We got 2 really talented bullpen arms under control for next season and didn't give up a top 10 prospect, maybe not even top 15 depending on your personal assessment. The possible issues with Osuna are discussed at length in the other thread, but in terms of firepower we made out pretty well I would say.
Pressly and Osuna set the bullpen up to be fantastic next year. Shouldn’t be much of a shopping list this offseason: a starting pitcher (bring back Morton), a bat (plenty will be available, could even bring back Gattis), a catcher (that will be the interesting one, easy answer would be to bring back McCann if he comes back strong in September).
Luis Encarnacion (6, solo) and Alex McKenna (4, 2-run) have homered for Tri-City today. McKenna has homered for the second straight game.
Jayson Schroeder allowed two hits, walked two, and struck out one over three scoreless innings in the GCL.
Talent wise the Astros got better in the bullpen and with catching depth/defense. They gave up guys with talent, but the Astros need to strike while the iron is hot, as they can’t nurture rookies in the ML if they aren’t in the phenom mold. Not when you are a contender. Prospect wise, they lost some guys but it’s natural as there isn’t enough roster spots for all the prospect guys. Trades are going to happen and it’s a good thing teams that are up and coming can guide young talent along, together with growing pains. Hopefully the trade works for all parties involved.
So Houston traded away 5 prospects plus Ken Giles this deadline. I hated to see Celestino and Sandoval go, as I think both of those players have pretty high upside, but I don’t think either will come back and bite Houston the way I thought trading away Hader and Nottingham would. I think Alcala, H Perez, and Paulino also have high upside but they probably project as relievers, and Houston has tons of those types of arms in their system.
He went 0-4 yesterday but had a two-run homer on Sunday. He's got 6 on the year and is slashing .290/.368/.459 entering tonight. I think he can be a player but he can't seem to stay healthy.
In his Carolina League debut, Peter Solomon has allowed four hits, walked one, and struck out five over four scoreless innings. Buies Creek leads Wilmington 2-0 in the bottom of the 4th; this game just entered a rain delay.
Through the first 25 games of Alex McKenna's career, he's slashing .297/.398/.495 with 4 homers and 16 RBI. My extremely lazy-ass comp for him is Mitch Haniger.
The pitching in that 2017 draft class has been money so far. Bukauskas, Martin, Ivey, Solomon, and Bielak are all on track to potentially start next season in the AA rotation. Only Mushinski and Serrano have been disappointments so far and there’s still hope for both of them.
Mushinski's walked 5 per 9, but other than that, it's not a terrible line for the season. He's bounced back well from a pretty rough June.
Corbin Martin perfecto through 5. He seems like he's probably gonna be a stud. Update: through 6 Update #2: 7IP 1H 0R 0BB 8K sitting 96 in the 7th
J.J. Matijevic went 2-3 with a solo homer in Buies Creek's 7-2 win. He now has 11 homers in the Carolina League and 14 on the season.
