TL1 Corpus Christi Hooks

Game Notes, June 30 - Corpus Christi at Tulsa

Published on June 30, 2011 under Texas League (TL1)
Corpus Christi Hooks News Release


Corpus Christi (3-3, 28-48) @ Tulsa (4-2, 37-39)

The Hooks are back in action following the Texas League All-Star break, opening a three-game series tonight at ONEOK Field against the Tulsa Drillers. The Hooks last played on Monday, falling at home to Frisco 6-3 in a most memorable game. Corpus Christi starter Xavier Cedeno struck out the first nine Frisco batters on the way to 14 Ks over 6.2 innings of one-hit, shutout work. Cedeno did not figure in the decision, as the RoughRiders rallied for six runs over the final two frames.

The boys opened the 2011 season here in Tulsa, dropping two of three that opening weekend. The Hooks returned the favor the following weekend, hence, these clubs have split their six meetings this year.

Tonight's Matchup:

RHP Jonnathan Aristil (3-6, 6.29) vs. RHP Rob Scahill (5-5, 4.63)

Aristil, obtained by the Astros in December along with LHP Wes Musick in the deal that sent RHP Matt Lindstrom to Colorado, makes his 16th appearance and 15th start for the Hooks. Last Thursday at home against San Antonio, Aristil had his shortest and worst outing of the year, losing 7-3. He was charged with seven earned runs on seven hits and three walks in just 2.1 innings. Anthony Contreras went 2-for-2 with a double and three RBIs while Sawyer Carroll added a solo home run off Aristil. Since tossing four innings of crisp, no-hit, shutout relief at Midland June 8, Aristil is 0-2 in his last three starts with a 9.26 ERA. The Dominican native leads the league in walks allowed (43), is tied for fourth in home runs allowed (14) and stands fourth in strikeouts (71). Originally signed by the Rockies as a non-drafted free agent in July of 2003, the former infielder was converted to pitching while with the DSL Rockies early in 2006. At the plate Aristil is 2-for-11 with 1 walk, 1 sacrifice bunt and 2 runs. Lifetime as a hitter he is 36-for-256 (.141) with 1 HR and 17 RBIs.

· Is 1-4 with a 7.71 ERA in 6 road games and 5 starts (2-2, 5.51, 9 home starts)

· In 2 starts against the Drillers is 0-1 with a 3.86 ERA (4 ER in 9.1 IP)

· His 14 HRs allowed have accounted for 23 of the 53 runs he's given up this year

Scahill, an eighth-round selection of the Rockies in 2009 out of Bradley University, makes his 15th start this season and his second against the Hooks. Last Thursday here against Northwest Arkansas, Scahill allowed six runs, five earned, on eight hits and three walks over 5.1 innings, but got the win in a 12-8 final. Over his last four starts, Scahill is 1-2 with a 6.04 ERA. He spent all last season with Modesto in the California League, where he went 10-7 with a 4.73 ERA in 27 starts. Scahill ranked fourth in the circuit in both innings pitched (156.0) and strikeouts (140).

· Fashioned four consecutive quality starts May 16-June 2 (2-0, 2.67 ERA)

· Named the Cal League's Pitcher of the Week (July 12-18) for his July 15 complete-game win at Lancaster

· Earned Bradley's Mike Dunne Award in 2009, going 3-3 with a 4.05 ERA in 10 starts his junior year

Keuchel, Martinez shine in All-Star Game

LHP Dallas Keuchel and outfielder J.D. Martinez made major contributions to the South Division in their 3-2 win over the North Division in last night's Texas League All-Star Game at Wolff Municipal Stadium in San Antonio. Keuchel was the only South Division pitcher to go beyond an inning of work, tossing two shutout frames. He allowed one hit and one walk while striking out three. Keuchel pitched out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam in the fifth by striking out two of the toughest hitters in the league - Mike Trout of Arkansas and Tulsa's Tim Wheeler.

Martinez started in left and batted sixth in the order, going 2-for-4 with a double. His second-inning single was instrumental in the South grabbing a 1-0 lead.

Jimmy Paredes entered the game as a defensive replacement in the sixth and got one at-bat - flying out to right in the eighth. LHP Xavier Cedeno did not pitch in the game.

Brad James joins the fold

RHP Brad James, second in franchise history in starts (48) and third all-time in innings pitched (247.2), is active for tonight's game in Tulsa. James was officially added to Corpus Christi's roster on the off-day Tuesday, reassigned from Tri-City in the New York-Penn League, where in five relief appearances he was 1-0 with a 3.18 ERA, with 4 hits, 3 walks and 8 strikeouts in 5.2 innings.

James underwent surgery on his right shoulder in December, 2009, and missed all of last season. The native of Prosper, Texas, spent a portion of 2007 and all of 2008 and 2009 with the Hooks, going 9-21 with a 5.92 ERA in 50 games and 48 starts.

