Friday, September 30, 2011

October Birthdays

The following current or future Astros have birthdays in October.  Age given is age as of October birthday.

The 40-Man Dilemma - Part II

As I noted in my post yesterday, the Astros 40-Man Roster is full to overflowing at this point.  I included the stats for those players (all pitchers) on the 40-Man who weren't on the active roster at season end.  Today I will post stats for both pitchers and position players who will be eligible in the Rule 5 draft this December.  I am using the list established by farmstros as I only researched those players who will be newly eligible this year.

First the pitchers:


And now the position players:


Of these players, I think most of us will agree that Paul Clemens and Kody Hinze should probably be protected.  Clemens numbers are inflated by a really bad outing in OKC in which he gave up 8 runs over 4.2 innings.  At Corpus, he posted a 2.35 ERA over 5 starts.  Kody Hinze, of course, opened a lot of eyes this season with a .306 BA and 29 homeruns.  He would only be subject to the AAA phase of the draft, and I'm sure some team would be happy to keep him on their AAA club for the season.

But another player I would protect is Dayan Diaz.  He would be subject to the AA phase of the Rule 5 draft and it would only cost $4000 for some team to put him on their AA roster for the year.  Not only did Diaz have a terrific season, he also was named as a Baseball America short-season All-Star so he is definitely on the radar.

It will be interesting to see the choices that are made over the next few weeks as the deadline for finalizing rosters approaches.

In case you missed it, here is the information on how the Rule 5 draft works.

Happy Birthday - 9/30

RHP Carlos Quevedo (22)
Signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Venezuela in 2006, he first played in the VSL in 2007.  After working his way up through Greeneville and Tri-City, he spent the 2011 season in Lexington where he went 8-6 in 26 starts with a 4.53 ERA and a 1.404 WHIP.  Most impressive is his 5.79 SO/BB ratio which is actually down from the prior two years.

OF Kelvin Vizcaino (19)
Originally from New York City, Vizcaino was signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2010 and first played in the DSL that year before playing for the GCL Astros this season for 29 games.  In splitting his time between left field and center field, he posted a line of .244/.319/.366/.685.

Four former Astros with birthdays today:

RHP Robin Roberts (died May 6, 2010 at age 83)
Played for the Astros in 1965 and 1966

3B Dave Magadan (49)
Played for the Astros in 1995

RHP Jose "Lima Time" Lima (died May 23, 2010 at age 37)
Played for Houston from 1997 to 2001

LHP Yorkis Perez (44)
Played for Houston in 2000

Tweet of the Day


Astros County
"And hopefully, by 2013, we'll blow it all to hell" RT : bud selig: "only baseball could have produced a night like that.''

Roster Moves - 9/29/11

Astros activated the 6 players from the 40-Man Roster who were not already on the active roster:
RHP Jose Valdez
RHP Arcenio Leon
LHP Fernando Abad
RHP Blake King
RHP Jorge de Leon
RHP Henry Villar

Thursday, September 29, 2011

The 40-Man Dilemma - Part I

If you haven't looked at the Astros 40-Man Roster recently, you may have missed the fact that it has gotten very crowded.  There are currently 40 players on the roster plus 4 players tucked away on the 60-day disabled list that don't count against the 40 ... for now.

Eventually, the Astros will have to activate Jason Castro.  Arguably, they will want Sergio Escalona back so they will have to make room for him.  Both Brandon Lyon and Alberto Arias are wild cards - they may or may not be activated depending on their health, but at least Lyon is a probable yes.

We can probably assume that Jason Michaels will be gone next year, so that's one spot.  And, with Castro healthy, you could conceivably erase two out of the three current catchers from the 40-man roster, particularly with Downs being groomed to do more catching.

But what about the players taking up roster spots that weren't on the active roster at the end of the season?  Let's take a look at their 2011 numbers.  If they spent time in both major and minor league levels, I included both sets of stats.



As the November deadline approaches for setting rosters prior to the Rule 5 draft in December, it will be interesting to see if all of these players remain on the 40-Man.

In Part II, which will be published tomorrow, we'll look at the 2011 stats for those players who aren't currently on the 40-Man roster who will be eligible to be drafted in the Rule 5 draft.

RIP 2011 Astros Season

Note:  This was written before the final game of the season.

It doesn't take a sabermetrician to know that the Astros aren't really a 105 loss team.  If you do want to look at Pythagorean expectation which accounts for luck or the lack thereof, the Astros should have lost 98 games.  But reading higher level math formulas generally makes my brain bleed.

I would prefer to look at what happened with four individual players this season to help explain what happened.

Brett Myers
Myers had a lifetime win percentage of .550 before this season.  This season he had a .350 win percentage.  He had a bad year.  The .550 lifetime win percentage would have translated into 4 fewer losses.

J.A. Happ
Happ had a lifetime win percentage of .678 before this season.  This season he had a .286 win percentage.  Even though many thought he was due for a regression, I don't think they expected this much of a regression.  If you use his win percentage of .556 for Houston last season, he would have 6 fewer losses, 8 fewer losses if you go with his lifetime win percentage.

Brandon Lyon
Brandon Lyon converted 50% of his save opportunities this year; his lifetime save conversion rate before this year was 75% which would translate into 2 fewer losses.

Wilton Lopez
Last season, Wilton was 5-2.  He issued 5 walks and allowed 1 of 33 inherited runners to score.  This year, he was 2-6.  He issued 17 walks and allowed 16 of 34 inherited runners to score.  This one is harder to quantify, but if you look at his first half stats when he was struggling (1-4 with 13 walks) vs. his second half stats when he was more like his 2010 self (1-2 with 4 walks), I think you could safely erase 2 losses from that column if Wilton had performed more like he did in 2010.

This is entirely unscientific and I'm certain that the sabermetricians are rolling their eyes, but if these four individuals had performed even close to their prior success, we could be looking at 14-16 fewer losses and a record of 70-91 to 72-89 going into the final game of the season.  And we would be saying, "Well, that's not bad at all for a team in rebuilding mode."

Many things did not go well for the Astros in 2011, but they weren't as bad as their record.  And now, for the first time in a long time, reinforcements are on the way.  Our farm system is gradually getting stronger.  We will get the #1 draft pick in 2012.  And we will pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and try to learn something from a very painful season.

Happy Birthday - 9/29

RHP Kyle Greenwalt (23)
Drafted by the Astros in the 20th round in 2007 out of high school, this Pennsylvania native split his time between Lancaster and Corpus Christi this season.  In 95.1 innings pitched, he was 5-11 with a 6.33 ERA and a 1.469 WHIP.  His numbers improved somewhat in the second half of the season, but he'll need to show improvement with runners in scoring position.

