The Astros managed a sweep of the Lowly Seattle Mariners, 6-1. Houston is 53-32 with a 6.5-game lead. It's Houston's first three-game winning streak since June 2-4, when the Astros wrapped up a W5. The Astros are also 9-1 against Seattle this season, having gone 9-10 against the Mariners in 2018.
*On April 11 Seattle was 13-2. Houston was 8-5. Since:
Houston: 45-27
Seattle: 24-59.
You hate to see it.
*Division Leads as of July 1, previous years:
2019: 6.5
2018: 1.5
2017: 13.5
2016: -9.0
2015: 4.0
2014: -16.0
2013: -18.0
2012: -11.5
2011: -15.0
2010: -13.0
*Off-Day Playoff Odds
-FanGraphs (101-61): 98.7% to win the division, 32.4% to win the pennant, 19.8% to win the World Series
-FiveThirtyEight (100-62): 92% to win the division, 14% to win the World Series
-Baseball Prospectus (100-62): 97.6% to win the division, 20.1% to win the World Series
*Gerrit Cole had himself a day: 7IP, 5H/1ER, 10K:1BB. He has an AL-leading 161 strikeouts, and is nine strikeouts behind Max Scherzer for the MLB lead. Cole:
I just like to leave it out there. I just like to feel like I put in a good day's work. When you get that privilege to back out and you get the leash to go over 100 pitches you respect that. You respect the guys that have been battling for you for the previous seven innings to keep the score where it is.
Sign this man to a long-term deal.
Gerrit Cole, 10+ strikeout games, by year:
2013: 1
2014: 2
2015: 1
2016: 0
2017: 2
2018: 8
2019: 9
*Gerrit Cole gave up his 17th home run of 2019, 14 of them have been solo shots. Cole has given up 46 runs on the year, 40 of them earned. Nineteen of those runs have come on home runs (41.3%). Verlander has allowed 39 runs (38 earned) and 29 of those came off of home runs (74.4%). Hinch:
Crawford hit a ball that was arguably a ball out of the zone - upper 90s - for a homer and [Cole] settled in and was completely dominant. He executed almost flawlessly and finished his outing throwing 100. I run out of things to say about outings like this where he's in cruise control and he's executing.
*Josh James struck out the side in the 9th on 15 pitches.
*The Astros have now gone homer-less in back-to-back games for the first time since June 16/17. They were 0-2 in those games. They're now 5-17 in games where they do not hit a home run.
*Houston has gone eight straight games without striking out 10+ times. They're 5-3 in those games.
*Jose Altuve was 3x5 with an RBI. It's his 3rd 3-hit game of the year. He has gone six straight games without a GIDP. McTaggart notes that this was Altuve's 141st 3-hit game of his career, tying him with Jeff Bagwell for 2nd-most in franchise history. Craig Biggio had 225 3-hit games in his career [mind explodes]. We did not fully appreciate Craig Biggio.
*Yordan Alvarez returned to the lineup and went 2x3 with a walk, double and 3RBI. He has multi-hit games in six of the 15 complete games he has played. He has 21 RBI in 69 career PAs. Hinch:
He's a difference maker in the middle of the order when he gets pitches to hit and hits them hard. It's nice to have him back obviously. He's still not moving around great...but he made a huge impact today.
Yordan will be available off the bench in dumbass pitchers-hitting Colorado.
*Tyler White was 0x4 with 3Ks. He was 0x2 w/RISP, bringing his season total to 6x40 when batting with runners in scoring position - a .150 average. He has 15 RBI in 213 PAs in 2019.
*Max Stassi was 1x4 with a double. It's his 2nd extra-base hit of the season and his first since he hit a home run on April 20 against Southwest Texarkana.
*Myles Straw has played 12 complete games in 2019. He has gotten on base at least once in nine of those games.
*Brian McTaggart has your three takeaways from the Seattle series.
*Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, and Ryan Pressly were named to the All-Star Team, giving the Astros six representatives - most in the majors. It's the third year in a row that the Astros have had six All-Stars. Altuve will miss his first All-Star Game since 2013. It's Ryan Pressly's first All-Star nod.
*Cionel Perez went on the Minor-League IL on Sunday. So he, uh, obviously won't be starting on Tuesday at Colorado. Jose Urquidy, Corpus' Opening Day starter in 2019, is a candidate to start. Brutal to make your MLB debut at Coors Field, should that happen.
*Luhnow: Corbin Martin "isn't pitching anytime soon." He'll get a second opinion early this week.
