Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Saturday, July 4, and Sunday, July 5, 2015

The 4th of July weekend that was in the Astros minor leagues.

Saturday: Fresno 10, Tacoma 3

W- Brett Oberholtzer (2-2)
L- Sam Gaviglio (7-7)

Fresno home runs: Tony Kemp (2, 3-run in 6th)

Tony Kemp's 3-run homer was the big hit in a 6-run 6th that put all the momentum in the hands of the Grizzlies on the Fourth of July.

Brett Oberholtzer got roughed up for 3 runs in the 1st, but he righted the ship and threw a bare minimum quality start, allowing 6 hits (2-run homer), walking 2, and striking out 4. Jose Veras, James Hoyt, and Tyson Perez finished it off with a scoreless inning apiece. Veras threw a 1-2-3 7th, Hoyt allowed a hit and struck out the side in the 8th, and Perez worked around a hit and struck out 2 in the 9th.

The Grizz got on the board in the 1st on an RBI single from L.J. Hoes. In the 3rd inning, Matt Duffy grounded into a force out that scored Robbie Grossman.

Fresno's 6 runs in the 6th all came with 2 outs in the inning. Two singles from Jonathan Villar and Tyler White, and a Nolan Fontana walk loaded the bases. One batter later, Tyler Heineman put them in the lead with a 2-run single. Andrew Aplin followed with an RBI single, and Tony Kemp delivered the haymaker with his 3-run shot. Heineman, who went 3-4, hit another RBI single in the 7th, and Villar drove in the final run of the evening with an RBI single in the 8th. White and Hoes both finished 3-5. Everyone in the lineup scored a run, and Kemp scored 2. Fontana was the only player in the lineup to not record a hit, but his contributions in that big 6th inning were valuable.

Sunday: Tacoma 7, Fresno 4

W- Vidal Nuño (4-3)
L- Luis Cruz (4-4)
S- Logan Kensing (1)

Fresno home runs: Max Stassi (8, 2-run in 4th)

The Rainiers buried the Grizzlies with a 4-run 5th inning in response to Max Stassi's 2-run homer that gave Fresno the lead.

The Grizz got a pair of RBI doubles from L.J. Hoes and Tyler White in the 3rd. Stassi went deep for the 8th time in the 4th inning. White (2 2B, RBI) and Stassi (2B, 2-R HR) both went 2-4.

Luis Cruz got knocked around in his 4.2 innings as he allowed 7 runs (1 inherited runner charged to him) on 7 hits, walked 2, and struck out 3. Jake Buchanan allowed a hit, walked 2, and struck out 1 in 2.1 innings, and Jason Stoffel allowed a hit while striking out 1 in 2 scoreless innings.

Game 3 of this series features a matchup of former Pac-12 pitchers as Brady Rodgers (Arizona State) takes on Forrest Snow (Washington). First pitch is at 7:05 Pacific.

Saturday: Corpus Christi 5, Tulsa 1

W- Michael Feliz (2-2, 3-3 season)
L- Jose De Leon (2-3)

CC home runs: None.

The Hooks knocked out Jose De Leon with a 3-run 6th and took 2 of 3 in their first post-All Star break series.

Danry Vásquez got things started with an RBI single in the 2nd inning, and Jio Mier added a sac fly in the 3rd. Colin Moran, who scored the first run of the game, smacked a 2-run triple in the 5th and scored on a Conrad Gregor single. He (2B, 3B, 2 RBI, 2 R) and Chan-Jong Moon (SB [10, 15 season]) finished with 2 hits apiece.

Michael Feliz and 2 relievers combined on a 3-hitter. He went 5 innings and allowed a run on 2 hits, walked 1, and struck out 2. Chris Cotton and Travis Ballew threw 2 scoreless innings apiece. Cotton allowed a hit and struck out 4, and Ballew's 2 frames were perfect.

Sunday: Springfield 7, Corpus Christi 5

W- Ronnie Shaban (2-1)
L- Reymin Guduan (0-1, 3-4 season)

CC home runs: Conrad Gregor (4, grand slam in 1st)

Unfortunately, the Hooks scored all 5 of their runs in the 1st and they were shut out the rest of the way. They ended up walking off with a loss in the 1st of 3 in Missouri.

Corpus Christi loaded the bases in the 1st right off the bat and took advantage of that opportunity as Colin Moran was plunked with the bases loaded to drive in the 1st run of the evening, and then, two batters later, Conrad Gregor hit a grand slam to put the Hooks up 5-0 in an instant. But alas, that was all the scoring they could muster up.

