Quad Cities - 2013

[Jacksonian]

Your one stop shop for low-A Astros talk in 2013.

[astrosfan76]

Full roster:

Pitchers: Joe Bircher, Colton Cain, Kyle Hallock, Mike Hauschild, Brian Holmes, Jordan Jankowski, Cameron Lamb, Mitchell Lambson, Lance McCullers, Daniel Minor, John Neely, Gera Sanchez, Vincent Velasquez

Catchers: Jobduan Morales, Roberto Pena

Infielders: Carlos Correa, Chase Davidson, Ryan Dineen, Carlos Perdomo, Rio Ruiz, Joe Sclafani, Jesse Wierzbicki

Outfielders: Teoscar Hernandez, Terrell Joyce, Ariel Ovando, Jordan Scott

Pitching is kind of light after LMC. Cain wasn't great at Lancaster last season, but he was decent in the Florida State League before the trade, so I'm kind of surprised he was sent back down to low-A. Velasquez will finally get a shot at a full season after missing '11 and most of '12 from Tommy John surgery. He's someone who can benefit from the piggyback system and has plenty of talent. Minor had a good start at Greeneville last season.

The lineup is where to watch, though. Correa, Ruiz, Davidson should put up big numbers, and Ovando give the fans premium talent to watch. There's a lot of youth on the field, but it will be a fun team to watch grow. Any first-hand updates will be welcome.

[Hornstros]

no Houser?  Thought he would have been in low A this season

[astrosfan76]

no Houser?  Thought he would have been in low A this season

Dunno. He made 11 starts at Greeneville last season, 6 the year before. His numbers were good enough to move up. Maybe they thought he wasn't ready, maybe he just got squeezed in the numbers game.

[Duman]

I expect Houser will end in Tri Cities.  Struggles keeping ball down in zone. 

Really liked Minor last season - could be a fast mover if he can replicate what he was doing in Gville.

Velazquez - #2 pitcher on that staff and a bonafied prospect.

[Aussie Astro]

What has happened to Cameron Lamb, no longer on the roster?

[Duman]

His individual page still shows him as active with the team, don't know why he is not on the full roster.  Maybe a transaction upcoming.

[Jacksonian]

First pitching tandem is Velasquez/Bircher (both promoted from SS-A).

[Navin R Johnson]

no Houser?  Thought he would have been in low A this season

From Baseball America

"Righty Adrian Houser, a 2011 second-round pick, has had nagging injuries this spring that held him back in extended spring training."

Some good stuff from this link.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/minor-league-opening-day-roster-analysis-houston-astros/

[Aussie Astro]

His individual page still shows him as active with the team, don't know why he is not on the full roster.  Maybe a transaction upcoming.

Thanks, just have to wait and see I suppose.

[Reuben]

Correa already 2-3 with a double and 3 RBI, as the RiverBandits have a 6-0 lead in the middle 4th at Kane County. Vincent Velazquez has allowed just 2 hits and struck out 2.

[Reuben]

Velazquez goes 5 innings (per Tandem Theory[TM]) allowing 3 hits, 1 walk, and 2 runs, with 5 Ks. The runs came via a dinger by some guy named Rock Shoulders, whose parents I assume named him after a video game or cartoon character.

[astrosfan76]

Correa with his first HR of the season. Some tweets from Ben Badler:

@BenBadler: 2012 No. 1 overall pick Carlos Correa just hit his first home run of the season. Astros shortstop could be a monster.

@BenBadler: Very good RT @wcamspacher How’s his glove?

@BenBadler: No, but a lot of similarities between Correa and Manny Machado RT @ARankin11 Are the comps to A-Rod fair?

@BenBadler: At some point, maybe, but he's good there now RT @Skin_Graph Is he really 6'4''?  Concerns he'll outgrow SS?

Offense as a whole getting it done, leading 7-0 in the second.

[drew corleone]

Pretty huge day for Correa. Nice to see.

[Jacksonian]

First 4 games and a neat 3.00 ERA over 42 innings despite giving up 10 runs in one game.  The offense has score 27 runs over those 42 innings.

[VirtualBob]

MiLB.com lists transactions affecting Quad City:

Cameron Lamb started the season in EST but was activated on April 6th when Kyle Hallock was promoted to OKC (replacing Keuchel). 

Ruben Sosa was not listed on the opening day roster, but he apparently was there, because he was promoted to OKC on April 7th.  This may have been just a paperwork issue in which he was never intended to be part of the team and had been carried on the QC roster over the off-season.

Michael Dimock was assigned to QC from Greeneville on April 8th, but has yet to appear.

[Navin R Johnson]

Velasquez game 2.  2nd half of the piggyback, 4 IP 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 HBP, 6 Ks and he gets the save.

2 games now, 9 IP, 3 Hits, 1BB 11Ks.  Stout.

[qcbaseball]

Well, I finally got a glimpse of our new team tonight. They had opened the season with a road trip. They were playing against our "old" team, the baby Cardinals. It was weird to see some of the same players now playing for the visitors.

It is bitter cold here so I only saw the first 6 innings. Also, the ump had a huge strike zone, so I would not put much stock in pitching performances tonight, or strikeouts.

I paid close attention to Carlos Correa. From what I saw, I don't think he'll be here long. He plays beyond his years, especially in the field. At this level, we normally don't see great fielding. We might see athletic guys with a lot of range, but they still make more errors than normal. Correa looked very polished in the field, especially considering his age. He made a couple outstanding plays. His fielding is what impressed me the most. His arm is average to slightly above average, but I imagine that is still developing. At the plate, I did see him K once, but he also crushed a laser over the CF's head for a double. He is going to be fun to watch. He looks like he could be a standout player in this league.

Rio Ruiz had an awful game. I saw him K three times, and I see he finished 0 for 4 with 4 K's.

Mike Hauschild pitched pretty well in 5 innings, bouncing back from a bad outing. He did not look overpowering, but did have a pretty good curveball. But like I said, I would not count tonight's game for much. The ump had an enormous strike zone.

Teoscar Hernandez might be a guy to watch! He batted leadoff and had 2 hits, one of which was a real nice single to opposite field on a hit-and-run. The guys who can do advanced things like that at this level get your attention. Hernandez also had 2 stolen bases. I'm pretty excited to watch this team play, especially if Ruiz starts hitting.

[qcbaseball]

Here are 33 pictures from the game...I got Correa hitting that double, and also turning a double play.

http://public.fotki.com/MinorsFan/baseball/20130412-river-band/

[Navin R Johnson]

Here are 33 pictures from the game...I got Correa hitting that double, and also turning a double play.

http://public.fotki.com/MinorsFan/baseball/20130412-river-band/

Awesome pics! Thanks for sharing that and the 1st hand account. 

[Fynn]

Here are 33 pictures from the game...I got Correa hitting that double, and also turning a double play.

http://public.fotki.com/MinorsFan/baseball/20130412-river-band/

Nice pics...thanks !

[Duman]

Here are 33 pictures from the game...I got Correa hitting that double, and also turning a double play.

http://public.fotki.com/MinorsFan/baseball/20130412-river-band/

THanks for the first hand account.  Those are valued here.  What did you see from Ovando?  He struggled with focus in the field some times in previous years, wondering how that was esp. 

[roadrunner]

From the little I've seen, it seems like Correa's glove could play in the big leagues now. 

[Ebby Calvin]

Thanks for the write-up and pics!

[astrosfan76]

To echo everyone else, thanks for the pics and first-hand accounts!

[qcbaseball]

No problem! I really enjoy following these players.

After I left last night, Correa made an error I guess, but it sounded like a tough play. Teoscar also got his 3rd hit. I'm telling you, he is the guy I will be watching from now on...that is if he didn't get hurt! I see he was pinch-run for in tonight's game. Hope he's OK! I can't imagine he was pulled for a faster player. I didn't make it to tonight's game, but they won 8-6. Correa got a night off. Rio continued his cold hitting. Peoria had 5 errors tonight, so it looks like the Bandits were gifted some runs. Oh well, the Bandits made 0 errors.

[qcbaseball]

THanks for the first hand account.  Those are valued here.  What did you see from Ovando?  He struggled with focus in the field some times in previous years, wondering how that was esp. 

Ovando was 0 for 4 with 3 K's. He looks very tall and athletic, though. He needs to grow into his frame a bit. He didn't have any real challenging plays in RF that I saw. I'll definitely keep an eye on him this year, though. I didn't realize he was yet another highly regarded prospect. Correa, Ruiz and McCullers are the ones getting all of the attention in the local media here. Rightfully so, I guess. But I could tell even from watching just 1 game that there is definitely some talent on this team! I'm not as sure yet about all the pitchers, but the batting order and feilding looks tough. Hernandez, Correa, Ovando, Ruiz, Pena...These guys are going to be fun to watch on a daily basis.

I'm going to try my darndest to get to Monday's game. McCullers is scheduled to pitch. I don't know if I'll make it or not. If I do, I'll probably get there a bit late.

[astrosfan76]

Ovando was 0 for 4 with 3 K's. He looks very tall and athletic, though. He needs to grow into his frame a bit. He didn't have any real challenging plays in RF that I saw. I'll definitely keep an eye on him this year, though. I didn't realize he was yet another highly regarded prospect.

Before Correa, Ovando held the organization's record for highest amateur bonus, getting $2.8M to sign. He hasn't moved quickly or put up gaudy numbers, but, at least for us, he's a high-profile player. Hopefully, he can start to put it together physically and mentally.

[juliogotay]

Last season I read somewhere that Teoscar is a four-tool player. I don't know why we don't hear more about him. Keep an eye on him for us and thanks for your reports.

[qcbaseball]

Correa sat out the last 2 games with stiffness in his back. Hope it is nothing serious.

The forecast calls for a lot of rain this week, so we'll see how many games they actually get in.

[astrosfan76]

Correa sat out the last 2 games with stiffness in his back. Hope it is nothing serious.

The forecast calls for a lot of rain this week, so we'll see how many games they actually get in.

Noticed that he had missed a couple, thanks for the medical report.  Saw that Rio hit his first HR of the season last night.  After 5 consecutive games without a hit, that had to feel good for him.

[Duman]

Local tv interview with Ruiz, Correa & McCullers

[Nate in IA]

Local tv interview with Ruiz, Correa & McCullers

Great interview...

[VirtualBob]

Noticed a couple more transactions on MiLB.com

Apparently Joe Bircher was sent back to EST when Michael Dimock was activated (or actually after a short delay during which Chase Davidson was temporarily inactive to make roster space).  He does not show on the QC roster anymore, and Davidson is active again.  It is a bit strange, since Bircher seemed to be putting up good numbers.  There is probably a back story there somewhere.

In other news, Austin Elkins has joined the team and Carlos Perdomo was promoted to Lancaster.  I expected Elkins to open the season at QC, so I don't know whether this is another case of my over-optimism, or perhaps some minor injury or something kept him in Florida a couple more weeks.  Meanwhile, Perdomo got some PT at a lower level than expected.  We'll see how he is used in Cali.

Edited to correct spelling

[MusicMan]

BP on Correa:

With early coverage being the way it is, not many of my industry sources have been able to put eyes on Correa in his full-season debut. I was on a call about another player when a scout asked me if I had anything good on Correa. He scouted the kid as an amateur and loved him, and had just recently put eyes on him for the first time since he was drafted 1:1 by the Astros last June. While slobbering all over the kid, the scout suggested that Correa’s “Presence Factor” was off the charts, which I quickly told him I was going to steal for my own use on Baseball Prospectus. Presence factor is an ideal way to describe Correa, who might be only 18, but who carries himself like a seasoned veteran, both in terms of in-game approach and work ethic. The raw tools are all there to develop into a superstar talent, with better-than-you-think defensive chops at shortstop and big raw power, but the glue that will hold the monster together is makeup, and Correa wears his like a number on his back. You don’t have to be a scout to sit in the stands and recognize that something separates Correa from the majority of players on the field. While it’s clear that he’s a raw talent with rough edges and several developmental obstacles to overcome, it’s also clear that there is something special about the prospect. Presence Factor: Special.

[qcbaseball]

The Bandits played @ Wisconsin tonight, and they were tweeting pictures of snow falling there before the game. They won 12-5. Correa went 3 for 4 with 2 HR, 4 runs, 3 RBI. Wierzbicki was 2 for 3 with a HR.

