Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Friday, May 1, 2015

Their opponents got to them late....

Tacoma 2, Fresno 0

W- Forrest Snow (1-1)
L- Tyson Perez (0-1)
S- Lucas Luetge (1)

Fresno home runs: None.

Well, the Grizz had nothing going for them on offense as they were held to 2 hits. Preston Tucker and Matt Duffy both went 1-3.

Luis Cruz started it off with 5 scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits, walking 3, and striking out 3. The Rainiers got their 2 runs off of Tyson Perez in the 6th inning; Perez went 2 innings and allowed 3 hits while striking out 2. Darin Downs worked around 2 hits to throw a scoreless 8th, striking out 1.

Brady Rodgers will take the mound in game 3; he'll face Sam Gaviglio at 5:05 Pacific.

Frisco 5, Corpus Christi 4

W- Francisco Mendoza (1-0)
L- Jandel Gustave (0-1)

CC home runs: None.

The Hooks scored 2 in the bottom of the 8th as they rallied to take a 4-3 lead, but that lead would be short-lived as the Roughriders re-took the lead with 2 of their own in the top of the 9th inning.

Corpus got on the board first as Carlos Correa drew a 2-out walk, stole his way to 3rd, and scored on a bases-loaded walk drawn by Jon Kemmer. Tony Kemp doubled with 1 out in the 5th and came home on a Tyler White single. Roberto Peña's 2-run single in the 8th inning put the Hooks on top, but they wouldn't be on top for long. Kemp finished 2-5.

Mike Hauschild pitched 4.2 innings and allowed 3 runs (2 earned) on 8 hits (7 singles and a double) and struck out 5. Dan Minor was the first man out; he walked 1 and struck out 2 over 1.1 scoreless. Jonas Dufek tossed 2 scoreless, walking 1 and striking out 1. Frisco cracked Jandel Gustave in the 9th; he allowed 2 runs on 3 hits, walked 1, and struck out 2 in the inning; the go-ahead run scored when he uncorked a wild pitch.

In game 2 of this series, Lance McCullers will face Alec Asher. First pitch is at 7:05.

Modesto 3, Lancaster 2

W- Carlos Estevez (3-0)
L- Edison Frias (2-2)

Lancaster home runs; A.J. Reed (4, solo in 4th)

The Nuts got 1 run in each of the final 3 innings as they walked off with the victory in the series opener.

Mr. Golden Spikes constituted the entire JetHawks offense as he drove in both runs. A.J. Reed opened up the scoring in the 1st with a sac fly, then led off the 4th with his 4th homer of the season. Brett Phillips stole his 2nd base of the season, while Danry Vásquez and Jose Fernandez both finished 2-4; Fernandez extended his hitting streak to 11 games.

Brian Holmes was excellent as he allowed just 1 hit, walked 1, and struck out 7 over 5 shutout innings. Edison Frias pitched 3.1 innings and allowed 3 runs (1 earned, including the game-winner) on 4 hits and struck out 3.

Michael Feliz will be on the mound for game 2. He'll face Konner Wade at 7:05 Pacific.

Quad Cities 2, Wisconsin 1

W- Chris Lee (1-2)
L- Cy Sneed (1-2)
S- Ryan Thompson (1)

QC home runs: None.

The Banditos got the win despite getting outhit 9-5; to me, they converted on just one more scoring opportunity.

In his season debut, Jason Martin was the River Bandits offense. He drew a bases-loaded walk in the 4th to tie the game at 1 and hit an RBI single in the 6th to put QC ahead. Everyone in the lineup drew a walk except for D.J. Fisher.

Chris Lee allowed a run on 6 hits and struck out 4 over 5 innings to get the victory. All but one of the hits he allowed were singles. Keegan Yuhl tagged in for 2.2 scoreless, allowing 2 hits, walking 1, and striking out 4. The Closer, Ryan Thompson, shut it down; he allowed a hit, walked 1, and fanned 3 as he got the final 4 outs of the game.

