon has allowed 2+ baserunners. That said, he has retired 15 of the last 19 batters he's faced, walking none this season.

*Chris Johnson swung the big bat, getting his first homer of the season in the 4th - a two-run shot - that tied the game up at 3-3. It was his 47th PA of the season. He got his first homer of 2010 in his 95th PA of the season.

*Even though Carlos Lee has a hit in eight of his last ten games, he's still only hitting .217 in April, with a .604 OPS.

*From 1999-2009, Lee posted a .291/.344/.503 line. In 2010-pres, that slash line is .244/.288/.411.

*After we all went nuts about him hitting a homer in his 7th PA of 2011, he's now gone 56 plate appearances without one, and has only managed a double and a triple for XBHs.

*Let's give it up for Joe Inglett! After completely nutting his opportunities against the Cubs on April 11, Inglett came through with the go-ahead RBI, scoring Chris Johnson, who (gasp!) walked.

*Man of the Match: This one's going to Nelson Figueroa. After he gave up two first inning runs (and I sent a text to my cousin, saying that he should be traded for a box of broken bats), he threw 5.2IP allowing 5H/1ER, 5K:1BB.

*Goat of the Game: Matt Downs. 0x2 (albeit with a walk), and the error that gave the Padres a run.