Scott Feldman began his rehab assignment and went 3 innings, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits, walking 3, and striking out 3. Chris Devenski pitched 5 innings and allowed 2 runs on 3 hits (solo homer), walked 3, and struck out 3. Reymin Guduan got a rude welcome to the Texas League as the two men he faced reached base. He issued a walk, and then Patrick Wisdom ended the game with a 2-run homer.

Kyle Westwood will start game 2 of this series. He'll face Corey Baker at 7:10.

Saturday: Lake Elsinore 6, Lancaster 5

W- Eric Yardley (2-3)
L- Akeem Bostick (0-2, 3-3 season)

Lancaster home runs: D.J. Fisher (6, 12 season; solo in 4th)

The JetHawks broke a 4-4 tie with 1 in the 9th.... only to see the Storm walk off with the win in the bottom of the inning.

Lancaster was on the board in the 4th as D.J. Fisher ripped a solo homer with 1 out in the 4th. They also got a couple of RBI singles from Jack Mayfield and Jake Nottingham. Mayfield led off the 6th with a walk, advanced to 3rd on a Marc Wik double, and scored on an error that also allowed James Ramsay to reach. Nottingham ripped an RBI double in the 9th that put the JetHawks in the lead at that point. He (2B, 2 RBI), Wik (2B, BB), Mayfield (RBI, 2 BB, 3 R), Fisher (2B, solo HR), and A.J. Reed (BB, R) all finished with 2 hits.

Bryan Radziewski went 4.2 innings and allowed 4 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits, walked 5, and struck out 4. Akeem Bostick extricated him from a bases-loaded situation to end the 5th. Bostick pitched 3.2 innings and allowed 2 runs (1 earned, both in the 9th) on 3 hits and walked 4. The Storm won the game with 1 out in the 9th.

Sunday: Lancaster 9, Lake Elsinore 3

W- Keegan Yuhl (2-0, 3-0 season)
L- Zech Lemond (4-6)

Lancaster home runs: None.

The JetHawks got over their walk-off loss on the 4th by getting ahead 8-0 after the 4th inning. Everyone in the lineup had a hit, led by Jake Nottingham, who clubbed 3 doubles as he's really taken to his new surroundings. I think being closer to home could be a major factor.

Jack Mayfield hit a 1-out double in the 2nd and scored the first run of the evening on an error. Mott Hyde later added a 2-run single. The Sheriff's first double of the night came in the 3rd and drove in a run. He'd score on a Brian Holberton double, and Marc Wik hit an RBI single. Nottingham's 2nd double of the night drove in 2 in the 4th, and his 3rd 2-bagger came in the 6th. He came around to score on an RBI single from Mayfield. The bottom 3 of Mayfield, Holberton, and Wik all had 2 hits apiece. One of their 2 hits was a double and they drove in 1 run each. Holberton scored 2 runs, while the other two scored 1 run. Hyde and D.J. Fisher also finished with 2 hits.

Troy Scribner went 4.2 innings and allowed 3 runs on 5 hits (2-run homer), walked 2, and struck out 4. Keegan Yuhl threw 4.1 scoreless and allowed 2 hits, walked 1, and struck out 3.

Edison Frias will get the start for Lancaster in the final game of this series. He'll take on Ronald Herrera at 6:00 Pacific.

Saturday: Quad Cities 8, Peoria 5 in 11 innings

W- Angel Heredia (3-1)
L- Robby Rowland (2-3)

QC home runs: Ramon Laureano (3, 3-run in 11th)

The Banditos might have been on the road for the 4th, but they brought some fireworks of their own...

Alex Bregman opened up the proceedings by smacking a 2-run double in the 2nd inning. With the bases loaded and 1 out in the 3rd, Bobby Boyd hit a 2-run double of his own. Jamie Ritchie added a sac fly later in the inning. The Chiefs forced extra innings with 3 unanswered runs to force extras, and after both teams went quietly in the 10th, the Bandits mounted an uprising in the 11th.

Bregman led off the 11th with a walk and advanced to 3rd on a Nick Tanielu single. On the throw to 3rd, Tanielu was able to advance to 2nd. Two batters later, Ramon Laureano put Quad Cities in front with a 3-run home run. Laureano is currently on a 9-game hitting streak, and in 7 of those games, he has recorded 2 hits. Bregman and Tanielu finished with 3 hits apiece. Trent Woodward went 2-5 with 2 runs scored. Boyd drew 3 walks.

Christian Powell, who turned 24 on Friday, went 5 innings and allowed 4 runs on 7 hits, walked 2, and struck out 5. Jorge Perez was the first man out; he allowed a run on 4 hits and struck out 2 in 2.1 innings. Angel Heredia was excellent in his 3.2 innings as he only issued 1 walk and struck out 4.

