Former G-Stros in Indy Ball

Indy ball is an option for players who aren't ready to hang up the spikes and occasionally you will hear of a player being signed from Indy ball back into affiliated ball.  This year, there are 11 former Greeneville Astros playing in four different Independent Leagues.  Here is the list:

American Association:
Mitch Einertson (2004) El Paso
Ryan Mitchell (2005,2006) Amarillo
Colton Pitkin (2007,2008) Winnipeg

In addition to these three, former G-Stro Beau Torbert (2004) works in the front office of the Sioux Falls team as the coordinator of baseball outreach.

Frontier League
Garrett Bullock (2009, 2010) Evansville
Marcus Nidiffer (2010) Travers City
Brad Propst (2011, 2012) River City
Bubby Williams (2009, 2010) Normal

Atlantic League
Ralph Henriquez (2005, 2006) Long Island
Koby Clemens (2005) Sugarland
Wlad Sutil (2004) South Maryland Blue Crabs

Can/Am League
Kyle Greenwalt (2007,2008) New Jersey
Bryce Lane (2010) Newark

When checking these rosters, I came across a few other Astros farm hands who are active in Indy ball.  They are: Neiko Johnson (Gateway - Frontier), Kirk Clark (Sioux Falls - American), Jon Gaston (Rockland - Can/Am).

Former G-Stros Playing Indy Ball 2012

With independent leagues starting to get underway, I thought we would take a peak at their rosters and see if there are any former Greeneville Astros still playing unaffiliated ball.  I found 10 that are on current rosters, one who has moved to coaching and one who has been naughty and is on the suspended list. I also located at least 12 other guys who played in the Astros farm system on the rosters.  I might have missed one as there are a bunch of indy leagues and teams. 

American Association:
Ole Sheldon (2004) - St. Paul Saints
Bubby Williams (2009/10) - Kansas City T-Bones
Beau Torbert (2004)- Hitting Coach - Lincoln Salt Dogs
Mitch Einertson (2004)- Wichita Wingnuts
Ryan Mitchell (2006)- Amarillo Sox

Other former Astros farm hands in this league: Jon Gaston - Fargo, Chris Salamida - Winnipeg, Matt Cusick - Winnipeg, and Lee Cruz - Kansas City

Atlantic League

Douglas Arguello (2004) - Somerset Patriots

Other former Astros farm hands in this league: Raymar Diaz - Blueport, Collin DeLome- Bridgeport, Lou Santangelo - Somerset, Ryan McKeller - Sugarland, Jimmy Van Ostrand - Sugarland, Drew Locke - Sugarland.

Canadian American League
Bryce Lane (2010) - Newark Bears
Kyle Greenwalt  (2007/08)- New Jersey Jackals
Steve Brown (2006)- Qubec Capitals

Other former Astros farm hands in this league: Anthony Pluta - Newark

Frontier League:
Garrett Bullock (2009/10)- Evansville Otters
Marcus Nidiffer (2010)- Travers City Beach Bums
Josh Flores (2005) - On suspended list of Joliet Slammers

Other former Astros farm hands in this league: Justin Gill - River City Rascals

Former G-Stros Released

Baseball America's minor league transactions released today showed the end of Astros careers for several former G-Stros.  Those whose releases were made public today include:

Garrett Bullock - Non drafted free agent out of Wake Forrest.  Played in Greeneville in 09, 10.
Joan Belliard - Right handed reliever from the Dominican Republic pitched in Greeneville in 09.
Mark Jones- 22nd round pick in 2009 out of Lancaster, PA.  Pitched in Greeneville in 2011.
Travis Smink  - 31st round pick from 2009 out of VMI.  He pitched in Greeneville in 09, 10.
Ronald Sanchez - 16th round draft pick from 2009 out of Caguas PR.  He played in Greenville in 2011.
Miguel Arrendell- Utilitiy infielder from the Dominican Republic played in Greeneville in 2009.
Danilo Del Rio - Right handed releaver out of Cartagena, Columbia pitched in Greeneville in 2011.


Best of luck to these gentlemen.

