9-279: RHP Daniel Minor

With the 1st pick in the 9th Round (279th overall) the Astros select 21-year old 5'11" 188lb RHP Daniel Minor, a Junior out of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi - the highest draft pick in school history. He's from Dripping Springs, TX, where he struck out 93 batters in 66 innings. At McLennan Community College, he struck out 64 batters in 65IP.

*Minor was the 2012 Southland Conference's Newcomer of the Year. And he was one of 25 pitchers on the National Pitcher of the Year Watch List.

*Minor's 10 wins this season tie a season-high for the Islanders.

*In 110.1IP in 2012, Minor allowed 100H/27ER, 110K:23BB, for a 2.20 ERA/1.11 WHIP, and four complete games.

PreStros Morning Report: May 13

TL;DR

*Organization goes 2-2 on the day; Composite 82-72 record.
*OKC gets a solo homer from Domingo Santana for a 1-0 win over Colorado Springs in a game with six total hits that finished in under two hours.
*Luis Cruz lasted just 0.1IP as San Antonio beats Corpus, 7-4.
*Three JetHawks pitchers combine for a no-hitter against Bakersfield in a 1-0 win.
*Quad Cities gets down early and can't recover in a 10-4 loss. .

Oklahoma City (22-18)

Leather: Jake Buchanan threw 7.2IP, allowing 2H/0ER, 4K:2BB, and recording 14 groundball outs. Jason Stoffel allowed a hit in 0.1IP and Josh Fields struck out the side in the 9th to record his first save for the RedHawks.

Wood: The RedHawks only got three hits themselves, including Domingo Santana's blast (and a walk for Santana). Adron Chambers and Enrique Hernandez had your other hits.

Man of the Match: Jake Buchanan.

Corpus (19-19)

San Antonio scored five first-inning runs in a 7-4 win over Corpus.

Leather: Luis Cruz lasted just 0.1IP, giving up 2H/5ER, 0K:3BB. Andrew Robinson threw 3.2IP, 3H/0ER, 3K:0BB; Alex Sogard allowed 3H/2ER in 2IP, and Michael Dimock struck out three in 2IP.

Wood: Rene Garcia was 3x4 with two doubles; Matt Duffy (2B, RBI) and Joe Sclafani (RBI) had two hits each. Nolan Fontana was 0x1 with 2BB; Telvin Nash hit his 3rd homer of the season, and Andrew Aplin added a double.

Man of the Match: Rene Garcia

Lancaster (23-16)

Lancaster scored a run in the bottom of the 2nd, which would be all they needed as Josh Hader, J.D. Osborne, and Daniel Minor held Bakersfield hitless.

Leather: Hader threw 6IP, striking out six and walking four; Osborne threw 2IP, striking out one and walking one; and Daniel Minor struck out two in 1IP.

Wood: Jordan Scott had the RBI that scored Danry Vasquez for the lone JetHawks run; Dan Gulbransen had a double and a walk. Rio Ruiz added a single.

Man of the Match: Gotta go with Hader, Osborne, and Minor.

Quad Cities (18-19)

Wisconsin jumped out to a 6-0 lead by the time Quad Cities got on the board. The RiverBandits cut it to 6-4, but Wisconsin answered with two in the 6th and two more in the 8th.

Leather: Edison Frias gave up 8H/6ER, 3K:0BB in 4IP; Zach Morton allowed 3H/2ER, 3K:1BB in 2IP, and Andrew Walter allowed 1H/2R (1ER), 2K:1BB in 2IP.

Wood: The RiverBandits were 1x10 w/RISP, and everybody in the lineup had at least one hit. Tanner Mathis was 2x4 with a triple; Tyler White was 1x4 with a two-run homer. Brett Booth added a double. Ronnie Mitchell had a single and a stolen base.

Man of the Match: How about Tyler White?

Where Did These Guys Come From: Quad Cities

Pitchers

Joe Bircher - Selected in the 10th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Colton Cain - Acquired in the Wandy Rodriguez trade with Pittsburgh on July 24, 2012
Kyle Hallock - Selected in the 10th Round of the 2011 amateur draft
Mike Hauschild - Selected in the 33rd Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Brian Holmes - Selected in the 13th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Jordan Jankowski - Selected in the 34th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Cameron Lamb - Selected in the minor-league phase of the 2012 Rule 5 draft from San Francisco
Mitchell Lambson - Selected in the 19th Round of the 2011 amateur draft
Lance McCullers - Selected in the 1st Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Daniel Minor - Selected in the 9th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
John Neely - Selected in the 30th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Gera Sanchez - Signed as an undrafted free agent on July 13, 2012
Vincent Velasquez - Selected in the 2nd Round of the 2010 amateur draft

Catchers

Jobduan Morales - Acquired in the Justin Ruggiano trade with Miami on May 26, 2012
Roberto Pena - Selected in the 7th Round of the 2010 amateur draft

Infielders

Carlos Correa - Selected as the 1st overall pick of the 2012 amateur draft
Chase Davidson - Selected in the 41st Round of the 2011 amateur draft
Ryan Dineen - Selected in the 25th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Carlos Perdomo - Signed as a minor-league free agent in January 2013
Rio Ruiz - Selected in the 4th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Joe Sclafani - Selected in the 14th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Jesse Wierzbicki - Selected in the 24th Round of the 2011 amateur draft

Outfielders

Teoscar Hernandez - Signed as an amateur free agent prior to 2011 season
Terrell Joyce - Selected in the 12th Round of the 2012 amateur draft
Ariel Ovando - Signed as an amateur free agent on July 7, 2010
Jordan Scott - Selected in the 14th Round of the 2010 amateur draft

Astros announce minor-league staff positions

Brian McTaggart is tweeting that the Astros have announced some positions on the minor-league side :

Paul Runge - Field Coordinator
Dyar Miller - Pitching Coordinator
Ralph Dickenson - Hitting Coordinator

Craig Bjornson - Roving Pitching Instructor
Jeff Albert - Roving Hitting Instructor
Brendan Verner - Strength/Conditioning
Jamey Snodgrass - Medical Coordinator
Daniel Roberts - Rehabilitation

This is Runge's third season as minor-league field coordinator. Bjornson was the bullpen coach in 2012 - and that's pretty much it as far as holdovers from the 2012 team.

Dyar Miller comes to the Astros from - surprise! - the Cardinals, where he was the bullpen coach in 2012, and was the only member of the Cardinals' staff who wasn't retained. Miller was the Cardinals' minor-league pitching coordinator for four years, and had spent 20 years with the organization.


Ralph Dickenson has been with the Blue Jays' organization as a coach for the last three years, and was the Nationals' minor-league hitting coordinator from 2007-2009 (Bo Porter connection?).


Jeff Albert had been the minor league hitting coach for the Cardinals' Florida State League team in Palm Beach since 2007.


Brendan Verner had been the strength & conditioning coach in the Pirates' system since 2009.

PreStros Morning Report: May 10

TL;DR

*Org goes 2-1 on the day; Cumulative 74-47 record
*Fresno got three unearned runs in the 2nd and held on for a 3-2 win over Tacoma. Jake Buchanan threw 7.2IP, 6H/2ER
*Corpus' rally fell short with the game-tying run on 3rd in a 6-5 loss to San Antonio despite Tesocar Hernandez's two solo homers.
*Lancaster wins a back-and-forth game on Jack Mayfield's walkoff over Lake Elsinore

Fresno (16-14)

Fresno got three runs in the bottom of the 2nd and then held on for a 3-2 win over Tacoma at Chukchansi Park, home of the best ballpark name in baseball. Just say it. Say it. Chukchansi. Chukchansi. That's fun stuff, right there. Chukchansi. Jake Buchanan threw 7.2IP, 6H/2ER, 1K:1BB; Tyson Perez got a four-out save, his second save as a Grizzly.

Six Fresnoes got hits: Nolan Fontana (2BB, 2RBI), L.J. Hoes (SB), Alex Presley, Domingo Santana (2B), Jon Singleton (2B, 2BB). Max Stassi was 0x4 with 3K.

Man of the Match: Going with Buchanan

Corpus (18-12)

After allowing a three-run San Antonio 1st inning, Corpus scrapped back with a run in the 6th, 7th, and 8th innings. Then San Antonio got three more in the bottom of the 8th. Corpus answered with two runs in the top of the 8th to bring the game to 6-5 San Antonio, but Teoscar Hernandez popped up to the catcher with runners on 1st and 3rd to end the game with a 6-5 loss. Josh Hader allowed 5H/3R (1ER), 4K:1BB in 6IP with two pickoffs; Travis Ballew threw a scoreless 7th; Daniel Minor allowed 2H/3ER, 1K:2BB in 0.2IP, and Juan Minaya allowed two of Minor's charged runs with a hit in 0.1IP.

Conrad Gregor was 3x4 with two doubles and an RBI; Teoscar Hernandez was 2x4 with two solo homers, Jon Kemmer was 1x4 with 2RBI; Carlos Correa was 1x4 with a triple.

Man of the Match: Teoscar Hernandez. He was hitting .110 on May 3, but has hits in six of his last seven games, and five hits in his last nine ABs.

Lancaster (16-15)

Wild one in Lancaster, as usual. Lancaster had a 5-1 lead after two innings cut to 5-4 after three. Then a 6-3 Lancaster lead was a 7-6 Lake Elsinore lead by the end of the 7th. Lancaster tied it up in the 8th, but Lake Elsinore took an 8-7 lead in the top of the 9th. Consecutive singles by The Initials (J.D. Davis and A.J. Reed) had runners on 1st and 2nd, pinch-hitter Ronnie Mitchell doubled to score Davis to tie the game, and one batter later Jack Mayfield singled to left for the 9-8 walkoff win. Troy Scribner threw 4.1IP, 6H/4R (3ER), 5K:3BB; Albert Minnis got out of the 5th; Evan Grills allowed 6H/4ER, 4K:1BB in 3IP, and Tyler Brunnemann got the win by retiring the three batters he faced in the 9th - 0H/0ER, 1K:0BB.

J.D. Davis (2B, HR, RBI) and Jack Mayfield (SB, 2RBI) were each 4x5; Danry Vasquez (3B, 2RBI) and Alfredo Gonzalez (2B, RBI) had two hits each. A.J. Reed was 1x3 with 2BB, and James Ramsay was 1x3 with an RBI. After hitting .208/.356/.417 in April, Reed is hitting .378/.455/.892 in May.

Man of the Match: J.D. Davis and Jack Mayfield

Quad Cities (24-6)

I've never seen a league-wide day off on a Sunday, but that's exactly what the Midwest League had rolling today.

