Well that was less than ideal. The Astros took an improbable lead into the middle of the 9th and then Roberto Osuna gave it right back. More on him in a minute. The Astros' eight-game winning streak has been snapped. The Away Runs mean that Houston advances to play Chicago tomorrow, on aggregate. Houston is 77-41. There are 44 regular season games left. Oakland, Anaheim, and East Thurber all won. Houston's lead is an even ten games. They have won 18 of their last 22 games.
The Astros looked flat, which I guess can happen about 14 hours after you put 23 on a team.
Former Astros Greats did the damage on Sunday:
-Asher Wojciechowski: 6IP, 4H/3ER, 5K:3BB
-Jonathan Villar: 3x4 with a walk and a run scored.
-Rio Ruiz: 2x5, 2-run walkoff homer.
Good for all those guys, to be honest. It's been a hard year for Baltimore, and they had success the afternoon after getting absolutely trounced. If it gives them and their fans some happiness, then so be it. How many times from 2011-2013 did the Astros win a game they might not have been expected to win, and it just made us a little nicer to those around us?
*Hinch:
That was a winnable game. We didn't put probably enough pressure on them in enough innings. The big innings that we did have kind of put us in position to win the game.
*Justin Verlander was...decent. 5IP, 9H/4ER, 11K:1BB.
The strikeouts were there and should absolutely be acknowledged. He has 217 strikeouts this season, nine behind Gerrit Cole. The nine hits Verlander gave up are the most he has given up in a game since July 28, 2018 in a cursed loss to the Ramgers. Verlander:
When you're playing great baseball it seems like the losses even hurt that much more. We put ourselves in a position to win; our guys did a fantastic job battling back. Just one pitch early in the game, a couple pitches that I made that were mistakes. But I think sometimes you've got to look at the bigger picture and understand that we're playing good baseball. Don't let this be too much of a Debbie Downer.
Verlander also has 10+ strikeouts in five straight starts, setting a career-high (he had a streak of four in 2018). He joins Randy Johnson (Aug 28-Sept 18, 1998) and J.R. Richard (Sept 16, 1979-Apr 10, 1980) as the only Astros pitchers to strike out ten or more batters in five straight games. They each had 63K in their five starts. Verlander comes in at a scrub-level 57K in his five-start streak.
*Roberto Osuna. Hm. 0.2IP, 2H/3ER, 1K, 1HBP. The HBP to Chance Sisco (his 2nd HBP of the game, by the by. The Astros have hit the same guy twice in a game only one other time this season - Tampa's Joey Wendle, in the season opener).
Anyway, Osuna's HBP was the game-tying run, followed by Rio Ruiz who trotted across the plate after the walk-off, his 2nd home run in as many days against the Astros.
Maybe Osuna was protecting Bregman, who got drilled in the top of the back earlier in the game. But Osuna's had a rough go of it lately.
Osuna, beginning of season to May 24: 22.1IP, 8H/2ER, 21K:2BB, 0.81 ERA / 0.44 WHIP.
Osuna, May 25 - right this minute: 25IP, 27H/14ER, 28K:6BB, 5.04 ERA / 1.32 WHIP.
Osuna, since the All-Star Break: 10IP, 12H/8ER, 10K:2BB, 7.20 ERA / 1.40 WHIP.
Maybe it's regression, maybe his finger is off by a hot millimeter in his delivery. Intentional, or not, that HBP to Sisco was freaking stupid. It was more stupid than allowing the home run to Ruiz. Chance Sisco is the #7 hitter on a team 39 games under .500. He has a .734 OPS. There is no reason to try to be too fine with your pitch. There is no reason to hit him, even if it is to send a message. You won't see the Orioles again until 2020, so what message are you actually trying to send? Don't put an Astro on base? I think the rest of the league knows that. FOH, Osuna. Figure your crap out. Hinch even said: why would [they] hit someone in a 2-run game?
For what it's worth, Osuna said the HBP wasn't intentional:
Absolutely not. Like I said, I didn't have the stuff. I was wild. I missed a lot of pitches. Most of them were (not) in the location I wanted...It was one of those days.
-Jace Peterson hit a 1st-pitch double.
-Richie Martin got a 1-1 ground out in which Osuna's 1st pitch was a ball
-Chance Sisco took the 1-0 HBP
-Chris Davis hit a 1-0 sac fly
-Rio Ruiz started off 2-0, Osuna got him back to 2-2 before Ruiz fouled off two pitches and deposited the 7th pitch onto Eutaw Street.
Officially, Osuna threw a 1st-pitch strike to exactly zero of the five batters he faced. Osuna:
The guys did a great job coming back and get the lead and expected me to get the job done. Not being able to do that, it's a bad day.
Chirinos:
I'd say we went too many changeups there. That could be my fault. I thought we were going to get swing and miss against the changeup. Last one, it was more like middle in, and [Ruiz] put a good swing.
*Will Harris threw a perfect inning, and hasn't allowed a hit since July 26, 4.1IP, 0H/0ER, 5K:1BB. His ERA is 1.64. 136 relievers have thrown at least 40IP in MLB this season. Harris' ERA is the 4th-lowest of them all. Pressly's 1.99 ERA is 9th.
*Astros pitchers struck out 16 Orioles. It's the 64th game in which the pitching staff has gotten 10+ Ks. It's the 8th with 16+. This is insane.
*George Springer went 3x5 - his first 3-hit game since August 2. He had four hits in his previous five games combined.
*Carlos Correa hit another home run. It's the first time he's hit home runs in consecutive games since May 5-6. He has six home runs since returning from the IL.
*Alex Bregman was 0x2, but with 0K:2BB. He has struck out once in his last 43 PAs, going 30 PAs without a strikeout. His last strikeout was on August 2.
*Brad Peacock threw 0.1IP, 1H/0ER, 1K:1BB Saturday night for Round Rock, and told Hinch that it's "the best he's felt since he's been back on the mound."
*The Astros are not ruling out Forrest Whitley's 2019 Houston debut. Luhnow:
He would have to prove to us in August that he could help us, which is a high bar (because) he's not currently on the (40-man) roster. But I'm not going to rule it out, that's for sure.
Whitley, Saturday night: 3.2IP, 2H/3ER, 5K:5BB, 2HBP, 42 of 82 pitches for strikes.
*Baseball America: How do scouts evaluate Triple-A raw power given the bunny ball that is getting thrown there?
*Mental Floss: Whatever happened to the eight things that terrified us in the 1990s?
*Drew Magary: You're not sticking to sports when you Stick To Sports.
*A Musical Selection:
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
Showing posts with label Rio Ruiz. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rio Ruiz. Show all posts
Sunday, August 11, 2019
Saturday, June 8, 2019
Saturday Morning Hot Links
The Astros finally beat the Oriololololes in a game that was completely stupid and unnecessary. They won, so yay, but got dang. That game was dumb. Houston is 44-21, and the lead is back to 10 games over Arlington.
*Houston has an MLB-best 23-7 record over their last 30 games. They're 9-5 vs AL East teams in 2019. (Baltimore is 9-18 vs AL East teams in 2019).
*The Astros are 4-0 in extra-innings and 12-6 in 1-run games.
*Houston won their 2nd straight extra-inning game on a Maybe slide by Gurriel after Chirinos doubled in the bottom of the 11th. Hinch:
You can't really tell did Yuli touch the plate or not. Whatever he called was going to be the play that he saw. He's the closest guy there...it's a tough play and nearly impossible to be perfect. I'm still not sure what happened, but I like the ruling.
*Gerrit Cole threw a gem: 7IP 4H/3R (1ER), 14K:0BB. The 14Ks are the second-highest of his career (16Ks vs Arizona on May 4, 2018). He got a career-high 29 swings-and-misses. More on Cole's mean streak from the Chronicle here.
It's the fourth instance across MLB this season in which the starter struck out 14+ and didn't walk anybody (Chris Sale has done it twice, Shane Bieber did it for Cleveland, and now Cole). In three of the four instances in 2019, Baltimore has been on the Walking-Back-To-The-Dugout end.
It's the first start in his career in which Cole has had a 14K:0BB line. It's the 10th time he's had double-digit strikeouts and no walks.
*Gerrit Cole's 1st Innings this year:
-March 29 @ Tampa: 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB
-April 3 @ Arlington: 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB
-April 9 v. New York: 1H/1ER, 1K:0BB (1HR)
-April 14 @ Seattle: 1H/1ER, 2K:0BB (1HR)
-April 20 @ Arlington: 4H/5R (4ER) , 1K:2BB
-April 25 v Cleveland: 0H/0ER, 2K:2BB
-April 30 @ Minnesota: 0H/0ER, 0K:2BB
-May 6 v Kansas City: 0H/0ER, 1K:0BB
-May 11 v Arlington: 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB
-May 17 @ Boston: 1H/0ER, 1K:0BB
-May 22 v Chicago (AL): 0H/0ER, 1K:0BB
-May 27 v Chiacgo (NL) 1H/1ER, 2K:1BB (1HR)
-June 2 @ Oakland: 0H/0ER, 1K:2BB
-June 7 v Baltimore: 2H/3R (1ER), 2K:0BB, 1HBP
Mostly pretty good. A bad one against Arlington, somewhat inconsistent to set the table.
*Cole's 130 strikeouts lead the American League.
*Cionel Perez threw 3IP, 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB and got his first career MLB win. Good for Cionel Perez, good for Us. Hinch, on Perez:
It was a night where we needed Cionel. It was his game, and he was going to continue to pitch. He's had a rough season in Triple-A and strike-throwing has been an issue for him. He throws a ton of strikes and is really conservative with his pitch total - no hits, huge innings. Just an incredible night for him.
*From May 7-June 6 the Orioles' pitching staff had allowed 251 hits in 241.2IP, a 5.77 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. So of course the Astros got six hits in eleven innings.
*Top four in the lineup (Fisher-Bregman-Brantley-Gurriel) went for a combined 1x18 with two walks, both via Derek Fisher. Alex Bregman went 0x5 for the 7th time in his career, and the first time since March 31, 2018.
*Josh Reddick homered and stole a base in the same game for the first time since July 4, 2018. Tony Kemp homered into the upper deck, as well.
*Baltimore's Rio Ruiz plated the 2nd and 3rd Oriole runs. Why does that name sound familiar? Because the Astros picked Ruiz in the 4th Round of the legendary 2012 draft. Houston traded him to Atlanta as part of the deal that brought in Unconscionably-Unemployed Evan Gattis. The Braves waived him in December 2018, and Baltimore picked him up.
*A tranzaction as the Astros work to get healthy and also to not lose against horrible teams. Via McTaggart:
-Cionel Perez is up, Brady Rodgers was optioned back to Round Rock.
Hinch:
Fourteen innings will create a little urgency to mix things up and find a fresh arm. [Cionel Perez] has been here before, has been in the 'pen before and he's stretched out to help us as much as he can in a very tired and depleted bullpen after the road trip.
Rodgers made his 2019 debut on May 22 and threw 37 pitches. Then he didn't pitch again until June 4, where he threw a clean inning. And then he pitched on June 5 (the rough one against Seattle) where he threw 63 pitches. I don't know that 12 days off in between your 1st and 2nd outings are ideal, following by a 60+ pitch outing the next day. Tough situation for Brady Rodgers.
Meanwhile, Altuve, Springer, Diaz, Stassi, and McHugh could go on a rehab assignment by the end of the homestand.
*Framber Valdez gets the start tonight.
*Jose Urquidy threw 6IP, 3H/0ER, 8K:0BB as Round Rock beat Salt Lake City 10-0. Yordan Alvarez, who is still in Triple-A so he can work on his defense, got the start at DH and hit his 23rd home run of the year. Josh Rojas hit three doubles.
*Seth Beer hit his third home run of the season for Corpus last night.
*Fayetteville's Chad Donato threw 6IP, 2H/0ER, 4K:2BB.
*You hate to see it:
*Lance McCullers threw a no-hitter as himself on MLB The Show.
*Dallas Keuchel is now an Atlanta Brave and Former Astros Great Mike Foltynewicz (and Josh Hader) credit Keuchel for taking them under his wing. He'll make $4.9m less than he would have if he/Boras would have accepted the Qualifying Offer from the Astros.
*Seattle's Mitch Haniger was put on the IL after Thursday's game against Houston with...a ruptured testicle.
*Corpus' Abraham Toro gets a nice shoutout from Baseball America in their latest report.
*Math With Bad Drawings: Why Baseball Statistics Matter
*How John Smoltz went from a media darling to the topic of debate.
*Outside: A Supposedly Fun Thing I Might Do Again
*Check out this Texas Monthly interview with Shea Serrano, a Legit Legend.
*Deadspin's Laura Wagner: Competitive musical chairs is New York's friendliest sport.
*A Musical Selection:
*Houston has an MLB-best 23-7 record over their last 30 games. They're 9-5 vs AL East teams in 2019. (Baltimore is 9-18 vs AL East teams in 2019).
*The Astros are 4-0 in extra-innings and 12-6 in 1-run games.
*Houston won their 2nd straight extra-inning game on a Maybe slide by Gurriel after Chirinos doubled in the bottom of the 11th. Hinch:
You can't really tell did Yuli touch the plate or not. Whatever he called was going to be the play that he saw. He's the closest guy there...it's a tough play and nearly impossible to be perfect. I'm still not sure what happened, but I like the ruling.
*Gerrit Cole threw a gem: 7IP 4H/3R (1ER), 14K:0BB. The 14Ks are the second-highest of his career (16Ks vs Arizona on May 4, 2018). He got a career-high 29 swings-and-misses. More on Cole's mean streak from the Chronicle here.
It's the fourth instance across MLB this season in which the starter struck out 14+ and didn't walk anybody (Chris Sale has done it twice, Shane Bieber did it for Cleveland, and now Cole). In three of the four instances in 2019, Baltimore has been on the Walking-Back-To-The-Dugout end.
It's the first start in his career in which Cole has had a 14K:0BB line. It's the 10th time he's had double-digit strikeouts and no walks.
*Gerrit Cole's 1st Innings this year:
-March 29 @ Tampa: 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB
-April 3 @ Arlington: 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB
-April 9 v. New York: 1H/1ER, 1K:0BB (1HR)
-April 14 @ Seattle: 1H/1ER, 2K:0BB (1HR)
-April 20 @ Arlington: 4H/5R (4ER) , 1K:2BB
-April 25 v Cleveland: 0H/0ER, 2K:2BB
-April 30 @ Minnesota: 0H/0ER, 0K:2BB
-May 6 v Kansas City: 0H/0ER, 1K:0BB
-May 11 v Arlington: 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB
-May 17 @ Boston: 1H/0ER, 1K:0BB
-May 22 v Chicago (AL): 0H/0ER, 1K:0BB
-May 27 v Chiacgo (NL) 1H/1ER, 2K:1BB (1HR)
-June 2 @ Oakland: 0H/0ER, 1K:2BB
-June 7 v Baltimore: 2H/3R (1ER), 2K:0BB, 1HBP
Mostly pretty good. A bad one against Arlington, somewhat inconsistent to set the table.
*Cole's 130 strikeouts lead the American League.
*Cionel Perez threw 3IP, 0H/0ER, 2K:0BB and got his first career MLB win. Good for Cionel Perez, good for Us. Hinch, on Perez:
It was a night where we needed Cionel. It was his game, and he was going to continue to pitch. He's had a rough season in Triple-A and strike-throwing has been an issue for him. He throws a ton of strikes and is really conservative with his pitch total - no hits, huge innings. Just an incredible night for him.
*From May 7-June 6 the Orioles' pitching staff had allowed 251 hits in 241.2IP, a 5.77 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. So of course the Astros got six hits in eleven innings.
*Top four in the lineup (Fisher-Bregman-Brantley-Gurriel) went for a combined 1x18 with two walks, both via Derek Fisher. Alex Bregman went 0x5 for the 7th time in his career, and the first time since March 31, 2018.
*Josh Reddick homered and stole a base in the same game for the first time since July 4, 2018. Tony Kemp homered into the upper deck, as well.
*Baltimore's Rio Ruiz plated the 2nd and 3rd Oriole runs. Why does that name sound familiar? Because the Astros picked Ruiz in the 4th Round of the legendary 2012 draft. Houston traded him to Atlanta as part of the deal that brought in Unconscionably-Unemployed Evan Gattis. The Braves waived him in December 2018, and Baltimore picked him up.