Also on Tuesday, the Astros reassigned LHP Shane Wolf to Lancaster of the California League. In 22 games and 1 start this season with the Hooks, Wolf was 1-4 with a 5.98 ERA.

Record performance

Cedeno's effort Monday against Frisco sent everyone to the record books. The lefty established a new Hooks record for most strikeouts in a single game, topping the previous mark of 12 held by Mitch Talbot, now with the Cleveland Indians.

While there are no records for most consecutive strikeouts to begin a game in the Texas League, we do know that Cedeno fell one strikeout shy of the league mark for consecutive Ks. That record still belongs to Harry Ables who, while pitching for San Antonio in a game on August 9, 1910, struck out 10 batters in a row.

Pitching Rotation at Tulsa

Friday: RHP Ross Seaton (3-5, 5.70) vs. RHP Josh Sullivan (2-6, 6.78)

Saturday: RHP Erick Abreu (4-1, 3.90) vs. RHP Dan Houston (1-0, 0.00)

HOOKS PLAYER NOTES

Jose Altuve

· Leads all full-season minor leagues with his .399 batting average (127x318)

· Has 6-game hit streak, 10-23 with 4 runs and 1 RBI

· Hits in 21 of the last 22 games, 34-90 with 7 doubles, 3 triples, 2 HRs, 13 runs and 15 RBIs

· Has 14 multi-hit games w/ the Hooks

· In 52 games w/Lancaster batted .408-5-34 and was leading the Cal League in hits (87) and triples (7) at the time of his promotion

· Was named Lancaster's offensive player of the month for May (.388-3-22, 7 SB)

· Batting .373(31-83) vs. RHP; .409(9-22) vs. LHP; .379(11-29) w/RISP

· Has 43 PO, 59 A, 2 E (Fielding pct. of .981)

· In 2010 combined to hit .301-15-67 with 42 steals between Lexington and Lancaster

Jon Gaston

· Came off the temporarily inactive list last Friday - 2nd time this month

· Hits in 6 of his last 7 games, 9-28 with 2 HRs, 5 runs and 6 RBIs

· Hits in 9 of his last 13 games, 15-47 with 1 double, 2 HRs, 5 runs and 8 RBIs

· Batting .248(40-161) vs. RHP; .203(12-59) vs. LHP; .194(14-72) w/RISP

Jacob Goebbert

· Joined club May 6 from Lancaster, where he batted .260-5-18 in 26 games

· Hits in 8 of the last 10 games, 12-42 with 4 doubles, 1 HR, 5 runs and 3 RBIs

· Batting .313(41-131) vs. RHP; .256(10-39) vs. LHP; .375(18-48) w/RISP

· Spent all of 2010 with Lexington, batted .291-10-98 with 14 steals in 135 games

· A 13th-round pick of the Astros in 2009 out of Northwestern University

Federico Hernandez

· Was gone from the club for just two days last week

· Played in just one game for Lancaster, last Thursday at Rancho Cucamonga (0-1)

· Went 0-6 in home stand with 5 walks, 3 Ks and 1 RBI (last played June 20 vs. SA)

· Batting .143(16-112) vs. RHP; .140(6-43) vs. LHP; .190(8-42) w/RISP

· Has thrown out 8 of 40 (20.0%) would-be base stealers

J.D. Martinez

· Went 2-for-4 with a double in last night's TL All-Star Game

· Hits in 15 of the last 17 games, 22-67 with 3 doubles, 3 HRs, 11 runs and 11 RBIs

· Has 16 multi-hit games

· Has hitting streaks this season of 12 games (June 11-22) and 11 games (April 7-18)

· Established a club-record nine-game RBI streak (April 11-21) with 14 RBIs

· Batting .323(51-158) vs. RHP; .297(19-64) vs. LHP; .353(24-68) w/RISP

· Houston's Minor League Player of the Year in 2010 (.341-18-89, 5 SBs)

Jimmy Paredes

· Went 0-for-1 (F9) in his lone at-bat in last night's TL All-Star Game

· Is 0-12 in the last 3 games; 1-15 in Frisco series with 1 walk and 2 runs

· Is 2-20 this half with 1 HR, 3 runs and 2 RBIs

· Ranked third in the TL in steals (24)

· Has 20 multi-hit games, including two 4-hit games

· Batting .269(52-193) vs. RHP; .257(19-74) vs. LHP; .278(20-72) w/RISP

· Has 92 PO, 135 A, 11 E (Fielding pct. of .954)

· Hit .287-8-65 last year with Charleston and Lexington, ranking third in the South Atlantic League with 50 stolen bases

