<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Astros&src=hash">#Astros</a> Organizational Win% by year: 2008: .399 2009: .426 2010: .435 2011: .408 2012: .527 2013: .568</p>— Astros County (@AstrosCounty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstrosCounty/statuses/370571461854908416">August 22, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Wednesday Stories The playoff races are in full swing as we wind down the Minor League season. Another 5-game series starts off on the right foot for OKC. Luis Cruz made a strong first impression in his first start for Corpus. Recap Oklahoma City 4, Round Rock 2 The Redhawks used a 3-run 2nd and a shutdown performance from the bullpen to take the opener of their 2nd straight 5-game series. Rene Garcia went 3-4 with an RBI single to open the scoring for OKC. On the throw, he was able to advance to 2nd and Marc Krauss took 3rd. One batter later, Che-Hsuan Lin brought them both home with a single. Jimmy Paredes hit a solo homer (8) in the 6th. Ross Seaton, making his first appearance for the Redhawks since June 14, threw 5 2/3 innings and allowed 2 runs on 7 hits (solo homer), walked 2, and struck out 4. Science Guy allowed a hit and fanned 3 over 1 2/3 scoreless frames. Jose Cisnero pitched 2/3 of an inning (the final 2 outs of the 8th) and allowed a hit and walked 1 while striking out both batters he faced. Jorge De Leon closed it out with a 1-2-3 9th. Game 2 of this 5-game tilt has Paul Clemens facing Scott Richmond. First pitch is at 7:05. Corpus Christi 3, Midland 1 Well, excuse me for attempting to be funny. The Hooks have taken the first 2 in this series with the Rockhounds thanks to some fine performances on the mound. Well, it was Luis Cruz's turn to shine. He threw a 1-2-3 inning to mark his Hooks debut, but he was magnificent in his first start with the club. He went 6 innings and allowed a run on 2 hits, walked 1, and struck out 5. Andrew Robinson allowed a hit and struck out 3 over 2 scoreless, and although Jonas Dufek was in a really tight spot in the 9th with runners on 2nd and 3rd, he induced a popout in foul territory to end the game. He struck out 1 in the 9th. Erik Castro opened the scoring with an RBI double in the 1st. One night after hitting this home run in the 7th that tied the game at 2 (Corpus won 3-2 in 10): <iframe src='http://www.milb.com/shared/video/embed/embed.html?content_id=29902185&width=400&height=224&property=milb' width='400' height='224' frameborder='0'>Your browser does not support iframes.</iframe> Drew Muren followed that up with an RBI triple in the 2nd and an RBI double in the 4th. He, Preston Tucker, and Raoul Torrez all went 2-3. The Hooks will look for the series win as David Rollins takes the mound. He will be opposed by Sean Murphy at 7:05. Lake Elsinore 4, Lancaster 3 The Jethawks walked off with a loss as a flub in the field by Dan Gulbransen brought the winning run home for the Storm in the bottom of the 9th. Jason Schwartz also lamented the missed opportunities for the Jethawks to take control of this one. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23JetHawks&src=hash">#JetHawks</a>, who have squandered opportunity after opportunity tonight, head to bottom of ninth in LE tied 3-3.</p>— Jason Schwartz (@jasondschwartz) <a href="https://twitter.com/jasondschwartz/statuses/370388156433956864">August 22, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> They had the bases loaded in the 4th with no outs and ended the inning with 3 straight outs. Chris Epps doubled to lead off the 7th but ended up getting erased when Nolan Fontana popped up a bunt attempt. Brandon Meredith hit an RBI single in the 2nd to put Lancaster on the board first. Tyler Heineman scored on a Dan Gulbransen GIDP one batter later. Heineman finished 2-4. M.P. Cokinos was 3-4 with an RBI single in the 5th. Aaron West went 5 innings and allowed 3 runs on 8 singles and struck out 5. Kenny Long pitched 1 2/3 scoreless, allowing 2 hits. Gerardo Sanchez