*A tranzaction as the Astros work to get healthy and also to not lose against horrible teams. Via McTaggart:
-Cionel Perez is up, Brady Rodgers was optioned back to Round Rock.
Hinch:
Fourteen innings will create a little urgency to mix things up and find a fresh arm. [Cionel Perez] has been here before, has been in the 'pen before and he's stretched out to help us as much as he can in a very tired and depleted bullpen after the road trip.
Rodgers made his 2019 debut on May 22 and threw 37 pitches. Then he didn't pitch again until June 4, where he threw a clean inning. And then he pitched on June 5 (the rough one against Seattle) where he threw 63 pitches. I don't know that 12 days off in between your 1st and 2nd outings are ideal, following by a 60+ pitch outing the next day. Tough situation for Brady Rodgers.
Meanwhile, Altuve, Springer, Diaz, Stassi, and McHugh could go on a rehab assignment by the end of the homestand.
*Framber Valdez gets the start tonight.
*Jose Urquidy threw 6IP, 3H/0ER, 8K:0BB as Round Rock beat Salt Lake City 10-0. Yordan Alvarez, who is still in Triple-A so he can work on his defense, got the start at DH and hit his 23rd home run of the year. Josh Rojas hit three doubles.
*Seth Beer hit his third home run of the season for Corpus last night.
*Fayetteville's Chad Donato threw 6IP, 2H/0ER, 4K:2BB.
*You hate to see it:
The Seattle #Mariners, who opened with a 13-2 record, have since gone 13-38. The Houston #Astros, who opened with a 2-5 record, have since gone 41-16. That’s a 25-game gap in just two months for those counting.— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) June 7, 2019
*Lance McCullers threw a no-hitter as himself on MLB The Show.
*Dallas Keuchel is now an Atlanta Brave and Former Astros Great Mike Foltynewicz (and Josh Hader) credit Keuchel for taking them under his wing. He'll make $4.9m less than he would have if he/Boras would have accepted the Qualifying Offer from the Astros.
*Seattle's Mitch Haniger was put on the IL after Thursday's game against Houston with...a ruptured testicle.
*Corpus' Abraham Toro gets a nice shoutout from Baseball America in their latest report.
*Math With Bad Drawings: Why Baseball Statistics Matter
*How John Smoltz went from a media darling to the topic of debate.
*Outside: A Supposedly Fun Thing I Might Do Again
*Check out this Texas Monthly interview with Shea Serrano, a Legit Legend.
*Deadspin's Laura Wagner: Competitive musical chairs is New York's friendliest sport.
*A Musical Selection:
Friday, May 19, 2017
Friday Morning Hot Links
*Jake Kaplan writes that the Astros' hot start gives Luhnow some flexibility to wait and see what happens with the trade market.
*Lance McCullers and Jose Altuve teamed their charities up to help kids and dogs last night.
*Former Astros minor leaguer Rio Ruiz - sent to Atlanta in the Evan Gattis trade - has been called up to the Braves in the wake of Freddie Freeman's injury.
*Jon Heyman's long national nightmare is over: at long last Doug Fister (reportedly) has a job.
*Ah hell it's Jon Heyman's "Inside Baseball" notes column where he does...something. After reporting "sources" confirmed Ken Rosenthal's story from yesterday about the Astros' interest in Gerrit Cole (maybe Rosenthal's story WAS Heyman's source) Heyman drops this nugget:
Dallas Keuchel must have been less than 100 percent last year, a scout surmised, as he's back to Cy Young form. "His arm speed is quick again. Last year he was dragging his arm.
Stop the press: Dallas Keuchel was less than 100% last year? How could you tell? Was it his arm drag or his getting shut down for the final seven weeks of the season? This is truly an Inside Baseball note because only people with access to, say, the internet could have ever found Keuchel's repeated interviews on trying to pitch through shoulder soreness.
*Peter Gammons: Gerrit Cole is a depreciating asset for Pittsburgh.
*After the early returns said that the Rangers were trash, they won their 9th straight game last night. How worried should we be? Well, it is the Rangers after all, but let's remember they won at home against the Padres, Oakland, and Philadelphia - two rebuilding teams and one that is...well, I can't really figure out what the A's are doing. Today the Rangers start a nine-game stretch on the road (where they are 6-12) against the Tigers, Red Sox, and Blue Jays. There's a six-game road stretch in mid-June with the Nationals and Astros. Going 9-0 on a homestand against Not Great teams is a confidence-booster, I'm sure, and beating teams you're supposed to beat is required in a 162-game season, but let's see what happens next.
*Basically a quarter of the way through the season (I'm not using the horse racing term because I don't think I know what it means), and let's be clear IT IS ONLY MAY 19, let's check in with the Playoff Odds:
FanGraphs: 94% to win the division, 98% to make the playoffs.
Baseball Prospectus: 89.5% to win the division, 97.8% to make the playoffs
FiveThirtyEight: 83% to win the division, 94% to make the playoffs
*Speaking of FiveThirtyEight, here's Neil Paine on why the Orioles always outperform their statistical models.
*Meet Thomas Tull: Future baseball owner and apparently the world's nicest guy.
*Vice Sports: The new Tommy John surgery that could change baseball.
*Motherboard: A "hacker" exposed a Mexican drug lord, now he's trying to save his own life.
*Lance McCullers and Jose Altuve teamed their charities up to help kids and dogs last night.
*Former Astros minor leaguer Rio Ruiz - sent to Atlanta in the Evan Gattis trade - has been called up to the Braves in the wake of Freddie Freeman's injury.
*Jon Heyman's long national nightmare is over: at long last Doug Fister (reportedly) has a job.
*Ah hell it's Jon Heyman's "Inside Baseball" notes column where he does...something. After reporting "sources" confirmed Ken Rosenthal's story from yesterday about the Astros' interest in Gerrit Cole (maybe Rosenthal's story WAS Heyman's source) Heyman drops this nugget:
Dallas Keuchel must have been less than 100 percent last year, a scout surmised, as he's back to Cy Young form. "His arm speed is quick again. Last year he was dragging his arm.
Stop the press: Dallas Keuchel was less than 100% last year? How could you tell? Was it his arm drag or his getting shut down for the final seven weeks of the season? This is truly an Inside Baseball note because only people with access to, say, the internet could have ever found Keuchel's repeated interviews on trying to pitch through shoulder soreness.
*Peter Gammons: Gerrit Cole is a depreciating asset for Pittsburgh.
*After the early returns said that the Rangers were trash, they won their 9th straight game last night. How worried should we be? Well, it is the Rangers after all, but let's remember they won at home against the Padres, Oakland, and Philadelphia - two rebuilding teams and one that is...well, I can't really figure out what the A's are doing. Today the Rangers start a nine-game stretch on the road (where they are 6-12) against the Tigers, Red Sox, and Blue Jays. There's a six-game road stretch in mid-June with the Nationals and Astros. Going 9-0 on a homestand against Not Great teams is a confidence-booster, I'm sure, and beating teams you're supposed to beat is required in a 162-game season, but let's see what happens next.
*Basically a quarter of the way through the season (I'm not using the horse racing term because I don't think I know what it means), and let's be clear IT IS ONLY MAY 19, let's check in with the Playoff Odds:
FanGraphs: 94% to win the division, 98% to make the playoffs.
Baseball Prospectus: 89.5% to win the division, 97.8% to make the playoffs
FiveThirtyEight: 83% to win the division, 94% to make the playoffs
*Speaking of FiveThirtyEight, here's Neil Paine on why the Orioles always outperform their statistical models.
*Meet Thomas Tull: Future baseball owner and apparently the world's nicest guy.
*Vice Sports: The new Tommy John surgery that could change baseball.
*Motherboard: A "hacker" exposed a Mexican drug lord, now he's trying to save his own life.
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Tuesday Morning Hot Links
If you would like to join the Astros County Fitness Challenge, you can find information here.
Brian McTaggart has a couple of pieces on Astros.com that are perfect little fillers (and I don't mean that negatively).
*Carlos Beltran's 2004 trade to Houston set him up for millions of dollars in his career. He has made $185 million in his years in baseball following that 2004 postseason.
Biggio:
There's some guys who wear a Superman shirt, but he was Superman. Anybody that was part of it, that saw it, watched it -- every ball he hit was hard. Every out he made was hard. It was one of the most incredible hitting experiences I've seen in my life for that time of year and the numbers he threw up.
*Reid Ryan and nine of the Ryan family went to Zambia to open an orphanage in honor of the late wife of Round Rock's president.
*Jeff Bagwell is running at 93%, having appeared on 107 of 115 known HOF ballots (26.4% of estimated ballots). He has picked up eight of the needed 12 votes for election. Other candidates currently running over 75% include Tim Raines (91%) and Vlad Guerrero (75.7%).
*Collin McHugh discussed what the holidays mean to him in a Q&A.
*Former Astros prospect Rio Ruiz (part of the Evan Gattis trade with Atlanta) gave his dad a pretty cool Christmas gift.
*Former Astros on the move: Fernando Rodriguez has signed with the Cubs, Travis Blackley has signed with Detroit, former draft picks Brooks Conrad and Ruben Sosa have signed with Kansas City, former 2nd Round pick Andrew Thurman - who was released by the Braves last August - signed with the Dodgers, J.B. Shuck signed with Minnesota, Justin Ruggiano signed with San Francisco,
*Former Astros Great Doug Fister is still looking for a job.
*Buster Olney wrote (subscription required) that the haul Boston gave Chicago for Chris Sale pretty much shut the market on starting pitching, with everyone trying to replicate the trade.
*Over at BP, Russell Carleton has a great piece on getting a job in baseball.
*Deadspin: The worst sportswriting of 2016.
*A sportswriter's secret mission to save a Jewish family at the 1936 Olympics is a must-read/listen.
Brian McTaggart has a couple of pieces on Astros.com that are perfect little fillers (and I don't mean that negatively).
*Carlos Beltran's 2004 trade to Houston set him up for millions of dollars in his career. He has made $185 million in his years in baseball following that 2004 postseason.
Biggio:
There's some guys who wear a Superman shirt, but he was Superman. Anybody that was part of it, that saw it, watched it -- every ball he hit was hard. Every out he made was hard. It was one of the most incredible hitting experiences I've seen in my life for that time of year and the numbers he threw up.
*Reid Ryan and nine of the Ryan family went to Zambia to open an orphanage in honor of the late wife of Round Rock's president.
*Jeff Bagwell is running at 93%, having appeared on 107 of 115 known HOF ballots (26.4% of estimated ballots). He has picked up eight of the needed 12 votes for election. Other candidates currently running over 75% include Tim Raines (91%) and Vlad Guerrero (75.7%).
*Collin McHugh discussed what the holidays mean to him in a Q&A.
*Former Astros prospect Rio Ruiz (part of the Evan Gattis trade with Atlanta) gave his dad a pretty cool Christmas gift.
*Former Astros on the move: Fernando Rodriguez has signed with the Cubs, Travis Blackley has signed with Detroit, former draft picks Brooks Conrad and Ruben Sosa have signed with Kansas City, former 2nd Round pick Andrew Thurman - who was released by the Braves last August - signed with the Dodgers, J.B. Shuck signed with Minnesota, Justin Ruggiano signed with San Francisco,
*Former Astros Great Doug Fister is still looking for a job.
*Buster Olney wrote (subscription required) that the haul Boston gave Chicago for Chris Sale pretty much shut the market on starting pitching, with everyone trying to replicate the trade.
*Over at BP, Russell Carleton has a great piece on getting a job in baseball.
*Deadspin: The worst sportswriting of 2016.
*A sportswriter's secret mission to save a Jewish family at the 1936 Olympics is a must-read/listen.
Thursday, January 15, 2015
Astros' Acquisition of Evan Gattis Confirmed
(Not Hank) briefly reported earlier that the Astros had stealthily acquired Evan Gattis from the Braves. As a trade, it is entirely logical, and only required an 8 week incubation period for all parties to see sense, and consulate it. You may recall the Constable earlier reporting on a potential trade that seemed like Gattis-and-every-ugly-contract-in-the-Braves-organisation for all of Houston's top prospects, and cash. Or something. This trade seems fair, and much less one sided than the previous reports indicated.
After (Not Hank) reported the trade, he was careful to indicate that it had not been formally announced by the teams. There was supposedly a hold-up in the physicals - seemingly with Gattis' knee and back - but recently the trade has been officially announced. The Astros get Evan Gattis (with his 4 years of control, one at league minimum) and minor-league righty-reliever James Hoyt in exchange for the previously reported trio of Mike Foltynewicz, Rio Ruiz and Andrew Thurman.
And, apparently, not Chris Johnson and/or B.J. Upton. Hoo-ray!!
(Not Hank) earlier linked to a fabulous story about Evan Gattis, and how he nearly got lost on his way to the Bigs. The article also outlines his tools well - power and arm - and tells some great stories about how hard he hits baseballs. James Hoyt has a similar story - he was undrafted out of college, worked on yachts for a while, bounced around Indy Ball, then wound up in Mexico, where he was noticed by a Braves scout. At 27, and having spent his age-27 season in AA and AAA, he is certainly not on the normal developmental path, but he pumps gas in the mid-90's and apparently has a plus-slider. So he seems like a great lottery ticket to get as a throw-in for a trade of this magnitude.
But Gattis is the big piece here, and he is where this trade lives or dies. In one fell swoop, the Astros managed to patch one of their offensive Black Holes from 2014. Which hole, of course, is a potential bone of contention. He seems destined to start playing in Left Field. This would allow Singleton to have more development time at first, while providing insurance in case Singleton can't get his contact issues under control, and potentially forming the basics of a future platoon (with Carter mixed in there somewhere) with Singleton in case they want to sit him against lefties.
But, remember Gattis' other tool - his arm. One of the comments guys in (Not Hank)'s earlier article wondered about the possibility of a lash at third base, and this probably shouldn't be discounted. Dominguez will nearly certainly get a half-season or so to show what he has and potentially seal his place as a big-league player, but if he cannot make it all happen, the medium- or longer-term plan could well be to try Gattis at the hot corner.
And before y'all laugh (or wince, or cry, or whatever), part of the benefit of having a late-blooming bat without a position is the number of flexible options that are available. Which Jeff Sullivan points out in this post. According to Sullivan, the flexibility does not extend just to positions, but to various other permutations and combinations, including the possibility of future trades of Gattis, trades of other players, and so forth. With a very secretive Astros front office, who knows whether this trade exists as a one-off, or whether it is part of a Padres-style rebuild, where multiple prospects are combined to mail off to rebuilding teams in exchange for Major League pieces.
Anyhow, before we get too wordy, lets look at the pieces coming the way of the Astros. As mentioned above, James Hoyt is an older righty reliever with a fastball-slider combination. He finished 2014 in AAA Gwinnett in the International League with a 5.46 ERA over 24 appearances and 28 innings, sporting a 2.43 K/BB ratio. He was the most hittable in those 28 innings in AAA than before in his career by a long shot (12.2 H/9, next highest 8.2 in independant ball in 2011), and was also the most homer-prone (1.3 HR/9), again the highest of his career (1.0 HR/9, again in independent ball in 2011).
In between, he has been pretty decent for an older prospect - he finished 2013 in AA Mississippi for the first time, throwing 32.2 innings with a 2.48 ERA, 2.54 K/BB, 4.7 H/9 and 0.3 HR/9. Pretty decent figures - possibly prone to regression one would think - but then he backed that up with a better AA campaign in the early part of 2014: 1.14 ERA in 31.2IP, 4.3 K/BB, 5.4 H/9, 0.3 HR/9. His career K/9 is 11.7 against a 4.4 BB/9 (but that includes independent ball and the Mexican Leagues), with his AA figures the most impressive from a ratio perspective (10.6 K/9, 3.2 BB/9). These rates have been remarkably consistent across all levels.
But, of course, the prize of this deal is Evan Gattis, who is 28 and stands 6-4. His major league career triple-slash is a robust .253/.304/.487, and given his unusual path to the majors, it could be argued that he has not yet reached his ceiling. This argument would be advanced on the basis that he was working on ski-lifts rather than taking baseball hacks in cages for a few years, and therefore has seen less in the way of repetitions than most players his age.
Gattis possesses mild platoon splits (.241/.297/.469 against righties versus .295/.328/.548 against lefties), and interesting has played better at the Ted than on the road (.828 OPS versus .759). He also seems to hit better prior to the All Star Break (.888 first half OPS versus .675 second half), so again there is potential for improvement there. Time behind the dish will not help that much, but I doubt that the Astros plan to stash him there unless it is an emergency.
