Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Sunday, August 25, 2019

Let's play two in Troy!

Sorry for the lack of content lately, I was under the weather for most of the second half of last week. Football is also starting, but I've never been less excited for a Texans season until now.

New Orleans 2, Round Rock 1

W- Joe Gunkel (7-2)
L- Brendan McCurry (3-4)
S- Brett Graves (5)

RR home runs: Lorenzo Quintana (17, solo in 5th)

The E-Train was derailed in their bid to sweep this series. This game marked the final meeting between Round Rock and the New Orleans franchise, which will relocate to Wichita, Kansas, next year.

Lorenzo Quintana led off the 5th with a homer and that was Round Rock's only scoring play of the day.

New level? No problem. Cristian Javier did what he's done all season as he allowed two hits, walked two, and struck out eight over six shutout innings in his Triple-A debut. Josh James allowed a run on two hits and struck out one in the 7th and Brendan McCurry allowed a run on four hits and fanned three in the final two innings.

The Express will now kick off a crucial four-game series against San Antonio... who happens to be trailing them by one game in the PCL's American Southern division. José Urquidy will start game one and he'll take on Shelby Miller at 7:05.

Tulsa 6, Corpus Christi 2

W- Josiah Gray (3-2)
L- Chad Donato (5-12)

CC home runs: None.

The Drillers got three in the opening inning to send the Hooks to a loss in their final road game of 2019.

Chad Donato and Brett Conine both pitched four innings. They both allowed five hits... but their results differed just a bit. Donato allowed six runs (five earned, one inherited runner charged to him) on five hits (solo homer), walked three, and struck out four. Conine got the last four innings (Donato failed to record an out in the 5th) and technically turned in a scoreless outing but one of the runners that he inherited from Donato scored. Conine also walked one and struck out two.

Bryan de la Cruz drove in both of the Hooks' runs; he hit an RBI single in the 4th and added a sac fly in the 6th. J.J. Matijevic went 3-4 with a double and scored on de la Cruz's base hit; he also stole a couple of bases, giving him seven on the year.

Corpus finishes off 2019 with an eight-game homestand. First up, four with the Arkansas Travelers. Brandon Bailey takes on Justin Dunn at 6:15.

Fayetteville 9, Frederick 7

W- Cionel Pérez (3-1)
L- Reed Hayes (1-3)

Fayetteville home runs: None.

Things escalated late as the Keys scored a touchdown and got the extra point in the 7th. The Woodpeckers would respond with two more field goals in the bottom of the 8th to retake control.

Parker Mushinski turned in a bare minimum quality start (6 IP, 3 ER), allowing four hits and striking out six. One of the runs that got charged to Mushinski was an inherited runner that scored. Humberto Castellanos allowed four runs (one earned) of his own on four hits, walked one, and struck out one after he took ownership of the 7th. Cionel Pérez allowed two hits and struck out one over the final two innings to get the victory.

Fayetteville opened the scoring in the 1st with a couple of RBI singles from Chandler Taylor and David Hensley and they got another run in the 2nd thanks to Jeremy Peña's RBI single. This was the Woodpeckers' last scoring play until they went off in the 8th.

Michael Papierski singled to lead off the 8th and Scott Manea joined him on the bases after getting plunked. Miguelangel Sierra struck out, but Scott Schreiber kicked things off by ripping an RBI double. Peña walked to load the bases for Cal Stevenson, who reached on an error that allowed Manea to score. Ross Adolph got plunked to bring Schreiber in and then Taylor sent everyone home with a double to restore Fayetteville's lead. Hensley finished 3-5 on the night while Taylor and Peña had two hits apiece.

The Woodpeckers will start their final road series of 2019 at 7:00 Eastern as they take on the Carolina Mudcats.

Kane County 8, Quad Cities 2

W- Adrian Del Moral (3-3)
L- Matt Ruppenthal (5-7)

QC home runs: None.

After winning 8-2 on Saturday, the Banditos found themselves on the wrong end of that score on Sunday.

A.J. Lee drove in both Quad Cities runs with a groundout in the 5th and a double in the 7th.

Matt Ruppenthal threw four innings and allowed six runs on four hits (three-run homer), walked three, and struck out six. Joey Gonzalez was the first man out of the Quad Cities bullpen and he allowed a run on two hits, walked one, and struck out two. Jacob Billingsley pitched the final two innings of this game and Kane County got an unearned run off of him thanks to an error in the 9th. Billingsley also hit three batters and struck out three.

R.J. Freure gets the start in game three and he'll face Luis Frias at 6:35.

