Good God, look at Ryan Rowland-Smith's finger

Apparently Ryan Rowland-Smith jacked up his finger last night:

Ryan Rowland-Smith is back

According to a 1am tweet, Ryan Rowland-Smith is back from his finger injury, and with Oklahoma City.

On Rowland-Smith and Arguello

Ryan Aber has a nice article on Nicaraguan Doug Arguello and Australian Ryan Rowland-Smith.

Fernando Abad: What in the World?

Fernando Abad took his 4th loss of the season last night, walking two batters, giving up a hit, and the winning run to the Braves. His WHIP is 1.95, ranked 218th out of 244 National League pitchers. There are only ten pitchers with a worse WHIP who have thrown 10+ IPs. Of course, two of those pitchers are Nelson Figueroa and Brandon Lyon, and we see how their seasons have gone so far.

What's going on with Abad (who dominated as a starter in Winter Ball this past off-season)? A big part of it is the fact that he's just not missing any bats. Dating back to April 26, Abad has thrown 117 pitches in 10 appearances, and has generated five swings-and-misses (according to Baseball-Reference).

He hasn't been particularly unlucky - giving up a .313 BABIP. His FIP (adjusting ERA so as to make it independent of fielding) is a stout 6.53. Abad just can't find the strike zone - walking batters at a rate of 5.4 per nine innings.

According to FanGraphs, Abad is throwing just 43% of his pitches in the strike zone, 74th out of NL relievers with 10+IP (other Astros pitchers qualifying for this stat throwing their pitches for a worse percentage in the zone include Wilton Lopez - 38.6%, Enerio Del Rosario - 40.6%, and Brandon Lyon - 40.9%). Hitters are making contact with 84.2% of Abad's pitches, ranking 80th out of those 97 pitchers.

Abad just isn't fooling anybody - batters are only swinging at 42.3% of his pitches - 83rd out of 97 pitchers. And they're only missing 6.4% of the ones they swing at.

(For the record, we could have a separate post on Enerio Del Rosario, who has less favorable statistics in almost every case).

Amazingly, Abad ranks 51st - pretty high for him - in getting the first-pitch strike at 59.4% of plate appearances. The issue is holding the batter after that 0-1 count. In 37PAs following an 0-1 count, opponents are hitting .323/.405/.452. Abad only has seven PAs with a batter down 0-2. Seven of his eight walks have come with two strikes on the board.

Fernando Abad just isn't fooling anyone. He still has options left, and he's currently an accessory to murder of the 2011 Astros season - of 22 appearances, the Astros have been worse off when he's exited the game (and this doesn't count inherited runners who have later scored) eight times.

Meanwhile, Ryan Rowland-Smith is down in Oklahoma City, where RHBs are hitting .290 against him (Abad vs. RHBs: .379, with a 1.259 OPS). Rowland-Smith is currently a starter, but he could fill a 2010 Figueroa type-role, spot-starting and appearing in relief. I know Abad's a young guy, and he's figuring things out. Maybe this season is a lost cause, anyway, so you just let him make his mistakes. But if the Astros are going to attempt some sort of comeback, it needs to happen with another lefty in the bullpen...like Ryan Rowland-Smith.

Update: Zach Levine published a post three minutes apart from this one, where Brad Mills is quoted on Abad:
We’ve had some discussions about that, and we’re still coming to that conclusion. We’ve gone over mechanical issues, we’ve gone over ‘does he need more time out there.’ Here’s a guy who’s been a strike thrower really his entire life and then all of a sudden he comes out last night during a big game and throws four straight balls. There’s all kind of things, mechanical things, mind things, game situation things that we’re discussing.”

Eddie's Farm: May 16

Oklahoma City (17-21)

OKC had a 4-2 lead going into the top of the 9th, and promptly nutted it, losing 5-4 to Salt Lake. Ryan Rowland-Smith threw 7IP, 5H/2ER, 6K:3BB in a strong outing. Andy Van Hekken threw a one-hit inning. But Ross Wolf gets the Ugly, with 4H/3ER, 0K:1BB in 0.1IP for the BS/L. David Carpenter got the final two outs on one batter.

Brian Dopirak (2B), Brandon Barnes (HR, 2RBI), and Tommy Manzella (HR, 2RBI) had two hits each. The 2-3-4 hitters (Shuck, Keppinger, Max Ramirez) went a combined 0x12, while 7-8-9 (Barnes, Manzella, Hernandez) went 5x11 with 2HR, 4RBI).

