Roster Moves

A couple of these are a few days old, but I didn't see them at the time.

Oklahoma City

OF Austin Wates placed on the 7-day DL on 6/2

Corpus Christi

SS Ben Orloff released

Greg Rajan ‏@GregRajan

#cchooks roster move: IF Ben Orloff has left #Astros organization to pursue other opportunities.

Lancaster

LHP Blair Walters placed on the 7-day DL on 6/3

Quad Cities

2B Ruben Sosa assigned to Quad Cities

DSL Astros

SS Daniel Aquino activated

Astros Minor League Recaps

Tuesday's Games

Albuquerque over Oklahoma City 10-2
Can we just say that it wasn't a good day for RedHawks pitching and leave it at that? Philip Humber, C.J. Fick and Rhiner Cruz combined to allow ten runs (six earned) in seven innings. Three 'Hawks errors and three hit batters didn't exactly help. Kevin Chapman was the lone pitcher who remained unscathed as he struck out all three batters faced in the eighth inning. The OKC bats remained mostly silent with the only runs coming on a Brandon Laird RBI double in the fifth and a Cody Clark RBI single in the sixth. Jake Elmore was two-for-five and Brett Wallace was three-for-four with a walk.

Corpus Christi over Midland 9-5
Jake Buchanan pitched five innings to get his seventh win of the season. The bad news is that Jake's ERA SKYROCKETED all the way to 0.85 as he allowed two runs (one earned) in his outing. Carlos Quevedo followed with two runs in two and a third innings, both runs allowed to score under Sergio Escalona's watch. Kenny Long gave up a solo home run in the ninth as his only hit. The Hooks led from the second inning on and never fell behind. There were several strong offensive outings, including Ben Orloff (4x5 2B 2R), Jose Martinez (3x5 3RBI 2R SB), Domingo Santana (2x5 2RBI R), Erik Castro (1x4 2B BB RBI 2R), Jonathan Meyer (2x3 BB RBI R), and Drew Muren (2x2 SB). In Jason Maxwell's first rehab appearance at Corpus Christi, he was hitless in three at-bats, reached base on a fielding error, stole a base and scored a run.

Stockton over Lancaster 4-2
Lancaster dropped the second in a row to Stockton as the JetHawks' offensive output consisted of six singles and two walks. Aaron West got the start and the loss as he allowed three runs (via a three-run home run) on five hits in five innings, and T.J. Geith allowed the final run in his one and a third innings. Michael Dimock finished it off with one and two-thirds scoreless. The JetHawks' only two runs came in the fourth on a Brandon Meredith RBI single and a Telvin Nash sac fly as a two-on, no-out opportunity in the eighth was wasted. Andrew Aplin was two-for-four and scored a run and Chris Epps was two-for-three.

Quad Cities - Off Day

DSL Astros over DSL Red Sox 2-0
Talk about a pitchers duel. Each team allowed only four hits in the game with Edwin Villarroel (5IP 3H 3SO), Josela Pinales (3IP 1H 1BB 3SO) and Harold Arauz (1IP 0H) combining to shut out the Red Sox. The Astros got one run in the first as Jean Estrella was hit by a pitch, stole second, advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a ground out. The final run in the seventh was scored a bit more conventionally as Hector Roa tripled and then scored on a Jesus Bermejo single.

Player of the Day: I think it appropriate that Ben Orloff went four-for-five on the day that my interview with The Man. The Myth. The Legend. The Wizard. posted. I know it's not the Brooks Wallace award, but it is one more honor to burnish the legend of The Wizard.

Pitcher of the Day: Write this day down. Jake Buchanan pitched last night and he is not going to be my Pitcher of the Day for the day he pitched for the first time since April. I have got to give all the WTHB love to LHP Edwin Villarroel with the DSL Astros. Villarroel was one of the few bright spots for a DSL team that was (how shall we say this delicately?) a little difficult to write about positively last season. Villarroel could make it a lot more fun to write about this team in 2013 if he keeps shoving like this.

