Psssst. Pssssst. Hey. Heeeeyyyyyy. Pitchers and Catchers report this week...
*Evan Drellich has a, uh, well, odd article about what the Astros will do now that the rebuilding seems to be over:
For an organization suddenly so keen to say it's living in the present, the payroll is a big - well, small - exception. What's the grand plan now that the rebuilding is over?
And so I assume he's looking for something more complicated than, "continue to draft and develop players while maximizing the window when the team is at its peak, and then keep that up for years to come."
The issue for just about everybody who is paid to write about baseball is the Astros' payroll. "When will they spend money?" asks the man with the press pass and laptop, wringing his hands. Let's just take a moment to note that Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa - arguably the best at their positions in baseball - will make a combined $4m this year, about a quarter of what Colby Rasmus will make. When you implement a plan like the Astros have over the last five years, what you get is a team with Correa, Altuve, Keuchel, Springer, McCullers, Giles, etc. all making considerably less money than what they would get in an open market. It's how baseball economics works, and fretting over when the Astros will extend [insert name here] is kind of useless at this point.
It is worth noting that, in the piece, Drellich mentions the Astros had talks with core players (Dallas Keuchel) about extensions, and despite being open to the possibility of extending Jason Castro, went to an arbitration hearing, anyway.
*Evan Drellich's Five Spring Training things to watch: Ken Giles, Jon Singleton, A.J. Hinch, Max Stassi, SP5.
*BREAKING: Carlos Correa is very popular.
*McTaggart highlights some of the prospects that could have an impact in 2016. A.J. Reed is one of Richard Justice's 20 rookies who could impact the pennant race.
*The Astros announced upgrades to concession services and wi-fi and the overall expectations of the team.
*Luhnow: Our goal is to win a championship.
*Newsday's David Lennon lists the Astros as one of three World Series favorites.
*Ken Davidoff's question for the Astros is whether Luke Gregerson will be butthurt about Ken Giles.
*Astros games will be broadcast in Spanish on FM radio in Houston for the very first time.
*Nolan says Dallas Keuchel is one of seven active pitchers who could throw a no-hitter.
*Ken Rosenthal said that rebuilding isn't tanking...and how much his opinion on that has changed in the last three years is staggering.
*Over the weekend, the A's traded former Astro minor-leaguer Jacob Nottingham to Milwaukee. Nottingham was sent to the A's in the Scott Kazmir trade. This is your weekly reminder that Milwaukee's GM David Stearns was Luhnow's assistant.
*2011 4th Round pick Chris Lee's stock has shot up since he posted a 3.08 ERA for Baltimore's Double-A team in Bowie. After struggling somewhat at Quad Cities, Lee was traded in May 2015 for $655,800 of Baltimore's international bonus pool money.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
Showing posts with label Jacob Nottingham. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jacob Nottingham. Show all posts
Monday, February 15, 2016
Friday, July 24, 2015
Friday Morning Hot Links
AL West: The Astros won on Altuve's walk-off (you can read the Masked Marvel's recap here), the Mariners won, the A's and Angels both lost, and Texas had the day off. Thus, the Astros are 1.0 back of the Angels, 7.5 up on the Rangers, 9.5 up on Seattle, and 10 up on the A's. FanGraphs gives the Astros a 43.4% chance of winning the division and a season-high 81.9% chance of making the postseason in some capacity. That's a 14.8% jump in winning the division, so I'm guessing FanGraphs adjusted for Kazmir's addition to the rotation.
On to the links:
*Luhnow struck the first blow in the race to October, writes Brian T. Smith. Luhnow:
They talk about high leverage for relievers. This is a high-leverage opportunity for our club. We're in a division with one other team that seems to be our biggest challenge to winning. We owe it to ourselves to take advantage of this.
Hank Conger:
It just shows the level of commitment from the front office and how the organization is committed to winning this year.
*Trading for Kazmir gives the Astros credibility, within the team and with the rest of the league, writes Evan Drellich.
*Lancaster's J.D. Davis sounded like Jacob Nottingham died, not got traded:
I spent my day off with Nottingham and Fisher in Anaheim on Wednesday and hung out. It was kind of a shocker...
*Keith Law says the Astros paid dearly (Insider only):
The Astros paid dearly for two months, maybe a dozen starts in the remainder of the regular season, of Kazmir, giving up a top young catching prospect and a quality right-handed starter prospect who was buried in the team's surfeit of right-handed arms.
*SI's Cliff Corcoran said the price really wasn't that high.
*Beyond the Box Score writes about how Kazmir improves the Astros' already-solid rotation.
*George Springer raised over $100,000 for charity.
*Here's the Chronicle's Big Ol' Biggio HOF section.
*We wrote about the 2014 A's as a cautionary tale yesterday about an hour before the Kazmir deal.
On to the links:
*Luhnow struck the first blow in the race to October, writes Brian T. Smith. Luhnow:
They talk about high leverage for relievers. This is a high-leverage opportunity for our club. We're in a division with one other team that seems to be our biggest challenge to winning. We owe it to ourselves to take advantage of this.
Hank Conger:
It just shows the level of commitment from the front office and how the organization is committed to winning this year.
*Trading for Kazmir gives the Astros credibility, within the team and with the rest of the league, writes Evan Drellich.
*Lancaster's J.D. Davis sounded like Jacob Nottingham died, not got traded:
I spent my day off with Nottingham and Fisher in Anaheim on Wednesday and hung out. It was kind of a shocker...
*Keith Law says the Astros paid dearly (Insider only):
The Astros paid dearly for two months, maybe a dozen starts in the remainder of the regular season, of Kazmir, giving up a top young catching prospect and a quality right-handed starter prospect who was buried in the team's surfeit of right-handed arms.
*SI's Cliff Corcoran said the price really wasn't that high.
*Beyond the Box Score writes about how Kazmir improves the Astros' already-solid rotation.
*George Springer raised over $100,000 for charity.
*Here's the Chronicle's Big Ol' Biggio HOF section.
*We wrote about the 2014 A's as a cautionary tale yesterday about an hour before the Kazmir deal.
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Reactions to the Kazmir trade
Here are some reactions to the Kazmir trade today...
(Note: This will be updated)
Sporting News' Jesse Spector:
Kazmir, pitching very well, has been a 3-WAR guy over his first 18 starts. For another 12 starts at that pace, you would expect 2 WAR. The price of two projectable but far off prospects is right.
New York Post's Joel Sherman:
The worries on Kazmir are two-fold: He had to pull himself from two starts this year with arm discomfort, though he did not miss significant time on either occasion, and his home-road splits are dramatic. At Oakland's spacious O.co Coliseum, he has a 1.36 ERA and holds opponents to a .441 OPS. On the road, it is 3.92 and .804.
FanGraphs' Kiley McDaniel:
Based on the preseason rankings, this will look like a light return, but given Nottingham's breakout season, they did indeed land a guy who would have ranked in the Astros' top 10 if the list was re-done today.
NumberFire's John Stolnis:
With Scott Kazmir, the Astros may have the best rotation in the American League.
2015 9th Round pick...
(Note: This will be updated)
Sporting News' Jesse Spector:
Kazmir, pitching very well, has been a 3-WAR guy over his first 18 starts. For another 12 starts at that pace, you would expect 2 WAR. The price of two projectable but far off prospects is right.
New York Post's Joel Sherman:
The worries on Kazmir are two-fold: He had to pull himself from two starts this year with arm discomfort, though he did not miss significant time on either occasion, and his home-road splits are dramatic. At Oakland's spacious O.co Coliseum, he has a 1.36 ERA and holds opponents to a .441 OPS. On the road, it is 3.92 and .804.
FanGraphs' Kiley McDaniel:
Based on the preseason rankings, this will look like a light return, but given Nottingham's breakout season, they did indeed land a guy who would have ranked in the Astros' top 10 if the list was re-done today.
NumberFire's John Stolnis:
With Scott Kazmir, the Astros may have the best rotation in the American League.
Lefty discrimination no longer!! Welcome home AND welcome aboard @scottkazmir19 .. Looking forward to that 🔥🔥🔥🔥
— Dallas Keuchel (@kidkeuchy) July 23, 2015
2015 9th Round pick...
Going for @scottkazmir19 is a big sign. There's about to be a championship brought to this organization.
— Zachary Person (@Zac_Person) July 23, 2015
Sorry I've been so late responding to the Kazmir news. This air isn't going to hump itself.
— David G Temple (@davidgtemple) July 23, 2015
Astros trade for Kazmir, form The Brothers K
He's #Astros bound. ICYMI from last night, including fact there was lots of thought Kazmir would go today: http://t.co/cO8T2bEvMs— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) July 23, 2015Sources: #Astros get Kazmir.— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 23, 2015So the Astros have acquired A's LHP Scott Kazmir in exchange for Jacob Nottingham and Daniel Mengden, two hours before Kazmir was scheduled to start against the Blue Jays. I'm guessing he goes on Friday against Kansas City, now, pushing everybody else back a day.
Kazmir, 31, graduated from Cy Falls, and was the Mets' 1st Round pick in 2002. He's been around and dealt with injuries - pitching 1.2IP in 2011 and missing all of 2012. In the last two years with Oakland, he's thrown exactly 300IP, allowing 255H/104ER, 265K:85BB - a 3.26 ERA/1.13 WHIP. He has been worth 2.2 WAR (FanGraphs version), benefiting from a .262 BABIP and a career-low 0.57 HR/9inn.
Jacob Nottingham was the Astros' 6th Round pick in the 2013 draft. He's 20 years old, and big for a catcher (6'3" 227), and was absolutely dominating this season, posting a .931 OPS at Quad Cities and a .974 OPS at Lancaster. I liked him a lot and so, naturally, I hate this trade.
Daniel Mengden was the Astros' 4th Round pick in the 2014 draft, a Westside High/A&M grad. He's 22 and was killing Quad Cities (1.16 ERA/0.98 WHIP), but has taken some time to adjust to the Cal League (5.26 ERA/1.55 WHIP).
Are the Astros "going for it?" I mean, the rotation is better now. There is now one man out in the rotation: Keuchel, Kazmir (The Brothers K - I'm trademarking that) lead the way, with three spots for McCullers, McHugh, Feldman, and Velasquez. This move gives the Astros more options - no word on the possibility of going to a six-man rotation - on keeping McCullers/Velasquez's innings down.