Game 1: Staten Island 2, Tri-City 0

W- Alfredo Garcia (2-1)
L- Jairo Lopez (3-3)
S- Justin Wilson (2)

TC home runs: None.

The ValleyCats were held off the board in the first game of the twinbill.

Deury Carrasco went 2-2 with a double and Korey Lee's double was Tri-City's only other hit in game one.

Jairo Lopez pitched four innings and allowed a run on three hits, walked four, and struck out eight. Peyton Plumlee was the first man out of the Tri-City bullpen and allowed an RBI double, walked two, and struck out three in two innings. Shea Barry struck out two in a 1-2-3 7th.

Game 2: Tri-City 6, Staten Island 5

W- Michael Horrell (2-0)
L- Derek Craft (1-1)

TC home runs: Nate Perry 2 (11; 3-run in 3rd, solo in 6th)

The ValleyCats earned the split by walking off with the win in game two.

Nate Perry's breakout year continued as he bashed a couple of homers. He opened the scoring with a three-run blast in the 3rd and he launched a solo homer in the 6th. Preston Pavlica led off the bottom of the 7th with a single, advanced to second on a passed ball, and scored the tying run on a single from E.P. Reese. Juan Paulino followed with a single and advanced to second on defensive indifference. Luis Guerrero went down on strikes for the first out and then Perry got a free pass to first to load the bases for Korey Lee, who sent everyone home happy with a walk-off RBI single. Perry went 3-3 in game two, while Reese finished 2-3 with a double.

Christian Mejías allowed two runs, both of which were inherited runners that were charged to him, on two hits, walked three, and struck out eight in four innings of work. Yeremi Ceballos allowed a three-run homer that resulted in Mejías' two runs, two runs (one inherited runner charged to him, one run was charged to him on the homer), walked one, and struck out four in two innings. Michael Horrell allowed a run of his own on two hits and struck out one in the 7th; one of the runs was charged to Ceballos.

Hunter Brown will start game three of this series. First pitch is at 7:00 Eastern.

GCL Mets 8, GCL Astros 2

W- Zachary Hammer (2-1)
L- Francis Martes (0-1)

GCL home runs: None.

The Mets jumped out to a 6-0 lead and won rather handily despite the Palm Beach 'Stros getting ten hits.

Abraham Castillo hit an RBI single in the 5th and an error on the play allowed Rolando Espinosa to score another run. Castillo, Sean Mendoza, and Yorbin Ceuta all finished with two hits on the day.

Francis Martes allowed two runs (one inherited runner charged to him) on two hits, walked two, and struck out five in 1.2 innings. Fredy Medina walked two in 1.1 scoreless innings, although he did allow one of Martes' runners to score. Elián Rodriguez got the 4th but got roughed up, allowing four runs on two hits, walking three, and striking out two. Alex Palmer got the last out of the 4th and he wound up going 3.1 innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on two hits and striking out six. Kevin Dickey struck out one in a 1-2-3 8th.

Sunday's Stars

All photos are from Jayne unless stated otherwise.

Alex Palmer, RHP, GCL Astros: 3.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R (1 ER), 6 K

Nate Perry, C, and E.P. Reese, OF, Tri-City

Perry: 3-3, 2 HR (11), 4 RBI, IBB

Reese: 2-3, 2B, RBI, 2 R

Cristian Javier, RHP, Round Rock

6 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 8 K in Triple-A debut

J.J. Matijevic, 1B/OF, Corpus Christi

3-4, 2B, R, 2 SB (7)

Chandler Taylor, OF, and Jeremy Peña, SS, Fayetteville

Taylor: 2-5, 2B, 4 RBI

Peña: 2-4, RBI, 2 R

Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Thursday, August 15, 2019

Corpus Christi sweep!

Round Rock 5, Oklahoma City 3

W- Kent Emanuel (7-1)
L- Rob Zastryzny (3-5)
S- Brendan McCurry (6)

RR home runs: Nick Tanielu (14, 2-run in 4th)

After Round Rock scored three in the 4th, OKC responded with three in the top of the 5th to tie the game. The Express regained control with a pair in the bottom of the 5th and kept the Dodgers at bay the rest of the way.

Kent Emanuel went 5.2 innings and allowed three runs on four hits, walked two, and struck out four. The bullpen finished things off with 3.1 scoreless; Ralph Garza Jr. was the first man and he allowed a hit, walked one, and struck out three in 1.1 innings. Brad Peacock worked around a couple of walks to throw a scoreless 8th, striking out one, and Brendan McCurry finished things off by striking out the side in order in the 9th.

