Thank you Grogan Elementary for allowing me to speak to your kids this morning. #Blessed pic.twitter.com/MQoFj6nZnZ
— Anthony Bass (@AnthonyBass45) February 11, 2014
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Tweet of the Day
Labels: Anthony Bass, TOTD 0 comments
Happy Birthday - 2/12
Labels: Astros, Cameron Drew, Chris Snyder, Happy Birthday, Tim Redding 0 comments
No future Astros, but a few former Astros celebrate birthdays today ~
C Chris Snyder (33)
A second round pick by the Diamondbacks in 2002, Snyder signed with Houston as a free agent in January 2012. In 76 games for the Astros in 2012, he hit .176/.295/.308. He has a lifetime caught stealing percentage of 29%. He recently signed as a free agent with the Nationals.
RHP Tim Redding (36)
Drafted by the Astros in the 20th round in 1995, Redding pitched in 91 games (72 starts) for Houston from 2001 to 2004 with a 21-28 record, a 4.75 ERA and a 1.506 WHIP. He was traded to the Padres for Humberto Quintero in March 2005. In 2013, Redding pitched in the Independent Atlantic League and in the Mexican League.
OF Cameron Drew (50)
A first round pick by Houston in 1985, Drew played in only seven games for Houston in 1988, hitting .188/.188/.313.
C Chris Snyder (33)
A second round pick by the Diamondbacks in 2002, Snyder signed with Houston as a free agent in January 2012. In 76 games for the Astros in 2012, he hit .176/.295/.308. He has a lifetime caught stealing percentage of 29%. He recently signed as a free agent with the Nationals.
RHP Tim Redding (36)
Drafted by the Astros in the 20th round in 1995, Redding pitched in 91 games (72 starts) for Houston from 2001 to 2004 with a 21-28 record, a 4.75 ERA and a 1.506 WHIP. He was traded to the Padres for Humberto Quintero in March 2005. In 2013, Redding pitched in the Independent Atlantic League and in the Mexican League.
OF Cameron Drew (50)
A first round pick by Houston in 1985, Drew played in only seven games for Houston in 1988, hitting .188/.188/.313.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Happy Birthday - 2/11
Labels: Astros, Happy Birthday, J.R. Towles, John Paciorek, Matt Lindstrom, Ollie Brown, Wallace Gonzalez 0 comments
Happy Birthday to ~
OF Wallace Gonzalez (21)
Drafted in the 29th round in 2011 out of high school in California, Gonzalez struggled in his first season with the Greeneville team, hitting only .172/.252/.280.
Several former Astros celebrate birthdays today ~
RF John Paciorek (69)
Signed by Houston as an amateur free agent in 1963, Paciorek had the ultimate cup of coffee in the majors. In one game for the 1963 Colt 45's, he went 3-for-3 with two walks, scored four runs and drove in three, all at the ripe old age of 18! He ended his career with a 1.000/1.000/1.000 batting line.
RHP Matt Lindstrom (34)
Originally drafted by the Mets in the 10th round in 2002, Lindstrom came to Houston in a December 2009 trade with the Marlins. In 58 games for the Astros in late relief in 2010, he was 2-5 with 23 saves, a 4.39 ERA and a 1.650 WHIP. He was traded to Colorado in December 2010 for Jonnathan Aristil and Wes Musick. He played most recently for the White Sox.
C J.R. Towles (30)
A 20th round pick by the Astros in 2004, Towles played in 155 games for Houston over five seasons from 2007 to 2011. Although he started out with a bang in a September call-up in 2007, hitting .375/.432/.575 and breaking the Astros single game RBI record with eight RBI's in one game, he ultimately ended up with a .187 batting average at the major league level. In eight seasons at the minor league level, he had a .295/.394/.465 batting line. Towles played most recently in the Dodgers organization. He is currently a free agent.
RF Ollie Brown (70)
Purchased from the Angels in March 1974, Brown played in 27 games for Houston that season, hitting .217/.260/.362. Out of 13 major league seasons, his best season was 1970 for the Padres when he hit .292/.331/.489 with 31 doubles, a triple and 23 home runs in 139 games.
OF Wallace Gonzalez (21)
Drafted in the 29th round in 2011 out of high school in California, Gonzalez struggled in his first season with the Greeneville team, hitting only .172/.252/.280.
Several former Astros celebrate birthdays today ~
RF John Paciorek (69)
Signed by Houston as an amateur free agent in 1963, Paciorek had the ultimate cup of coffee in the majors. In one game for the 1963 Colt 45's, he went 3-for-3 with two walks, scored four runs and drove in three, all at the ripe old age of 18! He ended his career with a 1.000/1.000/1.000 batting line.