*Kyle Tucker hit a Grand Slam in the 1st Inning and went 1x2 with 2BB in a 7-6 Round Rock win over Omaha. A.J. Reed (remember him?) was 3x4 with a home run and 2RBI. Felipe Paulino recorded his 3rd save, throwing 1IP, 2H/2ER, 1K:0BB.
*Bryan De La Cruz was 3x5 with a double, homer, and 3RBI in an 11-6 Corpus loss to Amarillo. Riley Ferrell threw the final 2IP, allowing 1H/0ER, 2K:0BB.
*Jake Adams hit a grand slam as part of a 5RBI day as Fayetteville beat Myrtle Beach 8-4.
*Sunday's Quad Cities game was suspended due to rain.
*Tri-City defeated Aberdeen 5-3 thanks to 3-hit games from A.J. Lee and Luis Santana, and 2-hit games from Andres Santana and Grae Kessinger.
*The Mets DFA'd Former Astros Great Carlos Gomez.
*On Bobby Bonilla Day, check out this 2015 article from Craig Calcaterra on the worst deferred-money contracts in baseball.
*Vice: The Chilling Mystery of High-Altitude Suicides.
*Bloomberg: A raging heroin addiction fueled a former Boeing engineer's year-long, 30-bank robbery spree.
*A Musical Selection:
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
Showing posts with label Jake Adams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jake Adams. Show all posts
Monday, July 1, 2019
Saturday, May 4, 2019
Saturday Morning Hot Links
The Astros were off last night. Last night was a Friday night. You have to go all the way back to September 1, 2017 to find a Friday night during the regular season that the Astros didn't play. There was a storm, or something. The Astros traded for Justin Verlander the night before so maybe that's what it was. Friday nights in May with no baseball should not happen. The next scheduled off-day is Thursday, May 16.
*I am lost. Let's do an off-day playoff odds check.
-FanGraphs (98-64): 95.8% to win AL West, 97.8% to make the playoffs, 21.4% to win the World Series.
-FiveThirtyEight (98-64): 84% to win AL West, 91% to make the playoffs, 18% to win the World Series.
-Baseball Prospectus (96-66): 93.4% to win AL West, 96.7% to make the playoffs, 20.8% to win the World Series. (note this site had not updated since Friday morning as of 6:57am on Saturday).
*Brian McTaggart has your Mexico Series FAQ. There is rain in the Monterrey forecast for both Saturday and Sunday.
*From Chandler Rome: Roberto Osuna remains a polarizing figure for the Astros. Stay for the part where Luhnow addresses for the "communication strategy" of the team's Zero Tolerance Policy and read about the organization's efforts to support victims of domestic violence.
*Derek Fisher will be the 26th Man on the roster for the Astros' series against the Angels in Monterrey.
*Two nights ago Kyle Tucker was *wink* a triple shy of the cycle in a 6RBI performance, and has hit five home runs in his last eight games. Click the link to make the shocking discovery that there's more to talent than Batting Average. Round Rock hitting coach Ben Rosenthal:
It's what we all know he is capable of on a regular basis...It's definitely impressive, especially when he keeps it simple and squares up a plus fastball.
*Make sure you take a look at Jeff Blogwell's new series: Commercial Critiques.
*Corey Kluber is going to be out for a while.
*Chicago's Kyle Hendricks threw an 81-pitch CGSHO. Fewest pitches in a CGSHO since 2012.
*Buster Olney: Madison Bumgarner is back, imagine what he could do in a pennant race. [casts eyes towards Minute Maid Park]
*With all the hand-wringing about attendance in baseball (check this picture from the last play of the Arlington game last night), the Astros are 4th in the AL in home attendance, at 422,112 fans per game. Since the Astros have only played two games at home this season, that's 211,056 fans per game. Wait, it's 32,470 fans per home game, down from the 36,796 the 2018 Astros averaged. Probably because of all the giveaways.
*The ties between the Kentucky Derby and the Bourbon Boom. Like anyone needed a horse to find out that Bourbon is actually magic.
*Five years after the passing of Tony Gwynn, his legacy lives on. I worked at the Baseball Hall of Fame from 2006-2009. Tony Gwynn is legitimately the nicest player I met. I hope I can find the cigar box with our picture at some point.
*Shoutout to our friends at Bravado Spice, sponsors of the wildly popular podcast that all the cool kids who wear denim jackets and smoke cigarettes listen to - Lima Time Time, who will have their amazing sauces in Bed, Bath, and Beyond.
*I am 100% pro-Tim Anderson.
