Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Quad Cities with the...

Fresno 12, Salt Lake 4

W- Tommy Shirley (1-0)
L- Garrett Richards (0-1)

Fresno home runs: Preston Tucker 2 (3; 2-run in 5th, 2-run in 7th)

The Grizz knocked a rehabbing Garrett Richards around and Preston Tucker put on a show of power. They trailed 2-0 after 2 innings, but they outscored the Bees 12-2 the rest of the way. Much of the damage done by Fresno came off the bats of Preston Tucker, L.J. Hoes, and Matt Dominguez; they drove in 10 of the 12 Grizzlies runs.

Hoes put Fresno on the scoreboard with a 2-run double in the bottom of the 3rd. One batter later, Jon Singleton put them ahead with an RBI single, and it turned out to be a lead that they would not relinquish. Tucker hit his first 2-run shot of the evening in the 5th. He struck again with the other 2-run homer in the 7th, and then the Grizzlies formally buried the Bees with 5 runs in the 8th, coming off RBI singles from Nolan Fontana and Hoes, and a bases-clearing double from Matt Dominguez.

Hoes (2B, 3 RBI, 2 R), Tucker (2 2-run homers, 3 R), Dominguez (bases-clearing 2B in 8th), and Ronald Torreyes (run scored) all finished 2-5. Andrew Aplin reached base in all 4 of his plate appearances, going 2-2 with a double, 2 walks, and 2 runs scored in his 2015 debut. In addition to his RBI single, Jon Singleton drew 3 walks and scored 3 runs.

Tommy Shirley didn't have a great first start, but the offense and the bullpen had his back. He allowed 4 runs (1 inherited runner charged to him) on 9 hits and struck out 1 over 5+ innings of work. Darin Downs was the first man out; he did allow the runner he inherited from Shirley to score on an RBI double from Marc Krauss, and other than a wild pitch that allowed Krauss to move to 3rd, nothing else happened as Downs got out of the inning by striking out Roger Kieschnick. Next up was Jason Stoffel, who allowed a hit and struck out 2 over 2 scoreless. Josh Fields finished it with a 1-2-3 9th, striking out 1.

Fresno looks for the series win as Jake Buchanan faces Andrew Heaney at 6:35 Pacific.


Tulsa 2, Corpus Christi 1

W- Chris Anderson (2-0)
L- Aaron West (0-1)
S- Blake Smith (1)

CC home runs: Carlos Correa (1, solo in 9th)

The Hooks suffered their first loss of the year as they were foiled in their attempt to sweep the Drillers and the roadtrip. Corey Seager played a starring role in putting Corpus in the loss column as he drove in both Tulsa runs. However, in spite of Seager, the Hooks still had a chance to steal the game as their bats woke up just in time.

Corpus Christi's offense had been absolutely stifled by Chris Anderson and Mike Thomas, who held them to just 2 singles through 8 innings. But, Correa got them on the board with a 1-out solo home run in the top of the 9th inning. Colin Moran grounded out to become the 2nd casualty of the inning, but Brandon Meredith beat out an infield single and advanced to 3rd on another single from Tyler Heineman. Sadly, Conrad Gregor struck out swinging on a full count to end the game. Correa finished 2-4; the other Hooks hit (besides Meredith's and Heineman's singles) was a Jon Kemmer single to lead off the 3rd.

Aaron West was the hard-luck loser in this one; Seager took him deep for a solo shot in the 4th inning. He allowed 2 other hits and struck out 2. Kent Emanuel pitched the final 3 innings, and Seager got to him for an RBI single in the 8th. Emanuel allowed 3 other hits and struck out 1.

After a day off on Wednesday, the Hooks will play in front of their home crowd in Corpus Christi for the first time this season. Mark Appel will take the mound in the opener of a 3-game series against Springfield on Thursday.

Lancaster and Stockton was postponed

Due to extremely high winds in the Antelope Valley. They'll play a doubleheader tomorrow with game 1 starting at 5:30 Pacific. Edison Frias will take on Dylan Covey. In game 2, Brian Holmes faces Tim Atherton.

Quad Cities 5, Clinton 3

W- Kevin Comer (2-0)
L- Jeffeson Medina (0-1)
S- Albert Minnis (1)

QC home runs: D.J. Fisher (2, 2-run in 3rd)

The River Bandits swept their first home series of the season thanks to a stellar effort from Albert Minnis out of the bullpen.

Kevin Comer got the start and went 5 innings, allowing 2 runs on 2 hits, walking 3, and striking out 4. Jose Montero and Albert Minnis pitched 2 innings apiece; Montero allowed a run (inherited runner charged to him), a hit, walked 3, and struck out 3. Well, Minnis technically allowed one of the 2 runners he inherited from Montero to score on a bases-loaded walk, but he was nails the rest of the way, allowing a hit and striking out 5 to get the save.

D.J. Fisher's second home run in as many nights opened the scoring in the 3rd inning. Mott Hyde doubled to lead off the 4th, and Kristian Trompiz brought him home with a single. Jamie Ritchie singled to begin the 7th and was able to score thanks to a Clinton error on a Fisher single. Fisher, who advanced to 3rd on the error, scored on a wild pitch by Kody Kerski. Ritchie and Fisher both had 2-hit nights, and they scored 4 of Quad Cities' 5 runs. Jamie Ritchie also stole his first base of the season, as did Alex Hernandez, who went 0-2 with 2 walks.

Quad Cities is back on the road again as they begin a 3-game set in Beloit. In game 1, Chris Lee will face Brett Graves at 6:30.

Three Stars: Position Players

3.

Carlos Correa, SS, Corpus Christi

2-4, solo HR (1)

2. 

D.J. Fisher, OF, Quad Cities

2-4, 2-R HR (2), 2 R

1. 

Preston Tucker, 1B/OF, Fresno

2-4, 2 2-R HR (3), 4 RBI, 3 R

Three Stars: Pitchers

3.

Aaron West, RHP, Corpus Christi

L (0-1); 5 IP, 3 H (solo HR), ER, 2 K

2. Fresno bullpen.

View image | gettyimages.com

Darin Downs, LHP
IP, H, allowed inherited runner to score, K

Jason Stoffel, RHP

2 IP, H, 2 K

Josh Fields, RHP

IP, K

1.

Albert Minnis, LHP, Quad Cities

Save (1), 2 IP, H, allowed inherited runner to score, 5 K

Honorable Mentions

- Jamie Ritchie and Andrew Aplin, for reaching base in all of their plate appearances.
- Kent Emanuel keeping the Hooks in the game as their offense tried to search for answers.
- The entire Fresno offense.