One former Astro with a birthday today

LHP Jim Crawford (61)
Pitched for Houston in 1973 and 1975

Bonus Tweet of the Day


Jiovanni Mier
Baseball at it's finest! You can't script what just happened!! If that doesn't make you love baseball, you have issues

Tweet of the Day


Ryan Rowland-Smith
and Astros fans should be excited about all the good young talent they got this year, 2 yrs of seasoning they'll be studs.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Jason Chowning Update

J CHOW21
Houston tomorrow for MRI.
 
Jason posted this on Monday.  He was understandably nervous as this very promising pitcher was getting an MRI to check on a possible torn labrum.  Via twitter on Wednesday, he confirmed to me that he does have a small tear.  The good news is that it's not torn through and the doctor is recommending rehab and not surgery and deemed it "fixable."  Jason posted terrific numbers in relief for the Legends this season.  We all wish him well as he works through this injury.
 

This and That

There has been a lot going on lately and I wanted to make sure nobody missed out on some of the recent postings.

First, please look over the Astros MiLB Lefty Starters info and vote in the poll for the WTH 25-Man Roster.

Next, you might have missed this contact info and sample letter to Drayton and Bud about the contemplated move to the American League.  I encourage everyone to write, e-mail, fax, etc.

Also, farmstros has posted a list of players eligible for the Rule 5 draft and I posted a recap of what Rule 5 says as well as a link to the Professional Baseball Agreement so you can see for yourself.

Finally, Appy Astros has been kicking it today with information about voting on some of the Astros MiLB players for play/game of the year and some great info on Outfield Assist Leaders in the Astros minor league affiliates.

Happy Birthday - 9/28

RHP Danilo Del Rio (21)
Signed as a non-drafted free agent from Columbia in 2007, Danilo first played in the VSL in 2008.  After being used primarily as a starter in the previous 2 seasons, Danilo was used almost exclusively in the bullpen in long relief in 2011, his first season at Greeneville.  In 17 appearances, he was 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.704 WHIP.

LHP Javier Saucedo (18)
2011 was Javier's first season in the Astros organization, having been signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Panama in 2010.  In 12 appearances out of the bullpen with the DSL Astros, he was 1-0 with a 4.84 ERA and a 1.925 WHIP, but he had shown much improvement as he posted a 7.30ERA/2.351WHIP Pre All-Star and a 1.80 ERA/1.4 WHIP Post All-Star.

RHP Michael Feliz (18)
Feliz is just turning 18 and he already has two professional seasons behind him.  Signed as a non-drafted free agent from the Dominican Republic in 2010, he started for the DSL Astros last season and moved to the GCL Astros this season where he went 0-3 with a 4.32 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP over 10 starts.  He showed good improvement over the season.  His BA against was .324 in June, .307 in July and .218 in August, and his ERA reflected that improvement as well.

Five former Astros with birthdays today

1B Dick Gernert (83)
Played for the Colt 45's in 1962

PH Gene Ratliff (66)
Had 4 at-bats in 4 games for the Colt 45's in 1965 and that one hit in the majors eluded him

RHP Charlie Kerfeld (48)
One of the coneheads, he pitched for Houston from 1985 to 1987 and in 1990

C Ronn Reynolds (53)
Catcher for the fictional Sidd Finch, he played for Houston in 1987

C Hector Gimenez (29)
Played in 2 games for Houston in 2006

Tweet of the Day


Bud Norris
Blessed to do what I do. Thank you Naomi.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Professional Baseball Agreement

I was working on a piece on the Rule 5 draft and who might be affected for later in the week.  In the meantime, farmstros has published a tentative list of those players who may be taken in the Rule 5 draft if not protected.  I think that from my reading of the rules Brett Oberholtzer will not be subject to the draft until next year, but I imagine that is why it's called a tentative list as the rules are very convoluted.

A copy of the full Professional Baseball Agreement can be found here.  The section regarding Rule 5 starts on page 63 and the Rule 5 eligibility starts on page 65.

The main gist (as I read it) as to who may be eligible for the first time this year would be those players who:

1.  Signed after June 5th in 2007, and were 18 or younger as of the June 5th immediately preceding the signing (those who were born on June 5th 1989 or later); or

2.  Signed after June 5th in 2008, and were 19 or older as of the June 5th immediately preceding the signing (those who were born on June 5th, 1989 or earlier).

There are, of course, other factors.  If the player signs after the end of the season for the team to which he is assigned but before the winter meetings, they gain an extra year (so it is extremely important to know when a NDFA actually signed).  If a player is released and then re-signed by the same club within a year of being released (such as was the case with David Duncan), they will be eligible to be drafted.  And so on.

If you have a little extra time on your hands and want to read the whole 274 pages of the Professional Baseball Agreement, just click on the link above.

Meeting the Players

Sunday was my second photo day with the Astros so I had met quite a few of them and had already formed impressions of many of them.  But there were so many of them that were new, it was a great deal of fun for me and most of them got into it as well.  Some general notes and impressions ...

Barmes is really a good guy and badly wants to come back next year.  We talked briefly about our mutual admiration of Adam Everett's defensive prowess.  When I mentioned that his bat was better than Everett's, he told me that he was really working hard to get better offensively.  He came across as very sincere and very committed and very humble.

I did get to see and talk very briefly with the Corpus Christi triad (Martinez, Altuve and Paredes).  I talked to Martinez and asked him why he didn't tweet any more and he said something to the effect that one bad tweet spoiled it all for him.  All three seemed to be having fun and taking it in stride.  Martinez seemed quiet and gentle, while Altuve in particular had a definite swagger to him.

Wallace was more relaxed than last year. Chris Johnson looked a little less uncomfortable with it than last year.  And Brett Myers sped through the process as quickly as humanly possible giving off the impression that he would rather have a root canal, just like last year.

Jordan Lyles seemed a little shy.  Bourgois and I became fast friends.  Bud was his normal crazy charming self.  Pendleton was thrilled to be back in Houston.  Wesley Wright was shaking hands and introducing himself, "Wesley Wright, good to meet you," like a politician.  Lee was very affable and good-natured. Fernando Rodriguez was very quiet and polite.

But there's always got to be one in the bunch.  I took an instant dislike to Lindstrom last year.  This year it was Schafer.  He was too important to be bothered with going down the line like everyone else.  He went up to maybe one in every 30 people and deigned to have his photo taken.  You'd better be hitting more than .240 if you want to take that attitude son.

I got a laugh out of Clark when I told him, "Hold Lee; send Altuve."  I talked a bit with Brocail, who I simply love because he makes me feel like a petite little flower.  He is a big man with a huge head.  From my conversation with him and another that I overheard, he really wants to come back next season, but he has to clear it with "Mom" first, referring to his wife.