*NY Times: "Someone is always trying to kill you."
*There aren't many writers whose every word I will absolutely consume, especially sports writers. Wright Thompson is the exception. Here are his words on Liverpool.
*The Outline: You can't beat an unwinnable game, but you can break it.
*A Musical Selection:
*I am lost. Let's do an off-day playoff odds check.
-FanGraphs (98-64): 95.8% to win AL West, 97.8% to make the playoffs, 21.4% to win the World Series.
-FiveThirtyEight (98-64): 84% to win AL West, 91% to make the playoffs, 18% to win the World Series.
-Baseball Prospectus (96-66): 93.4% to win AL West, 96.7% to make the playoffs, 20.8% to win the World Series. (note this site had not updated since Friday morning as of 6:57am on Saturday).
*Brian McTaggart has your Mexico Series FAQ. There is rain in the Monterrey forecast for both Saturday and Sunday.
*From Chandler Rome: Roberto Osuna remains a polarizing figure for the Astros. Stay for the part where Luhnow addresses for the "communication strategy" of the team's Zero Tolerance Policy and read about the organization's efforts to support victims of domestic violence.
*Derek Fisher will be the 26th Man on the roster for the Astros' series against the Angels in Monterrey.
*Two nights ago Kyle Tucker was *wink* a triple shy of the cycle in a 6RBI performance, and has hit five home runs in his last eight games. Click the link to make the shocking discovery that there's more to talent than Batting Average. Round Rock hitting coach Ben Rosenthal:
It's what we all know he is capable of on a regular basis...It's definitely impressive, especially when he keeps it simple and squares up a plus fastball.
*Fayetteville's Jake Adams reflected on his last month, and the new Woodpeckers stadium.🤔🤔🤔 https://t.co/01OaUijVtz— Forrest Whitley (@ForrestWhitley) May 2, 2019
*Make sure you take a look at Jeff Blogwell's new series: Commercial Critiques.
*Corey Kluber is going to be out for a while.
*Chicago's Kyle Hendricks threw an 81-pitch CGSHO. Fewest pitches in a CGSHO since 2012.
*Buster Olney: Madison Bumgarner is back, imagine what he could do in a pennant race. [casts eyes towards Minute Maid Park]
*With all the hand-wringing about attendance in baseball (check this picture from the last play of the Arlington game last night), the Astros are 4th in the AL in home attendance, at 422,112 fans per game. Since the Astros have only played two games at home this season, that's 211,056 fans per game. Wait, it's 32,470 fans per home game, down from the 36,796 the 2018 Astros averaged. Probably because of all the giveaways.
*The ties between the Kentucky Derby and the Bourbon Boom. Like anyone needed a horse to find out that Bourbon is actually magic.
*Five years after the passing of Tony Gwynn, his legacy lives on. I worked at the Baseball Hall of Fame from 2006-2009. Tony Gwynn is legitimately the nicest player I met. I hope I can find the cigar box with our picture at some point.
*Shoutout to our friends at Bravado Spice, sponsors of the wildly popular podcast that all the cool kids who wear denim jackets and smoke cigarettes listen to - Lima Time Time, who will have their amazing sauces in Bed, Bath, and Beyond.
*I am 100% pro-Tim Anderson.
*NY Times: "Someone is always trying to kill you."
*There aren't many writers whose every word I will absolutely consume, especially sports writers. Wright Thompson is the exception. Here are his words on Liverpool.
*The Outline: You can't beat an unwinnable game, but you can break it.
*A Musical Selection:
Friday, April 5, 2019
Pre-Stros Report: April 4
Here's the rundown of the minor-league games for Minor-League Opening Night.
TL;DR: Affiliates went 3-0, outscoring their opponents 29-4.
-Round Rock was postponed
-Corpus' Jose Urquidy dealt
-Fayetteville's Jake Adams went off for 7RBI
-Quad Cities' Nivaldo Rodriguez dealt
Round Rock (0-0)
The season opener for Round Rock at New Orleans was postponed due to rain. Anti-climactic, huh?
Man of the Match: Bourbon Street
Corpus (1-0)
Corpus opened the season with a 5-2 home win over the Amarillo [squints] Sod...Poodles. Jose Hernandez-Urquidy threw 5IP, 0H/0ER, 7K:1BB. All of Amarillo's damage came against Hooks pitcher Gabriel Valdez, who allowed 2H/2ER, 1K:3BB, 1HR in 3IP. Colin McKee got the save with 1IP, 0H/0ER, 2K:2BB.
