Astros traded Josh Fields for Yourdan Alvarez and Scott Feldman for Chavez last year. Alvarez turned out to be a significant acquisition. Chavez could be just as valuable. You can't win the lottery every time, but you can hope.
The Quad Cities River Bandits are one win away from the 2017 Midwest League Championship after a 5-0 win over the Fort Wayne TinCaps Thursday night at Parkview Field. The Bandits won both road games and have a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series with three chances to win one game at home to clinch the championship. Patrick Sandoval hurled six shutout innings to get his second win of the playoffs while five different Bandits drove in runs to help the offensive cause. Quad Cities (6-2, 79-59) got on the board in the first inning with an Abraham Toro single that drove home Colin Moran on a close play at the plate. Two insurance runs scored in the sixth on singles from Chas McCormick and Troy Sieber . A Moran single plated another run in the eighth before a double from JJ Matijevic drove home another insurance run in the ninth. Sandoval (2-0) scattered six hits over six-plus innings on the mound, walking one and striking out a pair of TinCaps (4-3, 68-72) in the win. more here: https://www.milb.com/river-bandits/...from-mwl-championship/c-254361930/t-196097124
Didn't know Colin Moran was playing after the freak play sidelined him. It's good he's out there playing as hopefully it will get him back into the swing of things. For next season, I wonder if he can make a push grabbing for LF, 1B (moving Gurriel to LF), or as a DH who can back up like Gonzales. Though, From the trade rumors, it sounded like Luhnow wasn't hesitating trading him, but other teams didn't value him as much. It's good Astros have a high regard for him still.
At 23, still in A ball and relegated purely to relief, it's hard to envision a big league future for him even with a 100 mph fastball. Surely if Houston saw any real ceiling they'd have kept him as a starter or moved him up more quickly. Even Jandel Gustave was a starter in A ball (and is still only 24).
He also started his career as a 20/21 year old. Montano isn't really a serious prospect given his age and where he is, but it seems like he's done well enough to warrant a look in the Carolina League. If he fails there, then it's not really a massive deal.
If both Jandel Gustave and Reymin Guduan can get their ML shots, that guy probably will too. Maybe not with the Astros but with someone. Gustave also benefitted from being in a weaker system where the motto was lets throw some stuff against a wall and see what sticks. I don't think there was any reasonable expectation that he'd be a starter long term.
Yep. He's ahead of James Hoyt, who didn't play for an affiliated team till age 26 (starting in A+ ball).
Unless they've changed the CBA, he's eligible for the postseason. Just something to think/talk about.
Ronel Blanco allowed 4 hits and struck out 10 over 6.2 shutout innings, while Chuckie Robinson went 4-5 with a 2-run homer, 3 RBI, and 4 runs scored.
Dinelson Lamet from the Padres is a day older than me... he didn't sign until he was 21 and he flew through their system. I am totally going out on a limb here, but I'm thinking that the international team thinks that Blanco (or Yohan Ramirez, who signed at 21) could have a similar career path to Lamet's.
I just wonder how these guys get to 21 without getting signed (or giving up on baseball). Most sign at 17 or 18.
My guess is that MLB is getting better at catching guys that are trying to fake their age, and as a result, guys that were going to try to pass themselves of as 17/18 are now signing as ~21-year olds because their attempt at deception failed.
They have, especially in the DR where it was so common. Fausto Carmona/Roberto Hernandez was really 20 closing in on 21 Miguel Tejada was 19 Wandy Rodriguez was a week shy of 20 Bartolo Colon was 20 Rafael Furcal was 19 There are plenty other lesser known examples, but there can definitely be value found in guys that are a little older.
Yourdan Alvarez is giving Kyle Tucker a run for his money as the top offensive player in the Astros system. Not a knock on Tucker, more like wow like impressed with Alvarez play this season.