PreStros Morning Report: May 28

Oklahoma City (29-23), 1.0 up

OKC got over a shaky start, command-wise, from Jarred Cosart and put up early runs in a 5-2 win over Omaha (somewhere in middle America). Cosart improved to a 5-2 record after allowing 3H/2ER, but 4K:7BB in 5IP with two wild pitches; Jason Stoffel lowered his ERA to 1.65 with 3IP, 0H/0ER, 0K:0BB; Jose Valdez walked a batter in the 9th.

Brett Wallace was 2x3 with a walk and an RBI; Marc Krauss was 2x3 with a double and a walk. Jake Elmore had a hit, a walk, and his 11th stolen base of the season, but Fernando Martinez came up with the big hit - a 2-run triple - and finished with 3RBI.

In "That Guy Is Still Playing" news: Omaha's Willy Taveras was 1x4 with a triple and an RBI. Xavier Nady was 1x3 with a walk.

Man of the Match: Jason Stoffel

Corpus (31-20), 1.0 up

Down 3-1 heading into the 7th, the Hooks broke out with a 5-run inning for a 6-3 win. David Martinez got the start, throwing 5IP, 4H/2R (1ER), 2K:1BB; Mike Foltynewicz finished off the game with 4IP, 3H/1ER, 6K:1BB (ERA now 1.08) and recording the first Double-A win of his career.

Ben Orloff was 3x5 with 2RBI; Rene Garcia (2RBI), Jonathan Meyer (2B), and Michael Burgess (HR - his 5th in eight games) had two hits each. George Springer was 1x4 with a double and no strikeouts (!).

Man of the Match: Mike Foltynewicz

Lancaster (31-20), 4.5 up

Lancaster scored the first ten runs of the game, and won 10-2 over Rancho Cucamonga. Brady Rodgers threw 5IP, 2H/0ER, 4K:1BB and Chris Devenski followed it up with 4IP, 5H/2ER, 2K:1BB.

Preston Tucker went off, going 3x5 with a double, a three-run homer, and 6RBI total; Andrew Aplin (3B, BB, SB), Raoul Torrez (2B) and Chris Epps (2B) had two hits each. Brandon Meredith was 1x4 with an RBI, walk, and stolen base.

Man of the Match: Preston Tucker

Quad Cities (28-23), 3.5 GB

JON SINGLETON DAY! Quad Cities got out to a 7-2 lead before Kane County cut it to 7-5, before rain shortened the game - River Bandits win. Daniel Minor threw 4IP, 3H/2ER, 3K:3BB; Richard Rodriguez allowed 2H/3ER, 1K:1BB in 1IP. Lance McCullers got his first professional win, throwing 1IP, 0H/0ER, striking out the side and lowering his ERA to 1.90.

Jon Homerton did exactly that, going 2x2 with a solo homer and an RBI single and also a walk. Carlos Correa was 2x3 with a double and 3RBI. Teoscar Hernandez was 1x2 with a walk.

Man of the Match: Let's give it to Lance McCullers who is now 1-8 with a 2.49 ERA/1.28 WHIP in his minor-league career.

Where Did These Guys Come From: Lancaster

How the Lancaster JetHawks (High-A California League) were acquired:

Pitchers

Mark Appel: 1st Round pick, 2013
Jamaine Cotton: 15th Round pick, 2010
Chris Devenski: Acquired via trade with Matt Heidenreich and Blair Walters from Chicago White Sox for Brett Myers - July 2012
Michael Dimock: 37th Round pick, 2012
Josh Hader: Acquired via trade with L.J. Hoes and a 2014 competitive balance draft pick from Baltimore for Bud Norris - July 2013.
Mike Hauschild: 33rd Round pick, 2012
Mitchell Lambson: 19th Round pick, 2011
Lance McCullers: 1st Round (supplemental) pick, 2012
Juan Minaya: Signed as free agent prior to 2009 season
Daniel Minor: 9th Round pick, 2012
J.D. Osborne: 36th Round pick, 2013
Tyson Perez: 17th Round pick, 2011
Kyle Smith: Acquired via trade from Kansas City for Justin Maxwell - July 2013
Vince Velasquez: 2nd Round pick, 2010
Kyle Westwood: 13th Round pick, 2013

Catchers

Roberto Pena: 7th Round pick, 2010
Jake Rodriguez: 19th Round, 2013

Infielders

Carlos Correa: 1st Round pick, 2012
Tony Kemp: 5th Round pick, 2013
Brandon Meredith: 6th Round pick, 2011
Carlos Perdomo: Signed as minor-league free agent, 2013
Rio Ruiz: 4th Round pick, 2012

Outfielders

Justin Gominsky: 11th Round pick, 2011
Dan Gulbransen: 16th Round pick, 2012
Teoscar Hernandez: Signed as amateur free agent, 2011
Jordan Scott: 14th Round pick, 2010
Danry Vasquez: Acquired via trade with David Paulino from Detroit for Jose Veras - July 2013

Be sure to check out What The Heck Bobby's season preview of the 2014 JetHawks

Pre Stros Morning Report April 5th

AAA - OKC Redhawks (0-1)
Game 1:
The Redhawks lost their first game of a doubleheader to the Redbirds (1-0) 9-0. Jordan Lyles was on the mound for the opener and retired 9 out of 10 hitters after allowing a run in the first inning. However in the 4th Lyles exited after loading the bases. The Redhawks couldn't get a runner across the plate and they were shut out 9-0 in 7 innings. Jimmy Paredes was 1 for 2 with a 2B and a BB, the only Redhawk with an XBH. Jonathan Villar and Marc Krauss went hitless.
Jordan Lyles 4.1 IP 3H, 4R, 4ER, 3BB, 2 SO.
Keving Chapman 0.0 IP 1H, 2R, 2ER. 1BB
C.J. Fick .2 IP, 2H, 3 ER, 2BB
Josh Zeid 1 IP, 0H, 0ER, 1BB, 3SO.

Man of the match: Josh Zeid. Stuck out the side and did not allow a hit.

Game 2:
The Redhawks (1-1) took the second game of the double header with Memphis (1-1) by a score of 8-7 in 7 innings. The Redhawks found themselves down 2-1 in the bottom of the 3rd but would put up 3 runs via RBI's from Trevor Crowe and Robbie Grossman and a 2 run HR from Brandon Laird. The 3 would drive in a run each the following inning to put up the Redhawks 8-2. Brandon Laird (HR), Jimmy Paredes (2B), and Cody Clark (2B) each had an XBH, with Laird (4), Crowe(2), and Grossman (2) accounting for the RBI totals. Jonathan Villar went hitless. 
Paul Clemens got the W. 5 IP, 7H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0BB, 3K.
Wes Musick 1.2 IP 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB
Jose Valdez got the 1 out save. 1H, 1BB.

Man of the match: Brandon Laird. 4RBI including a 2 run homer.

AA - Corpus Christi Hooks (1-1)

Corpus got 1 hit in their second game with the Sprinfield Cardinals (1-1). Austin Wates logged the only hit for the Hooks, an infield single to lead off the game. Nick Tropeano (Nitro) got his first start at AA tonight and went 5 innings, allowed 3 hits, 1 ER (HR) and struck out 5. Bobby Doran threw 3 innings allowing the other earned runs of the evening, walking 1 and striking out 2. Andrew Robinson pitched a scoreless inning for the Hooks.
George Springer, Domingo Santana, Jonathan Meyer, and Eric Castro each struck out 3 times.
Domingo Santan threw out a runner at the plate for an outfield assist.

Man of the match: Nick Tropeano 5k's in 5 IP with 1 BB for his first start at AA.

A - Lancaster Jethawks (1-1)

Lancaster fell 7-3 to High Desert (1-1) tonight. Preston Tucker hit a two run homer in the 3rd to put the Jethawks up 3-1 but it would not be enough. Rafael Valenzuela had a 2B to go with Tuckers' homer for the only XBH's for the evening. Tucker and Brandon Meredith each had 2 hits, DDJ and Nolan Fontana each had a single.

Brady Rodgers got the L. Pitched 3.2 innings allowing 4 ER (HR), walking 3, and striking out 5.
Theron Geith allowed 2 earned runs in 1.1 IP.
Chris Devenski pitch 3 IP allowing 4 hits and 1 earned run.
Jonas Dukes pitched a scoreless 9th walking one and striking out one.

Man of the match: Preston Tucker

Low A - Quad Cities Bandits (2-0)

Lance McCullers Jr got his first start of the season and it was a good one. McCullers pitched 5 innings and struck out 5 and left the game in the position to earn his first W of the season. Daniel Minor allowed the tying run to cross the plate in the 7th inning, earning a blown save. Minor would be awarded the win after the QC Bandits rallied in the 8th. A BB, sac fly, and another walk put runners on 2nd (Sclafani) and first (Correa). Sclafani came home on a fielding error by Kane County (0-2) 2nd baseman Wes Darvill. Rio Ruiz would follow with a double that scored two and put the Bandits up 4-1.

Carlos Correa went hitless but walked and scored a run. Rio Ruiz, Ariel Ovando, and Roberto Pena each had a double. Ruiz had 2 hits and 2 RBI on the day.

Men of the match: Lance McCullers and Rio Ruiz.

Pre Stros Report April 9th.

AAA

Oklahoma City Redhawks 5-3

Oklahoma City got the victory over the Nashville Sounds (3-3) tonight to put their record at 4-2. Brandon Laird had a productive day hitting 2 doubles in 4 appearances, with 3 RBI and a run scored. The other 2 RBI would belong to Trevor Crowe, 2 for 3 with a walk and a run scored, and Jake Elmore, 2 for 3 with a walk and a K. Jonathan Villar, Robbie Grossman, Che-Hsuan Lin, and Jimmy Paredes all had a hit. Lairds first double came in the 1st, putting OKC up by 2 runs. Jimmy Paredes would commit his 3rd error in 2 nights in the bottom of the 6th. Brandon Laird would break the 3-3 tie in the 8th inning with his 2nd double of the game, putting the Redhawks up 4-3. Elmore would follow Laid with an RBI single to make it 5-3.

Ross Seaton pitched 5 innings allowing 1 ER, striking out four, and giving up a homer.
Jordan Lyles would piggy back Seaton and pitch 3.2 innings allowing 2 runs with 1 K.
Kevin Chapman got his 1st save of the season and only had to face one batter to do it.

Man of the match: Brandon Laird

AA

Corpus Christ Hooks (5-1)

The hooks got the sweep over Tulsa (1-5), scoring 6 runs and shutting out the Drillers. Domingo Santana saw Brandon Lairds 2 doubles and raised him 1, with 2 RBI, a walk, and a run scored. George Springer, 2 for 5 with and RBI and a K; and Enrique Hernandez, 2 for 4 with an RBI; each had a double. Jio Meyer had a 3 hit ball game with a homer, raising his average to .278. Austin Wates, Jio Mier, and George Springer would each single, with Springers hit resulting in the first run for the Hooks. Domingo Santana would follow Springer with a double that plate the 2nd run of the game. Mier's home would come in the 3rd inning, a solo shot. The Hooks would score one more in the frame on another double by Domingo Santana. Santana's 3rd double would come in the bottom of the 5th. He would be driven home by a double off the bat of Enrique Hernandez. A Jiovani Mier sac fly in the 6th would be the finally Corpus run of the game.

