Happy Birthday - 2/5

Happy Birthday to ~

LHP Colton Cain (24)
An eighth round draft pick by the Pirates in 2009, Cain came to Houston in the July 2012 Wandy Rodriguez trade. Cain started and ended the season in Corpus, making a few rehab starts in the GCL in between (after spending about six weeks on the DL). In a total of 17 games (nine starts), he had a 5.29 ERA and a 1.825 WHIP.

These former Astros also celebrate the day ~

OF Norm Miller (69)
Drafted by Houston from the Angels in the 1964 first-year draft, Norm Miller didn't exactly put up Hall of Fame numbers in his nine seasons (1965-1973) for Houston with a .240/.322/.355 batting line, but the converted second baseman (some guy named Joe Morgan had that job) does have some interesting stories to tell about his life in baseball.  His 2009 book To All My Fans From Norm Who? is more of a collection of anecdotes than a real memoir, but for any Astros fan, those anecdotes constitute a nice glimpse of the early days of the Astros organization.

OF Lee Thomas (79)
Thomas came to Houston in a February 1968 trade and played in 90 games for the Astros toward the end of his career, hitting .194/.249/.229. His best season was his All-Star year in 1962 when he played for the Angels. Thomas was the GM of the Phillies from 1988 to 1997 and was followed by some guy named Ed Wade.

Also, Happy Birthday to the naming inspiration for my blog, former Astros Scouting Director Bobby Heck.

Tweet of the Day

I will do anything for cookies. That includes treading water for 30 minutes in the pool. Thanks for the bet @ColtCain45
— Aaron West (@Snacks_31) May 29, 2014

Happy Birthday - 2/5

Happy Birthday to ~

RHP Raul Rivera (23)
Drafted in the 37th round in 2009 out of high school in Puerto Rico, Rivera had an excellent season out of the bullpen for the GCL Astros and then the Greeneville Astros in the Appy League. In 21 appearances, he had a 2.48 ERA and a 1.102 WHIP. He struck out 30 while walking only five in 32+ innings.

LHP Colton Cain (23)
An eighth round draft pick by the Pirates in 2009, Cain came to Houston in the July 2012 Wandy Rodriguez trade. After a rough April, Cain settled in nicely to put up a 3.88 ERA and a 1.401 WHIP between Quad Cities and Lancaster. Throw out his April numbers and he had a 2.78 ERA and a 1.247 WHIP the rest of the way.

Former Astros with birthdays today ~

OF Norm Miller (68)
Drafted by Houston from the Angels in the 1964 first-year draft, Norm Miller didn't exactly put up Hall of Fame numbers in his nine seasons (1965-1973) for Houston with a .240/.322/.355 batting line, but the converted second baseman (some guy named Joe Morgan had that job) does have some interesting stories to tell about his life in baseball.  His 2009 book To All My Fans From Norm Who? is more of a collection of anecdotes than a real memoir, but for any Astros fan, those anecdotes constitute a nice glimpse of the early days of the Astros organization.

OF Lee Thomas (78)
Thomas came to Houston in a February 1968 trade and played in 90 games for the Astros toward the end of his career, hitting .194/.249/.229. His best season was his All-Star year in 1962 when he played for the Angels. Thomas was the GM of the Phillies from 1988 to 1997 and was followed by some guy named Ed Wade.

Also, Happy Birthday to the naming inspiration for my blog, former Astros Scouting Director Bobby Heck.

Astros Minor League Recaps

Saturday's Games

-Jayne has already posted her daily, updated look at the playoff situation for the minor league affiliates here.

Kingsport Mets, Greeneville Astros
-Postponed due to rain.  

Tri-City Valley Cats 2, Lowell Spinners 5

The Valley Cats moved to half a game behind the lead in their division after this loss on Saturday. Adrian Houser (0-4) had the start and through the first four and one-third innings he tallied five runs (4 ER) on seven hits, walked one and K-ed a pair, taking the loss. Chris Munnelly and Evan Grills combined to allow only one hit after Houser left in the fifth frame, but the offense did not catch up. After the fifth inning, Tri-City had one hit and drew five walks. Ronnie Mitchell (2X3 BB SO) was the only Valley Cat with more than one hit in the game. Tyler White (1X5 2RBI) drove in both of his team's runs in the fifth inning with an RBI single.

