Roster Cuts

Brian McTaggart tweeted this morning that the Astros have made some minor-league roster cuts. Among them:

Zack Grimmett, John Hinson, Jeremiah Meiners, and Danny Meszaros.

Grimmett was drafted in the 28th Round of the 2008 draft out of Beggs High School in Oklahoma. He posted an ERA under 5.00 just once - in Lancaster in 2010, and spent 2011 and 2012 at Lancaster, where he went 9-18 with a 7.39 ERA/1.73 WHIP.

Hinson was the Astros' 2011 13th Round pick out of Clemson. He reported to Tri-City, and hit .284/.348/.389 in 43 games, but was limited to just 15 games for Lexington in 2012 due to hamstring injuries (though he hit .339/.350/.508.)

Jeremiah Meiners was drafted in the 40th Round of the 2010 draft out of Francis Marion University. Appearing in 58 games, all in relief, Meiners had a composite 3.51 ERA, but aside from two appearances for Lancaster in 2011 never progressed above Tri-City in three seasons.

Danny Meszaros is likely the most recognizable name on this list. He was drafted in the 48th Round in 2008 out of the College of Charleston. He was suspended in 2010 for using a banned substance, and didn't pitch in 2012.

Meszaros down, Perconte out

According to our buddy Greg Rajan, Danny Meszaros has been sent down to Corpus, while reliever Mike Perconte has been released.

In 25.2IP for OKC, Meszaros has allowed 34H/13ER, 27K:14BB, and allowed 5H/4ER in 0.2IP on July 7 (though he did throw a perfect inning on Saturday).

Perconte had a decidedly tougher spell with Corpus Christi, allowing 15H/11ER, 5K:2BB and 3HR in six appearances (4.1IP). Yesterday (July 10) Perconte allowed 3H/2ER, 1K:1BB in 0.2IP.

The RedHawks did place C Brian Esposito on the 7-Day DL on July 9, as well.

Meszaros in for Corpus

Mike Tauser, who is doing work for the Chronicle, noted that Danny Meszaros will be active for Corpus tonight.

Meszaros reinstated from Inactive List

According to Baseball America (and with a captip to Street), we learn that Danny Meszaros has been reinstated from the inactive list.

If you recall, Meszaros, as well as Marcos Cabral and Jonathan Fixler, were suspended last August for 50 games for violating the league's substance abuse policy (which later turned out to be what seems like a tainted over-the-counter supplement.)

No idea yet as to where Meszaros will play, and it's certainly curious that Fixler and Cabral weren't re-instated, since their suspensions happened on the same day.

A further note on this Methylhexanamine

Over at the Crawfish Boxes, Subber10 has a big ol' post on the substance that Meszaros, Fixler, and Cabral tested positive for. We're pretty sure we are referred to pretty heavily, and that's fine.

Subber has a far more extensive background in bodybuilding than any of us do, so his post should be taken seriously. It's a long post, and worth the read, and it steers away from our "They got popped for sullied Benadryl" post from yesterday, but here's the concluding paragraph:

In conclusion, were the players wrong for their usage of Jack3d and did they adequately do their research to help prevent this? Probably not to their fullest capabilities, but probably enough in their mind. Is the MLB adequately doing their part in educating and helping these young athletes? Not at all! There is so much more that they could do to help preven this. Do I still issue my free pass to Danny Meszaros? You bet I do because if he was using Jack3d, he's no better than I am because I've been planning on buying it as my next pre-workout supplement when I run out of my current one!

Fixler/Cabral/Meszaros: Methylhexaneamine-heads!

Subber10 over at The Crawfish Boxes touched on the banned stimulant that Meszaros, Fixler, and Cabral tested positive for: methylhexaneamine. WTF is that?

The infallible Wikipedia basically says that Methylhexanamine is a nasal decongestant, though it can be used as a general stimulant.

Back in 2009, five Jamaican athletes were suspended for testing positive for Methylhexanamine, but only because the anti-doping panel couldn't figure out if it was actually prohibited, so they suspended them anyway, because it was close enough to another banned substance.

This bodybuilding forum says that methylhexaneamine has properties similar to amphetamines and ephedrine.

So, to sum up: There's a pretty good chance that Meszaros, Fixler, and Cabral were busted for a nasal decongestant.

If I'm wrong - and it's entirely possible - leave a comment.

