my assumption is that neither will be hitting well enough to justify playing at 3B..much less 1B or LF
Towels just isn't a major league hitter. He may eventually become one. But, he just hasn't shown he can hit in the Majors. I say trade him away, while he still has value. Castro seems to be on the fast track to the ML by next year baby!!!
He's had a grand total of 200 at bats. There aren't very many hitters who come up and just start hitting. If you trade any hitter that struggles early on, there's no point in having a farm system.
It should be considered a luxury to the Astros to have two catching prospects that may be major league ready at the same time. That being said, I'm sure Castro is going to be favored as the everyday catcher all things being equal. IMHO Towles was rushed because they wanted him to learn how to call the game from Ausmus and to get some major league experience. Unfortunately the level of pitching blew Towles away. He just needs to get better at the plate and will get another chance. He's only 25, so while he's still not technically a prospect, he is young enough to make the club and contribute either here or with another team.
Castro playing his first game with CC as we speak. He's 1-for-4 with a single, no walks, no strikeouts. Matsui is also there for rehab along with Valverde. http://www.cchooks.com/statistics/default/g_box/2009_06_10_mroaax_coraax_1/
Not sure how many of you were already aware of this but you can watch CC games for free through a link on their homepage. The video quality isn't very good but it's definitely watchable. Click on Video in the Game Center section: http://www.cchooks.com/ Here's a direct link for tonight's game: http://b2cabletv.com/?channelsid=74 Not sure if the direct link is different from game to game. I saw Castro's first AB. He took a couple of bad swings but ended up making pretty good contact and flying out to the opposite field warning track.
Castro was a singles machine for his first several games. He finally got his first extra base hit yesterday. So far, these are his numbers with CC: 33 AB .333 AVG .361 OBP .364 SLG 1 2B 1 BB 3 SO 1 E
To expand on that...Castro hit a 3 run hr for the USA team in the Future's Game. To make it even better, Chia-Jin Lo got the win for the International team with a perfect inning. A great day for the Astros farm system and for the Ed Wade/Bobby Heck team.
Castro could probably play better than Pudge and Q if he got called up right now. I'd pencil him in as our 2010 starter right now.
My guess is that he'll start the season at AAA, much like Pence did 2 years ago, regardless of how he does in ST. If he is successful, he'll be up and starting no later than May 1.
You're probably right. But this kid is an absolute stud. Dare I say 5 tool player? Everytime I've seen him play, he plays awesome. His attitude absolutely reminds me of Pence's. That combo is going to be a spectacular foundation for the future. I'm really hoping that Mire turns out to be a gem too. Our other recent 1st pick of a draft (I think he was a 5th rounder the year Pupura got fired) is doing extremely well too.
This kid may be something good for a change. The HR he hit in the Futures Game was a nice shot. http://houston.astros.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=5567081&c_id=mlb
Speed: No AVG: Maybe Power: Maybe but unlikely enough for it to be considered a tool Arm: Maybe Defense: Maybe The lack of speed alone will prevent him from being a 5 tool player. Attitude-wise, I'm not sure where you see the Pence comparison. I'd compare him to Berkman because of how calm, laid back he seems.
Castro with a big game last night: http://www.cchooks.com/statistics/default/g_box/2009_07_21_coraax_mroaax_1/ 3-for-5 with a triple, double and 4 RBI. Coming into today, he only had 3 XBHs in over 100 ABs at CC. Koby Clemens is also hitting the ball well at Lancaster. He was just named California League Player of the Week as the league's top hitter. A RP for Lancaster got the same award as top pitcher. I don't know what the plans are for Clemens but he's only 6 months older than Castro and seems to be DHing and catching.
I still don't know what the organization sees in Clemens, I assumed his drafting was a favor to his dad but they've kept Koby well after Rocket left. On the hierarchy of Stros catching prospects he's still below Castro and Towles. The difference between him and Castro is that Castro is at AA in his first full pro season and Clemens is in high-A in his 4th full pro season. I know Clemens is having to learn catching from scratch but unless he improves that drastically, then he won't make the majors. His hitting ability isn't anything special.
Zach Levine posted some numbers in his blog yesterday that reflect how hitter-friendly some of our minor league parks are based on runs and HRs: http://blogs.chron.com/unofficialscorer/2009/07/astros_am_report_thats_what_yo.html [rquoter]Here are how the Astros parks look in the three-year figure, with anything above 1.00 meaning it tends that many percent toward a hitter's park. Round Rock Runs: 0.97, HR: 0.99 Corpus Christi Runs: 0.99, HR: 1.08 Lancaster Runs: 1.14, HR: 1.21 Lexington Runs: 0.98, HR: 1.08 Tri-City Runs: 1.11, HR: 1.36 [/rquoter] Lancaster's home park is one of the most hitter-friendly parks in all of the minors so that needs to be taken into consideration when looking at stats of both Jethawk hitters and pitchers. Accordingly, Clemens likely isn't as good of a AA hitter as his numbers at Lancaster would suggest. Like you said, he's probably nothing special. I also hear that CC's home park is not favorable for left-handed hitters because of the wind going from right to left. That should be considered when looking at Castro's numbers. It should also be considered that most of Castro's minor league hitting stats so far have been accumulated at two of the most hitter-friendly parks in the minors between Tri-City and Lancaster.
Little Clemens continues to pound the ball: http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/...d=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_08_02_lncafa_inlafa_1 He actually jumped passed Gaston for 2nd best OPS in the Cal League after last night's game (scroll down and sort by OPS): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/external/brandedstats/t491.html?t=l_bat&cid=491&lid=110 Buster Posey is 7th on that list. Koby Clemens: http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=DH&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=488784 Once again, Lancaster's home park is extremely hitter-friendly so that needs to be considered when looking at all Jethawk statistics.
Good to see. If you look at his away stats, there damn good too. I have noticed he has been a lot of left field. TJ Steele is always hurt but he is a five tool player and the best among everyone in Lancaster.