Tweet of the Day

Just got my hair cut by not a teammate for the first time in years. #tortugasbarbershop
— Jason Stoffel (@granderojo26) December 31, 2014

Happy Birthday - 9/15

Happy Birthday to ~

RHP Murilo Gouvea (26)
Obtained in a 2009 trade with the White Sox for future considerations, the Brazilian-born Gouvea was a workhorse out of the Lexington bullpen in 2012. In 50 appearances, he was 2-7 with a 3.71 ERA and a 1.171 WHIP. He went on to pitch successfully for Team Brazil in the World Baseball Classic during the 2012/2013 off-season, but ended up on the DL to start 2013 and has now missed two seasons. The last I heard was that he was a member of Team Rehab in Kissimmee.

OF Ariel Ovando (21)
Signed by the Astros out of the Dominican Republic as a NDFA in 2010 (for a ginormous $2.6 million dollar signing bonus), Ovando played his 2014 season on the Tri-City team, hitting .237/.287/.289 in 58 games.

RHP Jason Stoffel (26)
Originally drafted by the Giants in the fourth round in 2009, Stoffel was obtained (along with Henry Sosa) in the Jeff Keppinger trade in July 2011. Stoffel pitched the entire season for Oklahoma City with a 5-4 record, 11 saves, a 3.20 ERA and a 1.485 WHIP in 54 appearances (and led the Astros system in number of appearances). He walked 28 batters (six intentional walks) while striking out 68 in 64.3 innings pitched.

Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Thursday, May 8, 2014

Oklahoma City 8, Memphis 3

W- David Martinez (4-2)
L- Scott McGregor (0-5)

OKC home runs: Jon Singleton (11, 2-run in 4th)

After getting their winning streak in late morning/early afternoon games snapped, the RedHawks came back to batter the Redbirds, jumping out to a 7-2 lead after the 4th inning.

Everyone in the lineup had a hit except for Robbie Grossman, who walked, scored a run, and stole a base (3) despite going 0-4. The steal (and eventually, the run) occurred in the 1st inning; he ended up on 3rd because the throw from Memphis catcher Ed Easley was errant. Grossman would score the first RedHawks run on a wild pitch from Scott McGregor, which also doubled as a walk to Kiké Hernandez. In the 2nd, OKC got a pair of RBI singles from Erik Castro and Jon Singleton, and Domingo Santana cracked a 2-run double. Singleton, who finished 3-5 with a couple of runs scored, added a 2-run blast (11) in the 4th. His 11 home runs are 2nd in the Minors to Arlington's Joey Gallo, who has 12 in Class A Advanced. Andy Simunic drove in the final RedHawks run of the evening on an RBI single in the 7th. Hernandez hit a double and scored twice.

David Martinez went 5 innings and allowed 3 runs on 6 hits, walked 3, and struck out 2. Rhiner Cruz allowed a hit and fanned 1 over 2 scoreless. Kevin Chapman allowed a single to Stephen Piscotty to lead off the 8th, but struck out Scott Moore and induced an inning-ending double play from Joey Butler. Jason Stoffel walked Pete Kozma to begin the 9th, but promptly erased him from the bases by getting Easley to GIDP, and Luis Mateo grounded out to Singleton to end it.

In the series finale, Bobby Doran (0-2, 6.83) will take on Boone Whiting (0-4, 5.06) at 7:05.

Frisco 5, Corpus Christi 3

W- Keone Kela (1-0)
L- Luis Cruz (3-3)
S- Phil Klein (1)

Corpus was done in by a 4-run bottom of the 3rd after they left the bases loaded in the top of the inning.

Luis Cruz pitched 4 innings and gave up 4 runs on 7 hits (3-run homer), walked 1, and struck out 3. Jordan Jankowski tagged in for 3 innings and allowed a run on 3 hits, walked 1, and fanned 3. Andrew Robinson worked around a single and a walk to throw a scoreless 8th, striking out 1.

M.P. Cokinos finished 2-3 and put the Hooks on the board with an RBI single in the 4th. Matt Duffy was 1-5 with an RBI double in the 5th and a sac fly in the 9th. Nolan Fontana and Andrew Aplin joined Cokinos in the 2-hit club. Both of them drew a walk; Aplin scored a run.

Kyle Smith (0-1, 10.80 with Corpus, 4-1, 3.86 season) will take on Alec Asher (2-3, 4.41) in game 2 of this series. First pitch is at 7:05.

Lancaster 3, Lake Elsinore 2

W- Dan Minor (3-1)
L- Cody Hebner (2-1)
S- Tyson Perez (1)

Lancaster home runs: None.

After dropping the opener, the JetHawks took the next 3 games and emerged with the lead in the California League South at the end of the 1st quarter of the season. My night was made when Astros Director of Pro Scouting Kevin Goldstein, who was making a guest appearance in the 6th and 7th innings, plugged Hello Panda cookies. If I'm not mistaken, it's a season-long promotion. Oh great, I feel like getting some. Try the strawberry ones, they're marvelous.

Um... sorry for the sidebar. As for the game, in the words of Morgan Ensberg, Tony Kemp is a Really Good Player. He had a perfect night at the plate, going 4-4 with a double to begin the game, an RBI single in the 7th, and scored 2 of the 3 JetHawks runs. Kemp's .448 on-base percentage leads the California League and is the 5th-best mark in Class A Advanced.

Teoscar Hernandez is now on a 7-game hitting streak, and he's posted multiple hits in 4 of his last 5 contests, not 4 straight as I originally tweeted last night. He went 3-4 with an RBI double in the 3rd. Carlos Correa kicked things off with an RBI single in the 1st and added a steal (6).

Mike Hauschild had a solid outing, as he allowed 2 runs on 5 hits, walked 1, and struck out 1 in 5 innings. He also recorded 8 groundball outs, which is something he's rather adept at doing. Dan Minor, ever since that nightmare outing in which he gave up 5 runs (4 earned) while only getting 1 out on April 18, has now thrown 8.1 scoreless innings over 6 appearances. He got the victory as he allowed a hit, walked 2, and struck out 2 over 2 scoreless. Tyson Perez finished the final 2 innings and gave up a hit, walked 1, and fanned 4.

The JetHawks will be spending the weekend in beautiful Adelanto, where they'll take on High Desert in a 3-game set. Vince Velasquez (4-0, 2.88) will take on Scott DeCecco (1-2, 6.12) at 7:05 Pacific. Velasquez will face the Mavericks for the 3rd time this season; conversely, this is the 3rd time that the JetHawks will see DeCecco on the mound.

Quad Cities 6, Beloit 5

W- Zach Morton (2-1)
L- Stuart Pudenz (0-3)
S- Andrew Walter (3)

QC home runs: None.