RHP Matt Lindstrom (34)
Originally drafted by the Mets in the 10th round in 2002, Lindstrom came to Houston in a December 2009 trade with the Marlins. In 58 games for the Astros in late relief in 2010, he was 2-5 with 23 saves, a 4.39 ERA and a 1.650 WHIP. He was traded to Colorado in December 2010 for Jonnathan Aristil and Wes Musick. He played most recently for the White Sox.
C J.R. Towles (30)
A 20th round pick by the Astros in 2004, Towles played in 155 games for Houston over five seasons from 2007 to 2011. Although he started out with a bang in a September call-up in 2007, hitting .375/.432/.575 and breaking the Astros single game RBI record with eight RBI's in one game, he ultimately ended up with a .187 batting average at the major league level. In eight seasons at the minor league level, he had a .295/.394/.465 batting line. Towles played most recently in the Dodgers organization. He is currently a free agent.
RF Ollie Brown (70)
Purchased from the Angels in March 1974, Brown played in 27 games for Houston that season, hitting .217/.260/.362. Out of 13 major league seasons, his best season was 1970 for the Padres when he hit .292/.331/.489 with 31 doubles, a triple and 23 home runs in 139 games.
Tweet of the Day
Labels: Jesse Crain, TOTD 0 commentsIt's always hard packing up to leave for the season, but.... It's only for 6 weeks since I'm playing for the ASTROS!!#hometownteam
— Jesse Crain (@JesseCrain) February 10, 2014
Monday, February 10, 2014
Astros Minor League Depth - Second Basemen
Labels: 2014, Astros, Depth, Minor League Depth, Minor Leagues, Second Base 0 comments
In an ongoing look at the minor league depth in the Astros system, next up are the middle infielders. There is definitely some overlap and there are a few players that profile more as utility players rather than having a fixed position (such as Carlos Perdomo, Raoul Torrez, Joe Sclafani and others) and I will address them later. With that said, let's look at the second basemen first, sorted from high to low by on-base percentage.
As you can see, there is really only one pure second baseman right now who ended the season at the higher levels. Jose Martinez and Jake Elmore were both lost to free agency; and Delino DeShields was moved to the outfield. We may see some of the utility players take over at the position or there is always the possibility that a shortstop in the system may be moved over to second.
'
Kiké Hernandez, the sixth round 2009 draft pick, did not adjust to the Texas League quickly, but he appeared to be turning the corner with a hot bat in August, hitting .298/.352/.488 in that month. In winter ball in Puerto Rico, he hit .260/.321/.393 over 37 games. Kiké has solid defense and doubles+ power and only turned 22 in August.
Austin Elkins, a 19th round draft pick from 2012, may have a somewhat lackluster batting average, but he leads this group in on-base percentage thanks to a fairly prolific walk rate. Elkins was coming on strong at the end of the season, putting up a .299/.382/.519 batting average over 23 games in August. He's got a little speed, a little pop and he's a solid defender.
Tony Kemp, the 2013 fifth round draft pick out of Vanderbilt, put up good numbers (.282/.355/.362) in his 48 games with Tri-City, earning him a late season promotion to Quad Cities where he showed some regression at the plate. However, the lefty hitter continued his season-long trend of hitting well against lefty pitchers, hitting .344/.475/.438 against them at Quad Cities (.312/.420/.398 for the season).
Jean Estrella is definitely a player who should be fun to watch. A Latin free agent from the Dominican Republic, Estrella had an excellent first pro season for the Dominican Summer League Astros, hitting .306/.380/.341 in 50 games and leading to his promotion to the Gulf Coast League Astros for the final eight games of the season. Estrella, who won't turn 18 until April, is another lefty who hits well against lefty pitchers. He managed a .338/.419/.369 batting line against southpaws.
Juan Santana signed with the Astros out of the Dominican Republic in 2010 and only turned 19 in August. He leads this group of players in fielding percentage and range factor per game with Hernandez coming in a close second. Santana's Greeneville teammate Parker Hipp, a product of New Mexico State, signed with the Astros as a free agent in 2013. He did not see a great deal of playing time and spent a portion of his time at third base as well.
As you can see, there is really only one pure second baseman right now who ended the season at the higher levels. Jose Martinez and Jake Elmore were both lost to free agency; and Delino DeShields was moved to the outfield. We may see some of the utility players take over at the position or there is always the possibility that a shortstop in the system may be moved over to second.