Sunday: Peoria 7, Quad Cities 1

W- Luis Perdomo (4-7)
L- Brandon McNitt (1-3)

QC home runs: None.

The Chiefs spoiled the sweep as they held the Banditos in check.

Trent Woodward scored the only Quad Cities run on an error in the 9th. They were held to 5 singles. Bobby Boyd, who had one of them, stole his 17th base of the season.

Brandon McNitt went 6 innings and allowed 7 runs (6 earned) on 9 hits (2-run homer), walked 5, and struck out 1. Eric Peterson restored some order to the game as he struck out 3 over 2 perfect frames.

The River Bandits' next series with Clinton will also be a split-city series beginning with 2 in the Quad Cities tonight at 7:00. David Paulino will start for the Banditos; he'll take on Tyler Herb.

Saturday: Lowell 6, Tri-City 5

W- Edwar Garcia (2-0)
L- Rogelio Armenteros (0-1)
S- Bobby Poyner (1)

TC home runs: Pat Porter (1, 2-run in 7th)

Tri-City was behind the 8-ball early as they trailed 6-0 after the 3rd. However, they held the Spinners scoreless the rest of the way. Unfortunately... they couldn't complete the comeback as they left the tying run on 2nd, Drew Ferguson, to end the game.

Pat Porter had a hand in all 5 ValleyCats runs. He doubled to lead off the 4th, advanced to 3rd on a Bobby Wernes groundout, and scored on a wild pitch. In the 5th, he smacked a 2-run double, and pulled the ValleyCats to within 1 with his first pro home run.

Rogelio Armenteros was roughed up in his 4 innings as he allowed 6 runs on 6 hits (2-run and 3-run homers) and struck out 5. Elieser Hernandez was absolutely dominant as he allowed just 1 hit and struck out 10 in 4 innings of relief. In his New York-Penn League debut, Zac Grotz threw a 1-2-3 9th inning.

Hernandez has struck out 28 in 15.2 innings. He's hit 2 batters, but is yet to issue a walk.

Sunday: Tri-City 6, Lowell 5 in 14 innings

W- David Schmidt (1-0)
L- Aneudis Peralta (0-1)

TC home runs: None.

The ValleyCats had to shake off 4 Spinners homers as they got even in the series with a 6-5 win of their own.

Tri-City got 2 in the 3rd as Johnny Sewald hit an RBI groundout and Edwin Medina added a sac fly. Pat Porter hit an RBI single in the 4th, and Medina added an RBI double to his ledger in the 5th. At that point, the ValleyCats led 4-1.

But, the Spinners tied the game with 1 run in the 6th, the 7th, and the 8th innings and took the lead with 1 more in the 11th. The ValleyCats stranded the winning run on 3rd to end the 10th, but they needed a run in the 11th to extend the game. Porter led off the 11th with a single, but was erased at 2nd trying to stretch it into a double. Drew Ferguson followed with a double. He advanced to 3rd on a deep flyout from Cesar Carrasco, who was the 2nd out of the inning. Sewald drew a walk to put runners on the corners, and then in a clutch situation, Medina came through and tied the game with an RBI single. However, Tri-City left the winning run on 3rd again. Anthony Hermelyn, who made the final out of the 11th, walked to lead off the 14th. He advanced to 3rd on an error following a sac bunt, and scored the winning run on a Dex McCall single. McCall, Sewald, and Porter finished with 2 hits apiece, while Medina went 3-6 with a stolen base to go along with his 3 RBI.

Trent Thornton went 4 innings and one of the 2 hits he allowed was a solo homer to Alex McKeon in the 3rd. He walked 1 and struck out 5. Scott Weathersby went 2 innings and allowed 2 runs (1 inherited) on 2 hits (solo homer), walked 2, and struck out 2. Zach Davis allowed 2 hits, walked 1, and struck out 2 in the 7th inning. He allowed the runner he inherited from Weathersby to score. Juan Carlos Santos was next; he went 2.2 innings and allowed a solo homer to Victor Acosta in the 8th. That was the only hit he allowed; he walked 2 and struck out 3. Yeyfry Del Rosario went 1.1 innings and allowed a solo homer to Hector Lorenzana in the 11th. He walked 2 and struck out 1. Steve Naemark worked around a hit and a walk to throw a scoreless 12th, and David Schmidt struck out 3 over 2 perfect innings.

In the series finale, Dean Deetz will face Danny Rosenbaum. First pitch is at 7:00 Eastern.

Saturday: Greeneville 10, Elizabethton 3

W- Jose Montero (1-0, 2-0 season)
L- Brandon Easton (0-1)

Greeneville home runs: None.