So I would think that the Astros see Gattis at worthy of acquiring not only because of his current play, but also because of what he may become if things all break right. His talent with the bat is undeniable, and if there is a controllable and available player in the Majors right now that sending away two legit prospects and a lottery ticket is worth a flier on, then Gattis is likely the guy.
But the major reason that I like this trade is what it represents. This is another sign that the Astros have moved on from the talent acquisition phase of the rebuild to the talent accumulation phase of the rebuild. This is now about trading multiple guys for talent - like they did with Fowler last year. Contrast this to the Red Sox, who have multiple useful slightly-above-replacement-level players, but nowhere to stash them all. They only have room for three outfielders, after all, and by my count, they have six or seven of them all likely to be needing at-bats in the upcoming season.
Finally, remember the ZiPS projection for the Astros in 2015?? There is one donut sitting there in left field, right beside Robbie Grossman's name. Well, scratch that out and put whatever projection you think Gattis will be worth this year. ZiPS says 2, Steamer says 1.2, but I am happy to take the "over" on both of those. Mostly, because neither Steamer nor ZiPS have seen an Evan Gattis before, and they are likely underselling him on the basis of his late arrival to professional baseball, and his likely move out from behind the plate.
Over the next few days, unless one of the other AC writers beats be to it, I may examine the guys going to Atlanta. But I also think that (Not Hank) covers that one really well, so I doubt I will add much insight to what he has already said. Which was: Folty seems hittable but has tools, Ruiz has hit but scouts see potential for problems, and Thurman looks like a throw-in at this point.
Feel free to discuss further below.
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Astros Get Gattis, Lose Folty, Ruiz and Thurman
The Astros of old, constantly trading away assets to stockpile depth, are done. The new Astros are using that depth to improve the big club. Unconfirmed reports are flying that the Astros are nearing a deal to bring Evan Gattis to Houston in exchange for Mike Foltynewicz, Rio Ruiz and Andrew Thurman.
Evan Gattis has a unique back story, which you can read here. He really brings one key asset to the team, and that is power. In his first two years in the majors, he has totaled 43 home runs, with a .487 slugging percentage and a .234 ISO. He played catcher the last two years, but the Astros obviously don't need anymore of those, so I expect he'll play LF/1B/DH. He certainly won't help the outfield defense, but the hope is he will hit well enough to make up for it. He certainly did in the first half of last year, putting up a .290/.342/.558 line, good for a 149 wRC+. He stumbled in the second half, but that could have been the result of some back troubles, which is hopefully behind him. Although he is the most established name in the deal, he is still under club control until 2019.
The Astros gave up...a lot. Mike Foltynewicz, Rio Ruiz and Andrew Thurman. I get the rational behind each, though. For as fast as Foltynewicz throws the ball, he has proven very hittable, with a 5.08 ERA in AAA and a 5.30 ERA as a reliever in the majors. The hope is that he can improve his secondary stuff and command, and become either a middle rotation starter or a shutdown reliever, but right now he is mostly just dreams. Rio Ruiz could end up being the biggest piece, as had a good showing at Hi-A last year. It's clear the Astros had him behind Moran, and he was most likely three years away. Still, if he lives up to his full potential, it could hurt. Andrew Thurman has been a major disappointment, but is still young enough to turn his career around.
If the Astros can find a position for Gattis and he puts up big offensive numbers in a park that seems perfect for him, this deal will be a positive for the Astros. They traded from areas of depth, and got back a major league asset. This, more that anything that has happened before it, signals that the Astros are entering a new phase of development. We will see whether Luhnow can pull of this stage over the next few years.
Friday, November 14, 2014
So what has been going on in Arizona* anyhow?
* - the Fall League, not the Winter Meetings...
The Astros contribute to the 35-man roster of the Salt River Rafters, along with the Marlins, the Twinkies, the and the Astros' two "interleague rival clubs", the Diamondbacks and the Rockies. Man, I bet all that rivalry makes for some tense bus trips to away games.
Anywho, despite all that tension between prospects that are forced to hate one another, the Salt River Rafters won the AFL East Division with a 17-11-4 record. There must have been something good about those bus trips, because they managed a 10-4 record on the road, and only managed a .500 record at home. They play the Championship Game tomorrow (Saturday) - against the Peoria Javelinas, who clinched the West in the last game of the season. I think it will be on the MLB network, and kicks off a 1pm MST, or 2 Central and 3 Eastern.
So lets have a look at how the Astros prospects went during the "regular" season of the AFL. And who knows - perhaps Cockroach or myself may whip together a game recap for the final. Stranger things have happened!
Mark Appel:
Warning: sarcasm ahead...
You may have heard of this guy. Former #1 pick, got lazy and out-of-shape, washed out of Lancaster, then went for a anti-baseball bullpen visit to MMP, which he TOTALLY didn't earn. After that, I blocked his name from my browser, so I have no idea how the rest of the season ended. I imagine he wound up in the GCL somewhere, trying to keep his ERA below 9.
/end sarcasm
Well, he had a pretty decent AFL. He garnered some attention - this time of the good sort! - over the seven starts that he made. Filthy slider!! His overall stats resulted in him throwing 31 innings, allowing 18 hits, 10 runs (9 earned) with one lone home run. He struck out 24, and walked 8.
Looking at the game log also gave cause for a little optimism. Four of his starts (17 innings) were scoreless. In those 17 innings, he allowed a total of 5 hits, 3 walks and 17 strikeouts. Those starts weren't all against patsies either - he beat the Scottsdale Scorpions (12-20-0), the Surprise Saguaros (16-15-1), the Mesa Solar Sox (15-14-2) and the AFL West-winning Peoria Javelinas (15-14-3).
The others starts were (obviously) worse, but he never allowed more than five hits (the shortest outing was 4 innings), and never walked more than three. He had a 6ER/5R outing against Scottsdale, where he gave up 5 hits, walked 3 and struck out 2. In the start before that, he gave up 3R/ER, 5 hits, 1 walk and three strikeouts against the Peoria Javelinas - his second start in a row against them - and in the last game of the season, he allowed 1 run on 3 hits and a walk. The final earned run came on a solo shot. So only one of the starts was a disaster, and even then, he only gave up one more hit than innings pitched in that start.
So a pretty good AFL for Appel, and he definitely could see Houston at some stage in 2015. His form may have factored into the Tropeano decision, which netted Houston "switch-hitting" Hank Conger.
Mitchell Lambson:
Lambson is a left handed reliever who spent the season between Lancaster and Corpus. He was taken in the 19th round of the 2011 draft out of Arizona State, so he should have been plenty familiar with the climate. His time in the Texas League was fairly strong, yielding a 1.36 ERA over 33 innings, striking out more than a batter an inning.
Lambson continued his solid year in the AFL, making 10 appearances, throwing 14-and-1/3 innings, and allowing 2 earned runs. That resulted in an ERA of 1.26. He struck out 17, and walked 7. One of his earned runs was via a solo home run.
Lambson certainly didn't hurt his stock in the AFL at all, and his IP per appearance logs indicate that he is more than a LOOGY. He will start the season in AA or AAA, and could potentially get a sniff at Houston late in 2015.
Tyson Perez:
Perez is a right handed reliever who also split the year between Lancaster and Corpus. Like Lambson, his showing in Corpus (ERA 2.09) was also better than in Lancaster (5.87).
Perez certainly didn't hurt his stock in the AFL either. Working as a reliever who threw multiple-innings on a number of occasions, he also appeared in 10 games, also throwing 14-and-1/3. He allowed 11 hits, struck out 11, and walked one. He allowed only 1 earned run, resulting in an ERA of 0.63. However, he also allowed 2 unearned runs on three hits in his last appearance of the year.
Prior to his last two appearances (where all three runs scored), he had allowed 6 hits in 11 innings, while striking out 10.
Perez turns 25 in December, so his time is soon. He also didn't hurt his chances to either sniff Houston in 2015, and will probably open the season at Fresno.
Vincent Velasquez:
Velazquez needs little introduction, besides a reminder than he turned 22 in June and finished the season in Lancaster. His career has been continually hampered by injury. He managed only 64 innings this year between the GCL Astros (where he was sent on a rehab assignment) and Lancaster, so his appearance in Arizona was likely an attempt to simply get him more innings.
Velasquez had a rough AFL, throwing 13-and-two-thirds innings over 5 total appearances, with 4 starts. He allowed 14 hits, walked three and struck out 13. His ground-out : air-out ratio was in positive territory which is consistent with his results over the year. However, he had two disaster starts - one against the Glendale Desert Dogs (3IP, 6H, 5R/ER, 2HR allowed, 2K) and one against the Mesa Solar Sox (0.2IP, 4H, 3R/ER, BB, K). He was scored upon in one other outing (5IP, 2H, 1R/ER, BB, 6K). His overall ERA was a lofty 6.59
(An anonymous yet undoubtedly handsome AC Commentator pointed out that Velasquez left his shortest (0.2IP) and final start - where he is recorded as allowing three earned runs - due to injury, and that all of the runs recorded against him were allowed to score by the "relief" pitcher. Without that start, his ERA would have been 4.84 - 7 runs in 13 innings, but five of the seven remaining runs scored were in one outing. Thanks for the extra info.)
The verdict is probably that Velasquez has probably not done much to make the 40-man decision any easier. He will have to be added, or risk being lost in the Rule V draft in December. A pitching-poor team, looking for a potential starter could easily stash him in the 'pen in long relief. It will be an interesting decision.
Rio Ruiz:
Ruiz had a big year - at least in terms of games played - appearing in 131 games at Lancaster, with a solid (albeit offensively swollen) line of .293/.387/.436. The scouting reports that I have read on him are generally positive, but tend to doubt how much power he could get out of his stroke. However, at 20, he has a lot of time to work it all out, and getting some time in the AFL was probably more about exposing him to better pitching than anything else.
Ruiz had a bit of a struggle, eventually getting 87 plate appearances which yielded a .187/.292/.227 triple-slash. He managed 12 walks versus 17 strikeouts. Out of his 14 hits, three were doubles. This may not be his last trip through the AFL, but will nearly certainly be is least productive, because a year at AA next year is going to say a lot about his ability to hit better pitching in a less offence-friendly environment.
Joe Sclafani:
Sclafani's rise will be well known amongst fans of the Astros' minor-league system. Sclafani started his professional career at Tri-Cities in 2012 as a Dartmouth grad, after being drafted in the 14th round. The following year, he played 19 games at Quad Cities (.241/.430/.293) and 92 at Lancaster (.302/.396/.474). He opened 2014 in Corpus (.285/.333/.361), but was promoted after 36 games to OKC, where he continued to hit and walk in 62 games (.339/.420/.438). He has fielded all over the diamond, starting his career in the lower minors as a middle-infielder, then getting some third-base reps at Lancaster. At Corpus, he played 4 positions (2B, 3B, LF, RF) and at Oklahoma he was used only as an infielder, including one game at shortstop (which he hasn't played since Hi-A). As a switch-hitting contact-and-walk guy who doesn't strike out (1181PA, 147K, 138BB, career line .295/.384/.404), there is nearly-immediate potential value here, á la Kiké Hernandez. In fact, Sclafani may have been the reason that the Astros felt they were able to trade Hernandez.
Well, Sclafani continued to "rake" in the AFL - at least his particular brand of raking. He managed 51 plate appearances, walked 5 times while striking out 11 times. He managed 17 hits, five of which were doubles. That all amounted to a a .370/.431/.543 line, which is very solid.
Note that the Rafters had only 4 outfielders on the roster, so Sclafani saw time at both outfield corners.
Sclafani is 24-and-a-half, so his time is soon as well, and he has done nothing to worsen his position in the Astros' depth chart. He would need to be added to the 40-man to see time in the Bigs, but I imagine that he will be going to Florida in February with a realistic chance to battle Matty D for the 3B job, Mike-Bob Grossman for the LF job, or Mar-Go for a super-utility job - if Gonzalez isn't the starting shortstop.
Andrew Aplin:
Andrew Ahyim Aplin should also be well-familiar with the Arizona climate, also coming out of Arizona State, but this time in the 2012 draft. Aplin split 2014 between Corpus and Oklahoma, finishing the season with a combined .265/.372/.345 line. As a lefty would patrols a decent CF, he wouldn't be without supporters watching his career closely.
Aplin saw action in 19 AFL games, resulting in a triple-slash of .269/.388/.358. He may have been tired (126 games on the year, heading into the AFL), because his last ten games saw him slash .188/.395/.188. He had 79PA, which yielded 18 hits (1x2B, 1x3B, 1xHR) and 12 walks versus 18 strikeouts. He stole four bases, but was caught stealing five times.
At 23 years, 7 months, Aplin has a little more time to put it all together. That is not saying that he isn't putting it together now, of course, but at this stage it would be nice to see the average and/or slugging percentage creep up a little. Still, not a bad season overall.
In all, the Astros prospects - as a whole - did little to dent their reputations. Appel and Sclafani probably did their stock a lot of good, Lambson and Perez had pretty decent stints for relief pitchers, and Aplin did fine. Ruiz and Velasquez - who are both quite young - probably didn't do their stock any harm, but only after age is taken into account. As mentioned previously, the Astros have an interesting and difficult decision to make on Velasquez shortly.
Feel free to add information or express opinions in the comments below!
The Astros contribute to the 35-man roster of the Salt River Rafters, along with the Marlins, the Twinkies, the and the Astros' two "interleague rival clubs", the Diamondbacks and the Rockies. Man, I bet all that rivalry makes for some tense bus trips to away games.
Anywho, despite all that tension between prospects that are forced to hate one another, the Salt River Rafters won the AFL East Division with a 17-11-4 record. There must have been something good about those bus trips, because they managed a 10-4 record on the road, and only managed a .500 record at home. They play the Championship Game tomorrow (Saturday) - against the Peoria Javelinas, who clinched the West in the last game of the season. I think it will be on the MLB network, and kicks off a 1pm MST, or 2 Central and 3 Eastern.
So lets have a look at how the Astros prospects went during the "regular" season of the AFL. And who knows - perhaps Cockroach or myself may whip together a game recap for the final. Stranger things have happened!
Mark Appel:
Warning: sarcasm ahead...
You may have heard of this guy. Former #1 pick, got lazy and out-of-shape, washed out of Lancaster, then went for a anti-baseball bullpen visit to MMP, which he TOTALLY didn't earn. After that, I blocked his name from my browser, so I have no idea how the rest of the season ended. I imagine he wound up in the GCL somewhere, trying to keep his ERA below 9.
/end sarcasm
Well, he had a pretty decent AFL. He garnered some attention - this time of the good sort! - over the seven starts that he made. Filthy slider!! His overall stats resulted in him throwing 31 innings, allowing 18 hits, 10 runs (9 earned) with one lone home run. He struck out 24, and walked 8.
Looking at the game log also gave cause for a little optimism. Four of his starts (17 innings) were scoreless. In those 17 innings, he allowed a total of 5 hits, 3 walks and 17 strikeouts. Those starts weren't all against patsies either - he beat the Scottsdale Scorpions (12-20-0), the Surprise Saguaros (16-15-1), the Mesa Solar Sox (15-14-2) and the AFL West-winning Peoria Javelinas (15-14-3).
The others starts were (obviously) worse, but he never allowed more than five hits (the shortest outing was 4 innings), and never walked more than three. He had a 6ER/5R outing against Scottsdale, where he gave up 5 hits, walked 3 and struck out 2. In the start before that, he gave up 3R/ER, 5 hits, 1 walk and three strikeouts against the Peoria Javelinas - his second start in a row against them - and in the last game of the season, he allowed 1 run on 3 hits and a walk. The final earned run came on a solo shot. So only one of the starts was a disaster, and even then, he only gave up one more hit than innings pitched in that start.
So a pretty good AFL for Appel, and he definitely could see Houston at some stage in 2015. His form may have factored into the Tropeano decision, which netted Houston "switch-hitting" Hank Conger.
Mitchell Lambson:
Lambson is a left handed reliever who spent the season between Lancaster and Corpus. He was taken in the 19th round of the 2011 draft out of Arizona State, so he should have been plenty familiar with the climate. His time in the Texas League was fairly strong, yielding a 1.36 ERA over 33 innings, striking out more than a batter an inning.
