Ask And Ye Shall Maybe Receive: Season 2, Vol 3.

[Jacksonian]

First month is coming to an end.  What do you think of the happenings so far?

[Jacksonian]

33 round Reid Kelly at Chandler-Gilbert Community College
14 games, 12 starts, 74IP, 55H, 13ER, 31BB, 63K, 1.58ERA, 10HBP, 2CG

35 round Andrew Darnell at Chabot College
35G, 137AB, 57H, .416AVG, 16 doubles, 1 triple, 9 homers, 19BB, 23K, .500OBP, .745SLG

39 round Zachary Williams
drafted out of Seminole State Community College. Not on their spring roster. Don't know current location.

40 round Collin Fanning at Clarendon Junior College
On the team. No stats available.

41 round Casey McCleskey at Temple Junior College
Not listed on the current roster. Don't know current location.

43 round Jacob Hower at American River Junior College
16G, 2GS, 25.1IP, 28H, 16ER, 14BB, 25K, 5.68ERA, 4 saves

44 round Nicholas Cobler
Drafted out of Northeast Texas Community College. Now with San Jacinto Community College. No stats available.

45 round Craig Herrforth at Johnson County Community College
11G, 9GS, 39IP, 39H, 26ER, 33BB, 38K, 4.67ERA

[Froback]

Looks like Darnell and to a lesser extent Kelly are good guys to pursue signing before draft.

Kelly's control looks like an issue, especially for a guy not getting more than a K/IP at that level.

But I recall us having success at signing guys from Chabot College (or at least scouting them)... Although I don't know if we have signed any as DFE's rather than just signing them straight away.

[rus]

When do we start worrying about Jason Hirsch at Round Rock.  I was looking at his stats and they don't look real good to start the year.  1.61 WHIP is pretty bad.  Maybe it's just a slow start, but what's going on with him?

[Greg D]

in case you missed the announcement in the TZ.

The Link

[Jacksonian]

The Link

Maybe end of next week.

[Jacksonian]

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When do we start worrying about Jason Hirsch at Round Rock.  I was looking at his stats and they don't look real good to start the year.  1.61 WHIP is pretty bad.  Maybe it's just a slow start, but what's going on with him?

No need to worry.  But, if they knew what was wrong they'd have fixed it.  I'm not hearing about mechanical issues.  So, we're probably looking at a slump.  Lack of command and sharpness right now.  He didn't go through that last year so this is kind of a new thing for him.  He's mentally tough, and I expect him turn it around at some point.

[EasTexAstro]

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First month is coming to an end.  What do you think of the happenings so far?

I think the reporting this year by the OWA "staff" has beeen exceptional.

[Duman]

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First month is coming to an end.  What do you think of the happenings so far?

Minors off to a slow start.  First two I see being promoted:

Pence & Towles

[Duman]

RHP Levi Romero (3-0, 3.60) and LHP Doug Arguello (0-1, 5.25) are set to oppose Hickory righties Derek Antelo (1-1, 5.65) and Romulo Sanchez (0-1, 5.00) in a Wrestling Night doubleheader . The first game is scheduled for 6:05. Both games are scheduled for seven innings, with entertainment by   Jerry "The King" Lawler.
The Link

[Froback]

I just thought I would thrown my 2 cents out there on some things that occured to me while reading the latest numbers report from Greg.

If Hunter Pence keeps this up, Wilson will never see that "potential" 3 year extension.

I don't care if he is right-handed, can we call up Peguero and cut/send down Gallo or Miller?

We might be seeing a middle infield of Zobrist and Burke in a couple of years.  (although walking is very nice and excellent in prospects, I worry he may not hit for a decent average and see those walk opportunities dry up as the season wears on and he potentially moves up, but then he ALWAYS seems to walk at an insane rate!)

Could House be our eventual replacement for Ausmus?  (A bat is nice to have but how is his receiving skills comming along?  Astros like good game-manager at Catcher)

Something about RR killing our pitching prospects?  At least one is doing well, even if it wasn't the one we expected.