I got pretty good reactions from Sosa, Shuck and Corporan when I teased them about their outfits for the rookie road trip.  When I told Sosa that he looked pretty good in his outfit with his guns on display, he high-fived me.  Carpenter wasn't as happy to have been seen in his ensemble by anyone outside the clubhouse.  The word to use might be mortified, actually.

And everyone seemed upbeat about the Astros prospects.  They know that they are better than they played this season and the coaches feel that too.  They haven't let this year grind them down.  At all.

Only caught brief glances of most of the rest, except for two.  Wilton Lopez and Sergio Escalona were having so much fun together, clowning and laughing all the way down the line.  And they were inseparable.  No use even trying to get a picture with just one of them.  They both had to be in the picture.  They were like mischievous 10-year old best buddies, having fun and looking for trouble.  It was enjoyable all around, but watching them had to be the highlight.


Happy Birthday - 9/27

RHP Jamaine Cotton (21)
Originally from the Virgin Islands, Jamaine was drafted in the 15th round in 2010 out of Western Oklahoma State University.  In his second season with the Astros organization, he went 6-2 in 10 starts between Greeneville and Tri-City, with a combined ERA of 4.76 and WHIP of 1.535.  He is currently participating in the Fall Instructional League.

Two former Astros have birthdays today

UT IF Gary Sutherland (67)
Played for Houston in 1972 and 1973

RHP Doug Konieczny (60)
Played for Houston in 1973 to 1975 and in 1977

Tweet(s) of the Day


Astros County
Join us...or die RT : Your life is messed up when you find yourself having to root for friggin' Astros in late September.
Yeah.  What he said!

Zachary Levine
I wish there were a fifth playoff team so this could be interesting. #$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Yeah.  What he said too!

Monday, September 26, 2011

A Letter to Drayton and Bud

This is a letter I'm sending off today.  Feel free to use all or part of it in any letters or e-mails you might send.

September 26, 2011

Mr. Drayton McLane
501 Crawford Street
Houston, TX  77002

Mr. Allen H. Selig, Commissioner
Major League Baseball
245 Park Avenue
, 31st Floor
New York, New York  10167

Dear Sirs:

Let me cut to the chase.  Moving the Astros to the American League is simply a disastrous idea. 

First of all, there is the tradition.  Houston is about to celebrate its 50th season as a club, all of those years as a National League team.  Before that, Houston had history as a farm town for the Cardinals, also a National League team.  We’ve had rivalries throughout the years with the Dodgers, the Phillies, the Mets, the Braves and the Cardinals that are a part of our history as a team.  We all have those memories and we cherish them.  Baseball is nothing without history and tradition.

Secondly, if anyone actually believes that attendance will go up at Minute Maid Park in conjunction with such a move, I think that he or she is seriously deluded.  Yes, you may pack them in with the one time a year that the Yankees and Red Sox come to town.  But if you really think that the Angels, Mariners, A’s and Rangers are going to draw as well as the Cardinals, Cubs, Braves, Dodgers, Mets, Giants and Phillies, I think that you are dead wrong.

Next, television viewership will go way down … partly because people in Houston would rather see an Astros-Cubs matchup than an Astros-A’s matchup, but mostly because of the number of games played on the West Coast.  But even then, I would stay up to watch an Astros-Dodgers game or an Astros-Giants game, but not one at Anaheim or Seattle.

Finally, there is no rivalry between the Astros and the Rangers, and Astros fans are not interested in creating one no matter how hard the Astros marketing department has tried to create one.  Nobody that I know cares a flip about the stupid boot.  And I would hate for our players to have to play more games in that non-roofed oven in Arlington.

If a change must be made, the Diamondbacks are the logical team to move to the American League.  At 14 seasons, they are a very young franchise.  I know that this would likely result in moving the Astros to the National League West, but I think most fans can live with that.  We won’t be wild about the additional West Coast start times, but we have history in the NL West and, if a move must be made, that would be the more palatable option for the fans.

Many Astros fans feel strongly about this, but after the last season or two, we are simply numb.  We understand the need for re-building but we haven’t forgotten the mistakes that brought us to this place.  We’re excited about the young players coming up through the system and we know, at least intellectually, that things will indeed get better.  But to push through this move to the AL right now smacks of kicking the fans while they’re down.  We should be rewarded for our patience, not punished for supporting a team in transition.

I will leave you with this quote from Ken Burns:

“Nothing in our daily life offers more of the comfort of continuity, the generational connection of belonging to a vast and complicated American family, the powerful sense of home, the freedom from time's constraints, and the great gift of accumulated memory than does our National Pastime.”

Please don’t take away our memories.

WTH 25-Man Roster - Lefty Starter

As posted over the weekend, 1B Jonathan Singleton was the second player picked for the WTH roster.  Go here for more info on the What the Heck 25-Man Roster.

Today, let's pick a Lefty Starter.  As I did with our first right-handed starter, I picked only lefties used primarily as starting pitchers who had a minimum of 120 IP for full-season teams and a minimum of 50 IP for short-season teams.  I included Xavier Cedeno even though he was converted to a reliever later in the season because he was very effective as a starter and even though he is currently at the major league level.  If any player on the WTH roster makes the MLB club out of Spring Training, we will replace that player.

With that said, we don't have as many choices, but they are all worthy of the WTH 25.  I was able to see several of Keuchel's starts on MiLB.tv and I was immediately struck by his composure on the mound.  He seems very much in control.  On paper I am quite impressed with Kyle Hallock's performance.  Van Hekken had good results with his 9-6 record.  And, as stated earlier, Cedeno was quite good as a starter at Corpus before he made the switch to relief.  Not an easy task, but please look over the numbers and vote.

Just Say No to the American League

Greg Lucas tweeted an article today that told us Drayton McLane has received virtually no letters (or presumably e-mails) objecting to the possible move of the Astros to the American League.  If you are against this move, which you should be if you have been an Astros fan for any but the shortest amount of time, here is the information on contacting the Astros via e-mail, snail mail or phone:

https://secure.mlb.com/help/email.jsp?c_id=hou&primarySubject=Send%20Feedback%20to%20the%20Astros&secondarySubject=None&dest=fanfeedback@astros.mlb.com

Mailing Address:
501 Crawford St.
Houston, TX 77002
Phone Number:
(713) 259-8000

In addition, here is an address, phone and fax number for Bud Selig.

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball
Allan H. (Bud) Selig, Commissioner
Address: 245 Park Avenue, 31st Floor
City: New York, State: NY Zip Code: 10167
Phone: 212-931-7800
Fax: 212-949-5654
UPDATED TO ADD:

Courtesy of @CockroachMLB via twitter, here is Jim Crane's office address.

