Down on the Farm - 6/8/13

AA - Corpus Christi 5 San Antonio 1

Jake Buchanan continued his stranglehold on Texas League hitters with 4 more innings without allowing an earned run to lower his ERA to 0.80 in Corpus Christi's 5-1 win over the Missions. Domingo Santana and Rene Garcia each homered for the Hooks (38-23), but Justin Maxwell's struggles continue as he went 0 for 3 with a sacrifice fly and a strikeout. In four games with the Hooks, Maxwell is 0 for 13. Carlos Quevedo tossed 5 shutout innings to improve his record on the year to 2-4. Jonathan Meyer doubled to extend his hitting streak to 12 games.

Advanced A - San Jose 7 Lancaster 0

The JetHawks (35-27) were held to just 5 hits as they were beaten up by the Giants once again by a score of 7-0. Andrew Aplin was one of the lone bright spots on offense going 2 for 4 with a stolen base. Jonas Dufek added 2 scoreless innings of relief while starter Aaron West (2-3, 5.62) was saddled with the loss.

Low A - Peoria 1 Quad Cities 0

Gerardo Sanchez's wild pitch in the 9th inning scored the winning run from third base as the Chiefs defeated the River Bandits (32-27) by a score of 1-0. Mike Hauschild started the game for Quad Cities and tossed 5 shutout innings to lower his ERA on the year to 2.84. Colton Cain followed that up with 3 scoreless innings of his own before giving way to Sanchez in the 9th. Carlos Correa had one of Quad Cities' 5 hits in the game dropping his average to .288.

DSL - DSL Astros 6 DSL Dodgers 3

Hector Roa hit a grand slam and drove in 5 runs as the Astros (4-3) defeated the Dodgers 6-3 in a game shortened to 8 innings by rain. Randy Cesar reached base 4 times (2 singles, walk, hit by pitch), and Arturo Michelena scored twice to lead the offense while Junior Garcia pitched 4 shutout innings in relief to earn the win. Angel Heredia recorded the final out of the game to earn the save.

Down on the Farm - 6/4/13

AAA - Albuquerque 10 Oklahoma City 2

3 RedHawks errors led to 4 unearned runs and Philip Humber lost for the 9th time this year as the Isotopes hammered the RedHawks (32-25) 10-2. Jake Elmore went 2 for 5 and Brett Wallace went 3 for 4, but the RedHawks left 12 men on base in the game. Humber allowed just 2 earned runs in 4 2/3 innings of work, but hit two more batters giving him 6 hit batsmen in 12 innings since he was sent down. Kevin Chapman struck out the side while working a scoreless inning.

AA - Corpus Christi 9 Midland 5

Jake Buchanan improved to 7-0 on the year, but the bigger story was that he actually got scored on... TWICE. While just one of the runs was earned, Buchanan's ERA skyrocketed to... 0.85. The Hooks (36-21) got big offensive efforts from Ben Orloff (4/5), Jose Martinez (3/5, 3 RBI) and Domingo Santana (2/5, 2 RBI) in the win. Martinez is 10 for 14 for the Hooks since he was activated from the DL. Justin Maxwell started as the DH in his first rehab appearance since his injury. He went 0 for 3 with a strikeout, but stole a base and scored a run.

Advanced A - Stockton 4 Lancaster 2

For the second day in a row, the Ports handed the JetHawks (35-23) a 4-2 loss. Andrew Aplin and Chris Epps each had 2 hits, but all six RedHawks hits were singles and they never really got much going offensively. Aaron West allowed 3 runs in 5 innings to fall to 2-2 on the year. Michael Dimock added 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. Dimock did allow a hit which was the first he'd surrendered since his promotion to Lancaster. Opposing hitters are batting just .048 against him in the California League.

Dominican Summer League - DSL Astros 2 DSL Red Sox 0

Edwin Villarroel tossed 5 shutout innings, and Joselo Pinales and Harold Arauz combined for 4 shutout innings of relief as the DSL Astros 4-hit the DSL Red Sox 2-0. Arturo Michelena drove in a run on a groundout in the first and Hector Roa tripled and scored on a Jesus Bermejo single in the 7th, but that was more than enough for the Astros as they won their second straight.

Down on the Farm - 5/30/13

AAA - Oklahoma City 8 Omaha 1

Asher Wojciechowski bounced back from a couple of subpar outings with 6 solid innings as the RedHawks (30-23) cruised to an 8-1 win over the Storm Chasers. Kevin Chapman, Josh Zeid and Rhiner Cruz all tossed scoreless innings in relief of Wojo and Carlos Perez and Che-Hsuan Lin each drove in a pair of runs in the win. Fernando Martinez was 2 for 4 with a double and an rbi, and newly demoted Robbie Grossman went 0 for 3, but walked and scored twice and stole a base.