CC seems to make our pitchers look good (this year and last).  Is it the league?  the home park? the pitching coach?  Wildly blind coincidence?

You DON'T want to be our best "rookie" batter.  Two years in a row now and our best 1st year guy is biting it in his 2nd year... Flores, I still believe in you, but could you get started already?!?!

Who is THIS Ole Sheldon?  Doesn't look like the no stick guy from last year, that is for sure! (.706 OPS last year)

Yah, I know pretty random.

[Jacksonian]

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I just thought I would thrown my 2 cents out there on some things that occured to me while reading the latest numbers report from Greg.

If Hunter Pence keeps this up, Wilson will never see that "potential" 3 year extension.

Perhaps.  It's also possible the Astros lock up Wilson and deal Lane down the road.  I think the Astros would like to see what Pence can do against AAA competition, esp those AAAA pitchers, over a fairly long period of time, say 1/2 a year.

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We might be seeing a middle infield of Zobrist and Burke in a couple of years.  (although walking is very nice and excellent in prospects, I worry he may not hit for a decent average and see those walk opportunities dry up as the season wears on and he potentially moves up, but then he ALWAYS seems to walk at an insane rate!)

In his first 2 years of pro ball Zobrist has finished each season with a far better than .300 average and a good strike out to AB ratio with a boatload of walks.  That all bodes well.  But, defensively I'm not sure he's what the Astros want at SS long-term.  I still see him as the uber-utility guy with an outside shot at a middle infield position.

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Could House be our eventual replacement for Ausmus?  (A bat is nice to have but how is his receiving skills comming along?  Astros like good game-manager at Catcher)

He's got to prove he can stay healthy all season.  Let's see how he looks down the stretch before looking at him long-term.

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Something about RR killing our pitching prospects?  At least one is doing well, even if it wasn't the one we expected.

Some of the Astros better pitching prospects have been less than expected, not just at RR.  No one I've talked to has mentioned injuries.  So, it's just weird.

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CC seems to make our pitchers look good (this year and last).  Is it the league?  the home park? the pitching coach?  Wildly blind coincidence?

Quality, even though Gutierrez has struggled.

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You DON'T want to be our best "rookie" batter.  Two years in a row now and our best 1st year guy is biting it in his 2nd year... Flores, I still believe in you, but could you get started already?!?!

Strike outs were a bit of a concern after last season.  Both he and Iorg have struggled so far, and I haven't heard of the kinds of issues Einertson had last year, so I expect they are putting WAY too much pressure on themselves to perform.  Let's see what May holds for them.

[Froback]

Oh no doubt about this still being very early and all.  I intend to watch them all year and cheer for them to improve, both for them and for the Astros Org.

Zobrist has become my favorite prospect to root for.  His ability to draw walk by the truck load (without alot of Ks) while not being a hitter teams would normally pitch around is always something that will draw my eye.  I know he has always ended the year at or above .300, and that he always seems to start slow and end hot in the batting average stat.  I view him as more of a 2B option than SS long term, given his defensive short-commings.  But Burke will likely be blocking him there and his sick OBP is something I would hate to see wasted on the bench as a utility guy.

After all getting on seems to be the one weakness to the Astros over the last couple of years.  With Berkman, Ensberg, Pence and Lane/Wilson I don't think power will be lacking when Zobrist comes up, so his table setting ability will be a strong asset when his turn comes around.

But I agree defensively he needs to show more to increase his chances of getting the Plate Appearances needed to showcase his stuff at the ML level.

[VirtualBob]

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When do we start worrying about Jason Hirsch at Round Rock.  I was looking at his stats and they don't look real good to start the year.  1.61 WHIP is pretty bad.  Maybe it's just a slow start, but what's going on with him?

No need to worry.  But, if they knew what was wrong they'd have fixed it.  I'm not hearing about mechanical issues.  So, we're probably looking at a slump.  Lack of command and sharpness right now.  He didn't go through that last year so this is kind of a new thing for him.  He's mentally tough, and I expect him turn it around at some point.