The other 2 games in the series will start at 1:05. In game 2 of this series, Kevin Comer will face Zach Hirsch.

Three Stars: Position Players

Slim pickings here, so I'll just go with the guys who drove in 2 runs.

3.

Roberto Peña, C, Corpus Christi

2-run single in 8th inning

2. 

A.J. Reed, 1B, Lancaster

1-3, solo HR (4), 2 RBI

1. 

Jason Martin, OF, Quad Cities

1-3, 2 RBI

Three Stars: Pitchers

3.

Jonas Dufek, RHP, Corpus Christi

2 IP, BB, K

Dan Minor, RHP, Corpus Christi

1.1 IP, BB, 2 K

2. 

Luis Cruz, LHP, Fresno

5 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 3 K

1. 

Brian Holmes, LHP, Lancaster

5 IP, H, BB, 7 K

Tweet of the Day

Always a good day when baseball is back on TV. #OpeningNight
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) April 6, 2015

Tweet of the Day

Another exciting Sunday night for Team Rehab ~

Routine Sunday night dinner at @WaffleHouse with @Snacks_31
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) August 17, 2014

Tweet of the Day

Got to play catch today. #GoodDay #Week16
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) July 23, 2014

Happy Birthday - 6/30

Happy Birthday to ~

RHP Jonas Dufek (26)
A ninth round pick by the Astros in 2011 out of Creighton, Dufek had a simply fantastic end to his 2013 season. After his promotion to Corpus Christi in late July, he was 7-0 with four saves, a 0.47 ERA and a 0.776 WHIP in 14 appearances. He walked one and struck out 20 in 19+ innings. For the season, including his 36 appearances with Lancaster, he had a 3.19 ERA and a 1.241 WHIP. That's the good news. The bad news is that Dufek is currently on Team Rehab in Kissimmee after undergoing Tommy John surgery earlier this year.

A couple of former Astros celebrate the day as well ~

OF/1B Dave Roberts (81)
Roberts came to the Colt .45's after having retired from baseball and played in 77 games for Houston in 1962 and 1964.  This excellent article from Baseball-Reference outlines some of the problems that faced the Panamanian born Roberts during his 22 seasons of playing professional baseball in the minor leagues, major league and in Japan.

C Otis Thornton (69)
Thornton was drafted by Houston in the 68th round in 1965. In two major league games (three at-bats), he wasn't able to get that one major league hit but he did get an RBI. An interesting side note, the two games he played in were both ends of a double-header in Montreal. He was the first player in major league history to play his entire major league career outside of the United States.

Tweets of the Day

U S A!!! #IBelieveThatWeWillWin
— Chris Swift Munnelly (@swiftmunn) June 22, 2014

USA USA USA!!!!! #IBelieveThatWeWillWin
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) June 22, 2014

'MMMMEERRRRRICCCCAAAAAAA
— Lance McCullers Jr. (@LMcCullers_41) June 22, 2014

#USA !
— Kent Emanuel (@KentEmanuel) June 22, 2014

USA USA USA
— Chris Cotton (@58percentCotton) June 22, 2014

2014 Grapefruit League Recap, Game 15

Detroit Tigers 14, Houston Astros 3

2014 Grapefruit League record: 7-8

W- Max Scherzer (3-1)
L- Lucas Harrell (1-2)

Astros home runs: Robbie Grossman (1, solo in 5th)

Ugh. I will still fulfill my obligation of recapping this game, though.

Starting Pitcher: Lucas Harrell

Well, at least he didn't walk anyone.

Final line: 1.2 IP, 12 H (2-R homer), 10 R (9 earned)

Bullpen

Jonas Dufek, summoned from Minor League camp, was the first man out of the pen for Houston, and he turned in a fine performance against some of the Tigers' biggest bats. That's some first impression right there. (See Tweet of the Day.) What he didn't mention in his tweet was that he also struck out Victor Martinez, who's no slouch with the bat, either.