An Interview with Ben Orloff

Ah, Ben Orloff. I was first intrigued by the man last season when this series of tweets came out. The Wizard. The Man. The Myth. The Legend. It turns out that Ben isn't the easiest guy to get to know. And I felt like a Stalkerazzi just trying to get a picture of him. It always seemed like he was extremely conscious of me and my camera, and it made me feel like I did when I tried to sneak a photo of the indigenous people of Ecuador, like I was rudely invading their sacred space. Yes, I was a little bit in awe of The Wizard.

When I told my friend Lee Street that I was going to try to interview Orloff when I was in Corpus Christi, Lee responded in hushed, reverential tones, "You mean the winner of the 2009 Brooks Wallace Award for the best college shortstop in the nation?" When I answered in the affirmative, I sensed a new-found respect from Lee for my courage in approaching The Man. The Myth. The Legend. The Wizard.

Ben is having a solid season at the plate, but it is his defense that earned him the nickname of The Wizard, bestowed upon him by Adam Bailey and Kiké Hernandez during the 2010 Tri-City season. Of Orloff, Corpus Christi Manager Keith Bodie told me, "Ben is a manager's dream. He's like having a coach on the field. He's a very heads up player and gets the most out of his ability. He just seems to be in the right place all the time and he does the right thing all the time, makes solid contact. He knows how to hit. He knows the situations."

Ben Orloff - May 2013

Photo by Jayne Hansen

I caught up with The Wizard over the Memorial Day weekend in Corpus. This is what he had to say (edited for brevity and clarity) ~

On playing for the Israeli team in the World Baseball Classic: "It was cool. We were out there in Jupiter at the Cardinals and Marlins spring training [facility]. Lots of good guys. Lot of guys we play against. Brad Ausmus was the manager, Gabe Kapler, Shawn Green, Mark Loretta, Andrew Lorraine, just awesome guys. It was also cool [that] we got to meet the Israeli national team. We got to hang out with those guys and hear what Israel's like and [we] met a lot of cool people too."

What has he accomplished and what is he working on?: "It's still early in the season. For me, what's been different this year is playing a lot of positions a lot early in the year. I've always played mostly short, a little bit of second, a little bit of third. This year I've played a little bit of short, a little bit of second, a little bit of third, a little bit of first, some DH, so it's been cool that way getting to play all four spots and kind of show that I can play all four spots, learn those positions and go out there and compete."

On the great Corpus defense: "Being an infielder, we try to take pride in our defense because that's a big part of the game. That's hopefully something that can show up 140 games [because] you're not always going to get three hits a night. So we just try to take pride in our defense. It's been a lot of fun on this team because we've got some guys, especially in the infield that can really catch it. Kiké [Hernandez], Johnny [Meyer], Jio [Mier], all those guys have been unbelievable so it's just fun to be part of that infield and take pride in doing that."

Any player on the team that he likes to sit back and watch?: "I think George Springer is pretty impressive and he's called Superman for a reason. He can just do things that you don't see many people do. He's a lot of fun to watch. And Johnny Meyer at third, it's a Web Gem a night. He's a lot of fun to watch too. I've known him since he was five years old so it's cool to play with him and see him play. [He] and my little brother are the same age and have played together since they were five."

What Astros pitcher would he least like to face?: "Paul Clemens is good. He's really good. He's a low to mid-90's guy, a big curveball, good changeup that he throws a lot. You don't see a lot of right-on-right changeups and he's got a good one so he's always a tough matchup in Spring Training."

How does he like Corpus Christi?: "This place is awesome. I love this place. The fans are awesome. First class stadium. I played at Round Rock in college and this is just like that place, first class, beautiful.The people who work here ... it's first class. I love it."

Something most people don't know about him: "I love college baseball and follow it all the time still right now, checking all the boxscores every day. That's what I want to be involved with when I'm done playing ... coaching somewhere in college."

Keith Bodie had some final words for me regarding Orloff, "If you look up the word baseball player in the dictionary, you would find Ben Orloff's name. He's an outstanding ballplayer." Jio Mier agrees with that assessment. As I was finishing up my interview with Jio, Orloff appeared outside the studio where we were speaking. I asked Mier about Orloff since I had already sensed that Ben would be reluctant to talk about himself. Jio told me, "He is Mr. Baseball. If there's one guy I look up to in this organization, it's [Orloff] by a landslide."