Beloit Snappers 5, Quad Cities River Bandits 4

The River Bandits got off to a good start, then Beloit scored three runs in the sixth and turned the tables, ending Quad Cities winning streak at four games. Juan Minaya started things off on the mound. After five frames of work, Minaya left with two runs on three hits (HR), a walk and five Ks. Richard Rodriguez (0-1) pitched the remaining four innings, picking up his first blown save and the loss. Rodriguez allowed three runs on four hits, walked one an struck out three. With two outs in the third inning Carlos Correa (2X4 R HR 3RBI 2SO) connected for a three-run homer. Anthony Kemp collected a couple of hits, finishing at two-for-four with a run scored and a strikeout.

Lancaster JetHawks 3, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 4 (10)

For the second night in a row Lancaster saw extra innings, but this time the JetHawks would not be victorious as they were not able to score after the fourth inning on Saturday. Lancaster got off to a strong start in the second frame when Chris Epps (1X4 R 2B SO) launched his 14th home run of the year, a two-run shot that scored Brandon Meredith, into right. Meredith (2X4 R RBI 2SO) drove in their last run of the game in the fourth with an RBI single. Colton Cain threw seven innings in his start, allowing two runs (1 ER) on five hits and striking out seven along the way. Michael Dimock (4-1) pitched the final two innings and would take his first loss after Gera Sanchez (2H R 2SO) picked up the blown save in the eighth. Dimock gave up a run on two hits, walked a pair and struck out two.  

San Antonio Missions 9, Corpus Christi Hooks 10

The Hooks were down nine to six before scoring four runs in the bottom of the ninth to win this game in walk-off fashion in front of the home crowd. The ninth-frame-comeback began when Ronald Torreyes tied the game with his two-out, bases-loaded triple, scoring three runs. Preston Tucker was next to the plate and he singled, bringing Torreyes home to win the game. Matt Heidenreich started things off on the hill and in three innings of work, he was charged with three runs on seven hits (HR), one walk and a strikeout. Jonas Dufek, the fifth pitcher for Corpus Christi, picked up the win after working a scoreless ninth. Dufek allowed a hit and struck out one. There was a lot of offense in this game for the Hooks. Six players had multi-hit games and there were 18 hits in total. Here's a look at the box to sum it all up:

Memphis Redbirds 7, Oklahoma City RedHawks 3

Oklahoma City didn't score after the third inning and after allowing six runs in the top of the first they would go on to lose their second in a row to Memphis. David Martinez (0-2) was on the mound for the first inning and would be charged with the loss. Martinez allowed six runs on six hits (HR), walked two and struck out one before leaving the game. Eric Berger then entered to pitch four innings and was nearly perfect, walking one and striking out the same. Che-Hsuan Lin (1X3 R HR RBI) led off the bottom of the third with his third homer of the year. Brandon Laird (0X3 RBI) would knock in the final run for the RedHawks with a sacrifice fly one out later. Jimmy Paredes finished the game batting two-for-four with a run scored and his sixth triple of the season. (George Springer hit one-for-three, struck out once and picked up an RBI with a sac' fly in the first, but remained at 37/44 in the bid for a 40/40 season.)

Player of the Day: Preston Tucker and Ronald Torreyes split the honor today for their parts in the Corpus Christi comeback. Not only that, Tucker and Torreyes both finished with four hits in the game, meaning they were dominating all day at the plate.

Pitcher of the Day: Colton Cain and Eric Berger share the crown today. Cain had a really strong start on Saturday and pitched great. Berger stepped in and stepped up for four innings yesterday in a situation no pitcher enjoys being in—behind.

Astros Minor League Recaps

Sunday's Games

Here is today's update on the playoff picture. Three teams in, three still very much in the hunt.

Round Rock over Oklahoma City 9-2
Jake Buchanan took the loss as he allowed seven runs on 11 hits over six innings, including a three-run home run. Pat Urckfitz allowed only one hit in the seventh, but Wade LeBlanc gave up two runs in the eighth. The RedHawks scored two in the sixth on a Jose Martinez home run, one of only four hits by the team and the only extra-base hit.

Corpus Christi over San Antonio 3-2
Nick Tropeano (6IP 4H 2R/1ER 0BB 8SO) had a very nice start and was rewarded with the win. Andrew Robinson followed with a three-inning save. It took a Matt Duffy (2x4) solo home run in the fifth to get the Hooks on the board. The other two runs scored in the seventh as Leo Heras tripled in a run and then scored on a Kike Hernandez RBI single. Ronald Torreyes went two-for-four and scored a run.