The River Bandits rallied from a couple of 3-run deficits (down 3-0 after 4 innings and 5-2 after 7.5) and finally completed the comeback with 4 in the bottom of the 8th.

Michael Feliz, who was activated from the DL prior to this game, started off with 2 scoreless, allowing a hit, walking 1, and striking out 2. Pat Christensen went 2 innings and allowed 3 runs (all in the 4th) on 3 hits, walked 1, and struck out 1. Gonzalo Sañudo was next up; he went 2.2 innings and allowed a run (inherited runner charged to him) on 2 hits, walked 2 (!!!!!!, but 1 was intentional), and struck out 2. Zach Morton pitched 1.1 innings and allowed a run (his own; he allowed 1 of the 2 he inherited from Sañudo to score in the 7th) on 3 hits and struck out 1. Andrew Walter finished it off, striking out 1 in a 1-2-3 9th.

Brett Phillips tripled to lead off the 5th for QC and scored on a groundout by Chan-Jong Moon. Conrad Gregor began the 6th with a double and would come home on Ronnie Mitchell's single.

The first 3 batters in the bottom of the 8th reached: Jack Mayfield singled, Gregor walked, and Tyler White drove in Mayfield with a single. They both advanced on a sac bunt from Mitchell, and then Brian Holberton hit a sac fly to score Gregor. Jobduan Morales tied the game at 5 with an RBI double, and Phillips gave the Banditos the lead with an RBI double of his own. White finished 2-4; it's his 3rd consecutive multi-hit game. Phillips and Mayfield also had 2 hits each. Moon had a stolen base (9).

The middle game of this series features TBA (?-?, ?.??) for the River Bandits going up against Chris Lamb (0-0, 2.25). First pitch is at 7:00.

Three Stars: Position Players

3.

Photo courtesy of Bryan Green

Teoscar Hernandez, CF, Lancaster
3-4, 2B, RBI

2.

Jon Singleton, 1B, Oklahoma City
3-5, 2-R HR (11), 3 RBI, 2 R

1.

#169991367 / gettyimages.com

Tony Kemp, 2B, Lancaster
4-4, 2B, RBI, 2 R

Honorable Mentions: Brett Phillips, M.P. Cokinos, Tyler White


Three Stars: Pitchers

3.

Michael Feliz, RHP, Quad Cities

2 IP, H, BB, 2 K; first outing since coming off DL

2. OKC's bullpen slams it shut.

#167141434 / gettyimages.com

Rhiner Cruz, RHP
2 IP, H, K

#479763279 / gettyimages.com

Kevin Chapman, LHP

IP, H, K

Jason Stoffel, RHP

IP, BB

1. Lancaster relievers preserve lead.

Dan Minor, RHP

W (2-1), 2 IP, H, 2 BB, 2 K

Tyson Perez, RHP

Save (1), 2 IP, 2 H, BB, 4 K

Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Sunday, May 4, 2014

Class debuts!

Omaha 4, Oklahoma City 1

W- Sugar Ray Marimon (3-1)
L- Rudy Owens (2-1)
S- Kameron Loe (1)

OKC home runs: Andy Simunic (1, solo in 7th)

The OKC offense has really hit a rut; this was the 6th straight game in which they've scored 3 runs or fewer, and they've scored just 10 runs over their last 6 contests.

Andy Simunic went 2-3, and his solo homer (1) in the 7th inning accounted for the RedHawks' lone run. Jon Singleton also went 2-3 with a double and a bunt single.

Rudy Owens threw 6 innings and allowed 4 runs (both on 2-run doubles) on 7 hits, walked 2, and struck out 3. Jason Stoffel walked 2 in the 7th, but also struck out 2 in the inning. Josh Zeid worked around a walk to strike out the side in the 8th.

The series finale will take place later this morning, as Mike Foltynewicz will face Ramon Troncoso at 11:05 A.M.

San Antonio 6, Corpus Christi 4

W- Devin Jones (4-1)
L- Kyle Smith (0-1, 4-1 season)
S- Johnny Barbato (7)

CC home runs: None.

The Hooks fought back from an early 6-0 deficit, but ran out of steam.

All 4 Hooks runs came in the 5th. Matt Duffy ignited the rally by drawing a walk, and he scored the first run of the game on a double from Preston Tucker. An error allowed Jio Mier to reach while Tucker took 3rd; they both came home on Tyler Heineman's 2-run triple. Heineman would score on an M.P. Cokinos groundout. Duffy and Heineman had 2 hits apiece.

The Missions greeted Kyle Smith rather rudely in his AA debut. He went 5 innings and gave up 6 runs on 9 hits (3 solo homers) and struck out 6. Alex Sogard allowed 3 hits and struck out 1 over 3 scoreless, and Jorge De Leon worked around a hit to throw a scoreless 9th.

Game 3 of this series has Tommy Shirley on the mound, and he'll be taking on John Hussey. First pitch is at 7:10.

Lancaster 8, San Jose 6

W- Dan Minor (2-1)
L- Jorge Bucardo (0-2)
S- Mitch Lambson (2)

Lancaster home runs: Teoscar Hernandez (4, solo in 2nd)

The power of the 7th-inning stretch. The JetHawks erased a 5-2 deficit with a 6-run bottom of the 7th to take the series finale and 2 of 3 in the series.

Roberto Peña went 2-4 and hit an RBI single in the 4th to put the JetHawks on the board, down 3-1. Teoscar Hernandez went 3-5 with a solo homer in the 5th (4). After seeing his average drop to .234 on April 30, Hernandez has responded by going 7-12 with a couple of 3-hit games in the series to raise his average to .269.

Danry Vasquez, Ruben Sosa, and Tony Kemp all walked to begin the 7th, and Hernandez promptly sent them all home with a double that tied the game. Teoscar was credited with 2 RBI, as an error was committed on the play. Carlos Correa then hit a single and advanced to 2nd on a throw to 3rd. Rio Ruiz walked to re-load the bases. After Dan Gulbransen and Peña became the first 2 casualties of the inning, Carlos Perdomo came through with a 2-run single. Vasquez, who went 2-3 with a double and started all of this with a leadoff walk, came back up and hit an RBI single. Carlos Correa was 2-5 with 2 runs scored.

Kent Emanuel went 4.2 innings and allowed 5 runs on 7 hits, walked 2, and struck out 3 in his High-A debut. Dan Minor threw 2.1 scoreless, allowing a walk while fanning 2. Mitch Lambson was taken deep by Mitch Delfino to begin his outing... but no matter. After the homer, Lambson struck out the side in the 8th, and worked around a hit batter to close it out. He struck out 4 in 2 innings, and Delfino's home run was the only hit he gave up.