I saw him in Omaha last week ... brutal.  He really looked as bad as his line.  I hadn't gotten to see him at the DD yet, and was hoping the stats were flukish.

[Froback]

While he is definately struggling, I can see where this might be a good thing.  It will teach him how to deal with pitching when he isn't at his best.  How to push through it and work out his issues.  I think too often pitchers fly through the minors without every experiencing it and then when they have it happen in the majors they fall apart because they don't know how to deal with it.

At least he is learning how to deal with it in a less stressed environment like AAA.

[Jacksonian]

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Oh no doubt about this still being very early and all.  I intend to watch them all year and cheer for them to improve, both for them and for the Astros Org.

Zobrist has become my favorite prospect to root for.  His ability to draw walk by the truck load (without alot of Ks) while not being a hitter teams would normally pitch around is always something that will draw my eye.  I know he has always ended the year at or above .300, and that he always seems to start slow and end hot in the batting average stat.  I view him as more of a 2B option than SS long term, given his defensive short-commings.  But Burke will likely be blocking him there and his sick OBP is something I would hate to see wasted on the bench as a utility guy.

After all getting on seems to be the one weakness to the Astros over the last couple of years.  With Berkman, Ensberg, Pence and Lane/Wilson I don't think power will be lacking when Zobrist comes up, so his table setting ability will be a strong asset when his turn comes around.

But I agree defensively he needs to show more to increase his chances of getting the Plate Appearances needed to showcase his stuff at the ML level.

Breaking down Zobrist a little.  He hit .287 for April.  But, he started the season hitting .188 in his first 8 games covering the opening homestand.  Over the subsequent 15 games which include 10 games on the road, he hit .345.  He hit .378 over the 10 road games and .220 over 13 games at home.  He had just 2 multi-hit games at home in April.  He had 5 on the road.  Although the road trip went through Midland where he hit .381, they also went to Frisco where he hit .333.  He definitely started out slow, but overall he didn't like CC much in April.

[Duman]

Roanoke paper this morning reports:
"Starter Troy Patton allowed five runs, three earned, on five hits and two walked in four innings. It was the third straight outing that the Houston prospect did not make it past four innings.

"We all know that Troy's better than he's shown," Pankovits said. "It's just a matter of time before he has a good outing, a couple things'll click and he rips off a string of good games."

"We haven't lost confidence in him."http://www.roanoke.com/sports/baseball/wb/wb/xp-63511

Any ideas or word on where the struggles are coming from?

[Jacksonian]

Quote:
Roanoke paper this morning reports:
"Starter Troy Patton allowed five runs, three earned, on five hits and two walked in four innings. It was the third straight outing that the Houston prospect did not make it past four innings.

"We all know that Troy's better than he's shown," Pankovits said. "It's just a matter of time before he has a good outing, a couple things'll click and he rips off a string of good games."

"We haven't lost confidence in him."http://www.roanoke.com/sports/baseball/wb/wb/xp-63511

Any ideas or word on where the struggles are coming from?

Well, he's young and imperfect.  He was due for a stretch like this.  He hasn't had any difficulty in his pro career up to now.  This is just one of those growing pains.  How he deals with it (fine so far) is as important as working out of it.

[jaklewein]

Towles continues to show speed on the bases.  

Question:

Is he a good enough base stealer for the same to translate to the majors if he were to make it?  If yes, will the Astros consider moving him to another postition to preserve that speed, or is he actually good enough defensively to keep behind the plate and dismiss such an idea?

[Jacksonian]

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Towles continues to show speed on the bases.  

Question:

Is he a good enough base stealer for the same to translate to the majors if he were to make it?  If yes, will the Astros consider moving him to another postition to preserve that speed, or is he actually good enough defensively to keep behind the plate and dismiss such an idea?

For now, he's a catcher and a good one.  Anything else should wait a few years.