2010 Greeneville Astros Progress Reports

This wraps up the progress reports of former G-Stros for this off season.  It's only been a year but lets look at the progress made by the 2010 G-Stros.  Thirty nine players spent time in Greeneville playing in 2010.  Twenty six of those players were playing affiliated ball in 2011 for 66%.

Let's look at how high they climbed.  They are listed by the highest level they appeared in and the percentage by each level is out of the full roster.


AA (1 - 3%)


Chris Wallace started the year in Low A Lexington but was double promoted to AA Corpus Christi to finish out the year.  With him turning 23 years of age in April and him having solid success in Lexington, it was not surprising the Astros challenged him by putting him on a fast track.  Wallace hit .244 in 36 games in AA.  he also found out that base runners were better there.  He only threw out 10% of attempted stolen bases.  Wallace spent part of the fall in instructionals.


High A (2 - 5%)


Bryce Lane  spent most of the season in Lexington but did appear in Lancaster for five games during the year.  He was hit less during his stint in Lancaster and hit .222 in 67 games in Lexington. He will be 22 when spring training begins.

Hector Rodriguez bounced around three levels this year.  He started in Lancaster, then was sent to Tri Cities and finished the year in Lexington.  He never got much consistent playing time in those stops appearing in only 35 games through the year.  He combined to hit just .163 on the season. He will be 22 when spring training rolls around.


Low A (13- 33%)


Ruben Alaniz had an inconsistent year in Lexington.  He had a rough April, sporting a 8.78 ERA after the first month of the season. However in June, he sported a solid 2.28 ERA.  Overall, he finished with a 4.44 ERA in 27 games (21 starts).  He fanned 96 batters in 115 2/3 innings pitched.  He gave up 11 home runs, with only four in the second half of the season.  He earned an invite to instructionals.  Alaniz will be 20 when he reports to spring training. 


Garrett Bullock  see 2009 write up.

Jeiler Castillo  see 2008 write up.

Delino Deshields Jr. only appeared in 16 games in 2010 for Greeneville.  However, he was impressive in those games as just a 17 year old.  This year, as he continued to make the transition to becoming a second baseman, he struggled in the first half of the year hitting just .197 before the All Star break.  DeShields had a great July (.320) and finished the second half of the season with a respectable .242 average.  His power dropped in the second half but his on base percentage climbed.  All promising signs for a young man who won't turn 20 until next August. He got a bit of extra work in this fall in instructionals.


Mike Foltynewicz appeared to run out of gas as the long Sally League season of bus trips ground to an end.  After keeping his ERA in the upper three and low four range for May, June & July; it jumped to the seven and eight range for August and September.  He was on the instructional league roster. He is still seen as a top prospect and will just be 20 when next season begins.


Gabriel Garcia pitched out of the pen in 31 games for the Legends.  Garcia struck out 68 batters in 69 1/3 innings pitched.  His ERA was 3.76 on the season.  He is pitching in his home country for Winter Ball and through his first 11 appearances in the Dominican League, he is sporting a 2.84 ERA.  He will still be 22 when next season rolls around.

Emilio King had a break out year in Lexington.  In Greeneville, he showed good defense with a great arm but very little with the bat.  In 2011, he hit .293 and 34 of his 106 hits went for extra bases.  He also had 14 outfield assist on the year.  King will be 22 at the start of spring training.


Ryan McCurdy appeared in just one game for Lexington.  He spent most of his season in TriCities.  There he hit .324 which is an impressive jump from the .148 combined between Greeneville & TriCities in 2010.  He will turn 24 in December.


Jhonny Medrano hit .203 in 60 games for the Legends this season.  He is a minor league free agent and will likely not be playing affiliated ball next season. Injuries limited his potential. 


Telvin Nash got his 2011 season of to a bang with an impressive April where he hit .310 with an OPS of .997 but then broke the hamate bone in his hand and missed all of May and almost but three games of June.  In the second half, Nash was okay but not as spectacular as his April.  He finished the year with a .269 average and a .858 OPS in Lexington. It is expected that recovery from a hamate fracture can take some time to recover hand strength so we have to take that into account.  Nash has very good power.  Of his 72 hits this season in Lexington, 30 of them were for extra bases.  Here is a video of his power stroke.  He will need to cut down on the strike outs as he continues to climb up the ladder.  He also was learning a new position this year, playing 37 games at 1st base.  He got some extra work in at instructionals. Nash will turn 21 just before spring training begins.