The JetHawks will now hit the road to begin a 4-game series in Lake Elsinore. Lance McCullers gets the start in the opener; his opponent will be Joe Ross. First pitch is at 6:05.

Beloit 6, Quad Cities 3

W- Junior Mendez (1-2)
L- Adrian Houser (0-1)
S- Sam Bragg (2)

QC home runs: None.

Well, the crooked-numbered inning bit Quad Cities once again, as a 4-run 5th was the difference for the Snappers.

Chan-Jong Moon hit a 1-out single in the top of the 1st, stole 2nd (8), and came around to score on a Conrad Gregor single. That would be QC's only run until Chase McDonald hit a 2-run single in the 8th. Jack Mayfield was the only River Bandit with a multi-hit day, going 2-5 with a double and a run scored. Mayfield is now on a 6-game hitting streak. Brett Phillips extended his hitting streak to 5 with a single in the 3rd.

Adrian Houser pitched 3.2 innings and gave up 5 runs on 5 hits, walked 5, and struck out 2. 4 of those 5 runs came in the 5th and came in the form of a Tyler Marincov grand slam. Tyler Brunnemann struck out 1 over 1.1 perfect innings, and Gonzalo Sañudo allowed a run on a force out in the 8th, a hit, and walked 2 in 3 innings.

The River Bandits will return home to open up a 3-game series against the Cedar Rapids Kernels. TBA (was Kent Emanuel's spot in the rotation) will take on Ethan Mildren at 7:00.

Three Stars: Position Players

3.

Tyler Heineman, C, Corpus Christi

2-4, 3B, 2 RBI, R

2.

Andy Simunic, Utility, Oklahoma City

2-3, solo HR (1) in 7th

1.

Teoscar Hernandez on Twitter: @TeoscarH

Teoscar Hernandez, CF, Lancaster

3-5, 2B, solo HR (4), 3 RBI, 2 R

Honorable Mentions: Jon Singleton, Danry Vasquez, and Carlos Correa


Three Stars: Pitchers

The bullpens of all 4 teams combined to allow just 2 runs on 7 hits.

4. Quad Cities

Tyler Brunnemann on Twitter: @TBruno35

Tyler Brunnemann, RHP

1.1 IP, K

Gonzalo Sañudo, RHP

3 IP, H, ER, 2 BB

He walked 2?!!!?!!???????

3. Lancaster

Dan Minor, RHP

W (2-1), 2.1 IP, BB, 2 K

Mitch Lambson, LHP

Save (2), 2 IP, H (solo HR), ER, 4 K

2. Corpus Christi

Alex Sogard, LHP

3 IP, 3 H, K

#180229888 / gettyimages.com

Jorge De Leon, RHP
IP, H

1. Oklahoma City

Jason Stoffel, RHP
IP, 2 BB, 2 K

Josh Zeid, RHP

IP, BB, 3 K

Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Monday, April 7, 2014

And for the 2nd straight night, all Astros affiliates that were in action came out victorious.

Oklahoma City 6, New Orleans 4

W- Rudy Owens (1-0)
L- Jesus Sanchez (0-1)
S- Jason Stoffel (2)

OKC home runs: Austin Wates (1, solo in 7th)

The Zephyrs jumped all over Mike Foltynewicz for 4 1st-inning runs, but the RedHawks got the last laugh as they scored 6 unanswered to take the opener.

Folty labored through 2.1 innings, and all 4 runs he allowed came in the 1st. He gave up 4 hits (2 homers back-to-back), walked 2, and struck out 2. But, the guys after him picked him up and bought time for the OKC offense to get themselves going. Darin Downs allowed a hit over 1.2 scoreless, and then Rudy Owens came on and threw 4 scoreless, allowing 2 hits and striking out 3. Jason Stoffel came on to close it out and struck out 2 in a 1-2-3 9th.

OKC got on the board in the 4th with a Jon Singleton double. In the 6th, George Springer added an RBI double of his own, then came home on Singleton's 2nd 2-bagger of the evening. Austin Wates finished a triple shy of the cycle in 4 at-bats; he tied the game at 4 with a solo homer (1) in the 7th, then Max Stassi broke the tie with a 2-run double. Wates also scored 3 times and stole 3 bases (2nd twice, 3rd once). In his season debut, Erik Castro was 1-3 with a walk and 2 strikeouts as the DH.

In game 2 of this series, Paul Clemens and Jake Buchanan will take on TBA; OKC's game notes lists Brian Flynn as the starter for New Orleans. First pitch is at 7:00.

Corpus Christi 8, Springfield 5

W- Andrew Robinson (1-0)
L- Jonathan Cornelius (0-1)
S- Brady Rodgers (1)

CC home runs: Delino DeShields (1, solo in 7th)

After briefly losing the lead, the Hooks finished the game on a 5-1 run. They got outhit 16-9, but won the column that counts towards the W-L record.

Everyone in the lineup had 1 RBI except for Preston Tucker. He went 1-5 with a run scored. Corpus opened up the scoring with 3 runs in the 2nd on a Kiké Hernandez single, a René Garcia groundout, and a Jio Mier double. Hernandez and Mier both had 2 hits. The Hooks fell behind 4-3 after the 4th, but again, that didn't last long. They answered with a pair in the 5th on a Joe Sclafani fielder's choice scoring Garcia and an Andrew Aplin groundout scoring Mier. Delino DeShields went deep for the first time this season with a 1-out solo shot in the 7th. M.P. Cokinos hit an RBI single in the 8th, and Matt Duffy joined Kiké and Jio in the 2-hit club with an RBI single of his own in the 9th inning.

Colton Cain went 3.2 innings and allowed 4 runs on 10 hits (2-run homer), walked 1, and struck out 3. Andrew Robinson came on with 2 outs in the 4th and struck out the Cuban defector, Aledmys Diaz, to end the inning. He then proceeded to strike out 2 in a 1-2-3 5th to get the victory. Brady Rodgers tagged in for the final 4 innings, and the only run he allowed was a solo homer to James Ramsey in the 9th. Rodgers gave up 5 other hits and struck out 3.

The Hooks will look for the sweep in a morning contest. Let's see what Aaron West and David Rollins have in store for an encore after impressing in their first appearances of the season. They'll be taking on Kurt Heyer at 11:10 A.M. A radio note: If you're planning to listen on the Internet via iHeartRadio, this game will be on 1400 (KUNO) instead of the usual station, 1360 (KKTX).

Lancaster 2, San Jose 1

W- Vince Velasquez (1-0)
L- Tyler Mizenko (0-1)

Lancaster home runs: None.