[Duman]

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Towles continues to show speed on the bases.  

Question:

Is he a good enough base stealer for the same to translate to the majors if he were to make it?  If yes, will the Astros consider moving him to another postition to preserve that speed, or is he actually good enough defensively to keep behind the plate and dismiss such an idea?

For now, he's a catcher and a good one.  Anything else should wait a few years.

He reminds me of Biggio.  I wasn't following minor league ball when he came up but it would be interesting to see how they compare.  I actually just looked it up at The Link

Biggio was a college kid and went from A ball to AAA to Majors.  So there is not much there to compare from a stat standpoint.  I still would like any thoughts on if you see them as comparable.

[Jacksonian]

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Towles continues to show speed on the bases.  

Question:

Is he a good enough base stealer for the same to translate to the majors if he were to make it?  If yes, will the Astros consider moving him to another postition to preserve that speed, or is he actually good enough defensively to keep behind the plate and dismiss such an idea?

For now, he's a catcher and a good one.  Anything else should wait a few years.

He reminds me of Biggio.  I wasn't following minor league ball when he came up but it would be interesting to see how they compare.

Towles is bigger and has a better arm.  Durability is always an issue with catchers, and if the Astros think he won't last too long behind the plate they'll move him.  Right now that's not the case.  To the Astros he's a possible catcher of the future.

[Jacksonian]

In a morning affair at West Virginia, Lexington pitcher Tip Fairchild goes 7 innings giving up 6 hits and 1 earned run.  He struck out 5 and walked 1.  Sam Gervacio saved the game with 2 innings of no-hit ball recording 4 K's and 2 walks.

Total dominance in an afternoon affair at Round Rock.  Jason Hirsh does a complete 180 on his season.  He went 8 innings (106 pitches) allowing 2 hits and 0 earned runs.  He struck out 7 and walked 1.  That 1 walk came after a long bizarre game delay.  With 2 outs in the bottom of the 6th and a runner on second, Luke Scott swung at and missed strike 3.  The pitch was in the dirt.  The catcher, rather than throwing to first, flipped the ball to the umpire who caught it.  Scott ran to first.  The umps then conferred to determine whether Scott should be called out (ump catching ball ends inning) or awarded 1st (catcher essentially threw ball out of play).  While conferring the runner on second ran home.  First the umps ejected the Oklahoma manager.  Then they awarded Scott first base and the runner home, scoring a run.  Then after further conferring they decided to put the runner on third and Scott on first, keeping the game tied at 0-0.  All this took about 10 minutes.  The next batter, Huffman made an out a few minutes later.  In the top of the 7th, Hirsh walked the first batter on 5 pitches then settled down to take care of the next three. In one game he lowered his ERA from 6.46 to 4.83.  Travis Driskill relieved Hirsh to start the 9th inning.  He gave up a single and nothing else.  Huffman ended it with a solo shot in the 9th.  Not a single Oklahoma baserunner reached second base.

[Uncle Charlie]

I noticed over the last few weeks that Neil Sellers seems to be hitting quite a few doubles, but not any HRs.  I was suprised to see that he doesn't have a HR yet to date when I looked up his stats:

2004 (Rk): 148 AB, 11 2B, 2 HR  SLG .392
2005 (SS): 279 AB, 18 2B, 11 HR SLG .534
2006 (HiA): 88 AB, 12 2B, 0 HR  SLG .443

I guess my question is what are the expectations of Seller's power?  Is he a line-drive gap guy or someone who will grow into some HR power?

[Froback]

You have to pay to read this BBA  site , but in it is a breakdown of each starter.

I am only going to include his last quote, for more details you have to pay and go read it yourself:

 

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"If I had to rank them, I'm taking Paulino, then Patton, then Reineke, then Barthmaier right now. I know Paulino's been getting bombed, but in terms of pure stuff, he's the best guy in that rotation."