Mr. Jim Crane
Crane Capital Advisors
4409 Montrose Blvd. Suite 200
Houston, TX  77006-5859

Also, courtesy of @KeepHoustonInNL on twitter, an on-line petition to Bud Selig has been set up here.

UPDATED AGAIN TO ADD:

Here's another petition to sign.
If you do not think that the Astros should be moved to the American League, please take a moment to phone, fax or e-mail.  Thank you!

Happy Birthday - 9/26

Two former Astros with birthdays today

LHP Bobby Shantz (86)
In 16 seasons pitched between 1949 and 1964, Shantz went full circle, starting his career with the Philadelphia Athletics and ending it with the Philadelphia Phillies.  In between, he pitched for the Kansas City Athletics, the Yankees, the Pirates, the Colt 45's, the Cardinals and the Cubs.  In 1935.2 innings pitched, he was 119-99 over 171 starts with a lifetime ERA of 3.38 and WHIP of 1.260.  He had 78 complete games, 15 shut-outs and 48 saves.  Obtained from the Pirates as the 21st pick in the 1961 expansion draft, Shantz was only with the Colt 45's for 3 starts in 1962, in which he went 1-1 with a 1.31 ERA and a 0.968 WHIP, before being traded to the Cardinals.  In addition to appearing in three All-Star games, he also won 8 Gold Gloves and the 1952 AL MVP.

C Rich Gedman (52)
After spending the majority of his career with Boston, Gedman only played one season with the Astros (1990) and was used primarily as a back-up catcher to Craig Biggio.  He had a lifetime .252 batting average, .202 with the Astros.

From Wikipedia:

"1986 saw three of the highlights of Gedman's career. On April 29, he set the American League record for putouts by a catcher with 20, as Roger Clemens set the major league record for strikeouts in a nine-innings game against the Seattle Mariners. On April 30, he had 16 putouts for a total of 36 in two days, which is the most for a catcher in two consecutive games. Gedman was also selected to the All-Star Game that year, to go with his appearance in the 1985 game. But the peak of his career coincided with one of its lows in the 1986 World Series. In the bottom of the tenth inning of Game 6, with the Sox leading by one run with two outs, Kevin Mitchell on third and Mookie Wilson at bat, reliever Bob Stanley threw a pitch that Gedman failed to handle. It was scored as a wild pitch, but many considered it a Gedman passed ball. Mitchell came in to score, tying the game. Then, Wilson hit a ball that went through first baseman Bill Buckner's legs to win the game for the Mets. The Sox went on to lose the deciding game, and the series."

For more on Gedman, I recommend the full article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rich_Gedman

Tweet of the Day

OK, so this wasn't from yesterday -- it was from last weekend in Chicago on the rookie road trip, but bear with me on the reason this is my tweet of the day.

Yesterday I was at the fan appreciation photo op day with the players.  The last guy I met was David Carpenter.  I had teased several of the players about their outfits for the rookie hazing so I commenced to tease Carpenter as well, asking him how well that outfit would go over in his native West Virginia.  Carpenter started to laugh and then said, "You saw those pictures?  Where did you see those pictures?"  I told him that Alyson Footer had posted some and that I had seen one of him in the clubhouse that Bud had tweeted.  That would be the one below.

The last I saw of Carpenter ... he was on his way to kill Bud Norris.



Bud Norris
Chick-a-Dee. Lol. Choke the chicken Carpenter.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

WTH 25-Man Roster

The second player selected to the What the Heck 25-Man Roster was 1B Jonathan Singleton. He won by a comfortable margin although Chase Davidson wasn't too far behind.  Also receiving votes were James Van Ostrand, Kody Hinze, Koby Clemens and Tyler Burnett.  (For more information on the WTH 25-Man Roster, go here.)

Coming Monday - Let's pick a lefty starter.

Happy Birthday - 9/25

LHP Geronimo Franzua (18)
Yes, it is one of the cooler names in the Astros minor league system.  Franzua, despite going 0-6 in his debut season with the DSL Astros, did pretty well, particularly considering that he was only 17.  Over 10 starts, this non-drafted free agent from the Dominican Republic, pitched 39.1 innings with a 4.12 ERA.

Four former Astros have birthdays today:

UT IF Ray Busse (63)
Played for Houston in 1971 and again in 1973 and 1974

RHP Mike Stanton (59)
Played for Houston in 1975

RHP Ron Mathis (53)
Played for Houston in 1985 and again in 1987

RHP David Weathers (42)
Played for Houston in 2004

Tweet of the Day


Zachary Levine
Astros-Rockies recognized by MLB as 200,000th regular season game. Ranks in the top 80,000 for me so far.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Last Day to Vote for WTH First Baseman

In case you missed it, here are the details.

Happy Birthday - 9/24

RHP Jake Buchanan (22)
Recently named Astros MiLB Pitcher of the Year, Buchanan is only in his second season in the Astros organization, having been drafted in the 8th round in 2010 out of North Carolina State. The majority of his season was spent at Lancaster with a late call-up to Corpus Christi. Buchanan was a workhorse, leading all Astros minor-leaguers in innings pitched in 2011 at 226.2. In 40 starts, he had a 3.80 ERA and a 1.201 WHIP.

OF Jacob Goebbert (24)
Drafted in the 13th round out of Northwestern in 2009, Goebbert built on a very successful sophomore year at Lexington in 2010 by putting up good numbers again in 2011, and was rewarded with rapid promotions up the ranks. From Lancaster up through Corpus Christi and on to Oklahoma City, the lefty excelled with an overall line of .290/.352/.438/.790. Although he didn't quite match his eye-popping 48 doubles from 2010, he did have 27 doubles, 4 triples and 12 homeruns.

Alyson Footer (?)
Social Media Director and Twitter Queen for the Houston Astros

Tweet of the Day - Bonus Edition


Jake Buchanan
Not a bad place to play baseball

Tweet of the Day

BEFORE


Jiovanni Mier
First game in over a year. Like a kid on the first day of school.
 

AFTER


Brandt Walker
Future Astros 3 Future Tigers 1. Time to hop in the cold tub since I now have the knees of an 84 year old.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Friday Frivolity

With all the brouhaha that Altuve's diminutive frame has caused, I thought I'd look and see the extremes of height and weight on the current Astros minor league rosters.  This is what I found.  (Remember these are listed weights and heights so take them with a grain of salt.)

Tallest

LHP David Duncan - 6'9" (230 lbs.) - Technically David is the tallest but since he's been languishing on the DL for some time, let me give you the next tallest as well.

