I do have a job, but not for the Chronicle's sports section. The second part is a combination of me doing this as an escape from how bad the Astros have been, and me being a bored college kid.
I really don't mind your linking to any material in my blog, but cutting and pasting entire articles isn't really kosher and I'd appreciate it if you only used select quotes. Thanks in advance for your cooperation.
7/22 Recap Sunday Stories OKC.... ugh. Is is safe to say that Jose Cisnero is having a breakout season? The newest Jethawk comes through in the clutch. Mike Kvasnicka doing everything he can to salvage his prospect status. Blake Ford is mortal after all. Tanner Bushue next to go??? Recap OKC... it just wasn't their night to say the least. They've dropped the first 3 in their series with Memphis in rather embarrassing fashion, and in this game, they were absolutely raped, 24-7. The Redhawks have been outscored 38-10 in this series. Travis Buck (1) and Brad Snyder (14) had solo homers. Brandon Barnes and Jimmy Paredes each had 2 hits and an RBI single. Fernando Martinez had an RBI single himself, and Jordan Kreke went 3-4 with an RBI triple. Kreke even pitched a scoreless 8th inning, walking 1 and striking out 1. The rest of the pitching.... I will not discuss. Jose Cisnero went out and fired his 2nd complete game of the season for Corpus in their 3-1 victory over Frisco. He allowed a run on 5 hits (1 double) and struck out 7. Yes, he did not walk anyone. It took him 104 pitches (74 strikes) to go the distance once more, and he induced 9 groundball outs and 4 flyouts. Kody Hinze had an RBI double, while Adam Bailey and Jose Martinez added sac flies. Jake Goebbert went 2-4. Man, there really isn't too much to talk about here, so here's Greg Rajan's write-up on the game. Bolded part = BIG PROGRESS. Italics and bold = Pipe bomb! The new acquisition, Carlos Perez, came through in the clutch, delivering a 2-run single with the bases loaded in the 6th to put Lancaster up 4-3 on Rancho Cucamonga, and they would win by that same score. Telvin Nash and Jonathan Meyer each contributed RBI singles. With Mark Heidenreich and Asher Wojciechowski making themselves comfortable in Corpus, the window might have closed for a return trip for Bobby Doran. No matter, he's still had a very solid season for the Jethawks. In 7 innings, he allowed 3 runs (2 earned) on 3 hits, walked 2, and struck out 6. Andrew Robinson struck out 1 in a 1-2-3 8th, and Carlos Quevedo escaped a 2nd-and-3rd with 1 out situation to get the save, his 3rd with Lancaster and 7th of the season, and in the process, he has run his current scoreless streak to 18 1/3 innings between both A stops. Lexington got a show of power as they topped Greenville 13-7. This had the makings of a laugher, with the Legends jumping out to a 6-0 lead after 2 innings. The Drive then mounted a furious rally to make it an 8-7 game, but Mike Kvasnicka squashed any notions of the Drive finishing off that comeback. A huge day for him, as he went 3-4 with 2 homers and 7 RBI. The first was a 3-run shot in the 1st, and he provided the cherry with a grand slam in the 8th. He now has 14 home runs on the season, and is definitely saving his prospect status. Ruben Sosa had an RBI triple, a sac fly, and an RBI groundout. Ryan McCurdy had an RBI double, and Justin Gominsky had an RBI single. Zach Johnson, Brandon Meredith, and Jose Fernandez each had 2 hits. Delino DeShields went 3-5 with 2 steals (71) and scored twice. His triple slash line is now as follows: .301/.405/.437. Luis Cruz was roughed up in his 4 1/3 innings, as he allowed 7 runs (6 earned) on 7 hits (3-run homer), walked 3, and struck out 3. The wheels fell off for him in the 4th and 5th innings. Euris Quezada got the victory in relief, as he allowed 2 hits, a walk, and fanned 4 in 2 2/3 scoreless. In a non-save situation, Dayan Diaz finished it with 2 scoreless, walking 3 and striking out 6. Yes, all 6 of his outs were strikeouts. And they were all swinging. I wonder how Diaz will respond to a promotion. Tri-City couldn't quite finish the sweep of Vermont, as Blake Ford blew it for the first time this season in a 4-2 loss. The ValleyCats only had 3 hits in the game, with Joe Sclafani's 2-run double in the 4th being the only scoring. Lance Day had a nice start, as he allowed a run on 6 hits, walked 1, and struck out 3 in 5 innings. Travis Ballew (who now sports an ERA of 0.44), Brad Propst, and Kenny Long did their jobs. Ford got the last out of the 8th, but couldn't seal the deal in the 9th, as he allowed 3 runs (the first 3 he's allowed in a Tri-City uniform) to blow his first save of the season. None of the 4 hits he