Jonas Dufek has really taken off since his move to the bullpen, and he's looking to build upon his fine 2013 season and possibly put himself in consideration to be a callup at some point this year.

Chad Qualls gave up a solo homer to Ian Kinsler in the 4th. Matt Albers allowed a hit and walked 1 in a scoreless 5th. Peter Moylan opened the 6th with 2 straight walks and saw both of those runners score on an RBI single and a sac fly.

Josh Zeid pitched the final 2 innings, and the only hit he allowed was a solo homer to Tyler Collins to lead off the 7th. He walked 2 in the 8th and struck out 4 (2 in each inning). So, other than getting dinged to start his outing, Zeid was excellent during his time on the mound.

Offense

The Astros got single tallies in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th innings. Robbie Grossman was 2-3 with a solo homer off Max Scherzer in the 4th.

After Marc Krauss tripled to lead off the 2nd, he came home on a Jesús Guzmán single. Jonathan Villar hit a triple to begin the 3rd and scored on a Dexter Fowler groundout.

Andrew Aplin came on as a pinch-runner for Carlos Corporán in the 7th inning.

Three Stars

3.

Josh Zeid, RHP
2 IP, H (solo HR), ER, 2 BB, 4 K

2.

Robbie Grossman, OF

2-3, solo HR (1) in 5th

1.

Jonas Dufek, RHP

1.1 IP, H, K

Next Up

Brad Peacock will take on the organization that originally drafted him, as a split squad from the Nationals roll into Kissimmee. He'll be taking on Gio Gonzalez at 1:05 Eastern.

Tweet of the Day

Gave up a hit to Torii Hunter, but got Miguel Cabrera to pop out, so that's nice.
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) March 15, 2014

Tweet of the Day

Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata tho...
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) February 9, 2014

Tweet of the Day

Almost that time of year... pic.twitter.com/j5sT9SiYOU
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) January 9, 2014

A Final Look at the Arizona Fall League Astros

Although the Arizona Fall League isn't technically over as the Championship Game between Mesa and Surprise will be played on Saturday at 2:10 (and televised on the MLB Network), the season is over for the "Astros Eight" who played for the Peoria Javelinas. First a look at how the pitchers performed:



It's hard to take much away from these small sample sizes, but I would like to point out a few items of interest. RHP Matt Heidenreich saved his best performance for last. In his final start, he allowed only one hit in his four innings. He struck out an AFL season high of six batters and didn't walk anyone. His fall numbers definitely compared favorably to a season in which he struggled to put up an 8.23 ERA and a 1.811 WHIP in 25 appearances in Corpus Christi and which saw him spending time on the DL and on a rehab assignment.

RHP Jonas Dufek made the Fall Star team and continued to exhibit his 2013 regular season effectiveness. RHP Andrew Robinson was a victim of small sample size, one particularly rough outing and questionable defense (only five of his 13 runs allowed were earned). Unlike Heidenreich, LHP Alex Sogard saved his worst for last. Back out his final outing and he had a 1.46 ERA and a 1.216 WHIP.



Now, a few tidbits about the participating position players. From everything I've read about 1B Japhet Amador, he definitely has light tower power, but he is still a bit raw. Much has also been written about his weight. Interestingly enough, an insider article posted by Jose de Jesus Ortiz today at Baseball Amerca indicates that the Astros put him on a weight management program and he has definitely dropped a few.

CF Delino DeShields, another Fall Star team member, was at the center of conflicting reports about his effort level, but he definitely put up decent numbers. I heard from more than one person that he was being overly aggressive on the basepaths. SS Nolan Fontana just simply didn't have a very good fall campaign. He only managed two hits in his last 10 games and his OBP was far below his normal eye-popping numbers.

3B Jonathan Meyer, originally a member of the taxi squad, ended up as a starter toward the end of the season as one of the other players had to leave the team for personal reasons. From all accounts, Meyer shone defensively at third base and also put up very good offensive numbers. To top that off, according to this article from Jim Callis, Meyer was nominated for the AFL's Stenson Award for sportsmanship.