AA - Corpus Christi 5 Northwest Arkansas 0

Jake Buchanan's ridiculous run through AA continued yesterday as he tossed 5 more shutout innings allowing just 1 hit and fanning 4 in the Hooks (33-20) 5-0 win. In 13 appearances, 9 starts, Buchanan has logged 58 1/3 innings and allowed just 6 runs on 36 hits. He's walked only 4 and has an ERA of 0.77 while holding opposing hitters to a .181 average. Buchanan has now gone 7 straight outings spanning 32 2/3 innings without allowing an earned run. George Springer hit his 16th home run of the season and Erik Castro his 5th which provided more than enough run support. Carlos Quevedo tossed 4 scoreless innings of his own to earn his first save.

Advanced A - Lancaster 15 Visalia 2

All nine JetHawks in the starting lineup drove in at least one run as Lancaster (33-20) blew out Visalia 15-2. Matt Duffy homered and scored 4 times, Chris Epps doubled twice, tripled and drove in 3 runs, while Jean Batista, Delino DeShields Jr, Joe Sclafani, and Andrew Aplin all had multi-hit games to lead the 16-hit attack. DeShields added two stolen bases to give him 12 on the year and Preston Tucker drove in a pair of runs to give him 50 leading all Astros minor leaguers. Kyle Hallock allowed one hit in 5 shutout innings as he improved to 3-0 for Lancaster.

Down on the Farm - 5/22/13

AAA - Oklahoma City 7 Fresno 3

Ross Seaton (1-4, 8.21) finally got his first win of the season as the RedHawks (27-18) defeated the Grizzles 7-3. Fernando Martinez hit a three run homer, Jake Elmore homered and drove in a pair, and Brett Wallace reached base 4 times (2 singles, 2 walks) as the RedHawks offense overcame three errors by their defense en route to the win. Jason Stoffel pitched 2 scoreless innings and fanned three lowering his ERA since his promotion to AAA to 2.08. He's allowed just 7 hits in 13 innings with the RedHawks and is holding hitters to a .156 average.

AA Corpus Christi 8 Northwest Arkansas 2

Jake Buchanan allowed one unearned run in five innings lowering his ERA to 0.84 and improving his record to 5-0 as the Hooks (26-19) defeated the Naturals 8-2. Domingo Santana, Erik Castro and Michael Burgess all drove in a pair of runs as the Hooks scored in every inning from the 2nd to the 5th to erase an early 1-0 deficit. Over his past ten games, Castro is 18 for 39 with 5 doubles, 2 homers and 10 runs batted in. Josh Fields made his sixth rehab appearance, and fourth for Corpus Christi, and allowed his first run of the year in 2 innings of work.

Low A - Wisconsin 12 Quad Cities 5 (11 innings)

The River Bandits (23-21) rallied from a 5-0 deficit to send the game into extra innings, but the Timber Rattlers scored 7 times in the 11th to win 12-5. Austin Elkins hit his first home run of the year, and Jordan Scott, Carlos Correa and Miles Hamblin all had multi-hit games for the River Bandits. Jordan Jankowski started the game on the mound and fanned 6 in 4 innings of work, and did not walk a batter.

5 Under the Radar Prospects

Andrew Aplin - Lancaster JetHawks - CF

When you hear Astros centerfielder of the future, you're generally talking about George Springer, but the left-handed Aplin is another name to keep an eye on. A 5th round draft pick last year, Aplin led the New York-Penn League in OPS (.978) and slugging percentage, and ranked second in batting average, third in on-base percentage and tied for fourth in steals. He's very disciplined at the plate sporting close to a 2:1 walk to strikeout ratio, and he actually has more runs batted in this season than Springer does. 

Year	Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
2012	TRI	NYP	.348	44	164	38	57	9	5	4	25	88	24	22	20	7	.441	.537	.978
2012	LAN	CAL	.260	24	104	19	27	4	2	3	13	44	4	16	4	3	.287	.423	.710
2012	Minors		.313	68	268	57	84	13	7	7	38	132	28	38	24	10	.386	.493	.879
2013	LAN	CAL	.256	40	160	30	41	11	4	3	33	69	27	14	5	2	.362	.431	.793
2013	Minors		.256	40	160	30	41	11	4	3	33	69	27	14	5	2	.362	.431	.793

Joe Sclafani - Lancaster JetHawks - 2B/SS

A 14th round pick out of Dartmouth a year ago (Brad Ausmus would be proud), Sclafani has shown an ability to get on base this season sporting a .421 on base percentage. Called up to Lancaster when Delino DeShields Jr. was injured, he's hit safely in 7 of his 8 starts since his arrival and he's held onto a roster spot with the JetHawks. He doesn't have much power or tremendous speed, but he makes contact at the plate and he's versatile in the field.