Steven Wrenn was 1x3 with a walk, stolen base, and a run scored. Osvaldo Duarte provided a 2-run homer in the 5th. Sluggers JJ Matijevic and Abraham Toro combined for a 1x8, 5K:0BB night.
Man of the Match: Jose Urquidy
Fayetteville (1-0)
Uh. Fayetteville, the Astros' High-A affiliate in the Carolina League playing their first game as the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, put up four in the 3rd and eight in the 4th, riding it out to a 15-0 win, allowing Potomac to get just one hit (with eight walks, but whatever). Cristian Javier threw 2IP, 0H/0ER, 4K:4BB, Carlos Sanabria had a similar 2IP, 0H/0ER, 2K:2BB outing. Parker Mushinski allowed 1H/0ER, 4K:2BB in 4IP and Tommy DuJuneas threw a hitless/walkless 9th.
Jake Adams led the way for the offense with a 4x6, 7RBI night, including a grand slam in the 4th. Bryan De La Cruz went 3x6. Jacob Meyers (BB, 2RBI), Corey Julks (BB, RBI), and Jonathan Arauz (BB) each had two hits. Mike Papierski was 2x3 with three walks. Alfredo Angarita went 1x4 with 3K:2BB.
Man of the Match: Jake Adams
Quad Cities (1-0)
The River Bandits hopped out to a 7-0 lead before Burlington got on the board, and finished it off with a rain-shortened season-opening 7-2 victory. Nivaldo Rodriguez threw 5IP, 1H/0ER, 8K:1BB. Shawn Dubin allowed 2H/2R (1ER), 3K:4BB in the final 2IP.
Ross Adolph went 2x4 with a walk and 4RBI, including a 2-run home run. Enmanuel Valdez, Jonathan Lacroix (RBI) and Scott Schreiber had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Nivaldo Rodriguez
Sunday, June 10, 2018
Sunday Morning Hot Links
So let me get this straight: the Astros can catch a few breaks and still win a 1-run game? Get out of here. Charlie Morton was almost literally all over the place and the Astros still won 4-3.
*Hector Rondon recorded his 2nd straight save while Ken Giles stayed in the outfield. Hinch:
Rondon's pitching really hot. Kenny's had a hard time having clean innings...I just wanted to get the outs and have the guys that have pitched a touched better in the game.
*Alex Bregman extended his on-base streak to 22 games. Since May 2 (34 games) Bregman is hitting .282/.386/.534.
*The Astros are 41-25, 5-12 in one-run games, and are percentage points behind Seattle for 1st place in the AL West. Houston has 44 of 66 games in which they've allowed three runs or fewer.
*No MLB team had ever walked ten batters and hit five more in the same game before last night.
*No MLB team had ever walked ten batters and hit five more in the same game before last night.
*Charlie Morton threw 3.2IP, 1H/2R (1ER), 4K:6BB, 4HBP. 47 of his 87 pitches were balls. The walks and the HBPs are a career-high. Morton:
I got away with not knowing where the ball was going. It was a pretty unprofessional outing, I think, bordering on embarrassing...Over the course of the past couple of weeks, my delivery has gotten a little out of whack. My timing has been a little out of whack. Tonight it was just really bad.
Morton walked five batters on April 24 against Anaheim. Prior to last night he had hit four batters all starts dating back to September 29, 2017.
Hinch:
I don't know if they had an inning where they didn't have runners on. It felt like there were runners all over the place for nine straight. We're happy on this side, because we got out of it.
Also Hinch, on Morton:
He just looked out of whack from the very beginning, delivery, timing, execution. He was doing things that he never does, hitting left-handers with back-foot breaking balls, misfiring on a lot of fastballs. Just the entire game was a fight for him within himself.
Charlie Morton of the @astros is the first pitcher with 4+ hit batters, 4+ walks and 4+ strikeouts in a game since April 18, 1913, when the Senators' Long Tom Hughes had 4 HBP, 5 BB and 9 K in a complete-game win against the Yankees.#NeverSettle— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) June 10, 2018
*Astros pitchers stranded 17 batters mainly through ten walks by last night's pitchers. The ten walks are the highest by Houston since they walked 13 batters in an 11-1 loss to Oakland on September 9, 2017. The last time the Astros walked 10+ batters and won was August 24, 2010, a 16-inning 4-2 win over the Phillies.
*Hector Rondon recorded his 2nd straight save while Ken Giles stayed in the outfield. Hinch:
Rondon's pitching really hot. Kenny's had a hard time having clean innings...I just wanted to get the outs and have the guys that have pitched a touched better in the game.