Marcus Nidiffer was released by the Astros and subsequently signed by the Angels organization.  They moved him back to catcher and he hit .230 for Cedar Rapids this year.  He threw out 29% of potential base stealers. He will be 25 when spring training opens.


Roberto Pena was impressive behind the plate in Lexington this season. He threw out 39% of the potential base burglars.  He wasn't as impressive at the plate, hitting just .217 but showed improvement over his numbers in Greeneville last year.  He is seen as a solid catching prospect by the Astros as evidenced by them sending him for a brief stint in the Arizona Fall League. He was also in instructionals. Pena won't turn 20 until June of next year.

Brian Streinlein appeared in 40 games for the Legends and amassed a 3.99 ERA. Streinlein will be 24 when spring training begins.


Tri Cities (6 - 15%)


Ryan Cole finished 22 of the 26 games he appeared in for the ValleyCats. He was credited with 10 saves.  He will be 24 when pitchers report to spring training.


Jermaine Cotton started 2011 in Greeneville in the bullpen. However, he was moved into the starting rotation and was solid there.  He was promoted to Tri Cities and finished the year with a 3.68 ERA in five starts for the ValleyCats.  He earned an invitation to fall instructional league.  He will be 21 when next season begins.

Euris Quezada is a big righty who when he has his control is fun to watch. for the ValleyCats this year, sometime he had it, some times he didn't.  He was shut down after just one start in August.  He finished the year with a 6.95 ERA with 24 Ks and 24 BB in 33 2/3 IP. He will turn 23 next April.

Travis Smink appeared in 23 games for the ValleyCats this season.  He amassed a 4.37 ERA in 45 1/3 IP.  He will turn 25 shortly after the 2012 season begins.


Rafael Valenzuela continues to show he can hit.  After being injured for much of the first half of the season, he reported to Tri Cities and hit .316 in 31 games for the ValleyCats.  The non drafted free agent will be 24 when spring training begins.


Bubby Williams see 2009 write up.


Greeneville (2 - 5%)


Richardo Batista the lefty returned to Greeneville for the 2011 season and showed improvement.  He finished the season strong with a 3.57 ERA for the month of August.  During that month, opponents hit just .192 off of him. During August he also struck out 20 batters in 22 1/2 innings but he also walked 18.  He was invited to instructionals.  He will still be 20 when next season begins. 

Rodney Quintero returned to Greeneville for the 2011 season.  He struck out 32 batters in 28 2/3 IP out of the pen.  Even though the numbers aren't great, he was invited to fall instructional league.  He will turn 22 before pitchers and catchers report to spring training.


Injury/DL (2- 5%)

Vincent Velasquez and Jonathon Merritt both spent their year rehabbing from injuries.  Velasquez was on the instructional league roster.


I expect the number of active players to drop pretty heavily next year with the large number of guys already in the 24 to 25 range in this group.

2009 Greeneville Astros Progress Report

The 2009 G-Stros were the first bunch that were the sandwich short season team.  Below them, the new GCL Astros were playing at the spring training complex. And the ValleyCats were playing above them in the NY- Penn League. In Greeneville, the fans didn't know what to expect from the new set up in the lower minors.  What we saw was a mix of high draft pick high school players and low round/free agent college players.  This edition of the the G-Stros had just seven teenagers and all seven were still active this year.

Of the 35 players who graced the roster that year, 63% (22) were still active on an affiliated roster at some point this season.  Let's look at how high they climbed.  They are listed by the highest level they appeared in and the percentage by each level is out of the full roster.

MLB (2- 6%)

Jose Altuve - see 2008 write up

J. D. Martinez - made a brief stop in Greeneville on his rapid climb to the majors.  He hit .403 during just 14 games in Greeneville.  This year, he hist .274 in 53 games in the big leagues.  He made the fastest climb of any G-Stros position player to the majors. 


AAA ( 0 - 0%)

AA (0 - 0%)
Altuve & Martinez appeared at this level but made it the the show to end the season.