Keep in mind that Kazmir is owed the remainder of a $13m salary this season (part of a backloaded 2yr/$20m deal with the A's), but he's a free agent in the offseason. Given that he's from Houston, it may be easier to re-sign him (should the Astros want to do so), but that's the gamble with rental pitchers.
I like the trade. I'll miss the promise of the 6'3" 227lb catcher with the .941 OPS, mainly because I talked just last night about how excited I was about his development. But Kazmir slots in right behind Keuchel, gives the Astros another lefty option, and bolsters the rotation over the next 66 games. Both teams got something they wanted.
Kazmir, for his part, is excited:
Scott Kazmir grew up an #astros fan: "It's a dream come true. How about that? It really is nuts.I've got to wrap my head around all of this"— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) July 23, 2015Scott Kazmir is 4-0 w/a 0.99 ERA in 5 starts vs the Angels, Mariners & Rangers this year.
35 of Astros' final 66 games are vs AL West teams
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 23, 2015Angels manager Mike Scioscia doesn't see a big difference:
Scioscia on Kazmir trade: "Houston was good yesterday. They're good today." #Angels #Astros
— Bill Shaikin (@BillShaikin) July 23, 2015Sunday, June 28, 2015
PreStros Morning Report: June 27
TL:DR
*Org goes 4-4 on the day; cumulative 189-126 record
*Fresno dropped both ends of a doubleheader at Reno as Mark Appel gets shelled in his Fresno debut
*Chris Devenski threw four innings of 6K/one-hit relief but Corpus falls short at Frisco
*Chase McDonald hit a double, homer, two walks and a stolen base, and 2RBI in a 6-3 Lancaster win
*Six River Bandits had two hits each in a Quad Cities extra-innings victory at Cedar Rapids
*Tri-City scored four runs in the bottom of the 9th and defeated Staten Island in extra innings.
*Connor Goedert was 3x3 with a triple, walk, and 2RBI in a Greeneville comeback win
*The GCL Astros fell to 0-6 win an extra-innings loss at the GCL Pirates.
Fresno (44-32, 7.0 up)
Game 1: Mark Appel made his Triple-A debut and it was short and not so sweet. Appel threw 3IP, allowing 7H/7ER, 1K:2BB in an 8-0 Reno win. Mitch Lambson threw the next 3IP, giving up 2H/1ER, 1K:2BB. Robbie Grossman was 2x3 with a double. Alex Presley, Tyler Heinemann, and Nolan Fontana had your other hits. Matt Duffy and L.J. Hoes drew walks.
Man of the Match: Uhhhhh.....
Game 2: Fresno took a 1-0 lead but gave it right back and lost 2-1 in the 2nd game of the doubleheader. Handsome Dan Straily, who is a contender for taking Oberholtzer's spot in the rotation, threw 6IP, 5H/2ER, 7K:0BB. Alex Presley was 2x3 with a solo homer to account for the offense; Jonathan Villar, L.J. Hoes, and Robbie Grossman had your other hits.
Man of the Match: Dan Straily
Corpus (50-25, already clinched playoff spot)
Frisco got two runs in the top of the 5th to break a scoreless tie and Corpus could only get one back in a 2-1 loss. Adrian Houser threw 5IP, 8H/2ER, 4K:0BB and Chris Devenski closed it out with 4IP, 1H/0ER, 6K:0BB.
Chan Moon was 2x3 with a solo homer, your only extra-base hit of the night. Tyler White drew two walks; Jon Kemmer was 1x2 with a walk and a stolen base. Jo Mier was 1x3 with a walk.
Man of the Match: Chris Devenski
Lancaster (40-33 overall, 3-0 in 2nd half)
Lancaster and Bakersfield traded runs in the first third of the game, then went up 4-2 in the 4th on their way to a 6-3 win at Bakersfield. Bryan Radziewski threw 7IP, 6H/2R (1ER), 3K:1BB, and Keegan Muhl allowed 3H/1ER, 0K:0BB in 2IP.
Chase McDonald was 2x3 with a double, homer, two walks, a stolen base, and 2RBI on the night. Derek Fisher (2B, 2BB), Jack Mayfield (RBI), A.J. Reed (2RBI), and Ronnie Mitchell (2 2B) had two hits each. James Ramsay was 1x4 with a walk, and Brian Holberton was 1x3 with an RBI.
Man of the Match: Chase McDonald.
Quad Cities (47-24 overall, already clinched playoff spot)
Quad Cities had a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th when Cedar Rapids put up four to take a 4-3 lead. The game stayed that way until the top of the 9th when Quad Cities tied the game and then scored two in the top of the 10th for a 6-4 win. Brock Dykxhoorn threw 5.1IP, 4H/4R (3ER), 4K:1BB, Aaron Greenwood allowed 2H/0ER, 1K:0BB in 1.2IP, and Ryan Thompson struck out four, allowing one hit, in the final 3IP.
Jacob Notthingham was 2x3 with 2BB and an RBI; Nick Tanielu (2RBI), Jason Martin (HR, RBI), Ryan Bottger (2BB), Kristian Trompiz (BB), and Bobby Boyd (RBI) had two hits each. Alex Bregman went 1x5 for a second straight night with a double, walk, and an RBI.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
Tri-City (5-4)
Staten Island had a 10-4 lead heading into the bottom of the 7th, when the ValleyCats scored two runs to close it to 10-6. Then in the bottom of the 9th, the ValleyCats scored four runs to tie the game, and got the walk-off in the 10th for an 11-10 comeback win. Harold Arauz allowed 7H/6R (2ER), 3K:3BB in 3IP; Austin Nicely allowed 3H/3ER, 3K:2BB in 2.1IP; Joselo Pinales allowed a symmetrical 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 2.1IP, and Adam Whitt struck out four in 2.1 perfect IP.
Johnny Sewald and Antonio Nunez each had three hits; Edwin Medina (2B, 2BB, RBI), Trent Woodward (BB, 2RBI), and Kolbey Carpenter (2 2B, 2RBI) had two hits each. Cesar Carrasco was 1x6 with a double and 2RBI. Anthony Hermelyn was 1x2 with a walk and an RBI.
Man of the Match: Trent Woodward
Greeneville (3-2)
Greeneville rallied with three runs in the bottom of the 7th to defeat Danville 4-3. Erasmo Pinales allowed 3H/2R (1ER), 5K:2BB in 5IP; Alex Winkelman gave up 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 2IP; Samil De Los Santos (K) and Steve Naemark (HBP, 2K) each threw hitless outings.
Connor Goedert was 3x3 with a triple, walk, and 2RBI; Myles Straw was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI; Aaron Mizell was 0x3 with a walk and an RBI; Justin Garcia added your other hit.
Man of the Match: Connor Goedert
GCL Astros (0-6)
The GCL Astros remained winless on the young season with a 4-3 loss to the GCL Pirates in 11 innings. Moreno Polanco threw 4IP, 1H/0ER, 4K:1BB; Abdiel Santana allowed 2H/1ER, 2K:1BB in 3IP; Starlyn Taveras struck out one in 1IP, Lachlan Madden allowed 3H/2ER in 1IP, and Junior Garcia took the loss with 2H/1ER in 1.1IP.
Kyle Tucker, Connor MacDonald (2B, BB), Jared Cruz (2B), and Jonathan Matute (2B) provided your hits. Nestor Tejada, Edgar Lorenzo, and Nestor Muriel (SB) drew walks.
Man of the Match: Moreno Polanco
*Org goes 4-4 on the day; cumulative 189-126 record
*Fresno dropped both ends of a doubleheader at Reno as Mark Appel gets shelled in his Fresno debut
*Chris Devenski threw four innings of 6K/one-hit relief but Corpus falls short at Frisco
*Chase McDonald hit a double, homer, two walks and a stolen base, and 2RBI in a 6-3 Lancaster win
*Six River Bandits had two hits each in a Quad Cities extra-innings victory at Cedar Rapids
*Tri-City scored four runs in the bottom of the 9th and defeated Staten Island in extra innings.
*Connor Goedert was 3x3 with a triple, walk, and 2RBI in a Greeneville comeback win
*The GCL Astros fell to 0-6 win an extra-innings loss at the GCL Pirates.
Fresno (44-32, 7.0 up)
Game 1: Mark Appel made his Triple-A debut and it was short and not so sweet. Appel threw 3IP, allowing 7H/7ER, 1K:2BB in an 8-0 Reno win. Mitch Lambson threw the next 3IP, giving up 2H/1ER, 1K:2BB. Robbie Grossman was 2x3 with a double. Alex Presley, Tyler Heinemann, and Nolan Fontana had your other hits. Matt Duffy and L.J. Hoes drew walks.
Man of the Match: Uhhhhh.....
Game 2: Fresno took a 1-0 lead but gave it right back and lost 2-1 in the 2nd game of the doubleheader. Handsome Dan Straily, who is a contender for taking Oberholtzer's spot in the rotation, threw 6IP, 5H/2ER, 7K:0BB. Alex Presley was 2x3 with a solo homer to account for the offense; Jonathan Villar, L.J. Hoes, and Robbie Grossman had your other hits.
Man of the Match: Dan Straily
Corpus (50-25, already clinched playoff spot)
Frisco got two runs in the top of the 5th to break a scoreless tie and Corpus could only get one back in a 2-1 loss. Adrian Houser threw 5IP, 8H/2ER, 4K:0BB and Chris Devenski closed it out with 4IP, 1H/0ER, 6K:0BB.
Chan Moon was 2x3 with a solo homer, your only extra-base hit of the night. Tyler White drew two walks; Jon Kemmer was 1x2 with a walk and a stolen base. Jo Mier was 1x3 with a walk.
Man of the Match: Chris Devenski
Lancaster (40-33 overall, 3-0 in 2nd half)
Lancaster and Bakersfield traded runs in the first third of the game, then went up 4-2 in the 4th on their way to a 6-3 win at Bakersfield. Bryan Radziewski threw 7IP, 6H/2R (1ER), 3K:1BB, and Keegan Muhl allowed 3H/1ER, 0K:0BB in 2IP.
Chase McDonald was 2x3 with a double, homer, two walks, a stolen base, and 2RBI on the night. Derek Fisher (2B, 2BB), Jack Mayfield (RBI), A.J. Reed (2RBI), and Ronnie Mitchell (2 2B) had two hits each. James Ramsay was 1x4 with a walk, and Brian Holberton was 1x3 with an RBI.
Man of the Match: Chase McDonald.
