Talent is top 10; health is not. Arizona after his physical would not waste millions on signing Loux. The question is not if but when his elbow or his shoulder would become a problem.
We'll see about that. Arizona had the luxury of knowing they were going to get the #7 pick in an extremely deep draft if they didn't sign Loux. I'm on the side of it was a gamble worth taking.
you definitely do NOT have to acknowledge and accept that at the minor league level. that's like saying that every .300+ hitter for 2 years in a row across minor leagues are going to be good major league players. bautista is showing it at the major league level. that's all that matters, and potential mlb performance is all that the critics' analysis of minor leaguers pertains to.
I agree with you. I was just referring to those in the baseball community that still greet Altuve's stats with disbelief.
Triple-A All-Star break. David Carpenter was named for OKC, but considering that he's not there anymore..... J.B. Shuck was named as his replacement. He's the lone Redhawk on the team. Jonathan Villar and Jimmy Paredes had solo homers. Jose Altuve left early, but according to Greg Rajan... As for the game, Corpus defeated NW Arkansas 5-2. Paredes added an RBI single for the Hooks' final run. Kody Hinze added an RBI on an out. Jonnathan Aristil got the win, allowing 2 runs on 8 hits in 5, walking 2 and striking out 6. Arcenio Leon got his 2nd save, allowing 1 hit and striking out 2 in 3 innings. Lancaster, Lexington, and Greeneville had the night off. Lancaster will begin a series with High Desert starting at 7:05 Pacific. Robby Donovan will take the mound for the Jethawks. Lexington will return home to begin a series with Savannah at 7:05 Eastern. Greeneville will travel to Johnson City, and Game 1 begins at 7 Eastern. Tyson Perez takes the hill. Tri-City looked to rally from a 7-2 deficit against Aberdeen, but they fell just short, losing 7-6. Drew Muren and Bubby Williams had solo homers. Euris Quezada went 3 1/3, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits, walking 3 and striking out 2. The Gulf Coasters jumped out to a 7-1 lead after 2, but they blew that lead in the 9th, allowing 3, resulting in an 8-7 loss to the Cardinals. Justin Shults drove in 2, and 5 others drove in 1 each. Freddy Tiburcio allowed 4 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits, walking 3 and fanning 5. Zach Hardoin got 2 outs, but scattered in 3 runs (2 earned), 2 hits, a walk, and a strikeout. The Academy got blanked 2-0 by the Dodgers. Mario Gonzalez had 2 of the hits. Ambiorix De Leon allowed 2 unearned runs on 5 hits in 7 2/3, fanning 4. Unfortunately for him, he had to take the loss.
A Gulf Coast pitcher not named Adrian Houser has come out strong in the early going. This is Evan Grills, a 10th rounder from last year's draft. The 19-year-old Canadian has vastly improved from his first go-round. Pitching exclusively out of the bullpen after making 4 starts in 6 appearances last year, he's got an 0.96 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP (8 hits and a walk), and has struck out 13 in 9 1/3 innings (6 appearances). Also, I'd love to see the scouting report on Luis Ordosgoitti. He's just been electric for Greeneville so far.
Yeah, so, Ariel Ovando left the game against Johnson City in the 1st. No word yet on whether it's an injury, him not hustling, or even an impending promotion.