LHP Adam Champion (TCV) - 6'7" (230 lbs.)
RHP Steven Dennison (GCL) - 6'7" (225 lbs.)
RHP Mark Jones (GRN) - 6'7" (205 lbs.)

Shortest

2B Ruben Sosa (LEX) - 5'7" (170 lbs.)

Heaviest

C Robinson Cancel (OKC) - 240 lbs. (6'0")
LHP Ryan Rowland-Smith (OKC) - 240 lbs. (6'3")
OF Wallace Gonzalez (GCL) - 240 lbs. (6'5")

Lightest

LHP Gabriel Garcia (LEX) - 140 lbs. (5'11")

Happy Birthday - 9/23

2B Ruben Sosa (21)
This switch-hitting second baseman from the Dominican Republic was drafted in the 23rd round in 2011 out of Oklahoma City University.  Sosa split his time between Greeneville and Lexington and, over 50 games, he had a line of .239/.349/.307/.656 with 9 doubles, 1 triple and 14 stolen bases.

Three former Astros with birthdays today:

RHP Oscar Zamora (67)
Played 10 games for Houston in 1978 at the end of his career

C Terry McGriff (48)
Played 4 games for Houston in 1990 (was one of the PTBNL in the Billy Doran trade with the Reds)

RHP Pete Harnisch (45)
Played for Houston from 1991 to 1994
Came to Houston as part of the Glenn Davis trade with the Orioles (along with Steve Finley & Curt Schilling)
Named to the All-Star team in first season with the Astros
Was 45-33 in 117 starts for the Astros, with 10 complete games, 6 shut-outs, a 3.41 ERA & a 1.205 WHIP

Tweet of the Day


Baseball Swag
Wearing your shades upside down on the brim of your fitted cap is a on and off the field

Astros County
Putting on jorts to walk up from the basement to check to see if your Baseball Prospectus came in the mail

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Now that the Astros have Clinched the #1 Draft Pick ...

Zachary Levine makes it official.

In case you missed it, a great article from Stephen Goff at the Examiner on how Bobby Heck approaches the draft.  The money quote:

"Within two weeks after the [2011] Draft, our scouts had to turn in their first list for 2012," Heck said.

UPDATED TO ADD Brian McTaggart's article regarding his talk with Heck on what prospects he's currently looking at.

Let the speculation begin!!!!!

Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics

I'm sure you've seen a variation of a quote often attributed to Mark Twain, but which actually came from Benjamin Disraeli, that notes that there are three kinds of falsehoods - "lies, damned lies and statistics."  For example, you may see a poll that says only 20% approve of a proposed law that punishes anyone who makes coats out of dalmations, only to find out that out of ten people polled, eight thought that the law didn't go far enough because the law only proposed a fine and not jail time, one didn't understand the question and one was named C. Deville.  Technically, only 20% approve, but it was all in how the question was asked and who was being asked.  That is an example of statistics being used to deceive.

When I posted my 100 & 100 article a couple of days ago, I had no intent to deceive the reader.  I personally thought that 100 line-ups used over 153 games was a bit much, but I specifically declined to editorialize.  Well, I got called out.  I was basically told that the information was meaningless, that all clubs use this many line-ups routinely, etc.  Once I established that my line-up analysis was only for the 1 through 7 positions and that no line-up had been used more than eight times, I was told that the 2011 Phillies had used a comparable number of line-ups.  Well, in all fairness, I decided to dig down and see whether or not the two teams were comparable as it pertains to line-up changes.  My findings are that not all line-up changes are created equal, in my opinion.

First of all, you can't compare the line-ups directly because Charlie Manuel often used his catcher Ruiz in the #7 spot to start the season (#6 later in the season), but used his other catchers in the #8 spot.  So let's look at the #1 through #6 spots during a relatively stable period for both clubs (beginning of the season through 4/28).  During this period, the Phillies used 6 line-ups in the #1 through #6 spots, the most popular being used 15 times.  During the same period, the Astros used 10 line-ups for those positions, the most popular being used 6 times.

The second difference is injuries.  The Phillies started the season with Utley on the DL and the Astros started the season with Barmes and Keppinger on the DL.  During the season, the Astros had two back-up position players and a catcher go on the DL while the Phillies had their starting shortstop, starting third baseman, starting center fielder and two catchers all go on the DL.  In the cases of Polanco and Victorino, they were each on the DL twice during the season.  As you go through the boxscores, you can see how Charlie Manuel is trying to plug holes for injured starters.  Yet, you can still see consistency, in my opinion.  For example, during one of Polanco's stints on the DL, Martinez is plugged in at that spot for 18 straight games, and Ibanez starts 9 of 10 in place of the injured Victorino at the same spot.

In the meantime, during one ten-day period I looked at, Mills used 9 different line-ups with the following players used in the following spots in the batting order:

Bourn - 1, 1, x, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 1
Bourgeois - x, 2, 1, 2, 2, 2, 1, 2, x, x
Pence - 3, 4, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
Lee - 4, 5, 4, x, x, x, 4, 4, 4, 4
Wallace - 5, x, 5, 4, 4, 4, x, 5, 5, 6
Hall - 6, x, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5, x, 7, 5
Johnson - 7, 6, x, 5, 5, 5, x, x, 6, 7
Barmes - 2, 8, x, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 2, 8
Sanchez - x, 3, 2, x, x, x, 7, 7, x, x
Downs - x, x, 7, x, x, x, x, x, x, x
Towles - x, 7, x, x, 8, x, 8, x, x, 2
Quintero - 8, x, 8, 8, x 8, x, 8, 8, x

How many had forgotten about the whole Towles in the #2 spot experiment?  I had.

To be perfectly fair, let's look at the same 10-day period for Charlie Manuel's club since they were in a transition at that point from a starting 4 of Victorino, Polanco, Rollins, Howard to Rollins, Victorino, Polanco, Howard:

Victorino - 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2
Polanco - 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
Rollins - 3, 3, 3, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1
Howard - 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Francisco - 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, x, 5, 5, 5, x
Ibanez - 6, x, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5
Orr - 7, x, 7, 7, x, x, 7, 8, x, 7
Valdez - x, 7, x, x, 8, 7, x, x, 7, x
Mayberry - x, 6, x, x, x, 5, x, x, x, x
Gload - x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, 6
Schneider - 8, x, 8, 8, 7, x, 8, 7, x, 8
Sardinha - x, 8, x, x, x, 8, x, x, 8, x

As you can see, Charlie uses his starters in the same general positions for days on end and he only sits them occasionally.   In a platoon situation, he keeps that position in the same part of the order as he is doing with Orr/Valdez.  Could I have picked a 10-day period that was more volatile?  Probably, but the above is very representative of how Manuel handled his club this season between injuries.  In my opinion.