*The Rangers were 1x17 w/RISP, a statistic in which, were I on the other side, I would go absolutely insane.
Houston is now 1-5 when they walk 5+ batters.
*Alex Bregman extended his on-base streak to 22 games. Since May 2 (34 games) Bregman is hitting .282/.386/.534.
*Max Stassi hit his 6th home run - 466 feet - of the year. He and Tony Kemp combined for 3x7 with 0K:1BB. Stassi, who is hitting .378/.429/.644 against lefties this season:
I felt like I always had that kind of power, it just never would show up routinely, because my swing - I didn't make enough contact for it to actually show up. Finally now, I like where my swing's at and I have a chance to do that, show the power that I have.
*Jake Marisnick was 0x2 with 2Ks. That's 58 strikeouts in 122 PAs. In 2013 Chris Carter racked up the 4th-most strikeouts in a single season with 212. Through his first 122 PAs of the 2013 season, Chris Carter had struck out 50 times. Jake Marisnick is striking out at a faster rate than Chris Carter. Or let's look at single-season strikeout leader Mark Reynolds: He K'd 223 times in 2009. Through his first 122 PAs Reynolds had struck out 40 times. Obviously that K-rate increased as the season went on, but dear God.
Find yourself an employer who believes in you as much as A.J. Hinch believes in Jake Marisnick.
*Hinch said Correa may be available today and the Astros are "very confident" he'll play after tomorrow's off-day.
*Dallas Keuchel gets the start today in the four-game finale and, after reviewing video, Keuchel walked back his pitch-tipping theory. Hinch:
I don't know if there's anything specifically with Dallas, but if it's a concern of his we'll need to look into and further study, to see if there's a reality behind it.
*The Astros and 1-28 Seth Beer agreed to terms, and he'll be in Houston to sign his contract on Tuesday. Beer:
I'm excited to get out to Houston and see what's going on in the town. I've never been to Texas before but I'm really excited to make the journey out there.
*Oklahoma City scored the last three runs of the game to beat Fresno 4-2. Trent Thornton threw 7IP, 8H/3ER, 5K:1BB. A.J. Reed was 3x4 with his 13th home run of the season.
*Randy Cesar Watch: 1x5 night extends his hitting streak to 31 games.
*Buies Creek beat Down East 6-1, holding the Rangers' High-A affiliate to three hits. Jake Adams (6th Round - 2017) hit a pair of two-run home runs for his first two hits at High-A. Brandon Bielak threw 5IP, 2H/0ER, 5K:1BB.
*Quad Cities allowed five Peoria runs in the bottom of the 8th but still won 7-5. Patrick Sandoval threw 5IP, 3H/0ER, 7K:0BB. Cody Bohanek was 2x4 with a home run and 3RBI; Bryan De La Cruz was 3x5 with 2RBI.
*Interesting report in FRS that the Astros and Marlins almost had a deal to trade Mike F. Fiers to Miami at the 2016 deadline, but Giancarlo Stanton nixed it.
*This online betting site has the Lakers at +200 and Rockets at +220 to land Lebron.
*The USMNT's 1-1 draw against France shows hope for the future.
*Oklahoma City scored the last three runs of the game to beat Fresno 4-2. Trent Thornton threw 7IP, 8H/3ER, 5K:1BB. A.J. Reed was 3x4 with his 13th home run of the season.
*Randy Cesar Watch: 1x5 night extends his hitting streak to 31 games.
*Buies Creek beat Down East 6-1, holding the Rangers' High-A affiliate to three hits. Jake Adams (6th Round - 2017) hit a pair of two-run home runs for his first two hits at High-A. Brandon Bielak threw 5IP, 2H/0ER, 5K:1BB.
*Quad Cities allowed five Peoria runs in the bottom of the 8th but still won 7-5. Patrick Sandoval threw 5IP, 3H/0ER, 7K:0BB. Cody Bohanek was 2x4 with a home run and 3RBI; Bryan De La Cruz was 3x5 with 2RBI.
*Interesting report in FRS that the Astros and Marlins almost had a deal to trade Mike F. Fiers to Miami at the 2016 deadline, but Giancarlo Stanton nixed it.
Justin Verlander (Slider) winner by KO over Rougned Odor. 🥊 pic.twitter.com/YdPkmnR79o— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 9, 2018
*This online betting site has the Lakers at +200 and Rockets at +220 to land Lebron.
*The USMNT's 1-1 draw against France shows hope for the future.