Quad Cities (47-24 overall, already clinched playoff spot)
Quad Cities had a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th when Cedar Rapids put up four to take a 4-3 lead. The game stayed that way until the top of the 9th when Quad Cities tied the game and then scored two in the top of the 10th for a 6-4 win. Brock Dykxhoorn threw 5.1IP, 4H/4R (3ER), 4K:1BB, Aaron Greenwood allowed 2H/0ER, 1K:0BB in 1.2IP, and Ryan Thompson struck out four, allowing one hit, in the final 3IP.
Jacob Notthingham was 2x3 with 2BB and an RBI; Nick Tanielu (2RBI), Jason Martin (HR, RBI), Ryan Bottger (2BB), Kristian Trompiz (BB), and Bobby Boyd (RBI) had two hits each. Alex Bregman went 1x5 for a second straight night with a double, walk, and an RBI.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
Tri-City (5-4)
Staten Island had a 10-4 lead heading into the bottom of the 7th, when the ValleyCats scored two runs to close it to 10-6. Then in the bottom of the 9th, the ValleyCats scored four runs to tie the game, and got the walk-off in the 10th for an 11-10 comeback win. Harold Arauz allowed 7H/6R (2ER), 3K:3BB in 3IP; Austin Nicely allowed 3H/3ER, 3K:2BB in 2.1IP; Joselo Pinales allowed a symmetrical 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 2.1IP, and Adam Whitt struck out four in 2.1 perfect IP.
Johnny Sewald and Antonio Nunez each had three hits; Edwin Medina (2B, 2BB, RBI), Trent Woodward (BB, 2RBI), and Kolbey Carpenter (2 2B, 2RBI) had two hits each. Cesar Carrasco was 1x6 with a double and 2RBI. Anthony Hermelyn was 1x2 with a walk and an RBI.
Man of the Match: Trent Woodward
Greeneville (3-2)
Greeneville rallied with three runs in the bottom of the 7th to defeat Danville 4-3. Erasmo Pinales allowed 3H/2R (1ER), 5K:2BB in 5IP; Alex Winkelman gave up 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 2IP; Samil De Los Santos (K) and Steve Naemark (HBP, 2K) each threw hitless outings.
Connor Goedert was 3x3 with a triple, walk, and 2RBI; Myles Straw was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI; Aaron Mizell was 0x3 with a walk and an RBI; Justin Garcia added your other hit.
Man of the Match: Connor Goedert
GCL Astros (0-6)
The GCL Astros remained winless on the young season with a 4-3 loss to the GCL Pirates in 11 innings. Moreno Polanco threw 4IP, 1H/0ER, 4K:1BB; Abdiel Santana allowed 2H/1ER, 2K:1BB in 3IP; Starlyn Taveras struck out one in 1IP, Lachlan Madden allowed 3H/2ER in 1IP, and Junior Garcia took the loss with 2H/1ER in 1.1IP.
Kyle Tucker, Connor MacDonald (2B, BB), Jared Cruz (2B), and Jonathan Matute (2B) provided your hits. Nestor Tejada, Edgar Lorenzo, and Nestor Muriel (SB) drew walks.
Man of the Match: Moreno Polanco
Friday, June 12, 2015
Friday Morning Hot Links
The Wife and I will be at the Astros game tonight to watch Oberholtzer pitch Correa's home debut. If you see me, holla at me.
*On that note, the Astros are hoping Correa's arrival will mean a boost in ticket sales.
*The Astros and Rockets are suing Comcast over how they handled CSN Houston. Here are more details from Houston Press.
*Lots of signings, or reports of signings, and one number trickling in to our 2015 Draft page.
*The Astros and 37th overall pick Daz Cameron are seemingly close to a $4m deal - which would be about $2.3m over the slot value for 1-37, meaning the Astros need to save that money somewhere else in the first ten rounds. In that link you also find that Heyman is reporting Mark Appel may need "a change of scenery."
*Luhnow said "it's too early to tell" if the Astros messed up by taking Appel over Kris Bryant.
*Quad Cities' Jacob Nottingham just might be the Astros' top catching prospect
*Astros picks Riley Ferrell and Thomas Eshelman are projected to be the 2nd- and 3rd-most valuable college pitchers in the draft, respectively.
*Awww, Erik Bedard retired.
*On that note, the Astros are hoping Correa's arrival will mean a boost in ticket sales.
*The Astros and Rockets are suing Comcast over how they handled CSN Houston. Here are more details from Houston Press.
*Lots of signings, or reports of signings, and one number trickling in to our 2015 Draft page.
*The Astros and 37th overall pick Daz Cameron are seemingly close to a $4m deal - which would be about $2.3m over the slot value for 1-37, meaning the Astros need to save that money somewhere else in the first ten rounds. In that link you also find that Heyman is reporting Mark Appel may need "a change of scenery."
*Luhnow said "it's too early to tell" if the Astros messed up by taking Appel over Kris Bryant.
*Quad Cities' Jacob Nottingham just might be the Astros' top catching prospect
*Astros picks Riley Ferrell and Thomas Eshelman are projected to be the 2nd- and 3rd-most valuable college pitchers in the draft, respectively.
*Awww, Erik Bedard retired.
Thursday, June 11, 2015
PreStros Morning Report: June 10
TL;DR
*Org goes 2-2 on the day; Cumulative 143-89 record.
*Handsome Dan Straily had a rough one in, but struck out eight, in a 5-1 Fresno loss.
*Corpus built up an 8-0 lead and held on for a 8-7 win over Midland.
*Lancaster recovered from blowing two leads to defeat Visalia in the 11th.
*Quad Cities got worked over by Lansing.
Fresno (34-24)
Reno got the first five runs of the game before Fresno countered with one in the 7th...and well that's it. 5-1 Reno. Dan Straily took the loss, throwing 6IP, 8H/5ER, 8K:0BB; Jason Stoffel gave up a hit in 1IP, Jose Veras walked one in the 8th, and Mitch Lambson threw a scoreless 9th.
The Grizzlies only managed four hits, one of them a solo homer from L.J. Hoes, his 3rd of the season. Jon Singleton, Nolan Fontana (BB), and Robbie Grossman had your other hits. Domingo Santana drew two walks.
Man of the Match: L.J. Hoes
Corpus (39-18)
It's a good thing the Hooks built up that 8-0 lead by the end of the 4th, because they needed every run in an 8-7 win over Midland. Michael Feliz allowed 5H/6ER, 2K:3BB in 4IP; Travis Ballew allowed all three runners he inherited from Feliz to score, plus 2H/1ER, 0K:1BB in an out-less outing; Chris Devenski improved to 7-0 with 4IP, 3H/0ER, 6K:2BB, and Jandel Gustave allowed 2H/0ER, 1K:0BB in a nerve-wracking 9th inning.
The Hooks got 12 hits: two from Tony Kemp (BB), Teoscar Hernandez (RBI), Andrew Aplin (3B, RBI), Conrad Gregor (2B, 3B), and Roberto Pena (2B, 2RBI). Colin Moran and Jon Kemmer added a hit and an RBI each.
Man of the Match: Chris Devenski
Lancaster (32-27)
Another crazy one in Lancaster as they blew a 2-0 lead and a 9-4 lead to go to extras before scoring two in the 10th at Visalia for an 11-9 win. Adrian Houser threw 6IP, 6H/4ER, 6K:2BB; Andrew Walter allowed 3H/2ER, 2K:0BB and two of Houser's runs in 0.2IP; Reymin Guduan allowed an unearned run; Keegan Yuhl gave up 4H/0ER, 4K:0BB in 2.1IP and Tyler Brunnemann struck out the final batter of the 10th.
J.D. Davis was 3x6 with an RBI; Chase McDonals was 3x5 with two doubles and 2RBI; Brett Phillips had a triple, homer, and 4RBI; Mott Hyde, Alfredo Gonzalez (2BB, RBI), and Brian Holberton (3B, BB, RBI) added two hits. A.J. Reed had a hit and a walk; Jack Mayfield hit his 6th homer of the year, and Ronnie Mitchell hit his 5th homer of the year.
Man of the Match: Brett Phillips
Quad Cities (39-19)
Quad Cities took a 2-0 lead in the 1st then allowed seven unanswered runs in what became a 12-5 loss to Lansing. Austin Chrismon pitched 2.2IP, 1H/1ER, 1K:0BB; Ryan Thompson allowed 4H/3ER, 2K:0BB in 1.1IP; Jorge Perez allowed 7H/8ER, 2K:5BB in a rough 3.1IP, and Aaron Greenwood struck out one in 1.2IP of scoreless relief.
Jacob Nottingham was 2x5 with a double and an RBI; Jason Martin had a hit, walk, and one RBI; Alex Hernandez was 1x2 with two walks and a stolen base; Ryan Bottger was 1x2 with a walk and 2RBI. Jamie Ritchie was 0x3 with 2BB.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
Thursday, June 4, 2015
PreStros Morning Report: June 3
TL;DR
*Org goes 3-0 on the day; cumulative 131-78 record
*Brady Rodgers threw 7IP and L.J. Hoes had three hits and three stolen bases in a 4-1 Fresno win.
*Mark Appel threw 5IP, 2H/0ER, 3K:0BB as Corpus pieced together enough singles for a 3-2 win.
*Jacob Nottingham hit three doubles and Quad Cities' three homers result in an 8-1 win.
Fresno (31-22)
Colorado Springs got on the board first, taking a 1-0 lead in the 3rd, but Fresno scored four unanswered runs to win 4-1 on the road. Brady Rodgers threw a strong game, allowing just 5H/1ER, 2K:0BB in 7IP; Mitch Lambson allowed a hit in 0.1IP, and Jason Stoffel finished off the 8th inning. Kevin Chapman gave up a hit and a walk, but struck out two to get his 5th save of the season.
L.J. Hoes was 3x5 with three stolen bases; Carlos Correa was 2x3 with a double, two walks, and an RBI; Robbie Grossman (2B, BB) and Matt Duffy (3B, RBI) had two hits each. Jon Singleton was 1x4 with an RBI and a walk.
Man of the Match: L.J. Hoes
Corpus (35-16)
In what might be his best start of the season, Mark Appel and the Hooks come away with a 3-2 win over NW Arkansas. Appel threw 82 pitches in 5IP, allowing 2H/1R (0ER), 3K:0BB. Kyle Westwood allowed 2H/0ER, 2K:0BB in 3IP, and Jandel Gustave gave up 2H/1R (0ER), 1K:0BB in the 9th.