Lancaster over Rancho Cucamonga 7-1
Colton Cain pitched a very nice seven and two-thirds innings, allowing only one run on eight hits and a walk while striking out five and was relieved by Kenny Long who tossed the final one and a third innings of perfection. Chris Epps and Delino DeShields (2x3 2B BB 2RBI R) each singled in a run in the second and then also drove in runs in the third after a Tyler Heineman (2x4 2R) double drove in the first two runs in the frame. Nolan Fontana doubled in the final 'Hawks run in the fifth. Brandon Meredith went two-for-five and scored a run.

Quad Cities over Burlington 5-1
Pop the champagne because Quad Cities clinched a playoff berth with this win to become the third Astros affiliate to qualify for the postseason. Mark Appel pitched five solid innings to get the win, allowing only one run on five hits and three walks. He struck out three. Jamaine Cotton followed with three almost perfect innings, walking only one batter. Patrick Christensen was perfect in the ninth. The River Bandits drew first blood in the first inning with Carlos Correa (2x5) doubling in Tony Kemp. Rio Ruiz (2x4) and Roberto Pena (2x3) solo shots accounted for the two runs in the fourth. And the final two came on RBI singles from Danry Vasquez and Bobby Borchering in the fifth.

Tri-City over Staten Island 7-3
Edison Frias (3H 1R 1BB 4SO) tossed the first six to earn the win and was followed by an inning from Krishawn Holley in which he allowed a two-run home run. Gonzalo Sanudo shut down Staten Island for the final two innings to earn his fifth save in only six games for Tri-City. The 'Cats got two in the first on an RBI single from Tyler White (2x4 3RBI) and an RBI double from Jon Kemmer (2x4). Tyler White singled in another two in the second. James Ramsay (3x3 BB 3R SB) drove in the next two with a solo home run in the fifth and an RBI single in the seventh. Conrad Gregor scored the final run in the eighth on a passed ball. D'Andre Toney was two-for-four with a double and scored two runs.

Greeneville over Bluefield 4-3 in 10 innings
Jandel Gustave (5H 1BB 7SO) allowed two runs over his five innings and Ryan Connolly allowed the final Bluefield run in the eighth. In between Christian Garcia put up three quality frames allowing only two hits and striking out two. Raul Rivera pitched a perfect 10th for the win. Chase McDonald drove in the first two Astros runs in the fifth with a triple. Juan Santana (2x5 2R) scored the key game-tying run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth on a wild pitch. Tanner Mathis was the hero in the bottom of the tenth hitting an RBI single with two outs to score Marc Wik for the walk-off win. Ariel Ovando was also two-for-five in the game.

Player of the Day: James Ramsay was a busy man for the Tri-City crew on Sunday, going three-for-three with a walk, home run, stolen base, two RBI and three runs scored. Nicely done, sir!

Pitchers of the Day: I'm going to have to re-think the whole Pitcher of the Day thing before next season because it is virtually impossible to pick out just one pitcher anymore. The pitching depth in the organization has gotten to be quite impressive. With that said, today I'm splitting the honors among three relief pitchers who were, in my opinion, the key to their teams wins: Andrew Robinson's three-inning save for Corpus, Christian Garcia's three scoreless innings for Greeneville that kept the game tied, and Jamaine Cotton's almost perfect trio of innings that helped Quad Cities secure a playoff berth. Honorable mention goes to Colton Cain for the longest outing of his career and for Nick Tropeano's eight strikeout performance.

Astros Minor League Roster Moves

Corpus Christi
LHP Kyle Hallock assigned from Lancaster to Corpus Christi
LHP Sergio Escalona placed on the 7-day DL

Lancaster
LHP Colton Cain assigned from Quad Cities to Lancaster (unofficial)

I will update as any additional moves are announced.

Tweets of the Day

Colton Cain ‏@ColtCain45
@vjvelasquezrhp shoved it tonight! Good Team W

Max Stassi ‏@MaxStassi10
Great 2 wins today @cchooks nation!!! Outstanding pitching by @PaPaTropeano and @Rodgers20 !!!