The final difference?  The Phillies are an established team.  Within reason, you should be able to move an established player into a different position.  The Astros are in a re-building youth mode.  In my opinion, players such as Altuve, Martinez and Paredes need to get consistent playing time in a consistent position in the order so that they can develop.  Yet Altuve has been used in the 1, 2, 6 and 7 spots; Martinez in the 3, 4 and 5 spots; and Paredes in the 2, 5, 6 and 7 spots.  We will never see what these players can really do unless we give them a legitimate chance.  And how will you know if Wallace and Bogusevic will ever hit left-handed pitching if you never give them that chance?  Again, this is my opinion only.

I don't have access to Elias Sports Bureau to regurgitate stats for me.  So I had to go into over 300 boxscores to glean the information and the trends that I saw.  Even with all the differences noted above, it still appears that the Astros used about a dozen more line-ups than the Phillies.  If Charlie Manuel used Ruiz and his other catchers consistently in the #8 spot in the order and had healthy starters for most of the season as the Astros did, he probably would have used half as many line-ups as the Astros.  Again, this is my opinion based on my findings and the trends I saw.  In any event, comparing Charlie Manuel's use of his roster with Brad Mill's use of his roster is like comparing apples and kumquats.  In my opinion.

I truly do believe that the instability of the day-to-day line-ups is a detriment to the Astros growth and development.  I also do not believe that I have attempted to deceive anyone by using lies, damned lies and statistics.  If anyone believes that I did, I apologize.  And that is not an opinion.  It is a fact.

Magic Number Watch

With the Astros loss yesterday, and the Twins not cooperating again (they've lost 11 in a row now), our magic number to clinch the #1 draft pick is 2. Kind of.  Actually, only one more loss by the Astros or one more win by the Twins will do the trick because that will assure at least a tie.  In the event of a tied record this year, it is my understanding that they will look at last year's record to determine who will get the pick, and since we had a worse record last year, that will be that.

Happy Birthday - 9/22

OF Jordan Scott (20)
Drafted in the 14th round in 2010 out of Riverside HS in South Carolina, the lefty continued to show his prowess at the plate in his second season with the organization. In 79 games between Lexington, Greeneville and Tri-City, Jordan compiled a .323/.380/.406/.787 line.

LHP Adam Champion (24)
This big lefty from Indiana was drafted by Houston in the 24th round in 2010 out of the University of Arkansas Little Rock. In 15 games split between starting and relief pitching (mostly for Tri-City), he was 4-1 with a 3.97 ERA and a 1.352 WHIP.

RHP Luis Ordosgoitti (19)
Signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Venezuela in 2009, Luis is in his second season with the Astros organization. In 12 games (10 starts) for the GCL Astros, Greeneville and Tri-City, he was 2-5 with a 4.58 ERA and a 1.358 WHIP.

RHP Arcenio Leon (25)
Arcenio signed with the Astros as a non-drafted free agent in 2005 and started playing in the Venezuelan Summer League that year. Now in his seventh season with the Astros organization, he spent his season at Corpus Christi, with a late move to Oklahoma City for one game. Pitching exclusively out of the bullpen, he was 3-4 in 48 appearances with a 4.86 ERA and a 1.800 WHIP.

Three former Astros with birthdays today

RHP Larry Dierker (65)
Played for the Colt 45's and Houston Astros from 1964 to 1976
Managed the Astros from 1997 to 2001

LF Jeffrey Leonard (56)
Played for Houston from 1978 to 1981

RF Charleton Jimerson (32)
Played 18 games for Houston in 2005 and 2006

Tweet of the Day


Zachary Levine
Astros minor league team MVPs: Anderson Hernandez (AAA), Jimmy Paredes (AA), Austin Wates (A+), Emilio King (A)...
More Astros minor league team MVPs: Matt Duffy (short-season A), Jordan Scott (rookie), Yonathan Mejia (GCL), Teoscar Hernandez (DSL)

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Magic Number Watch

With the Astros loss last night and absolutely NO help from Minnesota, our magic number for the #1 draft pick is now at 3.  The Astros have 8 games remaining and Minnesota, now on a 10-game losing streak, has 9 games remaining.

Brad Mills Line-Up Watch

Last night's line-up for the Astros had been used once previously so we're still at 100 on the season.

Happy Birthday - 9/21

CF T.J. Steele (25)
Drafted by Houston in the 4th round in 2008, this lefty from California has been unable to replicate his excellent 2009 season in Lancaster at the plate. Now in his second season at Corpus Christi, his .212 BA and .249 OBP were actually a regression from the prior year; however, his .354 SLG is an improvement over his 2010 .315 SLG.

Several former Astros with birthdays today

OF Art Gardner (59)
Played for Houston in 1975 and in 1977

RHP Aurelio "Senor Smoke" Lopez - died September 22, 1992 at age 44 (auto accident)
Played for Houston in 1986 and 1987

C Troy Afenir (48)
Played for Houston in 1987

RHP Manuel Barrios (37)
Played in 2 games for Houston in 1997

RHP Billy Sadler (30)
Pitched 1.1 innings in 1 game for Houston in 2009

Tweet of the Day


Zachary Levine
I want to be friends with the fan who yelled "200, we want it" right before Drew Stubbs' 200th strikeout.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

100 & 100

I try to keep my focus on the Astros minor league system, but with regular seasons over and fall leagues still a couple of weeks away, my mind has a tendency to wander.  I was looking into something totally different and got off on a major tangent only to find this.

Not only do the Astros have 100 losses on the season, but as of last night's game, Brad Mills has now used 100 different line-ups in the 1 to 7 positions*.  That's ONE ZERO ZERO.  Sure, there have been numerous changes in personnel, injuries, trades, promotions, etc. but let's break it down a little further.

The one line-up that has been used most was used a whopping 8 whole times:

Bourn
Barmes
Pence
Lee
Keppinger
Wallace
Johnson
Catcher
Pitcher

Two other line-ups were used 7 times each:

Bourn
Keppinger
Pence
Lee
Wallace
Johnson
Barmes
Catcher
Pitcher

Schafer
Altuve
Martinez
Lee
Bogusevic
Paredes
Barmes
Catcher
Pitcher

Then it drops off to one used 5 times, three used 4 times, six used 3 times and ten used 2 times.  And then, get this, there have been 76 line-ups that have been used one time only.

Mills has used the following number of players in each batting position:

1 - 6
2 - 10
3 - 8
4 - 6
5 - 10
6 - 12
7 - 12

I'm not going to editorialize.  I'll leave it to the reader to decide what they think of this.

*Please note that I double-checked my work, but if I am off at all, the error will be negligible.

What's Our Magic Number?