I'm not sure that I really got to know Ben any better, but his reputation was certainly solidified by what I saw from him on the field and by what others had to say about him. He may not be quite as remote and esoteric as the natives of Ecuador, but he is still a bit of an enigma to me. The Man. The Myth. The Legend. The Wizard.

Happy Birthday - 4/26

Happy Birthday to ~

SS/2B Ben Orloff (26)
Drafted by Houston in the ninth round in 2009 out of UC Irvine, the California native split his 2012 season between Lancaster and Corpus Christi and hit a very solid .290/.361/.327. But it is Orloff's defense and leadership on the field that set him apart. In 15 games at Corpus Christi in 2013, he is hitting .293/.380/.317.

Former Astros with birthdays today ~

RHP Mike Scott (58)
Originally drafted by the Mets in the second round in 1976, Scott came to Houston in a trade for OF/1B Danny Heep in December of 1982. In 263 games pitched for Houston from 1983 to 1991, he was 110-81 with a 3.30 ERA and a 1.144 WHIP. But it was the magical 1986 season that made Scott a Houston folk hero as he won the Cy Young Award and went 18-10 with a 2.22 ERA and a 0.923 over 275.1 innings pitched. And there was the little matter of clinching the NL West by pitching a no-hitter.

In the NLCS that season, Scott was 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA and a 0.500 WHIP with 19 strikeouts. If the series had gone to seven games, Scott would have been the pitcher. Any Astros fan who was alive at the time (and most Met fans, if they're being honest) know in their hearts that it would have been the Astros facing the Red Sox in the World Series that year if Scott had gotten that opportunity.

IF Geoff Blum (40)

Blum played for Houston during two stints, in 2002 and 2003 and again in 2008 to 2010. A seventh round draft pick by the Expos in 1994, he first came to Houston in a trade with the Expos for 3B Chris Truby before being traded away two years later to Tampa Bay for RHP Brandon Backe. The second time around Blum signed as a free agent. In a total of 580 games for Houston, he hit .259/.317/.394. Most Astros fans have a love-hate relationship with Blum. He was a very popular player in Houston, but he also hit a game-deciding home run against the Astros in the World Series in 2005 so there's that. He finished his career playing for the Diamondbacks in 2012 and is currently (allegedly) a television announcer for the Astros, reportedly broadcasting on some network called CSN Houston, but I have no way of independently verifying that since I have DirecTV.

2B Steve Lombardozzi Sr. (53)

Originally drafted by the Twins in the ninth round in 1981, Lombardozzi played in 23 games for the Astros in 1989 and 1990, hitting .211/.302/.421.

SS/RF Leon McFadden (69)

McFadden played in 62 games for Houston over 1968 to 1970, hitting only .215/.275/.240 before being traded to the Cardinals in June 1970.

RHP Scott Strickland (37)

A tenth round pick by the Expos in 1997, Strickland only pitched for Houston in five games in 2005 with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.000 WHIP.

Astros Minor League Depth - Shortstop

Over the next few weeks as we approach Spring Training, I'll be looking at the Astros minor league depth, position by position. Today, we look at the shortstops in the organization who had the best seasons in 2012.

The embedded chart shows shortstops in the organization ranked from high to low in terms of OBP. I have noted their current age, the last level at which they played and, if they spent significant time at multiple positions, that information is included as well. I am including Jake Elmore's minor league numbers since he is new to the system so that you can see how his 2012 minor league numbers compare.

Nolan Fontana leapfrogged rookie league and short season A ball in his first season and went directly to playing for the full season Lexington club where he led the organization in OBP thanks to 65 walks in only 49 games. He will ultimately have to show more aggressiveness at the plate, but it was a solid first season by any measure. Jake Elmore and Ben Orloff also showed very patient approaches at the plate. Both players drew walks more often than they struck out in 2012.