Bobby Doran pitched 5.0 scoreless innings of 1 hit ball striking out 4 and walking none, earning the win.
Nick "Nitro" Tropeano got a save tonight, pitching 4 innings, allowing 5 hits walking none and striking out 6.

Doran and Tropeano combined for a line of 9 IP 6 H 0 BB 10 K. However...

Man of the Match - Domingo Santana. 3 doubles 2 RBI, a BB and a run scored.

A

Lancaster Jethawks (4-1)

Lancaster defeated Lake Elsinore (1-4) tonight 13-8 in typical Cal League fashion. Zach Johnson exploded for 5 hits in 5 at bats, with a double and a triple. He had 4 RBI and a run scored. Mat Duffy had 3 hits including a 2 run homer in the 7th inning. Drew Muren had 2 hits including a double. Preston Tucker and Nolan Fontana each had a double. Fontana had 4 RBI a walk and a run scored. Tucker had an RBI and a K. Brandon Meredith had a hit and a RBI and Delino Deshields had a hit and was caught stealing.

Alex Gillinghan pitched 5 innings, allowing 6 hits, 2 ER, 2BB and 3 K's.
Michael Foltynewicz was roughed up in 2.1 innings pitched, giving up 6 hits, 5 runs (4 Earned), 3 BB, and 3
K's.
Blair Walters and Travis Ballew would pitch the final inning combining for 2 hits 1 run and a K
.
Man of the match: Zach Johnson. Perfect at the plate with 5 hits in 5 at bats.

Low A

Quad Cities River Bandits (5-1)

Quad Cities suffered their first loss of the season, falling 6-4 to the Burlington Bees (3-3). Quad Cities went into the 8th inning tied 4-4, when Lane McCullers JR would give up a 2 run double to Michael Bolaski. McCullers followed Daniel Minor and allowed 2 runs, 1 earned, striking out 3 and walking 2. Minor started the night with 4 innings of 4, allowing 4 runs including 3 home runs. Teoscar Hernandez, 1 for 3 with 2 walks, and Chase Davidson, 1 for 5, 3 K's, each had a double.  Jesse Wierzbicki had the lone multi hit game of the evening going 2 for 4 with a RBI, a walk,  and a run scored. Carlos Correa was 1 for 2 with 3 walks and a run scored.

Man of the Match: Teoscar"face" Hernandez. A double and 2 walks with a run scored.

PreStros Report: May 4

I am standing in for the Constable again today.  For those who don't know, he is an avid BASE jumper.  Anyhow, he journeyed to the KBME radio tower, partly to BASE jump and partly to see if he can wring more range out of it.  On the jump, however, his equipment got caught up, and he spent the next few hours hanging from the tower by his parachute.  So, avid reader, sadly you have my inferior minor league reporting again today.

Summary

* Bad day for the Affiliates, going 1-3.  Combined record 61-60.  Ouch.
* Oklahoma lost to the awesomely named StormChasers starting pitcher.  Read below for more detail
* Corpus Christi lost to the un-awesomely named Missions.  What the heck does a Mission do anyhow?
* Despite being an extreme hitters park, and despite a 25mph wind blowing straight out to centre, Lancaster won on a decidedly non-home-run fest.
* Quad Cities lost, possibly due to the Commentator's Curse.  We investigate further below.

Oklahoma City (16-15)

Oklahoma City continued their hurtle back toward .500, with a 4-1 loss to the Omaha Storm Chasers, who stand at 13-16.  The Storm Chasers scored two in the 2nd and 3rd innings, and that was all they needed, thanks to the fantastic pitching of their starter, Sugar Ray Marimon.

On the Bump:  Rudy Owns started and pitched 6 innings.  He gave up 7H, 4R/ER, and 2 BB.  He struck out three, threw 88 pitches, and got 4 groundouts versus 8 flyouts.  Jason Stoffel relieved, throwing one scoreless inning (2BB, 2K), and Josh Zeid struck out three, and gave up one hit in his scoreless inning.

With the Bats:  Jon Singleton was one of the three standout offensive performers, going 2-4, 2B.  Domingo Santana went 1-3, 2B, BB and Andy Simunic, perhaps buoyed by this recent mention in these very internet pages, went 2-3, HR for the only scoring play of the game.

Man of the Match:  Andy Simunic.  And if my theory is correct, we will mention him again tomorrow!  Or he will get the golden sombrero.  Either way, he is likely to do something.

Corpus Christi (15-15)

Unlike Oklahoma City, the Hooks have completed their slide to .500, losing to the 13-16 San Antonio Missions by a score of 6-4.  The Missions scored in every one of the first five innings, getting all 6 their runs in the process.  The Hooks scored 4 in the bottom of the 5th, but that completed the scoring, as the last four innings were pitched without troubling the scorers.

On the Bump:  Starting, for the first time in AA, was Kyle Smith, the filthy haul from the Justin Maxwell trade.  He dominated at Lancaster, with a 4-0 record, 2.60 ERA.  He struggled today, but completed 5 innings, giving up 6R/ER in the process.  He gave up 9H and struck out 6.  Three home runs made his night tough, but despite the homers, he had 6 groundouts versus 2 flyouts.  60% of your fly-balls leaving the yard is simply not sustainable over time.  Unless you are Lucas Harrell.

Alex Sogard continued his strong season, throwing 3IP giving up 3H, and striking out 1.  Jorge De Leon pitched 1 1-hit scoreless inning.

With the Bats:  Matt Duffy (2-3, BB, R) and Tyler Heineman (2-4, 3B, R, 2RBI) each had multi-hit games.  Preston Tucker (1-4, R, 2B, RBI) had the only other extra-base hit, and Andrew Aplin and Nolan Fontana both drew walks, going 0-3.

Man of the Match:  The guy that probably pitched to his brother Eric in the back yard in Arizona gets the MOTM.  Matt Duffy gets an Honourable Mention after being on base three times.

Lancaster (18-13)

Lancaster managed to scrape home and take the series off the San Jose Giants (12-19).  Funnily enough, the San Jose Giants are a feeder club for the San Francisco Giants.  Anywho, the Lancaster JetHawks found themselves down 5-2 after 5, but then rode a 6 run 7th to an 8-6 win.

On the Bump:  Kent Jeffrey Emanuel was the man chosen to fill the vacuum left by the promotion of Kyle Smith, and he performed in a similar way to Kyle's start at AA (4.2IP, 7H, 5R/ER, 2BB, 3K).  Daniel Minor threw 2.1 innings of effective relief (1BB, 2K) and Mitchell Lambson earned the save with 2IP, 1H, 1R/ER, 4K.

With the Bats:  You know, when I saw that Lancaster was playing at home, and I saw a six run inning, I instantly thought of fly balls zooming out of the park with runners on.  That was made even more likely because of the 25mph wind out to CF.  Well, didn't happen like that. Teoscar Hernandez had the best night, going 3-5, 2R, HR, 3RBI.  His home run was a solo shot off Kendry Flores, and his double was of the bases-clearing variety (although one run scored on an error) in the 6-run 7th inning.  Also swinging the lumber well was Carlos Correa (2-5, 2R), Roberto Pena (2-4, RBI) and Danry Vasquez (2-3, 2B, BB, R, RBI).  Anthony Kemp went 0-2, but drew 3BB, and Ruben Sosa went 0-2 and drew 2 walks.

Man of the Match:  Teoscar Hernandez provided the power and the production, so he carries off the MOTM and stashes it somewhere in his lounge-room.

Quad Cities (12-17)

Quad Cities lost away to the 11-18 Beloit squad, by a score of 6-3.  Beloit rode a 4-run 4th to victory.

On the Bump:  Adrian Houser started, throwing 3.2IP, 5H, 5R/ER, 5BB and 5 2K.  He gave up one home run, which occurred with bases loaded, and is known as a Gran Salami or something.  He was effectively relieved by Tyler Brunnemann (1.1 IP, K).  The Batguy, who previously announced his bro-mance with Gonzalo Sanudo, continues to doom him to an eternity of scored-upon outings - he threw 3IP, yielding 1H, 1R/ER, 2BB.  His ERA has ballooned to 0.86.  THANKS BATGUY!

With the Bats:  8 of the River Bandits got hits, with only catcher Jobduan Morales missing out.  Jack Mayfield had a 2-5 (2B) day as the only multi-hit and XBH game, but Chan Moon was on base the most (1-3, 2BB, 2R).  Tanner Mathis repaid my shout-out by going 1-4.  Ugh.  Pays to not mention anyone on this site for their good play, lest they be cursed or something.

Man of the Match:  I am going to see if this announcer's-curse-thing works in reverse.  MOTM's often perform worse the next day.  Lets see if Jobduan Morales (0-4, K) performs worse tomorrow, or whether the MOTM curse is of the reversing, rather than eternally worsening, type.  Sorry to use you as a guinea pig, Jobduan, but we need to get to the bottom of this.

Hope you enjoyed reading, and I just received word that the Constable is comfortably resting at home.

PreStros Morning Report: April 30

I understand that the Constable is having a sleep-in, and getting a cooked breakfast served to him in bed this morning, so you are stuck with me AGAIN.  Apologies.

This entire post is too long to read; therefore I want a quick summary, which is immediately below

aka TL;DR

* Astros Affiliates went 2-3 on the day, with the overall record now standing at 56-48
* Oklahoma lost, unearned runs were prevalent
* Corpus Christi gave up 4 runs in the final inning to again lose by one.
* Lancaster shut out High Desert, but fell short of a second straight 17K performance by a mere 10 strikeouts.
* Quad Cities split a doubleheader, with both games played over 7 innings each.

Oklahoma City (15-12)

Lost 5-2 to the Round Rock Express (who move to 14-12) at Bricktown.  Oklahoma City was down 2-1 after the first, 4-1 after the 3rd, and both teams scored 1 in the ninth to complete the scoring.

On the Bump:  Jake Buchanan started the new 6-man, non tandem system, which clearly does not work, mostly because the entire Astros front office either (i) has a total IQ <100 or (ii) are a bunch of geeks that have never played the game.  Anywho, Jake pitched 5 innings, yielding 7H, 4R, 2ER, 0BB, 2K.  He threw 81 pitches. Enrique Hernandez committed 2 throwing errors, accounting for the unearned runs.

Darin Downs relieved (2IP, 1H, 3K over 20 pitches), and Jason Stoffel relieved him (2IP, 3H, 1R/ER, 1BB, 2K).

