Astros Crawfish Boil: Monday, January 9, 2023

Welcome to the Monday Boil!

Houston Astros News

Houston Astros Star Surprises Children in the Dominican Republic (si.com)

Astros Rumors: Enough Already; Stop Linking the Houston Astros to Trevor Bauer (climbingtalshill.com)

Grand jury declines to indict man accused of throwing beer at Ted Cruz (chron.com)

Houston Astros trophy tour: This is where you can see the teams’ 2nd trophy in person at several Houston-area locations (click2houston.com)

MLB News

Realistic MLB Trades That Could Happen Before 2023 Spring Training (bleacherreport.com)

Law: The Tigers cash in by trading Gregory Soto to the Phillies (theathletic.com)

2023 Rookie of the Year picks by MLB front offices (mlb.com)

Carlos Correa signing: Why his free agency has been saga of incomplete deals, unsure owners and old injuries (cbssports.com)

MLB rumors: Mariners land AJ Pollock; Mets discussed Eduardo Escobar trade amid Carlos Correa agreement (cbssports.com)

Mariners add Pollock to outfield mix (source) (mlb.com)

Hendriks to begin treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (mlb.com)

2 weeks to announcement, a HOF balloting update (mlb.com)

Oops! All Astros

Ricardo Toro is a six-foot-one, 170 lb. catcher and first baseman from Maracay, VZ. Born on February 24, 2001, he signed his first professional deal on July 3, 2017 at the age of 16.

Toro made his professional debut with the Rookie-level DSL Astros in 2018, and spent three seasons with the affiliate (not counting 2020). Although he never found a consistent power stroke, his batting average improved from .161 in 2018 to .245 in 2019 to .314 in 2021.

The 2022 season would see Toro finally move on from the DSL to the Rookie-level FCL Astros Blue squad. On June 9, he hit a single and a double in a 6-2 loss to the FCL Marlins. On July 5, he put up his first three-hit game of the year, with two singles and a home run, along with four RBI in a 10-3 win against the FCL Cardinals.

Over the season, Toro hit .246/.356/.396 with five home runs and 21 RBI. Defensively he played 176 ¹⁄₃ innings and posted a .984 fielding percentage from behind the plate. He also threw out 19 percent of baserunners trying to take a free base. Toro also played 140 ²⁄₃ innings at first base (.991). Look for him to start the 2023 season either back with the FCL or maybe with the Low-A Fayetteville Woodpeckers.