Teoscar Hernandez and Andrew Aplin each had two hits, Tyler White had a hit and drew two walks; Tony Kemp and Colin Moran (RBI) each had a hit and a walk. Conrad Gregor and Jio Mier added RsBI. All eight hits were singles.
Man of the Match: Mark Appel
Lancaster (28-24)
Off.
Quad Cities (37-16)
Quad Cities had a 5-0 lead before West Michigan even got on the board, cruising to an 8-1 win. Jorge Perez threw 5IP, 6H/0ER, 5K:3BB and Austin Chrismon threw 4IP, 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB.
Jacob Nottingham was 3x4 with three doubles and 2RBI; Kristian Trompiz was 2x3 with a double and 2RBI; Jason Martin, Alex Hernandez (2RBI) and Ramon Laureano all hit homers.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham. The 20-year old catcher is hitting .338/.395/.592 for the River Bandits this season.
*Org goes 3-0 on the day; cumulative 131-78 record
*Brady Rodgers threw 7IP and L.J. Hoes had three hits and three stolen bases in a 4-1 Fresno win.
*Mark Appel threw 5IP, 2H/0ER, 3K:0BB as Corpus pieced together enough singles for a 3-2 win.
*Jacob Nottingham hit three doubles and Quad Cities' three homers result in an 8-1 win.
Fresno (31-22)
Colorado Springs got on the board first, taking a 1-0 lead in the 3rd, but Fresno scored four unanswered runs to win 4-1 on the road. Brady Rodgers threw a strong game, allowing just 5H/1ER, 2K:0BB in 7IP; Mitch Lambson allowed a hit in 0.1IP, and Jason Stoffel finished off the 8th inning. Kevin Chapman gave up a hit and a walk, but struck out two to get his 5th save of the season.
L.J. Hoes was 3x5 with three stolen bases; Carlos Correa was 2x3 with a double, two walks, and an RBI; Robbie Grossman (2B, BB) and Matt Duffy (3B, RBI) had two hits each. Jon Singleton was 1x4 with an RBI and a walk.
Man of the Match: L.J. Hoes
Corpus (35-16)
In what might be his best start of the season, Mark Appel and the Hooks come away with a 3-2 win over NW Arkansas. Appel threw 82 pitches in 5IP, allowing 2H/1R (0ER), 3K:0BB. Kyle Westwood allowed 2H/0ER, 2K:0BB in 3IP, and Jandel Gustave gave up 2H/1R (0ER), 1K:0BB in the 9th.
Teoscar Hernandez and Andrew Aplin each had two hits, Tyler White had a hit and drew two walks; Tony Kemp and Colin Moran (RBI) each had a hit and a walk. Conrad Gregor and Jio Mier added RsBI. All eight hits were singles.
Man of the Match: Mark Appel
Lancaster (28-24)
Off.
Quad Cities (37-16)
Quad Cities had a 5-0 lead before West Michigan even got on the board, cruising to an 8-1 win. Jorge Perez threw 5IP, 6H/0ER, 5K:3BB and Austin Chrismon threw 4IP, 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB.
Jacob Nottingham was 3x4 with three doubles and 2RBI; Kristian Trompiz was 2x3 with a double and 2RBI; Jason Martin, Alex Hernandez (2RBI) and Ramon Laureano all hit homers.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham. The 20-year old catcher is hitting .338/.395/.592 for the River Bandits this season.
Friday, May 22, 2015
State of the Astros: Catcher
Over the next several days/couple weeks, I'd like to take a position-by-position look at the Astros, getting a quick overview of the current starters, backups, and minor league players who could contribute this season.
Starter - Jason Castro
Castro is starting to make people think that his 2013 All-Star year may have been his career year, even though he's still just 27. Despite his batting average dropping from even last season's, he's actually made some improvements offensively. His walk rate is up about 2% while he's dramatically cut down on his strikeouts, cutting about 7.5% from last year. He's regained some of his pop and his .237 BABIP this year indicates his batting average could see a rebound. He's even seen a good bump in his caught stealing rate, to the point where he's been above average in 2015. Looking at the most widely used projection systems for the rest of the season Castro is trending towards being a 2-3 WAR player this year. That would make him a middle of the pack starting catcher.
Reasonable end of season projection ranges
AVG - .215-.240
OBP - .285-.315
SLG - .380-.410
Backup - Hank Conger
The trade for Conger still looks like a bit of a head scratcher. We all heard about his pitch framing prowess, but with his limited playing time so far I can't help but wonder how much good that's doing for the club. When you factor in that the Astros gave up Nick Tropeano, a young starter with potential who's turned in one strong start for the Angels this year, and Carlos Perez, a backup catcher who has held his own in the majors so far with almost as much playing time this year as Conger, this one is looking like a needless trade. As far as his performance, 41 plate appearances isn't enough to give us an indication of how he'll perform over a season. His batting average is abysmal, but he's sporting a nearly 20% walk rate and two of his three hits have been home runs, so he's actually close to league average offensively in an extremely small sample size. His .176 BABIP indicates his average will come up, but his track record says his walk rate will come way down so his OBP probably is about right. Projections put him at a .5-1 WAR player by the end of the season, which is a small return for the above mentioned prospects.
Reasonable end of season projection ranges
AVG - .180-.230 (wide range due to small sample size so far)
OBP - .295-.330
SLG - .345-.375
Prospect - Max Stassi
We've heard for a couple years now that the front office thinks of Stassi as the "Catcher of the Future". Barring injury, I don't think he'll get any meaningful playing time until possibly September. Of course, if the Astros are still in the playoff hunt at that point in the year, even that may not happen. He's struggled quite a bit in AAA, especially so far this year, so the bloom may be off the rose with Max. So far this year he's striking out at a pace that would make Chris Carter proud. He's shown an ability to get hot fast in the past, albeit at AA, so I don't think it's quite time to give up on him yet, but this season is pivotal for him. But we'll always have the memory of him getting his first major league RBI by catching a pitch with his teeth.
Prospect - Jacob Nottingham
Nottingham has been creeping up the bottom of the Astros prospect lists the last couple seasons. He's expected to develop into a power hitter, though there's a little concern he may not stick behind the plate. After mixed results the last couple years with the Gulf Coast squad and in Greeneville, Nottingham is off to a strong start with Quad Cities, the best minor league team in baseball so far this year. He's cut down on his strikeouts and his power has been showing up more frequently, as he's currently sporting a .250 ISO, including six homers in 121 plate appearances. He's still a few years away, but behind Stassi he's the biggest hope at catcher down on the farm.
Prospect - Tyler Heineman
Heineman isn't appearing on many prospect lists, but this switch hitting catcher shouldn't be forgotten. In his second season at Corpus he's putting together a solid season. He doesn't look like a power guy, but he's been showing a solid ability to handle the strike zone with a solid walk rate and a very good strikeout rate (just 6.3% so far this year, 12 % last year). Defensively, he has a strong 43% caught stealing rate so far. He's not the kind of prospect you can dream on, but he could turn into a solid player.
Summary
Depending on the rest of Stassi's season, it looks like Castro is still the catcher of the next few seasons. He'll get more expensive as he works his way through his arbitration years, probably ending up around $8-10 million per season. If he can continue to produce between 2 and 3 WAR per year, that's about right. Conger is just as much of question mark as he was at the beginning of the year. Stassi may be playing his way out of his prospect status and Luhnow's Christmas card list and Nottingham is too far away to expect anything soon. I'd grade the Astros overall catcher situation as a C+.
Starter - Jason Castro
Castro is starting to make people think that his 2013 All-Star year may have been his career year, even though he's still just 27. Despite his batting average dropping from even last season's, he's actually made some improvements offensively. His walk rate is up about 2% while he's dramatically cut down on his strikeouts, cutting about 7.5% from last year. He's regained some of his pop and his .237 BABIP this year indicates his batting average could see a rebound. He's even seen a good bump in his caught stealing rate, to the point where he's been above average in 2015. Looking at the most widely used projection systems for the rest of the season Castro is trending towards being a 2-3 WAR player this year. That would make him a middle of the pack starting catcher.
Reasonable end of season projection ranges
AVG - .215-.240
OBP - .285-.315
SLG - .380-.410
Backup - Hank Conger
The trade for Conger still looks like a bit of a head scratcher. We all heard about his pitch framing prowess, but with his limited playing time so far I can't help but wonder how much good that's doing for the club. When you factor in that the Astros gave up Nick Tropeano, a young starter with potential who's turned in one strong start for the Angels this year, and Carlos Perez, a backup catcher who has held his own in the majors so far with almost as much playing time this year as Conger, this one is looking like a needless trade. As far as his performance, 41 plate appearances isn't enough to give us an indication of how he'll perform over a season. His batting average is abysmal, but he's sporting a nearly 20% walk rate and two of his three hits have been home runs, so he's actually close to league average offensively in an extremely small sample size. His .176 BABIP indicates his average will come up, but his track record says his walk rate will come way down so his OBP probably is about right. Projections put him at a .5-1 WAR player by the end of the season, which is a small return for the above mentioned prospects.
Reasonable end of season projection ranges
AVG - .180-.230 (wide range due to small sample size so far)
OBP - .295-.330
SLG - .345-.375
Prospect - Max Stassi
We've heard for a couple years now that the front office thinks of Stassi as the "Catcher of the Future". Barring injury, I don't think he'll get any meaningful playing time until possibly September. Of course, if the Astros are still in the playoff hunt at that point in the year, even that may not happen. He's struggled quite a bit in AAA, especially so far this year, so the bloom may be off the rose with Max. So far this year he's striking out at a pace that would make Chris Carter proud. He's shown an ability to get hot fast in the past, albeit at AA, so I don't think it's quite time to give up on him yet, but this season is pivotal for him. But we'll always have the memory of him getting his first major league RBI by catching a pitch with his teeth.
Prospect - Jacob Nottingham
Nottingham has been creeping up the bottom of the Astros prospect lists the last couple seasons. He's expected to develop into a power hitter, though there's a little concern he may not stick behind the plate. After mixed results the last couple years with the Gulf Coast squad and in Greeneville, Nottingham is off to a strong start with Quad Cities, the best minor league team in baseball so far this year. He's cut down on his strikeouts and his power has been showing up more frequently, as he's currently sporting a .250 ISO, including six homers in 121 plate appearances. He's still a few years away, but behind Stassi he's the biggest hope at catcher down on the farm.