[moriartp]

MiLB.com has video of Correa's second dinger last night.

[Reuben]

MiLB.com has video of Correa's second dinger last night.

Not the easiest conditions to hit one out in, weather-wise, and not a meatball pitch either - up and in, maybe a slider?

[Nate in IA]

Not the easiest conditions to hit one out in, weather-wise, and not a meatball pitch either - up and in, maybe a slider?

We could seriously use some warmer weather here in the Midwest.  I'm about done with the 30 degree afternoons.

[VirtualBob]

Per MiLB.com, Colton Cain & Chase Davidson have been sent back to Florida for EST and Miles Hamblin has joined the River Bandits.

[Duman]

Not a good sign for either one of those.

[moriartp]

VV is dealing this season. 5 innings, 3 singles, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts tonight. 1.17 ERA.

[juliogotay]

VV is dealing this season. 5 innings, 3 singles, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts tonight. 1.17 ERA.

He needs a new league.

[juliogotay]

He needs a new league.

In 5 games Velasquez has made 3 starts and earned a win in each game. In his 2 non-starts he has earned a save. In 23 innings pitched Velasquez had struck out 25 batters and walked a total of 6. He has given up 10 hits and 3 earned runs. Batters are hitting .130 against him.

[Reuben]

But, it's his first year in full-season ball, and he has been limited by the TJ surgery, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him spend most of the year at QC... The "just let him have a great season" mindset.

[juliogotay]

But, it's his first year in full-season ball, and he has been limited by the TJ surgery, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him spend most of the year at QC... The "just let him have a great season" mindset.

Damnit! Quit being so realistic and practical. You are probably right in what they will do. Maybe a move up later in the year. Right now innings are probably the big thing coming back from the TJ.

[VirtualBob]

Per MiLB.com, Colton Cain & Chase Davidson have been sent back to Florida for EST and Miles Hamblin has joined the River Bandits.

Must be something interesting going on with these EST assignments ... Cain has been reactivated and is starting today.

[Duman]

I believe there is some roster gamesmanship to this.  When a player is put on the temporary inactive roster, you must miss at least three games.  When you reassign him to the EST, you can recall him at any time - I think.  Of course this goes away when EST is over, by then I think the tandem pitching will be mostly done.

[Duman]

Ovando has been sent down to EST - I look for him to reappear in Tri Cities. 

[roadrunner]

Ovando has been sent down to EST - I look for him to reappear in Tri Cities. 

Any idea why?

[Duman]

No direct info - he was struggling but he was not alone. 

[OregonStrosFan]

Jayne from WTHB took in some games in the Quad Cities this past weekend.  She's in process of transcribing her interview notes, etc., but in the interim, she's posted some random thoughts/observations from the weekend. LINK

[juliogotay]

Good stuff. Thanks for posting.

[Duman]

Any idea why?

May not really be gone - let's see if he is one of the phantom moves they have been doing lately.

[astrosfan76]

Quad Cities was able to hold the Loons to two field goals while they put up 17 in last night's game.  Pena and Morales both homered and accounted for 9 of the runs.  Velazquez struck out 6 in 2 2/3 innings, but was charged with 5 runs (4 earned) on 4 hits and a walk; Gera Sancez came in with the bases loaded and allowed 2 of those runners to score.  Correa left the game after the 7th.  He was hit in the hand by a pitch and stayed in, eventually coming around to score, but left for a defensive replacement.  He will have an X-ray performed in South Bend today.

[qcbaseball]

Rio Ruiz was placed on the DL yesterday with an oblique strain.

They lost today 4-3. McCullers is the tough luck loser. He has a 2.08 ERA, but is 0-3 so far this year, for a team that is 15-9.

[OregonStrosFan]

WTHB write-up on her interview with Vincent Velasquez: LINK

[Duman]

Rio Ruiz was placed on the DL yesterday with an oblique strain.

They lost today 4-3. McCullers is the tough luck loser. He has a 2.08 ERA, but is 0-3 so far this year, for a team that is 15-9.

Sad to see Rio go on the DL but thrilled to see Brian Blasik take his place. He is fun to watch.  NDFA who has a tough road ahead but plays every game like it is his last.

[Ron Brand]

WTHB write-up on her interview with Vincent Velasquez: LINK

She really has a fine blog.

[Reuben]

McCullers pitching for QC today, and the team just tweeted that he hit 100 mph in the 2nd inning.

[pots]

McCullers pitching for QC today, and the team just tweeted that he hit 100 mph in the 2nd inning.

Yeah, he had a pretty good day.  5 innings of shutout ball, 2 hits 1 BB and 9 k.  On only 66 pitches. 

[OregonStrosFan]

She really has a fine blog.

Indeed.  Here is some more from Jayne at WTHB:

Quad Cities April 2013 Photos: LINK

Getting to Know Astros Catcher Roberto Peña: LINK

[astrosfan76]

Ovando back in action, as well, going 0-4 with an RBI walk in the 1st.

[Duman]

She really has a fine blog.

She has worked hard and has developed great relationships with player and the front office.  I got to get to know her when she came to Gville last year and our trips to ST overlapped.  She is a passionate fan and puts out some great Astros minor league stuff. I read her every day.

[qcbaseball]

River Bandits going to "piggyback" system:

When it was announced weeks before the season that the Houston Astros would employ a "piggyback" pitching approach throughout their minor-league system, pundits wondered if the move would produce positive results.

One month into the Quad Cities River Bandits' season, the sample size says yes.

Incorporated to develop depth within the organization, the "piggyback" system seems to be doing that within the club's Midwest League affiliate. Given a month to adjust as a staff, the Bandits' pitchers appear to have traded their initial apprehension for total approval.

"It was tough getting used to a five-man rotation in college, just like this is a little tough, too," Bandits pitcher Joe Bircher said. "But we're battling through it. And I think we're getting more consistent on the back end. It's strange because a lot of guys in the tandem were just straight starters before. But as we're going on, we're getting better at it.

"I know I'm more comfortable."

Using four tandems, the Bandits rotate the starter and reliever each start with maximums set for innings or pitches per start. Through Sunday's win at West Michigan, 12 pitchers have been used in the eight spots this season as it reached its sixth turn.

With pitchers throwing every fourth day instead of the traditional fifth, there was an adjustment period. Each pitcher involved in the system also had to embrace a new routine, whether it was a starter being used as a reliever or vice versa.

Now one-fifth of the way through the regular season, routines are set and roles seem to be getting defined.

"There's some of that going on," Bandits pitching coach Dave Borkowski said. "Guys are pitching to let us know who could be the five or six starters."

Asked how much longer the "piggyback" system remains, Borkowski said "your guess is as good as mine." However, its current use still is something the Bandits are embracing.

"It's nice to know that I'm guaranteed outings," said Bandits pitcher Mike Hauschild, brought up through the organization as a reliever. " ... Now I know what I need to do to get my work in consistently, I can throw my side (sessions) when I need to throw them and I don't need to second-guess myself if I'm going to pitch today. It's nice having that mindset."

Besides putting the pitchers at ease mentally since they know when their outings will take place, this also seems to be the best way to develop arms in a pitching-rich organization.

"There are a ton of arms, and they're trying to get as many innings as they can," Hauschild said. "It's a good plan."

The health benefits make it that as well. Borkowski said the organization examined pitch counts and injuries, revealing a correlation between the two. With starters getting no more than 75 pitches and the relievers getting 60 per outing, the pitchers do feel stronger one month into the season.

No fatigue or "dead-arm'' period. Just results.

"That's a huge factor in why they did this," Borkowski said. "There's some definite health benefits."

Combining all those factors, the Astros have a system in place that will expedite their rebuilding process and develop pitchers at every level. As of now, the Bandits pitchers agree with the organization's philosophy on the "piggyback" system.

Although unorthodox, it is producing depth.

"It's obviously going to be a work in progress," Bircher said, "but it's working."

A lot of teams do this at this level. It gives 8 pitchers a chance to get some decent innings on a regular basis instead of just 5 pitchers. I bet they switch back a bit later in the season after callups, injuries, etc.

[VirtualBob]

River Bandits going to "piggyback" system:

A lot of teams do this at this level. It gives 8 pitchers a chance to get some decent innings on a regular basis instead of just 5 pitchers. I bet they switch back a bit later in the season after callups, injuries, etc.

#1 - RMPL

#2 - A lot of teams do NOT do this ... it is common to work multiple pitchers into starting roles at low-A, but this very structured 8-man rotation is extremely rare.

ETA: #3 - posting entire articles from copyrighted sources is frowned upon.

[OregonStrosFan]

WTHB's interview with 'Catfish' Elkins: LINK

[Reuben]

#1 - RMPL

#2 - A lot of teams do NOT do this ... it is common to work multiple pitchers into starting roles at low-A, but this very structured 8-man rotation is extremely rare.

ETA: #3 - posting entire articles from copyrighted sources is frowned upon.

I think you need to cut qcbaseball some slack here. He's not an Astros fan per se, but a local Quad Cities fan who has been kind enough to give us some great first-hand accounts of the team. I for one hope he posts more.

[VirtualBob]

I think you need to cut qcbaseball some slack here. He's not an Astros fan per se, but a local Quad Cities fan who has been kind enough to give us some great first-hand accounts of the team. I for one hope he posts more.

Yeah ... you're right.  Too quick with the enter key.  I, too, have enjoyed his first-hand recounts.

@qcb ... I apologize.

[OregonStrosFan]

Given that Quad Cities doesn't televise home games on MiLB.TV, I'd never really thought to see if any of the other Single-A teams did.  However, I noticed that the away game tonight against the West Michigan Whitecaps was being televised on MiLB.TV so looked to see if other Midwest League teams broadcast games. 

The current Midwest League teams that broadcast home games are: Great Lakes Loons (Dodgers); Dayton Dragons (Reds); Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Brewers); and West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers).  The following Quad Cities games are scheduled to be televised on MiLB.TV (archived games in parenthesis):

at West Michigan: 5/6 (archived: 5/4 and 5/5);
at Wisconsin: 5/14, 5/15, 5/16, 8/28, 8/29, and 8/30; and
Midwest League East vs. West All-Star game: 6/18.

[astrosfan76]

Correa on 7-day DL with hand injury, not serious. The 30th was his last game, so he could return any day.

[VirtualBob]

MiLB says Joe Bircher went on the DL too.

[Duman]

Not sure about the accuracy of the gun but impressive none the less

[geezerdonk]

Two consecutive poor outings for Velasquez.

[OregonStrosFan]

Two consecutive poor outings for Velasquez.

In this last game he had 4.2 IP, allowed 5 R/ER on 9 hits with no walks and 9 strikeouts.  LINK

[Reuben]

Looks like Correa and Ruiz have both been back in the QC lineup since Friday. Ruiz hit a 2-run homer today in a 5-2 loss. The kid has bizarre splits if his milb.com page is right: .286/.464/.571 vs. LHP (21 AB) but just .143/.246/.232 vs. RHP (56 AB). So... on the positive side, it's nice that Ruiz (a LHB) isn't having trouble with lefties thus far.

[OregonStrosFan]

Fields had another rehab appearance tonight for the River Bandits (first was 5/10).  Correa, Ruiz, and Ovando all had multi-hit games as well.  BOX SCORE

[matadorph]

John Sickels rolled through Quad Cities recently and posted his thoughts on some of the players he got to see. He wasn't impressed with Ovando.

Ariel Ovando, OF: Signed out of the Dominican in 2010 for $2,000,000. Tall and strong-looking at 6-4, 225, but I was very disappointed. He supposedly has great power potential, but I didn't see a lot of bat speed, his swing mechanics were awkward, and he was completely helpless against breaking pitches. He lacks running speed and his throws didn't carry. He is still only 19 years old so it is way too soon to give up, considering how much was invested in him, but his .153/.270/.224 line through 25 games is not deceptive: he's legitimately overmatched right now.

Link

[geezerdonk]

Ther Midwest League has caught up with Velasquez - four bad outings in a row.

[Jacksonian]

Ther Midwest League has caught up with Velasquez - four bad outings in a row.

Unless he's hurt again.

[VirtualBob]

Unless he's hurt again.

That crossed my mind ... Anyone have any insights into his mechanics?  Is he the second coming of Brad Lidge?  Brad was un-hitable at AA for the first few games before the season was lost, and he eventually transitioned to a relief role that dod not tire/stress his arm as much.

