It's nice to see there are guys in the system doing well. I'm surprised Bailey and Wallace haven't been promoted yet. They're both old (23) for the level and certainly look like they've mastered it. There's no one at Lancaster blocking Bailey. Ben Heath is blocking Wallace at Lancaster but given Wallace's age it wouldn't be unreasonable to leapfrog him to AA. Jason Castro and Chris Wallace will make a nice platoon in 2 years.
The ValleyCats will open their season at home on June 17 against the Vermont Lake Monsters, while the G-Stros open on the road June 21 against the Bristol White Sox.
OKC dropped another game to Memphis tonight, 2-1 in 12. The game was tied at 1 until the top of the 12th, when Aaron Luna, a Rice product, took Dan Meszaros for a ride. That was Luna's 4th of the year, and that homer proved to be the difference. Anderson Hernandez scored the only run for OKC. The Hairless One allowed 1 run in 6, but he obviously didn't factor in the decision; the loser was Meszaros for obvious reasons. Corpus Christi had the night off; they'll begin a series in Midland tomorrow night. Taking the hill tomorrow night will be Wandy Rodriguez, who is beginning a rehab assignment. And Lancaster... well, let's just say they allowed Lake Elsinore to get a harrier and an AC-130 on them early. Kind of like how I used to do it in MW2, only I use a chopper gunner. Anyway, the Jethawks were destroyed 24-4. Hidden behind the garden variety Cali League game was an incredibly sloppy one, as both teams combined for 7 errors. Grant Hogue drove in 3, but his production didn't put much of a dent into the proceedings. Jake Buchanan got rocked, and well, he couldn't elude the Cali League effect forever. He got tagged for 6 runs in 1 2/3, and Michael Ness, the first reliever for Lancaster, served up 3 homers in his 1 2/3 innings. He gave up 8, however, he was only charged for 2 earned runs. Lake Elsinore put up some real crooked numbers, scoring from the 2nd to the 7th, and their tallies are as follows: 6, 2, 6, 3, 2, 5. Sigh... Lexington dropped another 1-run game to Greenville, this time walking off 5-4 losers. Ben Orloff tripled and drove in 2. Chris Wallace hit home run #12 in the 2nd. Jordan Scott, hitting leadoff, went 3-5 with 2 doubles and an RBI. Alex Sogard went 5 innings, allowing 7 hits and 3 runs. He got a no decision as Jorge De Leon allowed the Drive to score the winning run with 1 out in the 9th. Continuing tropical activity (slight chance for development) in the Caribbean has washed out yet another game for the Astros' Dominican academy.
Brian McTaggart: I'm reading this as nothing more than a move to clear up space for Villar, Paredes, Altuve, and Wikoff. But I won't really call this an inconsequential move.
Agree on Sulti, guy is about to turn 27. Little surprised Wilkoff didn't get moved up but he does have decent numbers, more of a move for the prospects at CC.
I like Wikoff and I think he'll be with OKC before the season's over. However, I'd like to see him develop a little bit of power before moving up. He slugged .265 in Lancaster last year as That's just absurd! He was playing in the freaking Cali League and was nowhere CLOSE to slugging .300! He had 3 extra-base hits ALL YEAR! And they were all doubles. So far, the early returns on him in Corpus look really encouraging. He probably won't keep up a .400 average, but there's reason to believe that he'll be around the .285-.300 range.
Jimmy Paredes came through in the clutch, hitting the go-ahead homer in the 8th to give Corpus Christi a 3-2 lead over Midland. That would prove to be enough as the score would hold up. Jimmy Van Ostrand drove in the other run. Wandy began his rehab assignment and went 4 innings, allowing 6 hits, and the 1 run he allowed was a solo homer. Jonnathan Aristil got the win, pitching 4 no-hit innings in relief. He walked 2 and fanned 5. The Hooks were the only team playing tonight. The others will begin series tomorrow. OKC travels to Omaha to face the Storm Chasers. Lancaster goes off to face Inland Empire, and Lexington returns home to welcome Hickory.
Paredes is an interesting situation, the guy isn't getting on base enough to use his speed but does have a nice average and decent power. His slugging is over .400 and he has 14 doubles/4 HRs which is not all that bad for a 2nd baseman. It does seem that a little fire might have been lit under him with the promotions of Villar, Altuve and his move to third. He is a young 22 so I would probably keep him at CC until he masters it and probably start him at OKC next season, question might become where does he play with Altuve and Villar hot on his heels.
Low walk, high strikeout guy, with only occasional pop? Sounds like he is destined to play for the Astros.
CJ has more power, but Paredes has way more speed. But yeah, another guy that would need to play great defense to justify being a ML regular, but doesn't.
The Astros haven't developed a regular .300+ BA hitter since Berkman. Bad drafting or bad development?
Bad drafting Since Berkman they have developed Hunter Pence as a good offensive player and nothing but guys that can't hit .250 regularly. Bad drafting for sure Possibly bad development as well.
Yes. I find it hard to believe that they've missed on every pick they've made since Berkman in terms of having a player that can hit well consistently. Yes, they've missed on A LOT (as have all teams). But I believe they've done a poor job developmentally, too.
John Hinson is set to join the ValleyCats, according to his dad. http://www.citizen-times.com/articl...standout-Hinson-signs-Astros?odyssey=nav|head Brandon Meredith on Twitter: @blackdiamondd0 Nick Tropeano may not be far behind. WCBS in NYC only has one line that may be a clue. "The Astros are flying him out Sunday to start training."
Whoops, here's the link for the CBS NYC story: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/06...ong-island-natives-headed-to-the-big-leagues/