Tweet of the Day

Hiked Camelback Mountain with @JonasDufek this morning! pic.twitter.com/P7SeF7Gk7Q
— Andrew Robinson (@ARob2627) November 3, 2013

Tweet of the Day

@JonasDufek I got you when you were looking right at me pic.twitter.com/RgVR3Utizv
— Travis Ballew (@Tballew18) November 3, 2013

An Interview with Corpus Christi RHP Jonas Dufek

[UPDATE: It was just announced today that Jonas Dufek will be one of the Astros minor leaguers who have been picked to play in the Arizona Fall League.]

I've been watching RHP Jonas Dufek since I saw him last year pitching in the starting rotation for Class A Lexington. The 2011 ninth round pick out of Creighton University certainly stands out in a crowd, at 6'5" 215#, but his stats never quite stood out in the increasingly crowded ranks of Astros minor league starting pitchers.

Then at the beginning of the 2013 season, Dufek was moved to the bullpen. After struggling a bit to start the season in the very hitter-friendly confines of The Hangar in Lancaster, Dufek settled in nicely putting up a 0.95 ERA and a 1.263 WHIP from June through his promotion to Corpus toward the end of July. During those final 16 games, he walked only nine batters while striking out 27 in 25+ innings.

Fast forward to today. In Dufek's first 11 appearances out of the Hooks bullpen, he is 6-0 with three saves, a 0.55 ERA and a 0.735 WHIP. He has allowed only one run in 16 and a third innings. He has struck out 17 batters and has yet to walk a batter. I think it's safe to say that Dufek's stats now definitely stand out from the crowd.

Jonas Dufek - June 2013 in Lancaster

Photo by Jayne Hansen

I have spoken to Jonas a few times, but I caught up with him via email for this interview. Here is what he had to say ~

WTH: You spent your first two seasons as a starter and got converted to the bullpen this year. Do you feel like that is a good fit for you?

JD: Moving into the bullpen this year took a little time getting used to, but now that I am comfortable with it I feel like it was a good move for me. I feel like the move has allowed me to pitch more off of my slider since I don’t have to worry about facing the batters more than once a game, compared to when I was a starter.

WTH: Everyone knows that Lancaster and High Desert in the California League are notoriously hitter-friendly ballparks. Tell me a little about the experience pitching there and what you learned from it.

JD: Pitching in Lancaster and the California League isn’t the easiest on pitchers, but it does really make you focus on each one of your pitches and to not take a batter off. Hitters can easily hurt you on mistakes and pitches you don’t locate, but the main takeaway I learned was that if you execute your pitches you can pitch anywhere.

WTH: How does pitching in the Texas League compare to pitching in the California League?

JD: The Texas league is more of a pitcher friendly league than the California league, but the higher level of competition is noticeable. The hitters are more disciplined around the plate and have a better ability to lay off of pitches out of the strike zone. One of the benefits to the Texas league for me is the humidity. Growing up and always playing in humid areas, the dry desert of California made it hard to get good grips on the ball sometimes. After playing in Corpus for a month, I can tell I don’t have to worry about that anymore.

WTH: At the risk of jinxing you, you have been lights out in your outings since the promotion and have yet to walk a batter. To what do you attribute your early success in the league?

JD: I really have just focused on going out, throwing quality pitches in the strike zone and not giving anything free to the hitters. When you come out of the bullpen you might only be in there for an out or two so you really have to focus and make those couple of batters count. Of course, working with catchers like Max Stassi, Ryan McCurdy and Cody Clark have helped me make the transition since each of them are so solid behind the plate.

WTH: Tell me a little about your pitch repertoire.

JD: Well my pitches are a four seam and two seam fastball, a slider and a change up. Since coming out of the bullpen I have really worked off my fastball and slider but still mix in a couple change ups. My slider has really been my go to pitch and I feel comfortable throwing it in any count for a strike.