Further words on the PED suspensions today

Zach Levine, conveniently in Corpus, filed a report with some quotes regarding the Meszaros, Fixler, Cabral, and Rodriguez suspensions for use of an undisclosed PED.

Wade, in a statement:
"The Houston Astros fully support the efforts of the Commissioner’s Office to rid our sport of any type of inappropriate drug use. Our players and staff have been briefed, counseled, educated and warned about what the ramifications and consequences are when they choose, either knowingly or not, to violate the MLB drug policy. And yet, despite the best efforts of MLB and the Astros, we still have individuals who abuse our game by ignoring reality. We are embarrassed by these types of suspensions. They are a smear on our game and our organization, and we will redouble our efforts to make sure the message gets through."

Ricky Bennett:
"I’m always disappointed when our guys make those kind of choices," said Bennett, who stressed that performance-enhancing drug dissuasion takes place at every level of the system. "Unfortunately it happens sometimes."

Confirmed: Meszaros, Fixler, and Cabral suspended

Zach Levine has just confirmed our earlier report that Danny Meszaros, Jon Fixler, and Marcos Cabral have been suspended 50 games for PED use. More later.

Meszaros (others?) suspended

Via the MiLB transactions page, we find that Round Rock pitcher Danny Meszaros has been suspended. We have made contact with the Express' Communications Department. More as details come available.

Note: We were referred to the Astros PR department. Stay tuned.

Update: Getting an unconfirmed report that potentially Jon Fixler and Marcos Cabral were also suspended.

Further Update: The Pacific Coast League's transactions page has the status changed to Meszaros placed on Temporarily Inactive List.

This is interesting. Hold, please.

Tranzactionz!

Got some transactions for you on this beautiful Saturday morning:

July 16

Round Rock activated Josh Banks (All-Star Game)
Round Rock assigned Danny Meszaros to Round Rock from Corpus

In 26 appearances for the Hooks (32IP), Meszaros allowed 28H/11ER, with 42K:16BB for a 3.09 ERA/1.38 WHIP. In his last ten games, Meszaros has allowed 8H/1ER, 15K:6BB in 12.1IP.

Corpus placed Marcos Cabral on the Temporarily Inactive list, and activated Jordan Lyles (All-Star Game)

Lexington activated Dan Sarisky from the 7-Day DL.

Greeneville assigned B.J. Hagen to GCL Astros.

In seven appearances for the Gastros, Hagen (an off-season signee) allowed 19H/11ER in 10IP, with a 9.90 ERA/1.90 WHIP. He last pitched for Greeneville on July 10, when he allowed 6H/4ER in 1.1IP.

Eddie's Farm: June 26

Round Rock

Game was suspended in the 4th for rain, with the Express up 1-0. Play will be resumed this evening.

Corpus

Jeez, Corpus. Gave up three in the 4th, got two back in the 8th, but it wasn't enough, and the Hooks lose 3-2. Jeremy Johnson threw 5.1IP, 6H/3ER, 6K:2BB and took the loss. Nelson Peguero struck out three, walked two, and allowed a hit in 1.2IP while Matt Nevarez allowed a hit in 1IP. Interesting line from Danny Meszaros: 1IP, 0H/0ER, 4K:1BB. Yeah, four strikeouts. How? Marcus Lemon walked. Renny Osuna struck out looking. Matthew Lawson struck out swinging, but it was "wild," and Lawson advanced to first. Taylor Teagarden struck out swinging. Andy Jenkins struck out looking. Seven hits for the Hooks - all singles. Shuck (1x3, 2BB), Cabral (1x5, RBI), Clemens (1x2, 2BB), Van Ostrand (2x4, RBI), Florentino, and Butera collecting.

Man of the Match: Danny Meszaros

Lancaster

Stockton was up 8-0 before the Hooks got on the board, and go on to win 13-6. Ross Seaton allowed 6H/7R (6ER), 1K:3BB in 2.1IP. Mike Modica struck out two in 1.2 perfect innings, while Ashton Mowdy (3IP) and Brian Wabick (2IP) combined for 11H/6ER, 5K:4BB in 5IP. Albert Cartwright (3SB) and Freddy Parejo had three hits each, while Brandon Wikoff was 2x4 for your other multi-hit game. 1-5 in the order (Austin-Cartwright-Barnes-Cruz-Parejo) combined to go 10x24, 4RBI.