Ross Seaton dueled NW Arkansas' Jake Odorizzi to a draw. He went 6 innings, allowing 3 hits, 1 run on a solo homer, and struck out 5. Unfortunately, he had to settle for a no decision, as Blake King and Henry Villar failed. Villar would end up stealing the win. Chris Wallace, called in as a pinch-hitter, blasted a grand slam in the bottom of the 8th to break a 3-3 tie. Jonathan Villar had his 2nd straight game with a homer, a solo shot in the 1st. Jimmy Paredes and Jacob Goebbert also drove 1 apiece. Brandon Wikoff, at 2nd in place of Jose Altuve, went 2-3 and scored twice. Lexington's game with Savannah was postponed. They'll play a doubleheader tomorrow. Tri-City had the night off. They'll travel to Batavia tomorrow to play the Muckdogs. Kyle Hallock will start. As I reported earlier, Ariel Ovando fouled a ball off his leg and was taken out for precautionary measures. Anyway, Greeneville lost 9-4 in their opener with Johnson City. Chase Davidson went 3-4 with a solo homer and an RBI single, scoring twice. Darwin Rivera had an RBI double. Tyson Perez allowed 4 runs on 3 hits (1 homer) in 3 1/3, walking 1 and fanning 2. The Gulf Coasters took 2 from the Mets today. In the first game, which was a continuation of a delayed game, the Astros won 4-3 on a Yonathan Mejia single in the 8th. Krishawn Holley got the victory in relief, allowing 1 hit in 2 scoreless innings, walking 2 and fanning 1. In game 2, they scored 10 in the first on their way to winning 17-11. Chris Epps and Jean Carlos Batista look to be the top two hitters on the Gulf Coast squad, as Epps hit a 2-run homer and drove in 4. Batista went 3-5 with 5 RBI. Javaris Reynolds went 2-5 with 2 RBI and scored twice. Kenny Diaz also added a solo homer, in addition to driving two more. Jason Bourgeois is on a rehab assignment with the team right now. He was the DH and batted 2nd in the 2nd game, and went 1-3 with 2 RBI. Enderson Franco lasted 4 1/3, allowing 11 hits, 7 runs (6 earned), 3 walks, and struck out 1. Pedro Gomez got the win, allowing 1 hit, walking 1, and fanning 2 in 1 2/3 innings of relief.
In the late game, Lancaster lost 5-4 to High Desert. Jose Thompson hit his 9th homer of the year, a 2-run shot in the 4th. Jio Mier and Andrew Simunic drove in the other runs. Robby Donovan allowed 4 runs on 8 hits (1 homer) in 4 1/3. He walked 2 and fanned 1. Wander Alvino got the loss in relief, allowing the Mavericks to score the go-ahead run in the 7th. In 2 1/3, he allowed 1 run on 2 hits, walking 1 and striking out 4.
The Astros have signed righthander Harold Arauz of Panama for $300,000. Arauz, 16, has a projectable 6-foot-4 frame and was the MVP of the Dominican Prospect League all-star game in May, when he struck out five of the six hitters he faced. Badler notes that the 6-foot-4 righty sits in the high-80's with his fastball. He's said to have "a clean delivery and throws strikes with some feel for his secondary stuff." The Astros had previously signed Dominican shortstop Luis Reynoso for $700K.
I'm baseball profiling a little bit here, but you have to think at 6-foot-4, his velocity will only go up from here.
Scott Elarton disagrees. It always amazed me how little velocity he had in relation to his size. I can't believe he got as far as he did short-arming his pitches like that.
When Scott first came up, his velocity was solid. Low to mid 90's with regularity. Problem is, Larry Dierker literally turned him into an everyday player by bringing him out of the bullpen as often as possible. Eventually, his arm gave out. The Astros have handled potential starting pitchers much differently since then. Elarton (who was "untouchable" for Roger Clemens from the Blue Jays) could have been great... but his overuse was his undoing.
Jason Hirsh was another one that was super tall with not much velocity. 6'8" I believe. Arauz's height isn't what makes me think he will throw harder, it's his age. To be throwing with that much velocity at 1, how can you not expect 3-4 mph improvement by the time he is 21? Barring injury of course. Has the pitcher from Mexico that already throws 95 as a 16 year old been signed yet? Osuna I believe is his name.
If Elarton's arm gave out because of 15 starts, 27 relief appearances and 124 innings in 1999, then it was going to give out regardless. Oswalt threw 141 innings in less than a full season his first year (20 starts, 8 relief appearances) and 233 innings his second year and he seemed to hold up pretty well.
Its not just the absolute number of starts/releif appearances. Its how many times you're having them get up in the bullpen to warm up (only to sit down, and perhaps not be used). Its also the lack of rest/recovery in between appearances that puts more strain on the arm and makes one more prone to injury. Elarton had 42 appearances in 1999 (combined starting/releif), with no set schedule what-so-ever. No set periods of arm rest. Countless games where he was warming up/available. Sure, his arm may have given out anyways... but you have to admit there was over-use of him. And back to the original point, his velocity was much better when he first came up.