In a random low-scoring game at The Hangar, the JetHawks walked off with the win in the series opener thanks to a 2-run double from Rio Ruiz with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th.

Both teams only had 3 hits; Teoscar Hernandez had 2 of Lancaster's 3... and you know who had the other one. After Jordan Scott and Tony Kemp were the first 2 casualties of the 9th, Hernandez walked, and Carlos Correa followed suit. And Rio did the rest. Correa was 0-2, but he walked twice and scored the winner.

Lancaster's pitchers have absolutely taken flight out of the gate. This game was no different. Kyle Westwood went 5 innings and allowed an unearned run on 3 hits, walked 1, and struck out 7. Vince Velasquez came on and all he did was toss 4 perfect innings, striking out 5 in the process.

In the middle game of this series, Kyle Smith and Lance McCullers will face Chris Stratton at 6:30 Pacific.

Quad Cities was off

They spent the day traveling to Lansing to prepare for 3 against the Lugnuts. Chris Lee and Andrew Thurman will take on Tom Robson in the series opener at 7:05 Eastern/6:05 Central.

Three Stars

Actually, there will be 8.

3.

Darin Downs, LHP, Rudy Owens, LHP, Jason Stoffel, RHP, Oklahoma City, and Andrew Robinson, RHP, Corpus Christi

*If you're wondering, that's Jason Stoffel's Twitter avatar.

vs. New Orleans

Downs: 1.2 IP, H

Owens: W (1-0), 4 IP, 2 H, 3 K
Stoffel: Save (2), IP, 2 K

@ Springfield
Robinson: W (1-0), 1.1 IP, 3 K

2.

Austin Wates, CF, Oklahoma City

3-4, 2B, solo HR (1), 3 R, 3 SB (3)

Rio Ruiz, 3B, Lancaster
Walk-off 2-R 2B in 9th

1.

Kyle Westwood, RHP, and Vince Velasquez, RHP, Lancaster

Westwood: 5 IP, 3 H, unearned run, 7 K

Velasquez: W (1-0), 4 IP, 5 K

Apologies to: Teoscar Hernandez, Jon Singleton, Brady Rodgers, Max Stassi, Jio Mier, Kiké Hernandez, Matt Duffy

Happy Birthday - 9/15

Happy Birthday to ~

RHP Murilo Gouvea (25)
Obtained in a 2009 trade with the White Sox for future considerations, the Brazilian-born Gouvea was a workhorse out of the Lexington bullpen in 2012. In 50 appearances, he was 2-7 with a 3.71 ERA and a 1.171 WHIP. He went on to pitch successfully for Team Brazil in the World Baseball Classic during the 2012/2013 off-season, but ended up starting and finishing the 2013 season on the DL.

OF Ariel Ovando (20)
Signed by the Astros out of the Dominican Republic as a NDFA in 2010 (for a ginormous $2.6 million dollar signing bonus), Ovando started the 2013 season at Quad Cities (.172/.250/.219 in 49 games) before being sent back to Greeneville for his third season there. In 51 games at Greeneville, he hit .216/.310/.333 with eight doubles, four home runs and 21 RBI.

RHP Jason Stoffel (25)
Originally drafted by the Giants in the fourth round in 2009, Stoffel was obtained (along with Henry Sosa) in the Jeff Keppinger trade in July 2011. Stoffel started the season with Corpus Christi (in seven games, he had a 1.23 ERA and a 1.227 WHIP) before being promoted to Oklahoma City. In 44 appearances with the RedHawks, he was 8-1 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.267 WHIP.

Tweet of the Day

Jake Buchanan ‏@JakeBuck33
Grill masters @PaPaTropeano pic.twitter.com/76RdqPklit


Bobby Doran ‏@B_Doran43
@JakeBuck33 @papatropeano grill amateurs #wheresstoffel

Roster Moves

HOUSTON
According to Brian McTaggart, RHP Jordan Lyles and LHP Dallas Keuchel are being assigned from Oklahoma City to Houston.

OKLAHOMA CITY
RHP Jason Stoffel assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City
C Carlos Perez assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City
OF Austin Wates activated from the DL

CORPUS CHRISTI
OF J.D. Martinez assigned to rehab at Corpus Christi
C Max Stassi assigned from Extended Spring Training to Corpus Christi
1B Zach Johnson assigned from Lancaster to Corpus Christi
1B Rafael Valenzuela released

QUAD CITIES
3B Rio Ruiz placed on the 7-day DL (reported to be a minor back/oblique injury)
IF Brian Blasik assigned from Extended Spring Training to Quad Cities

It's a part of the process, but it's never easy. Rafy Valenzuela is one of the good guys and he will truly be missed. Thanks for the hugs, Rafy, and good luck.

Tweets of the Day

The South Texas Winter Baseball Banquet was held in Corpus Christi last evening and three of our Astros were honored. RHP Daniel Minor, who was drafted by the Astros in the 9th round of the 2012 draft and had a terrific first season at Greeneville, was named the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Player of the Year. 2B Jose Martinez was name the Player of the Year for the Corpus Christi Hooks while RHP Jason Stoffel drew Pitcher of the Year honors for the Hooks team. In addition, Milo Hamilton was given a lifetime achievement award. Softball pitcher extraordinaire (and now coach) Cat Osterman was the featured speaker.

Congratulations to Daniel, Jose and Jason!

Daniel Minor ‏@DMinor91

As if I don't feel short enough already, cat osterman makes it that much worse pic.twitter.com/4x2p6Uyw

Daniel Minor ‏@DMinor91

The one and only milo Hamilton, listened to him growing up, never imagined I'd meet him in person pic.twitter.com/eYuYq34T

Happy Birthday - 9/15

RHP Murilo Gouvea (24)
Obtained in a 2009 trade with the White Sox for future considerations, the Brazilian-born Gouvea was a workhorse out of the Lexington bullpen in 2012. In 50 appearances, he was 2-7 with a 3.71 ERA and a 1.171 WHIP.

OF Ariel Ovando (19)
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 second season with the Greeneville Astros in the Appy League, repeating the level. Having seen him in August, I can tell you he is still very raw, but his bat certainly started getting hot this year as he compiled a .287/.350/.444 line with 13 doubles, two triples and six home runs in 59 games.

RHP Jason Stoffel (24)
Originally drafted by the Giants in the fourth Round in 2009, Stoffel was obtained (along with Henry Sosa) in the Jeff Keppinger trade in July 2011. Stoffel spent the 2012 season in Corpus Christi. In 58 appearances, he was 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA, a 0.983 WHIP and a league-leading 27 saves. In his last nine appearances during the regular season, he allowed ZERO runs (earned or unearned) with a WHIP of 0.321.