High A (6- 17%)
Miguel Arrendell - The utility man appeared at five positions for Lancaster (RF, LF, SS, 2B, 3B) while hitting .281 in 50 games.  He was moved back to Tri Cities for the last month of the season to sure up their middle infield where he hit just .219 in 18 games. Arrendell will turn 24 during spring training next season.

Grant Hogue - Hogue was a  fan favorite during his time in G'ville for his hustle and easy going nature with fans.  After playing in CF exclusively in 09 & 10, he spent time in all three outfield positions in Lancaster in 2011.  He spent 76 of the 106 games in right field, where he amassed 11 of his 15 assist.  He hit .269 on the season.  He will be 25 when he reports to spring training.

Jonathan Meyer - Meyer continues to show improvement as he climbs the ladder.  In Lancaster in 2011, he hit .264 with 14 home runs.  He had only hit 5 in his previous two seasons.  Next year will determine if the power is the result of Lancaster or his maturation as a hitter.  He will be 21 when he reports next season. 

Jio Mier - He evenly split his season between Lexington and Lancaster, playing 57 games at each stop.  He  hit .245 at Lexington, an improvement over 2010's .235, before moving to Lancaster where he hit .233.  Mier is still considered a solid SS prospect and will be 21 when next season rolls around.

Jose Cisnero  - is the pitcher from 2009 who has climbed the highest.  He pitched in Lancaster and amassed a 6.06 ERA. However, when you average 11.09 strike outs per 9 innings (152 in 123 1/3 IP), that means there is something happening good there.  Cisnero will be turn 23 next April. 

Luis Cruz  - see 2008 write up.

Low A (7 - 20%)
Garrett Bullock - the tall lefty made just three appearances in Lexington before returning to short season ball in Tri Cities.  Those three outings were not that impressive.  However, his 2.51 ERA in Tri Cities was solid.  Bullock is old for the levels he has been playing.  He will start the season at 25.

Jeiler Castillo - see 2008 write up.

Gabriel Garcia - after two seasons in G'ville, Garcia moved up to Lexington where he was solid.  In 69 1/3 IP (37 games), he had a 3.76 ERA which is lower than his ERA in either season in Greeneville.  He struck out 68 batters and had a WHIP of just 1.212 which is the lowest of his career.  He is pitching well in winter ball in Venezuela right now.  He will be 22 when spring training begins. 

Murilo Gouvea - spent most of the season in Lexington with a brief time in Tri Cities.  In Lex, he amassed a 3.98 ERA in 30 games (74 2/3 IP).  He had more than a strike out an inning with 83.  He struggled keeping the walks down.  He will be 23 when next season begins.

David Martinez - was a man in search of a role this year.  He pitched in 37 games. He started five and finished 17.  In 66 2/3 IP, he fanned 44 batters while walking 17.  He will be 24 at the beginning of spring training.

Yuri Perez - like Bullock, he had a less than memorable brief stint at Lexington. He made 15 starts for TriCities where he had a 5.48 ERA.  Perez missed most of 2010 after elbow surgery.  He is still working his way back.  We hope he can regain the form he had in 2009 for Greeneville.  He will be 21 at the start of spring training.

Carlos Quevedo - really struggled to keep the ball in the park.  He gave up 22 home runs in Lexington this season in 151 innings pitched.  That equates to 1.3 HR every nine innings.  He gave up more home runs than walks. Quevedo walked 19 batters for an average of 1.1 per nine innings pitched.  Quevedo will be 22 at the start of spring training. 

Short Season A (3 - 5%)
Bubby Williams - the catcher with the cool name,spent 2011 in the New York Penn League.  His showed power, leading the team with six home runs but struggled making consistent contact.  He hit .206 in 36 games for the ValleyCats.  He will be 22 at the start of spring training next year.

Joan Belliard - repeated the NYPenn league in 2011 but only pitched in 18 2/3 innings.  His strike out numbers are still strong but is still struggling with walks.  He will be turning 23 in March.

Travis Smink - after two seasons in G'ville, he moved to Tri Cities this season.  In 23 games, he had a 4.37 ERA.  He will turn 25 next April. 

Rookie Ball & DL (4 - 11%)
Luis Alverez - returned to Greeneville after missing 2010 with a bad knee injury.  Alverez hit .271 in 38 games.  He only struck out 19 times in 151 plate appearances.  He turns 22 just before minor leaguers report to spring training.