Round Rock's three in the 4th came on an RBI single from Kyle Tucker and a two-run blast from Nick Tanielu. Myles Straw put the E-Train back in front in the 5th with an RBI triple and he scored the final run of the evening on Drew Ferguson's sac fly. Tanielu and Straw both finished with two hits on the night.

Ryan Hartman goes up against Logan Bawcom in game two of this series. First pitch is at 7:05.

Corpus Christi 2, Frisco 1

W- Tyler Ivey (4-0)
L- Collin Wiles (0-3)
S- Enoli Paredes (1)

CC home runs: None.

The Hooks swept the Roughriders out of the Coastal Bend region behind a pair of solid mound performances.

Tyler Ivey pitched 5.1 innings and allowed three hits, one of which was a solo homer, walked two, and struck out five. Enoli Paredes shut it down over the final 3.2 innings as he allowed just one hit, walked one, and struck out six.

Corpus Christi's two runs came in the 3rd inning as they were able to take advantage of a bases-loaded situation with one out. Colton Shaver lined into a force out that resulted in Jacob Meyers scoring the first run of the night and Jake Adams hit an RBI single.

The Hooks will now begin their final series against a South Division team in 2019 as they start a three-game set with Midland tonight at 7:15. Forrest Whitley will face James Naile in game one.

Down East 11, Fayetteville 1

W- Cole Uvila (5-3)
L- Shawn Dubin (4-5)
S- Jefferson Medina (5)

Fayetteville home runs: Miguelangel Sierra (12, solo in 9th)

The Woodpeckers were foiled in their bid to sweep the series as they got hammered.

Miguelangel Sierra spoiled the shutout with his homer in the 9th, so... there's that.

When the pitching staff surrenders eleven runs in nine innings and no one had a clean outing, it was definitely a rough night at the office.

Fayetteville will start a three-game series in Frederick at 7:00 Eastern.

Quad Cities 3, Beloit 2

W- Matt Ruppenthal (4-6)
L- Chase Cohen (5-10)

QC home runs: None.

The Banditos came alive after stretch time as they scored three in the bottom of the 7th to take the lead.

Quad Cities loaded the bases to lead off the 7th and they capitalized by taking the lead. Wilyer Abreu put them on the board with an RBI single. Grae Kessinger walked in Alex Holderbach to tie the game and Oscar Campos put the Banditos in front with a sac fly. Campos finished 3-3 on the night while Abreu went 2-4 with a stolen base.

José Alberto Rivera threw four innings and allowed two runs on an RBI triple and a sac fly, walked three, and struck out five. Matt Ruppenthal tagged in to throw five scoreless, allowing a hit, walking two, and striking out seven.

R.J. Freure will get the start in the finale and he'll go up against Angello Infante at 6:35.

Tri-City 4, Aberdeen 3

W- Edgardo Sandoval (1-3)
L- Ryan Conroy (4-4)
S- Shea Barry (2)

TC home runs: Nate Perry (9, solo in 1st)

The ValleyCats held off a late charge from the Ironbirds to get even in this series.

Nate Perry whacked a solo homer in the 1st to open the scoring. Luis Santana hit an RBI single in the 2nd and in the 3rd, Joe Perez ripped an RBI double and came around to score on a single from Juan Paulino. Santana finished 3-3 on the night while Perry and Perez finished 2-4; the two of them also scored twice, which meant that they scored all of Tri-City's runs.

Angel Macuare walked one and struck out three over two scoreless innings. Edgardo Sandoval tagged in for 5.1 innings and allowed three runs on eight hits, walked one, and struck out four. Shea Barry got the last 1.2 innings and he walked one and struck out three to get the save.

Jairo Lopez will take on Kevin Magee in the series finale. First pitch is at 7:00 Eastern.

GCL Mets 4, GCL Astros 2

W- Adrian Aybar (1-2)
L- Franny Cobos (3-1)
S- Jace Beck (1)

GCL home runs: Nerio Rodriguez (2, 2-run in 8th)

Nerio Rodriguez went 3-4 and smacked a two-run homer in the 8th; it's the second straight game in which he's homered. Rainier Rivas went 2-4; he's played in five games and he's recorded two hits in four of them.

Franny Cobos threw five innings and allowed an unearned run on two hits and struck out three.

DSL Astros 7, DSL Braves 6 (11 innings)

W- Miguel Padilla (4-1)
L- Royber Salinas (2-3)

DSL home runs: None.

