Astros Prospect Report: Moran stays hot; Appeller Coaster hits another dip

AAA Fresno Grizzlies: Doubleheader!

Game One: 7-1 loss to El Paso (SDP)

-> Tony Kemp: 2-for-4
-> Joe Sclafani: 1-for-3, RBI
-> Domingo Santana: 1-for-3
-> Robbie Grossman: 0-for-2, BB, SB, R
-> Jonathan Villar: 0-for-2, 2 BB
-> Nolan Fontana: 0-for-2, BB

SP Mark Appel: 4.0 IP, 5 R (4 ER), 5 H, 2 BB, 3 K (loss)
RP Jose Veras: 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K
RP Jason Stoffel: 1.0 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 2 BB, 1 K
RP Jordan Jankowski: 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 BB, 2 K

Game Two: 7-1 loss to El Paso (SDP)

-> Joe Sclafani: 1-for-2
-> Matt Duffy: 1-for-3, solo HR
-> Robbie Grossman: 1-for-3
-> Andrew Aplin: 0-for-1, BB

SP Luis Cruz: 4.0 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 5 H, 1 BB, 2 K (loss)
RP Jake Buchanan: 1.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 0 K
RP Kevin Chapman: 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 K
RP Tyson Perez: 1.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 K

A forgettable night in Fresno, for sure.

All aboard the #AppellerCoaster, here we go again. Okay, on the surface, this is another face-palmer from Appel. Digging a little deeper, while not excusing him, you'll see that a pair of homers followed the allowance of baserunners (one of them on an error, thus the unearned run). He got seven ground outs and none in the air, but a pair of homers, right when he'd just allowed base runners, sunk him. His fault? Yeah, of course. But sometimes one missed pitch here, a small mistake there, you never know. It could have easily been a much different game for him. So...for whatever that's worth.

Four of Kemp's last ten games have been multi-hit games. He's up to .299/.347/.372 in 33 games with Fresno so far. It's definitely been a tougher transition to the AAA level for him. A solid 10-for-13 in SB attempts is a nice sign, though, and with 15 strike outs in 33 games, he's certainly not having a bad showing by any means.

AA Corpus Christi Hooks: 9-4 win over Midland (OAK)

-> Colin Moran: 3-for-4, R, 3 RBI
-> A.J. Reed: 2-for-2, 2B, RBI, R
-> Conrad Gregor: 2-for-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
-> Brett Phillips: 2-for-5, SB, RBI, 2 R
-> Jiovanni Mier: 1-for-2, R, 2 BB
-> Leonardo Heras: 1-for-4
-> Alfredo Gonzalez: 0-for-3, BB, R
-> Jon Kemmer: 0-for-3, RBI
-> Jack Mayfield: 0-for-4, BB, R

SP Kyle Westwood: 9.0 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 7 H, 2 BB, 6 K (win)

Westwood threw 102 pitches in his complete game here, getting nine outs on the ground. In his last two starts, he's allowed five earned runs in 16.1 innings (2.76 ERA).

Apparently Reed wasn't feeling well pre-game, so that may have something to do with his being removed mid-game. Nothing on the Hooks' twitter feed about it. If anyone does have some info, feel free to share it. He's hitting .350/.423/.600 in six games with Corpus so far.

Four of Moran's last six games have been multi-hit games. He's hitting .395 over his last ten games, and has his season line up to .291/.354/.392 now.

Holy smokes, three bombs in three days for Gregor? Is this it? Has the adjustment been made? Are we seeing the long-awaited development of in-game power? All six of his homers this season have come in his last 29 games played now.

Six hits in three games for Phillips. He's up to .307/.365/.420 in 21 games with the Hooks now. Somehow I didn't realize it until just now, but he's still looking for his first AA homer. Does have four doubles and three triples, though. He's 6-for-8 in SB attempts, too.

A+ Lancaster JetHawks: 3-2 loss to San Jose (SFG)

-> Derek Fisher: 2-for-4, HR, RBI, 2 R
-> Jamie Ritchie: 1-for-3, BB, SB
-> Ronnie Mitchell: 1-for-3
-> Jacob Nottingham: 1-for-4, RBI
-> James Ramsay: 1-for-4

SP Kevin Comer: 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 6 K
RP Austin Chrismon: 3.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 2 K (loss)

A nice bounce-back game for Comer, since he'd allowed 12 earned runs in his previous three outings. The California League has been tough for him so far. Does have an 11-to-1 K/BB ratio during his last two games, though. Something to build on.

Fisher has at least one hit in eight of his last nine games, though he's still not really heating up just yet. Hopefully this might be the start of a run. He's at .254/.328/.492 so far for Lancaster.

Nice to see Ritchie get off well after his promotion. Three walks in three games since moving up, .615 OBP, seems about right for him. He now has 73 walks on the season in 75 game.

A- Quad Cities River Bandits: 5-1 win over Cedar Rapids (MIN)

-> Kristian Trompiz: 2-for-2, 3B, 2 R
-> Alex Bregman: 1-for-2, 2B, RBI, R, 2 BB
-> Ryan Bottger: 1-for-3
-> Garrett Stubbs: 1-for-3
-> Nick Tanielu: 1-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI
-> Drew Ferguson: 1-for-4, R
-> Ramon Laureano: 0-for-3, BB, SB, R
-> Jason Martin: 0-for-3, RBI

SP David Paulino: 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 7 K (win)
RP Riley Ferrell: 1.1 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 4 BB, 1 K (hold)
RP Ryan Thompson: 0.2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K (save)

It might be time to really take notice of Paulino, folks. The sample is still small, but he's been pretty stunning in four games with Quad Cities now. In said four games, he owns a 2.05 ERA, 1.64 BB/9 and 10.64 K/9. Throw in the couple of game with Tri-City, things get even better. He has 36 K and 6 BB on the year total. And he's a 6'7" RHP. He won't be 22 until February. What a nice little gem we may have snatched from the Tigers (PTBNL in the Veras deal, in case you've forgotten).

Bregman has a four-game hitting streak working, with three walks in there to go along with it. He's whiffed just eight times in 22 games so far.

SS Tri-City ValleyCats: Rained Out

Doubleheader coming today to make it up.

RK Greeneville Astros: 7-2 win over Kingsport (NYM)

-> Hector Roa: 2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R
-> Luis Payano: 2-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI
-> Randy Cesar: 1-for-2, 2 BB, 2 R
-> Kevin Martir: 1-for-2, 2 BB, 2 R
-> Justin Garcia: 1-for-4, R
-> Osvaldo Duarte: 0-for-3, BB, SB
-> Ford Stainback: 0-for-3, BB
-> Myles Straw: 0-for-4, RBI

SP Erasmo Pinales: 4.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 3 K
RP Juan Delis: 0.1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K
RP Devonte German: 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 1 K (win, hold)
RP Lachlan Madden: 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 1 BB, 0 K

Roa has inserted himself nicely into Greeneville's offense, becoming one of the stronger members there. Four game hitting streak currently, with seven hits during that run. He's hitting .328/.361/.621 with four bombs and four other XBH during his 15 games with the club.

German is talented, but far from a finished product. He hadn't walked anyone for four straight games entering this one. He owns a 3.55 ERA in 12.2 innings of work this season.

Today's Scheduled Starters

AAA: Brett Oberholtzer vs. Luis Cessa
AA: TBD vs. Dillon Overton
A+: Daniel Mengden vs. Jose Reyes
A-: Elieser Hernandez vs. TBD
SS: Doubleheader!
--> Alex Winkelman vs. Zach Albin
--> Kevin McCanna vs. TBD
RK: Ryan Deemes vs. Harol Gonzalez