T.J. Steele

· Hits in 6 of the last 7 games, 7-27 with 1 HR, 3 runs and 2 RBIs

· Walk-off home run Sunday night his first HR since June 9 at Midland

· Has single-season career highs in games (74), at-bats (277) and steals (14)

· Batting .183(36-197) vs. RHP; .275(22-80) vs. LHP; .205(17-83) w/RISP

· In his first three pro seasons hit .281-10-79 in 157 games; his playing time hampered by a variety of injuries

Jose Vallejo

· Joined Hooks June 8 from AAA Oklahoma City

· In 37 games with the RedHawks batted .209(19x91) with 1 double, 2 HRs, 7 RBIs and 1 SB

· Is 1-18 in his last 9 games with 1 run and 1 RBI

· In 34 games last year with the Hooks hit .111-0-2 with 1 SB

· Acquired by the Astros along with RHP Matt Nevarez in the deal that sent C Ivan Rodriguez to Texas in August of 2009

Jimmy VanOstrand

· Has 4-game hit streak, 7-12 with 1 HR, 2 runs and 4 RBIs

· Hits in 8 of his last 11 games, 15-34 with 2 doubles, 2 HRs, 5 runs and 9 RBIs

· Leads team with 23 multi-hit games

· Named CC's May offensive player of the month (.310-1-12, .393 OBP, .833 OPS)

· Is Corpus Christi's all-time franchise leader with 152 RBIs

· Batting .310(57-184) vs. RHP; .275(19-69) vs. LHP; .250(18-72) w/RISP

Jonathan Villar

· Is 1-10 this half

· Injured his right ankle in 2nd inning last Friday night; status is day-to-day

· In 47 games with Lancaster hit .259-4-26 with 20 stolen bases

· Batting .292(19-65) as a right-handed hitter; .226(43-190) as a lefty hitter

· Has 29 PO, 46 A, 7 E (Fielding pct. of .915)

· Rated as Astros #3 prospect entering the 2011 season by Baseball America

Chris Wallace

· Joined club last Thursday from Lexington in the South Atlantic League

· Has 4-game hit streak, 5-15 with 2 RBIs

· In 66 games with the Legends hit .285 (69x242) with 16 doubles, 3 triples, 14 HRs, 37 runs and 49 RBIs

· Went 1-for-2 with a double to help the South defeat the North 6-3 in the South Atlantic League All-Star Game June 21

· Named the SAL's Batter of the Week April 7-17 (.444-5-17 in 10 games)

· In just his second year of pro ball...last year split his time between Greeneville (.310-8-32) and Tri-City (.250-2-8), hitting .293 overall

· A 16th-round pick of the Astros last year out of the University of Houston

· In 4 seasons with the Cougars hit .291-20-96 over 162 games and was picked All-Conference USA Second Team in 2009 (junior year)

Brandon Wikoff

· Has 3-game hit streak, 5-12

· Is 12-48(.250) in June with 2 runs and 1 RBI

· Named the TL's Batter of the Week April 25-May 1 (.600, 18x30)

· Named CC's May defensive player of the month (15 PO, 48 A, 1 E, .984 FP)

· Hit first career HR April 27 at Midland in his 657th pro at-bat

· Has 17 multi-hit games, including two 4-hit games

· Batting .369(45-122) vs. RHP; .333(13-39) vs. LHP; .417(15-36) w/RISP

BULLPEN REPORT

Starters: 20-29, 4.88 ERA, 418.2 IP, 53 HR, 149 BB, 322 K, .268 AVG

Relievers: 8-19, 4.92 ERA, 257.2 IP, 22 HR, 147 BB, 233 K, .268 AVG

Kyle Greenwalt

· Last appearance: Allowed just 1 H in the 8th Saturday night vs. Frisco

· Shut down SA over 2 frames June 22, allowing a hit while fanning 3

· Yielded Mike Bianucci's game-winning 3-run homer in the 13th inning June 18 prior to 2 scoreless IP

· 5 of his last 6 appearances have been of the scoreless variety (9 IP, 8 K, 2 BB)

· Made first relief appearance May 30 at Ark...tagged with the loss, allowing 3 runs on 2 hits in 1.0 IP

· Went 2-5 with a 9.31 ERA in 9 starts...yielded 8 HR, walked 12 and fanned 28 in 38.2 IP

· Tagged for 31 ER over 6 outings in May, issuing 10 walks and 17 strikeouts in 19.1 innings

· Led the JetHawks in wins and ranked second in starts (27) and innings pitched (136.2) last season

· Went 2-0 with a 2.35 ERA in 5 starts for the Peoria Javelinas this past fall

· Greeneville's MVP in 2008 (6-4, 3.14 ERA), posting the second-best overall ERA (3.01) in the system