Man of the Match: Albert Cartwright

Lexington

Thriller in Lexington, as the Legends rally from 5-3 down to defeat Rome 10-6. Jose Cisnero threw 5IP, 3H/3ER, 5K:2BB, while Arcenio Leon allowed 2H/2ER, 2K:1BB, 3WP, in 2IP. Kirk Clark blew his 4th save, but got his third win with 2IP, 2H/1ER, 0K:1BB. Jose Altuve was 4x5, and Our Boy Aaron Bray was 2x5 with a double and 2RBI. Jake Gooebbert and Jonathan Meyer had 2RBI each, and J.D. Martinez hit his 8th homer of the season in the 1st inning. Kody Hinze was 1x2 with 3BB.

Man of the Match: Aaron Bray.

Tri-City

A day after scoring a season-high seven runs and losing, the ValleyCats got seven in the first inning and shutout Lowell for an 8-0 win. Tommy Shirley threw 3IP, 3H/0ER, 7K:2BB, while Alex Sogard (2IP, 3H), Mike Ness (2IP, 2H), and Travis Blankenship (2IP, 1H) closed out the shutout. The ValleyCats scored eight runs on eight hits - with only two for extra bases - and drew eight walks. Ben Orloff and Jacke Healey got two hits and an RBI each. Wilton Infante and Frank Amonte drew two walks each.

Man of the Match: Tommy Shirley.

Greeneville

The Gastros got the go-ahead run in the bottom of the 8th and defeated Johnson City 4-3. Mike Foltynewicz made his 25-pitch debut, throwing 1IP and allowing a hit.

Citizen Larry was at the game and had this report:
Mike Foltynewicz looked sharp in his debut for Greeneville tonight. He was on a strict 25 pitch count which he did confirm to me before the game. 1IP with one baserunner picked off first, one groundout and one flyout. He faced the minimum 3 batters with the single allowed erased by a nice looking pickoff.

John Frawley threw 3IP, 7H/2ER, 5K:0BB; Andrea Lucati threw 1IP, 2H/1R (0ER); Jamaine Cotton (1.1IP), 3H/0ER, 1K:1BB; B.J. Hagen (1.2IP, 1H); Travis Smink got the save with 1IP, 1K. Jonathan Merritt, Emilio King, and Jhonny Medrano (RBI) were each 2x4 with a double, and Chris Wallace and Telvin Nash added RBIs.

Man of the Match: Jhonny Medrano

GCL Astros

Off.

Levine's Minor League Notebook

Within Zach Levine's minor-league updates we learn a few things:

-Danny Meszaros threw a bullpen session on Sunday and is nearing a return.
-Fernando Abad has missed seven weeks and is heading to Florida to rehab his injured shoulder.
-Chia-Jen Lo won't be throwing for at least two more weeks after partially tearing his UCL.
-Tanner Bushue is nearing a return, and Farmstros says he'll pitch tonight.

Wondering why Dydalewicz was sent down to Lexington? Ask Ricky Bennett:
"He's had trouble repeating his delivery," assistant general manager and farm director Ricky Bennett said, adding that it's not a new issue with Dydalewicz. The lefthander tends to have difficulty shedding some side-to-side movement in favor of coming forward to the plate.

Bennett also had a note on Jack Shuck's success:
"The speed of the game has slowed down considerably for him. Strike zone discipline is much better for him, and pitch selection is much better."

Tranzactionz!

Corpus

-T.J. Burton was reassigned to Corpus from Round Rock.

-The Hooks placed Danny Meszaros and Matt Nevarez on the 7-Day DL, and Greg Rajan speculates that Nevarez has a hamstring issue, while Meszaros' injury is unspecified.

-Within Rajan's blog post (linked above) we see that the Astros obtained Jailen Peguero from the Rangers for a PTBNL.

Rajan:
Peguero had been pitching for AAA Oklahoma City, where in 13 appearances, all in relief, he was 2-1 with a 4.09 ERA. Peguero is on his way to Corpus Christi tonight.

Peguero is an original Hook, spending all of 2005 and the first half of 2006 in Corpus Christi. He shares the club's all-time saves record with 26. In 77 appearances for the Hooks, Peguero is 4-2 with 26 saves and a 2.10 ERA, with 41 walks and 111 strikeouts in 103.0 innings. He ranks second all-time in appearances and has the best ERA for any pitcher in the team's six-year history with more than 100 innings of work.