[Duman]

Our first round draft picks line today:

0 IP
7 H
8 R
7 ER
0 BB
0 SO
3 HR

The Legends lost 17 to 2 in a rain shortened 5 inning game.  The Power had the bases loaded when that rain came.

[Jacksonian]

We're a month out from the draft and I thought I'd throw this out to everyone.  Here is the list of players in extended spring training and where they were last year.

RHP 15
Edgar Babilonia - Greeneville
Corey Bass - Greeneville
Johnattan Echarry - VSL
Drew Himes - Tri-City
Matt Hirsh - Greeneville
Brad James - Greeneville
Carlos Ladeuth - VSL
Arcenio Leon - VSL
Cesar Mayora - Greeneville
Ryan Mitchell - Greeneville
Celson Polanco - Greeneville
Julio Puentes - VSL
Eric Sheridan - Tri-City
Marcos Solis - DSL
Amadeo Zazueta - VSL

LHP 5
Victor Garate - Greeneville
Jacob Hurry - Greeneville
Cory Lapinski - Tri-City
Sergio Severino - Greeneville
Polin Trinidad - Greeneville

1B 1
Cole Graham

Middle Infield 5
Pedro Espinoza - Greeneville (promoted to Lex for injured Sutil.  Expect him to be demoted once Sutil is healthy)
Jhon Florentino - Greeneville
Tim Johnson - Greeneville
Reinaldo Ramirez - Greeneville
Ronaldo Ramirez - VSL

3B 0
None

Catcher 5
James Goethals - Tri-City
Ralph Henriquez - Greeneville
Andy Kroeker - Tri-City
Jose Lopez - Tri-City
Reinaldo Pestana - VSL

Outfielder 8
Juan Baez - DSL
Brandon Barnes - Greeneville
Steve Brown - VSL
Aaron Bulkley - Tri-City
Allen Langdon - Greeneville
Jordan Parraz - Tri-City
Yamber Rodriguez - Greeneville
Nathan Warrick - Greeneville

[Duman]

I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

[Jacksonian]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

[Jacksonian]

Quote:
Our first round draft picks line today:

0 IP
7 H
8 R
7 ER
0 BB
0 SO
3 HR

The Legends lost 17 to 2 in a rain shortened 5 inning game.  The Power had the bases loaded when that rain came.

 BA jumps on it.

This is the only part worth noting though:

"I don't want to use an excuse, but it was prior to a storm coming in and the wind was blowing out pretty good, It assisted a couple of balls that went out of the park," pitching coach Charley Taylor said. "(Bogusevic) didn't make many good pitches and it was one of those nights where every ball found a hole. It was like a roller coaster and once it started, there was no stopping. Just a rough, rough outing and hopefully he learns from that and that sometimes you need to make adjustments and make them rather quickly."

[Fletch]

The Link

[Jacksonian]

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The Link

A couple of things have to fall right for J.R.  1) He's got to stay healthy.  2) He's got to show he can effectively work with the pitchers. 3) He's got to demonstrate at least adequate arm strength.  4) He's got to show he's at least adequate defensively.  I don't think his ability to hit is in question.  He does all that this season, and I'd bet he passes Gimenez and Quintero for 2007.

[Duman]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

[Jacksonian]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

[Duman]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

Mystery solved: He was just put on the Lexington Roster along with INF Pedro Espinoza

[Jacksonian]

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Roanoke paper this morning reports:
"Starter Troy Patton allowed five runs, three earned, on five hits and two walked in four innings. It was the third straight outing that the Houston prospect did not make it past four innings.

"We all know that Troy's better than he's shown," Pankovits said. "It's just a matter of time before he has a good outing, a couple things'll click and he rips off a string of good games."

"We haven't lost confidence in him."http://www.roanoke.com/sports/baseball/wb/wb/xp-63511

Any ideas or word on where the struggles are coming from?

Well, he's young and imperfect.  He was due for a stretch like this.  He hasn't had any difficulty in his pro career up to now.  This is just one of those growing pains.  How he deals with it (fine so far) is as important as working out of it.