The Appy Astros went up 10-0 after 4 innings, which was a comfortable enough cushion, even as the Twins dented the lead late.

Junior Garcia allowed a hit, walked 1, and struck out 4 over 4 shutout innings. Jose Montero, in his first appearance since May 21, threw a 1-2-3 5th inning. Ryan Deemes allowed a run on 4 hits and struck out 6 in 3 innings. Brandon Culbreth got 2 outs in the 9th, but Elizabethton got to him for 2 runs on 3 hits. He also walked 2 and struck out 1. Joselo Pinales was able to get the final out of the game before things started snowballing.

Connor Goedert opened up the scoring with an RBI single in the 1st. Osvaldo Duarte ripped a 2-run triple in the 2nd and scored on a Myles Straw single. Randy Cesar doubled to lead off the bottom of the 3rd, and Brauly Mejia brought him home with a single.

Greeneville doubled their lead in the 5th and busted the game wide open. Goedert and Cesar hit back-to-back RBI singles, Ford Stainback added a 2-run single, and Duarte hit a pop fly RBI double. Duarte (2B, 3B, 3 RBI, R), Cesar (2B, RBI, 2 R), Mejia (RBI), Stainback (2 RBI, 2 BB, R), and Aaron Mizell (BB, R) all had 2 hits in this game.

Sunday: Kingsport 5, Greeneville 2

W- Audry German (3-0)
L- Devonte German (0-1)
S- Joe Shaw (2)

Greeneville home runs: None.

The Appy Astros scored the first 2 runs of the game, but the K-Mets finished on a 5-0 run.

Their 2 runs came on a Connor Goedert RBI groundout and an RBI single from Kevin Martir in the 4th. Goedert and Aaron Mizell (3B, R) both finished 2-4. Goedert is hitting an even .500 in the early going.

Makay Nelson allowed a hit and walked 2 over 3 scoreless innings. The only hit that Chris Murphy allowed in his 3 innings was a 2-run homer to Dash Winningham. Murphy walked 1 and struck out 5 in his outing. Devonte German pitched 2 innings and allowed 3 runs on 4 hits (2-run homer) and struck out 1.

In game 2 of this series, Yhoan Acosta will take on Connor Buchmann. First pitch is at 7:00 Eastern.

Saturday: GCL Blue Jays 7, GCL Astros 6

W- Ryan Cook (1-0)
L- Starlyng Sanchez (0-1)
S- Griffin Claude (1)

GCL home runs: None.

The Kissimmee Stros led 6-0 after the 2nd... and saw the Blue Jays erase that.

Kyle Tucker opened the scoring with an RBI triple and scored on a sac fly from Connor MacDonald. Reiny Beltre smashed an RBI triple of his own in the 2nd. He scored on a Nestor Tejada groundout. Vicente Sanchez stole 2nd (3), and on the ensuing error, Joan Mauricio scored. Sanchez himself would score on another error. He finished 2-4.

Enrique Chavez got the start and allowed a run on 5 hits, walked 1, and struck out 3 in 3.1 innings. Diogenes Almengo was the last pitcher to appear for the GCLstros; he walked 1 and struck out 3 in 3 innings.

Saturday: DSL Astros Blue 7, DSL Athletics 1

W- Michel Martinez (3-1)
L- Frederick De La Cruz (0-2)

Blue home runs: None.

Michel Martinez was unstoppable as he struck out 11 over 5 perfect innings. Yoanys Quiala tagged in for 3 innings, allowing a run on 3 hits, walking 1, and striking out 2. Yonatan Quintin struck out 1 in a 1-2-3 9th.

Cristopher Luciano got it started with a 2-run single in the 3rd. Wilson Amador later scored on a wild pitch, and Angel De Leon added an RBI single. The Blue team's next outburst came in the 8th as De Leon added a 2-run single to his ledger, and Edgar Lorenzo drove him in with a double. Luciano, De Leon, and Lorenzo had 2 hits apiece; they accounted for 6 of the Blue team's 7 hits.

Saturday: DSL Astros Orange 6, DSL Nationals 4

W- Diosward Gonzalez (1-0)
L- Gilberto Chu (0-1)
S- Josue Uribe (3)

Orange home runs: None.

The Orange team scored 6 unanswered for the win.

Juan Fuente hit an RBI single in the 5th, Marcos Almonte smashed a 2-run double in the 7th, and in the 8th, Miguelangel Sierra whacked a 2-run triple and scored on a wild pitch. Almonte finished 3-5.

Diosward Gonzalez walked 1 in a scoreless 8th for his first career win in his first career appearance.