16 former G-Stros on Instructional Roster

Brian McTaggart just released the Astros roster for the fall instructional league. This year, 16 former G-Stros will be spending a few extra weeks in Kissimmee honing their skills.  Here are the former G-Stros based on when they played here:

2008
Zach Grimmett - appeared in 23 games for Lancaster.  Ten of them as a starter and 13 as a reliever. Finished the year with an 8.21 ERA.

2009
Jonathon Meyer - Hit .272 in his second year in Lancaster.

2010
Telvin Nash - Hit .224 with 29 HR and 198 strikeouts in 106 games in Lancaster.

Delino DeShields - Had a break out year.  Started in Lexington and finished the year in Lancaster.  Stole a combined 101 bases on the season.  He raised his slash line from .220/.305/.322 to .287/.389/.428.  Just turned 20 in August.

Roberto Pena - He also started the year in Lexington but moved up to Lancaster to finish the season.  Pena caught 33% of the base stealers (26 out of 78) in Lexington.  His bat showed some improvement but his glove and arm are what have earned him the invite to instructionals.

2012
Three of the players on this list also played in Greeneville in 2011 but we will group them with their most recent cohort.

Ariel Ovando - He showed significant improvement between 2011 (.235/.283/.365) and 2012 (.287/.350/.444).  All the physical tools are present but he is still learning how to get them to do what they need to do.  He turns 19 later this week so we need to have some patience.

Chris Lee - He started the season in the Appy but was sent down to the GCL where he didn't pitch.  So the instructs will give him a chance to get some work in he missed during the season.  He was also on the team in 2011.

Frances Ramirez - He is the other player who was also on the 2011 roster.  He made four starts in '11 verses the 13 he made in 2012.  You can find more of my thoughts on him at my post Season Recap - Starting Pitcher. You can also use that link to get my thoughts on two other 2012 pitchers invited, Michael Feliz & Lance McCullers Jr.

Kevin Comer and Joe Musgrove were acquired during the year and didn't get many chances to pitch which is why they are heading to Florida for the fall.

The other four players are position players who were drafted this year: Carlos Correa, Rio Ruiz, Terrell Joyce, and Angel Ibanez. Of those four, Ibanez is a bit of a surprise due to his low draft slot but he showed a solid bat during the season and 3rd base is a shallow spot in the Astros organization.  
Overall, former Greeneville players made up almost half (16 out of 33) of the players invited.

Instructional Roster Released

Thanks to Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle for releasing the Instructional League roster.  Here are the former G-Stros who are going to be spending part of their fall in Florida.  I will include the number of players who have played in Greeneville out of the total number at each position as well as they year(s) the player was in Greeneville in parentheses.

Pitchers:(9 out of 22 on roster)

Ruben Alaniz (10)

Ricardo Batista (10, 11)
Jamaine Cotton (10,11)

Michael Foltynewicz   (10)

Christopher Lee (11)
Luis Ordosgoitti (11)
Rodney Quintero (10,11)
Francis Ramirez (11)

Vincent Velasquez (10)

Catchers: (3 out of 6)

Ernesto Genoves (11)
Roberto Pena (10)
Chris Wallace (10)

Infielders: (5 out of 10)

Jean Carlos Batista (11)

Delino DeShields Jr. (10)

Jonathan Meyer (09)

Jiovanni Mier (09)
Telvin Nash (10)

Outfielders: (2 out of 8)

Ariel Ovando (11)

Jordan Scott (11)

Of the  44 players who are on the non rehab roster, here is where they finished the 2011 season.

GCL: 7

Greeneville: 8

TriCities: 8

Lexington: 10

Lancaster: 4

Corpus Christi: 4

No Roster/DL: 3

Instructs & AFL Rosters

Zachary Levine at the Houston Chronicle has posted the roster of players who are in Kissimmee at the Instructional League. This three week season allows for some fine tuning and work with some of the younger prospects. This is where the work begins for "Lino" DeShields to become a second baseman.

Players off the 2010 Greeneville Roster attending include:
Ruben Alaniz
Michael Foltynewicz
Euris Quezada
Rodney Quintero
Roberto Pena
Chris Wallace
Delino DeShields
Marcus Nidiffer
Telvin Nash

Breaking down where the other players spent the MAJORITY of their season:

DSL: 3
The fact the 16 year old Ariel Ovando is in Instructs is a strong sign he will be state side for spring training. Here's hoping he winds up in G'ville.

GCL: 11
A couple of teens to watch out of this group, Jose Fernandez who won't turn 18 until next May, and Jordan Scott who put up solid numbers for a 14th round pick out of HS.

Tri Cities: 11
No surprise Ben Heath is on the list since he finished the year at AA. Glad to see Thomas Shirley on the list since he hadn't pitched since mid July.

Lexington: 11
Last years draft darlings, Mier & Meyer, return to recover from the dose of reality they faced this year.

Lancaster: 5
Jay Austin is spending time in instructs prior to heading out to Arizona for fall league.

AFL Roster Moves
Levine also reports there have been some changes to the Arizona Fall League players from the Astros. T. J. Steele has been removed from the roster and replaced with Jay Austin. Also Brandon Barnes has been added to the roster and according to his twitter, it is as a member of the Taxi Squad. That means he can only play on Wednesdays and Saturdays. But at bats against strong competition is a good thing.