allowed in the inning went for extra bases. Greeneville dropped their series opener to Bubba Starling and Burlington 9-3. Starling went 0-5 with a hat trick, but St. Thomas product Patrick Leonard, the Royals' top of the order tandem in Terrance Gore and Humberto Arteaga, and #9 hitter Mark Threlkeld caused problems all day for the Appy Astros. The Appy Royals broke out with a 7-0 lead after the 2nd and never looked back. Tanner Bushue has looked even more lost in Greeneville, as he only lasted 1 2/3. He allowed 7 runs (6 earned) on 5 hits (2-run homer to Leonard), walked 4, and struck out 1. It's time to pull the plug on him this season. This isn't me advocating for a release (which is still a very realistic possibility), but he has not looked right at all. Zach Dando pitched 4 1/3 in relief, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 4 hits, walking 1 and striking out 5. Mike Dimock allowed 3 hits and struck out 4 in 2 scoreless. Ernesto Genoves and Ariel Ovando hit back-to-back RBI doubles in the 4th. Jimmy Howick scored the other run on an error in the 5th. *Sidenote: Leonard has now hit 9 home runs this season. However, he's hitting .206, and those 9 homers account for all of his extra-base hits. Game Scores Paul Clemens: 15 Jose Cisnero: 80 Bobby Doran: 65 Luis Cruz: 23 Lance Day: 53 Tanner Bushue: Pass Three Stars 3. Delino DeShields, 2B, Lexington 3-5, BB, 2 R, 2 SB (71) What a breakout. Everything is clicking for him now. 15/100 is still a very realistic outcome to the season for DeShields. 2. Jose Cisnero, P, Corpus Christi W, CG, 5 H, ER, 7 K, 80 GS It's safe to say that Cisnero has broken out. Or, he's glad that he isn't in Lancaster anymore. He now improves to 9-6 with a 3.40 ERA. In his last 10 starts, he is 7-1 with a 2.16 ERA. His 116 strikeouts lead not only the Texas League, but the entire AA level. What has impressed me is how his command has done a complete 180. Did not walk anyone last night. 104-pitch complete game suggests that his night wasn't too rough. 1. Mike Kvasnicka, C/RF, Lexington 3-4, 2 HR (14), 7 RBI I believe this is what was expected of him when he was overdrafted in 2010. He doesn't have a great eye at the plate, but surely he can do much better than a .267 OBP. If it was in the .305-.310 range, he'd be having a pretty respectable season. He's finally hitting for power. Huge day for him, and Lexington needed all of his production. Honorable Mentions Bobby Doran, P, Lancaster: He might not see Corpus again this year, but he'll definitely be there to start next season. Doran hasn't really been bothered by the Lancaster Effect, as he as a 4.02 ERA at home. He now ties Mike Foltynewicz for the organization lead in wins. Jordan Kreke, SS, Oklahoma City: A nice night at the plate, and the only bright spot on the mound in a catastrophically bad game for the rest of his team. Ruben Sosa, UTIL, Lexington: Has made the most of his opportunities in Lexington so far. Travis Ballew, P, Tri-City: Yeah, he walked 3, but 0.44 ERA? What if he moved up to Lexington? Dayan Diaz, P, Lexington: It's time to see what he can do at a higher level. Ariel Ovando, RF, Greeneville: Has blown his debut season out of the water. At this very moment, would you consider him a top-10 guy, or just on the outside looking in? Carlos Quevedo, P, Lancaster: His excellent command will allow him to survive Lancaster. A great showing to end the season there could put him in consideration to start in Corpus next year. Goat Yeah, that's just embarrassing. Dishonorable mention goes out to Tanner Bushue for continuing to be completely out of it, and I like what Blake Ford's done so far, but he couldn't close the deal. Looking Ahead OKC will try to salvage 1 game against Memphis at 7:05. Brian Bass will go up against John Gast. Corpus is looking to sweep Frisco at 7:05. Ross Seaton will start for the Hooks, and he will be opposed by Jake Brigham. Lancaster will be spending today on the road. Tomorrow, they will start the 2nd leg of their roadtrip with a 3-game series in Lake Elsinore, where they are 0-11 (or something like that) this season. Lexington begins a 4-game series with Augusta starting tonight at 7:05 Eastern. The pitching matchup is TBA. Tri-City has a quick 2-game set with Connecticut starting tonight at 7 Eastern. Joe Bircher will match up against Edgar De La Rosa. Greeneville and Burlington will be playing the middle game of their series at 7 Eastern, with Francis Ramirez getting the start. It'll be interesting to see what he does coming off an 11-strikeout performance his last time out. The Royals will send out Colin Rodgers. GCLstros postponed. Academy in progress against the Mariners.