More on this issue from BA:

The Link

"He just didn't deal with adversity very well," the scout said. "The stuff is definitely there. He had good life on his fastball and I thought he used that hammer (curve) very well. He'd spotted it in and out of the zone at times."

You can read about the specific adversity at the link above.  There are some who say Patton had/has a lot of growing up to do.  I think this highlights one reason why he was assigned to Salem rather than CC as some had wanted/expected.

[Duman]

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Roanoke paper this morning reports:
"Starter Troy Patton allowed five runs, three earned, on five hits and two walked in four innings. It was the third straight outing that the Houston prospect did not make it past four innings.

"We all know that Troy's better than he's shown," Pankovits said. "It's just a matter of time before he has a good outing, a couple things'll click and he rips off a string of good games."

"We haven't lost confidence in him."http://www.roanoke.com/sports/baseball/wb/wb/xp-63511

Any ideas or word on where the struggles are coming from?

Well, he's young and imperfect.  He was due for a stretch like this.  He hasn't had any difficulty in his pro career up to now.  This is just one of those growing pains.  How he deals with it (fine so far) is as important as working out of it.

More on this issue from BA:

The Link

"He just didn't deal with adversity very well," the scout said. "The stuff is definitely there. He had good life on his fastball and I thought he used that hammer (curve) very well. He'd spotted it in and out of the zone at times."

You can read about the specific adversity at the link above.  There are some who say Patton had/has a lot of growing up to do.  I think this highlights one reason why he was assigned to Salem rather than CC as some had wanted/expected.

One observation I had of him when he was in Greeneville was that he sometimes expected to strike everyone out.  I think that is a way of pitching he will have to change and look at out pitches instead of strike out pitches.

[MusicMan]

Cue the requisite "throw some ground balls, they're more democratic" comment.

[Greg D]

hopefully, this explains the poor results (and also buttresses the earlier reports of a "sore arm" coming out of spring training):

"...pitcher Brian Bogusevic (inflamed left elbow) was placed on the disabled list."

 The Link

[Greg D]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

Mystery solved: He was just put on the Lexington Roster along with INF Pedro Espinoza

Duman, I have to ask ya, where did you see this report about Campos being assigned to Lex?

[Jacksonian]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

Mystery solved: He was just put on the Lexington Roster along with INF Pedro Espinoza

Duman, I have to ask ya, where did you see this report about Campos being assigned to Lex?

I did some searching and couldn't find a report.  The only place I found was milb.com's Lex roster has Campos there.  The Lex site does not.

[Greg D]

Most people already know the circumstances of CJ's upbringing, but still this  Statesman article was a nice read.

[Jacksonian]

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Roanoke paper this morning reports:
"Starter Troy Patton allowed five runs, three earned, on five hits and two walked in four innings. It was the third straight outing that the Houston prospect did not make it past four innings.

"We all know that Troy's better than he's shown," Pankovits said. "It's just a matter of time before he has a good outing, a couple things'll click and he rips off a string of good games."

"We haven't lost confidence in him."http://www.roanoke.com/sports/baseball/wb/wb/xp-63511

Any ideas or word on where the struggles are coming from?

Well, he's young and imperfect.  He was due for a stretch like this.  He hasn't had any difficulty in his pro career up to now.  This is just one of those growing pains.  How he deals with it (fine so far) is as important as working out of it.

More on this issue from BA:

The Link

"He just didn't deal with adversity very well," the scout said. "The stuff is definitely there. He had good life on his fastball and I thought he used that hammer (curve) very well. He'd spotted it in and out of the zone at times."

You can read about the specific adversity at the link above.  There are some who say Patton had/has a lot of growing up to do.  I think this highlights one reason why he was assigned to Salem rather than CC as some had wanted/expected.

One observation I had of him when he was in Greeneville was that he sometimes expected to strike everyone out.  I think that is a way of pitching he will have to change and look at out pitches instead of strike out pitches.