B J Hyatt - listed on the roster for Greeneville but never was in uniform.  Still rehabbing from surgery after the 2009 season.

Wilton Infante & Nathan Pettus - see 2008 write up.

Summary
Like the 2008 edition, the 2009 team still has 22 active players.  Unlike them, it is the position players who have climbed faster than the pitchers.  A few of the players in this group will not be back for spring training but the core of this bunch should be at AA and High A to start next year.

Season Recap - The Bullpen

Here is the final installment for the 2010 Season Recap. Let's look at the lovable guys who sit down the right field line at Pioneer Park and try to lure unsuspecting kids into trying to drop a quarter into a cup for a scuffed up game ball. If a single ball is not enough, do it 3 times and you can get a broken bat. If these guys don't have a future in baseball, they might have a future in business or at least on the carnival circuit.

We will list the players by number of game appearances. I think you will notice a much older group of guys than when we looked at the other players.

The guys who were released (B. J. Hagan), promoted (Jack Frawly), demoted (Andrea Lucati) or signed too late in the year (Rodney Quintero) and didn't have more than a handful of appearances are not addressed here.

Ryan Cole appeared in 22 games out of the pen. He had a streak of 8 straight scoreless outings than spanned 12 2/3 IP and had 14 appearances where he didn't give up an earned run. He finished with a season ERA of 2.83 and 2 saves. He had the best WHIP among closers (1.06). His walk totals look high at eight in 35 IP but 4 of those were intentional passes. So 4 in 35 innings is a much truer picture of his control. With his age and his performance, I could see him in the pen in Lexington next season.

Garrett Bullock the lefty NDFA out of Wake Forest repeated at Greeneville this year and showed marked improvement. He lead the bullpen with 41 IP in 21 appearances. He was often the first guy out of the pen, but he did garner two saves. In 16 of his 21 appearances, he didn't allow an earned run. Bullock is able to keep runners close with an excellent pick off move that he refined to reduce the balks called on him. Bullock was too old for the Appy at 24. He was promoted to Tri Cities at the end of the season but didn't get to pitch. With his age, being a lefty with a good pick off move and his ability to keep the ball down (no home runs in a combined 62 1/3 IP for his career, I could see him landing in Lancaster next season but Lexington might be more likely.

Philip Rorabaugh is another NDFA who is in his second pro year. He pitched in the GCL in 09 and at 23 was at the top end of the age for the Appy League. Rorabaugh started the year okay but struggled with a rough stretch in July and 2 bad outings in August that left him with a 4.91 ERA for the year in his 21 appearances. If Rorabaugh is with the organization next season, he will likely be in Tri Cities for some additional depth.

Brian Streilein made his pro debut in Greeneville this year. The big righty appeared in 20 games covering 32 IP and was second on the team with 5 saves. He too had a large number of his walks accounted for with intentional passes (4 out of 8). Streilein was the closer at the end of the season and earned a brief appearance in Tri Cities. At 22 next season, I could see Streilein in Tri Cities working the late innings out of the pen.

Travis Smink returned to Pioneer Park this year and showed improvement. He was the closer to start the season. He got 5 saves out of his first 6 outings. There doesn't appear to be a reason why he stopped getting save opportunities as he continued to be effective through the end of July, giving up just 3 ER in 151/3 IP. But maybe the Astros coaching staff could see something we couldn't because in August, Smink struggled. After posting a 2.25 ERA in 9 outings in July, he put up a 5. 02 ERA in his 7 August outings. For the year, he finished with a 3.34 ERA and 6 saves. Look for Smink to be in Lexington next season.

Jeiler Castillo started the year on the Tri Cities roster but was sent back for his third year with the G-Stros shortly after the season began. He was a solid arm out of the pen pulling two 4 inning stints in long relief. He also spot started 2 games and closed out 4, getting the save in 1 of those. Heading into August, Castillo was putting together a solid season. Then the wheels came off starting on August 11th. Over his next 4 outings, he gave up 9 earned runs in just 3 innings pitched. His ERA for July had been 2.25 and for August it was 8.71. Castillo will turn 23 this off season, I expect him to be in Lexington if he is with the organization next year. Three seasons of short season ball should be sufficient.