Things escalated in the 11th as the Dominican 'Stros broke a 3-3 tie with four in the top half and then had to fend off the Braves, who responded by scoring three in the bottom half.

Miguel Palma smacked a two-run triple in the 6th. Yohander Martinez went 2-4 with an RBI single and scored three runs.

Bryan Martinez was the first man out of the bullpen and he went 4.2 innings and allowed a run on four hits and struck out two.

Thursday's Stars

All photos are from Jayne unless stated otherwise.

Yohander Martinez, IF, DSL Astros: 2-4, RBI, 3 R

Corpus Christi Hooks pitchers: W 2-1 vs. Frisco

9 IP, 4 H (solo HR allowed), ER, 3 BB, 11 K

Tyler Ivey: W (4-0), 5.1 IP, 3 H (solo HR allowed), ER, 2 BB, 5 K

Enoli Paredes: Save (1), 3.2 IP, H, BB, 6 K

Brendan McCurry, RHP, Round Rock

Save (6), IP, 3 K

Nick Tanielu, OF, and Myles Straw, UTIL, Round Rock

Tanielu: 2-3, 2-R HR (14)
Straw: 2-4, 2B, 3B, RBI, R

Nerio Rodriguez not pictured.

Franny Cobos, RHP, and Nerio Rodriguez, C, GCL Astros

Cobos: L (3-1), 5 IP, 2 H, unearned run, 3 K

Rodriguez: 3-4, 2B, 2-R HR (2)

Oscar Campos, C, Quad Cities

3-3, RBI

Matt Ruppenthal, RHP, Quad Cities

W (4-6), 5 IP, H, 2 BB, 7 K

Nate Perry, C, Luis Santana, IF, and Joe Perez, 3B, Tri-City

Perry: 2-4, solo HR (9), 2 R

Santana: 3-3, 2B, RBI

Perez: 2-4, 2B, RBI, 2 R

Astros Minor League Recaps

Results for Monday, August 12, 2019

Round Rock 11, Albuquerque 6

W- Framber Valdez (4-2)
L- Pat Dean (3-11)

RR home runs: Kyle Tucker 2 (32; 2-run in 1st, 2-run in 9th), Garrett Stubbs (7, solo in 5th)

The E-Train went off for five runs in the top of the 9th to bust open what had been a 6-5 lead and then they defused a bases-loaded predicament before things got out of hand in the bottom of the 9th.

Kyle Tucker whacked the first of his two two-run homers on the night in the 1st inning. Garrett Stubbs led off the 5th with a home run and Jack Mayfield drove in another run with an RBI single. In the 7th, Nick Tanielu ripped an RBI double and he came home on Mayfield's sac fly. In the 9th, Tanielu smacked a two-run double and came around to score on Mayfield's base hit. One batter later, Tucker launched his second two-run shot of the night. The three of them, along with Myles Straw, all finished with two hits on the evening.

Framber Valdez pitched 6.2 innings and allowed four runs, all of which scored on a pair of two-run homers, on six hits, walked one, and struck out a career-high 13, which also set a new Round Rock franchise record at the Triple-A level. Ronel Blanco was the first man out of the Round Rock bullpen; he got the last out of the 7th and pitched the 8th, allowing an unearned run on a passed ball, a hit, and walking one. Riley Ferrell allowed a run on two hits, walked two, and struck out two in the 9th. The Isotopes loaded the bases on him but he managed to keep his composure and finished this game off.

José Urquidy will start the series finale and he'll go up against Chris Rusin at 6:35 Mountain.

Corpus Christi 7, Frisco 5

W- Brett Adcock (2-8)
L- Ronald Herrera (2-3)
S- Carlos Sanabria (7)

CC home runs: Jake Adams (17, 2-run in 2nd)

The Hooks had to withstand a five-run 8th from the Roughriders but fortunately, they were able to emerge with the victory.

Yohan Ramriez allowed five hits, walked two, and struck out eight in 4.1 innings of work. Colin McKee came in with two men on and stranded them both as he got the last two outs of the 5th, striking out one. Brett Adcock was next; he allowed a grand slam in Frisco's huge 8th, one of six hits that he allowed in his 2.1 innings. Adcock also walked two and struck out four. Carlos Sanabria got the last 1.2 innings and allowed an unearned run on an RBI single and struck out two.

Jake Adams homered for the second consecutive night as he launched a two-run shot in the 2nd inning. With the bases loaded and two outs in the 6th, Adams brought everyone in with a double and he came around to score on a Chuckie Robinson single. J.J. Matijevic lashed an RBI double in the 7th but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. Adams finished 2-4 on the night and had a hand in all but one of Corpus Christi's scoring plays.