Man of the Match: Ryan Rowland-Smith

Corpus (14-23)

Corpus scored the final four runs of the game for a 5-1 win over San Antonio. Jonnathan Aristil allowed 5H/1ER, 4K:1BB over 6IP, and Shane Wolf, Erick Abreu, and Danny Meszaros combined for 3IP, 2H/0ER, 2K:1BB.

T.J. Steele was 2x2 with two walks and an RBI, while Jake Goebbert was 2x3 with a double, walk, and 3RBI. The 3-4-5 of Steele, Van Ostrand, and Goebbert went for 5x8, 4R, 2K:4BB, and 4RBI.

Man of the Match: Jake Goebbert

Lancaster (17-21)

Lake Elsinore scored 12 runs before the JetHawks got their first, and that was your final score. Robby Donovan threw 3.2IP, 4H/7ER, 2K:3BB, 2WP. Zach Grimmett allowed 3H/1ER, 1K:2BB in 2.1IP. Wander Alvino took a share in the Ugly with 5H/4ER, 3K:1BB, HBP in 1.2IP. Only Mike Ness, with 1H/0ER in 1.1IP, didn't allow a run.

The JetHawks got eight hits, but were only 1x16 w/RISP. Jose Altuve (2 doubles), Ben Heath (2B, BB), and Jordan Comadena had two hits each. Kody Hinze was 1x3 with a double and a walk. Your 1-2 hitters - Austin and Hogue - went 0x10.

Man of the Match: Jose Altuve.

Lexington (18-20)

Game 1: Lexington scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the 5th for a 2-1 win. Juan Minaya got his first win of the season, allowing 2H/1ER, 10K:3BB. Jorge De Leon got his 2nd save of the year with 2IP, 1H/0ER, 0K:1BB.

Jiovanni Mier was 1x2 with a walk, Tyler Burnett and Emilio King were each 1x2 with an RBI. Adam Bailey was 1x3 with a double and an outfield assist.

Man of the Match: Juan Minaya

Game 2: Asheville scored the lone run of the game in the top of the 7th, and the Legends get a split. David Martinez allowed 2H/0ER, 4K:1BB in 3IP, and Jason Chowning allowed 4H/1ER, 8K:1BB in 4IP of relief, getting the hard-luck loss.

Adam Bailey was 3x3, while Dan Adamson was 1x1 with 2BB. Bryce Lane and Tyler Burnett provided the other hits.

Man of the Match: Adam Bailey.

Eddie's Farm: May 6

Oklahoma City (13-15)

OKC won their 5th straight game with some hot pitching from Ryan Rowland-Smith, winning 3-2 over an Eric Hosmer-less Omaha. The Hyphen threw 6.1IP, 7H/1ER, 4K:0BB. Ross Wolf got five outs against four batters, and Sergio Escalona picked up his 2nd save of the year, allowing 2H/1ER, 1K:1BB in the 9th to make it interesting.

The RedHawks only got seven hits, with two from Brian Dopirak - including a homer in the 6th. Collin DeLome hit his 3rd homer, two batters before Dopirak. Those were your only two XBHs of the game.

Man of the Match: Ryan Rowland-Smith.

Corpus (12-16)

So that Danny Meszaros ER-less streak came to an end in a 7-5 loss to Midland. Ross Seaton threw a strong 6.2IP, 7H/4ER, 2K:1BB. Then the 7th happened. With two outs, Seaton left one on base for David Berner, who gave up a hit. With the bases loaded for Danny Meszaros, Midland's Stephen Parker hit a two-out grand slam to put Midland over the top, giving Meszaros the BS/L. Patrick Urckfitz allowed a hit in an otherwise uneventful 9th.

Jake Goebbert, in his first start for Corpus (in LF), went 2x4 with a double, walk, and an RBI (and an error, but whatever). Brandon Wikoff was also 2x4 (BB, RBI). Wladimir Sutil hit a two-run homer, and David Flores provided the other RBI. The Hooks were 2x12 w/RISP.

Man of the Match: Jake Goebbert. Why not?