Paul Gerrish started his pro career in Greeneville. The former Horned Frog, appeared in 14 games for the G-Stros with mixed results. He finished 6 games and got the save in 1 of those. He held opponents to no earned runs in half of his appearances. He finished with an ERA of 4.56 but he had good control numbers (4 walks in 23 2/3 IP- 1 IBB) and only 2 of the 32 hits he surrendered were doubles or homers. Of the 19 runs he surrendered 7 were unearned. I am not sure if he was more unlucky or ineffective. He finished the year with a great outing, facing the minimum in 3 1/3 IP while striking out 4. He is already 24 so his age is a factor here. Based on his numbers and his age, I expect him to be in Lexington next year.

Jamaine Cotton took the long way to get the Greeneville. He is from St. Thomas, VI but went to college at Western Oklahoma State. This was his second straight year to be drafted (Giants in 09) and the Astros were able to sign him as their 15th pick. Apparently, Jamaine is a man of few words and is still learning the art of pitching. He only appeared in 13 games accounting for only 14 IP. He didn't meet much success. The only exciting stat is that he had more than one strike out per inning. However, he got hit (28 in 14 IP) and hard too (3 HR). He also struggled with control (7 BB & 3 WP). He had already pitched over 60 innings when he got to Greeneville so we don't know how tired he was, that might be a factor here. Jarmaine will probably get a second year in Greeneville.

Justin Harper was the 17th pick of the 2009 draft by the Astros. He had been selected before (Marlins 31st round 07, Yankees 37th round 08) so there is something scouts like when they see Harper pitch. He made 11 appearances in Greeneville totaling all of 18 innings pitched. He only got 6 innings pitched in 2009. So we have a 2 year vet with only 24 IP. Not much of a sample to make much of an assessment. Especially when you consider that 7 of his 10 earned runs occurred in his first three outings. He will be 22 when the season opens next year. I expect he will return to Tri Cities to show continued improvement and to get a full short season of work in.

Assessment None of these guys jump out and scream top prospect. Most will probably be roster fillers for their careers but you never can tell when someone puts it all together and makes it to the show. All of these guys have a long road ahead of them to get to the show, but we are pulling for them to make it.

GCL - Past, Present & Future

The Gulf Coast League has just finished up its season. Now we get to start looking at where some of them will land next year. To prepare for looking at where they may be headed, let’s look at what happened to last years GCL Astros. Out of last years GCL Astros roster of players who played more than a handful of games, here is where they landed with a few players from each group highlighted.

Traded (1 – 3%)
Luis Bryan to Marlins in the Lindstrum. He started the season in the NYPENN League but was sent back to the GCL and has struggled.

Repeat of GCL (9 – 26%)
Jose Vargas – Repeated the league but changed positions from C to RF. The 19 year old saw his playing time increase but his numbers decreased. One silver lining is that he reduced his K rate significantly.

Ronald Sanchez – The 16th round pick of the 2009 draft out of Puerto Rico has not made the progress that would be expected. His numbers went backwards this year. He turned 19 earlier this month. So he is still young.

Garen Wright – The 29th round pick of the 2009 draft made progress repeating this year. He raised his batting average 46 points and his OPS .69 points. I expect to see him in Greeneville next year.

Mark Jones – The 22nd round draft pick of 09 repeated the GCL this year. He showed some improvement and spent more time as a starter.

Promoted to Greeneville (8 - 24%)

Telvin Nash – Made the move up to Greeneville and has be patrolling left field for the G-Stros. At times, it has been an adventure. The plate is where he is making news. After hitting only 1 HR in 142 AB, he has 11 in 189 so far this season. He is still striking out about one every three at bats, but his OPS jumped .250 points this season. He was named the Greeneville MVP at the game Sunday night.

Euris Quizada – El Grande is a late bloomer. Not signed until before the 09 season, he was sent straight state side to the GCL. This year, he has been a back of the rotation started for the G-Stros. He improved his ERA from almost seven down to just barely over six, but APPY league batters hit .315 while facing him.

Garrett Bullock – The 24 year old NDFA has flourished in Greeneville this season. The tall lefty with a good pick off move has combined better strike out numbers and much better control to put up a solid 1.26 ERA through 43 IP.