Lambson continued his solid year in the AFL, making 10 appearances, throwing 14-and-1/3 innings, and allowing 2 earned runs. That resulted in an ERA of 1.26. He struck out 17, and walked 7. One of his earned runs was via a solo home run.
Lambson certainly didn't hurt his stock in the AFL at all, and his IP per appearance logs indicate that he is more than a LOOGY. He will start the season in AA or AAA, and could potentially get a sniff at Houston late in 2015.
Tyson Perez:
Perez is a right handed reliever who also split the year between Lancaster and Corpus. Like Lambson, his showing in Corpus (ERA 2.09) was also better than in Lancaster (5.87).
Perez certainly didn't hurt his stock in the AFL either. Working as a reliever who threw multiple-innings on a number of occasions, he also appeared in 10 games, also throwing 14-and-1/3. He allowed 11 hits, struck out 11, and walked one. He allowed only 1 earned run, resulting in an ERA of 0.63. However, he also allowed 2 unearned runs on three hits in his last appearance of the year.
Prior to his last two appearances (where all three runs scored), he had allowed 6 hits in 11 innings, while striking out 10.
Perez turns 25 in December, so his time is soon. He also didn't hurt his chances to either sniff Houston in 2015, and will probably open the season at Fresno.
Vincent Velasquez:
Velazquez needs little introduction, besides a reminder than he turned 22 in June and finished the season in Lancaster. His career has been continually hampered by injury. He managed only 64 innings this year between the GCL Astros (where he was sent on a rehab assignment) and Lancaster, so his appearance in Arizona was likely an attempt to simply get him more innings.
Velasquez had a rough AFL, throwing 13-and-two-thirds innings over 5 total appearances, with 4 starts. He allowed 14 hits, walked three and struck out 13. His ground-out : air-out ratio was in positive territory which is consistent with his results over the year. However, he had two disaster starts - one against the Glendale Desert Dogs (3IP, 6H, 5R/ER, 2HR allowed, 2K) and one against the Mesa Solar Sox (0.2IP, 4H, 3R/ER, BB, K). He was scored upon in one other outing (5IP, 2H, 1R/ER, BB, 6K). His overall ERA was a lofty 6.59
(An anonymous yet undoubtedly handsome AC Commentator pointed out that Velasquez left his shortest (0.2IP) and final start - where he is recorded as allowing three earned runs - due to injury, and that all of the runs recorded against him were allowed to score by the "relief" pitcher. Without that start, his ERA would have been 4.84 - 7 runs in 13 innings, but five of the seven remaining runs scored were in one outing. Thanks for the extra info.)
The verdict is probably that Velasquez has probably not done much to make the 40-man decision any easier. He will have to be added, or risk being lost in the Rule V draft in December. A pitching-poor team, looking for a potential starter could easily stash him in the 'pen in long relief. It will be an interesting decision.
Rio Ruiz:
Ruiz had a big year - at least in terms of games played - appearing in 131 games at Lancaster, with a solid (albeit offensively swollen) line of .293/.387/.436. The scouting reports that I have read on him are generally positive, but tend to doubt how much power he could get out of his stroke. However, at 20, he has a lot of time to work it all out, and getting some time in the AFL was probably more about exposing him to better pitching than anything else.
Ruiz had a bit of a struggle, eventually getting 87 plate appearances which yielded a .187/.292/.227 triple-slash. He managed 12 walks versus 17 strikeouts. Out of his 14 hits, three were doubles. This may not be his last trip through the AFL, but will nearly certainly be is least productive, because a year at AA next year is going to say a lot about his ability to hit better pitching in a less offence-friendly environment.
Joe Sclafani:
Sclafani's rise will be well known amongst fans of the Astros' minor-league system. Sclafani started his professional career at Tri-Cities in 2012 as a Dartmouth grad, after being drafted in the 14th round. The following year, he played 19 games at Quad Cities (.241/.430/.293) and 92 at Lancaster (.302/.396/.474). He opened 2014 in Corpus (.285/.333/.361), but was promoted after 36 games to OKC, where he continued to hit and walk in 62 games (.339/.420/.438). He has fielded all over the diamond, starting his career in the lower minors as a middle-infielder, then getting some third-base reps at Lancaster. At Corpus, he played 4 positions (2B, 3B, LF, RF) and at Oklahoma he was used only as an infielder, including one game at shortstop (which he hasn't played since Hi-A). As a switch-hitting contact-and-walk guy who doesn't strike out (1181PA, 147K, 138BB, career line .295/.384/.404), there is nearly-immediate potential value here, á la Kiké Hernandez. In fact, Sclafani may have been the reason that the Astros felt they were able to trade Hernandez.
Well, Sclafani continued to "rake" in the AFL - at least his particular brand of raking. He managed 51 plate appearances, walked 5 times while striking out 11 times. He managed 17 hits, five of which were doubles. That all amounted to a a .370/.431/.543 line, which is very solid.
Note that the Rafters had only 4 outfielders on the roster, so Sclafani saw time at both outfield corners.
Sclafani is 24-and-a-half, so his time is soon as well, and he has done nothing to worsen his position in the Astros' depth chart. He would need to be added to the 40-man to see time in the Bigs, but I imagine that he will be going to Florida in February with a realistic chance to battle Matty D for the 3B job, Mike-Bob Grossman for the LF job, or Mar-Go for a super-utility job - if Gonzalez isn't the starting shortstop.
Andrew Aplin:
Andrew Ahyim Aplin should also be well-familiar with the Arizona climate, also coming out of Arizona State, but this time in the 2012 draft. Aplin split 2014 between Corpus and Oklahoma, finishing the season with a combined .265/.372/.345 line. As a lefty would patrols a decent CF, he wouldn't be without supporters watching his career closely.
Aplin saw action in 19 AFL games, resulting in a triple-slash of .269/.388/.358. He may have been tired (126 games on the year, heading into the AFL), because his last ten games saw him slash .188/.395/.188. He had 79PA, which yielded 18 hits (1x2B, 1x3B, 1xHR) and 12 walks versus 18 strikeouts. He stole four bases, but was caught stealing five times.
At 23 years, 7 months, Aplin has a little more time to put it all together. That is not saying that he isn't putting it together now, of course, but at this stage it would be nice to see the average and/or slugging percentage creep up a little. Still, not a bad season overall.
In all, the Astros prospects - as a whole - did little to dent their reputations. Appel and Sclafani probably did their stock a lot of good, Lambson and Perez had pretty decent stints for relief pitchers, and Aplin did fine. Ruiz and Velasquez - who are both quite young - probably didn't do their stock any harm, but only after age is taken into account. As mentioned previously, the Astros have an interesting and difficult decision to make on Velasquez shortly.
Feel free to add information or express opinions in the comments below!
Friday, October 24, 2014
A Look at the Astros in Arizona - Part II
The Salt River Rafters continue to dominate the Arizona Fall League, sitting with a leagues best 11-3 record and a 3 game lead in the East Division. And Astros prospects continue to be in the middle of it.
Mark Appel
Appel continues to impress, as he now has 12 innings with 0 runs, 4 hits, 3 walks and 12 strikeouts, in 3 starts. His last start was his best, going 5 innings, with only two hits and zero walks allowed. Scouts have liked what they've seen with his stuff, for the most part, and he seems to be regaining some of that top prospect sheen. Really, best case scenario for Appel in the desert.
Vincent Velasquez
Velasquez has had two starts, and they could not have been any more different. He was shelled his first go round, going three innings and giving up 5 runs on 6 hits and two home runs. He struck out two, against zero walks, which as the only positive to be gleaned from that outing. His second start was a different story. Against a tough Peoria lineup, he went 4 scoreless innings, allowing only 1 hit, again striking out two. His AFL season numbers are still ugly, but they are trending in the right direction.
Andrew Aplin
Aplin has cooled off considerably, going hitless in his last 4 games. He is still hitting .300/.344/.500, which only looks good if you forget he was hitting .500 just over a week ago.
Rio Ruiz
As Aplin has cooled, Ruiz has taken off, as he is hitting .294 with a .415 OBP in his last 10 games. The power is still not showing up, as he has only two doubles and no other extra base hits. He is showing a good eye, and I'm sure the power is right around the corner.
Tyler Heineman, Tyson Perez, Mitch Lambson and Joe Sclafani continue to perform well in limited roles. Perez, in particular, has pitched 7 innings, allowing zero runs on 5 hits with 7 strikeouts, against only 1 walk. Lambson hasn't been quite as good in his 6 innings. He's matched Tyson with 7 strikeouts and allowed two fewer hits, but has been plagued by 5 walks. He's got a 3.00 ERA on the season. Heineman has only appeared in three games, going 2-5 with 2 walks. Sclafani has seen action in 4 games, and has gone 4-14 with two walks and a homer un.
Obviously, these are incredibly small samples, and nothing meaningful can be gleaned from these numbers. But it's still fun to see the Astros prospects perform well. The AFL All Star Game is set for November 4, and I think you can expect to see some Astros prospects take part in that.
Mark Appel
Appel continues to impress, as he now has 12 innings with 0 runs, 4 hits, 3 walks and 12 strikeouts, in 3 starts. His last start was his best, going 5 innings, with only two hits and zero walks allowed. Scouts have liked what they've seen with his stuff, for the most part, and he seems to be regaining some of that top prospect sheen. Really, best case scenario for Appel in the desert.
Vincent Velasquez
Velasquez has had two starts, and they could not have been any more different. He was shelled his first go round, going three innings and giving up 5 runs on 6 hits and two home runs. He struck out two, against zero walks, which as the only positive to be gleaned from that outing. His second start was a different story. Against a tough Peoria lineup, he went 4 scoreless innings, allowing only 1 hit, again striking out two. His AFL season numbers are still ugly, but they are trending in the right direction.
Andrew Aplin
Aplin has cooled off considerably, going hitless in his last 4 games. He is still hitting .300/.344/.500, which only looks good if you forget he was hitting .500 just over a week ago.
Rio Ruiz
As Aplin has cooled, Ruiz has taken off, as he is hitting .294 with a .415 OBP in his last 10 games. The power is still not showing up, as he has only two doubles and no other extra base hits. He is showing a good eye, and I'm sure the power is right around the corner.
Tyler Heineman, Tyson Perez, Mitch Lambson and Joe Sclafani continue to perform well in limited roles. Perez, in particular, has pitched 7 innings, allowing zero runs on 5 hits with 7 strikeouts, against only 1 walk. Lambson hasn't been quite as good in his 6 innings. He's matched Tyson with 7 strikeouts and allowed two fewer hits, but has been plagued by 5 walks. He's got a 3.00 ERA on the season. Heineman has only appeared in three games, going 2-5 with 2 walks. Sclafani has seen action in 4 games, and has gone 4-14 with two walks and a homer un.
Obviously, these are incredibly small samples, and nothing meaningful can be gleaned from these numbers. But it's still fun to see the Astros prospects perform well. The AFL All Star Game is set for November 4, and I think you can expect to see some Astros prospects take part in that.
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
A Look at the Astros in the Arizona Fall League
The Astros sent 8 players to Arizona this fall to play for the Salt River Rafters, including big names like Mark Appel, Rio Ruiz and Vincent Velasquez. The Salt River team also contains other big name prospects, including Byron Buxton and Archie Bradley. They have now played 7 games and are playing like the star studded team they are, going 6-1. And the Astros prospects have had a lot to do with that.
Mark Appel
Mark Appel's fall appearance is helping to erase the memory of the disastrous 2014 season. He pitched well in AA after his promotion, and so far in Arizona has been close to dominant. In two starts, he has pitched 7 innings, allowing only 2 hits and three walks compared to 8 strikeouts. He has yet to allow a run. Keith Law (insider) wrote up his first outing, and noted his velocity and slider were good, but he was lacking fastball command.
Andrew Aplin
Mark Appel
Mark Appel's fall appearance is helping to erase the memory of the disastrous 2014 season. He pitched well in AA after his promotion, and so far in Arizona has been close to dominant. In two starts, he has pitched 7 innings, allowing only 2 hits and three walks compared to 8 strikeouts. He has yet to allow a run. Keith Law (insider) wrote up his first outing, and noted his velocity and slider were good, but he was lacking fastball command.
Andrew Aplin
Aplin has been pretty clearly the MVP of the Rafters so far, batting .500/.500/.857 in 14 at bats. His biggest game came on October 10, in a 12-2 walloping of Peoria. The Rafters scored 11 runs in the 5th inning in that game, and Aplin was 2-2 with a grand slam in that inning alone. He that day 4-5. He also drove in the only run of the night last night, with a triple in the 8th.
Rio Ruiz
Ruiz has struggled a bit in the early going, batting only .217/.308/.268 in in 23 ABs, although he went 2-2 with a walk last night. Law (insider) commented on some extra weight and a resulting slower bat speed.
The remainder of the Astros have received minimal playing time. Velasquez has only pitched in 1 inning, and gave up two hits and a walk, but avoided any runs by striking out 2. Mitch Lambson and Tyson Perez have both pitched 4 innings, with a Lambson home run the only run allowed between them. Perez earned the save last night. Tyler Heineman has gone 2-5 with two walks and Joe Sclafani is 0-3 so far.
For more on the Astros in the Arizona Fall League, go read these first hand account of a very Astros-Centric game last night over at What the Heck, Bobby?
Friday, July 25, 2014
Friday Morning Hot Links
Here's what's going on as we head into the weekend...
*Dallas Keuchel tossed a baseball to a heckler with a special message. Click here for the original tweet.
*The Astros look as though they're holding on to Chad Qualls. Also in that link we get updates on Fowler (not close to returning), Albers (slow recovery) and Crain (surprise! slow recovery).
*Carlos Correa won't be ready to return from a broken leg for the Arizona Fall League, but the team hopes that he'll be ready for Spring Training. The Astros are also considering sending Rio Ruiz to the AFL, and also to Corpus.
*According to a Chronicle source, the MLBPA has filed a grievance against the Astros regarding their handling of the 2014 draft. No one is commenting on either side.
*SI's Ben Reiter has an in-depth piece on how the Astros lost Brady Aiken:
"A lot of people say they want to be a Hall of Famer," said another scout, "but I believe for this kid it's a realistic goal, to be one of the best pitchers of all time." The consensus was that Aiken could be pitching in the majors in just two and a half years - that is, as early as Opening Day of 2017.
*Mark Appel pitched last night, and lo, it was good. He threw 74 pitches in 6IP, 5H/2ER, 7K:0BB with a fastball that sat in the mid- to upper-90s. "I wasn't thinking about it, I wasn't really thinking about it at all. It was fun, it was, you know - I don't know. I'm not one to shy away from the frustrations of this season, but it's been a while since I had a game that was this fun."
*Aston Villa fan who visited 92 soccer grounds will be in Houston on Sunday to add to his MLB ballpark tour.
*Lance Berkman is returning to Rice as a student assistant.
*Happy Birthday, Billy Wagner, who somehow is only 43.
*Dallas Keuchel tossed a baseball to a heckler with a special message. Click here for the original tweet.
*The Astros look as though they're holding on to Chad Qualls. Also in that link we get updates on Fowler (not close to returning), Albers (slow recovery) and Crain (surprise! slow recovery).
*Carlos Correa won't be ready to return from a broken leg for the Arizona Fall League, but the team hopes that he'll be ready for Spring Training. The Astros are also considering sending Rio Ruiz to the AFL, and also to Corpus.
*According to a Chronicle source, the MLBPA has filed a grievance against the Astros regarding their handling of the 2014 draft. No one is commenting on either side.
*SI's Ben Reiter has an in-depth piece on how the Astros lost Brady Aiken:
"A lot of people say they want to be a Hall of Famer," said another scout, "but I believe for this kid it's a realistic goal, to be one of the best pitchers of all time." The consensus was that Aiken could be pitching in the majors in just two and a half years - that is, as early as Opening Day of 2017.
*Mark Appel pitched last night, and lo, it was good. He threw 74 pitches in 6IP, 5H/2ER, 7K:0BB with a fastball that sat in the mid- to upper-90s. "I wasn't thinking about it, I wasn't really thinking about it at all. It was fun, it was, you know - I don't know. I'm not one to shy away from the frustrations of this season, but it's been a while since I had a game that was this fun."
*Aston Villa fan who visited 92 soccer grounds will be in Houston on Sunday to add to his MLB ballpark tour.
*Lance Berkman is returning to Rice as a student assistant.