Wednesday, June 14, 2017
Wednesday Morning Hot Links
*Despite a good outing on short rest, the Astros lost 4-2 to the South Denton Rangers thanks to another shaky bullpen and a lack of offense. Brad Peacock - starting on three days' rest - threw 4.2IP, allowing 2H/1ER, 10K:4BB. He's the first Astros pitcher to strike out 10 batters in fewer than 5IP.
Brad Peacock:
I felt great, to tell you the truth. I've got to find a way to get through the fifth inning. They got to me in the fifth. Hats off to them.
The 5th inning saw Peacock allow singles to Lucroy and Odor, a fielder's choice to Correa that didn't get anybody out loaded the bases before Peacock walked in the Rangers' 1st run of the game with two outs.
Hinch:
Peacock was exceptional. I thought he got a little unlucky at the end when a couple of calls didn't go his way. All-in-all, he had really good put-away pitches and did a really good job of getting to the middle part of the game.
*Unlucky at the end? You tell me:
Related: I hate CB Bucknor.
*And Rougned Odor hit home runs accounting for three runs in consecutive innings: 7-8. In his career against Houston (221 ABs) Odor is hitting .299/.345/.611 with 15 home runs. In 166 ABs versus Houston's RHPs he's hitting .355/.386/.729 (just .127/.226/.255 in 55 ABs vs Houston LHPs. So maybe let a lefty throw against Odor?) Since the beginning of the 2015 season, Odor leads the Majors in SLG vs. Houston (.640).
*Odor's first home run, a solo shot to tie the game in the 7th, came off Chris Devenski. Devenski has now allowed an earned run in consecutive outings for the first time this season.
*Pause, in order to remind you that the Astros are 44-22, have won 2/3 of their games, and still have an 11-game lead in the division. And are 6-3 against the Rangers.
*Odor's 2nd home run, an inning later, came off of Luke Gregerson. After allowing 5ER in the early May series against the Rangers, Gregerson had rattled off 13 appearances (13.1IP) with 10H/2ER, 18K:5BB. Lefties are hitting .283/.340/.652 - five home runs allowed in 50 Plate Appearances. Also worth noting that while Gregerson has allowed a .554 OPS on the road, he's allowing a .333/.394/.667 slash line at Minute Maid Park. Gregerson is having a hard time getting the bottom of the order out (with obvious small sample and BABIP alerts): the 8-spot has a 1.255 OPS while the 9-spot has a 1.181. Matter of fact, five spots in the batting order have an OPS of 1.000+ against Gregerson so far this season. In five games versus the Rangers (21 PAs), they are hitting .444/.524/1.056.
So just to recap: don't throw Gregerson at home, against lefties, or the Rangers. Gregerson:
I just tried to get a pitch in on him, and it just kind of ran across the plate, stayed up, he got me in the Crawford Boxes. It's probably not [out] in most other parks, but unfortunately, it is here.
*The bullpen has thrown 46.1IP in June, 2nd-most in the AL.
*The Astros got solo home runs from George Springer (his 18th), and Carlos Correa (his 12th). Springer is the 1st player since Brady Anderson (1996) to have seven leadoff homers through June 13.
*The Astros are 5-11 when collecting seven or fewer hits.
*Hinch, on Rangers starting pitcher Nick Martinez:
We couldn't find enough hits against Martinez. He did a really good job of moving his pitches around. Movement in his ball was moving down...It was not our night against him.
It hasn't been the Astros night a fair amount, lately.
*Josh Reddick is still going through concussion protocol. Hinch:
The reason we're not putting him on (the DL) right now is because there's a decent chance he'll be back in a few days as opposed to having to have him be out a week.
Related: Jeff Luhnow said Derek Fisher is ready for the Majors. Fisher is hitting .335/.401/.608 for Fresno this season. Now, to just find a spot for him...
WAIT. KHOU's Jason Bristol is saying the Astros will call up Fisher today.
*The Astros are being "very conservative" with Dallas Keuchel.
*Lance McCullers said his lower back is tight and stiff, and the DL is to help that and his arm.
*Corpus was swept by Midland and are eliminated from 1st Half title contention.
*Buies Creek put four players on the Carolina League All-Star roster: pitchers Franklin Perez, Nick Hernandez, Yoanys Quiala, and outfielder Myles Straw.
Draft Updates
*2nd Round pick Corbin Martin is pumped about getting drafted, but is focused on the College World Series and won't start negotiations until A&M's run is over. But:
I was more excited about the Astros picking me than where I got picked in the draft.