Prospect - Tyler Heineman
Heineman isn't appearing on many prospect lists, but this switch hitting catcher shouldn't be forgotten. In his second season at Corpus he's putting together a solid season. He doesn't look like a power guy, but he's been showing a solid ability to handle the strike zone with a solid walk rate and a very good strikeout rate (just 6.3% so far this year, 12 % last year). Defensively, he has a strong 43% caught stealing rate so far. He's not the kind of prospect you can dream on, but he could turn into a solid player.
Summary
Depending on the rest of Stassi's season, it looks like Castro is still the catcher of the next few seasons. He'll get more expensive as he works his way through his arbitration years, probably ending up around $8-10 million per season. If he can continue to produce between 2 and 3 WAR per year, that's about right. Conger is just as much of question mark as he was at the beginning of the year. Stassi may be playing his way out of his prospect status and Luhnow's Christmas card list and Nottingham is too far away to expect anything soon. I'd grade the Astros overall catcher situation as a C+.
Thursday, May 14, 2015
PreStros Morning Report: May 13
TL;DR
*Org goes 3-0 on the day; cumulative 81-50 record
*Jon Singleton went off for a 4x6, 2HR, 10RBI game in a beatdown at Albuquerque.
*Strong pitching by Edison Frias and Brian Holmes gives Lancaster a 2-0 win
*Quad Cities overcame a 7-0 deficit and scored 15 of the next 16 runs in a 15-8 win over Beloit
Fresno (18-15)
Well well. Fresno had a 3-2 lead after one, a 9-2 lead after two, a 13-2 lead after three...and ended up putting a whoopin' on Albuquerque to the tune of 17-6. The Grizzlies did this on 12 hits and 13 walks aided by Jon Singleton's 2HR/10RBI night. Asher Wojciechowski threw 5IP, 8H/4ER, 6K:2BB; Jonas Dufek allowed 3H/2ER, 2K:2BB in 2IP; Tommy Shirley (1K) and Tyson Perez (2K) threw perfect innings in the 8th and 9th, respectively.
Jon Singleton's night:
1st PA: Two-run single to right (1x1, 2RBI)
2nd PA: Grand slam to right (2x2, 6RBI)
3rd PA: Two-run homer to center (3x3, 8RBI)
4th PA: Strikeout swinging (3x4, 8RBI)
5th PA: Two-run single to left (4x5, 10RBI)
6th PA: Lineout to right (4x6, 10RBI)
Singleton set a single-game franchise record for RBI, and was just one RBI short of Mike Moustakas' PCL record. Domingo Santana was 2x3 with 3BB; Joe Sclafani and L.J. Hoes each had a hit and three walks; Carlos Correa was 1x4 with a double, two walks, and three runs scored. Matt Dominguez was 2x6 with an RBI.
Man of the Match:Matt Dominguez Jon Singleton
Corpus (20-12)
Off
Lancaster (17-16)
A pair of one-run innings was all Lancaster needed to beat Visalia, 2-0. Edison Frias threw 5IP, 5H/0ER, 6K:2BB and Brian Holmes threw 4IP, 0H/0ER, 7K:0BB and faced the minimum 12 batters.
Danry Vasquez was 3x5 with a stolen base and an outfield assist; A.J. Reed was 1x4 with an RBI; Jack Mayfield, Jose Fernandez, and James Ramsay were each 1x3 with a walk.
Man of the Match: Brian Holmes
Quad Cities (26-7)
You see that a team is down 7-0 in the 2nd, and you don't expect much. The MLB win expectancy of a team in a similar situation is about 5.8%. But I guess when you have the best record in professional baseball, that doesn't bother you much. Beloit's 7-0 lead in the middle of the 2nd was 7-1, then 7-3, then 8-3, then a 5-run 4th and a 6-run 5th for Quad Cities put the game out of reach, and Quad Cities improves to 26-7 with a 15-8 win.
Keven Comer allowed 4H/5R (3ER), 0K:1BB in 0.2IP; Jose Montero allowed 4H/3ER (and two runs charged to Comer) in 2.2IP; Reymin Guduan struck out five in 2.2 scoreless innings; Keegan Yuhl threw 2IP, 1H/0ER, 3K:1BB and Ryan Thompson struck out two in the 9th.
Jacob Nottingham was 3x5 with a single, double, homer and 4RBI; Nick Tanielu was 3x5 with two doubles and two RBI; Jason Martin was 3x5 with two triples. Bobby Boyd was 2x3 with a double, walk, 2RBI, and an outfield assist. Ryan Bottger was 2x5 with a double and 2RBI; Mott Hyde was 1x3 with a walk and 3RBI.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
*Org goes 3-0 on the day; cumulative 81-50 record
*Jon Singleton went off for a 4x6, 2HR, 10RBI game in a beatdown at Albuquerque.
*Strong pitching by Edison Frias and Brian Holmes gives Lancaster a 2-0 win
*Quad Cities overcame a 7-0 deficit and scored 15 of the next 16 runs in a 15-8 win over Beloit
Fresno (18-15)
Well well. Fresno had a 3-2 lead after one, a 9-2 lead after two, a 13-2 lead after three...and ended up putting a whoopin' on Albuquerque to the tune of 17-6. The Grizzlies did this on 12 hits and 13 walks aided by Jon Singleton's 2HR/10RBI night. Asher Wojciechowski threw 5IP, 8H/4ER, 6K:2BB; Jonas Dufek allowed 3H/2ER, 2K:2BB in 2IP; Tommy Shirley (1K) and Tyson Perez (2K) threw perfect innings in the 8th and 9th, respectively.
Jon Singleton's night:
1st PA: Two-run single to right (1x1, 2RBI)
2nd PA: Grand slam to right (2x2, 6RBI)
3rd PA: Two-run homer to center (3x3, 8RBI)
4th PA: Strikeout swinging (3x4, 8RBI)
5th PA: Two-run single to left (4x5, 10RBI)
6th PA: Lineout to right (4x6, 10RBI)
Singleton set a single-game franchise record for RBI, and was just one RBI short of Mike Moustakas' PCL record. Domingo Santana was 2x3 with 3BB; Joe Sclafani and L.J. Hoes each had a hit and three walks; Carlos Correa was 1x4 with a double, two walks, and three runs scored. Matt Dominguez was 2x6 with an RBI.
Man of the Match:
Corpus (20-12)
Off
Lancaster (17-16)
A pair of one-run innings was all Lancaster needed to beat Visalia, 2-0. Edison Frias threw 5IP, 5H/0ER, 6K:2BB and Brian Holmes threw 4IP, 0H/0ER, 7K:0BB and faced the minimum 12 batters.
Danry Vasquez was 3x5 with a stolen base and an outfield assist; A.J. Reed was 1x4 with an RBI; Jack Mayfield, Jose Fernandez, and James Ramsay were each 1x3 with a walk.
Man of the Match: Brian Holmes
Quad Cities (26-7)
You see that a team is down 7-0 in the 2nd, and you don't expect much. The MLB win expectancy of a team in a similar situation is about 5.8%. But I guess when you have the best record in professional baseball, that doesn't bother you much. Beloit's 7-0 lead in the middle of the 2nd was 7-1, then 7-3, then 8-3, then a 5-run 4th and a 6-run 5th for Quad Cities put the game out of reach, and Quad Cities improves to 26-7 with a 15-8 win.
Keven Comer allowed 4H/5R (3ER), 0K:1BB in 0.2IP; Jose Montero allowed 4H/3ER (and two runs charged to Comer) in 2.2IP; Reymin Guduan struck out five in 2.2 scoreless innings; Keegan Yuhl threw 2IP, 1H/0ER, 3K:1BB and Ryan Thompson struck out two in the 9th.
Jacob Nottingham was 3x5 with a single, double, homer and 4RBI; Nick Tanielu was 3x5 with two doubles and two RBI; Jason Martin was 3x5 with two triples. Bobby Boyd was 2x3 with a double, walk, 2RBI, and an outfield assist. Ryan Bottger was 2x5 with a double and 2RBI; Mott Hyde was 1x3 with a walk and 3RBI.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
Sunday, May 10, 2015
PreStros Morning Report: May 9
TL;DR
*Org goes 3-1 on the day; cumulative 72-46 record
*Fresno couldn't overcome an early 5-0 deficit, lose 8-3.
*Corpus beat the dog crap out of San Antonio, 11-1, with Mark Appel throwing 5IP and giving up an unearned run.
*Bryan Radziewski and Joe Musgrove make their Lancaster debut and combine for 9IP, 5H/0ER, 11K:0BB
*Jacob Nottingham collects 5RBI as Quad Cities wins their 11th straight
Fresno (15-14)
Tacoma had already put five runs on the board by the time Fresno scored in the bottom of the 4th, so 8-3 loss for the Grizzlies. Tommy Shirley allowed 7H/5ER, 2K:0BB in 4IP; Jonas Dufek gave up 4H/3ER, 2K:0BB; Jason Stoffel (2K) and Tyson Perez (1H) each threw a scoreless inning.
Alex Presley was 2x4 with an RBI; L.J. Hoes (2B) and Jon Singleton (batting 5th) each had an RBI; Joe Sclafani, Domingo Santana, and Max Stassi added hits.
Man of the Match: Um. Alex Presley?
Corpus (18-11)
Well. A 2-0 Corpus lead in the 3rd turned into a 2-1 Corpus lead in the 5th, which turned into a 9-1 Corpus lead in the 6th, which turned into an 11-1 Corpus win over San Antonio. Mark Appel threw 5IP (38 of 58 pitches for strikes), allowing 8H/1R (0ER), 1K:1BB; Kyle Westwood threw the next 4IP, allowing just a hit. So Appel has thrown 26.2IP this season, allowing 30H/11ER, 19K:9BB, and has allowed 0-2 ER in three of his six starts.
Tyler White (2RBI) and Teoscar Hernandez (RBI) each went 3x5; Leo Heras (2RBI), Jio Mier (2B, 3B, 3RBI), and Carlos Correa (2B, RBI, SB) had two hits each. Jon Kemmer (outfield assist) and Roberto Pena (RBI) each had a hit and two walks.
Man of the Match: Mark Appel
Lancaster (15-15)
And the JetHawks claw their way back to .500 with a 3-1 win over Lake Elsinore. Recently promoted Bryan Radziewski made his Lancaster debut, throwing 5IP, 4H/1R (0ER), 5K:0BB and recently promoted Joe Musgrove made his Lancaster debut, throwing 4IP, 1H/0ER, 6K:0BB. So...that went well.