I for one am pumped for DDJ... Cosart is a little bothersome because he has all the tools just needs to put it together in time to face the tougher AL East.
Monday Stories OKC's comeback attempt went for naught. Corpus with a miserable failure. Mike Kvasnicka is a man possessed! Forgettable night for the short-season clubs. Recap OKC was swept out of Memphis as they walked off with a 9-8 loss. The Redhawks clawed back to tie it at 8, but Juan Abreu failed miserably. Jimmy Paredes and Mike Hessman both went 2-4 with RBI doubles. Brad Snyder had an RBI single, and Matt Dominguez went 2-4 with a 2-run double. Fernando Martinez came off the bench to tie the game at 8 in the 8th with a 2-run homer, his 12th. Brian Bass allowed 7 runs on 8 hits (solo and grand slam) in his 5 innings. He walked 2 and struck out 4. Mark Hamburger, in his OKC debut, allowed a run on 1 hit (not a homer), walked 2, and fanned 1 in 1 1/3 innings. Mickey Storey retired all 5 men he faced, striking out 1. Abreu only got 1 out in the 9th and walked off a loser. Corpus could not get the sweep as they fell flat on their faces in Frisco, losing 11-3. The Hooks were never a factor in the proceedings. Jonathan Singleton had a triple and an RBI forceout. Drew Locke went 2-3 with an RBI single, and Adam Bailey chipped in with an RBI single of his own. Ross Seaton was shelled in his 5 1/3 innings, allowing 6 runs on 6 hits (2 homers), walking 2 and striking out 6. Arcenio Leon was tagged for 2 more, and the ugly went to Josh Zeid, who uncorked 4 wild pitches. In their series opener with Augusta, Lexington came out on top 6-2. Mike Kvasnicka has just been on a tear. He went 2-4 with a 2-run homer (15) and added an RBI double. Justin Gominsky had an RBI single, Nolan Fontana an RBI double, and Luis Alvarez went deep for his 2nd homer of the season. Matt Duffy went 2-4 with a double and scored twice. Delino DeShields added a triple, and is now hitting .302/.406/.442. Luis Ordosgoitti went 7 innings and allowed 2 runs (both on a 2-run homer) on 10 hits and struck out 7. He escaped a bases-loaded situation with no outs in the 1st by getting 2 strikeouts and a groundout. One of his fastballs went for 93, so I think he was working in the low-to-mid-90s tonight with his heat. Murilo Gouvea got a 2-inning save, allowing 1 hit and striking out 4. Subber10 of TCB tweeted that Gouvea was at 96 with the fastball. Tri-City attempted to mount a comeback against Connecticut, but they fell short 6-4. Andrew Aplin hit his 3rd homer of the season, a solo shot in the 3rd. Tyler Heineman, Dan Gulbransen, and Joe Sclafani (who went 2-4) each had an RBI. Joe Bircher was roughed up in his 5+ innings as he allowed 6 runs on 9 hits (3-run homer), walked 1, and struck out 2. John Neely threw 3 scoreless and Jamaine Cotton pitched a scoreless 9th. Greeneville was blanked 5-0 by Burlington, as an Ariel Ovando single was the lone hit. Marc Wik had a brutal evening with a golden sombrero. Francis Ramirez went 5 innings and allowed 5 runs (4 earned) on 7 hits (2-run homer), walked 2, and struck out 6. Jordan Jankowski threw 2 2/3 scoreless, allowing 3 hits, walking 4, and striking out 5. Scott Zuloaga struck out the only man he faced.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>OKC's Jimmy Paredes named PCL Player of the Week for July 16-22. Hit .500 w/ 3 HR, 9 RBI. Now hitting .332 on the season for 1st place OKC</p>— Houston Astros (@astros) <a href="https://twitter.com/astros/status/227507704153899010" data-datetime="2012-07-23T20:57:18+00:00">July 23, 2012</a></blockquote> <script src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