*Happy Birthday, Billy Wagner, who somehow is only 43.
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Thursday Lunchtime Hot Links
Here's what's up:
*Jim Callis says he would draft Brady Aiken with next month's 1-1 pick. Aiken currently has 80K:7BB in 43.2IP, has been more consistent than Rodon or Jeff Hoffman, and is more polished than Tyler Kolek. Callis:
Aiken's heater now operates at 92-94 mph and reaches 97, and he has maintained the life on the pitch and his ability to command it. His curve has added more power and depth as well, and his circle changeup has become more deceptive.
*Jonathan Mayo says the Astros should stick with Carlos Rodon. Mayo:
There's a reason Rodon is regarded as the best college lefty since David Price. Stuff-wise, he offers two plus pitches (and his changeup will be plenty good enough to give him three), all coming from a big, strong, workhorse-type body.
*Sports on Earth's Mike Pielluci says NC State's head coach has cost Carlos Rodon at least a couple of million dollars.
*John Sickels released his updated Top 150 prospects list. On it:
Carlos Correa (#13), George Springer (#15), Jon Singleton (#28), Lance McCullers (#48), Mark Appel (#51), Mike Foltynewicz (#58), Vince Velasquez (#90), Delino DeShields (#102), Rio Ruiz (#150 #105).
*Jim Callis says he would draft Brady Aiken with next month's 1-1 pick. Aiken currently has 80K:7BB in 43.2IP, has been more consistent than Rodon or Jeff Hoffman, and is more polished than Tyler Kolek. Callis:
Aiken's heater now operates at 92-94 mph and reaches 97, and he has maintained the life on the pitch and his ability to command it. His curve has added more power and depth as well, and his circle changeup has become more deceptive.
*Jonathan Mayo says the Astros should stick with Carlos Rodon. Mayo:
There's a reason Rodon is regarded as the best college lefty since David Price. Stuff-wise, he offers two plus pitches (and his changeup will be plenty good enough to give him three), all coming from a big, strong, workhorse-type body.
*Sports on Earth's Mike Pielluci says NC State's head coach has cost Carlos Rodon at least a couple of million dollars.
*John Sickels released his updated Top 150 prospects list. On it:
Carlos Correa (#13), George Springer (#15), Jon Singleton (#28), Lance McCullers (#48), Mark Appel (#51), Mike Foltynewicz (#58), Vince Velasquez (#90), Delino DeShields (#102), Rio Ruiz (
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
More scouting reports out of Lancaster
Yesterday I gave you the skinny on a couple scouting reports for Vincent Velasquez and Mark Appel. Well, Baseball Prospectus was holding out on us, and posted a few more this morning. In this post, they look at Teoscar Hernandez (who has 5 triples already this season,) Tony Kemp, Rio Ruiz, Carlos Correa, Lance McCullers, and Appel again. There's a lot of good info in their reports, but let's look at the bottom line for each player.
Teoscar Hernandez - "I like the bat and I like his glove; I'd put a 5-plus on his ceiling, with a fourth outfielder as the most likely."
Tony Kemp - "ceiling to me is a utility guy who can play second and all the outfield spots; Skip Schumaker–type player."
Rio Ruiz - "young for the level, let's see if he makes some adjustments....not going to write him off after two subpar games."
Carlos Correa - "Man, I'm in love with this guy...just give it some time"
Lance McCullers - "delivery routinely gets out of whack...Had no clue where the ball was going...eighth-inning guy long-term"
Mark Appel - "much more athletic than I thought going in...no. 2 starter ceiling with a workhorse no. 3 as the floor."
As much as I pulled for those quotes, there's so much more in their fairly detailed scouting reports. Definitely worth checking out.
Teoscar Hernandez - "I like the bat and I like his glove; I'd put a 5-plus on his ceiling, with a fourth outfielder as the most likely."
Tony Kemp - "ceiling to me is a utility guy who can play second and all the outfield spots; Skip Schumaker–type player."
Rio Ruiz - "young for the level, let's see if he makes some adjustments....not going to write him off after two subpar games."
Carlos Correa - "Man, I'm in love with this guy...just give it some time"
Lance McCullers - "delivery routinely gets out of whack...Had no clue where the ball was going...eighth-inning guy long-term"
Mark Appel - "much more athletic than I thought going in...no. 2 starter ceiling with a workhorse no. 3 as the floor."
As much as I pulled for those quotes, there's so much more in their fairly detailed scouting reports. Definitely worth checking out.
PreStros Morning Report: April 14
TL;DR
*Astros affiliates get their first 0-3.
*George Springer homers but OKC pitching blows it open in a 14-8 OKC loss to New Orleans.
*Luis Cruz and Ross Seaton hold Springfield to three hits, but lose 2-1.
*Rio Ruiz and Teoscar Hernandez combined for a 7x10 night with four doubles, a homer, and 9RBI, but the High Desert moonscape ballpark leads to an 11-10 JetHawks loss.
*Quad Cities' game with West Michigan postponed due to snow.
Oklahoma City (8-4)
Well. New Orleans jumped out to a 4-1 lead after the first inning, tacked on five more in the 5th and then two in the 8th and 9th for a 14-8 whoopin' of OKC. No pitcher did all that well - David Martinez gave up 6H/5ER, 0K:2BB in 4IP; Bobby Doran allowed 4H/6ER, 2K:3BB in 3.1IP and Darin Downs allowed 4H/3ER, 1K:2BB in 1.2IP.
Still, OKC did get eight runs. George Springer was 2x3 with a solo homer, Jon Singleton (RBI) and Erik Castro (2RBI) were each 1x3 with two walks. Gregorio Petit, Max Stassi (2B), and Domingo Santana each got a hit and a walk.
Man of the Match: George Springer
Corpus (8-3)
Springfield scored a run in the first and the second inning, and that was all they needed in a 2-1 win at blustery Corpus where a 24mph wind blowing in from left field. Luis Cruz threw 5IP, allowing just 2H/2R (1ER), 3K:2BB; Ross Seaton threw 4IP allowing just 1H/0ER, 5K:0BB.
Andrew Aplin was 3x4 with the lone RBI while Nolan Fontana was 2x3 with a double, triple, and a walk. Leo Heras and MP Cokinos got your only other hits on the night.
Man of the Match: Cruz and Seaton.
Lancaster (8-4)
Wild one at High Desert. In a back-and-forth game, Lancaster had a 10-9 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th, but the Mavericks got two runs and held on for an 11-10 win over Lancaster. Mark Appel threw 3IP, 5H/3ER, 4K:0BB with two of those runs coming off a homer - but he did record four groundball outs and zero flyball outs. Juan Minaya allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:1BB in 1IP; Mike Hauschild allowed 8H/5ER, 3K:3BB in 3IP; J.D. Osborne faced two batters, walked them both, and Jamaine Cotton allowed both of those go-ahead runs to score.
Rio Ruiz was 4x5 with two doubles, his first homer of the season, and 5RBI; Teoscar Hernandez was 3x5 with two doubles, a walk, 4RBI and an outfield assist. Carlos Correa and Jordan Scott (2B, 2BB) had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Quad Cities
Postponed - snow. Yep. Snow.
*Astros affiliates get their first 0-3.
*George Springer homers but OKC pitching blows it open in a 14-8 OKC loss to New Orleans.
*Luis Cruz and Ross Seaton hold Springfield to three hits, but lose 2-1.
*Rio Ruiz and Teoscar Hernandez combined for a 7x10 night with four doubles, a homer, and 9RBI, but the High Desert moonscape ballpark leads to an 11-10 JetHawks loss.
*Quad Cities' game with West Michigan postponed due to snow.
Oklahoma City (8-4)
Well. New Orleans jumped out to a 4-1 lead after the first inning, tacked on five more in the 5th and then two in the 8th and 9th for a 14-8 whoopin' of OKC. No pitcher did all that well - David Martinez gave up 6H/5ER, 0K:2BB in 4IP; Bobby Doran allowed 4H/6ER, 2K:3BB in 3.1IP and Darin Downs allowed 4H/3ER, 1K:2BB in 1.2IP.
Still, OKC did get eight runs. George Springer was 2x3 with a solo homer, Jon Singleton (RBI) and Erik Castro (2RBI) were each 1x3 with two walks. Gregorio Petit, Max Stassi (2B), and Domingo Santana each got a hit and a walk.
Man of the Match: George Springer
Corpus (8-3)
Springfield scored a run in the first and the second inning, and that was all they needed in a 2-1 win at blustery Corpus where a 24mph wind blowing in from left field. Luis Cruz threw 5IP, allowing just 2H/2R (1ER), 3K:2BB; Ross Seaton threw 4IP allowing just 1H/0ER, 5K:0BB.
Andrew Aplin was 3x4 with the lone RBI while Nolan Fontana was 2x3 with a double, triple, and a walk. Leo Heras and MP Cokinos got your only other hits on the night.
Man of the Match: Cruz and Seaton.
Lancaster (8-4)
Wild one at High Desert. In a back-and-forth game, Lancaster had a 10-9 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th, but the Mavericks got two runs and held on for an 11-10 win over Lancaster. Mark Appel threw 3IP, 5H/3ER, 4K:0BB with two of those runs coming off a homer - but he did record four groundball outs and zero flyball outs. Juan Minaya allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:1BB in 1IP; Mike Hauschild allowed 8H/5ER, 3K:3BB in 3IP; J.D. Osborne faced two batters, walked them both, and Jamaine Cotton allowed both of those go-ahead runs to score.
Rio Ruiz was 4x5 with two doubles, his first homer of the season, and 5RBI; Teoscar Hernandez was 3x5 with two doubles, a walk, 4RBI and an outfield assist. Carlos Correa and Jordan Scott (2B, 2BB) had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Quad Cities
Postponed - snow. Yep. Snow.
Monday, November 4, 2013
The must-read of the off-season
Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus wrote up the Astros' Top 10 Prospects today. It is splendid - the perfect antidote for a season in which we watched the other team slap hands at the end of games 111 times.
The Top Ten:
1. Carlos Correa
2. George Springer
3. Mark Appel
4. Mike Foltynewicz
5. Jon Singleton
6. Vince Velasquez
7. Lance McCullers
8. Domingo Santana
9. Rio Ruiz
10. Michael Feliz
It's free, so absolutely go read it. I'm not going to pull anything from it because I don't want to ruin the fun of reading it for the first time. But the best part? The ETA on the top five prospects is 2014.
So seriously. Go read it. And then read it again. And maybe again.
The Top Ten:
1. Carlos Correa
2. George Springer
3. Mark Appel
4. Mike Foltynewicz
5. Jon Singleton
6. Vince Velasquez
7. Lance McCullers
8. Domingo Santana
9. Rio Ruiz
10. Michael Feliz
It's free, so absolutely go read it. I'm not going to pull anything from it because I don't want to ruin the fun of reading it for the first time. But the best part? The ETA on the top five prospects is 2014.
So seriously. Go read it. And then read it again. And maybe again.
Friday, September 6, 2013
September 5 Playoff Report
Oklahoma City
OKC took a 4-2 lead in the 4th on Jon Homerton's three-run jack, but a 5-run Omaha 6th gave the Storm Chasers the margin for a 7-4 win at OKC and a 2-0 series lead. Four unearned runs allowed by the defense made this one a little tougher. David Martinez threw 4.2IP, 4H/2R (0ER), 3K:3BB; Eric Berger took the loss, giving up 4H/5R (3ER), 1K:2BB in 1IP; Andrew Robinson (2IP, 1H/0ER) and Wade LeBlanc (1.1IP, 1H/0ER) closed out the loss.
Seven OKC hits were recorded by seven different players. George Springer (2BB, run) and Raoul Torrez were the only ones to not get a hit. Jon Singleton was 1x3 with the three-run homer and a walk.
Man of the Match: Jon Singleton
Series: Omaha leads 2-0 (Best-of-5)
Next Up: At Omaha, tonight at 7:05pm Central
Corpus
San Antonio pitcher Eddie Bonine held the Hooks to five hits over seven scoreless innings in what would be a series-evening 2-0 win for the Missions over the Hooks. Nick Tropeano threw a symmetrical 7IP, 7H/2ER, 7K:2BB to take the hard-luck loss. Carlos Quevedo scattered five hits over 1.1IP but was able to get out of the jam, thanks to Kyle Hallock and Cameron Lamb, who inherited two runners and got the final two outs.
Ronny Torreyes was 2x4; Carlos Corporan, on a rehab assignment, went 1x4 with 3K; Matt Duffy and Drew Muren had your other hits.
Man of the Match: Nick Tropeano
Series: Tied 1-1
Next up: At San Antonio, tonight at 7:05pm Central
Lancaster
Plays Saturday, opponent TBD
Quad Cities
Cedar Rapids who, at 88-50, had the best record among full-season teams in the Minors, just "swept" (if you can sweep a Best-Of-Three series) by Quad Cities, who won thanks to a go-ahead homer by Rio Ruiz, 4-2. Joe Bircher allowed 3H/1ER, 4K:0BB in 5IP; J.D. Osborne gave up 1H/1ER, 1K:1BB in 0.2IP; Pat Christensen struck out four in 2.1IP and Andrew Walter threw a perfect 9th.
The River Bandits knocked out 10 hits: Two each from Teoscar Hernandez (2RBI), Rio Ruiz (HR, BB, RBI, two runs scored), and Roberto Pena (2B, RBI).
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Series: Quad Cities wins 2-0
Next Up: Vs. Beloit in a Best-of-Three Divisional Final series. Time TBD.
Tri-City
Plays Friday, 6:05pm Central at Aberdeen (Best-of-Three)
Greeneville
Needing a win to tie the Championship series, where a loss would end Greeneville's season, the Gastros got out to a 5-0 lead in the 3rd inning...but Pulaski chipped away and ultimately won the Appalachian League title, 6-5, on Gabriel Franca's line drive walk-off hit. Luis Ordosgoitti allowed 7H/3ER, 4K:3BB in 5IP; Joe Musgrove took the loss with 7H/3R (2ER), 4K:1BB in 3.1IP of relief.
Tanner Mathis was 2x4 with a double, homer and 2RBI; Brian Holberton was 0x2 with 3BB; Ariel Ovando was 1x3 with two walks and an RBI; Chase McDonald was 1x4 with a walk; Thomas Lindauer was 1x3 with a double, walk, and 2RBI.
Man of the Match: Tanner Mathis
Series: Pulaski wins 2-0
Next Up: N/A
OKC took a 4-2 lead in the 4th on Jon Homerton's three-run jack, but a 5-run Omaha 6th gave the Storm Chasers the margin for a 7-4 win at OKC and a 2-0 series lead. Four unearned runs allowed by the defense made this one a little tougher. David Martinez threw 4.2IP, 4H/2R (0ER), 3K:3BB; Eric Berger took the loss, giving up 4H/5R (3ER), 1K:2BB in 1IP; Andrew Robinson (2IP, 1H/0ER) and Wade LeBlanc (1.1IP, 1H/0ER) closed out the loss.
Seven OKC hits were recorded by seven different players. George Springer (2BB, run) and Raoul Torrez were the only ones to not get a hit. Jon Singleton was 1x3 with the three-run homer and a walk.
Man of the Match: Jon Singleton
Series: Omaha leads 2-0 (Best-of-5)
Next Up: At Omaha, tonight at 7:05pm Central
Corpus
San Antonio pitcher Eddie Bonine held the Hooks to five hits over seven scoreless innings in what would be a series-evening 2-0 win for the Missions over the Hooks. Nick Tropeano threw a symmetrical 7IP, 7H/2ER, 7K:2BB to take the hard-luck loss. Carlos Quevedo scattered five hits over 1.1IP but was able to get out of the jam, thanks to Kyle Hallock and Cameron Lamb, who inherited two runners and got the final two outs.
Ronny Torreyes was 2x4; Carlos Corporan, on a rehab assignment, went 1x4 with 3K; Matt Duffy and Drew Muren had your other hits.
Man of the Match: Nick Tropeano
Series: Tied 1-1
Next up: At San Antonio, tonight at 7:05pm Central
Lancaster
Plays Saturday, opponent TBD
Quad Cities
Cedar Rapids who, at 88-50, had the best record among full-season teams in the Minors, just "swept" (if you can sweep a Best-Of-Three series) by Quad Cities, who won thanks to a go-ahead homer by Rio Ruiz, 4-2. Joe Bircher allowed 3H/1ER, 4K:0BB in 5IP; J.D. Osborne gave up 1H/1ER, 1K:1BB in 0.2IP; Pat Christensen struck out four in 2.1IP and Andrew Walter threw a perfect 9th.