WTH: What have you accomplished so far this year and what do you still need to work on?

JD: One of my biggest accomplishments has just been adjusting to being a reliever. The early part of the season I was still trying to figure out a role, and then as the year went on I was really able to settle into a groove. Pitching coach Donnie Alexander was a big help in adjusting but some of the best advice came from the guys in the bullpen. They talked with me about past experiences and just getting the right mind set for coming into the later innings of the game.

WTH: What fellow Astros pitcher you've seen over the last three years has a pitch you'd like to steal?

JD: I would love to have Nick Tropeano's change up. The pitch just bottoms out and is so hard for hitters to pick up. I’ve watched him for three years now and his change up has worked against every level.

WTH: What Astros hitter would you least like to face?

JD: Matt Duffy. I have faced Duffy one time in spring training and he roped a double off the wall the first pitch I threw him. But really it’s because he is such a complete hitter and always has a solid approach every at bat. I’ve seen him be an all-star three years in a row now and his abilities have just gotten better every year.

WTH: Is there a player in the Astros system that you like to just sit back and watch pitch/play?

JD: Ryan McCurdy. I have played on and off with McCurdy every one of my pro seasons and he is one of the most consistent guys I know. He works extremely hard on and off the field and never takes a play off. He’s also one of my favorite catchers to pitch to just because of his intelligence behind the plate and effort he gives you on every pitch.

WTH: Who on the JetHawks or Hooks teams can really make you laugh?

JD: Both the teams have had great guys on it, but spending most of the games in the bullpen I would say any of the relief pitchers. Ballew, Dimock, Lamb, Geith, Walters… the list goes on. It has been a fun season with these guys and they are always cracking jokes with each other.

WTH: What would you do if you couldn't play baseball?

JD: Hopefully something outdoors. Being in a cubicle 40 hours a week isn’t what I picture doing for a career. Maybe something like a park ranger for a national park or somewhere along those lines.

WTH: Tell me something about yourself that most people don't know and might be surprised to hear.

JD: I love to go hiking in the mountains and every fall after the offseason I have gone to Colorado to hike. It’s really peaceful and a great way to unwind after a long season.

>>>>>>><<<<<<<

Well, there you have it. I would like to add that, on a personal level, I have really enjoyed talking with Jonas. We share some Midwestern roots as his home in Nebraska is only a couple hours away from my hometown in South Dakota. He is down-to-earth, exceedingly polite and just an all-around nice guy, all of which I would expect from a fellow Midwesterner. (And maybe hearkening from the flat plains of the Midwest explains our mutual love of hiking as well!)

Thank you for your time, Jonas, and the best of luck as the Hooks head into the playoffs next week!

Funky Foto Friday

I've been playing with the BeFunky photo effect site again. Here are a few of my favorites. Enjoy!

Andrew Thurman

Andrew Aplin

Michael Feliz

Chase McDonald

Jonas Dufek

Jandel Gustave

 

Jon Singleton

Marc Krauss

Ryan Connolly

Preston Tucker

Matt Duffy

Astros Minor League Recaps

Sunday's Games

Oklahoma City over Albuquerque 5-4
Asher Wojciechowski tossed seven and a third innings to get his eighth AAA win (10th of the season). He allowed three runs on seven hits, walked one and struck out eight. Pat Urckfitz and Jason Stoffel finished off the eighth inning without incident. Jorge de Leon allowed one run in the ninth on his way to converting his third save. OKC didn't score after the fourth and Albuquerque didn't start scoring until the sixth. The first two RedHawks runs came in the second on a two-RBI single from Che-Hsuan Lin. George Springer then led off the fourth with his 16th home run for OKC (35th of the season). Jimmy Paredes also scored in the fourth on a ground out after first driving in a run with a triple.