*75th overall pick JJ Matijevic, on getting drafted:
Just pure happiness. When it was called, everybody just went crazy...Tears. It was pretty awesome.
He'll sign, but it will come down to money:
I'm ready to go. They know I'm ready to go. We've just got to come to terms.
*The Astros are pretty excited about 6th Round pick Jake Adams' power. Mike Elias:
We think he's for real. If you dig up his junior college numbers, he hit a ton of home runs at that level, too. Our scouts liked him, and we're going to see if his power plays in professional baseball.
Great quote from Adams:
They have me at 6'2" 250, and they think I'm slow, but I'm actually 230 and can run pretty good.
*Adams will sign. His dad:
You know this is probably the best case scenario - you got to take, take the leap of faith and go.
*Check our quick write-ups on the draftees from yesterday:
3rd Round: Tyler Ivey
4th Round: Peter Solomon
5th Round: Nate Perry
6th Round: Jake Adams
7th Round: Parker Mushinski
8th Round: Corey Julks
9th Round: Mike Papierski
10th Round: Kyle Serrano
*Stay on top of the draft pick signings over here.
Brad Peacock:
I felt great, to tell you the truth. I've got to find a way to get through the fifth inning. They got to me in the fifth. Hats off to them.
The 5th inning saw Peacock allow singles to Lucroy and Odor, a fielder's choice to Correa that didn't get anybody out loaded the bases before Peacock walked in the Rangers' 1st run of the game with two outs.
Hinch:
Peacock was exceptional. I thought he got a little unlucky at the end when a couple of calls didn't go his way. All-in-all, he had really good put-away pitches and did a really good job of getting to the middle part of the game.
*Unlucky at the end? You tell me:
If I'm the Astros, I'm furious about it. pic.twitter.com/Opz5hSVSxU— Levi Weaver (@ThreeTwoEephus) June 14, 2017
Related: I hate CB Bucknor.
*And Rougned Odor hit home runs accounting for three runs in consecutive innings: 7-8. In his career against Houston (221 ABs) Odor is hitting .299/.345/.611 with 15 home runs. In 166 ABs versus Houston's RHPs he's hitting .355/.386/.729 (just .127/.226/.255 in 55 ABs vs Houston LHPs. So maybe let a lefty throw against Odor?) Since the beginning of the 2015 season, Odor leads the Majors in SLG vs. Houston (.640).
*Odor's first home run, a solo shot to tie the game in the 7th, came off Chris Devenski. Devenski has now allowed an earned run in consecutive outings for the first time this season.
*Pause, in order to remind you that the Astros are 44-22, have won 2/3 of their games, and still have an 11-game lead in the division. And are 6-3 against the Rangers.
*Odor's 2nd home run, an inning later, came off of Luke Gregerson. After allowing 5ER in the early May series against the Rangers, Gregerson had rattled off 13 appearances (13.1IP) with 10H/2ER, 18K:5BB. Lefties are hitting .283/.340/.652 - five home runs allowed in 50 Plate Appearances. Also worth noting that while Gregerson has allowed a .554 OPS on the road, he's allowing a .333/.394/.667 slash line at Minute Maid Park. Gregerson is having a hard time getting the bottom of the order out (with obvious small sample and BABIP alerts): the 8-spot has a 1.255 OPS while the 9-spot has a 1.181. Matter of fact, five spots in the batting order have an OPS of 1.000+ against Gregerson so far this season. In five games versus the Rangers (21 PAs), they are hitting .444/.524/1.056.
So just to recap: don't throw Gregerson at home, against lefties, or the Rangers. Gregerson:
I just tried to get a pitch in on him, and it just kind of ran across the plate, stayed up, he got me in the Crawford Boxes. It's probably not [out] in most other parks, but unfortunately, it is here.
*The bullpen has thrown 46.1IP in June, 2nd-most in the AL.
*The Astros got solo home runs from George Springer (his 18th), and Carlos Correa (his 12th). Springer is the 1st player since Brady Anderson (1996) to have seven leadoff homers through June 13.
*The Astros are 5-11 when collecting seven or fewer hits.
*Hinch, on Rangers starting pitcher Nick Martinez:
We couldn't find enough hits against Martinez. He did a really good job of moving his pitches around. Movement in his ball was moving down...It was not our night against him.
It hasn't been the Astros night a fair amount, lately.
*Josh Reddick is still going through concussion protocol. Hinch:
The reason we're not putting him on (the DL) right now is because there's a decent chance he'll be back in a few days as opposed to having to have him be out a week.