At the Plate: Bob Grossman went 2-4, being the only RedHawk to have a multi-hit game.  The two extra base hits were both doubles, from the bats of Domingo Santana and Enrique Hernandez (both 1-3, BB). Jon Meyer drew a walk, and Ronald Torreyes got plunked.  No word on whether the plunking followed a bunt-against-the-shift.  Expect retribution, probably because Bo Porter is crazy.

Man of the Match:  Darin Downs did well.  I would think he may see Houston at some stage, being a versatile LHP and all.  Especially if Jessie Crain does not recover as quickly as expected.  Whilst his superficial stats aren't great at AAA, the advanced ones are a little more favourable (5.54 ERA, 2.53 FIP)

Corpus Christi (14-12)

For the second night in a row, Corpus gives up four in the final inning (in this case, the bottom of the eighth), to lose, 5-4 in this case.  On this occasion, it was the Midland squad (16-9) who acted like Every-Major-League-Team-That-Plays-The-Astros, knocking the bullpen around.  Corpus led 4-1 after 3, and it stayed that way until the bottom of the eighth, when Midland went walk-FO-error (Sclafani)-FO-walk-double-single-popout to yield 1 unearned.

On the Bump: Thomas Shirley, who recently got featured in Carson Cistulli's Fringe Five article at Fangraphs pitched well: 5IP (76P), 5H, 1R/ER, 0BB, 6K.  Prior to todays game, his ERA / FIP stood at 1.16 / 1.01, with a 10.8 K/9 and 1.54 BB/9.  Stats not yet updated, but a nice season so far for the 25 year old lefty, who admittedly is a little old for the level.

Alex Sogard relieved, throwing 2.1 innings, no hits, 2R/1ER, 3BB, 1K.  He was relieved in the 8th by Pat Urckfitz, who yielded 2 hits, 2R/ER, BB and took the loss.

At the Plate:  Preston Tucker went 1-4, but hit a 3R HR.  Nolan Fontana and Andrew Aplin went 2-4, R, BB, with the former also having a 2B.  Rene Garcia went 2-4, 2B.

Man of the Match:  Preston Tuckers 3R HR was potentially the game winning play.  But not to be.  Sigh.

Lancaster (16-11)

Lancaster won a tight one over a good (15-12) High Desert team.  Lancaster scored 1 in the 5th and one in the 6th to win 2-0 at the Hanger.  This puppy was done in 2h 19m.

On the Bump: Josh Hader started, and threw 4 scoreless, working around 1H and 5BB, versus 1K.  Daniel Minor relieved and struck of 3 in 2 perfect innings, followed by Tyson Perez (2IP, 1BB, 2K) and Juan Minaya (1IP, 1BB, 1K).  Overall the relievers allowed no hits in 5IP, walking 2 and striking out 6.

At the Plate:  Not a heck of a lot of scoring to go into, as the JetHawks managed only 8 base runners (6H and 2BB) as a team.  Carlos Perdomo, filling in a SS, went 1-3 with a triple, scoring a run.  Anthony Kemp went 1-3 with a double, also scoring.  The only other XBH was via Rio Ruiz (1-4, 2B).  Brandon Meredith broke his streak, although technically I have mentioned him, therefore the streak continues.  I will get back to you with the official legal opinion tomorrow.

Man of the Match: Clearly, the three headed monster of Minor, Perez and Minaya, who shut the Mavericks down, had a strong performance.  Was it man-of-the-match worthy??  Yep!

Quad Cities (11-13)

Quad Cities played the 10-13 Clinton LunberKings squad in two 7-inning games today.  In the first, QC lost 6-3 and in the second, won 9-8.

On the bump(s): Kent Emanuel started the first game, throwing 3IP, yielding 1R on 2H, 1BB, 4K.  His ERA sits at 2.45 for the season.  He took the loss.  He was relieved by Albert Minnis, who gave up 5R on 5H, 1BB, 1K in 1.2 IP.  Tyler Brunnemann pitched 2.1 innings, working around 3H and striking out one.

In the second game, Jandel Gustave had a less-than-impressive outing, giving up 6R/4ER on 3.2 IP, 5H, 2BB, 4K.  Zach Morton and Andrew Walter both gave up 1R on 1BB, 2K, with the former pitching 2.1 innings (giving up 3H) and the latter pitching 1 inning (giving up 1H).

At the plate(s):  Not much offence in the first game, with good efforts from Tanner Mathis (2BB, 0-2, R), Chan Moon (1-2, BB, R), Chase McDonald (1-4, 2B) and Thomas Lindauer (1-2, 2B, R, BB). 1-15 RISP doomed the River Bandits' offence in this one.

In the nightcap, LF Jon Kemmer went 2-3, 3R, BB, HR, SB while SS Thomas Lindauer went 2-3, BB.  He lifted his triple slash to .387/.424/.677 in 31 at bats.  Lindauer is a 22 year old SS, and is the reigning Midland Player of the Week.  Chan Moon also went 2-4, 2R, and Chase McDonald went 2-4, R.

Man of the Matches: Thomas Lindauer had a solid day, combining for 3-5, 2B, 2BB for the day.

Hope you enjoyed the Morning Report!  Thanks for reading.

PreStros Morning Report: May 16

The Constable was going to do today's PreStros report.  However, late in the AC offices last night, he spotted this article in the Chronicle, immediately left, and is missing presumed quesedilla'd.  We will try and recover him straight after writing this, but getting The Constable out of fine Mexican Restaurants has proven difficult in the past.

Summary

* Affiliates go 2-2, taking the overall minor-league record to 89-76

* Oklahoma managed to overcome a 5-run Nashville inning to eventually win.

* Corpus allowed a bunch of runs to score late to lose the opening game to Midland

* Lancaster won a football game over Rancho Cucamonga, 2 TD to 1.

* Quad Cities lost a tight one.  A boring, tight one.

Oklahoma City (24-18)

Oklahoma City beat a decent Nashville squad (21-20), despite allowing 5 runs in the second inning.  The RedHawks scored 1 in the first and sixth, and 2 in the second and fourth, and eventually prevailed 6-5, holding the Nashville team to 6 hits (and no walks) over the last 7 innings.

Rubber Rectangle:  Starting for the RedHawks was David Martinez, who had a solid outing (4IP, 5H, 1BB, 6K) despite allowing 5R/ER in the second.  He was relieved at 70 pitches by Chia-Jen Lo, who threw an inning, giving up two hits.  Bobby Doran proceeded pitch the next 3.2 innings, yielding only three hits, but needing some assistance to close the game with runners on first and third in the ninth.  Jason Stoffel got the last out.

Martinez did well, despite a horror second, when he went walk, double, homer, double, triple, groundout, SF, flyout.  He bounced back to give up a hit over the next two scoreless, before being relieved.

Plastic Pentagon:  Adron Chambers (leading off) and Robbie Grossman (batting second) formed a potent 1-2 punch at the top of the order, going 3-5, 2x2B, 3RBI and 2-5, 2x2B, R respectively.  Also having a good day at the plate was Enrique Hernandez (2-5) and Jonathan Meyer (2-4, 2B, 2R).

That said, the RedHawks squad struck out a collective 11 times, led by Domingo Santana (1-4, BB, 3K).  The Shoutout Hangover, huh?  Curse of the AC!

Man of the Match:  Bobby Doran fell one out short of a 4-inning save, so he gets nuthin'.  Adron Chambers, recently off the DL, did well with 5 total bases.  He wins!!

Corpus Christi (21-20)

I seem to remember, a few weeks ago, Corpus went through a bullpen-blow-a-rama, a few days in a row.  Well, they did it again tonight.  Corpus had a 5-1 lead entering the 6th, but they managed to give up 8 runs over the last four, yielding 2, 3, 1 and 2 runs in innings' 6-9 respectively.  The final result was a 9-7 loss to a decent Midland (24-17) team.

Rubber Rectangle:  More odd-pitching box lines in the minors, with David Rollins getting the start, and going 2.2 innings, being relieved after 44 pitches.  He gave up 4 hits, stuck out three, and gave up 1ER.  I am guessing that he is building stamina, as this is his second appearance back from a month-long layoff.  Anyhow, he was relieved by Brady Rodgers (4.2IP, 6H, 6R, 5ER, 0BB, 2K, 3 (!) HR), with Pat Urchfitz pitching the last 1.2 innings (4H, 2R/ER, 2K).  On the up-side, the pitching crew didn't walk one, but it is also hard to draw walks whilst hitting home runs.

Plastic Pentagon:  An odd night for the hitters, with only 1 extra-base hit, and 17 base runners (7BB, 8H, 2RoE).  Delino DeShields went 1-4, BB, 2R, SB; Nolan Fontana had a Nolan-Fontana-esque night (0-2, 3BB, R); Andrew Aplin went 2-4, BB, 3RBI; Preston Tucker homered (1-3, BB, HR, 2R, 2RBI); and Joe Sclafani went 2-5, RBI.  Leo Heras stole two bases, after going 0-4, BB.

Man of the Match:  I like Nolan Fontana for this one - he is quietly having a nice season, sitting at .268/.390/.402.  He is a little young for the level (-1.1 years), and may also be a relative of Brian Fantana.  But probably not, especially given the latter is a fictional character, and the spelling of the names is slightly different.

Lancaster (25-17)

Lancaster and Rancho Cucamonga (19-23) were swinging haymakers at each other all night.  Lancaster gave up 7 runs in the first five, but had their own 7-run inning (the fifth), as well as a five-run inning (the ninth) to pull away late.  A football score!

Rubber Rectangle:  This game featured the debut of Gonzalo Sanudo at Hi-A.  He didn't do well, only lasting three innings (7H, 4R/ER, 4K, HR).  He was relieved by J.D. Osborne (1.1IP, 1H, 3R/ER, 3BB, 0K) who also struggled.  But that was all the runs that Lancaster would give up, with the game  finished by Jamaine Cotton (3.2IP, 5H, 2K) and Daniel Minor (IP, H, K).  The Lancaster team recorded most of their outs on the ground (10 groundouts versus 4 flyouts).

Plastic Pentagon:  Two high-scoring innings were powered by lots and lots of base runners (17 hits, 7 walks, 1 RoE).  Five of those hits were extra-base hits (2x2B, 3B, HR).  Lots of batters to mention:  Anthony Kemp (4-6, 2B, 3R), Teoscar Hernandez (2-6, HR, R, 5RBI), Carlos Correa (2-6, 2R, 2RBI), Rio Ruiz (1-3, 3BB, 2R), Bobby Borchering (3-4, BB, 2B, 3B, R, 4RBI), Roberto Pena (2-5, HR, R, 3RBI) and Jordan Scott (2-3, 2BB, 2R) all contributed.

Man of the Match:  Hard to go past Jamaine Cotton on the pitching side, and Teoscar Hernandez on the batting side.  I would have given the offensive MoTM to Anthony Kemp, but his two SB were counterbalanced by a CS and pickoff.