The River Bandits knocked out 10 hits: Two each from Teoscar Hernandez (2RBI), Rio Ruiz (HR, BB, RBI, two runs scored), and Roberto Pena (2B, RBI).
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Series: Quad Cities wins 2-0
Next Up: Vs. Beloit in a Best-of-Three Divisional Final series. Time TBD.
Tri-City
Plays Friday, 6:05pm Central at Aberdeen (Best-of-Three)
Greeneville
Needing a win to tie the Championship series, where a loss would end Greeneville's season, the Gastros got out to a 5-0 lead in the 3rd inning...but Pulaski chipped away and ultimately won the Appalachian League title, 6-5, on Gabriel Franca's line drive walk-off hit. Luis Ordosgoitti allowed 7H/3ER, 4K:3BB in 5IP; Joe Musgrove took the loss with 7H/3R (2ER), 4K:1BB in 3.1IP of relief.
Tanner Mathis was 2x4 with a double, homer and 2RBI; Brian Holberton was 0x2 with 3BB; Ariel Ovando was 1x3 with two walks and an RBI; Chase McDonald was 1x4 with a walk; Thomas Lindauer was 1x3 with a double, walk, and 2RBI.
Man of the Match: Tanner Mathis
Series: Pulaski wins 2-0
Next Up: N/A
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
PreStros Morning Report: August 27
Playoff Picture
Oklahoma City clinched playoff berth
Corpus clinched playoff berth
Lancaster clinched playoff berth
Quad Cities clinched playoff berth
Tri-City 4.0 up with 7 to play
Greeneville 0.5 up with 3 to play
GCL Astros eliminated
Oklahoma City (79-59)
OKC trailed 1-0 until a three-run 4th put them on their way to a 5-4 win over Nashville, and a PCL American South Division title. Eric Berger got the spot start and allowed 2H/1ER, 4K:1BB in 5IP; Jose Cisnero (2ER) and Jason Stoffel (1ER) each struck out two before Wade LeBlanc and Jorge DeLeon got the final three outs of the season.
Japhet Amador was 3x4 and an RBI; George Springer (3B, BB, RBI) and Brandon Laird (RBI) had two hits each. Carlos Perez was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI. Congrats to the RedHawks on winning the division.
Man of the Match: Japhet Amador
Corpus (80-54)
Corpus got on the board in the top of the first with a run on two hits. And then got one more hit the rest of the game. Frisco wins 5-1. David Rollins threw 6IP, 7H/3R (2ER), 5K:1BB; Cameron Lamb threw the 7th and allowed only an HBP, and Theron Geith allowed 3H/2ER in the 8th.
Ronald Torreyes got two of the Hooks' three hits, with Erik Castro providing an RBI double and a walk. Leo Heras was the only other baserunner of the night, drawing a walk.
Man of the Match: David Rollins
Lancaster (79-55)
Despite getting out-hit 12-9, Lancster rode a 5-run 1st inning to a 7-2 win over Lake Elsinore. Aaron West allowed 8H/2ER, 9K:0BB in 5IP; Tommy Shirley gave up two hits and a walk in two scoreless; Gera Sanchez (1H, 1K:2BB) and Travis Ballew (1H, 3K:0BB) threw scoreless innings to close out the game.
MP Cokinos was 3x4 with two runs scored and his first stolen base of the season; Nolan Fontana was 1x2 with three walks and a stolen base; Carlos Perdomo (RBI), Brandon Meredith and Chris Epps (2RBI) had a hit and a walk each. Joe Sclafani was 1x5 with two RBI.
Man of the Match: MP Cokinos
Quad Cities (76-56)
Quad Cities got four in the top of the 1st and traded runs the rest of the way, ultimately winning at Burlington 6-5. Daniel Minor allowed 8H/4ER, 3K:1BB in 4IP; Juan Minaya picked up the win with 2H/1ER, 9K:0BB in 4IP; Andrew Walter threw a perfect 9th for his first save.
Rio Ruiz hit his first career grand slam in a 3x4, 5RBI night; Teoscar Hernandez was 2x4 with a double and two runs scored; Jobduan Morales - the catcher - got a triple.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (41-26), 4.0 up
Long one in Brooklyn last night, eh? The Cyclones took a 2-0 lead after three innings, Tri-City responded with three in the top of the 4th. Brooklyn tied it up in the bottom of the 8th, and finally, in the 16th inning, Tri-City pushed two runs across for a 5-3 win in a game that took just shy of five hours. Michael Feliz allowed 6H/2ER, 8K:1BB in 5IP; Tyler Brunnemann struck out three in 2IP; J.D. Osborne got the BS, allowing 3H/1ER, 1K:3BB in 1.1IP; Charles Basford threw 3.2IP of 5K:3BB, no-hit relief; Krishawn Holley allowed 3H/0ER, 1K:2BB in 3IP to get his first win of the season, and Gonzalo Sanudo did what Gonzalo Sanudo does - struck out the side in a perfect 16th inning.
Ronnie Mitchell was 3x7 with a double and an RBI; James Ramsay (3B), Tyler White (HR, RBI) and Jon Kemmer (RBI) had two hits each. Jack Mayfield had a hit and a walk.
Man of the Match: Michael Feliz
Greeneville (38-27), 0.5 up
Tied 1-1 heading into the bottom of the 8th, Marc Wik came up with one out. He drew a walk. Then the pitcher balked him to 2nd. Then a wild pitch got him to 3rd. Then a single by Alfredo Gonzalez scored Wik for the game-winning run, Gastros win 2-1. Francis Ramirez allowed 2H/1R (0ER), 7K:2BB in 4.2IP; Sebastian Kessay (H, BB), Jose Montero, and Jordan Mills (H) held Bluefield scoreless over the final 4.1IP.
Marc Wik was 2x3 with a double, walk, and both runs scored. Tanner Mathis and Alfredo Gonzalez (RBI) had a hit and a walk. Juan Santana provided a double and a sac fly RBI.
Man of the Match: Marc Wik
GCL Astros (26-32)
The GCL Astros were actually winning this one in the 6th inning. Alas. GCL Tigers win 13-2. Yeah. Reymin Guduan allowed 3H/0ER, 4K:1BB in 5IP; Javier Lozano allowed 3H/4R (3ER) in 1IP; Samil De Los Santos allowed 2H/3R (2ER) in 1IP; Devonte German allowed 6H/6ER, 1K:2BB in 1.2IP and Brett Clements walked a batter, but got the final, merciful out of the game.
Jose Fernandez was 3x4 with a double and an RBI; Luis Reynoso was 2x3 with a double with an RBI and two runs scored. Jacob Nottingham was 1x3 with an RBI and a sac fly; Alex Gonzalez was 1x4.
Man of the Match: Reymin Guduan for being the only guy who could get the Tigers out.
Oklahoma City clinched playoff berth
Corpus clinched playoff berth
Lancaster clinched playoff berth
Quad Cities clinched playoff berth
Tri-City 4.0 up with 7 to play
Greeneville 0.5 up with 3 to play
GCL Astros eliminated
Oklahoma City (79-59)
OKC trailed 1-0 until a three-run 4th put them on their way to a 5-4 win over Nashville, and a PCL American South Division title. Eric Berger got the spot start and allowed 2H/1ER, 4K:1BB in 5IP; Jose Cisnero (2ER) and Jason Stoffel (1ER) each struck out two before Wade LeBlanc and Jorge DeLeon got the final three outs of the season.
Japhet Amador was 3x4 and an RBI; George Springer (3B, BB, RBI) and Brandon Laird (RBI) had two hits each. Carlos Perez was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI. Congrats to the RedHawks on winning the division.
Man of the Match: Japhet Amador
Corpus (80-54)
Corpus got on the board in the top of the first with a run on two hits. And then got one more hit the rest of the game. Frisco wins 5-1. David Rollins threw 6IP, 7H/3R (2ER), 5K:1BB; Cameron Lamb threw the 7th and allowed only an HBP, and Theron Geith allowed 3H/2ER in the 8th.
Ronald Torreyes got two of the Hooks' three hits, with Erik Castro providing an RBI double and a walk. Leo Heras was the only other baserunner of the night, drawing a walk.
Man of the Match: David Rollins
Lancaster (79-55)
Despite getting out-hit 12-9, Lancster rode a 5-run 1st inning to a 7-2 win over Lake Elsinore. Aaron West allowed 8H/2ER, 9K:0BB in 5IP; Tommy Shirley gave up two hits and a walk in two scoreless; Gera Sanchez (1H, 1K:2BB) and Travis Ballew (1H, 3K:0BB) threw scoreless innings to close out the game.
MP Cokinos was 3x4 with two runs scored and his first stolen base of the season; Nolan Fontana was 1x2 with three walks and a stolen base; Carlos Perdomo (RBI), Brandon Meredith and Chris Epps (2RBI) had a hit and a walk each. Joe Sclafani was 1x5 with two RBI.
Man of the Match: MP Cokinos
Quad Cities (76-56)
Quad Cities got four in the top of the 1st and traded runs the rest of the way, ultimately winning at Burlington 6-5. Daniel Minor allowed 8H/4ER, 3K:1BB in 4IP; Juan Minaya picked up the win with 2H/1ER, 9K:0BB in 4IP; Andrew Walter threw a perfect 9th for his first save.
Rio Ruiz hit his first career grand slam in a 3x4, 5RBI night; Teoscar Hernandez was 2x4 with a double and two runs scored; Jobduan Morales - the catcher - got a triple.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (41-26), 4.0 up
Long one in Brooklyn last night, eh? The Cyclones took a 2-0 lead after three innings, Tri-City responded with three in the top of the 4th. Brooklyn tied it up in the bottom of the 8th, and finally, in the 16th inning, Tri-City pushed two runs across for a 5-3 win in a game that took just shy of five hours. Michael Feliz allowed 6H/2ER, 8K:1BB in 5IP; Tyler Brunnemann struck out three in 2IP; J.D. Osborne got the BS, allowing 3H/1ER, 1K:3BB in 1.1IP; Charles Basford threw 3.2IP of 5K:3BB, no-hit relief; Krishawn Holley allowed 3H/0ER, 1K:2BB in 3IP to get his first win of the season, and Gonzalo Sanudo did what Gonzalo Sanudo does - struck out the side in a perfect 16th inning.
Ronnie Mitchell was 3x7 with a double and an RBI; James Ramsay (3B), Tyler White (HR, RBI) and Jon Kemmer (RBI) had two hits each. Jack Mayfield had a hit and a walk.
Man of the Match: Michael Feliz
Greeneville (38-27), 0.5 up
Tied 1-1 heading into the bottom of the 8th, Marc Wik came up with one out. He drew a walk. Then the pitcher balked him to 2nd. Then a wild pitch got him to 3rd. Then a single by Alfredo Gonzalez scored Wik for the game-winning run, Gastros win 2-1. Francis Ramirez allowed 2H/1R (0ER), 7K:2BB in 4.2IP; Sebastian Kessay (H, BB), Jose Montero, and Jordan Mills (H) held Bluefield scoreless over the final 4.1IP.
Marc Wik was 2x3 with a double, walk, and both runs scored. Tanner Mathis and Alfredo Gonzalez (RBI) had a hit and a walk. Juan Santana provided a double and a sac fly RBI.
Man of the Match: Marc Wik
GCL Astros (26-32)
The GCL Astros were actually winning this one in the 6th inning. Alas. GCL Tigers win 13-2. Yeah. Reymin Guduan allowed 3H/0ER, 4K:1BB in 5IP; Javier Lozano allowed 3H/4R (3ER) in 1IP; Samil De Los Santos allowed 2H/3R (2ER) in 1IP; Devonte German allowed 6H/6ER, 1K:2BB in 1.2IP and Brett Clements walked a batter, but got the final, merciful out of the game.
Jose Fernandez was 3x4 with a double and an RBI; Luis Reynoso was 2x3 with a double with an RBI and two runs scored. Jacob Nottingham was 1x3 with an RBI and a sac fly; Alex Gonzalez was 1x4.
Man of the Match: Reymin Guduan for being the only guy who could get the Tigers out.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
PreStros Morning Report: August 26
Playoff Picture
OKC up 6.0 with 7 to play
Corpus clinched playoff berth
Lancaster clinched playoff berth
Quad Cities clinched playoff berth
Tri-City 4.0 up with 8 to play
Greeneville 0.5 up with 4 to play
GCL Astros eliminated
Oklahoma City (78-59) 6.0 up
A four-run 3rd inning allowed Nashville what they needed in a 6-3 win at Bricktown, the first time OKC has lost at home since the All-Star Break. Ross Seaton allowed 9H/4ER, 4K:2BB, 2HBP in 4.1IP; Rhiner Cruz (1.1IP, 3K) and Pat Urckfitz (2.1IP, 2H, 3K) threw scoreless outings. Hector Ambriz allowed 4H/2ER, 2K:1BB in the 9th.
Jon Singleton was 2x3 with two walks and all three OKC RBIs. Jose Martinez (2B), George Springer (BB, SB - he's now at 37HR/43SB on the season) and Japhet Amador also had two hits each. The RedHawks were 2x16 w/RISP.
Man of the Match: Jon Singleton
Corpus (38-25), tied
Are you kidding me? Sitting one game behind San Antonio, Luis Cruz goes out and does that? Cruz, in his second start at Corpus, threw a complete game shutout to level the division up, allowing two hits, walking one, and striking out 14 San Antonio batters. Hooks win 5-0.
Leo Heras, now hitting .412, was 3x5 with a double and a three-run homer (4RBI total) and two runs scored. Preston Tucker (RBI), Erik Castro (two doubles) and Matt Duffy (two runs scored).
Man of the Match: Child, please.
Lancaster (39-24, clinched division) 78-55 overall
Rancho Cucamonga got two in the top of the 2nd, gave one back in the bottom half, and tacked on a couple more in a 4-1 win at Lancaster. Vincent Velasquez allowed 5H/4ER, 7K:4BB in 5IP; Tyson Perez threw 3IP, 2H/0ER, 2K:0BB and Jordan Jankowski struck out the side in the 9th.
Carlos Perdomo had three of the JetHawks' six hits, and a walk; MP Cokinos, Chris Epps (2B, BB), and Jesse Wierzbicki (BB) had your other hits. Joe Sclafani was 0x2 with a walk and his 16th stolen base.
Man of the Match: Carlos Perdomo
Quad Cities (37-25) 75-56 overall
Quad Cities had a 1-0 heading into the bottom of the 9th, but Burlington put together a two-out rally to tie it up. Quad Cities re-took the lead in the top of the 10th when Austin Elkins drove in Rio Ruiz, but Burlington - again with two outs - got the tying run on a wild pitch, and got the walk-off single two batters later for a 3-2 win over Quad Cities. NewStro Josh Hader threw 6IP, allowing 4H/0ER, 6K:0BB; Zach Morton allowed 4H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 3IP, and Pat Christensen got the BS/L with 3H/2R (1ER), 2K:0BB in 0.2IP.
Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with a double, stolen base and an RBI; Austin Elkins was 1x3 with a double, walk, and an RBI; Teoscar Hernandez was 1x4 with a double. Notably, Bobby Borchering got the Golden Sombrero with an 0x4, 4K day.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (40-26) 4.0 up
The ValleyCats got worked over in Brooklyn, allowing seven runs in the first two innings on their way to an 8-1 loss. Adrian Houser allowed 6H/6R (3ER), 1K:0BB; Randall Fant allowed 6H/2R (1ER), 7K:0BB in 5IP; Charles Basford allowed a hit and a walk, striking out two in 0.2IP; Zach Dando gave up two hits in a scoreless 8th.
Jack Mayfield had two of the ValleyCats' six hits; James Ramsay and Conrad Gregor had a hit and a walk each.
Man of the Match: Randall Fant
Greeneville (37-27), 0.5 up
Greeneville had a 2-0 lead when Bluefield tied it up in the top of the 6th and the Gastros got a walk-off throwing error in the bottom of the 9th for a 3-2 win. Frederick Tiburcio allowed 5H/2ER, 6K:1BB in 5.2IP; Austin Chrismon got the win with 3.1IP, 4H/0ER, 1K:0BB.