Peguero has appeared in 25 games in relief in the big leagues over two seasons (2007 and 2008) with Arizona. He has a 1-0 record lifetime in the majors with a 7.50 ERA over 24.0 innings.

Lexington

-The Legends placed Tanner Bushue on the 7-Day DL, and activated Brandt Walker from the 7-Day DL. Bushue's injury is unspecified.

Highlights from Jason Castro chat

Jason Castro stopped by Baseball America yesterday to participate in a chat. What were some of the highlights?

-For the most part I feel that I just need to continue to get repetitions behind the plate this spring and continue to refine the subtleties of catching. In addition, continuing to gain the trust and build working relationships with the pitching staff in order to work more efficiently on the field.

-I have put in a lot of work this past year and offseason to really round out my game offensively and defensively. I have made some big strides to polish my skills behind the plate (blocking, receiving, calling a game) while continuing to adjust offensively to the levels of competition I have come up against in the recent past.

-This offseason was a good one for the Astros as we were able to make some important acquisitions to strengthen not only the pitching staff but the line up as well. If everything happens the way it should I feel that this is the year to make it back in the hunt for the playoffs.

-A few guys who i've had the opportunity to catch who have a combination of good stuff and makeup this past year are Chris Hicks, Danny Meszaros, and Chia-Jen Lo. They all had solid years last year and continued to get better as the year went on.

-I think as I continue to get stronger with age and with continued work i can see myself being able to add some more power to my game as well as the ability to hit for a good average.

-I think that my development in the past year and a half has greatly increased ever since I signed with the Astros. Catching coordinator with the Astros Danny Sheaffer has helped me quite a bit since i signed and given me a lot of advice to get where i am today.

Click the link for the full chat.

Englebrook throws hard

Baseball America got with Pitch F/X to list the velocities of Arizona Fall League pitchers.

Stephen Strasburg was, of course, tops with a 100.5 mph max fastball. But Evan Englebrook was 10th on the list with a 96.8 mph max fastball.

Elsewhere, Chia-Jen Lo recorded a 95.6 mph max fastball, Wilton Lopez threw a 95.3 mph fastball, Danny Meszaros threw a 93.9 mph fastball.

Average fastballs were as follows:
Evan Englebrook: 94.25 mph
Chia-Jen Lo: 92.7 mph
Danny Meszaros: 92.76 mph
Wilton Lopez: 91.29 mph

Gaston, Vallejo go yard

Despite getting seven RBI from Jon Gaston and Jose Vallejo, the Saguaros lost to Phoenix 12-11 in a thrilla, leaving the tying run on 3rd in the bottom of the 9th.

Vallejo: 4x5, 4 RBI (3-run HR), CS
Gaston: 1x5, 3 RBI (3-run HR), 2K

Danny Meszaros got in the game in the 7th and threw 1IP, 0H/0ER, 1K:1BB, throwing six of his 15 pitches for strikes.

That's a good way to impress the new manager, who was in attendance.

Gaston:
"I would love to repeat what I did last year, but last year is in the past, you can't dwell on it. I would love to have another breakout like last year. Why not me, that's what I say."

And on Vallejo's performance:
"It was phenomenal. It was awesome for him. It's really cool to do it in front of your new manager."

Ricky Bennett on the AFL participants

Brian McTaggart's blog post has comments from Ricky Bennett on the Astros in the Arizona Fall League. And they are:

On Evan Englebrook:
"He continues to improve. The one thing we like about him is his ability to throw down hill. He creates a good arm angle. He's velocity has been up. He's been sitting at 92 to 97 [mph], which is good. He's a big, tall guy and his mechanics can get out of whack, but he's showing more consistency and more velocity. He's a late-bloomer."

On C-Lo:
"He did pretty well. Our reports were all good. He continues to throw the ball well and pitch well. He's really focused on using his breaking ball a lot more and has made progress with it. It's not where it needs to be, but he's starting to show more confidence and the ability to throw it for strikes. If he continues that focus, hopefully he comes into camp ready to pick up where he left off."

On Wilton Lopez:
"He's starting to become a lot more consistent with his arm slot and his breaking ball is more consistent, and that's due to a higher arm slot. That's something we've worked on since we signed him. He continues to work hard and make adjustments. It's just a matter of getting him some mound time."

