The first month of the season is in the books. Let's check on the progress of the former G-Stros both in and out of the Houston organization and recognize those who put up good numbers this month. We will look at a hitter and a pitcher at all levels.
Quad Cities:
Hitter of the Month:
Roberto Pena hit .365 in 13 games for the River Bandits. Of his 19 hits, he had two HR and three doubles. The 20 year old is starting the season in low A for the third time. He is doing his best to show he is ready for a new challenge.
Honorable Mention: Jesse Wierzbicki, who hit .261 for the month but had eight extra base hits and is tied for fourth in the league with 20 RBI.
Pitcher of the Month:
Vincent Velasquez finished the month on a rough note last night giving up four earned runs in 2 2/3 IP, yet that only raised his ERA for the month to 2.45. He has struck out 31 batters in 25 2/3 IP. His 31 Ks tie him for the league lead.
Honorable Mention: Lance McCullers Jr., who in five appearances amassed a 1.93 ERA with 19 K in 18 2/3 IP.
Lancaster:
Hitter of the Month:
The options for hitter here are slim as there are just three former G-Stros position players on the Lancaster roster.
Delino DeShields gets the nod this month despite a bit of a slump towards the end of the month. In April, he hit .250 with three doubles and three triples. He made just two errors in 63 chances at second base during the month.
Honorable Mention: Telvin Nash joined the team late in the month after rehabbing an injury in extended spring training. In the seven games since he joined the team, Nash is hitting .346 with a double and two home runs. He has taken four walks against six strikeouts. If he can put those numbers up over a whole month, he will be a shoo in for Alumni of the month.
Pitcher of the Month:
Likewise, there are only three options to choose from for Appy Astros Alumni of the Month among the pitchers in Lancaster.
Luis Cruz is the choice based on his three starts in the tandem pitching rotation. In his three starts, he has a 0.61 ERA with 19 strike outs in 14 2/3 IP. He has not fared as well coming in as the second half of the tandem but overall he finishes April with a 3.47 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 23 1/3 innings pitched. He is tied for 8th among league leaders in strikeouts.
Honorable Mention: Michael Foltynewicz got off to a rough start but has rebounded with several strong outings later in the month.
Corpus Christi:
Hitter of the Month
This was one of the toughest calls of the month.
Ben Orloff gets the nod with a .322 average in 20 games this month. He struck out just four times in 59 at bats. That is one K every 15 at bats! He also took eight walks on the month. He has also moved around the diamond this month. He has played five games each at 1B, 2B, and SS while adding three games at 3B
and one game as DH.
Honorable Mention: Rene Garcia made this a tough call. He has only appeared in 13 games but when he has gotten his chances, he has hit the ball. He hit .333 with four doubles and a HR to his credit for the month. He has gunned down 50% of would be base burglars so far this season as well.
Pitcher of the Month
David Martinez has quietly put up solid numbers in his AA debut. In 22 2/3 innings pitched, he has allowed just 15 hits and five walks for a WHIP of 0.88 (3rd best in the Texas League). He has not given up an earned run in his past 13 2/3 innings pitched.
Honorable Mention: Carlos Quevedo started the month in Lancaster but was quickly promoted to Corpus Christi. Since arriving he has appeared in six games with one of those being a start. In 16 2/3 IP, he has a 1.62 ERA with 14 strikeouts.
Oklahoma City
Hitter of the Month - No former G-Stro qualified for the award this month. Only two former players have appeared in games for OKC this season.
Ruben Sosa was sent down to EST after just two games and
Chris Wallace was traded after limited action.
Pitcher of the Month
Jordan Lyles gets the nod here. He had one rough outing that inflates his numbers but he heads to Houston to join the big league Astros after completing April with a 5.32 ERA.
Minors- Other Affiliations
Hitter of the Month
Albert Cartwright is off to a hot start with Reading (AA-Phillies). The
second baseman is hitting .326 with three doubles, a triple and a HR.
He is tearing up lefties with eight hits and 16 at bats.
Honorable Mention: Chris
Wallace was traded to the Indians organization during the month. He
played in eight games for Akron hitting ,.367 before being promoted to
Columbus (AAA). Since arriving back in AAA, he went 5 for 7 in his
first game in a Clippers uniform.
Pitcher of the Month
Fernando Abad started off the year with eight straight scoreless outings.
Despite giving up a run in his last two outings of the month, he still
ended April with a 1.93 ERA. He is pitching for Syracuse (AAA-
Washington).
Honorable Mention: Tom Vessella appeared in nine games for the Richmond Flying Squirrles (AA-
Giants). The lefty finished April with a 1.08 ERA in 16 2/3 innings
pitched.
Majors
Hitter of the Month
It is very hard to select anyone but
Jose Altuve. Altuve continues to show he belongs in the big leagues. He hit .330 in April and finished the month with 37 hits which ties him for the league lead.
He also continues to make impressive plays in the field.
Honorable Mention: Brandon Barnes has come to the plate in 15 games so far this year and has reached base in 14 of those games.
Pitcher of the Month
Jose Cisnero came up from OKC to give the bullpen a fresh arm and he has shown he belongs in the bigs. The 14th G-Stro to make the show has appeared in three games since his call up allowing just one earned run in 7 2/3 innings pitched out of the Astros' bullpen. He has allowed just five hits and one walk while striking out five opponents.
Honorable Mention:
Troy Patton has appeared in 11 games out of the Baltimore bullpen. He is holding opponents to a measly .220 batting average.
Overall not a bad showing by the alumni of the Greeneville Astros! Can't wait to see who shines in May.