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

Monday's Games

DSL Indians over DSL Astros 15-1
Five Astros pitchers combined in this mess with Rayderson Chevalier getting charged with the loss and Geronimo Franzua being the only Astros pitcher to emerge unscathed. The Astros were held to four hits with Hector Roa getting two of them. Luis Reynoso had the only extra base hit, a double.

GCL Astros over GCL Cardinals 4-3
Kyle Hallock got his third rehab start, stretching it out to two innings this go around and allowing one run on two hits. Raul Rivera gave up another two runs in his four innings of work before the relief crew in the guise of Gera Sanchez and Erick Gonzalez (S, 10) came in to pitch a very effective final three innings. Edwin Gomez was two-for-three with a double and a solo home run. Juan Santana was two-for-five with a double and an RBI. Darwin Rivera also doubled.

Greeneville over Elizabethton 6-5
Starter Frederick Tiburcio allowed four runs on seven hits over four innings and struck out six. He was followed by Christian Garcia who was charged with one run and was awarded the win thanks to solid relief from Mike Hauschild and Jordan Jankowski (S,3). This game was always close as the two teams traded runs, and a wild pitch allowing Ariel Ovando to score what proved to be the wining run turned out to be the difference maker at the end of the night. And it was the Ariel Ovando show as he hit two home runs, walked twice, drove in three and scored three. Terrell Joyce also had a very nice night at the plate, going two-for-four with two doubles.

Staten Island over Tri-City 8-7 in 11 innings
Six pitchers combined for Tri-City in this one. Brady Rodgers got the start, giving up three runs on five hits in five innings. Jamaine Cotton got the first blown save of the night as he allowed three runs in his one inning of work before giving way to Travis Ballew and Scott Zuloaga for scoreless relief. Blake Ford then got the second blown save of the game as he gave up one run in the eighth and John Neely was charged with the loss, allowing one run in two and two-thirds innings. Preston Tucker was the offensive star of this one as he went three-for-five with a double, a home run, three RBI and three runs scored. Dan Gulbransen was three-for-six with two RBI; and Austin "Catfish" Elkins, Joe Sclafani and Ryan Dineen each had two hits.

Greensboro over Lexington 5-1
Starter Chris Devenski gave up two runs on seven hits in five and a third innings which proved to be one run too many as Lexington was held to one hit and one run for the night. Evan Grills added on another three runs before giving way to Gabriel Garcia who allowed no hits and one walk in his relief outing. Brandon Meredith got the only Lexington hit in the second inning, but the Legends wouldn't score until the ninth when they scored one on a double play thanks to a hit batter, walk and fielding error.

Lancaster over Rancho Cucamonga 14-11
The score sounds much closer than the game actually was as Lancaster took a commanding lead early driving three Rancho Cucamonga pitchers out of the game and scoring all 14 runs by the time the fourth inning was over. Tyson Perez got his ninth win, despite allowing five runs on eight hits over seven innings, as he was gifted with 14 runs in support of his start. Then things got a little dicey as Brad Dydalewicz gave up a three-run home run in the eighth, Zach Grimmett loaded up the bases in the ninth and was followed by Jose Trinidad who gave up a three-run double. Kenny Long then followed to get a quick double play to end things. The pitching might have been a bit questionable at times last night but the offense was anything but. Delino DeShields broke the Astros minor league single season stolen base record with two steals in the second inning; Telvin Nash hit his 26th home run; and Jio Mier hit his third home run. Everyone in the line-up got at least one hit but a few were overachievers.

Delino DeShields - 2x4 2B 2RBI BB SO 2R
Jio Mier - 2x4 2B HR 4RBI 2R
Andrew Aplin - 3x4 2B RBI BB 2R
Telvin Nash - 2x5 HR 3RBI 2SO R
Jonathan Meyer - 2x4 BB SO 2R
Grant Hogue - 2x5 3B 3RBI 2SO 2R

Corpus Christi over Springfield 2-1 in 13 innings
There was good pitching from both teams in this one. Asher Wojciechowski allowed one run on five hits over six and two-thirds innings and Kevin Chapman, Jake Buchanan, Erick Abreu (W, 9-4) and Jason Stoffel (S, 24) combined to allow only one additional hit over the next six and two-thirds innings. The Hooks were held to five hits with two of them being a home run from Jonathan Singleton and Jay Fernandez's solo homer in the thirteenth inning.

Round Rock over Oklahoma City 2-1
Brett Oberholtzer allowed two runs on ten hits with seven strikeouts over seven and two-thirds innings and was pegged with the tough luck loss as his team couldn't provide him with run support. Mike Hessman did his part as he went two-for-four with two doubles. Jimmy Paredes was also two-for-four with one double.

Players of the Day: I've got to give this one to Delino DeShields for breaking the stolen base record, but I also have to acknowlege Ariel Ovando's two home run, three RBI night.

Pitchers of the Day: I'm going with the whole Corpus Christi crew for a tightly pitched match.

Minor League Recaps

Monday's Games

DSL Dodgers over DSL Astros 10-5
As far as the DSL pitching staff on Monday goes, Luis was Abad, Frangy was fringy and Geronimo strayed off the reservation as they combined to give up 10 runs on eight hits and nine walks. The good news is that  Saucedo was saucy and Delis was delightful in relief. (Hey, you try to find something interesting to write about a team that loses this much. I feel Zachary Levine's pain.) The Astros did manage five runs on 10 hits, including multi-hit games from Cristian Murillo, Mesac Laguna, Marlon Avea and Jarico Reynoso, with Reynoso and Frederick Serrano both hitting doubles.

GCL Astros over GCL Marlins 4-2
Enderson Franco earned his third win in a very nice start, allowing two runs on four hits and no walks with five strikeouts over 5.1 innings before giving way to a very effective Ricardo Batista and Gera Sanchez (S, 1). Yonathan Mejia drove in two runs with a single in the first and stole a base. Rio Ruiz contributed an RBI double. Darwin Rivera and Jon Carnahan also doubled. Jio Mier made his first rehab appearance since his hamstring injury in May. He walked and scored a run before being lifted after two plate appearances.

Bluefield over Greeneville 8-3
Daniel Minor was charged with his first loss as he got roughed up in 4.1 innings to the tune of six runs on nine  hits. Tanner Bushue gave up the other two while recording only one out. Michael Dimock and Scott Zuloaga rounded things out with effective outings. Zuloaga hasn't allowed an earned run in his last 10 outings. Jimmy Howick was two-for-three with an RBI double; Marc Wik, Jean Batista and Ernesto Genoves also doubled.