Astros Minor League Recaps

Monday's Games

Oklahoma City - All-Star Break

Corpus Christi over Midland 4-1
Bobby Doran (6IP 7H 1R 1BB 1SO) got the start and allowed the one run on a solo homer on his way to his eighth win of the season. Doran was supported by his 'pen as Chia-Jen Lo (1.1IP), Pat Urckfitz (1IP 1BB 1SO) and Jorge de Leon (0.2IP 1H) provided scoreless relief. The Hooks recorded one run in the first on a Max Stassi home run, his sixth of the season, added two more in the third on a Stassi sac fly and a Preston Tucker single, and the final run in the fifth as Drew Muren (2x3 2B 2R SB) stole second and then motored around to score on a throwing error.

Modesto over Lancaster 12-7
This was a hard way to end playing 26 straight games (check back for more on this later this morning). After getting six innings from David Rollins (4H 3R 3BB 5SO) and one and two-thirds from Jonas Dufek, Lancaster was leading 7-3 with two outs in the top of the eighth when Travis Ballew came in to the game. He allowed one run to score on a wild pitch and two more came across on a home run. The ninth went even worse. Four runs scored as Ballew issued three singles, a double and hit a batter. Michael Dimock came in with one on and no outs and two more runners made it across the plate before he stopped the bleeding. The 7-3 lead was now a 12-7 deficit. Five of the 'Hawks seven runs scored via the long ball, with Telvin Nash (2x4) hitting a two-run homer in the second and M.P. Cokinos driving in three in the fifth. Brandon Meredith went two-for-four with a double, walk and a run; Chris Epps was two-for-four and scored two runs; and Nolan Fontana had an 0-fer but walked twice and stole a base.

Dayton over Quad Cities 5-1
Colton Cain pitched seven shutout innings, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out five. Juan Minaya did not fare quite as well as he allowed five runs (three earned) in only two-thirds of an inning and was charged with the loss. Juri Perez followed with a scoreless one and a third innings. The Bandits only managed one run on six hits, only one of which was for extra bases. Jesse Wierzbicki went two-for-three with a double, walk and run. Rio Ruiz was two-for-four and stole a base.

Tri-City over Batavia 8-4
Kevin Comer (3.1IP 4H 3R 2BB 4SO) and Charles Basford (1IP 2H 1R 1SO) got things started, but Evan Grills (2H 1BB 2SO) brought it on home for the win with four and a third scoreless innings. Tri-City got on the board in the second inning with a two-run home run from Jon Kemmer, immediately followed by Thomas Lindauer's first professional home run. After falling behind, The ValleyCats regained the lead in the seventh as Ernesto Genoves (3x5 2B 4RBI) cleared the bases with a double (that he unsuccessfully tried to stretch to a triple), and they added two insurance runs in the ninth on RBI singles from James Ramsay (2x4 R SB) and Genoves. Tony Kemp was two-for-four with a walk and scored a run. It was Tri-City's sixth win in a row.

Greeneville over Elizabethton 3-1
Greeneville made it five in a row and took first place in their division in the process. Jandel Gustave got his second win, pitching five innings and allowing one run on two hits and two walks while striking out five. He was followed by scoreless relief from Gerardo Ramirez, J.D. Osborne and Gonzalo Sanudo. Osborne has not allowed a run in his eight appearances. Greeneville only managed six hits, but they walked 10 times, with Brian Holberton and Juan Santana (1x2 2R) drawing two each. Tyler White was three-for-four with a walk and an RBI, and Tanner Mathis was one-for-four with a walk and an RBI.

GCL Astros over GCL Pirates 9-4
Ambiorix de Leon allowed three runs over three innings before giving way to Troy Scribner (1H 6SO) who earned the win with three scoreless innings. Raul Rivera allowed one unearned run in his inning of work and Jorge Perez pitched the final two hitless innings. Brett Booth was the man of the hour, driving in one in the first with a single, two in the third with a triple and drawing a bases loaded hit by pitch in the seventh for his fourth RBI of the day. Jose Solano drove in three as well with a solo home run and an RBI single. Alex Gonzalez (2x5 2R), Jacob Nottingham (1x3 2BB RBI 3R), and Yonathan Mejia (2x5 R) all had good outings at the plate as well.

DSL Rays over DSL Astros 6-3
Edwin Villarroel (1.2IP), Gerardo Juarez (5IP) and Rauldison Rodriguez (0.2IP) were each charged with two runs in their outings. The Astros didn't score until the eighth inning when Jean Estrella drove in Alexander Melendez (2x4) with a sac fly and Arturo Michelina plated two with an RBI triple.

Player of the Day: Ernesto Genoves gets a little WTHB love today for his three-for-five, four RBI game. Honorable mention goes to Brett Booth who had four RBI as well.

