There is a sizable gap in talent in the Astros system, between the mostly-AAA players who are competing this spring for big league spots and the 2008 draft picks who showed promise last summer but are still a few years away. In between these two groups are the players who were mostly at Class A last year. The Astros three Class A teams reflected further spotlight the talent wasteland. Salem- worst record in the eight team Carolina League. Lexington- 16th of 16 in the South Atlantic League. Tri-City- 13th of 14 in the New York-Penn League.
Despite the complete lack of team success, there are ten individuals who showed promise for the future. If you are interested in basic statistics on these ten players, that information is at the above link. However, in this space I am more interested in hearing from any Crawfish Boxers(?) who have seen any of these prospects firsthand. My information on minor leaguers is limited to box scores, an occasional web broadcast, possibly a video on You Tube, and online blurbs from places like Baseball America, so any input from first-hand witnesses would be greatly appreciated.
Question #7: What do you think will come from last year's Class A class?
Most likely beginning season at Corpus Christi
Doug Arguello, P
Jimmy Van Ostrand, OF
Mark Ori, 1B
Jhon Florentino, 3B
Bryan Hallberg, P
Most likely begining season at Lancaster
Collin DeLome, OF
Fernando Abad, P
Leandro Cespedes, P
J.J. Pacella, P
Most likely beginning season at Lexington
Kyle Greenwalt, P