[astrosfan76]

McCullers left after only 1 inning tonight. Haven't heard a reason why.

[Duman]

McCullers left after only 1 inning tonight. Haven't heard a reason why.

WTHB is reporting Hip Tightness

[astrosfan76]

WTHB is reporting Hip Tightness

Thanks.  Could be worse. 

[astrosfan76]

In 9 games since returning from the DL, Correa is 13 for 34 (.382) with 4 walks and 5 strikeouts (1 in his last 5 games).  After striking out 23 times in his first 17 games, he's doing a much better job making contact. It appears that he's sacrificing some power for contact (a double being the only XBH since his return), but that will come. It's good to see him making adjustments. For the season, he's now at .275/.403/.402.

[OregonStrosFan]

Ther Midwest League has caught up with Velasquez - four bad outings in a row.

He had a good outing this evening.  Line: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0ER, 2BB, 5SO. BOX SCORE

[pots]

He had a good outing this evening.  Line: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0ER, 2BB, 5SO. BOX SCORE

followed by another dominating performance.  4 innings in relief, 1 single, 1 BB and 8 Ks.

[Navin R Johnson]

@brianmctaggart
Jonathan Singleton will head Monday for Quad Cities, GM Jeff Luhnow said.

[qcbaseball]

I haven't got to see much of the River Bandits lately, but I hope to take in a few games this weekend as they play up the road in Clinton.

Tonight, they won 4-3. McCullers threw 5 innings, allowing 2 earned runs, and then Daniel Minor took over. Minor threw 4 scoreless innings to earn the W. Correa was 2 for 4 with a triple and Ovando was 0 for 3 and is hitting 0.155.

[qcbaseball]

I drove up to Clinton and saw the Bandits play the baby Mariners the last 2 days.

Yesterday's game featured a 1.5 hour rain delay, so I didn't quite make it to the end. We saw about 7 innings. It was a fairly dull game. They ended up winning 5-2. I see Jordan Jankowski ended up closing out the game, throwing 4 shutout innings allowing only 1 hit and 5 K's. Tyrell Joyce hit a solid HR to left and also drew 3 walks in the game. Brian Holmes got the start. He didn't have a great outing (3 innings, 2 earned runs). He throws pretty hard and works quickly, but his stuff seemed fairly normal for this league.

In today's game, Correa nearly made 2 plays that were just ridiculous. One was a bloop single over his head into left field. He turned and sprinted back and dove, and came within about a foot of making one of the best catches I've ever seen. The other was a line drive to his left and over his head. He took a couple steps and jumped and got within a few inches. These are both balls that a lot of shortstops probably don't even attempt to field. These were clear hits he almost took away. Just pure athleticism. He also had 3 hits, including a double and 4 RBI today. But he's here to learn lessons on stuff like this: Correa was the relay man on a play where they could have got the a runner at the plate trying to score, but he made a bad throw. It was offline and the runner ended up taking 3rd. So, I hope he realizes he still has some learning to do, and keeps a small head. Otherwise, things could get tough for him in his first extended slump, or if he struggles to adjust to a higher level as he moves up. I say this because he got a little weird before the game when people were asking for autographs. I guess I'm very spoiled when asking for autographs. It's extremely rare to have a problem getting an autograph, especially on a day like today with a tiny crowd, and only like 4 people asking for autographs. He came over and actually signed for my kid and I, but we were the only ones. Another kid got ignored, which I can't say I've seen happen before. Oh well, no biggie.

Oh yeah, the rest of the team played today, too. They won 11-4. Miles Hamblin had a nice HR, and Jobduan Morales and Austin Elkins each had 3 hits (Elkins had 6 hits in these two games). Vincent Valesquez threw 5 innings, allowing 3 ER and 0 K's.

Other than McCullers, I just haven't been that impressed yet with many of the pitchers on this team. McCullers has a 1.94 ERA over 41 2/3 innings. There are a bunch of other guys doing pretty well (ERA between 3 and 4), but none that look like they are going to shoot up the ladder real quickly, other than McCullers. But what do I know?

[astrosfan76]

Thanks again for the eye-witness accounts. If you get a chance in the next few days, our #1 or #2 prospect entering the season (depending on who you ask), Jonathan Singleton, will be starting his season in QC.

[qcbaseball]

I wanted to add: Ovando saw almost nothing but curveballs in these two games. Evidently, word is out that that is his weakness. He's hitting like 0.161 so far this season. I hope he gets it figured out.

[Reuben]

Yes, thanks for posting. Surprised to hear that about Correa, as by most accounts he is a very humble, mature and gracious kid for his age. Perhaps you just caught him on a bad day for whatever reason.

[OregonStrosFan]

Singleton is 1-1 with a HR in his debut with Quad Cities.

[hostros7]

Singleton is 1-1 with a HR in his debut with Quad Cities.

Did he smoke one into the bleachers?

[MusicMan]

Did he smoke one into the bleachers?

He's off to a blazing start?

[chuck]

I'm sure he'll provide a spark to the team.

[drew corleone]

Going, going, ganja?

[chuck]

Can't spell Jonathan without the J.

[hostros7]

He loaded up and took a rip like he'd been hittin' all spring

[jaklewein]

The announcer originally wasn't sure that it had the distance off the bat....thought he, uhmmm it, was too high.

[NeilT]

The announcer originally wasn't sure that it had the distance off the bat....thought he, uhmmm it, was too high.

Really?  I thought they said he knocked it into the weed?

[astrosfan76]

You could tell it was going to be a good game for him, he just has a way of slowing everything down.

[Jacksonian]

He toked it deep.

[MusicMan]

The guy can just roll out of bed and hit it.

[pots]

Can't we just link to the 50 Schreefer threads from last year and be done with it?

[hostros7]

The guy can just roll out of bed and hit it.

Singleton, aka wake n' bake

[Reuben]

Singleton, aka wake n' bake

Wake n' Rake sounds like a good nickname.

[MusicMan]

Can't we just link to the 50 Schreefer threads from last year and be done with it?

No, we're going to re-hash it all.

[NeilT]

No, we're going to re-hash it all.

Plus Singleton's really special.  He's going to light it up.

[juliogotay]

No, we're going to re-hash it all.

well played, sir.

[Ebby Calvin]

Wake n' Rake sounds like a good nickname.

Love it.

[geezerdonk]

Schafer is having a pretty good year so far. BA up. BB up, SO down, OPS way up almost - 300 points higher than last year.

[Duman]

Schafer is having a pretty good year so far. BA up. BB up, SO down, OPS way up almost - 300 points higher than last year.

But he is the 5th outfielder on the team behind Upton 1, Upton 2, Heyward & Gattis

[Reuben]

Wake n' Rake launched another HR last night, plus a double. Seems a bit silly to leave him in lo-A for a whole week as reported.

[OregonStrosFan]

Wake n' Rake sounds like a good nickname.

Agreed

[Navin R Johnson]

Another game another HR from Singleton, this time of the 14th inning 3 run, walk-off variety.  Correra with 3 more hits, average up to 292.

[OregonStrosFan]

Another game another HR from Singleton, this time of the 14th inning 3 run, walk-off variety.  Correra with 3 more hits, average up to 292.

He was 0-5 with a Golden Sombrero before then though...

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

He was 0-5 with a Golden Sombrero before then though...

Correa or Singleton?

[OregonStrosFan]

Correa or Singleton?

Singleton. IIRC, Correa was 3-5.

[Duman]

Correa, McCullers and Jankowski named to MWL all star team

[OregonStrosFan]

MinorLeagueBlog ‏@MinorLeagueBlog

#Astros Carlos Correa was a Triple Shy of the Cycle with 5 RBI at Low-A Quad Cities

[MusicMan]

"A triple shy of the cycle" really annoys me.

[qcbaseball]

QC is now tied for a playoff spot with the A's affiliate. They got hot again after going through quite a lull. I hope they make it. Four playoff spots are awarded for both the first half of the season and the 2nd half. There are only 12 games left in the first half.

[OregonStrosFan]

MiLB.com article on Correa's 3-hit game last night, being 1.1, and Appel: LINK

[Reuben]

"A triple shy of the cycle" really annoys me.

Kinda like saying "he was 2 runs shy of pitching a shutout".

[MusicMan]

Kinda like saying "he was 2 runs shy of pitching a shutout".

I was 2 numbers shy of winning the lottery.

[Reuben]

I was 2 numbers shy of winning the lottery.

One poke shy of getting laid.

[MusicMan]

One poke shy of getting laid.

That would be a home run short of the cycle.

[moriartp]

That would be a home run short of the cycle.

I think that's my new favorite term for accidental pregnancy.

[austro]

I think that's my new favorite term for accidental pregnancy.

Hitting for the cycle?

[qcbaseball]

I was at last night's game. Ovando still can't hit a curveball. Colton Cain was the starting pitcher. He has good velocity for this level but his fastball is a bit straight. He was able to overpower guys to get 4 K's in 4 innings, but he was hittable. Correa was 0 for 3 but did draw 2 walks. Jesse Wierzbicki homered. He is putting together a fairly solid season, but not sure he's much of a prospect.

Lately the Bandits have had a tendency to give up BIG innings. Last night they gave up 8 runs in the 8th inning, and tonight they gave up 7 in the 8th inning...but tonight they rallied for 5 in the bottom of the 9th to win 9-8. Wish I could have seen it! Jobduan Morales had a walk-off double.

The Bandits missed the playoffs for the 1st half of the season, which is kind of a shame considering how much talent they have. Some of the highly touted prospects just haven't performed. After a hot start, Teoscar has cooled down (OPS = 0.671). Ruiz and Ovando have struggled pretty much all year. The bullpen has also struggled at times. Bright spots are that Correa is awesome, and they have a good nucleus of starting pitchers. Jankowski, McCullers, Minor, Holmes, Hauschild are all pitching very well. Just not much of a bullpen to back them.

[OregonStrosFan]

Looks like McCullers will be making the start for the Mid-West League All Star game tonight (via Twitter):

Lance McCullers Jr. ‏@LMcCullers
Excited to get the start tonight! #2013All-StarGame #MWL #SIUEFA

[VirtualBob]

Thoughts on June performances ...

Who's Hot
   Carlos Correa (.316/.381/.439 with 4 2B and 10 RBI)
   Jesse Wierzbicki (.302/.400/.512 with 2 HR and 10 RBI)
   Lance McCullers (2-0, 2.50 and 23K in 18IP)

Who's Not
   Austin Elkins (.178/.339/.200 but 10 BB in 57 PA is a bright spot)
   Miles Hamblin (.080/.200/.120 in only 31 PA)
   Ruben Sosa (.194/.356/.194)
   Teoscar Hernandez (.213/.339/.319 and 16K in 57PA)
   Vincent Velasquez (0-1, 5.54 in 13IP over 4 games)

What's New
   Ryan Dineen has been sent back to Tri-City as their season starts.  Juan Minaya & Richard Rodriguez have joined the pitching staff.

[OregonStrosFan]

McCullers Jr. won his fourth straight (after beginning his pro career 0-8) with a line of 6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 SO, lowering his ERA to 1.92 in the process.  Carlos Correa went 3 for 5 (20 for 41 in his last 10 games) to bring his 2013 average up to .321. 4 other River Bandits had multi-hit games (T. Hernandez 2 for 5; J. Wierzbicki 2 for 5; R. Ruiz 2 for 5; and R. Sosa 2 for 3, BB) and 2 had multi-walk games (M. Hamblin 0 for 2, 3 BB, 2 SO; Catfish 0 for 3, 2 BB, 2 SO) .  BOX SCORE

[astrosfan76]

Hauschild with perhaps the best tandem start in the farm system today, striking out 10 in 5 innings, allowing only 3 hits. Jankowski followed with 3 innings, giving up 4 hits, striking out 4. Gerardo Sanchez pitched the 9th, giving up a solo homerun, striking out 1. The offense scored 4 runs, but a solo HR by Elkins was the only real performance of note.

[Reuben]

Correa is having quite a year. After hitting .221/.384/.397 in April, he hit .349/.423/.442 in May, and in June, .375/.419/.510, and his strikeouts have gone from 23 in April to 12 and 14 in May and June.

It'll be interesting to see if and when they promote him.