After Barthmaier's excellent outing, a turn around from his previous 2 starts:

The Link

"It's a little bit confidence. Once you lose confidence it starts getting away from you. But I feel a lot better now."

"I just decided to stop worrying about stuff. Whatever happens, happens,..."

[Duman]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

Mystery solved: He was just put on the Lexington Roster along with INF Pedro Espinoza

Duman, I have to ask ya, where did you see this report about Campos being assigned to Lex?

I did some searching and couldn't find a report.  The only place I found was milb.com's Lex roster has Campos there.  The Lex site does not.

I was going on MILB's Lex roster.  I checked with a contact in Lexington today and they say he is not there contrary to MILB's roster.  So I guess the mystery continues.

[Greg D]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

Mystery solved: He was just put on the Lexington Roster along with INF Pedro Espinoza

Duman, I have to ask ya, where did you see this report about Campos being assigned to Lex?

I did some searching and couldn't find a report.  The only place I found was milb.com's Lex roster has Campos there.  The Lex site does not.

I was going on MILB's Lex roster.  I checked with a contact in Lexington today and they say he is not there contrary to MILB's roster.  So I guess the mystery continues.

So the official site of minor league baseball can't even handle the simple task of maintaining accurate rosters? How shocking.

And even more shocking is the fact they've failed to post transactions for over a week.

Thanks again, MLB!

[Uncle Charlie]

Noticed that Martinez started in Lexington's game this morning.  Assume that this is Ronnie.  I don't remember him pitching yet this year and didn't see him on the XST list.  The numbers indicate a nice little outing of 2 innings


He seemed to be successful in Lex last year, so is it just too jammed in Salem to promote him or maybe this is just a way to build up strength?

[Greg D]

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Noticed that Martinez started in Lexington's game this morning.  Assume that this is Ronnie.  I don't remember him pitching yet this year and didn't see him on the XST list.  The numbers indicate a nice little outing of 2 innings


He seemed to be successful in Lex last year, so is it just too jammed in Salem to promote him or maybe this is just a way to build up strength?

The  transactions page and the above link I posted in connection with Bogusevic note that both Martinez and German Melendez were activated and assigned to Lex.

Yeah, I think it's fair to say that with both a roster spot and a spot in the rotation open at Lexington influenced Martinez being assigned there rather than Salem.

[Jacksonian]

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Noticed that Martinez started in Lexington's game this morning.  Assume that this is Ronnie.  I don't remember him pitching yet this year and didn't see him on the XST list.  The numbers indicate a nice little outing of 2 innings


He seemed to be successful in Lex last year, so is it just too jammed in Salem to promote him or maybe this is just a way to build up strength?

The  transactions page and the above link I posted in connection with Bogusevic note that both Martinez and German Melendez were activated and assigned to Lex.

Yeah, I think it's fair to say that with both a roster spot and a spot in the rotation open at Lexington influenced Martinez being assigned there rather than Salem.

That and who do they take out at Salem?  Barthmaier and Patton aren't coming out.  They want to get Paulino as many innings as possible.  Reineke and Englebrook have been very good.  Englebrook would be the guy I'd choose except I don't see Martinez as any better prospect than him.

[Duman]

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I didn't see LHP Christian Campos on the list.  Was he released?

I haven't asked the Astros, and I probably won't.  But, as there is a complete lack of information about him this year, I'd guess yes.

That's cool.  The Greeneville site had reported he was among the invitee's and that is all I have seen about him this year.http://www.greenevilleastros.com/news/viewarticle.php?id=126

It's possible the source left him off the list on accident.  It's also possible, thanks to mlb over-control, that his being cut wasn't reported.  It's also possible though unusual that he's still with the org but not a extended.  We'll know in June.

Mystery solved: He was just put on the Lexington Roster along with INF Pedro Espinoza

Duman, I have to ask ya, where did you see this report about Campos being assigned to Lex?

I did some searching and couldn't find a report.  The only place I found was milb.com's Lex roster has Campos there.  The Lex site does not.