Auburn over Tri-City 9-5
Despite a late comeback attempt by Tri-City as they scored five runs in the ninth, the ValleyCats simply fell short. Brady Rodgers was pegged with his second loss of the season as he gave up five runs on seven hits in six innings. Brad Propst tacked on another three runs while only recording one out, and Blake Ford allowed the final run to score. Tri-City's scoring in the ninth came via a three-run shot from Jesse Wierzbicki and RBI singles from Emilio King and Joe Sclafani. Neiko Johnson was two-for-three with two walks, and Preston Tucker was two-for-four.

Asheville over Lexington 9-8 in 10 innings
David Rollins' debut didn't go particularly well as he allowed three runs on three hits (including a solo home run) in 1.2 innings. He was followed by Juri Perez who gave up four runs (two earned) in 5.1 innings and Gabriel Garcia and Murilo Gouvea (L, 2-6) who each allowed a run. Lexington struck early scoring five runs in the first courtesy of a two-run Zach Johnson homer and a three-run Nolan Fontana (2x5 4RBI) bomb. After falling behind, Lexington came back to tie things up in the top of the ninth with RBI singles from Johnson and Brandon Meredith (3x5 2R), but ultimately fell short as Asheville scored in the tenth on a walk-off home run. Zach Johnson ended the night with three RBIs to bring his season total to 89. Delino DeShields stole two more bags to bring his total to 77 for the season.

Visalia over Lancaster 11-4
Nick Tropeano has got to hope he never sees Visalia again. Tropeano has a 9.64 ERA and a 2.000 WHIP against Visalia and a 0.95 ERA and a 1.158 WHIP against teams not named Visalia. Trope got the loss after allowing six runs on six hits (including two home runs) over only three innings. Zach Grimmett didn't fare much better in his three innings of work as he coughed up an additional five runs (four earned). Brad Dydalewicz stopped the bleeding, but not until the game was too far gone to hope for a comeback. Erik Castro was two-for-four with a double and Jonathan Meyer was two-for-four with two RBI.

Corpus Christi over Midland 3-2
Rob Rasmussen went to 2-2 as he pitched a strong 7.1 innings, giving up two runs on five hits and walk with seven strikeouts. Jason Stoffel converted his 20th save in 21 opportunities. The Hooks scored early on a Bobby Borchering RBI single and a two-run double from Ben Heath in the third. Jonathan Singleton was three-for-four with a double and scored a run.

Omaha over Oklahoma City 7-6
Brett Oberholtzer had a very nice start as he allowed two runs on five hits and two walks with five strikeouts in six innings of work, but the bullpen in the guise of Fernando Abad (four runs in 0.2 innings) and Mickey Storey (one run in 2.1 innings) couldn't hold things. Brandon Barnes (2x4 2B 2RBI), Jimmy Paredes (2x4 BB), Travis Buck (2x2 2BB 2R) and J.B. Shuck (2x4 RBI) all had nice nights at the plate. Matt Dominguez also contributed with a two-run single in the first.

Pitchers of the Day: Rob Rasmussen and Jason Stoffel will have to share the honors today.

Player of the Day: A three-run home run and four RBIs? Nolan Fontana, come on down!

An Interview with Jason Stoffel

I didn't intend to blow off my interview with Jason Stoffel from last month. I just got ridiculously busy and I ended up with more material from my Corpus Christi trip than I had time to use, and then I got the big interview with Bobby Heck, and then I went on vacation. Yada yada. In all fairness though, I did use his advice to the new draft class here, and I did this profile on Stoffel here so I hope he forgives me for being so slow in posting this.

With that said, Stoffel has continued to do a stellar job out of the bullpen for Corpus Christi. Through Friday's game, he was 1-1 with a 1.83 ERA, a 0.966 WHIP and 16 saves in 38 appearances. He has allowed 10 walks to 36 strikeouts and has held opponents to a .200 batting average. In his last 10 outings, he has allowed only 6 hits.

When I talked to Stoffel, I was struck by his quiet demeanor and his discomfort in talking about himself. He is not the type to blow his own horn. On to the interview ~

On his much improved results this season: "It's been a mindset change for me. I kind of got away from trying to strike every one out, which I've been trying to do for the last few years, and trusting my stuff. [I'll throw] it in the zone instead of maybe wasting a couple of pitches trying to get a strike out, then I'm 3-2 on guys and walking people and just getting myself in trouble. I think that's been a huge part of it."

On his pitch repertoire: "Mainly fastball/slider. My slider's around 80-82. Fastball anywhere from 90 to 94, 95 some nights. Pretty consistent around those numbers."

On closing: "I've been closing for a few years. Obviously that's my goal in the end, but I'm not fooling myself thinking I'm going to break into that role but if they put me up there, wherever they want to put me is fine."

On his 2011 trade from the Giants to the Astros: "I was kind of shocked because I wasn't having a great year with San Francisco and I didn't think I was on anyone's radar. We were just out taking BP one day and I got called off the field. 'Hey, you've been traded.' It's just kind of surprising. It was real out of the dark and [I] didn't really see it coming at all. Obviously, any time you get traded, the team you go to is giving up someone to get you. It's a good feeling but I felt like I had a little pressure on me to perform."

On whose pitch he'd like to steal: "I'd probably take Oberholtzer's change up. It's nasty. Or Villar's change up."

On his goal for the rest of the season: "That I can keep doing this the rest of the year. I'm going good right now, but this is baseball and things can change around in a hurry. I hope that they don't. It's nice to go out and be consistent and see if I can continue that for the entire season."

On something most people don't know about him: "I can juggle. I'm a dork. I love reading. I was a history major. I read everything. Growing up I was a WWII [enthusiast] ... loved military history and I'd just read the same book over and over and over because it was the only book in the library that I'd check out. Kept it out for about a year straight. They got mad at me."

Reserved, quiet and bookish, Stoffel does seem at times to have more in common with a college history professor than a baseball player but, personally, I'm glad he chose baseball. I won't be the least bit surprised to see Stoffel get a well-deserved promotion sooner rather than later.

Copyright  © 2012 Jayne Hansen

All Rights Reserved

Anatomy of a Relief Pitcher

I take a look at Jason Stoffel's turnaround season and some of the factors contributing to his success over at The Futurists. Meander on over if you've got a hankering.

A Little Advice for New Draftees

I asked several of the Hooks players what advice they would give the players who were drafted last week, what they wish someone had told them when they were first drafted. This is what they had to say.