[juliogotay]

Correa is having quite a year. After hitting .221/.384/.397 in April, he hit .349/.423/.442 in May, and in June, .375/.419/.510, and his strikeouts have gone from 23 in April to 12 and 14 in May and June.

It'll be interesting to see if and when they promote him.

Thanks for the monthly splits. He's a good student.

[astrosfan76]

Correa is having quite a year. After hitting .221/.384/.397 in April, he hit .349/.423/.442 in May, and in June, .375/.419/.510, and his strikeouts have gone from 23 in April to 12 and 14 in May and June.

It'll be interesting to see if and when they promote him.

That's a good question.  He has gotten better, but his HR have been lower than, at least I, expected.  He hit 3 in April, 0 in May, and 2 in June.  He does play his home games in a tough hitters park in a pitchers league, but that's still not a lot.  I don't know if there's a direct correlation in his splits; was he trying to hit everything out of the park in April and has focused more on just making contact since?  If so, do they think he'd be better off staying at QC so he can work on putting himself in counts where he can better use his power in games? 

[jbm]

I suspect that they think his power is something that will just develop over time: a function of his swing and eventual strength.  From what little I have seen of him, that seems reasonable.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

I suspect that they think his power is something that will just develop over time: a function of his swing and eventual strength.  From what little I have seen of him, that seems reasonable.

Exactly.  It still looks like he can fill out a bit.

[pots]

I suspect that they think his power is something that will just develop over time: a function of his swing and eventual strength. 

Or a promotion to Lancaster.  Instant power

[Reuben]

What failure is he sulking after, exactly? I would think, if anything, that his 2012 was an excellent response to his 2011 failure.

[jbm]

Probably should be on the Lancaster thread

Thanks.  Pretty sloppy.

[Jacksonian]

I suspect that they think his power is something that will just develop over time: a function of his swing and eventual strength.  From what little I have seen of him, that seems reasonable.

Right.  Once he's gotten his swing mechanics down consistently and refined his ability to see each pitch the power will come.

[astrosfan76]

Right.  Once he's gotten his swing mechanics down consistently and refined his ability to see each pitch the power will come.

So, is that something he'd be better off refining at QC or just let him continue working on as he moves up?

[Jacksonian]

So, is that something he'd be better off refining at QC or just let him continue working on as he moves up?

That's a big part of the development at all A-ball levels.  Once he's proven himself against low-A pitchers, he'll move to high-A level pitchers (who are presumed to be more refined).

[pots]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/deja-vu-byron-buxton-stirs-echoes-of-mike-trout-in-cedar-rapids/

Who Would You Take?
Beyond comparing Trout and Buxton, scouts in the Midwest League had the opportunity this season to revisit the top of the 2012 draft and ask the question: Knowing what we know now, would you rather have Buxton, or the Astros’ draft haul of No. 1 pick Carlos Correa, as well as supplemental first-rounder Lance McCullers Jr. and second-rounder Rio Ruiz?

The Astros decided in 2012 to spread their draft budget over multiple players. So they signed Correa to a below-slot deal, then used the savings to sign McCullers and Ruiz to above-slot contracts. All three are now at Quad Cities. Correa is already considered one of the best shortstop prospects in the game. McCullers has showcased his excellent arm in the Midwest League, and Ruiz has shown flashes of his excellent potential at the plate.

Still, a survey of scouts who have seen all four indicates that one Buxton is better than the trio of Correa, Ruiz and McCullers, as a majority would take him over the Astros’ trio.

“Come on. It’s not even close,” an NL scouts said. “As I look at it, even if you had the plan to try to get three impact guys instead of one, the minute you walk into Buxton’s game, you have to scrap that plan and say, ‘We’re going with this guy.’ “

That opinion is not universal, however.

“Awesome as Buxton has been, I think you have to take the Astros’ trio,” an AL scouting executive said. “Especially because you might be getting another stud premium position player in Correa, who is still a little bit younger than Buxton. If this deal was on the table, I honestly don’t know who would say no first. Any way you slice it, the fact that we’re talking about trading three guys, one of whom went 1-1 last year, for a 19-year old in low-A ball is pretty insane.”

Maybe I'm just bias but I'd take the trio.  Correa was a bit more raw than Buxton.  No idea what either's ceiling is at this point.  But then add McCullers and it is an easy decision for me.  That's not even including Ruiz

[MusicMan]

Callis counters that by pointing out that the Astros could have gotten Buxton, McCullers, and a slot player for less than Correa, McCullers, and Ruiz, and that he'd certainly rather have the former.

[jbm]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/deja-vu-byron-buxton-stirs-echoes-of-mike-trout-in-cedar-rapids/
Maybe I'm just bias but I'd take the trio.  Correa was a bit more raw than Buxton.  No idea what either's ceiling is at this point.  But then add McCullers and it is an easy decision for me.  That's not even including Ruiz

What would you say if you rooted for the Twins?

I enjoy these questions, but it's amazing to me how the buzz around players can change from week to week, or game by game.  If you could poll those in the know today, the results will likely be a lot different in a year. 

By the way, congrats to those who knew Buxton was as good as he apparently appears to be at the moment, but if those people existed, I don't remember reading about them.  More so with Trout.  Would all the scouts who forecast his future stardom stand up please.

[pots]

Callis counters that by pointing out that the Astros could have gotten Buxton, McCullers, and a slot player for less than Correa, McCullers, and Ruiz, and that he'd certainly rather have the former.

That's assuming Buxton would have been okay with taking 6 of 7.2 million.  We know he signed for 6 of 6.2 million after Correa had accepted 4.8 of 7.2.  

ETA
Also the question posed to scouts was Buxton or the trio. 

[OregonStrosFan]

What would you say if you rooted for the Twins?

I enjoy these questions, but it's amazing to me how the buzz around players can change from week to week, or game by game.  If you could poll those in the know today, the results will likely be a lot different in a year. 

By the way, congrats to those who knew Buxton was as good as he apparently appears to be at the moment, but if those people existed, I don't remember reading about them.  More so with Trout.  Would all the scouts who forecast his future stardom stand up please.

My general recollections about 'my' opinion of Buxton pre-draft was that he had the tools to potentially become a superstar, but that questions lingering around about him reminded me a lot of questions surrounding Nash and Ovando when HOU signed them (again, these are my 'general recollections', but I can't swear on 'em)...  Hence, I was much more comfortable with Correa at 1.1 then I think I would've been with Buxton at 1.1.

And neither here nor there, but most of the Buxton >>>>  Correa talk began in April when Correa was 'getting crushed' and Buxton was 'crushing it'.  It was certainly w-a-y too earlier to anoint Single-A hitting prospect Buxton as 'by far the best prospect in baseball' (or whatever folks've been anointing him as) at that time, and I think it is still too early to do so now.

Personally, I'm still VERY excited about the Correa pick standing on its own.  Adding McCullers and Ruiz is just icing IMO, but can't be overlooked and should make the question of Buxton vs. Correa + McCullers + Ruiz a no brainer...

[juliogotay]

When one is as "needy" as the current Houston Astros, the trio makes perfect sense.

[Reuben]

I recall Buxton's hit tool being the big uncertainty, where opinions varied widely. His quality of competition was not good, making him that much tougher to gauge, and while he had great BP power, he didn't hit many HR in games, at least his senior year.

So far this season he has surprised people by hitting really well. I think it's pretty silly to draw any grand conclusions at this point.

Also, it seemed pretty obvious that the Astros thought more of Ruiz than anybody else did. For whatever reason, they saw something in him that made them want him; time will tell if they were right but it's hard to fault them for going with their convictions.

[pots]

I know Ruiz gets kind of just tacked on to these discussions...

But if the answer is
167/309/288
246/329/311
269/330/409
325/372/500

Then the question would have been: What are Ruiz' stats for April, May, June and last 10?

[VirtualBob]

Correa left tonight's game after a HBP ... any word on the severity of the injury?

[astrosfan76]

In the right hand area. No word on severity. Hopefully, just precautionary.

[Reuben]

He was also (I'm sure this has been noted elsewhere) voted to the Futures Game.

[Fynn]

In the right hand area. No word on severity. Hopefully, just precautionary.

Per the local paper, its the right forearm-still no word on severity.
http://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/bandits-rally-in-th-for-win/article_9b48b96b-b54b-5a65-8fc8-e00ee19f6e2e.html

[johnstros]

Astros county says there are fears it is broken

[jbm]

I didn't see that there.  Is there a link?

[pots]

I didn't see that there.  Is there a link?

Searched twitter for Correa and broken and there was plenty of posts.  No confirmations though.  And none from a source that should know

[juliogotay]

Astros county says there are fears it is broken

AC said the fear is a broken hand, not forearm.

[johnstros]

Quad Cities scored three runs in the bottom of the 9th for a nice walk-off 9-8 win, but Carlos Correa was hit on the right hand (again) by a Matt Anderson pitch in his first AB and left the game. X-Rays will apparently be taken, but it seems as though the fear is that he has broken his hand

http://www.astroscounty.com/2013/07/prestros-morning-report-july-1.html

[johnstros]

Correa not in lineup tonight.  Haven't seen any updates about his condition anywhere.

[morningwood75]

Correa not in lineup tonight.  Haven't seen any updates about his condition anywhere.

Steve Batterson @sbatt79
#qctimes Correa expected back in the lineup on Wed for @QCRiverBandits. Manager Omar Lopez felt a day off would benefit the .323 hitter

https://twitter.com/sbatt79

[OregonStrosFan]

Steve Batterson @sbatt79
#qctimes Correa expected back in the lineup on Wed for @QCRiverBandits. Manager Omar Lopez felt a day off would benefit the .323 hitter

https://twitter.com/sbatt79

I see you come bearing good news. Welcome aboard The Bus Ride (and thanks for the info)!

[morningwood75]

I see you come bearing good news. Welcome aboard The Bus Ride (and thanks for the info)!

Thanks! I've been following the bus ride for a long time and finally decided to join in. It's one of the best spots to get info on the minor leagues for sure.

[Duman]

I am loving the new blood in the bus.  Might have to upgrade to a double decker soon. 

[Nate in IA]

I recall Buxton's hit tool being the big uncertainty, where opinions varied widely. His quality of competition was not good, making him that much tougher to gauge, and while he had great BP power, he didn't hit many HR in games, at least his senior year.

So far this season he has surprised people by hitting really well. I think it's pretty silly to draw any grand conclusions at this point.

Just a Buxton observation since I got to see him play a few times this year.   He can flat out play center field in addition to showing some pop.   As to whether he's the best minor league prospect or not is for more educated folk than me but I enjoyed watching him play.

[qcbaseball]

Just a Buxton observation since I got to see him play a few times this year.   He can flat out play center field in addition to showing some pop.   As to whether he's the best minor league prospect or not is for more educated folk than me but I enjoyed watching him play.

Agreed. He is fun to watch.

[qcbaseball]

Very late, but I was at Saturday's game. Saturday the Bandits had some impressive pitching. Minaya was tough: 5IP, 0 ER, 4H, 4K, 0BB. He was pretty efficient. Guys did not hit the ball real hard off of him. I started paying closer attention when Valesquez took the mound and promptly struck out the first two batters he faced. His line was: 4IP, 1R, 4H, 8K, 1BB. He had a very good fastball, was changing speeds very well, and had very good control of his breaking pitches. He was getting guys both swinging and looking. So the two pitchers combined were: 9IP, 1ER, 8H, 12K, 1 BB...Impressive.

On offense, Teoscar led off the game by crushing a ball to CF and getting thrown out at 3rd trying to stretch it to a triple. Really, really dumb. Later, he did hit a triple, almost in the same spot. He looked like he did at the plate earlier in the year when he was hot. Correa hit an opposite field HR and had 2 other hits. He was seeing the ball very well. He is developing to say the least. Ruiz also crushed no-doubt HR, which was nice to see.

[Reuben]

Whattheheckbobby reporting that QC is ending tandem SPs and going with a rotation of Colton Cain, Lance McCullers, Vincent Velasquez, Juan Minaya, Jordan Jankowski and Mike Hauschild.

So looks like the short-season teams are the only ones still tandeming.

[Duman]

Whattheheckbobby reporting that QC is ending tandem SPs and going with a rotation of Colton Cain, Lance McCullers, Vincent Velasquez, Juan Minaya, Jordan Jankowski and Mike Hauschild.