Carlos Correa had an uneven season thanks to a slow start with the GCL team. However, once he got to Greeneville, he turned on the afterburners and hit .371/.450/.600 in his final 11 games and exhibited stellar defensive capabilities. Another young player to watch is Luis Reynoso. Reynoso was one of the few bright spots offensively on the DSL team in 2012. He just turned 18 in September as did Correa.

Jonathan Villar was having a good season offensively and appeared to be catching up to AA pitching when his fist came out on the losing side after an unfortunate encounter with a door. The tools are there, but he still has a ways to go, both offensively and defensively. But one thing he has a very good feel for is the stolen base. He swiped 39 bags in 86 games and was caught only eight times. Another player exhibiting some wheels was Joe Sclafani. In his first season in the organization he stole 16 bases in 70 games and was caught three times.

Jiovanni Mier was having a great comeback season when injury put a large dent in his season. He came back strong after the injury, though, and continued his progress with a very successful Arizona Fall League season. Alex Todd was one of the players to fill in for Mier; he put up good numbers at Lancaster after starting the season in Lexington. [UPDATE: After posting this, I found out that Alex Todd retired from baseball during the off-season.]

Monday: First Base
Tuesday: Second Base
Coming Thursday: Third Base

World Baseball Classic Qualifier Update

Well, the modified double elimination format didn't work in Team Israel's favor as Team Israel was eliminated Sunday after their only loss to Team Spain. Ben Orloff didn't see any action in this game, but Josh Zeid was used in all three games of the tournament for Team Israel.

Israel took an early lead but Spain fought back, taking a short-lived lead in the fourth inning and another one run lead in the eighth. Team Israel came back to tie it up in the bottom of the eighth. Josh Zeid came in to get three quick outs in the ninth and the game went to extras. In the top of the 10th, the Israeli catcher was ejected after Zeid issued a lead-off walk and then the wheels came off as a hit batter, sac bunt and a single led to two Team Spain runs. Israel wasn't able to come back in the bottom of the frame and that was pretty much that.

One side note. The 10-inning game was played in a crisp four hours and fifty minutes. It was an exciting game, but if this is the future of baseball around the world, God help us all.

The final game from this round of qualifiers will be at noon CST today and features Canada and Germany. The next qualifying rounds will be in November in Panama and Taiwan.

World Baseball Classic Qualifying Rounds Update

Corpus Christi Hooks LHP Alex Sogard saw action in the second game for the Czech Republic. In a video interview last week, Sogard talked about his mother's Czechoslovakian heritage and how excited he was to represent her on the Czech team. And represent he did! Sogard pitched three and two-thirds innings in relief and allowed one run on two hits with three strikeouts in the Czech team's loss to Great Britain. Unfortunately, it was the Czech team's second loss so Alex will be heading home from Regensburg, Germany where this qualifying round took place.

Long-time Astros minor league followers might be interested to know that former Astro Albert Cartwright played for the British team and went 3-for-5 in yesterday's game. And Another former Astro has been making news in Regensburg for the Canadian team. Jimmy VanOstrand went 4-for-6 with two home runs, five RBI and scored three times in Team Canada's win over Germany yesterday.

Astros Josh Zeid and Ben Orloff will take part in the final qualifying round for Team Israel today in Jupiter, Florida. Team Israel is undefeated and will take on Team Spain for the second time in the tournament. Israel defeated Spain on Friday 4-2 in, as one very clever tweeter said, payback for the Spanish Inquisition. If you want to root on Team Israel, you can follow their game on the World Baseball Classic site live at 4:00 CST or watch the delay on MLB network at 7:00 CST this evening.

World Baseball Classic Qualifying Rounds Update

Israel won out over Spain 4-2 to advance to the final qualifying round which will take place on Sunday at 4:00 CST and can be seen live on the WBC website. Astros RHP Josh Zeid pitched the ninth inning and had to work around a lead-off double. He gave up one run on one hit and earned the save. 2B Ben Orloff also saw action in the game and went 0-for-3.