Related: Jeff Luhnow said Derek Fisher is ready for the Majors. Fisher is hitting .335/.401/.608 for Fresno this season. Now, to just find a spot for him...
WAIT. KHOU's Jason Bristol is saying the Astros will call up Fisher today.
*The Astros are being "very conservative" with Dallas Keuchel.
*Lance McCullers said his lower back is tight and stiff, and the DL is to help that and his arm.
*Corpus was swept by Midland and are eliminated from 1st Half title contention.
*Buies Creek put four players on the Carolina League All-Star roster: pitchers Franklin Perez, Nick Hernandez, Yoanys Quiala, and outfielder Myles Straw.
Draft Updates
*2nd Round pick Corbin Martin is pumped about getting drafted, but is focused on the College World Series and won't start negotiations until A&M's run is over. But:
I was more excited about the Astros picking me than where I got picked in the draft.
*75th overall pick JJ Matijevic, on getting drafted:
Just pure happiness. When it was called, everybody just went crazy...Tears. It was pretty awesome.
He'll sign, but it will come down to money:
I'm ready to go. They know I'm ready to go. We've just got to come to terms.
*The Astros are pretty excited about 6th Round pick Jake Adams' power. Mike Elias:
We think he's for real. If you dig up his junior college numbers, he hit a ton of home runs at that level, too. Our scouts liked him, and we're going to see if his power plays in professional baseball.
Great quote from Adams:
They have me at 6'2" 250, and they think I'm slow, but I'm actually 230 and can run pretty good.
*Adams will sign. His dad:
You know this is probably the best case scenario - you got to take, take the leap of faith and go.
*Check our quick write-ups on the draftees from yesterday:
3rd Round: Tyler Ivey
4th Round: Peter Solomon
5th Round: Nate Perry
6th Round: Jake Adams
7th Round: Parker Mushinski
8th Round: Corey Julks
9th Round: Mike Papierski
10th Round: Kyle Serrano
*Stay on top of the draft pick signings over here.
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
6-181: Jake Adams
With their 6th Round pick (181st overall) the Astros selected 6'3" 240lb (some say 6'2" 250lbs) first baseman Jake Adams, a junior out of the University of Iowa (moment of silence for Bo Porter).
Adams is a power-hitting 1B with questionable defense. He hit an NCAA-leading 29 home runs in 61 games to become the B1G Ten (did I do that right?) conference player of the year. This season he hit .335/.417/.747, 57K:29BB in 245 ABs.
Jim Callis:
This guy swings for the fences. When he connects, it goes a long way. There are going to be some questions. It's a long swing - how's that going to play when you're seeing 95mph when you get to the upper level of the minors? - and it's a bat-only guy. You'll try to play him at first - there's no real alternative - might be more of a DH.
Adams also was 3rd in the NCAA in total bases (183), 4th in SLG (.747), and 7th in RBIs (72). He led the B1G Ten in HR, RBI, SLG, Runs, and Total Bases. He had 27 multi-hit games in 2017. The 29 home runs are a B1G Ten record.
He's Iowa's highest-drafted player since 1999 (Wes Obermueller, 2nd Round). Adams told Mark Berman:
If you want to come out and see a home run, I'm the guy you want to come watch. Just excited to get in that organization and give Houston fans something to look forward to.
I love him already.
The slot for the 181st overall pick is $249,600.
Adams is a power-hitting 1B with questionable defense. He hit an NCAA-leading 29 home runs in 61 games to become the B1G Ten (did I do that right?) conference player of the year. This season he hit .335/.417/.747, 57K:29BB in 245 ABs.
Jim Callis:
This guy swings for the fences. When he connects, it goes a long way. There are going to be some questions. It's a long swing - how's that going to play when you're seeing 95mph when you get to the upper level of the minors? - and it's a bat-only guy. You'll try to play him at first - there's no real alternative - might be more of a DH.
Adams also was 3rd in the NCAA in total bases (183), 4th in SLG (.747), and 7th in RBIs (72). He led the B1G Ten in HR, RBI, SLG, Runs, and Total Bases. He had 27 multi-hit games in 2017. The 29 home runs are a B1G Ten record.
He's Iowa's highest-drafted player since 1999 (Wes Obermueller, 2nd Round). Adams told Mark Berman:
If you want to come out and see a home run, I'm the guy you want to come watch. Just excited to get in that organization and give Houston fans something to look forward to.
I love him already.
The slot for the 181st overall pick is $249,600.
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