Year	Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
2012	TRI	NYP	.271	70	266	39	72	9	3	1	36	90	33	40	16	3	.355	.338	.693
2012	Minors		.271	70	266	39	72	9	3	1	36	90	33	40	16	3	.355	.338	.693
2013	QC	MID	.241	19	58	13	14	3	0	0	9	17	17	7	3	2	.430	.293	.723
2013	LAN	CAL	.323	8	31	8	10	2	0	0	5	12	4	4	0	0	.400	.387	.787
2013	Minors		.270	27	89	21	24	5	0	0	14	29	21	11	3	2	.421	.326	.747

MP Cokinos - Lancaster JetHawks - C

A 31st round pick a year ago, Cokinos has done nothing but hit since his arrival. Despite getting drafted 23 rounds after teammate Tyler Heineman, Cokinos has put up better number in virtually every offensive category this year. Heineman's still got him on defense, but if Cokinos keeps hitting like this, the Astros won't be able to ignore that.

Year	Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
2012	TRI	NYP	.320	36	125	18	40	4	1	3	18	55	9	14	1	1	.370	.440	.810
2012	Minors		.320	36	125	18	40	4	1	3	18	55	9	14	1	1	.370	.440	.810
2013	LAN	CAL	.360	24	89	18	32	8	0	3	18	49	9	6	0	1	.433	.551	.983
2013	Minors		.360	24	89	18	32	8	0	3	18	49	9	6	0	1	.433	.551	.983

Jake Buchanan - Corpus Christi Hooks - RHP

Buchanan doesn't have great stuff, but he's always had good command and this year he finally seems to have put it all together. With just 3 walks in 48 1/3 innings, Buchanan has been getting groundballs and avoiding big innings to the tune of a 0.93 ERA and a WHIP of just 0.64. He's working on a streak of 24 1/3 scoreless innings right now, so you've got to figure it's only a matter of time before Buchanan joins the staff in Oklahoma City.

Year	Team	League	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
2010	TRI	NYP	4	5	4.28	14	14	0	0	0	61.0	69	32	29	3	11	42	1.78	.286
2010	Minors		4	5	4.28	14	14	0	0	0	61.0	69	32	29	3	11	42	1.78	.286
2011	LAN	CAL	5	10	3.91	25	25	1	1	0	158.2	157	92	69	10	35	102	2.31	.256
2011	CC	TEX	0	0	1.29	1	1	0	0	0	7.0	6	1	1	0	1	2	2.60	.231
2011	Minors		5	10	3.80	26	26	1	1	0	165.2	163	93	70	10	36	104	2.32	.255
2012	CC	TEX	5	9	4.96	27	19	0	0	0	134.1	171	85	74	11	33	83	2.05	.310
2012	OKC	PCL	0	1	10.13	3	1	0	0	0	8.0	17	10	9	1	5	5	1.29	.459
2012	Minors		5	10	5.25	30	20	0	0	0	142.1	188	95	83	12	38	88	2.00	.320
2013	CC	TEX	4	0	0.93	11	7	0	0	0	48.1	28	5	5	2	3	28	1.84	.172
2013	Minors		4	0	0.93	11	7	0	0	0	48.1	28	5	5	2	3	28	1.84	.172

Alex Sogard - Oklahoma City RedHawks - LHP

A teammate of Buchanan's at N.C. State, Sogard has been tough to score on this year allowing just 1 earned run in 12 appearances. A lefty arm drafted in the 26th round in 2010, Sogard has both started and closed in the Astros farm system, and his role as a closer for the Hooks this year earned him a promotion to Oklahoma City. Continue to watch him in AAA because if he continues to pitch effectively, he could find his way to Houston.

Year	Team	League	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
2010	TRI	NYP	1	2	3.51	22	3	0	0	0	41.0	40	20	16	4	12	36	1.30	.263
2010	Minors		1	2	3.51	22	3	0	0	0	41.0	40	20	16	4	12	36	1.30	.263
2011	LEX	SAL	3	4	4.14	31	10	0	0	4	104.1	112	54	48	12	25	112	1.65	.272
2011	Minors		3	4	4.14	31	10	0	0	4	104.1	112	54	48	12	25	112	1.65	.272
2012	LAN	CAL	0	2	2.81	6	0	0	0	0	16.0	12	7	5	0	8	17	1.91	.197
2012	CC	TEX	3	1	3.86	33	0	0	0	0	53.2	60	28	23	3	25	35	2.58	.291
2012	Minors		3	3	3.62	39	0	0	0	0	69.2	72	35	28	3	33	52	2.40	.270
2013	CC	TEX	0	0	0.71	10	0	0	0	3	12.2	12	3	1	1	4	12	2.83	.261
2013	OKC	PCL	0	0	0.00	2	0	0	0	0	2.1	0	0	0	0	2	2	1.00	.000
2013	Minors		0	0	0.60	12	0	0	0	3	15.0	12	3	1	1	6	14	2.38	.231