Blake King

· Last appearance: Tossed 1.2 scoreless innings Sunday night vs. Frisco, walking 1 and fanning 1

· Blanked the Missions in the 8th on June 23

· Has yielded 1 run over last 5 appearances (7.2 IP, 7 Ks, 3 BB)

· Yielded 4 runs in first four appearances (3.2 IP), walking 7 against 5 Ks

· Claimed off waivers from the Cardinals on May 26

· Was 2-0 with a 11.08 ERA in 15 games at Memphis / Yielded 2 runs on in 1.1 IP with Springfield

· Rated by BA as having the best slider in the St. Louis system in 2010

· Went 4-3 with a 2.91 ERA at Springfield last season, tossed 84 Ks over 68.0 IP - 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings - one of the highest ratios in the minors

· Held the opposition to a .171 batting average, tops among Texas League relievers

Arcenio Leon

· Last appearance: Earned his first victory Saturday night, holding the ‚¬ËœRiders to 1 hit over 1.1 IP

· Has not surrendered a run in last 4 appearances, fanning 9 while walking 2 over 5.1 IP

· Struck out 4 over 2 scoreless IP June 23 vs. the Missions, notching his first save

· Has walked a batter in 15 of his 25 games this year

· 17 free passes, 4 WP in 9 game stretch from May 2 to June 8 (12 IP, 6.75 ERA), throwing 124 of 245 pitches for strikes

· Did not allow an ER thru first 7 outings (11 IP)

· Features a groundout to air out ratio of 2.06

· Would have ranked fifth among relievers in the South Atlantic League last season with a .201 opponents' batting average, but fell two frames shy of the league qualifier

· Made his AA debut w/ Hooks July 19 and limited opponents to 2 ER in first 6 app. (2.16 ERA)

Mike Perconte

· Last appearance: Surrendered the lead Monday night in the 8th on a 2-run double by Guilder Rodriguez

· Also faced former club June 24, notching a scoreless 7th (1 H, 1 K)

· (2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K) June 16 at WF as a member of the RoughRiders

· Released by Texas on Sunday and signed by the Astros on Wednesday

· Tagged for 3 ER in a 1/3 inning at Midland

· Surrendered a grand slam to J.D. Martinez on May 2 (6 R, 2.1 IP) at Whataburger Field

· 12 of his 20 appearances have been of the scoreless variety

· Released by the Cubs after spring training

· 5-2 with a 3.71 ERA and 7 saves (10 chances) in 48 appearances for Daytona last season

· Entered 2011 with a 12-6 career record and 4.02 ERA in 3 seasons: 207 K, 79 BB over 208.1 IP

· Originally acquired by Chicago as a non-drafted FA in 2008 out of Murray State

· Father, Jack, played 6 seasons in the majors at 2B with the Dodgers, Indians, Mariners & White Sox

Patrick Urckfitz

· Last appearance: Worked 1.1 IP for the RedHawks on Saturday: 2 R on 5 H at Round Rock

· Had yielded 11 ER and 16 H 5.2 IP at OKC before being reassigned to CC yesterday

· Not charged with a run in last 5 appearances (6.2 IP) or in 16 of his 22 outings this season for CC

· Recorded club's 1st multi-frame save May 21 against Midland: 2 BBs, 3 Ks, 2 IP

· Yielded just 1 earned run in first 7 appearances (10.2 IP)

· Shifted to Lancaster's rotation full-time in early July last season to gain more innings

· Led the JetHawks in strikeouts (103) and tied for fourth in victories (5)

· For the season, averaged 8.78 strikeouts per nine innings and 3.24 Ks for every walk.

· In 2009, ranked second in the Astros organization with 14 saves

Henry Villar

· Last appearance: Saddled with the loss Monday night after 6 singles led to 4 runs in the 9th inning

· Broke a string of 7 (8.0 IP) consecutive scoreless outings to open 2011 tenure with CC

· Had faced 3 over the minimum, throwing 73 of 103 pitches for strikes

· 2011 Hooks debut June 13 at SA

· Back from being placed on the disabled list with shoulder fatigue May 22

· Went 2-1 with a 6.81 ERA in 10 appearances (7 starts) at Oklahoma City

· Allowed 4 runs and 10 walks against 2 strikeouts over 6.1 innings as a RedHawk reliever

· Made his big-league debut last season as a September call-up, yielding 3 ER in 6 IP

· Was 4-7 with a 4.15 ERA for the 2010 Hooks, appearing in 25 of 36 games out of the bullpen

· Won Corpus Christi's pitcher of the month honors for April, allowing 1 ER in 12.2 IP

· Shifted to Lancaster's rotation full-time in early July last season to gain more innings

· Struck out 109 batters and walked 18 in 90.0 IP for Lexington in 2009

Check out the Corpus Christi Hooks Statistics

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