Pitcher of the Day: The very least I can do for Colton Cain, who pitched a beauty on Monday and didn't come away with the win, is to give him WTHB honors. In Cain's last 10 outings, he has a 2.18 ERA and a 1.113 WHIP.

Roster Moves

Since I've been travelling, it's been a few days since I've checked the transactions. Here's what I found over the last few days:

OKLAHOMA CITY
Rudy Owens placed on the 7-day DL, but effectively he is out for the season after having foot surgery yesterday

CORPUS CHRISTI
Domingo Santana activated from the DL
Austin Wates placed on the 7-day DL

LANCASTER
Tyson Perez activated from the Temporary Inactive list
Aaron West placed on the 7-day DL retroactive to 4/26

QUAD CITIES
*Colton Cain assigned from Extended Spring Training to Quad Cities
*Ariel Ovando assigned from Quad Cities to Extended Spring Training

*Note - There have been several phantom moves at Quad Cities as of late so don't read too much into these assignments back and forth to/from Extended Spring Training. The only real move so far appears to be the move from last week that sent Chase Davidson back to Extended Spring Training and brought Miles Hamblin from Extended to Quad Cities.

Roster Moves

OKLAHOMA CITY
2B Raoul Torrez assigned from Lancaster to Oklahoma City

LANCASTER
C Tyler Heineman activated from the DL
RHP Tyson Perez placed on the Temporary Inactive List

QUAD CITIES
DH Chase Davidson assigned from Quad Cities to Extended Spring Training
LHP Colton Cain assigned from Quad Cities to Extended Spring Training
3B Ryan Dineen assigned from Extended Spring Training to Quad Cities (just sent to EST 4 days prior)
C Miles Hamblin assigned from Extended Spring Training to Quad Cities

Also, Grant Hogue tweeted today that he was moving on. Hogue is a terrific individual that was well loved by teammates and fans alike. I met him on a couple of occasions and could see why. Those who are privileged to have Grant in their midst next will definitely be the richer for it.

Happy Birthday - 2/5

Happy Birthday to ~

RHP Raul Rivera (22)
Drafted in the 37th round in 2009 out of high school in Puerto Rico, Rivera only pitched in 1.2 innings in 2010 and did not play in 2011 at all. In 2012, however, he pitched 36 innings in 12 games (six starts) with a 2-1 record, a 2.00 ERA and a 1.111 WHIP for the GCL Astros.

RHP Zachary Grimmett (23)
Drafted in the 28th round out of high school in Oklahoma in 2008, Grimmett repeated at Lancaster in 2012. The predominately flyball pitcher had an 8.21 ERA and a 1.776 WHIP in 23 games (10 starts).

RHP Mark Hamburger (26)
Originally signed as an amateur free agent by Minnesota in 2007, Hamburger came to Houston as a waiver claim from San Diego in 2012. In 17 appearances at Oklahoma City in 2012, he was 1-1 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.571 WHIP.

LHP Colton Cain (22)
An eighth round draft pick by the Pirates in 2009, Cain came to Houston in the July 2012 Wandy Rodriguez trade. In seven starts for Lancaster, he was 2-2 with a 5.55 ERA and a 1.654 WHIP.

Former Astros with birthdays today ~

OF Norm Miller (67)
Drafted by Houston from the Angels in the 1964 first-year draft, Norm Miller didn't exactly put up Hall of Fame numbers in his nine seasons (1965-1973) for Houston with a .240/.322/.355 batting line, but the converted second baseman (some guy named Joe Morgan had that job) does have some interesting stories to tell about his life in baseball.  His 2009 book To All My Fans From Norm Who? is more of a collection of anecdotes than a real memoir, but for any Astros fan, those anecdotes constitute a nice glimpse of the early days of the Astros organization.

OF Lee Thomas (77)
Thomas came to Houston in a February 1968 trade and played in 90 games for the Astros toward the end of his career, hitting .194/.249/.229. His best season was his All-Star year in 1962 when he played for the Angels. Thomas was the GM of the Phillies from 1988 to 1997 and was followed by some guy named Ed Wade.

Also, Happy Birthday to the naming inspiration for my blog, former Astros Scouting Director Bobby Heck.

Roster Moves

The huge infusion of talent that the Astros have added to the farm system via recent trades means that some of the current rosters are getting strained to the breaking point. There are only so many prolonged DL stints and temporary inactive designations before players will have to be released. We've already seen a couple of these at Lancaster with the recent releases of Brian Streilein and Kirk Clark. I will do my best to keep on top of these moves and let you know when I have confirmed information. With that said, here are your latest moves.