Quad Cities (19-21)

The Bandits of the River lost by a score of 4-2 to the Kane County Cougars (27-14).  The Cougars were assisted by two unearned runs.

Rubber Rectangle:  Chris Lee started, and actually had a pretty good night, going 6IP, yielding 4H and BB, giving up 3R, 1ER, and striking out 8.  He was relieved by Tyler Brunnemann, who pitched the last two innings, giving up 1R/ER on 3H, but striking out 4.

Plastic Pentagon:  Things at the Pentagon were a little quieter than the other affiliates, thankfully, which assisted on keeping this post under 5000 words.  In brief, Conrad Gregor went 1-2, 2BB, 3B, R.  No one else did much of anything.  The team struck out 13 times, walked twice, and Gregor's triple was the only extra-base hit.

Man of the Match:  No one did much of anything today, aside from Conrad Gregor.  But, in order to promote joy and harmony around the AC offices, I will nominate Batguy for the MoTM today.  Poor Batguy is out on the AC scooter right now, looking for the Constable, who is missing (as mentioned above) presumed quesedilla'd (and probably Corona'd and Jose Cuervo'd by now).

Happy May 17, everyone!

PreStros Morning Report: June 26

Big drama around the AC offices this week.  It works out that the Constable was rostered on for PreStros the last two days, but our receptionist Cynthia forgot to check the Leave Roster before making the assignment, and the Constable has actually been on holiday.  I think he is climbing Mt Kilimanjaro or something.  For those of you that don't know, the Constable is a magnificent athlete - 6-4, and an all-muscle 190 pounds with hands like dinner plates.  I can't imagine that the circa 19,000 feet of Mt K will pose much of a challenge for the Constable.  Not sure when he said he is back - he indicated that if it didn't pose enough of a challenge, he may do it twice.  The second time carrying an obese German tourist.

Oh, and sorry, you got me in an emergency PreStros assignment.  A thousand sorries.

Summary

* Mixed BAD day: 3-4 2-5, for a cumulative affiliate win-loss record of 180-160.
* Oklahoma City lost, and it wasn't especially close.
* Corpus' comeback ended one run short.
* Lancaster allowed Lake Elsinore to come back, but won on a walk off.
* Quad Cities just got pounded.
* Tri-City got shut out.
* The GCL Astros won.
* The Greeneville Astros won.


Oklahoma City (42-39)

Oklahoma City continues their hurtle back toward .500, with a 7-2 loss to the Omaha StormChasers (43-36) at home.  Oklahoma City loses five straight, and they were consistently outscored in this one.

Rubber:  Mike Foltynewicz got the start, and he better improve if he wants a call-up.  His line: 5IP, 7H, 4R/ER, BB, 6K, 2HR allowed.  Alex White was worse (1.2IP, 3H, 3R/ER, 2BB, 2K), but he is on his way back from TJ, so we should cut him some slack.  Ex-Hooks Pat Urckfitz and Jorge De Leon finished off the game uneventfully.

Plate:  Kiké Hernandez continued his hot form (2-4, 2B, R), and would be a good candidate for a call-up in the event of a Marwin trade, or injury to someone.  Gregorio Petit also went 2-4.  Marc Krauss did well, going 1-2, BB, 2B, R whilst manning left field, but he got replaced by Ronald Torreyes for his last at-bat.  One hit and one walk from the bottom five in the order.

Man of the Match:  Enrique Hernandez, again.  Last 10 game update ('cause it has been a few days): .455/.520/.682.  I mean, why not Left Field (where he played a couple of innings tonight)??


Corpus Christi (37-41)

Corpus scored in the first and last innings, but were unable to fully recover from the six runs that the Springfield Isotopes Cardinals put up in the interim.  The Hooks scored three in the ninth, but needed to score four, as they lost 6-5.

Rubber:  Jordan Jankowski got the start: 5IP, 7H, 5R/ER. 4K, 2HR allowed.  Mitchell Lambson pitched two innings and allowed a solo home run, and Richard Rodriguez finished off the game uneventfully.

Plate:  Andrew Aplin, welcome back from the DL: 3-4, 2HR, 4RBI, 2R.  Tony Kemp did ok (2-4, R) post promotion, and Ruben Sosa also got a hit (1-3, R).

Man of the Match:  You need to ask?  Andrew Aplin was clearly the standout player of the night, for, probably, the whole system.


Lancaster (47-31)

Lancaster did their absolute best to blow a big lead... and succeeded!!  But they also scored the last run of the game in a walk off in regulation.  After seven, Lancaster led 8-4, but they gave up four runs in the eighth and ninth (2 apiece), and scored in the ninth for a 9-8 win over Lake Elsinore (44-34).  That arrested the JetHawks' five game losing streak.

Rubber:  Josh Hader got the start, and did relatively well: 5IP, 4H, 3R/1ER, 4K, 1HR allowed.  Piggyback starter Chris Devenski did ok until he gave up two in the eighth (3IP, 3H, 3R/ER, BB, K, HR allowed) and Jamaine turned a two-run deficit into a tie game (0.2IP, 2H, 2R/ER, BB, K, HR allowed).  Daniel Minor may have just won the easiest game of his career: 0.1IP.

Plate:  Rio Ruiz continued his recent good form: 3-4, BB, RBI, R.  It will be interesting to see where he is on baseball-wide prospect lists after the season.  Brandon Meredith had an eye-catching line: 0-3, 2BB, 3R).  Conrad Gregor was the walk off hero (2-5, 3RBI, R, 2B).  Roberto Pena had a good game: 2-3, BB, 2x2B, 2RBI, R.  Austin Elkins at second base had an interesting night (0-2, 2BB).  Overall, 10 hits and 7BB

Man of the Match:  Roberto Pena was the most impressive, with a good line from a catcher.  Rio Ruiz's last 10?? .300/.404/.425


Quad Cities (38-37)

Quad Cities just got smoked by a poor Clinton team (33-42).  Clinton scored early and often, and had a 12 run lead before Quad Cities even scored.  Final result: a 12-3 loss.

Rubber:  Michael Feliz got the start (3.1IP, 7H, 6R/ER. 2BB, 4K.  Chris Cotton gave up two unearned runs in 1.2 innings, and Andrew Walter gave up four in two innings.  Young stud prospect Anthony Bass struck out 2 in one perfect inning.  Hmmm, wonder whether he will make it to the Bigs this year???  I am hearing good things about him...

Plate:  Not much of anything here.  Tyler White had the best night: 2-3, BB, 2B, RBI.  Brian Holberton walked twice (0-2, 2BB, R).  Jon Kemmer managed a couple of singles at the bottom of the order (2-4).

Man of the Match:  Lets go with this Anthony Bass guy.  He sounds like he needs some encouragement, so we will reward him with a MoTM-y.


Tri City (8-6)

Tri City got shut out.  And that rarely results in a win.  Lowell (7-7) scored three runs, so that makes the shutout even less likely to result in a win.  Interestingly, both teams had five hits in a Tri-City loss, 0-3.

Rubber:  Troy Scribner got the start: 4IP, 4H, 2R/1ER, BB, 5K.  Kevin Ferguson, Jeffrey Gause and Jordan Mills relieved, with Gause giving up the third run on two innings pitched.

Plate:  Doubles to A.J. Reed, J.D. Davis (both 1-3, BB, 2B) and Ravel Santana (1-4, 2B).  Not much else.

Man of the Match:  Um, no one??  Sadly, we have to give the trophy to someone.  Ravel Santana not only had a double, but also an outfield assist, cutting down a runner at home.  Boom.  MoTM right there!!  I loves me outfield assists!


GCL Astros (4-2)

The GCL Astros rolled to a 3-1 win over the imaginatively named GCL Yankees2 (3-3) squad.  Wow.  Who thinks these things up?  Anywho, the GCL Astros opened the scoring with two in the bottom of the first, and they added an insurance run in the eighth.  The Yankees2 scored one in the ninth.  3-1 Astros win.

Rubber:  Kyle Wieland must have pieced together a raft from logs, toilet paper and old shoulder tendons or something, because he has escaped from Wieland Island.  Seriously, welcome back Kyle - from a freak tendon infection after a relatively minor operation.  He didn't last long: 1IP, H, K, but that may have been the plan.  Colton Cain relieved with 2 scoreless.  But the standout was the next guy - Elieser Hernandez: 5IP, 4K.

Plate:  Hector Roa and Kristian Trompiz were the standouts at the plate: both went 2-4, 2B.  The top three in the order all went 1-3, BB, R (Osvaldo Duarte, Edwin Medina and Dexture McCall respectively).  Little else happened.

Man of the Match:  I was impressed with Elieser Hernandez.  His season to this point??  9IP, 8K, 1H, 1BB.  Impressive start in the 2 appearances for the Venezuelian youngster who turns 20 in May next year.


Greeneville Astros (4-4)

Greeneville lost, after entering the bottom of the sixth with a two run lead.  Danville (5-3) took the lead with a three run frame, and they added another for insurance in a 4-2 Greeneville loss.

Rubber:  Devonte German got the start and worked around 5 base runners in five innings: 5IP, 2H, 0R/ER, 3BB, 5K.  Robert Kahana wore the loss (2IP, 4H, 3R/2ER, 3K) and Eric Peterson also allowed one run: 1IP, 3H, 1R/ER, K.

Plate:  Trent Woodward and Yonathan Mejia were the most impressive in the 4-5 spots of the lineup: 2-3, BB, 2B, R and 2-4, 3B, RBI respectively.  Sean McMullen hit a solo homer (1-4, HR, R, RBI).  Juan Santana and Jason Martin both went 1-4.

Man of the Match:  Devonte German had a solid start, and it all fell apart when he left, so MoTM-y for you!!

Make sure you read Cockroach's recap for the Braves game today - 'twas an excellent win, and it is great seeing Jarred Cosart pitch so well.  Thanks for reading, wish the Constable luck.  He probably is half way up on the second ascent by now.

PreStros Morning Report: August 10

Oklahoma City (69-52), 4.0 up

OKC got out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the 1st, but Las Vegas answered with one in the bottom half, and then put up three more runs in a 4-1 win over OKC in which the RedHawks recorded just three hits. Jake Buchanan allowed 7H/3ER, 4K:2BB in 6IP; Jason Stoffel gave up 2H/1ER, 3K:0BB in 2IP.

George Springer was 1x3 with a walk and a solo homer - his 31st. More on him in a separate post later this morning. Trevor Crowe was 1x4 with an outfield assist. Rene Garcia had your only other hit, whie Jose Martinez drew two walks.

Man of the Match: George Springer, of course.

