Not a whole lot going on in the minor leagues Wednesday. Wandy Rodriguez made his first rehab start and was very good. He gave up some hits, but he got a ton of ground balls and was pretty efficient in his innings. Jonathan Aristil was also very good in relief of Wandy, pitching four innings of no-hit ball to end the game.
There was also Jose Altuve continuing to mash Double-A pitching or Jimmy Paredes flashing a little power, but one of the things I wanted to talk about doesn't have anything to do with the games that were or were not played Wednesday.
Let's talk about the news that Ariel Ovando is going to Greeneville this summer.
I think that's a great move, both for him and for the Astros. He could have easily spent the season with the Gulf Coast League Astros, which is a league tailored for prospects who need some more developmental time and is sort of a transitionary league into the professional ranks.
No, Houston elected to move him up a level and start him out with Greeneville, where they put some of the more advanced high school players and college kids from the draft. If the Astros have that much confidence in the 17-year old at this point, how should we feel?
I really hope we can get some first-hand scouting reports this summer from Appy Astro, because Ariel Ovando is one of the most exciting prospects in the system for me. I can't wait to see what he does when he finally gets into a game.
Oklahoma City had an off-day
Corpus Christi beat Midland 3-2
Jonathan Villar, SS: 2-4, run, walk, SB, K
Jimmy Paredes, 3B: 1-4, solo HR, K
Jose Altuve, 2B: 2-4, CS (average at .429)
J.D. Martinez, LF: 1-4, K
Jimmy Van Ostrand, 1B: 2-4, 3B, RBI, CS, K
Wandy Rodriguez, starter: 4 IP, 6 hits, run, walk, 2 Ks, 56 pitches, 38 strikes, 5 ground ball outs, 1 fly ball out
Jonathan Aristil, reliever: 4 IP, no hits, no runs, 2 walks, 5 Ks