2013 World Baseball Classic Qualifying Rounds

The 2013 World Baseball Classic Qualifying rounds start next week and we have three Astros minor leaguers participating in those rounds. (For more info on the WBC, go here.)

Team Israel will be competing in Qualifying Round 1 in Jupiter, Florida (along with France, South Africa and Spain) from September 19th to the 23rd. Brad Ausmus' Roster will include SS/2B Ben Orloff and RHP Josh Zeid. Orloff split his time this season between Lancaster and Corpus Christi and ended the season hitting a combined .290/.361/.327 with a .975 fielding percentage. Zeid spent the season working out of the Corpus Christi Hooks bullpen. In 47 appearances, Zeid was 2-0 with a 5.59 ERA and a 1.367 WHIP with 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

The Czech Republic team will be competing in Qualifying Round 2 in Regensburg, Germany (along with Canada, Germany and Great Britain) from September 20th to September 24th. LHP Alex Sogard will be included on the roster for the Czech team. After a handful of games in Lancaster this season, Sogard was promoted to Corpus Christi. In 39 total appearances out of the bullpen between the two venues, he was 3-3 with a 3.62 ERA and a 1.597 WHIP.

Former Astro farmhands Jimmy VanOstrand and Albert Cartwright will be playing for the Canadian and Great Britain teams, respectively.

Corpus Christi Hooks Season Recap

So far we have looked at the seasons for the DSL Astros, the GCL Astros, the Greeneville Astros, the Lexington Legends, and the Oklahoma City Redhawks. Now let's take a look at the AA Corpus Christi Hooks. Here's a quick look at how the 2011 and 2012 teams compare.

2011 Wins-Losses/Win Percentage: 50-90/.357
2012 Wins-Losses/Win Percentage: 81-59/.579

2011 Runs Scored - Runs Allowed = Run Differential: 605 - 761 = (156)
2012 Runs Scored - Runs Allowed = Run Differential: 736 - 628 = 108

2011 Team ERA & WHIP: 5.01 & 1.460
2012 Team ERA & WHIP: 4.07 & 1.332

2011 Team Batting Line: .258/.320/.388
2012 Team Batting Line: .268/.342/.410

This team not only won 31 more games than last season, they also had a 264-run swing in their run differential and made their first post-season appearance since 2006. I knew they would be a better team than last season, but Wow! In the Texas League, Corpus ranked first (out of eight teams) in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, runs, hits, doubles and RBI.

Let's look at just a few of the outstanding position players for the Corpus team.

1B Jon Singleton finished the regular season hitting .284/.396/.497 with 27 doubles, four triples and 21 home runs. He was second in the league in walks and runs, and in the top 10 in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, doubles, home runs and RBI.

The triumverate of 2B Jose Martinez, OF Austin Wates and OF Jake Goebbert tied for fourth in the league in batting average. Martinez' .304/.362/.464 was good enough to land him in the top 10 in the league in SLG and OPS, and although he was at Oklahoma City for the final 23 games of the season, he was still in the top 10 in runs and RBI. Wates was tenth in the league in OBP with a batting line of .304/.375/.429. Goebbert quietly went about hitting fourth in the league in OBP, sixth in OPS and eighth in SLG as he hit .304/.399/.473 with 23 doubles, six triples and nine home runs. 3B Andy Simunic (.297/.349/.345) also ranked in the top 10 in batting average.

I will look at CF George Springer and 2B Kike Hernandez when I look at the Lancaster team since they played the majority of the season there, and we'll see how their stats stacked up in the California League.

Other players of note include SS Ben Orloff who only played in 39 games for the Hooks after playing the bulk of the season in Lancaster. He hit .295/.360/.352 at Corpus and .288/.362/.316 at Lancaster. And OF Drew Locke, playing in 68 games for the Hooks after a June pick-up, hit .295/.347/.456 and, it should be noted, provided the fans with a little extra excitement as he hit grand slams in back-to-back games.

