Breaking the top 50
Jason Castro breaks in to Jonathan Mayo’s top 50 prospects list at number 27.
(h/t to Leeaire for the link)
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Not bad for a ‘fourth outfielder’
Drew Locke broke the Hooks single season RBI record on August 3rd with his 95th RBI in his 105th game of the season (he currently has 101 RBIs in 110 games). The previous record holder was Hunter Pence, who had 95 RBIs in 136 games played with the Hooks in 2006.
Locke’s 101 RBIs lead the Texas League, outdistancing second in the league by 14 RBIs. As of Saturday, he also was second in batting average at .331 (first was .333) and tied for third in home runs (first was 20). Greg Rajan at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times notes that Locke is making a run at the third Triple Crown in the Texas League since 1888, and is doing so despite a .238 batting average in June.
Rajan also notes that Locke leads the Texas League in outfield assists, and is one of only three outfielders in the league with double-digit assists.
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Speaking of broken records…
Another Hooks’ record goes down in flames.
Boone will mark the Hooks’ sixth rehab assignment this season, joining Brandon Backe, Doug Brocail, German Duran, Darin Erstad and Kaz Matsui as Astros who’ve played in Corpus Christi in 2009.
The Hooks’ previous high for rehab assignments in a season was four, in both 2005 and 2007. No individual player has had more rehab assignments than Backe’s three in 2005, 2007 and this year.
From that same article Rajan notes that German Duran has only appeared in three games with the Hooks this season.
Duran has played only two games since straining a quadriceps muscle during his July 16 Corpus Christi [debut]. He hasn’t seen action since Aug. 2 at Midland. Hooks manager Luis Pujols said Duran’s status is “day to day.”
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Just because
Another look at Wladimir Sutil’s entertaining glovework against Northwest Arkansas in July 3, 2009 (original post by Duder here).