So looks like the short-season teams are the only ones still tandeming.

No tandem in Greeneville

[Jacksonian]

Whattheheckbobby reporting that QC is ending tandem SPs and going with a rotation of Colton Cain, Lance McCullers, Vincent Velasquez, Juan Minaya, Jordan Jankowski and Mike Hauschild.

So looks like the short-season teams are the only ones still tandeming.

Interesting.  Joe Bircher, who was in the tandem rotation before being injured, is making his second rehab start in the GCL today.  It won't be long before he's promoted somewhere.  Minaya wasn't with QC at the start of the season so I wonder if he'll stick for very long.

[qcbaseball]

I selfishly hope QC keeps most of their pitchers, because now that they are going away from the tandem starter thing, they really increase their pitching depth. It shores up the pen quite a bit, which was weak. But whatever.

I went to tonight's game. There were 7,204 fans on hand, which is quite large for here. (There are only about 4,100 actual seats in our ballpark, but tons of standing room and general admission which they cram into on big nights like this). It was a very odd game. Bandits won 1-0. The only run scored on a balk. The ump blew a call earlier (in my opinion) that should have scored a run. He called a runner out at 1st for the second out of a double-play to end an inning. I felt the runner was safe, which would have allowed a run to score. But whatever. Also, there was a questionable call where a Bandits runner was called out trying to steal. Naturally the next batter hit a single that would have scored him had he been safe. The balk call came when they had runners on 1st and 3rd, and the pitcher tried the old fake to third, throw to first move. He mucked it up for an obvious balk.

Valesquez started tonight and was electric again. His line: 6IP, 1H, 0ER, 2BB, 5K. The radar gun was not on, but he seems to have a lively fastball. He didn't quite have as great of control of his breaking pitches like he did Saturday, but still good enough.

Correa had 2 hits including a double. It is getting to the point where I am describing his hitting as "raking".

That was about the ballgame. Gerardo Sanchez and Chia-Jen Lo backed Valesquez's nice start. The Bandits only allowed 3 hits tonight in the combined shutout.

[Navin R Johnson]

Thanks for the updates QC.   7200 is a great crowd and about what the MLB team is drawing come the 6th inning of most home games now.  Hope you guys are growing them right down there, the Astros need real Major League difference makers in the worst kinda way.

[Reuben]

I selfishly hope QC keeps most of their pitchers, because now that they are going away from the tandem starter thing, they really increase their pitching depth. It shores up the pen quite a bit, which was weak. But whatever.

I went to tonight's game. There were 7,204 fans on hand, which is quite large for here. (There are only about 4,100 actual seats in our ballpark, but tons of standing room and general admission which they cram into on big nights like this). It was a very odd game. Bandits won 1-0. The only run scored on a balk. The ump blew a call earlier (in my opinion) that should have scored a run. He called a runner out at 1st for the second out of a double-play to end an inning. I felt the runner was safe, which would have allowed a run to score. But whatever. Also, there was a questionable call where a Bandits runner was called out trying to steal. Naturally the next batter hit a single that would have scored him had he been safe. The balk call came when they had runners on 1st and 3rd, and the pitcher tried the old fake to third, throw to first move. He mucked it up for an obvious balk.

Valesquez started tonight and was electric again. His line: 6IP, 1H, 0ER, 2BB, 5K. The radar gun was not on, but he seems to have a lively fastball. He didn't quite have as great of control of his breaking pitches like he did Saturday, but still good enough.

Correa had 2 hits including a double. It is getting to the point where I am describing his hitting as "raking".

That was about the ballgame. Gerardo Sanchez and Chia-Jen Lo backed Valesquez's nice start. The Bandits only allowed 3 hits tonight in the combined shutout.

Thanks QC, these are great reports. I'm excited about Velasquez's potential. An under-the-radar prospect who's already been through Tommy John surgery and had to play catch-up with other pitchers his age. And he's got the names of two of my favorite painters.

[juliogotay]

I selfishly hope QC keeps most of their pitchers, because now that they are going away from the tandem starter thing, they really increase their pitching depth. It shores up the pen quite a bit, which was weak. But whatever.

I went to tonight's game. There were 7,204 fans on hand, which is quite large for here. (There are only about 4,100 actual seats in our ballpark, but tons of standing room and general admission which they cram into on big nights like this). It was a very odd game. Bandits won 1-0. The only run scored on a balk. The ump blew a call earlier (in my opinion) that should have scored a run. He called a runner out at 1st for the second out of a double-play to end an inning. I felt the runner was safe, which would have allowed a run to score. But whatever. Also, there was a questionable call where a Bandits runner was called out trying to steal. Naturally the next batter hit a single that would have scored him had he been safe. The balk call came when they had runners on 1st and 3rd, and the pitcher tried the old fake to third, throw to first move. He mucked it up for an obvious balk.

Valesquez started tonight and was electric again. His line: 6IP, 1H, 0ER, 2BB, 5K. The radar gun was not on, but he seems to have a lively fastball. He didn't quite have as great of control of his breaking pitches like he did Saturday, but still good enough.

Correa had 2 hits including a double. It is getting to the point where I am describing his hitting as "raking".

That was about the ballgame. Gerardo Sanchez and Chia-Jen Lo backed Valesquez's nice start. The Bandits only allowed 3 hits tonight in the combined shutout.

So, I surmise Correa's hand is not broken. This is the first confirmation I've read that it wasn't. Great post.

[Navin R Johnson]

There was a post about it, I think in the Talkzone thread about the Futures game vote... anyway, he wasn't even hit in the hand, he was hit in the forearm.  He was struck in the same spot a few days before, so they just gave him a day off to let it heal.

[VirtualBob]

Congratulations to Dan Gulbranson on his promotion to QC. He was tearing it up at TC.

[qcbaseball]

Check out the photos from QC's postgame July 3rd fireworks:
http://www.milb.com/photos/gallery.jsp?content_id=52633322&sid=t565

[Duman]

Check out the photos from QC's postgame July 3rd fireworks:
http://www.milb.com/photos/gallery.jsp?content_id=52633322&sid=t565

That is a great setting for baseball and fireworks.

[NeilT]

What a pretty park.

[OregonStrosFan]

Check out the photos from QC's postgame July 3rd fireworks:
http://www.milb.com/photos/gallery.jsp?content_id=52633322&sid=t565

Gorgeous park.  I'm going to have to catch a game there one of these days!

[astrosfan76]

Ruiz has been en fuego, hitting .364 over the last 10 games (12 for 33) with 8 walks and only 4 strikeouts. He has 4 doubles, 2 HR, driven in 6, and crossed home plate 10 times. His OPS for that stretch is 1.143

[Navin R Johnson]

Why hasn't Correa been in the lineup the last 2 days? 

[astrosfan76]

As expected, Appel is set to join the River Bandits tomorrow.

[Navin R Johnson]

Well Correa back in the lineup tonight, 0-1 with 3 walks.  Rio Ruiz with a homer, now batting 364 with a 1100 OPS in his last 10 games, with 7 walks and 5 Ks.  McCullers not good tonight, 4IP 7 Hits, 4 runs in an 8-2 loss.

[Reuben]

Maybe McCullers can benefit from having Appel around.

[Duman]

Word around town is the Borchering is headed to QC

[jbm]

Remind me again because I am lazy, why is this guy at the lower levels?  Is he rehabbing or something?

[pots]

  Is he rehabbing or something?

yes

[jbm]

What was his injury?

[Duman]

Remind me again because I am lazy, why is this guy at the lower levels?  Is he rehabbing or something?

Missed much of spring training to "take some time off" to address some "confidential matters".  So he had been working himself into shape.  It also looks like he is becoming primarily a 1st baseman.  

He actually played in QC last night - went 1-3 with a HR & 2 K also made an error at 1st.  

[Duman]

This gives the River Bandits 4 former 1st round picks on the same team:

Borchering (1-16 2009- Dbacks)
Appel (1-1 2013)
Correa (1-1 2012)
McCullers (1-41 - 2012)

Then you add in

Velasquez (2-58- 2010)

That is one team loaded with high draft picks.

[Navin R Johnson]

Word around town is the Borchering is headed to QC

The word was right.  He was in the lineup last night going 1-3 with a HR.

[Reuben]

Appel's QC debut: 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K

[qcbaseball]

I got to see Appel's outing today. He did very well overall. He did go deep into counts often. A lot of 2-2 and 3-2 counts, but only the one walk. A lot of batters managed to hit a lot of foul balls or he could have had more K's. I don't know what his pitch count was, but he did throw a lot of pitches to get through 4 innings (partially because of 2 errors behind him). If he had just a slightly better curveball he would have flat out dominated. As it was, there were only a couple hard-hit balls off of him. I would have liked to have seen his curveball been a tad bit slower to act more as a changeup. Maybe he was a little amped up today. He had a good hard slider and pretty good velocity on his fastball. Looking forward to seeing more of him.

[morningwood75]

A couple of tweets about Correa from people at the Futures Game today...

Ben Badler @BenBadler
No power shortage in BP for Carlos Correa. Guy is gonna be a monster in a few years.10:40 AM - 14 Jul 2013

Kiley McDaniel ?@kileymcd 8h
Scout sitting with me agrees Carlos Correa was star of BP. Loose, athletic, some projection and current above average raw power.

[juliogotay]

I got to see Appel's outing today. He did very well overall. He did go deep into counts often. A lot of 2-2 and 3-2 counts, but only the one walk. A lot of batters managed to hit a lot of foul balls or he could have had more K's. I don't know what his pitch count was, but he did throw a lot of pitches to get through 4 innings (partially because of 2 errors behind him). If he had just a slightly better curveball he would have flat out dominated. As it was, there were only a couple hard-hit balls off of him. I would have liked to have seen his curveball been a tad bit slower to act more as a changeup. Maybe he was a little amped up today. He had a good hard slider and pretty good velocity on his fastball. Looking forward to seeing more of him.

Thanks for the eyewitness report. Good stuff.

[morningwood75]

http://www.crawfishboxes.com/2013/7/14/4523924/appels-midwest-league-debut

[qcbaseball]

One thing I will say the QC squad has going for it is their ability to draw walks. Up and down the lineup lots of players have an OPS 100 points higher than their batting average. I read a tweet from someone that QC had the 2nd most walks in minor league baseball, behind only 1 of the other Astros minor league teams.

So they have good OBP, and batting averages are OK...seems like they really struggle to hit for power. So we have a bunch of guys with like a .330 to .360 OBP, but only a .680 or .690 OPS.

That being said, some of the new guys to the roster seem to have a little more pop. Borchering and Gulbransen for example crushed the ball a few times in the last game I saw. Some of the new guys are off to a hot start. So we shall see.

[qcbaseball]

Just wanted to add...I understand that power is one of the last things to develop...but if you are going to have power in the majors, you'd at least have doubles power in the MWL, and you'd still hit *some* home runs. The most HRs on the team is a couple guys tied at 6. That's pretty low, even for this league.

[juliogotay]

One thing I will say the QC squad has going for it is their ability to draw walks. Up and down the lineup lots of players have an OPS 100 points higher than their batting average. I read a tweet from someone that QC had the 2nd most walks in minor league baseball, behind only 1 of the other Astros minor league teams.

So they have good OBP, and batting averages are OK...seems like they really struggle to hit for power. So we have a bunch of guys with like a .330 to .360 OBP, but only a .680 or .690 OPS.

That being said, some of the new guys to the roster seem to have a little more pop. Borchering and Gulbransen for example crushed the ball a few times in the last game I saw. Some of the new guys are off to a hot start. So we shall see.

As an organization, Houston has more walks in the MiLs than any other according to Stearns.

[morningwood75]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/futures-game-superlatives/


"Twins third baseman Miguel Sano had no problems providing souvenirs, but that was no surprise. The most encouraging BPs came from Astros shortstop Carlos Correa and Pirates center fielder Gregory Polanco, who both showed that there should be plenty more home runs in their future. Correa has just five home runs in the low Class A Midwest League, but he showed plus raw power in BP with some of the deepest home runs of the day for a righthanded hitter."