As far as pitchers go, there were several very good pitchers for Corpus Christi who were promoted to Oklahoma City (Jarred Cosart, Jose Cisnero and Brett Oberholtzer) and I looked at their seasons in conjunction with the Oklahoma City season recap. However, one other starter at Corpus who came into his own this season was RHP Ross Seaton. Seaton was young for the Texas League last season. It showed at times and he repeated the level. In 25 starts for the Hooks this season, he was 8-8 with a 4.07 ERA (11th in the league among qualified pitchers) and a 1.274 WHIP (tied for 6th) and was also 7th in strikeouts. He dipped a toe in with four starts at Oklahoma City and was 0-1 with a 3.09 ERA and a 1.329 WHIP in those starts.

The relief corps was dominated by the one-two punch of LHP Kevin Chapman and RHP Jason Stoffel who pitched many an eighth and ninth innings for the Hooks with great results. Chapman was 6-3 with a 2.64 ERA and a 1.397 WHIP in 49 appearances while Stoffel was 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA, a 0.982 WHIP and a league-leading 27 saves in 56 appearances.

In limited time for the Hooks, newcomers RHP Asher Wojciechowski and RHP Matt Heidenreich had good results. Wojciechowski was 2-2 in eight starts with a 2.06 ERA and a 1.008 WHIP while Heidenreich was 3-1 with a 3.93 ERA and a 1.340 WHIP in eight games (seven starts). RHP Paul Clemens also fared well in his return to Corpus, after struggling in Oklahoma City this season, as he went 3-2 with a 3.98 ERA and a 1.248 WHIP in seven starts to end the season. I will look at RHP Bobby Doran in conjunction with the Lancaster recap.

Although the playoffs were disappointing, LHP Rob Rasmussen's performance was outstanding as he pitched seven shutout innings with a 1.143 WHIP.

I will look at the final two teams, Lancaster and Tri-City, when they finish post-season play.

Minor League Recaps

Sunday's Results

Greeneville Astros 0 Princeton Rays 1

Let's call this what it was, a pitcher's duel—with an emphasis on the plural.  There were a total of 8 pitchers used in the game by both teams and Greeneville used 4.  Lance McCullers (0-1) got the start for the Astros and after going 4 innings took the tough loss after allowing 1 run on 2 hits, walking 1 and striking out 2. Joseph Musgrove came on for the next 3 and a third frames with just 4 hits and 6 Ks.  Even though there wasn't much going at the plate for Greeneville on Sunday Carlos Correa (2X3, 2B, BB) and Ariel Ovando (2X4) both managed multi-hit games.  Correa collected his 12th double all year and the first since his Greenville call-up.

Tri-City ValleyCats 6 Staten Island Yankees 5

Tri-City was in control of this game almost the entire time even though the score might suggest otherwise.  Jamaine Cotton worked an okay sixth inning but had an uncharacteristically bumpy time after coming out for the seventh.  Cotton ended up being charged with 4 runs (3ER) on 2 hits, walking 4 and striking out 1.  Brady Rodgers (6-2), who started the game, pitched 5 innings, allowed 1 run on 3 hits, walked 1, struck out 3 and earned his sixth win of the year.  Travis Ballew came on for the ninth and earned his second save, giving up a lone hit.  M.P. Cokinos continued to swing the bat well Sunday, going 2 for 4 with a double, triple, 2 RBI and a walk.  Preston Tucker was hot on his heels, batting 2 for 5 with a double and his 5th homer of the season.

Lancaster JetHawks 3 San Jose Giants 2

Lancaster didn't get on the board until later in the game Sunday, but when they did it forced the opposition's starting pitcher out of the game.  Coupled with the fact that Lancaster pitching allowed no runs outside the second inning, it made for a significant win on the road at Municipal Stadium.  David Martinez (7-4) got the start and the win, pitching seven strong innings, allowing 2 runs on 7 hits, walking 1 and striking out 5.  Jorge De Leon picked up his fourth save after coming on for the last out in the ninth, an inning that saw 3 pitchers for Lancaster.  De Leon fanned the 1 batter he faced, moving his season K total to 52.