Corpus Christi over Arkansas 3-1 in 10 innings
Mike Foltynewicz and company pitched a beauty. Folty allowed one run on two hits and struck out four in six innings. R.J. Alaniz (3IP 1H 2BB 1SO) and Jonas Dufek (1IP 1H 1SO) combined with Folty to keep it to only four hits allowed. Arkansas scored their sole run in the first, but the Hooks didn't match that run until the sixth when Kiké Hernandez hit a home run to start the inning. Fast forward to the top of the 10th inning ... with two outs and the bases loaded, Erik Castro (3x5 2RBI) drove in two with a single, setting things up for Dufek to convert his second save since his promotion to AA.

Lancaster over High Desert 9-3
Colton Cain got the start and the win. He gave up three runs in six and a third innings on five hits and three walks, striking out two. The bullpen (in the form of Jordan Jankowski, Kenny Long and Travis Ballew) did a terrific job, allowing only one baserunner the rest of the way (on a Ballew walk). Lancaster took advantage of a couple of throwing errors and a Tyler Heineman triple in the second to score a pair, and scored another two on a Nolan Fontana triple in the fifth. Up 4-3 going in to the bottom of the seventh, the 'Hawks put up a four-spot, again scoring one on an error, one on a Carlos Perdomo sac fly and two on a bases-loaded M.P. Cokinos single. The final run came in the eighth on a Heineman inside-the-park home run, his second (!) of the season. Joe Sclafani was two-for-three with a walk and scored twice.

Quad Cities over Burlington 3-2
Brian Holmes threw the first five and a third for QC and allowed one unearned run on seven hits and three walks while striking out six. Holmes has only allowed one earned run in three appearances since coming back from rehab. Zach Morton then stranded the two runners he inherited and pitched two and two thirds scoreless innings. Juan Minaya gave up the second Burlington run in the ninth and was charged with a blown save, but also got the win as Quad Cities came back in the bottom of the frame to win on a Rio Ruiz walk-off home run. Jobduan Morales also homered in the fourth. Carlos Correa tripled in the game and drove in a run on a ground out.

Staten Island over Tri-City 3-2 in 11 innings
Kevin Comer (3.2IP 3H 2BB 5SO) and Evan Grills (4IP 7H 2R/1ER 1SO) had solid outings and were following by scoreless relief from Richard Rodriguez and Gonzalo Sanudo. Tyler Brunnemann came on in the 11th inning and allowed a one-out walk-off home run and was charged with the loss. Tri-City didn't score until the top of the ninth when a Mike Martinez two-run homer tied things up. The ValleyCats were held to five hits in the game.

Elizabethton over Greeneville 5-2 in 8 innings (called early due to rain)
Edison Frias pitched a strong six innings, allowing only one run on five hits and two walks while striking out four, but Kevin Ferguson got hit hard in the seventh and gave up four runs. Sebastian Kessay pitched to one batter in the eighth before the game was called for rain. Greeneville scored one in the fifth on an Angel Ibanez bases-loaded walk and one in the seventh on a Chase McDonald RBI single. Tanner Mathis was two-for-three with a walk and scored both runs. The GStros were also held to five hits.

Player of the Game: I've got to give Tyler Heineman some extra love today for his second inside-the-park home run of the season to go with his RBI triple. (Did I mention that he's a catcher?) Heineman is en fuego in August, hitting .410/.520/.872 so far this month. Honorable mention goes to Rio Ruiz for his walk-off home run, the first walk-off homer of the season for Quad Cities, and to Erik Castro for making that long bus ride back from Arkansas a whole lot more fun.

Pitchers of the Game: I'm splitting the prize among the Corpus Christi staff today for the four-hitter from Mike Foltynewicz, R.J. Alaniz and Jonas Dufek. Honorable mention goes to the excellent (and drama-free) relief from the Lancaster relief trio of Jankowski, Long and Ballew.

Astros Minor League Recaps

Saturday's Games

Pulaski Mariners, Greeneville Astros -Doubleheader 
Steve has a great eyewitness account of these games already up. You can check it out here.