OK, Minnesota is REALLY starting to tick me off.  Win already, will ya?!

The Astros now only have one team competing for the #1 draft pick and the magic number remains unchanged from yesterday.  Any combination of Minnesota wins and Astros losses equalling four will do the job.  But Minnesota keeps losing.  Not only do they have a 9-game losing streak going, but they are 9-34 in August and September.  The Astros are 17-27 during the same period.  I refuse to root against the Astros, even for the #1 draft pick, so Minnesota needs to step it up.  Astros have 9 games remaining on their schedule; Minnesota has 10.

Happy Birthday - 9/20

IF Angel Sanchez (28)
Angel was originally drafted by the Royals in the 11th round in 2001 out of Puerto Rico and came to Houston in a trade with the Red Sox in July 2010. Due to injuries during his two seasons with the Astros, he has been used much more than his intended utility role would dictate. In 169 games with the Astros playing primarily at short, he has a line of .259/.307/.314/.621 with 12 errors.

LHP Scott Zuloaga (22)
Drafted by Houston in the 16th round in 2011 out of Scottsdale Community College, Scott had a very decent first season with Greeneville despite an overall ERA of 6.14 (which was skewed by a few bad outings in June). 12 of his 24 appearances occurred in August, a month in which he put up a 2.45 ERA and a 1.268 WHIP. He dominated against lefties and may have a LOOGY designation in his future.

Tweet of the Day


Steve Campbell
The only sacrifice I want to see in the first inning is a human sacrifice.

Monday, September 19, 2011

WTH 25-Man Roster - First Baseman

As posted over the weekend, RHP Jake Buchanan won the first spot on the WTH roster by a wide margin.  Go here for more info on the What the Heck 25-Man Roster.

Next up, let's find a first baseman.  I went through the rosters and determined all the players who played primarily at first base or who split their time between first base and designated hitter.  There were a couple of players listed as first basemen who were used more as utility players so I didn't include them this time, but all players will get a shot at the WTH roster at some point.

This one is a little more difficult.  Kody Hinze has simply mashed the ball, but Jonathan Singleton is considered a top prospect and did very well at Lancaster after the Pence trade.  And what about Chase Davidson with a monster OPS before hitting the DL?  Please look over the numbers and vote in the poll for who you want at first base.

What's Our Magic Number?

The magic number* for the Astros to clinch the #1 draft pick remains unchanged from yesterday.

Baltimore - 1
Minnesota - 4

*Any combination of wins by the noted teams and losses by the Astros.

Happy Birthday - 9/19

2B Yonathan Mejia (19)
Signed as a non-drafted free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2009, the switch-hitting second baseman is in his second year with the Astros. In his first year with the GCL Astros in 2011, he put up some very good numbers with a line of .329/.357/.384/.781. and only three errors over 40 games.

OF George Springer (22)
A late signing, this 1st round 2011 draft pick out of the University of Connecticut barely had time to get his feet wet at Tri-City. He hit .179 with a .303 OBP and .393 SLG in 8 games with the Valley Cats. He will be participating in the fall instructional league at Kissimmee which starts this week.

Two former Astros with birthdays today

2B Joe Morgan (68)
Played for the Colt 45's and Houston Astros from 1963 to 1971 & again in 1980

C Joe Ferguson (65)
Played for the Astros in 1977 and 1978

Tweet of the Day


brandon meredith
Just touched down in Florida... Now for this next month it's alot of baseball and kickin it....

brandon meredith
Every pond or body of water I see out here all I'm going to think is that gators are in there...
I think an off-day trip to Gatorland may not be a good idea.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

WTH 25-Man Roster

The first player selected to the What the Heck 25-Man Roster was RHP Jake Buchanan by a wide margin.  (For more information on the WTH 25-Man Roster, go here.)  Also receiving votes were Ross Seaton, Nick Tropeano and Luis Ordosgoitti.  I've added a roster list to the blog so we can see who's been picked thus far.

Coming Monday - Let's pick a first baseman.

What's Our Magic Number?

(Through all 9/17 games)

The Astros have eliminated all but two teams in clinching the #1 overall draft pick in 2012.  Here are the magic numbers* for each remaining team.

Baltimore - 1
Minnesota - 4

*Any combination of wins by the noted teams and losses by the Astros

Happy Birthday - 9/18

RHP Ross Seaton (22)
I forget that he's still this young since 2011 was his fourth season in the Astros minor league system. Drafted in the 3rd round as a compensation pick in 2008 out of Second Baptist High School in Houston, Seaton spent the season in Corpus Christi where he improved on his 2010 numbers from Lancaster, finishing the season 4-9 with a 5.23 ERA and a 1.387 WHIP. He received Texas League pitcher of the week honors twice in 2011.

1B Jonathan Singleton (20)
Originally drafted by the Phillies in the 8th round in 2009, Singleton came to the Astros in the Hunter Pence trade in July. In 35 games at Lancaster, he hit .333 with a .393 OBP and a .456 SLG.

RHP Juan Minaya (21)
Signed as a non-drafted free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2008, this is Minaya's third season in the Astros organization. Used primarily as a starter at Lexington last season, he was moved to the Legend's bullpen this season where he has struggled, posting a 6.90 ERA and a 1.896 WHIP.

Four former Astros with birthdays today

CF Tony Scott (60)
Played for the Astros from 1981 to 1984

RHP Roger Mason (54)
Played for the Astros in 1989 (very briefly)

RHP Chris Holt (40)
Played for the Astros from 1996 to 2000

C Mitch Meluskey (38)
Played for the Astros from 1998 to 2000 and again in 2003

Tweet of the Day


Zachary Levine
I want to name my kid Starlin.
Good luck convincing a sane woman on that one.

Greg Lucas FSH
That may be a strike against finding a wife soon.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Happy Birthday - 9/17

Three former Astros with birthdays today

RHP Jim Umbricht - Died April 4, 1964 at age 33
Umbricht was drafted from the Pirates as the 35th pick in the 1961 expansion draft and played for the Colt 45's for 2 seasons, in 1962 and 1963. In 69 appearances for the Colt 45's, he was 8-3 with a 2.33 ERA and a 0.986 WHIP. From Wikipedia:

"Umbricht underwent surgery to remove a tumor from his leg in March 1963 but was able to return to the Colt .45s to post a 4-3 won/loss record and a solid 2.61 earned run average in 35 games that season."

He played his final game on September 26, 1993 and died less than seven months later. His uniform number - 32 - was retired immediately.

Pinch Runner Alonzo "Candy" Harris (64)
Harris didn't get much of a chance. Used primarily as a pinch runner for the Astros in 1967, he only got one AB in 6 games and he struck out. And that, at the ripe old age of 19, was the extent of his major league career.