Corpus (30-19, 1.0 GB) 72-47 overall

Corpus, down 2-1 in the bottom of the 9th, win in walk-off fashion after Erik Castro hit the game-tying homer and Jonathan Meyer went yard immediately after for the 3-2 win. David Rollins is adjusting to Double-A nicely, giving up just 5H/2R (1ER), 5K:2BB in 6.2IP; Andrew Robinson allowed 2H/0ER, 2K:0BB in 2.1IP.

The Hooks only got four hits on the night - three of them home runs, by Castro and Meyer, and Preston Tucker added a solo shot in addition to two walks.

Man of the Match: Hard to pick. David Rollins.

Lancaster (30-19, 4.5 up), 69-50 overall

One night after getting beat 30-8 (which was noted by SportsCenter, which we'll also get to later), newly acquired Kyle Smith (in the Kansas City trade for Justin Maxwell) fired a complete game, two-hit shutout, going 9IP, 2H/0ER, 9K:0BB. JetHawks win, 6-0.

Nolan Fontana was 1x3 with 2BB, 2RBI; Jesse Wierzbicki hit his first High-A homer, a two-run shot, in addition to drawing a walk. Joe Sclafani added a run-scoring double.

Man of the Match: Please. Kyle Smith.

Quad Cities (29-18, 1.5 GB), 67-49 overall

Oof. Wisconsin held the River Bandits to one hit in a 7-0 win at Quad Cities. Joe Bircher allowed 9H/6ER, 4K:0BB, 2HR in 5IP; Daniel Minor gave up 1H/1ER, 3K:2BB, 1HR, 2HBP, and Pat Christensen allowed 2H/0ER, 4K:1BB in the final 2IP.

Danry Vasquez had the only hit and Bobby Borchering drew the only walk.

Man of the Match: Pat Christensen

Tri-City (31-22), 1.5 up

Down 2-0 to Jamestown, Tri-City got them back in the 3rd and 5th innings, but in the top of the 9th a throwing error by 3B Tyler White allowed Edwin Espinal to reach 2nd, a Troy Scribner balk got him to 3rd, and a sac fly scored the go-ahead run in a 3-2 win over Tri-City. Randall Fant threw 4IP, 6H/2R (1ER), 2K:2BB, Albert Minnis allowed just a hit in 2IP, striking out two; and Scribner took the hard-luck loss, allowing 1H/1R (0ER), 5K:0BB in 3IP in his New York-Penn League debut. In 36.2IP across the GCL, Appy League, and now the NYPL, Scribner - an undrafted free agent - has 53 strikeouts and seven walks in 36.2IP.

Conrad Gregor was 3x3 with a walk, stolen base, and an RBI; James Ramsay was 1x4 with a solo homer; D'Andre Toney was 1x3 with a double, walk, and a stolen base.

Man of the Match: Conrad Gregor.

Greeneville (32-16), 4.0 up

After allowing Kingsport to tie the game at 2-2 in the top of the 7th, the Gastros scored the final three runs of the game for a 5-2 win. Jandel Gustave threw 4IP, 4H/1R (0ER), 5K:0BB; Kevin Ferguson bounced back from a disastrous pro debut (0.1IP, 3H/5ER, 1K:3BB on Aug 7) to throw 2IP, 1H/0ER, 3K:0BB; Ryan Connolly allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 1IP and Gonzalo Sanudo struck out six of the eight batters he faced. Sanudo has thrown 20IP for Greeneville this season, striking out 29 of the 72 batters he has faced and walking just one. He hasn't allowed an earned run since July 9, and since that game has allowed two hits with 20K:0BB in 13IP, opponents are 2x41 - both singles - for an .049/.049/.049 line.

Alfredo Gonzalez was 2x3 with a triple and a homerun; Ariel Ovando was 1x3 with a double, walk, and 2RBI (now hitting .209).

Man of the Match: I'm going with Gonzalo Sanudo.

GCL Astros (21-23, 6.0 GB)

The GCL Braves beat the GCL Astros 6-2. Agapito Barrios allowed 6H/4ER, 3K:1BB in 5IP; Reymin Guduan struck out seven, walked one, and didn't allow a hit in 3IP; Samil De Los Santos allowed a hit to the only batter he faced, and Joe Musgrove allowed a hit and an unearned run in 1IP.

Ydarqui Marte was 3x4 with an RBI; Jason Martin had a double and a walk; Yonathan Mejia added a double.

Man of the Match: Reymin Guduan

PreStros Morning Report: April 5

Oklahoma City (1-2)

Oklahoma City fell to Round Rock last night, with the Express taking a 7-1 lead before OKC got three late runs back in a 7-4 loss. Nick Tropeano lasted 3.1IP, giving up 5H/4ER, 4K:4BB, and he threw 45 of his 76 pitches for strikes. Jose Cisnero followed with 1.2IP, 0H/0ER, 2K:1BB, and Collin McHugh finished out the game with 3IP, 2H/3ER, 2K:3BB and 28 of his 50 pitches for strikes.

Jon Singleton (1x3, BB, 2RBI) and Carlos Perez each hit their first home runs of the season. George Springer was 0x3 with a walk, while Max Stassi, Domingo Santana, and Ronald Torreyes each added a double.

Man of the Match: Jon Singleton

Corpus (2-1)

Corpus gave back an early 2-0 lead, but then stepped on the gas to defeat Jonathan Gray and the Tulsa Drillers, 7-4. Luis Cruz threw his 5IP, allowing 5H/2ER, 5K:1BB and 51 of his 76 pitches for strikes. Ross Seaton threw 3.2IP, allowing 4H/2ER, 3K:2BB, and Andrew Robinson struck out the final batter of the game for his first save of the season.

Gray, who was making his first start of the season, allowed 5H/4R (3ER), 5K:1BB, a homer and two HBPs in 6IP. Delino DeShields was 2x3 with both of the aforementioned HBPs and two stolen bases. Preston Tucker was 2x3 with a walk and a solo homer off Gray, while Rene Garcia hit a two-run homer later in the game. Nolan Fontana and MP Cokinos also had two hits.. Andrew Aplin was 1x2 with two walks and 3RBI.

Man of the Match: Delino DeShields

Lancaster (1-2)

The JetHawks had a 5-1 lead heading into the 5th, but Lake Elsinore "stormed" back (get it?) with a 3-run 5th and a 4-run 8th to defeat Lancaster 8-7. Josh Hader got the start, throwing 4IP, 4H/1ER, with ten strikeouts and no walks. Daniel Minor allowed 3H/3ER in 1IP; Chris Devenski allowed 5H/4ER, 3K:1BB in 3IP, and Jamaine Cotton gave up a hit and two walks in the 9th, but no runs scored.

Danry Vasquez was 3x5 with four runs scored; Dan Gulbransen was 3x5 with two doubles and two RsBI; Jake Rodriguez and Jordan Scott were each 1x3 with two walks and two RsBI. Carlos Correa was 2x5 with a double, and Rio Ruiz added two hits.

Man of the Match: Josh Hader.

Quad Cities (1-2)

A Quad Cities 3-run 6th inning tied it up at 4-4 and sent the game into extra innings, but Kane County got a run in the top of the 10th for a 5-4 win. Michael Feliz threw 3IP, 3H/2ER,4K:1BB, but two of the hits he allowed left the yard. Evan Grills allowed 4H/2R (0ER), 2K:0BB; Andrew Walter threw two perfect innings, and Chris Cotton was the hard-luck loser, throwing 2IP, allowing 2H/1R (0ER), with 3K:0BB. Three of Kane County's five runs were unearned thanks to two errors by Chan Moon and one by Conrad Gregor.

Jon Kemmer (BB), Tanner Mathis, Austin Elkins, Jobduan Morales, and Chan Moon all had two hits. Conrad Gregor was 1x3 with three walks as the River Bandits drew more walks (9) than strikeouts (8).

Man of the Match: Evan Grills, who added a pickoff to his line.

PreStros Morning Report: July 25

Oklahoma City (56-50), 3.0 GB

In a nice pitchers' duel, OKC fell 2-1 to Omaha in 12 innings. Jake Buchanan threw 8 IP and gave up 8H/1R with 4K:1BB. Kevin Chapman turned in a scoreless 2 IP with 1H and 2K:1BB. Jason Stoffel took the loss with 2.2 IP, allowing 1H/1R with 1K:5BB.

Robbie Grossman was 2x4 with 1 BB. Jimmie Paredes went 1x5 with a solo HR. Ruben Sosa was 2x4

Man of the Match: Jake Buchanan

Corpus (18-15), 1.5 GB

David Martinez turned in a complete game was the Hooks beat Midland 5-1. In 9 IP, Martinez gave up 9H/1R with 8K:1BB. He's now 12-2 with a 1.98 ERA.

Drew Muren was 1x3 with 1 2B, 2 R, 2 BB, and 1 SB. Domingo Santana went 2x5 with 1 SB. Zach Johnson was 2x3 with 1 BB and 1 R. Jio Mier was 2x3 with 1 2B and 1 R.

Man of the Match: David Martinez

Lancaster (22-13), 2.5 up

The JetHawks battled back but came up just short in their 4-3 loss to San Jose. Aaron West went 6 IP and gave up 6H/3R with 5K:1BB. Tyson Perez took the final 3 IP and allowed 3H/1R with 4 K.

Andrew Aplin went 2x4 with 1 2B and 1 RBI.

Man of the Match: Tyson Perez, for keeping Lancaster in the game.

Quad Cities (17-14), 3.5 GB

QC pitchers walked 7 batters as they lost to Burlington 5-2. Mark Appel threw 2 IP, allowing 1H/1R with 4K:4BB. Daniel Minor went 2.2 IP and gave up 5H/2R with 3K:2BB. Mitchell Lambson threw 3.1 IP and gave up 2H/2R with 3K:1BB.

Carlos Correa was 2x4 with 1 2B and 1 SB. Brian Blasik was 1x4 with 1 2B and 2 RBI.

Man of the Match: Carlos Correa

Tri-City (26-12) 5.0 up

The ValleyCats pitchers combined for a 2 hit shutout, beating Hudson Valley 1-0. Zach Morton went 5 IP, allowing 1 H with 3K:1BB. Albert Minnis threw 1 IP with 1 H. Randall Fant pitched 3 innings with 3 K.

James Ramsay was 2x4. Jon Kemmer went 1x3 with a solo HR.

Man of the Match: Morton/Fant/Kemmer

Greeneville (23-10), 4.0 up

Greeneville won their 13th straight, beating Johnson City 3-2. Frederick Tiburcio went 6 IP and allowed 2H/2R (1 ER) with 4K:5BB. Raul Rivera threw 3 IP allowing 2 H with 2 K. 

Tanner Mathis was 3x4 with 1 SB and 1 R. Chase McDonald was 1x3 with 2 RBI. Tyler White was 2x4. 