Lancaster (13-16)

The JetHawks bounced back from Thursday night's brutal loss to take the series opener against Inland Empire, 5-4, after a two-run 8th. Jake Buchanan threw 5IP, 5H/4R (2ER), 3K:2BB, while Wes Musick threw 3IP of 0H/0ER, 3K:1BB relief. Kirk Clark threw an uneventful 9th.

Rene Garcia and Grant Hogue (2RBI, BB) each got two hits and a double. Johnathan Villar was 1x3 with 2BB. Jose Altuve had two RBI, including the game-winning RBI.

Man of the Match: Grant Hogue

Lexington (15-13)

If you had May 6 in the "When Foltynewicz Gets His First Professional Win" pool, you lost. Hagerstown took a 3-0 lead into the 7th when the Legends got two back, and then promptly gave them right back. Legends lose 5-2. But it wasn't his fault. Foltynewicz allowed 8H/3R (2ER), 4K:2BB in 5IP, getting five groundouts to two flyouts. Murilo Gouvea - back from Wherever - allowed 2ER (thanks to Brian Streilein) on 2BB and a WP. Streilein gave up 2H/0ER in 2IP.

The top three in the lineup (DeShields, Mier, Bailey) went a combined 0x13 with 2BB - both DeShields', who also had a stolen base. Tyler Burnett and Jhonny Medrano were both 2x4 with a double. And there were errors by Bryce Lane, Foltynewicz, and Medrano.

Man of the Match: Uh. DeShields? For drawing two walks?

Eddie's Farm: April 25

Oklahoma City (6-12)

Round Rock went off for four runs in the 7th inning, and while OKC countered with two in the top of the 8th, it wasn't enough - OKC loses 5-4. Ryan Rowland-Smith went 5.1IP, 4H/1ER, 4K:2BB, while Ross Wolf allowed 4ER on 2H/1BB, HBP. Wesley Wright gave up the bases-clearing hit that charged Wolf with three runs. Andy Van Hekken struck out two of the final three batters he faced.

All eight of the OKC hits were singles. Drew Locke was 1x2 with 2BB and Anderson Hernandez was 2x4. Koby Clemens was 1x2 with 2RBI. Clint Barmes, making his first rehab start, singled, walked and got on via error.

Man of the Match: Ryan Rowland-Smith

Corpus (7-10)

Lots of runs in this one, but Midland took it, 10-8. Jonnathan Aristil got the start, and it didn't go well, throwing 3.2IP, 5H/7R (6ER), 2K:3BB, with a balk. Cesar Carrillo threw 1IP, 2H/2ER, 2K:2BB, Erick Abreu allowed 2H/1ER, 0K:2BB in 1.1IP, and David Berner allowed 2H/0ER, 3K:0BB in 2IP.

Brandon Wikoff was 4x5 with a double and an RBI, and Our Boy Brandon Barnes got the rare start at 2B, leading off, and responded with a 3x5 (2B) night. J.D. Martinez was 2x4 with two doubles, an RBI, and a walk; and T.J. Steele (RBI, 2SB), Jimmy Van Ostrand (2B, RBI, BB), and David Flores (2B, 2RBI) had two hits each.

Man of the Match: J.D. Martinez

Lancaster (9-9)

The JetHawks scored three of the final four runs of the game for a 5-3 win over Rancho Cucamonga. Robby Donovan threw a strong eight innings, allowing 7H/2ER, 4K:2BB; Kirk Clark got his sixth save of the season despite allowing a 9th inning homer to Tony Delmonico.

Jose Altuve got moved up to the #3 spot, and went 3x4 with a 2B, 3B, BB, SB, and 2RBI. Jay Austin was 2x3 with a walk and an RBI. Austin Wates had a big night, going 1x4 with a HR, BB, 2SB, and an outfield assist. Grant Hogue was 1x2 with two walks.

Man of the Match: Jose Altuve

Lexington (10-8)

Lexington had a 6-0 lead going into the 7th, but nutted it, and ended up having to win 7-6 in 10 innings on a passed ball that scored Ben Orloff. Deputy Street noted that Tanner Bushue's scoreless streak was snapped at 22IP, but he still threw 6.2IP, 8H/4ER, 2K:1BB. Jorge De Leon allowed two unearned runs, and Brian Streilein got the win with 1.2IP, 1H/0ER.

Dan Adamson went 3x4; Chris Wallace, hitting 5th, went 2x4 with two doubles and a walk; Telvin Nash was 2x5. Mike Kvasnicka hit a 3-run bomb for his first HR of the season while Jiovanni Mier hit his 3rd HR, a two-run shot.