Oklahoma City
LHP Rudy Owens will be has been assigned to Oklahoma City.
According to Sports Reporter (and Jake Buchanan girlfriend) Chelsa Messinger, RHP Jake Buchanan will be has been assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City.
ADDED: LHP Xavier Cedeno is being called up to Houston.
ADDED: RHP Jose Cisnero is being assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City.
ADDED: RHP Jarred Cosart is being assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City.
ADDED: RHP Jonnathan Aristil was released.

Corpus Christi
CF Robbie Grossman was assigned to Corpus Christi.
ADDED: IF Jordan Kreke was assigned from Oklahoma City to Corpus Christi.
ADDED: RHP Paul Clemens is being assigned from Oklahoma City to Corpus Christi.
ADDED: OF Austin Wates was placed on the 7-day DL.
ADDED: RHP Adalberto Flores was assigned from Oklahoma City to Corpus Christi.

Lancaster
RHP Chia-Jen Lo was assigned to Lancaster.
LHP Colton Cain was assigned to Lancaster.
LHP Brad Dydalewicz was placed on the 7-day DL.
DH Rafy Valenzuela was placed on the TI list.
LHP Blair Walters was activated.

Tri-City
RHP Steven Dennison was assigned from the GCL to Tri-City.

Greeneville
C Cristian Moronta was assigned from the GCL to Greeneville.
RHP Michael Feliz was assigned from the GCL to Greeneville.

GCL
RHP Raul Rivera was assigned from Tri-City to the GCL.
C Jon Carnahan was assigned to the GCL.

Fire Sale! Everything Must Go!

Before I talk about the Wandy Rodriguez trade, I just want to say that I have always been a fan of Wandy's. It always irked me that he never got the recognition that he deserved from the national sports media, from the previous front office and even from a lot of Astros fans. When Wandy was on, he was one of the best out there. I hate to see him go, but it is the best thing for the Astros team and, more importantly, it is the best thing for Wandy as he has had to deal with constant uncertainty for a couple of years now. I do hope that Wandy pitches for the Pirates on Saturday because I will be there and I will stand and I will cheer and I will thank him for his time as an Astro. Then I hope we beat him.

With that said, Wandy Rodriguez was dealt to the Pirates during last night's Astros game. My sister and I were at the game and she had her binoculars trained on the dugout as the rumors flew, watching Wandy. The second he left the dugout, we knew the trade was done. Then he came back to the dugout in a few minutes and started shaking hands and hugging players so there was no doubt.

What did the Astros receive in return? Three top 20 prospects from the Pirates organization! (Click on the player's name to see their current stats.)

OF Robbie Grossman - Grossman was ranked by Jonathan Mayo as #7 in the Pirates organization while Baseball America ranked him at #8 coming in to the season. The 22-year old switch hitter had a breakout season in 2011 with the Pirates Hi-A team, and excelled in the Arizona Fall League before suffering a broken hamate bone in his hand. According to Baseball America, he was the first minor leaguer to reach double digits in walks and runs since Nick Swisher did so in 2004. One thing he brings to the organization that is in short supply is his selectivity at the plate. He will report to Corpus Christi.

LHP Colton Cain - Cain was ranked by Mayo as #16, but BA ranked him higher at #13. Cain throws a low 90's fastball that touches the mid-90's and a curveball and changeup that are still works in progress but show much promise. He is described as fearless with a deceptive delivery and a frame built for durability. Baseball America projected him as a #3 or #4 starter coming in to the season. The 21-year old will also make a lateral move from the Pirates Hi-A team to the Astros Hi-A team in Lancaster.

LHP Rudy Owens - Baseball America ranked Owens as #16 in the Pirates organization going into the season while Jonathan Mayo has him at #12. Owens suffered from shoulder fatigue and reduced velocity in 2011 after being named as the Pirates minor league pitcher of the year in the two prior seasons. The 24-year old appears to be bouncing back this season. When he was at his most effective, he was throwing a 90-93 mph fastball with a "slurvy curveball" and a changeup that were still works in progress. He will report to AAA Oklahoma City.

With the infusion of new talent, there will be a lot of roster moves forthcoming as the existing rosters are full to bursting. I will try to keep a handle on the moves and post them as I have confirmed information.