[qcbaseball]

Quad Cities ballpark (Modern Woodmen Park) is in USA Today's top 10 for their best minor league ballparks contest. Please vote!

http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-minor-league-ballpark/

[astrosfan76]

Appel goes 4 in his second start at QC, giving up 3 runs from 2 home runs,4 hits against 0 walks, and 4 strikeouts. Correa went 2-5 on the night, with a double and his sixth homerun. Over his last 10 games, Correa has walked 9 times and only struck out 4.

[morningwood75]

Appel goes 4 in his second start at QC, giving up 3 runs from 2 home runs,4 hits against 0 walks, and 4 strikeouts. Correa went 2-5 on the night, with a double and his sixth homerun. Over his last 10 games, Correa has walked 9 times and only struck out 4.

http://www.minorleagueball.com/2013/7/19/4538232/minor-league-ball-gameday-july-19



posted by David Jay...

Appel

I’m in Ft. Wayne for tonight’s game. I’ll try to get some updates out on the MadFriars twitter feed for everyone. Ruiz is back in the lineup after sitting out against the lefty Fried last night.
Incidentally, Vincent Velasquez went for QC last night. He’s now 19 months post-TJ and has a NASTY fastball. He only mixed in the breaking stuff very occasionally, but had some impressive movement when he did. Definitely a guy who could jump back up lists quickly as he gets his feet back under him. He was a second round pick out of HS in 2010 from up in Pomona.

by David Jay on Jul 19, 2013 | 3:29 PM ?reply ?rec ? flag

Appel done after 4

Left two pitches up and they both left the yard. When the ball was down, nobody came close to solid contact against him.

This just in

Carlos Correa is REALLY good at baseball.
He unloaded for a two run homer to left that was just the second ball to hit off the building beyond the left field fence in Ft. Wayne. That was a half-inning after a pretty diving play at shortstop.

[OregonStrosFan]

Correa hit HR #7 today: BOX SCORE

[Uncle Charlie]

Correa hit HR #7 today: BOX SCORE

Take out the slow start in April and the guy is clearly dominating he league.  Sure how he gets a shot in Lancaster soon.

[VirtualBob]

Take out the slow start in April and the guy is clearly dominating he league.  Sure how he gets a shot in Lancaster soon.

Villar's promotion could trickle down ... Fontana jumping Mier to OKC and Correa moving up to Lancaster.  Sciafani still deserves PT too, though.  And I am not sure anyone at TC is ready for the jump to QC.

[Duman]

Villar's promotion could trickle down ... Fontana jumping Mier to OKC and Correa moving up to Lancaster.  Sciafani still deserves PT too, though.  And I am not sure anyone at TC is ready for the jump to QC.

This is not the first time I have heard this and I am confused over the desire to have Fontana jump Mier and go to AAA.  They are both 22 (Mier turns 23 in August and Fontana turned 22 in June so Mier is 10 months older).  Fontanta after a very hot start in Lancaster has been hitting a pedestrian average since then (May .241, June .212, July .257) and against older pitching this year, he is hitting .265 compared to .333 against younger pitching. 

His defense isn't as good as Mier's. 

Fontanta - 287 chances/13 Errors/.955 Fielding %/3.97 range factor/24 DP turned
Mier       -  394 chances/14 errors/ .964 fielding%/4.96 range factor/67 DP turned

Yes - Fontana gets on base at a much higher rate.  But other than that, I don't see any indication that Fontana would out perform Mier defensively or in average. 

I understand the frustration that Mier hasn't developed as expected.  But I don't see any indication Fontana is ready for AAA.  I also wonder if Mier will get a change of scenery after this year.  A trade to get a fresh start. 

It will be interesting to see what the front office does with this bit of a log jam at SS. 

[Reuben]

Good points. Yeah, I'd be pretty shocked to see Fontana bumped straight to AAA. They have Marwin to hold down SS at OKC, so it's not a desperate need, not that that would necessarily dictate what they do with a prospect like Fontana.

Mier's year is certainly disappointing. Searching his splits for some clues/answers, he's hit extremely poorly on the road this year, .139/.250/.180 compared to the not-so-bad .247/.337/.351 at home... also, he's hit just .121 against LHP (.226 vs. RHP), so that points to either some serious problems with the change-up, or just bad luck, or both. I dunno. Perhaps they could try sending him back to LAN for a while to rebuild his confidence at the plate. As you say, he still has some youth on his side.

Obviously the main concern is when to bump Correa up from QC. I doubt Fontana or Mier's status would alter their plan in that regard, though. One of them could easily slide into a 3B-SS-2B-DH rotation, with Correa playing SS full-time and perhaps DHing once a week, if Fontana stays at LAN, or Fontana and Mier simply sharing SS/2B/3B at Corpus. Both of those guys will likely be utility infielders if they make the majors anyway.

[VirtualBob]

Not really a QC topic, but since I started it here, I'll comment here.

First, I am not particularly frustrated with Mier, and I do not really have a "desire" for Fontana to move past him on the organizational depth chart.  Furthermore, I agree that Mier is a better defender ... I see Fontana more as a utility infielder down the road.

But I still think it is a good idea (and perhaps even likely) for Fontana to jump to AAA.  Why?

1.  Fontana is not (IMO) a long term solution at SS, whereas Gonzalez (IMO again) still has a shot.  I see both of them getting PT at all three "normal" IF positions to see who looks best as a utility candidate.

2.  Fontana has plate discipline and (IMO ... there it is again) has batting skills that are less subject to him being completely overmatched at a higher level.  

3.  Mier still has (IMO) a long-term potential as an everyday SS in MLB, either at Houston or as a trading chip, but he desperately needs to develop at the plate and gain confidence.  I do not think he (or his Mendoza-like performance) would be helped by bumping him up a level.

So in short, I see developmental reasons for moving Fontana to AAA, but I do not necessarily think that this means he moves past Mier on the depth chart.

ETA one more thing:  I do agree that moving Correa, the best bet as "the SS of the future", to Lancaster is likely before the end of the year, so something will happen to (at least) Fontana, whether it is a promotion or a position change or both is yet to be seen.

[OregonStrosFan]

I forgot to mention this last week, but Vincent Velasquez had a dominant performance in his last outing (7/26 game story). 

[OregonStrosFan]

Looks like it was a banner day for the River Bandits bats yesterday (Box score).

And after a horrible April, Rio Ruiz has been slowly but steadily turning his season around.



(edit to fix link)

[geezerdonk]

I sure would like to see Correa spend the rest of the season at Lancaster.

[Nate in IA]

I sure would like to see Correa spend the rest of the season at Lancaster.

After this weekend please.   They'll be in town and I'm hopeful to attend 3 of the four game set.

[Navin R Johnson]

Danry Vasquez goes 2-4 in his first action with QC.

[Navin R Johnson]

Make that 3 for 5 now, with a 2 run game tying homer in the bottom of the ninth.

[pots]

Danry Vasquez goes 2-4 in his first action with QC.

um you called that too early.

He went 3 for 5 with a game tying 2 run HR in the bottom of the 9th:

Quad Cities Bottom of the 9th

Austin Elkins hit by pitch.
Teoscar Hernandez strikes out swinging.
Danry Vasquez homers (6) on a fly ball to right center field. Austin Elkins scores.
Carlos Correa doubles (23) on a fly ball to center fielder Charlie Tilson.
Pitching Change: Joseph Scanio replaces Joe Donofrio.
Dan Gulbransen strikes out swinging.
Bobby Borchering singles on a fly ball to center fielder Charlie Tilson. Carlos Correa scores.

[qcbaseball]

Looks like it was a banner day for the River Bandits bats yesterday (Box score).

And after a horrible April, Rio Ruiz has been slowly but steadily turning his season around.



(edit to fix link)

Teoscar has also been hot lately. His OPS is up to .742.

[qcbaseball]

Quad Cities ballpark (Modern Woodmen Park) is in USA Today's top 10 for their best minor league ballparks contest. Please vote!

http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-minor-league-ballpark/

If you haven't voted yet, please do. Or if you have, please vote again. Louisville just moved ahead of QC by a tiny bit.

[Navin R Johnson]

Rio continues to hit, had another HR yesterday.  Post All star break (35 games), he is hitting .305 11 2Bs, 5 HR, .367/.519/.886

[roadrunner]

Rio continues to hit, had another HR yesterday.  Post All star break (35 games), he is hitting .305 11 2Bs, 5 HR, .367/.519/.886

Very encouraging.  I was beginning to think he might start at Quad Cities again next year.

[Reuben]

Teoscar Hernandez has also really turned it on of late. For his last 10 games, .390/.432/.780 with 3 HR.

Post-ASB (32 games), hitting .311/.352/.561 with 6 HR, although he's been caught stealing 5 times in only 9 attempts (just 4 in 21 before the break).

One oddball split: A RHB, Hernandez is hitting way better vs. RHP - .288/.345/.452 compared to just .228/.275/.406 vs. LHP.

Looking him up on BA's website, I was surprised to find him ranked as the #34 Astros prospect (prior to this season) - I thought they only ranked the top 31 for the Handbook, and wouldn't bother going further. Presumably he would rank much higher for a lot of other organizations. Anyway, here's what they said about him:

...The Astros scouted Hernandez as a favor to then-Latin American director Felix Francisco, whose brother-in-law was a friend of Hernandez's family. He showed exciting physical tools in his U.S. debut last year. Hernandez has present strength in his wiry frame, solid athleticism and excellent bat speed that make it easy for scouts to project plus power. He's susceptible to chasing breaking balls, and pitch recognition will be a major key for him going forward. He has other ways to help a ballclub, however, including a plus arm and average speed. Hernandez has played both center and right field, and he'll probably wind up in the latter position. He's a project with upside who's ticketed for a full season in low Class A in 2013.

I wonder if they meant to say above-average speed (average speed doesn't really "help a ballclub"). The fact that he's hit leadoff and played CF pretty much every game for QC, and has an impressive 8 triples, 21 SB, and 74 Runs in just 94 games, tells me that he might be rather fast.

You'd like to see him draw more walks and reduce the strikeouts (31 BB and 102 K this year), but there's certainly a lot to like about the kid. I'd love to hear more, particularly about his defense, from those of you who've seen him play.

[Nate Colbert]

Looking him up on BA's website, I was surprised to find him ranked as the #34 Astros prospect (prior to this season) - I thought they only ranked the top 31 for the Handbook, and wouldn't bother going further.

Not completely sure about the ordering, but I suspect it comes from this 32nd team article. Five of the listed 29 players are Astros prospects (Borchering, Doran, Hernandez, Mier, and Ovando). Alphabetically, Hernandez would slot in at #34.

[Nate Colbert]

Rio continues to hit, had another HR yesterday.  Post All star break (35 games), he is hitting .305 11 2Bs, 5 HR, .367/.519/.886

Ruiz hasn't played the last 2 games after being placed on the temporarily inactive list.

[La Verdad]

According to the New York-Penn League transactions page, Tony Kemp, Zach Morton, and Pat Christensen are up from Tri-City.

Kemp is starting at 2nd and hitting 2nd tonight.


#qctimes QC moves: OF Dan Gulbransen, P Jordan Jankowski to high-A Lancaster; OF Terrell Joyce on Temp Inactive List, P Juri Perez released

— Steve Batterson (@sbatt79) August 5, 2013

[OregonStrosFan]

Ruiz hasn't played the last 2 games after being placed on the temporarily inactive list.

He's back in the lineup tonight, and 2-4 at this point. Correa is 2-3. Hader went 6, allowing only 1 hit while striking out 2 and walking none.

[Nate in IA]

He's back in the lineup tonight, and 2-4 at this point. Correa is 2-3. Hader went 6, allowing only 1 hit while striking out 2 and walking none.

I had an enjoyable night at the ballpark tonight and was quite pleased to see that I'd get to see both Hader and Appel tonight and tomorrow night.  Hader was throwing BBs tonight painting the bottom of the zone with 91 mph heaters for most of the night.  He threw a few 76 MPH changeups to keep them off balance but they couldn't catch up to his fastball.    He is a lanky southpaw who throws at a 3/4 sidearm and seems to have very good control for a 19 year old.   He also ends up in a position to field.  A couple of times tonight he was able to confidently field balls hit back to him.   A very nice pickup.  If he picks up a couple more pitches that he can throw consistently for strikes, he'll be on his way up.

Can't wait to see what Appel brings to the mound tomorrow night.

Correa looks very comfortable playing this game.   I think he could use being moved up.