Springfield Cardinals 9 Corpus Christi Hooks 20

It's baseball 101.  If there's a chance the opponent might hang 9 runs on your team, bring 20 of your own to the ballpark for good measure.  The Hooks scored 12 runs in the sixth inning but the offense didn't start there.  With 2 outs in the bottom of the first, Jonathan Singleton and Drew Locke homered back-to-back to get Corpus Christi on the board.  Singleton would homer again in the eighth inning, this time a 3-run shot to left center field.  Ben Orloff went 5 for 5 with a triple, double and 4 RBIs.  Austin Wates came into the game in the sixth inning and ended up 3 for 3 with a double and 2 RBI.  Alex Sogard (BS 2, 3-1) picked up the blown save and the win after giving up a run on a hit in the sixth inning.  Matthew Heidenreich started the game and through 5 and third was charged with 5 runs on 5 hits (3ER), K-ing 3. 

In case your curious what the box looked like after a game like this, here it is:

Sacramento River Cats 3 Oklahoma City RedHawks 1

The RedHawks offense was stifled a little on Sunday and they went down for their ninth loss in a row.  Not stifled however, was Julio Daniel Martinez, who batted 4 for 5 with a double.  Overall, the RedHawks left 13 on the bases and the team RISP was 0 for 7.  Matt Downs (2X3) scored the lone run with a long ball over center field as the first batter in the fourth inning.  Downs also drew a walk. Ross Seaton (0-1) took the loss but had a good outing despite it.  Seaton was charged with 2 runs (1ER) on 6 hits, walked 2 and struck out 3. 

Player of The Day:  Ben Orloff is the man today for his work yesterday.  Orloff went 5 for 5, which isn't nearly as easy to do as it is to say.  It also marks 6 consecutive hits for Orloff and ties the team record for hits in a game.

Pitcher of the Day:  I'm going to go slightly against convention and give the honor to Jorge De Leon today.  Here's why:  the two Lancaster pitchers that preceded him in the ninth inning Sunday both walked a batter, meaning the go ahead run was already on base when De Leon came into the game with 2 outs.  De Leon, unfazed,  then finished it out for his team in style, striking that last batter out swinging.     

             

       

Tweet of the Day

Enrique Hernandez ‏@kikehndez

tribute to my roomie! ‪#thewiz‬ ‪#Ocaptain‬ ‪#mrbaseball‬ ‪#BO6‬pic.twitter.com/IMD3em3u

Roster Moves - Updated

Houston
SS Marwin Gonzalez was activated from the DL.
SS Jed Lowrie was placed on the 15-day DL.
C Carlos Corporan was put on the 40-man roster and assigned from Oklahoma City to Houston.
C Jason Castro was placed on the 15-day DL.
RHP Kyle Weiland was placed on the 60-day DL.

Oklahoma City
C Jair (Jay) Fernandez was assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City.
RHP Jonnathan Aristil was placed on the temporary inactive list.
2B Jimmy Paredes was activated from the temporary inactive list.

Corpus Christi
C Rene Garcia was assigned from Lancaster to Corpus Christi.
RHP Jarred Cosart was activated from the DL.
SS Jonathan Villar was placed on the 7-day DL.
SS Ben Orloff was assigned from Lancaster to Corpus Christi.

Lancaster
RHP Bobby Doran was assigned from Corpus Christi to Lancaster.
SS Chan Moon was assigned from Lexington to Lancaster.
UNCONFIRMED report that C Roberto Pena is being assigned from Lexington to Lancaster.

Lexington
Jay Austin was activated from the DL.
UPDATED TO ADD: C Luis Alvarez was assigned from Greeneville to Lexington.

Greeneville
2B Josh Magee was released.
LHP Zach Hardoin was released.
One I missed - RHP Jose Perdomo was released a couple of weeks ago.

Tweets of the Day

Adam scott bailey ‏ @abailey025

@erikbcastro having lunch with(the wizard) very rare I will take a pic if I can.

Rafael Valenzuela ‏ @RafyValenzuela

@abailey025 @erikbcastro eating knowledge

Adam scott bailey ‏ @abailey025

Eating with the wizard aka mr baseball aka Ben orloffhttp://pic.twitter.com/oowztOsA

Alex Sogard ‏ @ASoggyBottom

@abailey025 I'm so jealous! #themanthemyththelegend

Rafael Valenzuela ‏ @RafyValenzuela

@abailey025 wonder what he's thinking about...