Tanner Mathis and Thomas Lindauer (BB) had two hits each. Brett Phillips (2B) and Marc Wik each drew two walks.
Man of the Match: Tanner Mathis
GCL Astros (26-31) eliminated
It was 1-1 between the Astros and Tigers until the 7th, when the Tigers got themselves eight runs. GCL Tigers win 9-1. Joe Musgrove allowed 4H/1ER, 4K:2BB in 6IP; Juan Santos didn't record an out and allowed 3H/6R (3ER), 0K:1BB; Robert Corniel gave up 1H/2ER (and three of Santos' runs) with 0K:3BB in 1IP; Jorge Perez walked one in the 8th.
Yonathan Mejia was 2x4 with a double; Jacob Nottingham had your other hit - an RBI double. Jason Martin drew a walk and stole 2nd and 3rd
Man of the Match: Yonathan Mejia
OKC up 6.0 with 7 to play
Corpus clinched playoff berth
Lancaster clinched playoff berth
Quad Cities clinched playoff berth
Tri-City 4.0 up with 8 to play
Greeneville 0.5 up with 4 to play
GCL Astros eliminated
Oklahoma City (78-59) 6.0 up
A four-run 3rd inning allowed Nashville what they needed in a 6-3 win at Bricktown, the first time OKC has lost at home since the All-Star Break. Ross Seaton allowed 9H/4ER, 4K:2BB, 2HBP in 4.1IP; Rhiner Cruz (1.1IP, 3K) and Pat Urckfitz (2.1IP, 2H, 3K) threw scoreless outings. Hector Ambriz allowed 4H/2ER, 2K:1BB in the 9th.
Jon Singleton was 2x3 with two walks and all three OKC RBIs. Jose Martinez (2B), George Springer (BB, SB - he's now at 37HR/43SB on the season) and Japhet Amador also had two hits each. The RedHawks were 2x16 w/RISP.
Man of the Match: Jon Singleton
Corpus (38-25), tied
Are you kidding me? Sitting one game behind San Antonio, Luis Cruz goes out and does that? Cruz, in his second start at Corpus, threw a complete game shutout to level the division up, allowing two hits, walking one, and striking out 14 San Antonio batters. Hooks win 5-0.
Leo Heras, now hitting .412, was 3x5 with a double and a three-run homer (4RBI total) and two runs scored. Preston Tucker (RBI), Erik Castro (two doubles) and Matt Duffy (two runs scored).
Man of the Match: Child, please.
Lancaster (39-24, clinched division) 78-55 overall
Rancho Cucamonga got two in the top of the 2nd, gave one back in the bottom half, and tacked on a couple more in a 4-1 win at Lancaster. Vincent Velasquez allowed 5H/4ER, 7K:4BB in 5IP; Tyson Perez threw 3IP, 2H/0ER, 2K:0BB and Jordan Jankowski struck out the side in the 9th.
Carlos Perdomo had three of the JetHawks' six hits, and a walk; MP Cokinos, Chris Epps (2B, BB), and Jesse Wierzbicki (BB) had your other hits. Joe Sclafani was 0x2 with a walk and his 16th stolen base.
Man of the Match: Carlos Perdomo
Quad Cities (37-25) 75-56 overall
Quad Cities had a 1-0 heading into the bottom of the 9th, but Burlington put together a two-out rally to tie it up. Quad Cities re-took the lead in the top of the 10th when Austin Elkins drove in Rio Ruiz, but Burlington - again with two outs - got the tying run on a wild pitch, and got the walk-off single two batters later for a 3-2 win over Quad Cities. NewStro Josh Hader threw 6IP, allowing 4H/0ER, 6K:0BB; Zach Morton allowed 4H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 3IP, and Pat Christensen got the BS/L with 3H/2R (1ER), 2K:0BB in 0.2IP.
Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with a double, stolen base and an RBI; Austin Elkins was 1x3 with a double, walk, and an RBI; Teoscar Hernandez was 1x4 with a double. Notably, Bobby Borchering got the Golden Sombrero with an 0x4, 4K day.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (40-26) 4.0 up
The ValleyCats got worked over in Brooklyn, allowing seven runs in the first two innings on their way to an 8-1 loss. Adrian Houser allowed 6H/6R (3ER), 1K:0BB; Randall Fant allowed 6H/2R (1ER), 7K:0BB in 5IP; Charles Basford allowed a hit and a walk, striking out two in 0.2IP; Zach Dando gave up two hits in a scoreless 8th.
Jack Mayfield had two of the ValleyCats' six hits; James Ramsay and Conrad Gregor had a hit and a walk each.
Man of the Match: Randall Fant
Greeneville (37-27), 0.5 up
Greeneville had a 2-0 lead when Bluefield tied it up in the top of the 6th and the Gastros got a walk-off throwing error in the bottom of the 9th for a 3-2 win. Frederick Tiburcio allowed 5H/2ER, 6K:1BB in 5.2IP; Austin Chrismon got the win with 3.1IP, 4H/0ER, 1K:0BB.
Tanner Mathis and Thomas Lindauer (BB) had two hits each. Brett Phillips (2B) and Marc Wik each drew two walks.
Man of the Match: Tanner Mathis
GCL Astros (26-31) eliminated
It was 1-1 between the Astros and Tigers until the 7th, when the Tigers got themselves eight runs. GCL Tigers win 9-1. Joe Musgrove allowed 4H/1ER, 4K:2BB in 6IP; Juan Santos didn't record an out and allowed 3H/6R (3ER), 0K:1BB; Robert Corniel gave up 1H/2ER (and three of Santos' runs) with 0K:3BB in 1IP; Jorge Perez walked one in the 8th.
Yonathan Mejia was 2x4 with a double; Jacob Nottingham had your other hit - an RBI double. Jason Martin drew a walk and stole 2nd and 3rd
Man of the Match: Yonathan Mejia
Thursday, August 22, 2013
PreStros Morning Report: August 21
Playoff Picture
OKC 7.0 up with 12 to play
Quad Cities 2.5 up for 2nd playoff spot with 12 to play
Tri-City 1.5 up with 12 to play
Greeneville 0.5 up with 9 to play
*Corpus and Lancaster have already clinched a playoff berth
Oklahoma City (76-56), 7.0 up
In the first of a crucial five-game series at Round Rock, OKC took a 3-0 lead in the second inning, and didn't give it up, winning 4-2. Ross Seaton threw a strong 5.2IP, 7H/2ER, 4K:0BB. Eric Berger (1.2IP, 3K), Jose Cisnero (0.2IP, 2K:1BB), and Jorge De Leon (1IP) held the Express scoreless over the final 3.1IP.
Rene Garcia was 3x4 with an RBI; Jimmy Paredes hit a solo homer and drew a walk; Jon Singleton was 1x4 with a double, and Che-Hsuan Lin was 1x4 with 2RBI. George Springer was 0x2 with two walks.
Man of the Match: Going with Ross Seaton
Corpus (35-23, 2.0 GB) 77-51 overall
Corpus scored the first three runs of the game and cruised to a 3-1 win over Midland. Luis Cruz threw 6IP, allowing just 2H/1ER, 5K:2BB; Andrew Robinson allowed a hit and struck out three in 2IP; Jonas Dufek gave up two hits in 1IP to lower his ERA at Corpus to 0.56.
Preston Tucker was 2x3 with a walk and two doubles; Raoul Torrez (2B) and Drew Muren (2B, 3B, 2RBI) had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Luis Cruz
Lancaster (35-23, 6.5 up), 74-54 overall
The JetHawks got two in the top of the 2nd inning, but Lake Elsinore responded with three in the bottom half. The JetHawks tied it in the 5th, but Lake Elsinore got the walk-off on a double to left, and a single combined with Dan Gulbransen's fielding error - Lake Elsinore wins 4-3. Aaron West gave up 8H/3ER, 5K:0BB in 5IP; Kenny Long and Gera Sanchez threw 1.2 scoreless innings each, and Blair Walters took the hard-luck loss with 2H/1R (0ER) in 0IP.
MP Cokinos was 3x4 with an RBI; Tyler Heineman was 2x4. Chris Epps had the only extra-base hit, and Brandon Meredith was 1x3 with a walk, stolen base, and RBI.
Man of the Match: MP Cokinos
Quad Cities (33-24, 6.5 GB), 71-55 overall
Quad Cities found themselves down 5-0 before getting on the board, and then found themselves losing 6-1 at the end of the 9th inning. Daniel Minor allowed 5H/3ER, 2K:3BB in 3.2IP; Juan Minaya allowed 4H/3ER, 1K:2BB in 2.1IP; Richard Rodriguez allowed 1H/0ER, 5K:1BB in 3IP.
Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with a double; Jobduan Morales was 2x2, replacing Roberto Pena behind the plate. Jodran Scott was 1x4 with the lone run scored and a stolen base.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (37-25) 1.5 up
Tri-City and Vermont battled through a 2-2 tie through 13 innings. In the top of the 14th, three Tri-City singles and a double resulted in two outfield assists for Vermont, but Ronnie Mitchell was able to double home Tyler White for the winning run in a 3-2 ValleyCat victory. Michael Feliz threw 6IP, 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB; J.D. Osborne allowed 2H/1ER in 1IP; Tyler Brunnemann (2K), Krishawn Holley (2K), and Zach Dando (1H/2BB) each threw two scoreless innings. Gonzalo Sanudo got the save by striking out two in the 14th.
James Ramsay (BB, RBI), Jon Kemmer, Tyler White (HR, BB, RBI) and Brett Booth (2BB) had two hits each. Ronnie Mitchell was 1x5 with two walks.
Man of the Match: Hard to say. How about Tyler White?
Greeneville (34-25, 0.5 up)
Greeneville was down 8-0 before deciding to score some runs with a 6-run 6th inning, but ultimately fell 10-8 in an Elizabethton sweep. Francis Ramirez threw 3IP, allowing 9H/7ER, 3K:2BB; Christian Garcia allowed 3H/3ER, 3K:1BB in 3IP; Ryan Connolly held the Twins to 1H/0ER in 2IP.
Elizabethton's Kohl Stewart made his Appy League debut, striking out eight Gastros in 4IP. Marc Wik was 3x3 with 2BB and 2RBI; Ariel Ovando was 1x3 with a HR, BB, 3RBI; Juan Santana was 0x2 with 3BB. Brian Holberton was 1x3 with two walks.
Man of the Match: Ariel Ovando?
GCL Astros (24-29), 8.0 GB (eliminated)
Carrying a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the 9th against the GCL Yankees1, the Astros gave up three runs for a 7-6 loss. Reymin Guduan allowed 3H/3ER, 5K:1BB in 3.2IP; Juan Santos allowed 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 3.2IP; Erick Gonzalez allowed 4H/3R (2ER) in 1IP for the loss.
Jose Fernandez was 2x4 with a homer and 2RBI; Mesac Laguna was 1x4 with a tweo-run homer and 3K. Pedro Coa and Yonathan Mejia each had an RBI. Jacob Nottingham was 1x3 with a walk.
Man of the Match: Jose Fernandez
OKC 7.0 up with 12 to play
Quad Cities 2.5 up for 2nd playoff spot with 12 to play
Tri-City 1.5 up with 12 to play
Greeneville 0.5 up with 9 to play
*Corpus and Lancaster have already clinched a playoff berth
Oklahoma City (76-56), 7.0 up
In the first of a crucial five-game series at Round Rock, OKC took a 3-0 lead in the second inning, and didn't give it up, winning 4-2. Ross Seaton threw a strong 5.2IP, 7H/2ER, 4K:0BB. Eric Berger (1.2IP, 3K), Jose Cisnero (0.2IP, 2K:1BB), and Jorge De Leon (1IP) held the Express scoreless over the final 3.1IP.
Rene Garcia was 3x4 with an RBI; Jimmy Paredes hit a solo homer and drew a walk; Jon Singleton was 1x4 with a double, and Che-Hsuan Lin was 1x4 with 2RBI. George Springer was 0x2 with two walks.
Man of the Match: Going with Ross Seaton
Corpus (35-23, 2.0 GB) 77-51 overall
Corpus scored the first three runs of the game and cruised to a 3-1 win over Midland. Luis Cruz threw 6IP, allowing just 2H/1ER, 5K:2BB; Andrew Robinson allowed a hit and struck out three in 2IP; Jonas Dufek gave up two hits in 1IP to lower his ERA at Corpus to 0.56.
Preston Tucker was 2x3 with a walk and two doubles; Raoul Torrez (2B) and Drew Muren (2B, 3B, 2RBI) had two hits each.
Man of the Match: Luis Cruz
Lancaster (35-23, 6.5 up), 74-54 overall
The JetHawks got two in the top of the 2nd inning, but Lake Elsinore responded with three in the bottom half. The JetHawks tied it in the 5th, but Lake Elsinore got the walk-off on a double to left, and a single combined with Dan Gulbransen's fielding error - Lake Elsinore wins 4-3. Aaron West gave up 8H/3ER, 5K:0BB in 5IP; Kenny Long and Gera Sanchez threw 1.2 scoreless innings each, and Blair Walters took the hard-luck loss with 2H/1R (0ER) in 0IP.
MP Cokinos was 3x4 with an RBI; Tyler Heineman was 2x4. Chris Epps had the only extra-base hit, and Brandon Meredith was 1x3 with a walk, stolen base, and RBI.
Man of the Match: MP Cokinos
Quad Cities (33-24, 6.5 GB), 71-55 overall
Quad Cities found themselves down 5-0 before getting on the board, and then found themselves losing 6-1 at the end of the 9th inning. Daniel Minor allowed 5H/3ER, 2K:3BB in 3.2IP; Juan Minaya allowed 4H/3ER, 1K:2BB in 2.1IP; Richard Rodriguez allowed 1H/0ER, 5K:1BB in 3IP.
Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with a double; Jobduan Morales was 2x2, replacing Roberto Pena behind the plate. Jodran Scott was 1x4 with the lone run scored and a stolen base.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (37-25) 1.5 up
Tri-City and Vermont battled through a 2-2 tie through 13 innings. In the top of the 14th, three Tri-City singles and a double resulted in two outfield assists for Vermont, but Ronnie Mitchell was able to double home Tyler White for the winning run in a 3-2 ValleyCat victory. Michael Feliz threw 6IP, 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB; J.D. Osborne allowed 2H/1ER in 1IP; Tyler Brunnemann (2K), Krishawn Holley (2K), and Zach Dando (1H/2BB) each threw two scoreless innings. Gonzalo Sanudo got the save by striking out two in the 14th.
James Ramsay (BB, RBI), Jon Kemmer, Tyler White (HR, BB, RBI) and Brett Booth (2BB) had two hits each. Ronnie Mitchell was 1x5 with two walks.
Man of the Match: Hard to say. How about Tyler White?
Greeneville (34-25, 0.5 up)
Greeneville was down 8-0 before deciding to score some runs with a 6-run 6th inning, but ultimately fell 10-8 in an Elizabethton sweep. Francis Ramirez threw 3IP, allowing 9H/7ER, 3K:2BB; Christian Garcia allowed 3H/3ER, 3K:1BB in 3IP; Ryan Connolly held the Twins to 1H/0ER in 2IP.
Elizabethton's Kohl Stewart made his Appy League debut, striking out eight Gastros in 4IP. Marc Wik was 3x3 with 2BB and 2RBI; Ariel Ovando was 1x3 with a HR, BB, 3RBI; Juan Santana was 0x2 with 3BB. Brian Holberton was 1x3 with two walks.
Man of the Match: Ariel Ovando?
GCL Astros (24-29), 8.0 GB (eliminated)
Carrying a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the 9th against the GCL Yankees1, the Astros gave up three runs for a 7-6 loss. Reymin Guduan allowed 3H/3ER, 5K:1BB in 3.2IP; Juan Santos allowed 3H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 3.2IP; Erick Gonzalez allowed 4H/3R (2ER) in 1IP for the loss.
Jose Fernandez was 2x4 with a homer and 2RBI; Mesac Laguna was 1x4 with a tweo-run homer and 3K. Pedro Coa and Yonathan Mejia each had an RBI. Jacob Nottingham was 1x3 with a walk.
Man of the Match: Jose Fernandez
Monday, August 19, 2013
PreStros Morning Report: August 18
Oklahoma City (73-56), 6.0 up
OKC scored the first five runs of the game, Albuquerque got the next four, and that's how it ended with a 5-4 OKC win. Asher Wojciechowski threw 7.1IP, 7H/3ER, 8K:1BB; Pat Urckfitz allowed a hit to the only batter he faced, and Jason Stoffel allowed a hit which scored Wojo's inherited runner. Jorge De Leon allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB in the 9th.