allowed a hit and struck out 1 over 1 2/3 scoreless. Blair Walters did not record an out in the 9th; he allowed 2 hits, and the winning run was unearned. The Jethawks will look to avoid the sweep; Mike Hauschild will get the start. He'll take on Justin Hancock at 7:05 Pacific. Cedar Rapids 6, Quad Cities 1 The River Bandits were swamped in the middle innings, and with a dozen games left, they have a 2.5 game lead on Clinton for 2nd place in the division. Jordan Scott scored on a passed ball in the 5th for QC's only run of the evening. Rio Ruiz was 2-4 with a double, and Jobduan Morales went 2-2. Dan Minor went 3 2/3 innings and allowed 3 runs on 5 hits (2-run homer), walked 3, and struck out 2. Juan Minaya allowed 3 runs on 4 hits, walked 2, and struck out 1 in 2 1/3. Richard Rodriguez threw 3 scoreless, allowing a hit, walking 1, and striking out 5. In the middle game of this series, Chris Devenski will take on Jose Berrios. First pitch is at 7:00. Tri-City 3, Vermont 2 in 14 innings A Ronnie Mitchell RBI double in the 14th proved to be the difference. With Lowell losing 5-4 in 10 innings to Connecticut, the ValleyCats now hold a 1.5 game lead over Lowell in the Stedler Division. James Ramsay opened the scoring with an RBI single in the 2nd. Tyler White broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th with a solo homer (2, 5 season). Michael Feliz went 6 innings and allowed a run on 2 hits, walked 1, and struck out 3. J.D. Osborned allowed a run on 2 hits and fanned 2 in the 7th. Tyler Brunnemann threw 2 perfect frames and struck out 2. Krishawn Holley, in his Tri-City debut, allowed a hit and struck out 2 in 2 scoreless. Zach Dando allowed a hit and walked 2 in 2 scoreless, and Gonzalo Sanudo allowed a hit and struck out 2 in the 14th. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Tri-City's Gonzalo Sanudo up to 39K:3BB in 31IP this season. Hasn't walked a batter since June 23 - 37K:0BB in 24.2IP <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ManCrush&src=hash">#ManCrush</a></p>— Astros County (@AstrosCounty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstrosCounty/statuses/370537075348488193">August 22, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> The ValleyCats will look to take 3 of 4 from this home-and-away with the Lake Monsters, as they send out Troy Scribner. He'll take on Lou Trivino at 7:05 Eastern. Greeneville was off The Appy Astros will wrap up their roadtrip with 3 games in Danville beginning at 7:00 Eastern. Enderson Franco will face Matt Marksberry. GCL Yankees1 7, GCL Astros 6 The Kissimmee Stros walked off with a loss, and with one more loss, they'll be the only domestic minor league affiliate that will not have a winning season. Jose Fernandez put the GCLstros on the board with a 2-run homer (1) in the 5th. In the 6th, Yonathan Mejia hit an RBI single. Pedro Coa had an RBI single of his own in the 8th, and Mesac Laguna broke a 4-4 tie with a 2-run homer (1) in the top of the 9th. Reymin Guduan went 3 2/3 innings and allowed 3 runs on 3 hits (solo homer), walked 1, and struck out 5. Juan Carlos Santos allowed a run on 3 hits, walked 1, and fanned 3. Erick Gonzalez failed. These same two teams will be at it in Kissimmee momentarily. DSL Astros 4, DSL Athletics 2 The Academy went ahead with 2 in the top of the 9th. They opened the scoring in the 2nd with an RBI single from Jean Carlos Cortorreal and a sac fly from Luis Payano. In the 9th, Payano struck out but was able to reach safely. He then scored the go-ahead run on a double from Arturo Michelena. Randy Cesar brought Michelena home with a single. He finished 3-4. Michelena and Brauly Mejia had 2 hits apiece. Starlyng Sanchez went 5 innings and allowed a run on 3 hits, walked 1, and struck out 3. Yonquelys Martinez walked 1 and struck out 2 in the 6th. Victor Mesa allowed a run on 2 hits and walked 1 in the 7th. Junior Garcia allowed a hit as he got 2 outs in the 8th, and Angel Heredia got the 4-out save, walking 1 and fanning 1.
