And he's already on the 40 man. No real reason to make a 40 man move so the 8th arm in the pen can be a little better.
Ross Adolph hit his 4th home run of the season in the second game of Quad Cities' doubleheader in Beloit. Alex McKenna is also back in the Banditos' lineup for the first time since May 18. He's currently 2-3 with a two-run single.
Guduan's line tonight: 1.2 IP, 1 H (double), 3 R (all earned), 4 BB, 1 K He finished out a 10-8 Round Rock victory. Even in AAA he's wild. ERA went from 2.87 to 4.15 in (I believe) his first AAA appearance since being demoted.
Early season underachievers that had a good last 10 games: Ross Adolph: .382, 2HR AJ Reed: .323, 3HR Kyle Tucker: .326, 5HR Taylor Jones: .529, 3HR Drew Ferguson: .429, 1HR
This appears to be the same roster as the exhibition game, but it reveals that Ernesto Jaquez is injured to start the year, which is a bummer. I was hoping that Alfredi Jimenez would start in TC as well, after his season last year. Looks like they're sending position players straight to TC, and pitchers are staying in Florida for a bit
I really want to see Reed at least GET A CHANCE later in this TOR series and/or in CIN. Still has a chance to be a Vogelbach-type player, and give more pop at 1B. A Vogelbach/Muncy/Voit at the cold corner is the one thing our offense is missing. Tucker I can't wait to see promoted, but it will be some time. Ferguson and Jones deserve a cup of coffee. Doesn't matter when, who it's with, or how well they do. If they're doing this well in AAA, they deserve at least a few at bats in the big leagues to say they made it to MLB. They've been dreaming of it their whole lives. It'll make them and their parents so happy and proud, interviews like those with Mayfield's and Stubbs's families are so heartwarming.
Short article on Whitley today in the Statesman: The trip to Florida is a chance for a mental reset as well a physical one for a starter saddled with a 12.21 ERA in 24 innings. “There is some shoulder fatigue and definitely a lot of caution,” Express manager Mickey Storey said. “There’s no hiding he wasn’t having much success. But it wasn’t a situation where the stats determined his fate. It was a situation where a young pitcher is scuffling and might not be 100 percent. “We didn’t want to keep running him back out there and beating his head against the wall if he’s not 100 percent. He’s regrouping. He’s still a top prospect and still our guy. This is just a good time to get him back on track.” .... Astros General Manager Jeff Luhnow told reporters Whitley is coming along fine in Florida. “He looks good. He feels good. We’re going to give him a little more time,” Luhnow said. “Once he starts throwing, we’ll come up with a plan.” https://www.statesman.com/sports/20...ck-express-pitcher-heads-to-florida-for-rehab
Fisher and Tucker, yes (b/c 40-man). The others are not. Plus he plays 1B unlike the others (except Jones), so he could be a potential (probably last-resort only) replacement for White. I still think he has the potential to finally figure it all out at the next level and be a Vogelbach/Muncy-type, which our lineup really needs. We have terrible OPS at 1B (compared to the league). He has been hot lately. I want to see him get another look.
If enough people are hurt that Reed is last man on 40 available, Reed gets cut. Astros would likely go with guy that can hit AAA pitching over 1B Defense.
Reed, Ferguson and Jones have no business sniffing MLB with the Astros this year (eta: outside of Sept). Sorry, but that's just crazy.
I said Jones and Ferguson can wait, or they can be with different teams, but with their AAA numbers they deserve at least a shot with someone. I never said I want to see them in there right now. Mayfield, of course, was a special case (we desperately needed middle IF help).
Oh, and an update on McHugh. 0.2 IP, BB, HR, K. He was quite squeezed IMO, but still gave up a longball. Had to be pulled after a mound visit before finishing the inning.
2B Luis Santana, 19, has crossed the 50 pa threshold in AA. It appears they intend to keep him there for the time being. While his overall production is pitiful (47 wRC+ stemming from a .000 ISO), he is still keeping his strikeouts very low (14.8%). It’ll be interesting to see if he’s able to improve his contact profile. A 19/20 year old able to hold his own in AA is a valuable prospect.
He's so young right now, just a 19yo baby, who knows what will happen. What did Tony Kemp look like 8 years ago? Other than not a RHB.
Tri-City lost their season opener 2-0 to Vermont, but Valente Bellozo was a bright spot as he allowed a leadoff double in the 7th that turned into a run on a sac fly, walked two, and struck out eight in 4.1 innings of relief. Bellozo, a 19-year-old Mexican, signed for $20,000 the day after the 2017-18 IFA period began. He made 14 appearances (8 starts) in the DSL and 12 of them were scoreless. All 11 runs (ten earned) that he allowed came in two outings: his pro debut, where he gave up six (five earned), and last August 3, when he allowed five runs (all earned). In 51.2 innings in the DSL, Bellozo allowed 11 runs (10 earned) on 29 hits (no home runs allowed), walked 16, and struck out 42. He had an 0.87 WHIP and opponents hit .164 against him.