On Danny Meszaros:
"We're not necessarily working on anything in particular in terms of mechanics. We just are trying to get him to have better command more than anything else. He pitches late in games and needs to get his command of his fastball down more consistently and use his breaking ball the same way."

On Jason Castro:
"He's doing fine. He's not tearing it up numbers-wise by any means, but he continues to work well with pitchers. I got a reporter from David Bell, the manager, who said he's receiving the ball well and could improve slightly on fastballs down in the zone. He has an excellent idea of calling a game and is throwing well and understands how to play the game the right way."

On Jose Vallejo:
"He's doing OK. He's staying on the ball better and his defense has been solid. He has good range, soft hands and an accurate arm. He's a second baseman, but has had to play a little third base because of the makeup of the roster. He's very athletic and plays hard. He's been pulling off the ball, but lately he's been trying to stay on the ball and use the whole field."

On Jon Gaston:
He got off to a little bit of a slow start, and a lot of it is just timing. He had timing issues during the season and would get in longer slumps. He wouldn't be aggressive and we kind of saw that when he first went out there. It took him some time to get his feet under him, but he has been swinging the bat better lately. He hit a grand slam a few games ago and that got him back on track. He's hitting for power and taking his walks, but he still strikes out a little too much for us, and that's something we have to address. He can play all three outfield position and is a gamer."

When you score eight runs in the bottom of the 7th, you expect to win

However, if that's what you expected, you'd be wrong, because the Peoria Saguaros scored six in the top of the 9th for an 11-8 win - their first of the season.

Jose Vallejo was the only position player in the lineup, but he did get his first two hits of the AFL with a 2x5 day, scoring two runs and stealing a base.

Danny Meszaros extended a...uh, rough patch this fall, giving up two earned runs on a homer by Adam Loewen in 0.1IP, and seeing his ERA jump to 20.25.

Chia-Jen Lo, however, recorded his first win of the year, throwing 2IP, 1H/0ER, and striking out two.

Hey, got some stats for you

So we're all familiar with the prospects who are playing Winter Ball, yes? Well, I've got some early returns on stats for you:

Arizona Fall League
Jason Castro: 2x12, .167/.333/.167, 1R, 3K:2BB
Jon Gaston: 1x10, .100/.308/.100, 2R, 7K:3BB, 1SB
Jose Vallejo: 0x4, .000/.000/.000, 3K:0BB

Evan Englebrook: 3IP, 3H/0ER, 5K:0BB, 0.00 ERA/1.00 WHIP
Chia-Jen Lo: 4IP, 1H/0ER, 6K:0BB, 0.00 ERA/0.25 WHIP
Wilton Lopez: 3IP, 4H/0ER, 1K:0BB, 0.00 ERA/1.33 WHIP
Danny Meszaros: 2.1IP, 4H/4ER, 3K:0BB, 15.43 ERA/1.71 WHIP

Dominican Winter League
Yordany Ramirez: 2x7, .286/.286/.429, 1R

Fernando Abad: 4IP, 0H/0ER, 5K:1BB, 0.00 ERA/0.25 WHIP
Erick Abreu: 3IP, 1H/0ER, 5K:0BB, 0.00 ERA/0.67 WHIP
Jose Duran: 1.2IP, 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB, 0.00 ERA/0.00 WHIP

Venezuelan Winter League
Wladimir Sutil: 11x29, .379/.406/.483, 0K:1BB, 1SB

Throw out the record books when the Javelinas and Saguaros get together

The Peoria Saguaros found themselves on the business end of a 17-9 beatdown at the hands of the cross-something rival Peoria Javelinas.

How did the Astros' prospects fare in G3?

Jason Castro: 1x5, 1 run

Danny Meszaros: 1.1IP, 4H/4ER, 2K:0BB, 22 of 31 pitches for strikes. Served up a grand slam to Dodgers prospect Andrew Lambo. In the seventh, Meszaros gave up singles to Lorenzo Cain and Dustin Ackley, got a sac fly, popped up Lucas May, and then gave up a homer to big-shot prospect Dayan Viciedo before striking out Casper Wells.

Could have been worse. Cleveland pitching prospect Connor Graham threw 9 of 33 pitches for strikes, getting two outs, and walking six batters.