RHP Jason Stoffel - a fourth round draft pick in 2009 out of the University of Arizona
"Get ready! Minor league baseball's a grind. It's a long season. I came from college. We played 56 games or whatever and you almost triple that, and it's every day. It's tough and it takes some getting used to. That's my best advice. Don't underestimate it."

1B Jon Singleton - an eighth round draft pick in 2009 out of Millikan HS in Long Beach, CA
"Not to be in a rush. A lot of guys went to college. They had a great experience. [For players drafted out of high school] it's definitely a learning experience. It's three or four years of your life that you really want to enjoy and have fun so just take your time. You shouldn't be in any rush."

OF Jake Goebbert - a thirteenth round draft pick in 2009 out of Northwestern
"What do I wish someone had told me? Give it all you have every day and have no regrets. Really play like you've got nothing to lose because eventually for all of us being in the game a while, we see it ends and not too many people get to finish out on their own accord. So when you're given the opportunity which is a special opportunity, make sure you give it all you've got and don't take it for granted."

OF Austin Wates - a third round draft pick in 2010 out of Virginia State University
"My best advice is keep your head down, keep playing. You never know how far away you are and you never know how close you are either so you've got to kind of keep your head down and keep playing."

LHP Kevin Chapman - a fourth round pick in 2010 out of the University of Florida
"What do I wish I'd known? Just how to pace yourself throughout the season because it's a long season. In college you get into long season but you're not playing 13 out of 14 days every time, and to be able to pace yourself and keep yourself in shape is huge. I feel like last year, my first full season, towards the end of the year I sort of just fell off a little bit because of that. I feel like coming into this year I had a lot better idea what I needed to do."

Minor League Schedule and Results

MONDAY'S GAMES

Lexington - Off Day

Midland at Corpus Christi at 7:05 CST
Probable Pitchers: RHP Daniel Straily (0-1, 1.65) and RHP Erick Abreu (2-0, 4.15)
Available on MiLB.tv

Albuquerque at Oklahoma City at 7:05 CST
Probable Pitchers: RHP Will Savage (3-0, 2.13) and LHP Dallas Keuchel (3-0, 0.90)
Available on MiLB.tv

Rancho Cucamonga at Lancaster at 9:00 CST
Probable Pitchers:  RHP Garrett Gould (0-2, 3.38) and RHP Zach Grimmett (0-1, 6.60)

SUNDAY'S RESULTS

Corpus Christi over Frisco 5-3
Corpus Christi took three in a row and three out of four in the the series against Frisco (the current leader in the division) to pull one game behind in the division.  Jarred Cosart came back from his blister problem none the worse for wear as he pitched five innings giving up only four hits and striking out four. Adalberto Flores and Kevin Chapman struggled out of the bullpen, but Jason Stoffel came in to bail out Chapman and get his first save (and to see that Cosart got his first win). Brandon Barnes and Andrew Simunic continue to be hot hot hot and are now both hitting .417. Jonathan Singleton hit a clutch two RBI single, and Austin Wates, Kody Hinze and Brandon Barnes all contributed RBI's as well.

Lake Elsinore over Lancaster 5-4
Starting pitcher Ruben Alaniz was terrific until he got into trouble in the eighth, and Pat Urkfitz (BS, 1) and Jorge de Leon (L, 0-3) weren't able to bail out Alaniz or the team as Lake Elsinore scored five times in the eighth and ninth innings. There were good outings from Ben Orloff (3x4), George Springer (2x5), Adam Bailey (2x4, 2B, RBI) and Ben Heath (2x4, HR).  Erik Castro and Domingo Santana also contributed RBI's and Springer got his second stolen base

Albuquerque over Oklahoma City 11-10 in 14 innings
Ross Seaton got beaten up pretty badly in his introduction to AAA as he came in to spot start for Paul Clemens. But it was the four unearned runs given up by Xavier Cedeno in the eighth that sent this one spiraling out of control.  Cedeno was charged with a blown save, and Sergio Perez who pitched in the 14th inning was charged with the loss. Carlos Corporan hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth to tie things up, but was unable to repeat the heroics in the bottom of the 14th as he made the last out.  Brian Bixler went 4x7, Jimmy Paredes was 4x7 with three doubles and Dallas Keuchel even got in on the act with a pinch hit single in the 13th.

GAME OF THE DAY
Lexington over Kannapolis 11-6

What went right:  Strong bullpen performances and a small ball offense with just about everyone on the team contributing.  Luis Cruz had a rough start, but the bullpen picked him up with solid pitching by Dayan Diaz and Murilo Gouvea.  Matt Duffy and Drew Muren both had three hits and Jimmy Howick drew three walks.  But despite getting 14 hits, none of them were for extra bases so every base counted.

Luis Cruz - 5IP 10H 6R 1BB 3SO 1HR
Dayan Diaz (BS, 1) (W, 3-0) - 3IP 0H 0R 0BB 2SO
Murilo Gouvea - 1IP 0H 0R 1BB 2SO

Jordan Scott - 1x4 2RBI 2BB 3SO R CS
Alex Todd - 2x5 RBI
Matt Duffy - 3x6 2SO R
Mike Kvasnicka - 2x5 SO 2R
Drew Muren - 3x4 2R
Emilio King - 2x4 RBI BB SO 3R
Jimmy Howick - 1x2 3RBI 3BB R

What went wrong: Cruz did have a rough start (and a fielding error) and they didn't get any extra base hits, but since they made it work, who am I to fault them for it?

PITCHER OF THE DAY
Jarred Cosart did have a good start and did get a win, but he wouldn't have gotten that win without Jason Stoffel's terrific work in the eighth and ninth innings so Stoffel is my man of the day.

PLAYER OF THE DAY
I know it was a ridiculously long game and he got a lot of extra chances, but 4x7 with three doubles and three runs scored is very good by any measure.  Jimmy Paredes with his brand new sparkly .300 batting average gets the nod.

For more information (and different perspectives), you should check out Astros County and The Crawfish Boxes for their minor league recaps.

Arizona Fall League Update

The Salt River Rafters are now 5-1 after yesterday's decisive defeat (13-6) of the previously unbeaten Surprise Saguaros.  Kody Hinze went 3-5 with a HR, 2 RBI's and a walk and Jacob Goebbert went 1-4 with 2 walks and 2 SO's.  Jason Stoffel pitched a scoreless 6th inning with 1 walk and 3 SO's.

Next action
Salt River vs. Surprise at 6:35 MST (8:35 CST)

Arizona Fall League

Not much to report on this front.  The Salt River Rafters won their first game 12-9 over the Peoria Javelinas, but of the Astros minor leaguers, only Jason Stoffel saw any action with 1IP 3H 1R 1ER 1BB 1SO.

Next game at 6:35 MST this evening.