Danry Vasquez was 3x4 with a single, triple, homer, and 2RBI; J.D. Davis was 2x4; Brett Phillips, A.J. Reed (2B), Jack Mayfield (3B), and Alfredo Gonzalez added hits.
Man of the Match: Radziewski and Musgrove
Quad Cities (24-6)
Mark that as W11 in the streak column for Quad Cities who, at 24-6, have the best record in professional baseball. A pair of three-run innings gave the River Bandits a 6-3 win over Wisconsin. Austin Chrismon threw 5IP, 5H/1ER, 5K:0BB; Reymin Guduan (2IP, 1H/1ER, 2K:0BB) and Ryan Thompson (2IP, 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB) closed out the game.
Jacob Nottingham was 2x4 with a two-run triple and a three-run homer, giving him a 2x4, 5RBI day. Bobby Boyd, Derek Fisher (2B), and Sean McMullen added two hits each. Mott Hyde added an RBI.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
*Org goes 3-1 on the day; cumulative 72-46 record
*Fresno couldn't overcome an early 5-0 deficit, lose 8-3.
*Corpus beat the dog crap out of San Antonio, 11-1, with Mark Appel throwing 5IP and giving up an unearned run.
*Bryan Radziewski and Joe Musgrove make their Lancaster debut and combine for 9IP, 5H/0ER, 11K:0BB
*Jacob Nottingham collects 5RBI as Quad Cities wins their 11th straight
Fresno (15-14)
Tacoma had already put five runs on the board by the time Fresno scored in the bottom of the 4th, so 8-3 loss for the Grizzlies. Tommy Shirley allowed 7H/5ER, 2K:0BB in 4IP; Jonas Dufek gave up 4H/3ER, 2K:0BB; Jason Stoffel (2K) and Tyson Perez (1H) each threw a scoreless inning.
Alex Presley was 2x4 with an RBI; L.J. Hoes (2B) and Jon Singleton (batting 5th) each had an RBI; Joe Sclafani, Domingo Santana, and Max Stassi added hits.
Man of the Match: Um. Alex Presley?
Corpus (18-11)
Well. A 2-0 Corpus lead in the 3rd turned into a 2-1 Corpus lead in the 5th, which turned into a 9-1 Corpus lead in the 6th, which turned into an 11-1 Corpus win over San Antonio. Mark Appel threw 5IP (38 of 58 pitches for strikes), allowing 8H/1R (0ER), 1K:1BB; Kyle Westwood threw the next 4IP, allowing just a hit. So Appel has thrown 26.2IP this season, allowing 30H/11ER, 19K:9BB, and has allowed 0-2 ER in three of his six starts.
Tyler White (2RBI) and Teoscar Hernandez (RBI) each went 3x5; Leo Heras (2RBI), Jio Mier (2B, 3B, 3RBI), and Carlos Correa (2B, RBI, SB) had two hits each. Jon Kemmer (outfield assist) and Roberto Pena (RBI) each had a hit and two walks.
Man of the Match: Mark Appel
Lancaster (15-15)
And the JetHawks claw their way back to .500 with a 3-1 win over Lake Elsinore. Recently promoted Bryan Radziewski made his Lancaster debut, throwing 5IP, 4H/1R (0ER), 5K:0BB and recently promoted Joe Musgrove made his Lancaster debut, throwing 4IP, 1H/0ER, 6K:0BB. So...that went well.
Danry Vasquez was 3x4 with a single, triple, homer, and 2RBI; J.D. Davis was 2x4; Brett Phillips, A.J. Reed (2B), Jack Mayfield (3B), and Alfredo Gonzalez added hits.
Man of the Match: Radziewski and Musgrove
Quad Cities (24-6)
Mark that as W11 in the streak column for Quad Cities who, at 24-6, have the best record in professional baseball. A pair of three-run innings gave the River Bandits a 6-3 win over Wisconsin. Austin Chrismon threw 5IP, 5H/1ER, 5K:0BB; Reymin Guduan (2IP, 1H/1ER, 2K:0BB) and Ryan Thompson (2IP, 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB) closed out the game.
Jacob Nottingham was 2x4 with a two-run triple and a three-run homer, giving him a 2x4, 5RBI day. Bobby Boyd, Derek Fisher (2B), and Sean McMullen added two hits each. Mott Hyde added an RBI.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham
Monday, July 7, 2014
PreStros Morning Report: July 6
TL;DR
*Astros affiliates go 4-3 on the day; 213-192 composite record
*Robbie Grossman gets four hits, but homers do in Rudy Owens and the RedHawks
*Brady Rodgers throws five strong while Tony Kemp and Ruben Sosa combine for a 7x9, three triple day in a Corpus win.
*Two position players took the mound for Lancaster in a 17-4 blowout loss to Rancho Cucamonga.
*Quad Cities takes both games of a doubleheader behind Brett Phillips' walk-off grand slam.
*Ryan Bottger and J.D. Davis pace the ValleyCats in a big win at Lowell.
*Errors do in the Greeneville Astros in a loss to Bristol
Oklahoma City (47-44, 2.0 GB)
OKC scored in the bottom of the 1st and gave two runs back in the top of the 2nd. Then there was some trading runs in the 6th and 7th, but Iowa got the go-ahead run in the top of the 8th for a 5-4 win over OKC, with homers again from Kris Bryant and Javier Baez. Rudy Owens threw 6.1IP, 8H/4ER, 5K:0BB, 3HR allowed; Alex White took the loss with 4H/1ER, 2K:2BB in 2.2IP.
Robbie Grossman got 40% of the RedHawks' hits, going 4x5 with an RBI and two runs scored; Preston Tucker was 2x4 with an RBI, Austin Wates was 0x4 with a walk, two stolen bases, and an RBI. Ronny Torreyes was 1x3 with a double and two sac flies.
Man of the Match: Robbie Grossman.
Corpus (9-8, 2.0 GB; 43-44 overall)
Corpus jumped all over Tulsa, taking a 4-0 lead by the end of the 4th. Tulsa scored two in the top of the 6th, which Corpus answered by scoring three in the bottom half of the inning in a 7-2 win. Brady Rodgers was dominant, throwing 5IP, 2H/0ER, 1K:1BB and needing only 66 pitches to get through five. Luis Cruz allowed 4H/2ER, 2K:0BB in 4IP.
Tony Kemp continued his hot tear, going 4x5 with a triple, 2RBI, and two stolen bases (now hitting .400/.472/.622 in 11 games for Corpus). Ruben Sosa was 3x4 with two triples, an RBI, three runs scored, and a stolen base. Delino DeShields was 2x3 with an HBP, sac fly, and an RBI. Leo Heras was 1x3 with a walk and a stolen base. Telvin Nash hit his 11th homer of the season.
Man of the Match: Tony Kemp and Ruben Sosa
Lancaster (6-11, 9.0 GB; 50-37, 1.0 GB overall)
The JetHawks' second-half struggles continue with a 17-4 drubbing at the hands of Rancho Cucamonga, with Lancaster going down 9-0 before scoring their first run. Juan Minaya allowed 5H/1ER, 3K:4BB in 3IP; Pat Christensen gave up 10H/8R (5ER), 2K:0BB in 3IP; Jamaine Cotton gave up 6H/4ER, 3K:0BB in 2IP; catcher Jobduan Morales allowed 1H/4ER, 0K:4BB and didn't record an out before 2B Austin Elkins gets the final three outs while allowing just one hit.
Jack Mayfield was 2x4 with a triple, homer, and RBI; Jobduan Morales - in addition to pitching (poorly) - was 1x3 with a double and 2RBI; Conrad Gregor was 1x3 with a double; Teoscar Hernandez hit his 15th homer of the season.
Man of the Match: Jack Mayfield
Quad Cities (10-7, 2.5 GB; 45-41, 12.0 GB overall)
Saturday's game was rained out, so Quad Cities and Wisconsin played a doubleheader on Sunday.
Game 1: Quad Cities jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the 2nd and went on to win 5-0. Chris Lee gave up 5H/0ER, 1K:1BB in 6IP and Chris Cotton closed it out with 1IP, 0H/0ER, 0K:0BB. Chase McDonald was 2x3 with an RBI; Thomas Lindauer hit a three-run homer and drew a walk. Ronnie Mitchell was 1x3 with a triple. Jose Fernandez was 0x2 with a walk and two stolen bases.
Man of the Match: Chris Lee.
Game 2: DRAMA. Despite taking an early 1-0 lead, Wisconsin responded with four unanswered runs. Down 4-2 in the bottom of the 7th (minor-league doubleheaders are 7IP each), Dayne Parker, James Ramsay, and Marc Wik singled to load the bases for Brett Phillips...who hit a walk-off grand-slam in a 6-4 win. Jandel Gustave threw 3.1IP, 5H/3ER, 3K:2BB; Michael Feliz allowed 2H/1ER, 6K:1BB in 3.2IP.
Man of the Match: Brett Phillips
Tri-City (15-8, 4.0 up)
A pair of two-run innings for Tri-City started a day that ended with an 11-3 Tri-City win over Lowell. Luis Ordosgoitti threw 5IP, 4H/1ER, 4K:0BB, with 10 groundball outs and no flyball outs; Jose Musgrove allowed 3H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 2IP and Jordan Mills was charged with an unearned run with 2K in 2IP.
Ryan Bottger was 4x4 with two doubles, a homer, a walk, and 4RBI; Bobby Boyd was 3x4 with a walk and an RBI; J.D. Davis was 2x5 with a double, homer, and 5RBI; A.J. Reed, Terrell Joyce (2B, RBI), Jamie Ritchie (BB), and Mott Hyde (2B) had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Ryan Bottger
Greeneville (7-10, 4.5 GB)
Bristol got three runs in the top of the 1st, which is all they would need in a 4-2 win at Greeneville. Errors did in the Gastros, as Reymin Guduan is charged with four unearned runs, throwing 4IP, allowing three hits, with 6K:4BB. Robert Kahana and Zach Davis combined for 5IP of no-hit relief, striking out eight and walking two.
Jason Martin (3B) and Juan Santana provided your RBIs. Antonio Nunez was 1x3 (with two errors), and Jacob Nottingham was 1x4 with two pickoff throws.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham.
GCL Astros (6-8, 2GB)
Off.
*Astros affiliates go 4-3 on the day; 213-192 composite record
*Robbie Grossman gets four hits, but homers do in Rudy Owens and the RedHawks
*Brady Rodgers throws five strong while Tony Kemp and Ruben Sosa combine for a 7x9, three triple day in a Corpus win.