I was going on MILB's Lex roster.  I checked with a contact in Lexington today and they say he is not there contrary to MILB's roster.  So I guess the mystery continues.

So the official site of minor league baseball can't even handle the simple task of maintaining accurate rosters? How shocking.

And even more shocking is the fact they've failed to post transactions for over a week.

Thanks again, MLB!

I got confirmation today that Chris is in Extended Spring.

[Duman]

This guy has entered all game data though 5/6 for ALL minor league games and has individual splits.  For example who knew that Beau Torbert who is hitting a decent .270 in Salem was 0-22 with 2 outs.  He is batting 306 with bases empty and .195 with runners on base. Get ready to waste some serious time at this website! I have linked to the Houston page but he has ALL minor leaguers listed.

The Link

[Lefty]

That's awesome, Duman, a timewaster indeed.

RH batters are 2-33 off Evan Englebrook.

Jimerson is really struggling with lefties - 8-42 (.190), 22 Ks - but he's just killing righties.  Luke Scott hits LH/RH pitching about the same.

[Greg D]

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This guy has entered all game data though 5/6 for ALL minor league games and has individual splits.  For example who knew that Beau Torbert who is hitting a decent .270 in Salem was 0-22 with 2 outs.  He is batting 306 with bases empty and .195 with runners on base. Get ready to waste some serious time at this website! I have linked to the Houston page but he has ALL minor leaguers listed.

The Link

It's not worthwhile if it ain't accurate. I checked 3 different numbers (for 2 different players) and all 3 disagreed with the official stats.

Look to Milb.Com's Gameday for requisite splits on AAA players. I wouldn't waste a lot of time with brewcrewball.com until you have proof their numbers are accurate.

[Jacksonian]

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This guy has entered all game data though 5/6 for ALL minor league games and has individual splits.  For example who knew that Beau Torbert who is hitting a decent .270 in Salem was 0-22 with 2 outs.  He is batting 306 with bases empty and .195 with runners on base. Get ready to waste some serious time at this website! I have linked to the Houston page but he has ALL minor leaguers listed.

The Link

It's not worthwhile if it ain't accurate. I checked 3 different numbers (for 2 different players) and all 3 disagreed with the official stats.

Look to Milb.Com's Gameday for requisite splits on AAA players. I wouldn't waste a lot of time with brewcrewball.com until you have proof their numbers are accurate.

Is the discrepancy due to the fact that brewcrewball.com's numbers are a week behind?

[Greg D]

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This guy has entered all game data though 5/6 for ALL minor league games and has individual splits.  For example who knew that Beau Torbert who is hitting a decent .270 in Salem was 0-22 with 2 outs.  He is batting 306 with bases empty and .195 with runners on base. Get ready to waste some serious time at this website! I have linked to the Houston page but he has ALL minor leaguers listed.

The Link

It's not worthwhile if it ain't accurate. I checked 3 different numbers (for 2 different players) and all 3 disagreed with the official stats.

Look to Milb.Com's Gameday for requisite splits on AAA players. I wouldn't waste a lot of time with brewcrewball.com until you have proof their numbers are accurate.

Is the discrepancy due to the fact that brewcrewball.com's numbers are a week behind?

I took that into account. I took their numbers and rolled 'em forward to see if they would match up. They didn't.

[Uncle Charlie]

It seems as though baserunners have been stealing 2nd on House in bunches the last week.  Does anyone know what his CS% is at this point?  My understanding is that arm strength is the 2nd (behind health) thing the Astros are looking at in watching House this summer.

[Jacksonian]

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It seems as though baserunners have been stealing 2nd on House in bunches the last week.  Does anyone know what his CS% is at this point?  My understanding is that arm strength is the 2nd (behind health) thing the Astros are looking at in watching House this summer.

The steals are likely due more to the pitchers taking their time delivering the ball to the plate than House's ability to throw to second.

His are strength is tied to his health.