Man of the Match: Raul Rivera

GCL Astros (14-14), 3.5 GB

PPD

DSL Astros (24-20) 6.5 GB

It took 19 innings, but the Red Sox beat the Astros 7-5. Harold Arauz threw 5 IP and allowed 3H/2R (0 ER) with 6 K. Junior Garcia went 3 IP, allowing 1 H with 2K:1BB. Angel Heredia pitched 5 IP, allowing 2 H with 5 K. Yonquelys Martinez took the last 6 IP, giving up 4H/5R (1 ER) with 4K:1BB. In 19 innings, Astros pitchers only allowed 1 earned run and lost, thanks to 8 errors committed by the defense, including 3 by the catchers.

Luis Payano was 2x8 with 1 RBI. Randy Cesar went 2x7 with 1 BB, 1 3B, 1 R, and 2 errors. Hector Roa was 2x6 with 1 R. Jarico Reynoso went 2x7 with 1 BB, 1 3B, 1 R, and 2 RBI.

Man of the Match: The sporting goods manufacturer that replaced the defense's gloves with ping-pong paddles.

PreStros Morning Report: June 14

The Constable's post-Academy Award party went well into the day yesterday, meaning that the man known as the Brad Pitt of Nashville was nursing a juicy hangover this morning.  This is bad.  That means that I have to do the PreStros again, which I hope is acceptable to all 3 of our readers out there.

Summary

* 0-5 for the Affiliates, overall record 149-129
* Oklahoma City took and early lead, then got pounded
* Corpus Christi took and early lead, then got pounded
* Lancaster forwent the whole "early lead" thing, and just got pounded
* Quad Cities = pounded
* Tri-City committed seven errors, leading to six unearned runs, and got pounded


Oklahoma City (37-33)

Oklahoma City started well, taking a 1-0 lead over Las Vegas (40-29) in the first.  Sadly, the next seven runs, which were also the only remaining runs scored in the ballgame, were added to the Las Vegas teams' tally.  Las Vegas scored 2, 1 and 3 runs respectively in innings 3 to 5, and added one in the eighth.  This meant that the RedHawks lost by a score of 7-1.

Stitched Leather:  Folty aka Big Mike aka Bad MF got the start, and struggled.  He went 4.2 innings, game up 7 hits and 3 walks, which resulted in 6 runs/earned runs.  He struck out five.  Bad MF also conceded a home run.  Bobby Doran relieved, and was much stronger: 4.1IP, 2H, 1R/ER, 2BB, 2K.

Both Bad MF and Bobby Doran kept the ball on the ground with 6-2 and 7-2 groundouts to flyouts respectively.

Smooth Wood:  Both Oklahoma and Las Vegas had the same number of hits (9) and a similar number of walks (4 and 5 respectively).  However, Oklahoma was not as efficient at getting runners across the plate.  Domingo Santana had a strong game (2-3, BB, HR, R, RBI) and accounted for the only run on the Oklahoma side of the ledger.  Little Jerome Hoes also had 2 hits and a walk (2-3, BB).  Gergorio Petit hit a double in a 1-4 performance.

Man of the Match:  Domingo Santana, who, with a strong couple of months, could get a cup of coffee at the end of the year.


Corpus Christi (33-35)

Corpus Christi suffered a... er... rough ride... at the hands of the Frisco AA Squad (40-27).  Like Oklahoma, Corpus took an early lead (2-0 after 3) then conceded the next ten runs of the game, to lose 10-2.  However, Corpus was far more efficient at scoring runs than Oklahoma, as they only had one hit.

Stitched Leather:  Brady Aiken Rodgers got the start, and cruised until the fourth, when he managed to give up 5 runs of a six-run inning.  He recorded no outs in that inning.  His final line: 4IP, 6H, 5R/ER, BB, 2K.  He was relieved by Alex Sogard (1.2IP, 2H, 2R.ER, 3BB, 2K, HR), who gave up the home run in the fourth to allow Rodgers' final inherited runner to score.  Richard Rodriguez finished the game in the vein in which it had been played to that point: 3.1IP, 4H, 3R/ER, BB, 4K, HR.

Smooth Wood:  Well, the hit was from Rene Garcia (1-3, RBI).  It was a single, and scored Carlos Perdomo, who had walked, then been moved to second with a Jiovanni Mier walk.  The run in the third consisted of a leadoff walk (Delino DeShields, 0-3, BB), a sac bunt moving the runner to third, then a sac fly.

Man of the Match:  Uh, Rene Garcia?  For his hit??


Lancaster (44-26)

Lancaster got plain rolled by Rancho Cucamonga (32-38).  Lancaster scored one in the second, third and ninth, but they were no match for the Quakes. who scored early and often.  This doomed the JetHawks to a first-half ending 9-3 loss.

Stitched Leather:  Kyle Westwood started, and lasted 3 innings: 7H, 4R/ER, BB, K.  He was relieved by Matt Heidenreich, who curiously only went one inning (2H, 2K).  Kent Emanuel pitched two innings (1H, 1R/ER, 1HR), J.D. Osborne pitched two (2H, 3R, 0ER, BB, K, HR) and Daniel Minor pitched one (3H, R/ER, K, HR).

Smooth Wood:  5 hits (all singles) and 5 walks was all the JetHawk juggernaut could manage.  Carlos Correa went 1-3, BB, R, Jack Mayfield went 1-2, 2BB and Jobduan Morales went 1-3, BB, 2R, SB.

Man of the Match:  Lets go with Jack Mayfield, in lieu of other viable candidates.

The Cal League now takes a four-day break for the All Star festivities.


Quad Cities (34-34)

Quad Cities capped a miserable day for the long-season affiliates, losing 6-3 to Wisconsin (36-32).  Wisconsin erected a little picket fence between the second and fourth innings, then scored three more in the last two.  The River Bandits only managed 2 in the third, and 1 in the eighth to lose by a score of 6-3.

Stitched Leather:  Chris Lee went seven reasonable innings, giving up 9 hits and one walk, but yielding 5 runs, 3 earned.  He struck out three.  Patrick Christensen relieved and recorded a scoreless inning despite giving up one hit and one walk.  Chris Cotton gave up a solo home run, but stuck out one, in a one run inning.

Smooth Wood:  Chan Moon had a great day at the plate, going 2-3, 2BB, 2B, R.  Jon Kemmer was nearly as good, going 3-4, 2RBI.  Brett Phillips hit a solo home run (1-5, HR, R, RBI).

Man of the Match:  Lets go with Chan Moon and Jon Kemmer - combined seven times on base (scoring only once)


Tri-City (1-1)

Apologies for missing the ValleyCats game in yesterday's PreStros, which they won.  Not so lucky today, losing to a 1-1 Connecticut team by a score of 9-3.

Stitched Leather:  Joe Musgrove started, and gave up 4 runs (3 earned) in 3.2 innings.  Krishawn Holley gave up five runs (all unearned) in 1.1 innings pitched.  Randall Fant and Kevin Ferguson had scoreless outings.

Yes, the ValleyCats gave up six unearned runs on seven errors.

Smooth Wood:  Ricky Gingras went 2-3, R.  Adam Nelubowich went 1-4, 2B, 2RBI.  Alex Hernandez, the man for whom I couldn't find any stats, went 1-1 with a pinch hit double, which drove in one.

Man of the Match:  Lets go with Ricky Gingras.


Bad day overall for the affiliates, but the big team won, creeping within six games of .500.

PreStros Morning Report: August 10

TL;DR

*Astros Affiliates went 4-2 on the day
*Asher Wojciechowski and Paul Clemens got lit up by Iowa in a 10-2 loss.
*Mark Appel gave up 4ER in 5IP (but with 7K:1BB!) in a Corpus loss.
*Brian Holmes dominated San Jose for a Lancaster win
*Bobby Boyd got two hits in his Quad Cities debut - a win
*Jason Martin got three hits in his Tri-City debut - a win
*Greeneville shutout Burlington in a home win.

Oklahoma City (62-61, 3.0 GB)

Despite only being out-hit 12-11, the Iowa Cubs put up ten runs in a 10-2 OKC loss on Sunday. Asher Wojciechowski threw 6IP, 6H/5ER, 5K:2BB and allowed 2HR on the day. Pat Urckfitz allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 1IP; Paul Clemens gave up 3H/4ER, 0K:2BB in 0.1IP, Tommy Shirley allowed 1H/0ER in 0.2IP, and Anthony Bass walked one batter in 1IP.

Matt Duffy was 3x4 with a double; Ronny Torreyes and Andrew Aplin were each 2x4 (Aplin is hitting .371 since getting called up to OKC). Jonathan Villar, Joe Sclafani, Preston Tucker (RBI) and Max Stassi (RBI) added hits.

Man of the Match: Matt Duffy

Corpus (21-29, 8.0 GB; 55-65 overall)

A couple of crooked numbers for Arkansas resulted in an 8-3 Corpus loss yesterday. Mark Appel took the mound for the Hooks, and we saw what we saw from Appel in Lancaster (albeit not as disastrous): 5IP, 8H/4ER, 7K:1BB. The K/9, BB/9, and K:BB is there, he's just getting tagged. Colton Cain came in and got worked over for 5H/4ER, 2K:1BB in 2IP. Mitchell Lambson threw a perfect 8th inning.

The Hooks only got four hits, but two of those were homers by Teoscar Hernandez and Leo Heras - who also drew three walks. Tony Kemp and Colin Moran added hits in the losing effort.

Man of the Match: Leo Heras

Lancaster (27-23, 1.0 up; 71-49 overall*)
*already clinched playoff berth

The JetHawks never trailed in this one and scored four unanswered runs in a 6-2 win at San Jose. Brian Holmes straight up dominated, throwing 8IP, 6H/1ER, 5K:1BB; Daniel Minor allowed a solo homer in the 9th.

You wouldn't expect to see a team that went 3x19 w/RISP win the game, but that's what happened. Jon Kemmer (2B, HR, RBI) and Danry Vasquez (BB) each had three hits. Rio Ruiz (2B, BB, RBI) had two hits. Chan Moon had a hit and a walk; Ronnie Mitchell was 0x3 with two walks and an RBI. Brett Phillips was 1x5 to lower his Avg in Lancaster to .414.

Man of the Match: Brian Holmes

Quad Cities (25-24, 4.0 GB; 60-58 overall)

Quad Cities put up six runs by the end of the 3rd inning, cruising to a 6-1 win over Beloit. Michael Feliz threw 5IP, 3H/1ER, 5K:0BB; Chris Lee struck out four in three perfect innings, and Chris Cotton struck out two in the 9th.

A.J. Reed (3B, RBI) and Bobby Boyd (RBI) - in his Quad Cities debut - had two hits each. Chase McDonald and Jose Fernandez (RBI) each had a hit and drew a walk. Ryan Bottger and J.D. Davis added your other RBIs.

Man of the Match: Bobby Boyd!