*Two position players took the mound for Lancaster in a 17-4 blowout loss to Rancho Cucamonga.
*Quad Cities takes both games of a doubleheader behind Brett Phillips' walk-off grand slam.
*Ryan Bottger and J.D. Davis pace the ValleyCats in a big win at Lowell.
*Errors do in the Greeneville Astros in a loss to Bristol
Oklahoma City (47-44, 2.0 GB)
OKC scored in the bottom of the 1st and gave two runs back in the top of the 2nd. Then there was some trading runs in the 6th and 7th, but Iowa got the go-ahead run in the top of the 8th for a 5-4 win over OKC, with homers again from Kris Bryant and Javier Baez. Rudy Owens threw 6.1IP, 8H/4ER, 5K:0BB, 3HR allowed; Alex White took the loss with 4H/1ER, 2K:2BB in 2.2IP.
Robbie Grossman got 40% of the RedHawks' hits, going 4x5 with an RBI and two runs scored; Preston Tucker was 2x4 with an RBI, Austin Wates was 0x4 with a walk, two stolen bases, and an RBI. Ronny Torreyes was 1x3 with a double and two sac flies.
Man of the Match: Robbie Grossman.
Corpus (9-8, 2.0 GB; 43-44 overall)
Corpus jumped all over Tulsa, taking a 4-0 lead by the end of the 4th. Tulsa scored two in the top of the 6th, which Corpus answered by scoring three in the bottom half of the inning in a 7-2 win. Brady Rodgers was dominant, throwing 5IP, 2H/0ER, 1K:1BB and needing only 66 pitches to get through five. Luis Cruz allowed 4H/2ER, 2K:0BB in 4IP.
Tony Kemp continued his hot tear, going 4x5 with a triple, 2RBI, and two stolen bases (now hitting .400/.472/.622 in 11 games for Corpus). Ruben Sosa was 3x4 with two triples, an RBI, three runs scored, and a stolen base. Delino DeShields was 2x3 with an HBP, sac fly, and an RBI. Leo Heras was 1x3 with a walk and a stolen base. Telvin Nash hit his 11th homer of the season.
Man of the Match: Tony Kemp and Ruben Sosa
Lancaster (6-11, 9.0 GB; 50-37, 1.0 GB overall)
The JetHawks' second-half struggles continue with a 17-4 drubbing at the hands of Rancho Cucamonga, with Lancaster going down 9-0 before scoring their first run. Juan Minaya allowed 5H/1ER, 3K:4BB in 3IP; Pat Christensen gave up 10H/8R (5ER), 2K:0BB in 3IP; Jamaine Cotton gave up 6H/4ER, 3K:0BB in 2IP; catcher Jobduan Morales allowed 1H/4ER, 0K:4BB and didn't record an out before 2B Austin Elkins gets the final three outs while allowing just one hit.
Jack Mayfield was 2x4 with a triple, homer, and RBI; Jobduan Morales - in addition to pitching (poorly) - was 1x3 with a double and 2RBI; Conrad Gregor was 1x3 with a double; Teoscar Hernandez hit his 15th homer of the season.
Man of the Match: Jack Mayfield
Quad Cities (10-7, 2.5 GB; 45-41, 12.0 GB overall)
Saturday's game was rained out, so Quad Cities and Wisconsin played a doubleheader on Sunday.
Game 1: Quad Cities jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the 2nd and went on to win 5-0. Chris Lee gave up 5H/0ER, 1K:1BB in 6IP and Chris Cotton closed it out with 1IP, 0H/0ER, 0K:0BB. Chase McDonald was 2x3 with an RBI; Thomas Lindauer hit a three-run homer and drew a walk. Ronnie Mitchell was 1x3 with a triple. Jose Fernandez was 0x2 with a walk and two stolen bases.
Man of the Match: Chris Lee.
Game 2: DRAMA. Despite taking an early 1-0 lead, Wisconsin responded with four unanswered runs. Down 4-2 in the bottom of the 7th (minor-league doubleheaders are 7IP each), Dayne Parker, James Ramsay, and Marc Wik singled to load the bases for Brett Phillips...who hit a walk-off grand-slam in a 6-4 win. Jandel Gustave threw 3.1IP, 5H/3ER, 3K:2BB; Michael Feliz allowed 2H/1ER, 6K:1BB in 3.2IP.
Man of the Match: Brett Phillips
Tri-City (15-8, 4.0 up)
A pair of two-run innings for Tri-City started a day that ended with an 11-3 Tri-City win over Lowell. Luis Ordosgoitti threw 5IP, 4H/1ER, 4K:0BB, with 10 groundball outs and no flyball outs; Jose Musgrove allowed 3H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 2IP and Jordan Mills was charged with an unearned run with 2K in 2IP.
Ryan Bottger was 4x4 with two doubles, a homer, a walk, and 4RBI; Bobby Boyd was 3x4 with a walk and an RBI; J.D. Davis was 2x5 with a double, homer, and 5RBI; A.J. Reed, Terrell Joyce (2B, RBI), Jamie Ritchie (BB), and Mott Hyde (2B) had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Ryan Bottger
Greeneville (7-10, 4.5 GB)
Bristol got three runs in the top of the 1st, which is all they would need in a 4-2 win at Greeneville. Errors did in the Gastros, as Reymin Guduan is charged with four unearned runs, throwing 4IP, allowing three hits, with 6K:4BB. Robert Kahana and Zach Davis combined for 5IP of no-hit relief, striking out eight and walking two.
Jason Martin (3B) and Juan Santana provided your RBIs. Antonio Nunez was 1x3 (with two errors), and Jacob Nottingham was 1x4 with two pickoff throws.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham.
GCL Astros (6-8, 2GB)
Off.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
PreStros Morning Report: June 26
Oklahoma City
Off.
Corpus (4-3), 0.5 GB (46-31 overall)
Jeebus. Corpus put up 13 runs to begin the game before Springfield got a token run in the 8th for a 13-1 win. Ruben Alaniz threw 6IP, 5H/0ER, 1K:2BB; Kenny Long allowed 4H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 2IP; and Carlos Quevedo allowed 1H/0ER in 1IP.
Okay. This starts with Max Stassi. He was 4x5 with a double, two homers (including a grand slam), eight RBI and three runs scored. He was 4x43 in June before tonight, with one extra-base hit and seven RBI. Jonathan Meyer (HR, BB, 2RBI), Zach Johnson, Michael Burgess (2B, HR), Jio Mier, and Drew Muren (SB, RBI, OF assist) had two hits each. Enrique Hernandez was 1x3 with 2BB.
Man of the Match: Max Stassi.
Lancaster (7-0), 2.0 up
Lancaster needed a 5-run 8th inning to provide insurance runs needed in an 11-7 win over Bakersfield to improve their 2nd Half record to 7-0.
Quad Cities (5-1), 1 GB (43-32 overall)
Peoria put up two in the 3rd, and while QC got one back, the Chiefs end up winning 3-1. Jordan Jankowski threw 5IP, 3H/2R (1ER), 5K:0BB; Mike Hauschild allowed 3H/1R (0ER), 3K:1BB and Gera Sanchez threw a perfect 8th.Tommy Shirley threw 4IP, 1H/0ER, 5K:2BB; Cameron Lamb allowed 3H/2ER without recording an out - Theron Geith threw a scoreless inning; Aaron West allowed 7H/5ER, 3K:0BB in 3IP; and Mike Dimock allowed 1H/0ER in 1IP.
Tyler Heineman was 3x5 with 2HR/5RBI; Andrew Aplin, Telvin Nash (2B, HR, RBI) and Chris Epps (HR/2RBI) had two hits each. Nolan Fontana drew two walks
Man of the Match: Tyler Heineman
Not that we would have known it from any of the Astros' intrepid reporters, but Carlos Correa appears to be fine, getting a hit and a walk; Austin Elkins also was 1x3 with a walk. Teoscar Hernandez had the lone RBI.
Man of the Match: Jordan Jankowski
Tri-City (8-2) 3.0 up
Tri-City had a 3-0 lead, Lowell tied it up, and the ValleyCats immediately retook a 3-run lead, going on to win 9-4. Randall Fant had a nice bounce-back start, giving up 5H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 4IP; Zach Morton allowed 3H/3R (1ER), 1K:3BB; Richard Rodriguez struck out three in 2.2IP and Chia-Jen Lo gave up a hit but struck out two more batters in the 9th.
Tony Kemp, James Ramsay (HR, BB, 3RBI - his first pro homer), Dan Gulbransen (2B, HR, 2RBI), and Ronnie Mitchell (2B, 2RBI) had two hits each; Conrad Gregor and Ryan Dineen had a hit and a walk.
Man of the Match: James Ramsay
Greeneville (2-5), 4.0 GB
Down 3-1 heading into the 8th, Greeneville fought back with a pair of two-run innings and a 5-3 win over Kingsport. Chris Lee allowed 5H/3ER, 2K:0BB; Krishawn Holley (2.1IP, 2K), Tyler Brunnemann (2K) and Gonzalo Sanudo (1K) each allowed a hit and no runs.
Alfredo Gonzalez had two hits and a stolen base. Tanner Mathis had a hit and a walk; Ariel Ovando was 1x4 with a 2-run homer in the 9th. Jack Mayfield hit his first pro homer.
Man of the Match: How about the .071-hitting Ariel Ovando?
GCL Astros (4-1), 1.5 up
The GCL Astros were trailing 4-1 heading into the bottom of the 8th, but got three in the 8th and one in the bottom of the 10th for a walk-off 5-4 win over the GCL Yankees. A rehabbing Joe Bircher allowed 4H/2ER, 0K:2BB in 1.2IP; Ambiorix De Leon allowed 7H/2ER, 1K:1BB; Raul Rivera gave up a hit in 2IP and Jose Montero allowed 2H/0ER in 2IP.
Javaris Reynolds (2RBI) provided the single that scored Yonathan Mejia for the walk-off run. Jason Martin (RBI), Tyler White (2B), Mejia, Jacob Nottingham (2B, BB, SB) and two hits each.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham.
Off.
Corpus (4-3), 0.5 GB (46-31 overall)
Jeebus. Corpus put up 13 runs to begin the game before Springfield got a token run in the 8th for a 13-1 win. Ruben Alaniz threw 6IP, 5H/0ER, 1K:2BB; Kenny Long allowed 4H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 2IP; and Carlos Quevedo allowed 1H/0ER in 1IP.
