Since real life got in the way of my post last week, I’ll be doing 2 weeks worth of players of the week in one post.

Prospects of the Week for Week 3 (April 23 - 29)

Garrett Stubbs, Catcher, Corpus Christi Hooks (Double A)

This is the 2nd week in a row that a catcher has been the top hitter of the past week in the Astros’ farm. Jake Rogers, the “defense first” catcher, took the top spot last week. This week, Garrett Stubbs takes the honor. Stubbs is catching for the AA Hooks again this year. Stubbs played in 31 games for the Hooks in 2016. Stubbs has been raking all season for the Hooks this year. Stubbs is a really exciting, yet slightly under the radar prospect. Let’s take a look at the week Stubbs had:

• .423/.483/.846/1.329
• 11 hits, 2 doubles, 3 homers
• 2 stolen bases, 0 caught stealing
• 2 walks and 2 strikeouts

This line was really helped by Stubbs games on Sunday in which he went 2 for 4 with 2 home runs.

As you can see from this video, Stubbs is not built like your average catcher. He’s listed at 5-10, 175 and as you can see above. He actually can steal a base every now and then. Stubbs has been raking all year for the Hooks to the tune of .341/.413/.634/.1047 with a 8.7% BB rate and a 8.7% K rate. To top it off, he’s sporting a very normalish .324 BABIP.

If Stubbs hot start continues on until mid-season, he will have a pretty substantial rise on most prospect lists.

Pitcher of the Week - Jorge Alcala, RHP, Quad Cities River Bandits (Low A)

This was a close battle between Alcala and Elieser Hernandez. Both players put up nearly identical stat lines. The tie breaker was based on how both pitchers have performed on the season, so Alcala’s the guy.

Jorge had a good week.

• 10 innings pitched, 13 strikeouts, 2 walks
• 7 hits allowed (2 homers)
• On the season, he’s got a 2.29 ERA, .99 WHIP, and 21 Ks in 19.2 innings pitched

Alcala was signed in 2014 out of the Dominican Republic. He’s made steady progression through the system relying on a good fastball and a slider that has become a very good pitch. He’s working on a change-up that could ultimately determine whether he’s a starter or a bullpen arm in the future.

Here’s what Hudson Belinsky at Baseball America had to say about Alcala:

“Jorge Alcala has a mid-90s fastball and a slider that earned a plus grade from one scout I talked to, but he didn’t qualify. He may be the next young international Astro to take off…”

Prospects of the Week for Week 4 (April 30 - May 7)

Kyle Tucker, OF, Buies Creek Astros (High A)

The big time prospect is living up the ranking. This is his second player of the week award this year already. Let’s take a look at the week Tucker had:

• .296/.394/.889/1.283 slash line
• 5 homers, 1 double, 7 RBIs, 3 stolen bases
• Walked 5 times, struck out 8
• He did all of this with a .200 BABIP on the week (homers don’t count towards BABIP)

Here’s a look at a high leverage homerun by Tucker. It was a go-ahead shot in the 12th inning.

We have to at least mention Jason Martin, who almost jumped up and won this award yesterday with his 3 home run day. Don’t sleep on Tucker’s teammate, J-Mart. I feel like Martin has been a prospect forever, but he’s still just 21 years old!

Alex Winkelman, LHP, Buis Creek Astros (High A)

Winkelman was a 21st round draft pick in 2015 out of Southeast Missouri State. He’s a 6-3, 180 pound lefty who has a “plus slider, a low-90s fastball, and has a 25% career strikeout rate” according to a recent fangraphs post about him. There’s also a great

Winkelman has struggled with a high walk rate throughout his minor league career. His career walk rate is 3.33 per 9, but last year at Lancaster, it ballooned to 8.04 per 9. So far this year, he’s kept it in check (0.78 BB/9). Here’s Winkelman’s week:

• 8.0 IP, 11 Ks, 0 BBs
• 4 hits allowed, 0 runs allowed
• 10 of 17 balls put in play were ground balls