GCL Tigers 3, GCL Astros 0  

The GCL Astros were four-hit, shut out Saturday, marking their fifth consecutive loss (not including the postponed game from the 25th). Yonathan Mejia had half of his team's hits, going two-for-four at the plate and striking out once. Neither Jacob Nottingham (0X2 SO) nor Jose Fernandez (0X2 SO) had a hit in the game, but both drew two walks. Fernandez also had a stolen base in the game. Jose Montero (1-1) started things off on the mound for the GCL Astros and after five innings of work had allowed three runs on four hits (HR), walked five and struck out three—good for the loss. Samil De Los Santos followed Montero for one inning and struck out all three he faced.

DSL Royals 4, DSL Astros 2

The Astros allowed four runs in the sixth inning and that ended up being too big of a crooked number to defeat Saturday. Gerardo Juarez (2-2) started, working the first five and two-thirds. Juarez recorded all four runs, six hits, two walks and five Ks in his outing. Hector Roa had a pair of hits in the game, closing out at two-for-four with a stolen base and run scored too. Roa doubled in the ninth to knock in his team's final run of the game. Luis Payano was the only other player in multiples for the Astros, batting two-for-four also.

Tri-City Valley Cats 0, Vermont Lake Monsters 4
The Valley Cats didn't get a hit until the fourth inning Saturday and it would be one of only five they collected in this shutout. Adrian Houser (0-2) took the loss after pitching the first five innings and allowing a pair of runs on seven hits, walking one and striking out a trio. Tanner Bushue took the mound next and threw through the seventh, tallying another two runs, two hits and walk as he struck out two. Anthony Kemp picked up his 15th stolen base of the year and batted one-for-three with a walk and strikeout. Chan Moon bat one-for-four, hitting a triple in the fifth inning for Tri-City's second hit of the game. The Valley Cats' first hit in the fourth inning was a Ronnie Mitchell (1X4) double.

Quad Cities River Bandits 6, Beloit Snappers 8
The River Bandits struck first yesterday, but a five-run sixth inning toppled their momentum. Chris Devenski was on the mound for the first five innings and in that time saw a pair of runs score, allowed ten hits (HR), walked one and struck out four. Juri Perez (0-2) entered to pitch next and in two outs time Perez faced eight batters, allowing five runs on five hits and a walk. Perez would snag the loss and the blown save, his first. Rio Ruiz brought home three runs Saturday, concluding the game at the plate two-for-four with a two-run homer, stolen base and two strikeouts. Teoscar Hernandez went two-for-five with a pair of runs scored while Carlos Correa hit two-for-four, swatting a double, scoring a run and collecting two RBI.

Lancaster JetHawks 5, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 7
Only three of the Quakes' seven runs yesterday were earned. The other four runs were scored in conjunction with Lancaster's six errors in the game. Carlos Perdomo committed four errors on Saturday alone. Perdomo (0X3 RBI 2BB) was also one of four JetHawks to steal a base in the game. Delino DeShields (2X5 R 2B RBI SO), Chris Epps (2X4 R BB) and Andrew Aplin (0X4 RBI BB) were the other three to swipe bags. Matt Duffy (1X4 R HR RBI SO) hit a round-tripper in the fourth inning, his only hit of the day. Kyle Hallock (4-3) took the loss after starting and pitching four innings. Hallock conceded four runs (2ER), seven hits (HR), three walks and K-ed three. Michael Dimock took the hill for the next three innings and logged another three runs (1ER), four hits, walked one and struck out two.