Okay. This starts with Max Stassi. He was 4x5 with a double, two homers (including a grand slam), eight RBI and three runs scored. He was 4x43 in June before tonight, with one extra-base hit and seven RBI. Jonathan Meyer (HR, BB, 2RBI), Zach Johnson, Michael Burgess (2B, HR), Jio Mier, and Drew Muren (SB, RBI, OF assist) had two hits each. Enrique Hernandez was 1x3 with 2BB.
Man of the Match: Max Stassi.
Lancaster (7-0), 2.0 up
Lancaster needed a 5-run 8th inning to provide insurance runs needed in an 11-7 win over Bakersfield to improve their 2nd Half record to 7-0.
Quad Cities (5-1), 1 GB (43-32 overall)
Peoria put up two in the 3rd, and while QC got one back, the Chiefs end up winning 3-1. Jordan Jankowski threw 5IP, 3H/2R (1ER), 5K:0BB; Mike Hauschild allowed 3H/1R (0ER), 3K:1BB and Gera Sanchez threw a perfect 8th.Tommy Shirley threw 4IP, 1H/0ER, 5K:2BB; Cameron Lamb allowed 3H/2ER without recording an out - Theron Geith threw a scoreless inning; Aaron West allowed 7H/5ER, 3K:0BB in 3IP; and Mike Dimock allowed 1H/0ER in 1IP.
Tyler Heineman was 3x5 with 2HR/5RBI; Andrew Aplin, Telvin Nash (2B, HR, RBI) and Chris Epps (HR/2RBI) had two hits each. Nolan Fontana drew two walks
Man of the Match: Tyler Heineman
Not that we would have known it from any of the Astros' intrepid reporters, but Carlos Correa appears to be fine, getting a hit and a walk; Austin Elkins also was 1x3 with a walk. Teoscar Hernandez had the lone RBI.
Man of the Match: Jordan Jankowski
Tri-City (8-2) 3.0 up
Tri-City had a 3-0 lead, Lowell tied it up, and the ValleyCats immediately retook a 3-run lead, going on to win 9-4. Randall Fant had a nice bounce-back start, giving up 5H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 4IP; Zach Morton allowed 3H/3R (1ER), 1K:3BB; Richard Rodriguez struck out three in 2.2IP and Chia-Jen Lo gave up a hit but struck out two more batters in the 9th.
Tony Kemp, James Ramsay (HR, BB, 3RBI - his first pro homer), Dan Gulbransen (2B, HR, 2RBI), and Ronnie Mitchell (2B, 2RBI) had two hits each; Conrad Gregor and Ryan Dineen had a hit and a walk.
Man of the Match: James Ramsay
Greeneville (2-5), 4.0 GB
Down 3-1 heading into the 8th, Greeneville fought back with a pair of two-run innings and a 5-3 win over Kingsport. Chris Lee allowed 5H/3ER, 2K:0BB; Krishawn Holley (2.1IP, 2K), Tyler Brunnemann (2K) and Gonzalo Sanudo (1K) each allowed a hit and no runs.
Alfredo Gonzalez had two hits and a stolen base. Tanner Mathis had a hit and a walk; Ariel Ovando was 1x4 with a 2-run homer in the 9th. Jack Mayfield hit his first pro homer.
Man of the Match: How about the .071-hitting Ariel Ovando?
GCL Astros (4-1), 1.5 up
The GCL Astros were trailing 4-1 heading into the bottom of the 8th, but got three in the 8th and one in the bottom of the 10th for a walk-off 5-4 win over the GCL Yankees. A rehabbing Joe Bircher allowed 4H/2ER, 0K:2BB in 1.2IP; Ambiorix De Leon allowed 7H/2ER, 1K:1BB; Raul Rivera gave up a hit in 2IP and Jose Montero allowed 2H/0ER in 2IP.
Javaris Reynolds (2RBI) provided the single that scored Yonathan Mejia for the walk-off run. Jason Martin (RBI), Tyler White (2B), Mejia, Jacob Nottingham (2B, BB, SB) and two hits each.
Man of the Match: Jacob Nottingham.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Jacob Nottingham still deciding about signing
6th Round pick Jacob Nottingham's Twitter Bio says "Houston Astro." His hometown paper indicates that he's still a few days away from making a decision between the Astros and the University of Oklahoma.
I'm really excited. I'm not nervous about it. Either way, it's a win-win situation. I go to Houston and a great organization or I go to Oklahoma, which has a great baseball program...I really don't have (an answer) yet. We are still talking everything through. The pros and cons.
The Slot Value for the 167th overall pick is $270,200.
I'm really excited. I'm not nervous about it. Either way, it's a win-win situation. I go to Houston and a great organization or I go to Oklahoma, which has a great baseball program...I really don't have (an answer) yet. We are still talking everything through. The pros and cons.
The Slot Value for the 167th overall pick is $270,200.
Friday, June 7, 2013
2nd Day Draft Pick Reactions
Mark Appel, on the negotiations with the Astros:
Mr. Boras is my agent and he will handle negotiations. Obviously, I will be very involved. But I trust him, and he's done a great job so far.
On 3rd Round pick Kent Emanuel, Mike Elias said:
We liked that he's a crafty thrower. He's a pitchability left-hander that spots up his pitches. When you have a competitor like that, it checks off a lot of boxes.
Emanuel:
I don't know too much about the specifics of the franchise, but I'm sure I will soon. I'm going to do my research, that's for sure. I know they're an up-and-coming bunch that wants to win again badly.
4th Round pick Conrad Gregor on signing:
Right now, I'm undecided, but the next few weeks are about my teammates, getting to the College World Series. I'll make the decision with my family, because it's a big one.
Elias, on 5th Round pick Tony Kemp:
We loved Tony Kemp. The word 'sparkplug' is used quite a bit. He has a ferocious approach at the plate and treats at-bats like they're wars.
Elias, on 6th Round pick Jacob Nottingham:
We think he's a steal. We evaluated Jacob as a top-five-round talent, at minimum.
Elias, on 7th Round pick James Ramsay:
He turned into one of the most captivating leadoff guys in college baseball and was arguably the best center fielder in the country.
Elias, on 8th Round pick Jason Martin:
He's got what we call a very strong profile. He's left-handed, can run, hits for average and can defend. That's a leadoff hitter's tool set.
Elias, on 9th Round pick Brian Holberton, Elias said:
He's one of the guys who made (UNC's) lineup click. He has the power and the bat to slot anywhere in your order....What pushed him into our Top 10 rounds was that we saw him catch in the ACC Tournament, so we're going to try him out there. If that works out, we might really have something. He's just a solid ballplayer.
Elias, on 10th Round pick Austin Nicely, and his back injury last summer:
We're not really concerned about the injury. He's an athletic kid, and we saw him healthy at our player tryouts a few weeks ago. He impressed.
Mr. Boras is my agent and he will handle negotiations. Obviously, I will be very involved. But I trust him, and he's done a great job so far.
On 3rd Round pick Kent Emanuel, Mike Elias said:
We liked that he's a crafty thrower. He's a pitchability left-hander that spots up his pitches. When you have a competitor like that, it checks off a lot of boxes.
Emanuel:
I don't know too much about the specifics of the franchise, but I'm sure I will soon. I'm going to do my research, that's for sure. I know they're an up-and-coming bunch that wants to win again badly.
4th Round pick Conrad Gregor on signing:
Right now, I'm undecided, but the next few weeks are about my teammates, getting to the College World Series. I'll make the decision with my family, because it's a big one.
Elias, on 5th Round pick Tony Kemp:
We loved Tony Kemp. The word 'sparkplug' is used quite a bit. He has a ferocious approach at the plate and treats at-bats like they're wars.
Elias, on 6th Round pick Jacob Nottingham:
We think he's a steal. We evaluated Jacob as a top-five-round talent, at minimum.
Elias, on 7th Round pick James Ramsay:
He turned into one of the most captivating leadoff guys in college baseball and was arguably the best center fielder in the country.
Elias, on 8th Round pick Jason Martin:
He's got what we call a very strong profile. He's left-handed, can run, hits for average and can defend. That's a leadoff hitter's tool set.
Elias, on 9th Round pick Brian Holberton, Elias said:
He's one of the guys who made (UNC's) lineup click. He has the power and the bat to slot anywhere in your order....What pushed him into our Top 10 rounds was that we saw him catch in the ACC Tournament, so we're going to try him out there. If that works out, we might really have something. He's just a solid ballplayer.
Elias, on 10th Round pick Austin Nicely, and his back injury last summer:
We're not really concerned about the injury. He's an athletic kid, and we saw him healthy at our player tryouts a few weeks ago. He impressed.
6-167: Jacob Nottingham
With the 1st pick of the 6th Round (167th overall), the Astros select 6'3" 200lb Jacob Nottingham, a right-handed hitting catcher from Redlands High School in California.
Nottingham was the Citrus Belt League MVP, hitting .543/.629 with 7 HR and 31 RBI in 70 AB.
Baseball America ranked him 114 in their Top 250 Draft Prospects. Jonathan Mayo had this to say:
"A two-sport standout for Redlands, Nottingham chose baseball over a scholarship offer to play tight end at Arizona. He is committed to Oklahoma for baseball, if he doesn’t sign with a Major League team after the Draft. Nottingham’s best asset is his power, which has the potential to develop into a plus tool. His swing has a tendency to get long, but he doesn’t get cheated at the plate. Defensively, he has the tools necessary to become a steady receiver and has a good arm. Nottingham is an aggressive player who has a good understanding for the game."
Perfect Game USA profiles him over here, and his scouting video is over here.
Nottingham was the Citrus Belt League MVP, hitting .543/.629 with 7 HR and 31 RBI in 70 AB.
Baseball America ranked him 114 in their Top 250 Draft Prospects. Jonathan Mayo had this to say:
"A two-sport standout for Redlands, Nottingham chose baseball over a scholarship offer to play tight end at Arizona. He is committed to Oklahoma for baseball, if he doesn’t sign with a Major League team after the Draft. Nottingham’s best asset is his power, which has the potential to develop into a plus tool. His swing has a tendency to get long, but he doesn’t get cheated at the plate. Defensively, he has the tools necessary to become a steady receiver and has a good arm. Nottingham is an aggressive player who has a good understanding for the game."
Perfect Game USA profiles him over here, and his scouting video is over here.
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