Tri-City (37-19, 7.0 up)

Tri-City scored three runs in the 8th to take a 4-2 lead, and withstood Hudson Valley getting two in the bottom of the 9th for a 4-2 win. Austin Chrismon threw 5.2IP, 4H/0ER, 1K:4BB; Derick Velasquez struck out four in 2.1IP; Ryan Thompson allowed 3H/2R (1ER) in 0.1IP and Jordan Mills closed it out by getting the final two outs of the game.

Jason Martin made his Tri-City debut, going 3x5 with a triple; Jamie Ritchie, Ricky Gingras, Nick Tanielu, and Juan Santana had RBIs for the ValleyCats as nine of the ten ValleyCats batters recorded at least one hit.

Man of the Match: Jason Martin

Greeneville (26-22, 1.5 GB)

Greeneville got three runs in the bottom of the 1st and cruised to a 6-0 win over Burlington. Reymin Guduan threw 5IP, 4H/0ER, 4K:2BB; Elieser Hernandez allowed 1H/0ER, 2K:1BB in 3IP; Aaron Greenwood closed out the 9th with a hit allowed.

Edwin Medina was 2x3 with a sac fly and a stolen base; Sean McMullen (2B, RBI), Yonathan Mejia (solo HR), and Jeffry Santos had two hits each; Jacob Nottingham (RBI) and Ydarqui Marte added hits.

Man of the Match: Reymin Guduan

GCL Astros (23-21, 3.0 GB)

Off.

PreStros Morning Report: April 12

TL;DR

*Organization goes 3-1 on Sunday, cumulatively 11-5 on the season.
*Matt Duffy knocked in four runs, but the Fresno bullpen was shaky in the loss to Las Vegas
*Lance McCullers was The Man as Corpus got the four-game road sweep at Tulsa
*Jobduan Morales hit a walkoff in a Lancaster win
*Austin Chrismon allowed three baserunners and Jacob Nottingham was a triple short of the cycle* in a Quad Cities win over Clinton.
*PreStro of the Day: Troy Scribner - Lancaster

*Standard Astros County line: Being a triple short of the cycle is like being a second woman short of a threesome ®

Fresno (2-2)

The Fresno Grizzlies had a 2-0 lead and a 5-4 lead, but Las Vegas kept scoring off of the Grizzlies bullpen, and a late rally fell short. Fresno loses, 8-7. Luis Cruz threw 5IP, allowing 4H/3ER, 5K:1BB; Darin Downs gave up a run with 2H, 1K:1BB in 1IP; Kevin Chapman took the BS/L with 2H/3ER, 1K:1BB in 0.2IP; Jason Stoffel inherited the bases loaded, and thus allowed two of those runs to score; Jordan Jankowski gave up 2H/1ER, 2K:0BB in the 9th.

Matt Duffy was 2x5 with a home run and 4RBI on the day; Joe Sclafani (BB), Jon Singleton (2B), and Alex Presley (2B) had two hits each. Matt Dominguez was 1x3 with a double and 2RBI.

Man of the Match: Matt Duffy

Corpus (4-0)

Corpus might not lose, like, ever. Lance McCullers threw a gem, hit 99 a few times on the gun, and the Hooks cruised to a 4-0 win and a road sweep at Tulsa. McCullers threw 5IP, 4H/0ER, 7K:3BB; Travis Ballew allowed 2H/0ER, 3K:0BB; Daniel Minor (BB) and Tyson Perez each threw hitless, scoreless innings.

Tony Kemp (BB), Leo Heras (RBI), and Brandon Meredith (2B, 2RBI) had two hits each - and Meredith and Heras each had outfield assists, getting runners at second base. Telvin Nash hit a solo homer and drew a walk.

Man of the Match: Lance McCullers

Lancaster (2-2)

San Jose and Lancaster traded runs in the 2nd, and then that would be it until Jobduan Morales provided a walk-off hit and a 2-1 JetHawks win. JetHawks pitcher Troy Scribner had a day, allowing 2H/1ER, 8K:1BB in 6IP; Tyler Brunnemann threw 2.1IP, 1H/0ER, 0K:2BB; and Frederick Tiburcio struck out the last two Giants batters he faced.

Chan Moon (2B) and Chase McDonald (BB) had two hits each; James Ramsay, J.D. Davis, Jose Fernandez (BB, RBI) and Morales added your other hits.

Man of the Match: Troy Scribner

Quad Cities (3-1)

A 5-run 5th for Quad Cities is all they needed (all most teams need, really) in a 7-2 win over Clinton. Austin Chrismon threw 6IP, 2H/1R (0ER), 3K:1BB; Eric Peterson threw 2IP, 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB and Ryan Thompson allowed just a hit with 2K in the 9th.

Jacob Nottingham was 3x4 with a double, homer and an RBI; Bobby Boyd was 2x3 with 2RBI and a stolen base; Derek Fisher and Nick Tanielu were each 1x4 with an RBI.

Man of the Match: Austin Chrismon

PreStros Morning Report: July 31

TL;DR

*Domestic teams go 2-5 on the day.
*Alex White gets pulled in the 2nd, Joe Sclafani goes 3x4 in an OKC loss
*Corpus Christi has recorded three total hits in their last two games as the Hooks fall to Midland
*Lancaster scores six in the bottom of the 8th, Ronnie Mitchell goes 3x3 with a double, two homers, and 5RBI in his Lancaster debut.
*Marc Wik pops three triples in a Quad Cities loss.
*Tri-City rallies twice but falls in the 11th for their first three-game losing streak of the year.
*Greeneville drops a game to Johnson City despite Angel Heredia's four scoreless IPs (5K).
*Elieser Hernandez strikes out nine GCL Pirates in 6IP as the GCL Astros win.

Oklahoma City (56-58, 4.0 GB)

OKC put up two runs in the top of the 1st and were flexing at Round Rock. And then...then, they, uh...gave up eight unanswered runs to lose 8-2. Alex White didn't make it out of the 2nd, giving up 6H/4ER, 0K:0BB in 1.2IP; Richard Rodriguez allowed 2H/2ER, 0K:0BB in 2.1IP; Jorge De Leon threw 2.2IP, 3H/1ER, 1K:1BB and Pat Urckfitz allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB.

Joe Sclafani was 3x4 with a stolen base; Domingo Santana was 2x4 with a double and 2RBI. Jonathan Villar, Ronny Torreyes (OF assist), Carlos Perez and Jio Mier added hits.

Man of the Match: Joe Sclafani

Corpus (18-23, 7.0 GB; 52-59 overall)

Make that three total hits in their last two games. Corpus tied the game up at 1-1 in the 4th, but promptly allowed five Midland runs in the bottom of the 5th on their way to a 6-1 loss. Mike Hauschild threw 4.1IP, 5H/5ER, 4K:3BB; Jordan Jankowski gave up 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 3.2IP.

Leo Heras was 2x3 while Andrew Aplin got an RBI double and a walk. The rest of the team was 0x21 with 12K:0BB.

Man of the Match: How about Heras and Aplin?

Lancaster (22-18, 2.0 GB; 66-44 overall*)
*clinched playoff berth

Crazy one - as usual - in Lancaster last night as Lake Elsinore puts up five 1st inning runs, the JetHawks tie it up at 6-6 in the 3rd, trade runs in the 4th and 5th, fall behind 9-7 heading into the bottom of the 8th, and score six for a 13-9 win. Lance McCullers got knocked around for 12H/8ER, 2K:3BB (3HR) in 5IP; Zach Morton allowed 2H/1ER, 1K:0BB in 2IP; Daniel Minor (1H/0ER) and Jamaine Cotton (0H/0ER) threw an inning each.

Ronnie Mitchell was 3x3 with a double, two homers, two walks, and 5RBI in his Lancaster debut. Teoscar Hernandez (2 2B) and Jon Kemmer (2B, HR, 2RBI) had three hits each. Rio Ruiz was 2x4 with two doubles, a walk, and 2RBI. Chan Moon (2RBI) and Tyler White (2B) got a walk and a hit.

Man of the Match: Ronnie Mitchell

Quad Cities (21-18, 2.0 GB; 56-52 overall)

Clinton rallied from a 4-2 deficit, despite the RiverBandits bringing the game to within 8-7, and just kept scoring, handing the River Bandits a 13-9 loss. Michael Feliz allowed 10H/8ER, 3K:4BB in 4.1IP; Albert Minnis gave up 4H/3ER, 3K:2BB in 1.2IP and Frederick Tiburcio allowed 4H/2ER, 3K:1BB in 3IP.

Marc Wik was 3x5 with three triples and 4RBI; James Ramsay was 2x4 with a double, triple, and an RBI. Brian Holberton (RBI) and Thomas Lindauer (BB, SB, RBI) had two hits each. Brett Phillips was 1x4 with a walk, double, RBI, and an outfield assist.

Man of the Match: Marc Wik

Tri-City (31-16, 6.0 up)

Down 5-3 heading into the bottom of the 8th, the ValleyCats tied up the game and sent it to extras. Mahoning Valley scored a run in the top of the 10th which the ValleyCats answered, but couldn't answer a Mahoning Valley run in the top of the 11th for a 7-6 loss - Tri-City's first three-game losing streak. Joe Musgrove allowed 6H/3ER, 5K:1BB in 5.2IP; Bryan Radziewski gave up 2H/2ER, 2K:2BB in 1.1IP; Raul Rivera walked one in 2IP and Jordan Mills took the loss with 2IP, 3H/2R (1ER), 2K:1BB.

Alex Hernandez (BB), Derek Fisher (RBI), Ricky Gingras (RBI), Mott Hyde (2B, BB, 10th inning HR), and Ariel Ovando (2B) had two hits each. Jamie Ritchie was 0x3 with two walks.

Man of the Match: Joe Musgrove

Greeneville (21-20, 3.0 GB)

A three-run Johnson City 5th pretty much put the game away in a 4-1 Greeneville loss. Joshua James threw 4IP, 4H/1ER, 3K:3BB; Aaron Greenwood allowed 3H/3ER, 0K:1BB in the 5th; Angel Heredia threw four scoreless innings, striking out five JC batters.

Kristian Trompiz (BB) and Jeffry Santos (RBI) had two hits each. Jason Martin got a double, and Luis Reynoso and Ydarqui Marte each stole a base.

Man of the Match: Angel Heredia

GCL Astros (20-16, 1.0 GB)

The GCL Astros rallied with four runs in the 4th inning on their way to a 6-4 win over the GCL Pirates. Ross Seaton threw 2IP in a rehab start, allowing 5H/2ER, 2K:0BB; Travis Ballew walked one and struck out one in the 5th, and Elieser Hernandez allowed 5H/2ER, 9K:1BB in 6IP.

Dexture McCall was 2x3 with two doubles and an RBI. Richard Gonzalez hit a two-run homer. Connor Goedert was 1x2 with two walks. Arturo Michelena was 1x4 with 2RBI.

Man of the Match: Elieser Hernandez