Corpus Christi Hooks 12, Midland RockHounds 6 (7)

Max Stassi and Domingo Santana hit back-to-back homers in the first inning pushing the Hooks out to an early lead before falling behind in the bottom of the second. Corpus Christi pitching then buckled down and the offense rallied to pull out the win. Ross Seaton started and was on the mound for just one and two-thirds before exiting the game. In that span Seaton tallied six runs, six hits, walked two and struck out one. After Seaton left the game there were four Hooks pitchers in the game and only Chia-Jen Lo, who picked up the save in the ninth, allowed a hit as he struck out another. Theron Geith followed Seaton and retired all eight batters he faced in order, striking out three. Jonas Dufek (1-0) strode to hill after Geith and produced a carbon copy of his performance—down to the number of strikeouts—and picked up the win. The outing was Dufek's debut in Double-A. Preston Tucker (1X4 2R HR RBI BB SO) hit a solo homer in the seventh that put the Hooks ahead. Max Stassi (2X4 R HR 3RBI), Domingo Santana (2X4 R HR RBI) and Jonathan Meyer (2X4 SO) all had two hits in the game.

    

Iowa Cubs 0, Oklahoma City RedHawks 5
Oklahoma city shut down and shut out the Cubs at home Saturday, allowing just four hits and adding an inside-the-park home run to the score sheet. David Rollins started things off from the hill for the RedHawks, debuting in Triple-A, and went six innings. Rollins (1-0) saw three hits during his shift and not much else, walking one and striking out eight to earn the win. George Springer went two-for-three at the dish with three runs scored, an RBI, stolen base and couple of walks. Springer also legged out the inside-the-park homer when his fifth inning shot to center eluded the center fielder and escaped to the wall. Marwin Gonzalez finished two-for-three, the only other RedHawk in multiples, with a pair of RBI and a walk.

Player of the Day: An inside-the-park knock always deserves the honor. They are rare and take a special set of circumstances, not too mention a fast pair of feet. So George Springer, the crown is yours for the day (Note: While they are rare, Springer's inside-the-park homer was actually OKC's second this week).

Pitcher of the Day: David Rollins, come on down. Rollins made the trip up to three-A yesterday and had an outstanding outing, allowing just three hits, striking out eight and retiring the first nine he faced in order. That's respectable. Nicely done.

Also an honorable mentions go out to Jonas Dufek and T.J. Geith. Dufek, in his own debut, was lights out. Kind of like, errr, exactly like the guy on the mound before him T.J. Geith.

Roster Moves/Transactions

Oklahoma City
RHP Jorge de Leon assigned from Corpus Christi to Oklahoma City

Corpus Christi
RHP Jonas Dufek assigned from Lancaster to Corpus Christi
According to Jason Schwartz, RHP Brady Rodgers is also being assigned from Lancaster to Corpus Christi for what is anticipated to be a spot start.

Lancaster
RHP Michael Dimock activated from the DL

Greeneville
SS Thomas Lindauer tweeted that he is being assigned from Tri-City to Greeneville

GCL
SS Jose Fernandez assigned from Tri-City to the GCL
OF Trevor Crowe to the GCL for a rehab assignment

International Free Agent Signing
SS Wilson Amador from the Dominican Republic

Happy Birthday - 6/30

RHP Jonas Dufek (25)
A ninth round pick by the Astros in 2011 out of Creighton, Dufek is spending his third season as an Astro with the Lancaster club. After spending the last two seasons as a starter, Dufek is now being used out of the bullpen. In 28 appearances, he is 1-2 with a 4.25 ERA and a 1.389 WHIP.

Former Astros with birthdays today ~

OF/1B Dave Roberts (80)
Roberts came to the Colt .45's after having retired from baseball and played in 77 games for Houston in 1962 and 1964.  This excellent article from Baseball-Reference outlines some of the problems that faced the Panamanian born Roberts during his 22 seasons of playing professional baseball in the minor leagues, major league and in Japan.

C Otis Thornton (68)
Thornton was drafted by Houston in the 68th round in 1965. In two major league games (three at-bats), he wasn't able to get that one major league hit but he did get an RBI. An interesting side note, the two games he played in were both ends of a double-header in Montreal. He was the first player in major league history to play his entire major league career outside of the United States.

Tweet of the Day

Jonas Dufek ‏@Jonasty41
 Apartment's not ready for one more night so sleeping in the apartment leasing office. #milb #WhatAmIDoingWithMyLife pic.twitter.com/BmSU2jXv8P