Astros Prospect Report: Rain, rain, go away

AAA Fresno Grizzlies: Suspended (Rain)

Later in June when Fresno returns to Salt Lake they'll resume this game where they left off; in a 3-3 tie in the tenth inning. Yeah.

AA Corpus Christi Hooks: Rained out

Doubleheader scheduled for today.

A+ Lancaster JetHawks: 11-10 win over Modesto (COL)

-> Ronnie Mitchell: 4-for-5, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R
-> Marc Wik: 2-for-3, BB, R, 2 RBI
-> Chan Moon: 2-for-4, BB, 2B, R
-> Jose Fernandez: 2-for-4, BB, 2 R
-> A.J. Reed: 2-for-5, 2 R
-> Brett Phillips: 1-for-5, HR, R, 3 RBI
-> Chase McDonald: 1-for-5
-> Jobduan Morales: 0-for-4, BB, RBI, R
-> J.D. Davis: 0-for-4, BB
-> James Ramsay: 0-for-0, R (pinch-runner)

SP Adrian Houser: 5.0 IP, 3 R (1 ER), 4 H, 0 BB, 7 K
RP Gonzalo Sanudo: 2.2 IP, 5 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 3 K (blown save)
RP Chris Cotton: 1.1 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 2 K (win)

The Astros weren't the only team in the organization that played a crazy game out in California tonight. There were four lead changes in this affair, and after the top of the eighth, Lancaster was down 10-6. They scored a run in the bottom of the eighth and then four more in the bottom of the ninth to come back and walk it off. Modesto did commit four errors tonight, though. Hey, whatever way you can get it done.

And also like the Astros, a great outing from the starting pitcher proved to be big. Sure, Houser didn't throw nine shutout innings, but with the winds blowing out to center at 25 MPH, he pitched like a champ. He got six outs on the ground, seven on strikes, and just two in the air. He's the only pitcher Lancaster threw out there that didn't allow a homer. And then no walks on top of it. Huge outing, and great to see after such a mediocre start in his first two games. The ERA isn't pretty, but it's a tiny sample in the California League. Focus on the 16 strike outs in 9.1 innings (yes, 15.4 K/9!)

His overall line still isn't pretty, but never fear; Reed has at least one hit in eight of his last nine games, and is hitting .270/.378/.487 during that stretch. That's a very nice upturn. Strike outs remain the most obvious challenge, with 10 in those nine games, though it's certainly not a total horror show in that regard.

This is just the second game in his last nine in which Phillips didn't get at least two hits. Man he really appears to be legit. Tenth extra-base hit on the season with that three-run jack, and the strike outs remain completely reasonable, just 10 in 16 games. The walks and stolen bases haven't shown up yet, but they'll likely follow soon (though he hasn't really proven himself to be a base running fiend or anything in the past).

Don't know how much I should believe in Mitchell, but he's performed well to this point. He showed some legit 20+ homer pop last year with QC, so I'll buy the homers and doubles he's hit so far. He doesn't look to be particularly special, but he also doesn't strike out a ton like some other guys with power, and he's left handed. You never know. I won't get truly intrigued unless he really starts lighting it up or does something in AA, but he's at least on the edge of the radar for now.

He may have coughed up some runs, but Cotton continues to post elite peripherals. He's up to 18 strike outs to just one walk now in 9.2 innings. At 24 years old, I'd expect him to see at least some time in Corpus before the season ends if he keeps this up.

A- Quad Cities River Bandits: Rained out

Goodness. Doubleheader is scheduled for Sunday to make it up.

Today's Scheduled Starters

AAA: Brady Rodgers vs. Robbie Ray
AA: Doubleheader!
-> Josh Hader vs. Jose Leclerc (GM 1)
-> Chris Devenski vs. Victor Payano (GM 2)
A+: Edison Frias vs. Antonio Senzatela
A-: Joshua James vs. Sean Newcomb