Promoted to Tri Cities (2 – 6%)

Enrique Hernadez – Made his debut in the NYPENN League as an 18 year old. Hit .280 in 60 games.

Jack Frawley – The 24 year old NDFA started the 2010 campaign in Greeneville but was sent up to Tri Cities after just 5 appearances. He has since made 6 in Tri Cities. His combined ERA for the year is 3.00.

Promoted to Lexington (4 – 12%)
Kody Hinze – Started 2010 where he started 2009, in Lexington. This time, he has added .100 to his batting average and shown more pop. After a hot start, he is currently at .275 with 44 extra base hits out of 118 hits. He turned 23 during the season.

Juan Minaya – Jumped from the lowest level of state side ball in 09 to full season ball in 2010. He has struggled with his control as a 20 year old in Lexington. He has walked 71 batters in 119 2/3 innings thus far. Batters are only hitting .240 against him.

Tanner Bushue – The second round pick from 09 jumped to full season ball and has stuck there. He has wrapped up a solid August with a 2.64 ERA.

Michael Schurz – The 44th round pick from 09 started the season in Lex and then jumped to Lancaster for a taste of pitching torment. Since returning to Lex, he has kept his ERA just under a touchdown.

Released (10 – 29%)

Jan Baldee – the Dutch SS experiment was a failure. When your batting average over two seasons doesn’t add up to .100, you know you are going to be released.

Back To The Future

So now who do I think could make the move this year. Any of the projections here are likely to be impacted by the draft, and any prospects picked up in trades. Let’s see who the crystal ball says we should keep an eye on for next year.

Greeneville

Chan Moon - The 19 year old from South Korea didn’t hit much but will likely still earn a promotion to Greeneville next year.

Jose Monzon – The 18 year old from Venezuela showed hit .250 for the season with 9 extra base hits (3 HR). He showed good speed too swiping 9 bases in 14 tries. He finished the season strong hitting .381 over the last 6 games but didn’t play after 8/7. Looks like a strong candidate for Greeneville.

Joshua McGee – Hit in the .260s all season before slumping at the end and brining his average down to .227 on the season. He only struck out 15 times in the first 98 AB and then fanned 20 in his last 78. McGee was the 18th pick in the 2010 draft. Another strong candidate for Greeneville.

Matison Smith - The NDFA from Texas turned 22 during the season. He didn’t strike out a bunch and gave up almost a hit per inning pitched; but he managed to keep his ERA at 1.59. I look for him to be in Greeneville next season.

Mark Jones – The 6’ 7” righty faded at the end of the season. His ERA after the month of July was 2.50. He finished the season with a 3.91 ERA. Control must improve for success at the next level. I would like to see him in Greeneville next year.

Tri Cities (or where ever we have a SS A team next year)

Jordan Scott – The lefty hitting OF finished the year with a .301 average and had hit .385 in his last 10 games. Only 33 K in 146 AB. Scott was the 14th round pick of the 2010 draft. I expect to see him in Tri Cities if he continues this pattern of play in Instructs and Spring Training next year.

Ryan Ditthardt - The 22 year old NDFA hit a solid .274, low strike outs but not much power. He will likely jump to Tri Cities next year.

Ebert Rosario – The former 3rd baseman is now a pitcher. He made a few appearances at the end of the season. Had 12 K’s in 10 2/3 IP. I expect he will be in Tri Cities to start the year next year.

Lexington

Juri Perez – Coming back from an elbow injury, Perez had 6 outings at the end of the season. He had one bad outing where he allowed 4 runs in 1/3 of an inning. The rest of the time, he allowed just 1 run in 8 innings. If he is healthy, I could see him jump to Lexington to start 2011.

Dieudone Paul - The 22 year old lefty from Haiti will likely make a significant jump based on his 13 outings this season. I would expect him to at least be in Tri Cities next season and I wouldn’t rule out a jump to Lexington.

Jose Perdomo – The 18 year old from Venezuela fanned 63 batters in 55 1/3 IP. He made 11 starts during the year, and finished with a 4-2 record and a super impressive 1.62 ERA. He might jump straight to Lexington.

Feel free to post your ideas of where theses guys might wind up in the comment section