Tony Kemp is about .9 Altuves tall but is very fundamentally sound with a quick bat.

Rios didn't keep his head down on the very first ball hit to him and let the ball go under his glove for an error.  The only other error on the night was a bad hop that ate up Kemp.   And Jemaine Cotton gave up the long ball to get Cedar Rapids its 2 runs.

[Ebby Calvin]

I had an enjoyable night at the ballpark tonight and was quite pleased to see that I'd get to see both Hader and Appel tonight and tomorrow night.  Hader was throwing BBs tonight painting the bottom of the zone with 91 mph heaters for most of the night.  He threw a few 76 MPH changeups to keep them off balance but they couldn't catch up to his fastball.    He is a lanky southpaw who throws at a 3/4 sidearm and seems to have very good control for a 19 year old.   He also ends up in a position to field.  A couple of times tonight he was able to confidently field balls hit back to him.   A very nice pickup.  If he picks up a couple more pitches that he can throw consistently for strikes, he'll be on his way up.

Can't wait to see what Appel brings to the mound tomorrow night.

Correa looks very comfortable playing this game.   I think he could use being moved up.

Tony Kemp is about .9 Altuves tall but is very fundamentally sound with a quick bat.

Rios didn't keep his head down on the very first ball hit to him and let the ball go under his glove for an error.  The only other error on the night was a bad hop that ate up Kemp.   And Jemaine Cotton gave up the long ball to get Cedar Rapids its 2 runs.

Great writeup, thanks.

[OregonStrosFan]

I had an enjoyable night at the ballpark tonight and was quite pleased to see that I'd get to see both Hader and Appel tonight and tomorrow night.  Hader was throwing BBs tonight painting the bottom of the zone with 91 mph heaters for most of the night.  He threw a few 76 MPH changeups to keep them off balance but they couldn't catch up to his fastball.    He is a lanky southpaw who throws at a 3/4 sidearm and seems to have very good control for a 19 year old.   He also ends up in a position to field.  A couple of times tonight he was able to confidently field balls hit back to him.   A very nice pickup.  If he picks up a couple more pitches that he can throw consistently for strikes, he'll be on his way up.

Can't wait to see what Appel brings to the mound tomorrow night.

Correa looks very comfortable playing this game.   I think he could use being moved up.

Tony Kemp is about .9 Altuves tall but is very fundamentally sound with a quick bat.

Rios didn't keep his head down on the very first ball hit to him and let the ball go under his glove for an error.  The only other error on the night was a bad hop that ate up Kemp.   And Jemaine Cotton gave up the long ball to get Cedar Rapids its 2 runs.

Ruiz. Numbers this past 4-6 weeks would seem to indicate he is starting to feel comfortable at the plate and doing the stuff he is made to do, hit! He went 2-5. How do you think he looked at the dish?

[Nate in IA]

Ruiz. Numbers this past 4-6 weeks would seem to indicate he is starting to feel comfortable at the plate and doing the stuff he is made to do, hit! He went 2-5. How do you think he looked at the dish?

I'd have to say he looked a little tentative.  Nowhere near as comfortable in the box as Correa for instance.  Now it did seem that he was the 'captain' of the infield.  I will pay more attention to the hitters tonight.

One general feeling I got was the team overall was pretty loose.  They seem to be having fun playing the game.

[astrosfan76]

BA has its top tools lists for each league, as voted on by managers. QC only had two representatives on the list (guess who), With LMC taking top honors for best breaking ball and Correa getting best SS and best infield arm. Buxton grabbed best batting, best defensive OF, and most exciting prospect (I'm sure Correa received votes for two of those).

[juliogotay]

BA has its top tools lists for each league, as voted on by managers. QC only had two representatives on the list (guess who), With LMC taking top honors for best breaking ball and Correa getting best SS and best infield arm. Buxton grabbed best batting, best defensive OF, and most exciting prospect (I'm sure Correa received votes for two of those).

Nice to hear McCullers has a + breaking ball. I already know he throws hard.

[Nate in IA]

Appel has hit 97 tonight.  His motion looks pretty easy and he sits 94-96 with his fastball.  I have video that I will have to figure out how to post after I get home.

[Nate in IA]

After giving up 2 unearned as I went to get ice cream, Appel is lifted for Christensen.  He throws submarine sidearm and has an absolutely filthy change up.

[MusicMan]

BP has unnamed scouts on a couple of Astros:

Astros Low-A LHP Josh Hader: “Threw 92-94 for three innings before running into some mechanical issues that caused him to lose his command and control. Has a very good curveball that he gets underneath and throws from different arm slots. Has solid spin and shows multiple plane movement. Changeup at this point is average but does have some fade. Maintains good pressure points on the ball.”

Astros Low-A RHP Lance McCullers: "Hard-nosed competitor with front-of-the-rotation type stuff. He has the ability to put hitters away when he wants. I love watching this kid battle."

[matadorph]

According to the New York-Penn League transactions page, Tony Kemp, Zach Morton, and Pat Christensen are up from Tri-City.

Kemp is starting at 2nd and hitting 2nd tonight.


#qctimes QC moves: OF Dan Gulbransen, P Jordan Jankowski to high-A Lancaster; OF Terrell Joyce on Temp Inactive List, P Juri Perez released

— Steve Batterson (@sbatt79) August 5, 2013

Not sure if this has already been posted elsewhere but Colton Cain (acquired in the Wandy trade) was also promoted last week to Lancaster from QC.

[OregonStrosFan]

For you Twitter folks, worth your time to give RGuill (@QCBanditP) a follow.  He is the photographer for Quad Cities, and shares a ton of great photos.

[Reuben]

For you Twitter folks, worth your time to give RGuill (@QCBanditP) a follow.  He is the photographer for Quad Cities, and shares a ton of great photos.eat photos.

Dude, eating photos is a bad idea. The paper still has chemicals from the emulsion and stuff.

[Nate Colbert]

Mark Appel's last (?) start in low-A doesn't go so well (3.1 9 7 7 0 2).

Box

[austro]

Mark Appel's last (?) start in low-A doesn't go so well (3.1 9 7 7 0 2).

Box

I imagine he's been pitching since late February. I wonder how much more work he gets before they shut him down.

[Nate Colbert]

BA's latest take on Teoscar:

Hernandez has the tools to be a 20-20 player, but he’s still more raw tools than skills at this point. That’s starting to change, though. The 19-year-old has hit .291/.343/.543 with seven home runs since July 1, including a monster game yesterday in which he went 3-for-4 with two homers for low Class A Quad Cities. The Astros signed Hernandez as basically an afterthought a couple years ago out of the Dominican Republic, but he’s starting to scratch the surface of his potential.

[Nate Colbert]

I imagine he's been pitching since late February. I wonder how much more work he gets before they shut him down.

Luhnow was quoted last Friday that Appel "probably" had 4-5 more starts.

[astrosfan76]

Luhnow was quoted last Friday that Appel "probably" had 4-5 more starts.

Were supposed to "evaluate" after tonight's start, presumably to decide where he would spend the rest of the season.

[Navin R Johnson]

Luhnow was quoted last Friday that Appel "probably" had 4-5 more starts.

He was on the Astros  pregame show Sunday, and was definitive about Appel getting 3 more starts.  1 in QC, that happened yesterday and he said the other 2 starts will not be in QC.

[jbm]

After getting rocked in QC, I'd be surprised if they send him to the pitching hell that is Lancaster.  Maybe CC, but I'd assume another start in QC is still on the table. 

[Jacksonian]

I imagine he's been pitching since late February. I wonder how much more work he gets before they shut him down.

134 innings total.  His first game was February 15 at Rice.  He's probably close to his max innings thrown in spring and summer games.

[Nate Colbert]

After getting rocked in QC, I'd be surprised if they send him to the pitching hell that is Lancaster.  Maybe CC, but I'd assume another start in QC is still on the table. 

McTaggart just tooted quoting Luhnow that Appel will make 2 more starts for QC and then be shut down.

[qcbaseball]

If you haven't voted yet, please do. Or if you have, please vote again. Louisville just moved ahead of QC by a tiny bit.

Modern Woodmen Park won the contest, edging out Louisville:
http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-minor-league-ballpark/

[OregonStrosFan]

Modern Woodmen Park won the contest, edging out Louisville:
http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-minor-league-ballpark/

Congrats, and seemingly well deserved!!!

[austro]

Congrats, and seemingly well deserved!!!

Astros A, AA, and AAA parks all in the top 10. Nice.

[Duman]

And if they went to short season parks both Tri Cities and Greeneville have very nice facilities and would be at the top of their classifications.

[Travis]

An excerpt from BP this morning on Correa:

"Let’s break it down: Correa is still only 18, he’s hitting better than .330 in the Midwest League, he’s hitting lefties to the tune of .450-plus, he can play a premium defensive position, he has natural hitting instincts, the doubles will eventually turn into home runs, and the makeup is applauded by people who aren’t prone to applause. That’s a monster talent, the kind of player who can change the fortunes of a franchise."

They also praised his "elite" makeup, crediting that for his growth this season.

[Reuben]

Walk-off HR from Ruiz. He's had a much better 2nd half, .283/.338/.500 with 16 2B, 7 HR, 29 RBI in 48 games.

[Navin R Johnson]

FWIW, Carlos is the 6th and Ruiz the 14th youngest players in the Midwest League.

http://minorleaguecentral.com/youngest

[Reuben]

FWIW, Carlos is the 6th and Ruiz the 14th youngest players in the Midwest League.

http://minorleaguecentral.com/youngest

That's a great link, thanks. The Astros have 5 of the 20 youngest in the AL: Villar (#6), Lyles, Cosart, Altuve, Hoes. Several notable names at OKC, CC, and LAN also made their list.

[Navin R Johnson]

Its hard to believe that Lyles is younger than Cosart.

[Duman]

Correa getting some BP love today (pay link)

“One of the best packages of talent and performance I have seen this summer. You can describe his skills and tools with any words you want, but the bottom line is that he can play and will play at a high level. ... It shouldn't take him long to race through the minors based on how he is dominating on both sides of the ball.

[Reuben]

Danry Vazquez hit 2 HR in yesterday's game. Nice photo of him in this story. Looks pretty skinny, which reinforces the sentiment that he could develop some nice power as he fills out.

Ruiz continues his fine 2nd half with doubles #32 and 33. After a worrisome 1st half hitting .211/.313/.311 with 9 2B, 3 HR, he's hit .300/.358/.525 with 24 2B and 9 HR in 62 games since the ASB. That is extremely encouraging.

[pots]

Danry Vazquez hit 2 HR in yesterday's game. Nice photo of him in this story. Looks pretty skinny, which reinforces the sentiment that he could develop some nice power as he fills out.

Ruiz continues his fine 2nd half with doubles #32 and 33. After a worrisome 1st half hitting .211/.313/.311 with 9 2B, 3 HR, he's hit .300/.358/.525 with 24 2B and 9 HR in 62 games since the ASB. That is extremely encouraging.

Yes, especially since the kid missed his senior year at highschool

[Nate in IA]

Correa named to the Midwest League Postseason All-Stars.   Is the youngest of the 13 players selected.   It's often hard to remember he's as young as he is.   http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130830&content_id=59017366&fext=.jsp&vkey=pr_t565&sid=t565

Of note on that list is that Richard Hidalgo was named to this All-Star team in 1994.

[qcbaseball]

QC advanced to the MWL final round tonight, defeating Beloit 9-5. Offense exploded for 9 runs, including homers from Correa, Teoscar and Ruiz. Correa also had a triple.

Minor pitched pretty well: 6IP, 6H, 2ER, 6K, 0BB.

Most impressive thing about QC making the final round is that they did it without either Appel or McCullers - I think both were shut down at the end of the regular season.

[Nate in IA]

River Bandits Sweep!   4-2 to close it out at home.

On the strength of a fantastic Josh Hader start:  7 innings, 3 hits, 1 walk, 8 strikeouts.

Rio hit a home run to back that strong start.

Walter gave up a home run in the top of the 9th, but he closed it out to scuttle my plans of going to the game tomorrow.

Congrats to the River Bandits!

[pots]

I know Ruiz gets kind of just tacked on to these discussions...

But if the answer is
167/309/288
246/329/311
269/330/409
325/372/500

Then the question would have been: What are Ruiz' stats for April, May, June and last 10?