Man of the Match: Chris Wallace

Eddie's Farm: April 20

Oklahoma City (4-9)

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

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

Man of the Match: Ryan Rowland-Smith.

Corpus (4-8)

Off.

Lancaster (8-6)

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

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

Man of the Match: Jake Buchanan

Lexington (7-7)

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

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

Man of the Match: Roberto Pena

Eddie's Farm: April 10

Oklahoma City

Fernando Nieve performed about as expected, allowing 9H/7R (5ER), 6K:1BB in 4.1IP. This was assisted by two errors (Dopirak and Cancel). Although there were a couple of bright spots in the bullpen - Ryan Rowland-Smith, who threw 2.2IP, 2H/0ER, 4K:1BB; and Wesley Wright, who threw a perfect 8th inning. The RedHawks offense had seven hits among seven different players, with Brian Dopirak providing a double, the only extra-base hit.

Man of the Match: Ryan Rowland-Smith

Corpus

It took 14 innings, but Northwest Arkansas topped the Hooks 3-2. The Hooks had a 2-1 lead in the 12th, but gave the run right back on a homer allowed by Patrick Urckfitz. Dallas Keuchel was solid in his season debut, throwing 6IP, 5H/1ER, 3K:0BB. Erick Abreu contributed 4IP, 2H/0ER, 3K:1BB in relief. Urckfitz gave up 2H/1ER, 2K:4BB in 3IP, and David Berner got the loss with 0.1IP, 2H/1ER, 0K:2BB. The Hooks were held to five hits over 14 innings, and collectively struck out 12 times to two walks. Wladimir Sutil stole two bases, while Jimmy Paredes and T.J. Steele added an SB each.

Man of the Match: Dallas Keuchel

Lancaster

Lancaster dropped the series finale to High Desert with a 3-1 loss. Jake Buchanan pitched well enough, going 7IP, 6H/3R (1ER), 5K:0BB - with errors by Buchanan, Goebbert, and Villar. Buchanan got 15 groundball outs and two flyball outs. Colton Pitkin allowed 1H/0ER, with 3K:0BB in 2IP. Hits were provided by Jonathan Villar, Austin Wates (RBI), Rene Garcia, and Jose Altuve (2B, BB) - who is hitting .467 on the young season.

Man of the Match: Jake Buchanan

Lexington

And Lexington brought Eddie's Farm its lone win of the day with a 12-4 victory over Charleston. Carlos Quevedo threw 6IP, 7H/3ER, 3K:0BB, and Alex Sogard finished it off with 3IP, 2H/1ER, 2K:0BB. Lots of baserunners to report, including a 4x5, 3RBI day from Mike Kvasnicka. Jiovanni Mier and Chris Wallace were 1x3, with 2BB each. Roberto Pena and Jhonny Medrano were the only Legends to not get on base, as the Legends got ten hits and drew eight walks in the win.

Man of the Match: Mike Kvasnicka

Ryan Rowland-Smith to remain with Astros

Zach Levine reports that Ryan Rowland-Smith has cleared waivers, and will stay with the organization on a minor-league contract.

And apparently there's no decision on just what role The Hyphen will play, either starter or reliever.

Looking back at the Oklahoma City roster, there are five starting pitchers already listed: Lyles, Arguello, Perez, Nieve, and Villar. If they hadn't signed Fernando Nieve, Rowland-Smith would have been a logical fit for the OKC rotation. But they did. There are seven bullpen spots filled in, and just about every other team in the system has eight relievers. Sounds like he's ticketed for a reliever, unless they make another move.

Tranzactionz!

Steve Campbell is reporting that Tommy Manzella has been re-assigned to minor-league camp and Ryan Rowland-Smith has been designated for assignment. More to come

Optionless Astros

MLBTR has a nice list of everyone who is out of options. This means that, if the Astros send them to the minors, then they have to clear waivers first.

Who's on this list?
Alberto Arias
Nelson Figueroa
Jeff Keppinger
Humberto Quintero
Ryan Rowland-Smith
Angel Sanchez

Of this list, the only players who run the risk of getting sent down are really Arias and Sanchez. Of those two, would they clear waivers? Sanchez might, but I'm not so sure about Arias (though his injury may scare off enough teams).