Minor League Schedule and Results

MONDAY'S GAMES

Oklahoma City at Omaha at 11:05 a.m. CST
Probable Pitchers: RHP Paul Clemens (2-2, 4.50) and LHP Everett Teaford (0-0, 0.00)
Available on MiLB.tv

Lexington at Asheville at 6:05 CST
Probable Pitchers:  RHP Michael Foltynewicz (4-1, 1.62) and RHP Ben Alsup (4-0, 3.98)

San Antonio at Corpus Christi at 8:05 CST
Probable Pitchers: LHP Juan Oramas (1-4, 8.46) and LHP Wes Musick (0-0, -.--)
Available on MiLB.tv

Bakersfield at Lancaster at 9:00 CST
Probable Pitchers: TBD and Zach Grimmett (1-2, 7.18)

SUNDAY'S RESULTS

Asheville over Lexington 8-5
Luis Ordosgoitti pitched two terrific innings which were unfortunately followed by 1.2 really tough innings. Ordosgoitti ended up giving up 11 hits, seven runs (6 earned) and two home runs to go with his five strikeouts. Nathan Pettus (one run allowed in 3.1 innings) and Euris Quezada got things under control, but the Legends were never able to catch up. And that is really a shame because there were several very nice days at the plate from Legends hitters - John Hinson (2x5, HR), Matt Duffy (3x4, 2B, RBI), Alex Todd (2x4, BB) and Mike Kvasnicka (2x5, 2-run HR).

Omaha over Oklahoma City 10-7
Henry Sosa had a rough outing, but Juan Abreu was handed the opportunity for a win and allowed a three-run home run instead. Scott Moore and Justin Ruggiano contributed home runs and Brett Wallace had a 3x5 two RBI day. Ruggiano, Mike Hessman and Fernando Martinez each had two hits. The worst part of this loss was that Ruggiano's home run in the top of the ninth tied it up, only to have OKC get the loss in relief in the bottom of the inning.

San Antonio over Corpus Christi 10-0
This was the eighth loss in a row. I really do not understand why a team with this much talent is imploding this badly even in the tough Texas League. Jake Buchanan (L, 1-2) got touched for seven runs on nine hits in only four innings. Jose Martinez and Jonathan Villar each had two hits with Andy Simunic getting the only other hit. T.J. Steele was 0-2 and is now hitting .157.

GAME OF THE DAY
Lancaster over Stockton 6-2

What went right:  A stellar debut by Tyson Perez and multi-hit games by several of the Jethawks hitters.

Tyson Perez was mentioned by Baseball America as being one of the better late round draft signings by the Astros in 2011. In his first start after being called up from extended Spring Training, he showed just why BA thought that. Ben Orloff had a monster day at the plate as he filled in for Jio Mier at short and is now hitting .321. Lancaster got to .500 with this win, the fourth in a row, and is now in third place in their division, only 1.5 games behind the leader.

Tyson Perez (W, 1-0) - 6IP 2H 0R 0BB 4SO 1HR
Gabriel Garcia - 0.2IP 3H 1R
Jose Trinidad - 1.1IP 0H 0R 1SO
Kirk Clark - 1IP 0H 0R 1SO

Ben Orloff - 3x5 3RBI SB
George Springer - 2x5
Domingo Santana - 2x5 HR
Adam Bailey - 2x5 2B 2R SB
Jonathan Meyer - 2x4 2R SB

What went wrong: Other than a Meyer throwing error and a GIDP by Orloff, there wasn't much to complain about in this one.

PITCHER OF THE DAY
Tyson Perez for a terrific debut. Watch this guy!

PLAYER OF THE DAY
The only 3RBI day belongs to Ben Orloff so Orloff it is.

Adam scott bailey ‏ @abailey025

Off day today and ben orloff aka the wizard is takin bp and groundballs baseball never sleeps with him.

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