HOUSTON—Little has gone right for the Astros at the major league level in 2013. Jarred Cosart is one of the few exceptions. A 23-year-old rookie righthander initially pegged for a September callup from Triple-A Oklahoma City was the Astros’ best starting pitcher during his initial five major league outings. Cosart led national sports television news with a two-hit, no-run debut July 12 at Tampa Bay, dueling with Rays ace David Price for eight-plus innings and eventually earning his first career victory. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Cosart was 1-0, 1.36 through five starts with the Astros, with 14 strikeouts and 17 walks in 33 innings. Before allowing two earned runs to the Red Sox on Aug. 7, Cosart had yielded one run or fewer in each of his first four starts, becoming the second pitcher since earned runs became official (1913 in the American League, 1912 in the National League) to throw at least six innings in their initial four starts and allow one earned run or fewer in each. “You have to have confidence, and they preached that every game I pitched in Triple-A,” Cosart said. “When I came up here, (they said) not to put too much thought into it—pitch like I was pitching in Triple-A. It should be harder said than done and I’ve worked everyday . . . and (I’ve) got to pretend it’s bases loaded every time I’m out there.” The Astros’ inconsistent offense rarely backed Cosart, limiting him to one victory during his initial five starts. But even after walking five for the second time this season and allowing seven hits on 100 pitches (52 strikes) to Boston, Cosart, once known for inconsistent command and control in the minors, continued to show promising signs he had the mental strength to adjust in the majors. “Walks are going to happen, but (I’ve issued) just too many walks here and there,” said Cosart, who intentionally threw more curves than normal in an effort to offset the fastball-heavy Red Sox hitters. “You’ve got to make your biggest pitches out of the stretch, and it’s kind of been a recurring theme.” When the 2013 season started, Cosart was expected to receive a month to prove his future worth to the Astros. Through his initial five starts, he looked like a fixture for a rebuilding club’s 2014 starting rotation. Space Shots • The Astros bullpen began to look like Oklahoma City’s former relief corps by early August. Promoted rookies Chia-Jen Lo, Kevin Chapman, Jorge De Leon and Josh Zeid held roles, while ex-RedHawks such as Brett Oberholtzer and Brad Peacock were in the rotation. • First baseman Jonathan Singleton began to show improvement at Oklahoma City but was still struggling in early August, hitting just .221/.328/.355 with five home runs and 18 RBIs while striking out 65 times in 172 at-bats.
Carlos Correa just ripped a 2-run double as part of a 4-run 4th inning for Quad Cities. They lead Cedar Rapids 5-1 in the 6th.
They found Kyle Weiland. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Hey everyone, look who's in OKC's dugout tonight. cc <a href="https://twitter.com/GlowofGrace">@GlowofGrace</a> <a href="http://t.co/GPGy9MBDh4">pic.twitter.com/GPGy9MBDh4</a></p>— Steve E. (@KevinBassStache) <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinBassStache/statuses/370754334012616705">August 23, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Like Waldo, but harder. Best of luck to him, a cousin of mine just about lost his leg to a bacterial infection, crazy scary.
An Astros Prospect made this week's Hot Sheet, just on the wrong side of it: http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/prospect-hot-sheet-aug-23-tyler-glasnow-is-nearly-unhittable/
Hat tip to The Machine himself. Originally posted in the player movement thread. Cody Clark has toiled for a decade in the Minors, and now his dream of being a Major League baseball player has been realized. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Astros place catcher Max Stassi on 7-day concussion disabled list. Call up catcher Cody Clark from Corpus.</p>— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkBermanFox26/statuses/370982314295037952">August 23, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
#UnleashPerez #JimCraneIsCheap Am I doing it right? I am kind of curious why neither Perez or Garcia are getting a chance. Seems like OKC could get by with just one of them.
I'm not too sure about that either. The catching situation could really get thrown for a loop if one of them got the call. So, maybe the organization is enjoying the continuity? Plus with a week left in the minor league season, it probably wouldn't be prudent to move guys up.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Last day in Corpus. Icing on the cake will be the Astros system debut of Mexican League star Leo Heras. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23excited&src=hash">#excited</a></p>— Kevin Goldstein (@Kevin_Goldstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/Kevin_Goldstein/statuses/370992241495396352">August 23, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Astros probably haven't decided which (if either) catcher they will protect between Garcia and Perez. If they added one to the 40 man and later decided they would prefer to protect another player, then a team would only need to use a 40 man spot to claim them as opposed to a 25 man spot through the rule 5 draft.
It would seem that catcher is a really hard position to draft in the Rule 5 draft. It's easy to hide a pitcher or other position player. Catchers need to be expected to step in and play.
Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart): The Astros promoted C Luis Alvarez to Corpus Christi today. Alvarez began the season in extended spring training and has played at both A stops this year.