LHP John Franco (51)
Franco spent his final season (out of 21 total) pitching for the Astros out of the bullpen in 2005, compiling a 7.20 ERA and a 2.133 WHIP before being released on July 2, 2005. His career as a whole makes a much better story though. Franco was 90-87 with 424 saves, a career ERA of 2.89 and a career WHIP of 1.333 (1.88 ERA and 0.977 WHIP in 15 post-season games). He spent 6 seasons with the Reds and 14 seasons with the Mets, leading the league in saves for three seasons and getting an All-Star nod four times. Currently, at 1119 appearances, he trails only two pitchers in games played.

Tweet of the Day


J.P. Shadrick
I think I saw him wear that in Des Moines RT “: Seargent Lucas Harrell reporting for duty


For the full story and more photos, check out Alyson Footer's blog.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Introducing the Wild Thing Ratio

Just for a few Friday grins, I'm introducing the Wild Thing Ratio. This is calculated by adding Wild Pitches and Hit Batters and dividing by Innings Pitched (WP+HB/IP) to give us wildness per innings pitched or the Wild Thing Ratio.

What's Our Magic Number?

The Astros have eliminated all but five four teams in clinching the #1 overall draft pick in 2012.  Here are the magic numbers* for each remaining team.

Kansas City - 1
San Diego - 2
Seattle - 3
Baltimore - 5
Minnesota - 6

Naturally, I hope that the Astros go 13-0 and the other teams cooperate by winning the requisite number of games, but that's probably not going to happen.

I'll update daily until we're assured of the prize!

*Any combination of wins by the noted teams and losses by the Astros

Happy Birthday - 9/16

Two former Astros with birthdays today

SS Hector Torres (66)
The native of Mexico played for Houston from 1968 to 1970 and again in 1973. He was a starter in 1968, but then was relegated to bench duties in his latter three seasons with the Astros. He had a .206 BA and a .244 OBP in 666 AB's. In October of 1970, he was traded to the Cubs for Roger Metzger.

RHP Chad Harville (35)
Originally obtained in a trade with Oakland in 2004 (for Kirk Saarloos), Harville spent parts of the 2004 and 2005 seasons with Houston. In 93 regular season appearances, he was 3-4 with a 4.63 ERA and a 1.533 WHIP. In 4 post-season appearances (in the NLDS and NLCS in 2004), he had an ERA of 9.00 and a WHIP of 2.000. He played his final game with Tampa Bay August 12, 2006.

Tweet of the Day


Zachary Levine
Astros picks for minor league player & pitcher of the year Jose Altuve and Jake Buchanan. Same as Baseball America picks.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Happy Birthday - 9/15

RHP Murilo Gouvea (23)
Obtained in a 2009 trade with the White Sox for future considerations, the Brazilian-born Gouvea spent the majority of the season at Lexington. His 4.19 ERA and 1.512 WHIP at Lexington showed improvement over his 6.30 ERA and 1.575 WHIP at Tri-City last season.

OF Ariel Ovando (18)
Signed by the Astros out of the Dominican Republic as a NDFA in 2010 (for a ginormous $2.6 million dollar signing bonus), Ovando spent his first season with the Greeneville Astros in the Appy League. As a very raw lefty OF, he has a long way to go, but having just turned 18, there will be plenty of time for him to develop. His .235 BA increased to .280 with runners on and .259 with runners in scoring position.

CF Daniel Adamson (24)
Drafted in the 20th Round in 2010 out of Jacksonville State University in Alabama, Adamson split his time this season between the GCL Astros, Lexington and Lancaster. His success at Lexington (.295 BA & .365 OBP in 53 games) was not duplicated in limited time with Lancaster (.155 BA & .206 OBP in 18 games).

RHP Jason Stoffel (23)
Originally drafted by the Giants in the 4th Round in 2009, Stoffel was obtained (along with Henry Sosa) in the Jeff Keppinger trade in July. In 18 games for the Hooks he was 1-3 with a 5.63 ERA and a 1.688 WHIP. Prior to the trade, he was 1-2 with a 3.98 ERA and a 1.596 WHIP over 32 appearances.

Tweet of the Day


Jiovanni Mier
Downside of playing baseball: You think you can win every "throw a ball and win....." game at the fair. And you end up losing.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Players Drafted by Other Teams

How many players in the Astros system were originally drafted by other teams? Who drafted them? What year? What round? You probably weren't thinking about it at all, but those are the kind of totally useless facts that I find endlessly fascinating, or at least mildly interesting.

Happy Birthday - 9/14

One former Astro with a birthday today:

LHP Frank Carpin (73)
After pitching for Pittsburgh in 1965 (3-1, 4 saves and a 3.18 ERA), Carpin was picked up by the Astros in the Rule 5 draft. He only appeared in 10 games for the Astros in 1966, compiling a 7.50 ERA and a 2.500 WHIP, and he played his last major league game on September 3, 1966.

Tweet of the Day


Bryce Lane
Can't wait to be out there with them
Bryce is having surgery in Houston on some bone spurs in his elbow today so he was at the game last night.  My seats weren't as good as his.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

In Case You Missed It ...

Please vote for the first player to join the What the Heck 25-Man Roster.  For more on the concept, look here.  For more on the first players considered, look here.  And then please vote in the poll over there. --------------------------------------------------->

Happy Birthday - 9/13

IF John Hinson (23)
Born in North Carolina and drafted out of Clemson in the 13th round in 2011, Hinson quickly made his mark in his first season at Tri-City. The lefty hit .284 with a .348 OBP and a .389 SLG in 48 games for the Valley Cats before being sidelined by an injury in early August that put him on the DL for the rest of the season.

Several former Astros with birthdays today:

RHP Wade Miller (35)
Drafted by Houston in the 20th round in 1996
Played for Houston from 1999 to 2004
Record of 58-39 with a 3.87 ERA 1.309 WHIP
2.57 ERA and 1.000 WHIP in one NLDS game in 2001 earning a no decision

SS Mike Fischlin (56)
Played for Houston in 1977, 1978 and 1980

1B Jim Obradovich (62)
Played for Houston in 1978

RHP Billy Smith (57)
Played for Houston in 1981

RHP Nelson Cruz (39) - (No, not THAT Nelson Cruz)
Played for Houston in 2001 and 2002

Tweet of the Day

@brianmctaggart Brian McTaggart
This is the most runs the Astros have scored in a start with Oswalt on the mound probably since 2006.

No Announced Roster Moves Today But ...

Zachary Levine tells us who is going to the fall instructional league

http://blog.chron.com/ultimateastros/2011/09/12/june-draft-july-trade-haul-shape-astros-instructional-league-roster/