Chad Donato takes on Tyler Phillips in game two of this series. First pitch is at 6:15.

Fayetteville was off

The Woodpeckers will begin a three-game series with Down East at 7:00 Eastern.

Wisconsin 4, Quad Cities 3

W- Nick Bennett (1-0)
L- Lupe Chavez (0-3)
S- Logan Gillaspie (1)

QC home runs: None.

The Banditos were foiled in their bid to sweep this series as their comeback bid fell short.

Guadalupe Chavez pitched four innings and allowed an unearned run on three hits and walked two. Felipe Tejada and Devin Conn threw two innings apiece, with contrasting results. Tejada allowed three runs on three hits, walked two, and struck out two, while Conn had a perfect outing, recording four groundouts and two flyball outs.

Quad Cities got on the board in the 7th thanks to a couple of errors that allowed James Nix and Austin Dennis to score. Freúdis Nova drove in a run with a groundout in the 8th. Oscar Campos went 2-4 and stole a base in this game.

The Banditos will have Tuesday off before starting a three-game series with Beloit on Wednesday.

Tri-City 7, Connecticut 5

W- Peyton Battenfield (2-1)
L- Austin Bergner (0-1)
S- Peyton Plumlee (1)

TC home runs: A.J. Lee (5, 2-run in 2nd), Nate Perry (8, solo in 2nd), Jordan Brewer (1, solo in 3rd)

The ValleyCats stormed out to a 7-0 lead after the 3rd inning and staved off the Tigers' comeback bid.

Hunter Brown started things off with two scoreless, walking one and striking out four. Derek West and Peyton Battenfield followed with three innings apiece; West allowed three runs on three hits, walked one, and struck out five, while Battenfield allowed two runs on four hits, walked one, and struck out five. Peyton Plumlee pitched a 1-2-3 9th to get the save.

C.J. Stubbs opened up the scoring with a two-run double in the 1st inning. Tri-City went off for four in the 2nd as Luis Santana hit a sac fly and A.J. Lee (two-run) and Nate Perry (solo) clubbed back-to-back home runs. Jordan Brewer went deep for the first time as a pro when he sent one out for a solo shot in the 3rd inning. A.J. Lee finished 3-4 on the night while Perry and Brewer both finished with two hits and two runs scored.

The ValleyCats will look for a series sweep in their final meeting with the Tigers in 2019. First pitch is at 7:05 Eastern.

DSL Astros 4, DSL Athletics 2

W- Miguel Padilla (3-1)
L- James Gonzalez (1-3)
S- Edinson Batista (2)

DSL home runs: Yohander Martinez (1, 2-run in 1st)

The Dominican 'Stros had the advantage of putting up the only crooked number in this game.

Yohander Martinez hit his first career homer, a two-run blast in the 1st that opened the scoring. Miguel Palma drove in a run with a groundout in the 3rd and scored on a sac fly from Cristian Gonzalez in the 8th. Carlos Hurtado went 2-3.

Danny Subero allowed a hit, walked one, and struck out three over three scoreless. Miguel Padilla walked one and struck out two in a scoreless 4th. José Nodal took over for four innings and he allowed a run on two hits while striking out four and Edinson Batista allowed a run on a sac fly, a single, walked one, and struck out two in the 9th.

Monday's Stars

All photos are from Jayne unless stated otherwise.

Danny Subero, RHP, DSL Astros: 3 IP, H, BB, 3 K

Jake Adams (getting hug from Jonathan Arauz), 1B, Corpus Christi

2-4, 2B, 2-R HR (17), 5 RBI, 2 R

Yohan Ramirez, RHP, Corpus Christi

4.1 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 8 K

Jordan Brewer's photo is his mugshot on MiLB.com.

Nate Perry, C/1B, A.J. Lee, IF, and Jordan Brewer, OF, Tri-City

Perry: 2-5, 2B, solo HR (8), 2 R

Lee: 3-4, 2B, 2-R HR (5)

Brewer: 2-4, solo HR (1), 2 R

Hunter Brown, RHP, Tri-City

2 IP, BB, 4 K

Kyle Tucker, OF, Nick Tanielu, IF, and Jack Mayfield, IF, Round Rock

Tucker: 2-5, 2 HR (32), 4 RBI

Tanielu: 2-2, 2 2B, 3 RBI, 2 R

Mayfield: 2-4, 3 RBI, R