Seven RedHawks combined for seven hits, with Che-Hsuan Lin getting 3RBI. Jimmy Paredes had an RBI triple, and George Springer hit his 16th homer with OKC - 35 overall for the season.
Man of the Match: Asher Wojciechowski
Corpus (33-23, 2.0 GB), 75-51 overall
Arkansas got on the board in the bottom of the 1st, Corpus tied it up in the 6th, and that's where it was heading into the 10th. Two Corpus singles and a Max Stassi HBP loaded up the bases with two outs in the 10th, and Erik Castro singled to center to provide the runs for a 3-1 Corpus win. Mike Foltynewicz allowed 2H/1ER, 4K:0BB in 6IP; Ruben Alaniz gave up a hit and two walks in 3IP, and Jonas Dufek got his 2nd Corpus save.
Erik Castro was 3x5 with the aforementioned 2RBI; Enrique Hernandez hit his 12th homer of the season.
Man of the Match: Mike Foltynewicz
Lancaster (35-21, 8.0 up) 74-52 overall
The JetHawks never trailed in this one, and with four runs in the bottom of the 7th cruised to a 9-3 win over High Desert. Colton Cain threw 6.1IP, 5H/3ER, 2K:3BB while a bullpen of Jordan Jankowski (0.2IP, 1K), Kenny Long (0.2IP, 1K) and Travis Ballew (1.1IP, 2K:1BB) held High Desert hitless over the final 2.2IP.
Tyler Heineman was 2x4 with a triple, homer and 2RBI and has a seven-game hit streak (a four-game multi-hit streak) and is hitting .371/.465/.686 in his last ten games with 6K:5BB. Joe Sclafani was 2x3 with a walk; Nolan Fontana was 1x5 with a triple and 2RBI; MP Cokinos was 1x4 with 2RBI;
Man of the Match: Tyler Heineman
Quad Cities (31-23, 5.5 GB) 69-54 overall
Burlington tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the 9th when Wendell Soto hit a ball off pitcher Juan Minaya, allowing the tying run to score, but Rio Ruiz made sure to get it back, hitting a lead-off, walk-off homer in the bottom of the 9th for a 3-2 win. Brian Holmes threw 5.1IP, 7H/1R (0ER), 6K:3BB; Zach Morton threw 2.2 perfect innings, and Minaya allowed 3H/1ER, 1K:1BB in the 9th.
Every River Bandit got on base at least once. Carlos Correa was 1x4 with an RBI triple; Jobduan Morales hit his 2nd homer of the season, and Ruiz hit the walk-off. Danry Vasquez got a single and a walk on the day.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (35-24) 0.5 up
Mike Martinez hit a game-tying two-run homer in the top of the 9th, but Staten Island's Eric Jagielo got his 4th hit of the game in the 11th with a walk-off homer for a 3-2 Staten Island win. Kevin Comer allowed 3H/0ER, 5K:2BB in 3.2IP; Evan Grills gave up 7H/2R (1ER), 1K:0BB in 4IP; Richard Rodriguez allowed two baserunners in 0.2IP; Gonzalo Sanudo struck out two more batters (36K:3BB in 29IP), and Tyler Brunnemann took the loss in the 11th.
The ValleyCats only managed five hits: D'Andre Toney, Conrad Gregor (2BB), Mike Martinez (HR/2RBI), Jack Mayfield and Jake Rodriguez.
Man of the Match: Conrad Gregor
Greeneville (34-23), 2.5 up
Greeneville had a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 7th, but Elizabethton got four runs in the bottom half for a 5-2 win over the Gastros. Edison Frias allowed 5H/1ER, 4K:2BB in 6IP; Kevin Ferguson gave up 4H/4ER, HBP in 1IP and Sebastian Kessay allowed a hit to the only batter he faced before rain called the game early.
Tanner Mathis was 2x3 with a walk; Juan Santana was 1x3 with two walks; Angel Ibanez was 0x2 with two walks and an RBI; Chase McDonald was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI.
Man of the Match: Edison Frias
GCL Astros
Off.
OKC scored the first five runs of the game, Albuquerque got the next four, and that's how it ended with a 5-4 OKC win. Asher Wojciechowski threw 7.1IP, 7H/3ER, 8K:1BB; Pat Urckfitz allowed a hit to the only batter he faced, and Jason Stoffel allowed a hit which scored Wojo's inherited runner. Jorge De Leon allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB in the 9th.
Seven RedHawks combined for seven hits, with Che-Hsuan Lin getting 3RBI. Jimmy Paredes had an RBI triple, and George Springer hit his 16th homer with OKC - 35 overall for the season.
Man of the Match: Asher Wojciechowski
Corpus (33-23, 2.0 GB), 75-51 overall
Arkansas got on the board in the bottom of the 1st, Corpus tied it up in the 6th, and that's where it was heading into the 10th. Two Corpus singles and a Max Stassi HBP loaded up the bases with two outs in the 10th, and Erik Castro singled to center to provide the runs for a 3-1 Corpus win. Mike Foltynewicz allowed 2H/1ER, 4K:0BB in 6IP; Ruben Alaniz gave up a hit and two walks in 3IP, and Jonas Dufek got his 2nd Corpus save.
Erik Castro was 3x5 with the aforementioned 2RBI; Enrique Hernandez hit his 12th homer of the season.
Man of the Match: Mike Foltynewicz
Lancaster (35-21, 8.0 up) 74-52 overall
The JetHawks never trailed in this one, and with four runs in the bottom of the 7th cruised to a 9-3 win over High Desert. Colton Cain threw 6.1IP, 5H/3ER, 2K:3BB while a bullpen of Jordan Jankowski (0.2IP, 1K), Kenny Long (0.2IP, 1K) and Travis Ballew (1.1IP, 2K:1BB) held High Desert hitless over the final 2.2IP.
Tyler Heineman was 2x4 with a triple, homer and 2RBI and has a seven-game hit streak (a four-game multi-hit streak) and is hitting .371/.465/.686 in his last ten games with 6K:5BB. Joe Sclafani was 2x3 with a walk; Nolan Fontana was 1x5 with a triple and 2RBI; MP Cokinos was 1x4 with 2RBI;
Man of the Match: Tyler Heineman
Quad Cities (31-23, 5.5 GB) 69-54 overall
Burlington tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the 9th when Wendell Soto hit a ball off pitcher Juan Minaya, allowing the tying run to score, but Rio Ruiz made sure to get it back, hitting a lead-off, walk-off homer in the bottom of the 9th for a 3-2 win. Brian Holmes threw 5.1IP, 7H/1R (0ER), 6K:3BB; Zach Morton threw 2.2 perfect innings, and Minaya allowed 3H/1ER, 1K:1BB in the 9th.
Every River Bandit got on base at least once. Carlos Correa was 1x4 with an RBI triple; Jobduan Morales hit his 2nd homer of the season, and Ruiz hit the walk-off. Danry Vasquez got a single and a walk on the day.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (35-24) 0.5 up
Mike Martinez hit a game-tying two-run homer in the top of the 9th, but Staten Island's Eric Jagielo got his 4th hit of the game in the 11th with a walk-off homer for a 3-2 Staten Island win. Kevin Comer allowed 3H/0ER, 5K:2BB in 3.2IP; Evan Grills gave up 7H/2R (1ER), 1K:0BB in 4IP; Richard Rodriguez allowed two baserunners in 0.2IP; Gonzalo Sanudo struck out two more batters (36K:3BB in 29IP), and Tyler Brunnemann took the loss in the 11th.
The ValleyCats only managed five hits: D'Andre Toney, Conrad Gregor (2BB), Mike Martinez (HR/2RBI), Jack Mayfield and Jake Rodriguez.
Man of the Match: Conrad Gregor
Greeneville (34-23), 2.5 up
Greeneville had a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 7th, but Elizabethton got four runs in the bottom half for a 5-2 win over the Gastros. Edison Frias allowed 5H/1ER, 4K:2BB in 6IP; Kevin Ferguson gave up 4H/4ER, HBP in 1IP and Sebastian Kessay allowed a hit to the only batter he faced before rain called the game early.
Tanner Mathis was 2x3 with a walk; Juan Santana was 1x3 with two walks; Angel Ibanez was 0x2 with two walks and an RBI; Chase McDonald was 1x3 with a walk and an RBI.
Man of the Match: Edison Frias
GCL Astros
Off.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
PreStros Morning Report: July 27
Oklahoma City (58-50), 3.0 GB
A strong spot start byHenry David Rollins and the usual from George Springer led OKC to a 5-0 win over the Cubs. Rollins went 6 scoreless IP with 3 H and 8K:1BB. Philip Humber, Josh Zeid, and Kevin Chapman each added a scoreless inning, with Zeid adding 3 K for good measure.
Springer was 2x2 with 2 BB, 1 SB, 3 R, 1 RBI, and an exciting inside-the-park home run.
Man of the Match: George Springer
Corpus (21-15), 1.0 GB
The Hooks pen held things down for over seven innings, giving the bats time to pull out the 7-6 come back win over Midland. Seaton got rocked in 1.2 IP, giving up 6H/6R 1K:2BB. Theron Geith and Jonas Dufek each gave 2.2 scoreless IP with 3 K. Pat Urckfitz and Chia-Jen Lo added a scoreless 1 IP each to finish things up.
Preston Tucker was 1x4 with 1 BB, 2 R ,and 1 HR. Max Stassi went 2x4 with 1 HR and 3 RBI. Domingo Santana was 2x4 with a solo HR.
Man of the Match: Geith/Dufek/Urckfitz/Lo
Lancaster (23-14), 3.0 up
The JetHawks committed six errors (four by Carlos Perdomo) en route to a 7-5 loss to the Quakes. Kyle Hallock threw 4 IP and allowed 7H/4R (2 ER) with 3K:3BB. Michael Dimock went 3 IP, giving up 4H/3R (1 ER) with 2K:1BB. Cameron Lamb finished with 1 IP and 1 H.
DDJ went 2x5 with 1 SB, 1 2B, 1 R, and 1 RBI. Matt Duffy was 1x4 with a solo HR. Chris Epps went 2x4 with 1 BB, 1 SB, and 1 R.
Man of the Match: Delino DeShields Jr
Quad Cities (18-15), 4.5 GB
QC pitchers allowed 22 baserunners as the River Bandits lost 8-6 to Beloit. Chris Devenski threw 5 IP, allowing 10H/2R with 4K:1BB. Juri Perez went .2 IP and gave up 5H/5R with 1 BB. Gerardo Sanchez threw 2.1 IP and gave up 4H/1R with 2K:1BB.
Teoscar Hernandez was 2x5 with 1 2B and 2 R. Carlos Correa was 2x4 with 1 2B, 1 R, and 2 RBI. Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with 1 SB, 1 HR, and 3 RBI.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (26-14) 3.5 up
The ValleyCats couldn't muster any offense as they lost 4-0 to Vermont. Adrian Houser threw 5 IP and gave up 7H/2R with 3K:1BB. Tanner Bushue went 2 IP and allowed 2H/2R with 2K:1BB. Patrick Christensen went the last 1 IP with 1 H.
Tony Kemp was 1x3 with 1 BB and 1 SB.
Man of the Match: Tony Kemp
Greeneville (23-12), 2.0 up
In a shortened, 7 inning game, the Astros lost 2-1 to Pulaski. Chris Lee went 5.1 IP and gave up 6H/2R with 5 K. Gonzalo Sanudo threw 1.2 IP.
Thomas Lindauer was 1x2 with 1 2B and 1 RBI.
Man of the Match: Thomas Lindauer
GCL Astros (14-16), 5.5 GB
The Astros lost 3-0 to the Tigers. Jose Montero threw 5 IP and gave up 4H/3R with 3K:5BB. Samil De Los Santos, Erick Gonzalez, and Zach Dando each threw a scoreless inning in relief, with De Los Santos striking out the side in his outing.
Yonathan Mejia was 2x4
Man of the Match: Samil De Los Santos, I guess
DSL Astros (24-23) 8.0 GB
One rough inning was all it took for the Astros to lose 4-2 to the Royals. Gerardo Juarez threw 5.2 IP, allowing 6H/4R with 5K:2BB. Geronimo Franzua went 2.1 IP, allowing 2 H with 1K:1BB.
Luis Payano was 2x4. Hector Roa went 2x4 with 1 2B, 1 SB, 1 R, and 1 RBI.
Man of the Match: Hector Roa
A strong spot start by
Springer was 2x2 with 2 BB, 1 SB, 3 R, 1 RBI, and an exciting inside-the-park home run.
Marwin Gonzalez was 2x3 with 1 BB and 2 RBI. No, he has not been traded yet.
Corpus (21-15), 1.0 GB
The Hooks pen held things down for over seven innings, giving the bats time to pull out the 7-6 come back win over Midland. Seaton got rocked in 1.2 IP, giving up 6H/6R 1K:2BB. Theron Geith and Jonas Dufek each gave 2.2 scoreless IP with 3 K. Pat Urckfitz and Chia-Jen Lo added a scoreless 1 IP each to finish things up.
Preston Tucker was 1x4 with 1 BB, 2 R ,and 1 HR. Max Stassi went 2x4 with 1 HR and 3 RBI. Domingo Santana was 2x4 with a solo HR.
Man of the Match: Geith/Dufek/Urckfitz/Lo
Lancaster (23-14), 3.0 up
The JetHawks committed six errors (four by Carlos Perdomo) en route to a 7-5 loss to the Quakes. Kyle Hallock threw 4 IP and allowed 7H/4R (2 ER) with 3K:3BB. Michael Dimock went 3 IP, giving up 4H/3R (1 ER) with 2K:1BB. Cameron Lamb finished with 1 IP and 1 H.
DDJ went 2x5 with 1 SB, 1 2B, 1 R, and 1 RBI. Matt Duffy was 1x4 with a solo HR. Chris Epps went 2x4 with 1 BB, 1 SB, and 1 R.
Man of the Match: Delino DeShields Jr
Quad Cities (18-15), 4.5 GB
QC pitchers allowed 22 baserunners as the River Bandits lost 8-6 to Beloit. Chris Devenski threw 5 IP, allowing 10H/2R with 4K:1BB. Juri Perez went .2 IP and gave up 5H/5R with 1 BB. Gerardo Sanchez threw 2.1 IP and gave up 4H/1R with 2K:1BB.
Teoscar Hernandez was 2x5 with 1 2B and 2 R. Carlos Correa was 2x4 with 1 2B, 1 R, and 2 RBI. Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with 1 SB, 1 HR, and 3 RBI.
Man of the Match: Rio Ruiz
Tri-City (26-14) 3.5 up
The ValleyCats couldn't muster any offense as they lost 4-0 to Vermont. Adrian Houser threw 5 IP and gave up 7H/2R with 3K:1BB. Tanner Bushue went 2 IP and allowed 2H/2R with 2K:1BB. Patrick Christensen went the last 1 IP with 1 H.
Tony Kemp was 1x3 with 1 BB and 1 SB.
Man of the Match: Tony Kemp
Greeneville (23-12), 2.0 up
In a shortened, 7 inning game, the Astros lost 2-1 to Pulaski. Chris Lee went 5.1 IP and gave up 6H/2R with 5 K. Gonzalo Sanudo threw 1.2 IP.
Thomas Lindauer was 1x2 with 1 2B and 1 RBI.
Man of the Match: Thomas Lindauer
GCL Astros (14-16), 5.5 GB
The Astros lost 3-0 to the Tigers. Jose Montero threw 5 IP and gave up 4H/3R with 3K:5BB. Samil De Los Santos, Erick Gonzalez, and Zach Dando each threw a scoreless inning in relief, with De Los Santos striking out the side in his outing.
Yonathan Mejia was 2x4
Man of the Match: Samil De Los Santos, I guess
DSL Astros (24-23) 8.0 GB
One rough inning was all it took for the Astros to lose 4-2 to the Royals. Gerardo Juarez threw 5.2 IP, allowing 6H/4R with 5K:2BB. Geronimo Franzua went 2.1 IP, allowing 2 H with 1K:1BB.
Luis Payano was 2x4. Hector Roa went 2x4 with 1 2B, 1 SB, 1 R, and 1 RBI.
Man of the Match: Hector Roa
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)