167/309/288 - April
246/329/311 - May
269/330/409 - June
279/347/477 - July
298/342/558 - August
364/475/758 - Spetember (32 of 40 PAs were in the playoffs)

[OregonStrosFan]

364/475/758 - Spetember (32 of 40 PAs were in the playoffs)

In the second inning, third baseman Rio Ruiz hit Blair's first pitch out to left field for his third postseason home run - one in each series-clinching game against Cedar Rapids, Beloit and South Bend. . LINK

[qcbaseball]

Video of the final 2 outs and some of the celebration:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fq6vNk1JMEg

A couple pics I took of the celebration:
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r274/bridgetosomewhere/DSC_0003_adj_zpsc95e9e4a.jpg
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r274/bridgetosomewhere/DSC_0026_adj_zps78528c1d.jpg

[Reuben]

Video of the final 2 outs and some of the celebration:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fq6vNk1JMEg

A couple pics I took of the celebration:
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r274/bridgetosomewhere/DSC_0003_adj_zpsc95e9e4a.jpg
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r274/bridgetosomewhere/DSC_0026_adj_zps78528c1d.jpg

Very cool, thanks for posting those.

[BudGirl]

Video of the final 2 outs and some of the celebration:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fq6vNk1JMEg

A couple pics I took of the celebration:
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r274/bridgetosomewhere/DSC_0003_adj_zpsc95e9e4a.jpg
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r274/bridgetosomewhere/DSC_0026_adj_zps78528c1d.jpg

Awesome!  Loved the video!

[OregonStrosFan]

Awesome!  Loved the video!

Seconded.  Very much appreciate you posting the video, it was awesome!

[Noe]

Carlos Correa is one huge kid!

[Duman]

Great stuff! Thanks for sharing it with the bus ride.

[Nate in IA]

Thanks for sharing that..

[La Verdad]

Baseball America: Midwest League Top 20 Prospects ($$)

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/2013-midwest-league-top-20-prospects-with-scouting-reports/

2. Carlos Correa
5. Lance McCullers
12. Vince Velasquez

Mark Appel would've been #4 on the list had he had enough innings to qualify. #3 was Reds RHP Robert Stephenson.

Astros righthander Mark Appel, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 draft, didn’t have enough innings to qualify for the Top 20, but if he had he would have ranked behind Stephenson. Scouts who saw both in the MWL clearly favored the Dayton righthander.

[VirtualBob]

This continues my series of “season-in-review” posts.   I am hoping this one draws some first-hand observations from Nate in IA.   Caveat:  Stats still mean very little at this level, but playing time and player usage begin to be quite significant.  Enjoy.

Quad Cities finished second in the Midwest League Western Division with a 81-57 record before winning the championship by sweeping division winner Cedar Rapids (2-0), beating Beloit 2-1 and then sweeping Eastern Division winner South Bend (3-0).  They went 15-8 in April before slumping to 15-15 in May then going 51-34 the rest of the way.   Offensively, they were 4th in the league with 4.61 runs/game despite a below average .699 OPS.  They were also below average in HR (76) but a little above average in SB (151).  They led the league in walks (578) though and posted an overall offensive line of .247/.338/.362.  They were also 4th with a 3.62 ERA, had the lowest number of walks allowed (394) and struck out 1086 opponents (8/9IP), good for 3rd in the league.  They also committed the 3rd-fewest errors (142) and missed the league-best fielding percentage by .001.

Catchers
Catching was very stable throughout the season.  Roberto Pena (21; returning to class A where he spent most of the past three years) split time evenly in June with Jobduan Morales (22; spending his first full year in class A after spending most of last season at Tri City).  Pena went .365/.393/.538 in April and ended up getting about 65% of the playing time the rest of the season.  His performance dropped steadily, though, and he finished at .249/.297/.354.  He also excelled as a receiver and threw out 52% of attempted base-stealers.  After hitting .243/.364/.378 in April, Morales struggled for most of the season, ending up at .167/.281/.244 in 246 PA.  He also got into 10 games at 1B.  Venezuelan Luis Alvarez (23) spent part of July at Quad Cities on his climb through the organization, hitting .294/.321/.471 in 53 PA.

Infielders
The infield was also pretty stable with Jesse Wierzbicki at 1B, Austin Elkins at 2B, Rio Ruiz at 3B and Carlos Correa at SS.  Wierzbicki (24; 24th round, 2011) also saw time in LF in July before being promoted to Lancaster for the last month of the season.  He ended up at .264/.358/.394 with 6 HR and 54 RBI.  Bobby Borchering (22; obtained last year from Arizona) was the regular at 1B after his promotion from Greeneville in early July.  He apparently was struggling with personal issues all season, and ended up hitting .203/.305/.343.  Miles Hamblin (24; 12th round, 2011) was chiefly used at DH, but also saw some time at 1B before his release in June.  Elkins (22; 19th round, 2012) split time with Joe Sciafani (23; 14th round, 2012) before Sciafani’s early-May promotion, and gave way to newly promoted Tony Kemp (21; 5th rounder out of Vanderbilt) in August.  Elkins also played some SS while Correa was hurt, and finished at .234/.368/.350 with 19 SB and a team-high 67 BB.  Kemp posted a .255/.387/.316 line in 120 PA.  Correa (18; 1st round, 2012) had a brief stint on the DL in May, but dominated at the plate when healthy, finishing at .320/.405/.467 and leading the team in hits (144), 2B (33; tie) and RBI (86).  Ruiz (19; 4th round, 2012) struggled some early and also spent time on the DL in April and May, but finished strong posting a .260/.335/.430 line for the season, with 12 HR and 63 RBI.  Ryan Dineen (22; 25th round, 2012) started the season in Quad Cities and played 3B in Ruiz’ absence, but struggled to a .197/.337/.211 line before being reassigned to Tri City when the NY-Penn league season started.  He also struggled in the field, with 6 errors in only 41 chances and a dismal 1.84 range factor.  Brian Blasik (23; 2012 NDFA) saw limited time at all three infield positions and substantial time at DH in the middle of the season, but failed to match last year’s surprise performance, ending at .209/.321/.286.  Minor league free agent Carlos Perdomo (23) also saw time at 2B and SS the first week of the season before being promoted to Lancaster.

Outfielders
Injuries and poor performance forced some changes in the OF as the season progressed.  April and May saw Jordan Scott in LF, Teoscar Hernandez in CF and Ariel Ovando in RF, with Terrell Joyce backing up both corners and seeing time at DH.  Ovando (19) struggled to a .172/.250/.219 line and 57 K in 189 PA before being sent back to Greeneville where he spent the past two years.  Joyce (21; 12th round, 2012) was also struggling and saw reduced playing time in mid-season.  He improved somewhat with a little more playing time in August, but still finished at only .186/.284/.283 with 80 K in 257 PA.  Both Scott and Hernandez saw time in RF after Ovando’s departure, with Ruben Sosa seeing time in LF and Brett Phillips seeing time in CF.  Sosa (22; 23rd round, 2011) hit .300/.417/.340 and was promoted to Oklahoma City, while Phillips (19; 6th round, 2012) hit only .231/.286/.282 and was sent back to Greeneville.  July saw Scott rotate among all three OF positions while Wierzbicki experimented in LF, Hernandez spent some time on the DL, and newly promoted Dan Gulbransen (22; 16th round, 2012) took over in RF.  Gulbransen hit .284/.394/.386 before being promoted again (to Lancaster).  August saw Scott as the regular in RF and Hernandez return to full-time duty in CF while newcomer Danry Vasquez (19; acquired from Detroit in the Jose Veras trade) was the regular in LF.  Vasquez finished at .288/.323/.398.  Jordan Scott (21; 14th round, 2010) ended up at .255/.342/.321 and led the team in games played (125) and SB (25).  Teoscar Hernandez (20; in his 2nd US season after beginning in the DSL) finished at .271/.328/.435 and led the team in PA (565), AB (499), R (97), 3B (9), HR (13) and K (135).

Pitchers
Quad Cities used the tandem starter approach through June, then switched to a 6-man rotation resulting in ten players (Lance McCullers, Vincent Velasquez, Colton Cain, Daniel Minor, Jordan Jankowski, Mike Hauschild, Joe Bircher and Brian Holmes) getting at least 10 starts, while three more (Chris Devenski, Mark Appel and Josh Hader) were used exclusively as starters after joining late in the season. 

Four of these guys got mid-season calls to Lancaster.   Hauschild (23; 33rd round, 2012) was promoted in early July after racking up a 6-1 record with a 2.92 ERA and a 1.140 WHIP in 20 games (12 starts and 83.1 IP).  The other three got the call in early August; Quad Cities stats were:  Velasquez (21; 2nd round, 2010, but missed 2011 with TJ surgery) led the team with 9 wins, 110 IP, 123 K and a 1.118 WHIP.  In 25 games (16 starts) he went 9-4 with a 3.19 ERA.  Cain (22; 2009 8th round pick obtained from the Pirates in the Eny Cabreja trade) went 5-5, 4.12, 1.454 in 23 games (14 starts and 87.1 IP).  Jankowski (24; 34th round, 2012) moved mostly to the bullpen in July before he was promoted and finished at 3-1, 2.61, 1.071 and 5 saves in 26 games (12 starts and 89.2 IP). 

Three guys spent the whole season in the rotation, though two (Bircher & Holmes) spent significant time on the DL.  McCullers (19; 1st round, 2012) led the team in starts (19) and ERA among qualifiers (3.18).  He went 6-5 in 25 games (104.2 IP) while striking out 117.  He also led the team in walks (49) posting a 1.347 WHIP.  Holmes (22; 13th round, 2012) ended up 5-3, 2.49, 1.158 in 15 games (10 starts and 65 IP) while Bircher (23; 10th round, 2012) went 3-3, 2 saves, 4.15, 1.292 in 14 games (10 starts and 61.1 IP). 

The only guys used exclusively as starters were the late-season additions.  Devenski (22; obtained last year from the ChiSox) struggled at Lancaster and continued to be hit hard in 8 starts at Quad Cities after his demotion in mid-July, giving up 60 hits in 43.1 IP en route to a 4-3, 4.36, 1.592 line.  Top pick Appel (21) also made 8 starts after getting his professional debut at Tri City, posting a 3-1, 3.82, 1.182 line in 33 IP.  Hader (19; obtained from Baltimore in the Norris trade) put up a 2-0, 3.22, 1.164 line in 5 starts (22.1 IP) after the trade.

Minor (22; 9th round, 2012) began the season in the rotation, but went on the DL briefly in June.  He was mostly used in the bullpen the rest of the way, posting an 8-3 record with a 3.71 ERA and 1.419 WHIP in 31 games (12 starts and 99.1 IP).   Another some-time starter was Jamaine Cotton (22; 15th round, 2010) who struggled with injuries.  He was held back in EST in April, was part of the tandem rotation in May and June before his first stint on the DL (his second was in late July), then used exclusively in relief after returning in late June.  He ended up 2-5, 2 saves, 4.77, 1.507 in 26 games (5 starts and 71.2 IP).  Juan Minaya (22; in his 5th US season out of the DR) also joined late from EST and had 5 spot starts while being used mostly as a closer.  He finished at 3-6, 4.77, 1.573 with 8 saves and 57 K in 54.2 IP.

In the bullpen, Mitchell Lambson (22; 19th round, 2011; repeating this level) was the long man all season, posting an 8-3 record, 3.03 ERA and 1.206 WHIP in 15 relief appearances (71.1 IP).  Three others got mid-season promotions.  Michael Dimmock (22; 37th round, 2012) put up a 5-0 record with a 3.09 ERA and 0.771 WHIP and fanned 15 in 11.2 IP before being promoted to Lancaster in mid-May.   Australian Cameron Lamb (24; AAA rule 5 selection from the Giants) went 1-2, 4.82, 1.768 in 18.2 IP before getting the call to Lancaster in early June.  He was promoted again in early August to end the season in Corpus Christi.  Gerardo Sanchez (24; 2012 NDFA) posted a 4-2, 5.22, 1.440 line in 50 IP before his promotion in early August.  The only other player with significant time out of the bullpen was John Neely (22; 30th round, 2012) who was the early-season closer, posting a 2-5, 3.82, 1.848 line with 12 saves in 28 games (33 IP) before announcing his retirement in early July.