Monday Morning Catch-Up

A summary of what you (and we) missed over the weekend:

-Brian McTaggart has a sweet profile on our mate, Ryan Rowland-Smith

-Mike Barnett has the Astros working on situational hitting.

-Rough news about Wandy, he'll miss his next start, with shoulder tendinitis.

-Danny Knobler has a story on Brett Wallace, and one where he lists his likes and dislikes about the Astros.

Ryan Rowland-Smith's exit interview

With a captip to the Crawfish Boxes, there's an interview between Ryan Rowland-Smith and Lookout Landing on his time in Seattle.

Don't want to pull too much from the excellent interview, but thought this was an interesting note about the potential differences between Safeco and Minute Maid:

Put it this way: you make good pitches, keep the ball down, ahead of the count, it doesn't matter if you're pitching on the moon. Sure, the ballpark plays a role in success, but looking back I have succeeded in parks where the ball flies out and I have been lit up in parks where it's a graveyard. There are other factors that go into a ballpark as well. Basically, If I am comfortable in a place, it really doesn't matter if it's a pitchers park or not. Plus half your starts are on the road anyway.

Nothing helps your confidence like getting mopped by Randy Couture

Nice article article on Ryan Rowland-Smith by Zach Levine, who attributes his increased confidence this Spring to two items:

1) MMA training with Randy Couture and bald Jay Glazer:
"There was a lot of stuff I went through last year where I lost my confidence and doubted my ability. Just being around those guys reminds you of that competitive aspect, and it brought that back."

And 2) Shacking up with David Aardsma's sister:
"I was at my girlfriend's parents' place and was at their house and thought, 'I might just try to get a trade to Houston and shack up here,' just joking. Sure enough, two weeks later, I was a free agent."

We seriously need an "Australian" font for when he's quoted. In the meantime, this had better happen when he pitches against the Cardinals:

McTaggart's Projected Opening Day roster

Brian McTaggart takes a shot at predicting the Opening Day roster.

Notable among the selections is Ryan Rowland-Smith as SP5.

Astros sign Ryan Rowland-Smith

So the Astros have agreed to terms (pending a physical) with another pitcher - this one likely figuring into the SP5 mix, 27 year-old Ryan Rowland-Smith. Rowland-Smith is a lefty, 6'3", and 205lb from Sydney, Australia. We are working to confirm that, because he's from the southern hemisphere, his pitches actually spin the other way.

In 10 minor-league seasons, Rowland-Smith is 33-30 with a 3.84 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, and a career 2.71 K:BB ratio, with 8.9 hits/9, 8.7 K/9, and 3.2 BB/9.

In 27 games with the Mariners in 2010, Rowland-Smith was 1-10 with a 6.75 ERA/1.69 WHIP, 1.11 K:BB, 11.6 H/9, 4.0 K/9, and 3.6 BB/9.

His numbers took a hit in July, when in six starts (31.1IP), he gave up 45H/30ER, 10K:10BB, 8HR, and a .331/.610/.993. Unfortunately, this came with a .311 BABIP - not terribly inflated. This is all also inflated by a 5IP, 11H/11ER performance at Chicago on July 27.

In five September appearances (four of them in relief), Rowland-Smith allowed 12H/6ER in 11IP for a more handsome 4.91 ERA, and a .279/.340/.558 (.323 BABIP).

He'll compete for the SP5 spot with Figueroa, Lyles, Abad, and Villar.

Tuesdays Rumored Rumors

The flu knocked He Who Was In Charge of the Updates down yesterday, and today is a little iffy, but let's go through the rumors and topics of the day for Day Two of the Winter Meetings:

Somehow, the Astros were interested in Ty Wigginton, before he mercifully signed with Colorado.

Wandy Rodriguez changed agents, from Barry Praver to Adam Katz. Adam Katz also represents Carlos Lee.

The Astros are interested in Jack Cust, as are the Mariners.

Ed Wade confirmed they have been active in trade talks, but that's as far as it went:
“We’ve exchanged some trade proposals with teams today and we were prepared to move forward if they were embraced, and they weren’t.”

One possible area the Astros could upgrade at 2B is with former Brewer/Red Sock(x) Bill Hall, and had conversations with Hall's agent.

The Astros are interested in Ryan Rowland-Smith.

Expect the Astros to be active in tomorrow's Rule 5 draft.