'
Kiké Hernandez, the sixth round 2009 draft pick, did not adjust to the Texas League quickly, but he appeared to be turning the corner with a hot bat in August, hitting .298/.352/.488 in that month. In winter ball in Puerto Rico, he hit .260/.321/.393 over 37 games. Kiké has solid defense and doubles+ power and only turned 22 in August.
Kiké Hernandez - May 2013
Photo by Jayne Hansen
Austin Elkins, a 19th round draft pick from 2012, may have a somewhat lackluster batting average, but he leads this group in on-base percentage thanks to a fairly prolific walk rate. Elkins was coming on strong at the end of the season, putting up a .299/.382/.519 batting average over 23 games in August. He's got a little speed, a little pop and he's a solid defender.
Austin "Catfish" Elkins - April 2013
Photo by Jayne Hansen
Tony Kemp, the 2013 fifth round draft pick out of Vanderbilt, put up good numbers (.282/.355/.362) in his 48 games with Tri-City, earning him a late season promotion to Quad Cities where he showed some regression at the plate. However, the lefty hitter continued his season-long trend of hitting well against lefty pitchers, hitting .344/.475/.438 against them at Quad Cities (.312/.420/.398 for the season).
Tony Kemp - July 2013
Photo by Jayne Hansen
Jean Estrella is definitely a player who should be fun to watch. A Latin free agent from the Dominican Republic, Estrella had an excellent first pro season for the Dominican Summer League Astros, hitting .306/.380/.341 in 50 games and leading to his promotion to the Gulf Coast League Astros for the final eight games of the season. Estrella, who won't turn 18 until April, is another lefty who hits well against lefty pitchers. He managed a .338/.419/.369 batting line against southpaws.
Juan Santana signed with the Astros out of the Dominican Republic in 2010 and only turned 19 in August. He leads this group of players in fielding percentage and range factor per game with Hernandez coming in a close second. Santana's Greeneville teammate Parker Hipp, a product of New Mexico State, signed with the Astros as a free agent in 2013. He did not see a great deal of playing time and spent a portion of his time at third base as well.
Juan Santana - August 2013
Photo by Jayne Hansen
Later this week, we'll look at the shortstops in the system.
Happy Birthday - 2/10
Labels: Astros, Eddie Zosky, Happy Birthday, Lance Berkman, Ryan Bowen 0 comments
No future Astros, but a few former Astros celebrate birthdays today ~
OF/1B/DH Lance Berkman (38)
Berkman, also known as the Big Puma or Fat Elvis, was the Astros first round draft pick in 1997. In 15 seasons, he had a .293/.406/.537 batting line with 422 doubles, 30 triples and 366 home runs. Berkman played for Houston from 1999 to 2010, when he was traded to the Yankees for Mark Melancon and Jimmy Paredes. A 6-time All-Star, Berkman was named the 2011 Comeback Player of the Year. In January 2014, he announced that he would be retiring.
RHP Ryan Bowen (46)
A first round pick by the Astros in 1986, Bowen pitched in 25 games (22 starts) for Houston in 1991 and 1992, going 6-11 with a 7.01 ERA and a 1.775 WHIP.
SS Eddie Zosky (46)
Originally drafted by the Blue Jays in the first round in 1989, Zosky came to Houston via Pittsburgh in August of 2000. Zosky had a total of four at-bats for Houston and went hitless.
OF/1B/DH Lance Berkman (38)
Berkman, also known as the Big Puma or Fat Elvis, was the Astros first round draft pick in 1997. In 15 seasons, he had a .293/.406/.537 batting line with 422 doubles, 30 triples and 366 home runs. Berkman played for Houston from 1999 to 2010, when he was traded to the Yankees for Mark Melancon and Jimmy Paredes. A 6-time All-Star, Berkman was named the 2011 Comeback Player of the Year. In January 2014, he announced that he would be retiring.
RHP Ryan Bowen (46)
A first round pick by the Astros in 1986, Bowen pitched in 25 games (22 starts) for Houston in 1991 and 1992, going 6-11 with a 7.01 ERA and a 1.775 WHIP.
SS Eddie Zosky (46)
Originally drafted by the Blue Jays in the first round in 1989, Zosky came to Houston via Pittsburgh in August of 2000. Zosky had a total of four at-bats for Houston and went hitless.
Tweet of the Day
Labels: Jonas Dufek, TOTD 0 commentsBeethoven's Moonlight Sonata tho...
— Jonas Dufek (@JonasDufek) February 9, 2014
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