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PCL Sugar Land Space Cowboys

Sugar Land Space Cowboys 2024 Season in Review

October 23, 2024 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Sugar Land Space Cowboys News Release


SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS SEASON IN REVIEW CLIMBED HIGH : After clinching their 93rd win on the last day of the regular season, the Space Cowboys became the first team in the Pacific Coast League to win more than 92 games since the Albuquerque Dukes, who won 94 games in 1981... Sugar Land also won the most games in the regular season in Minor League Baseball, becoming the only team to surpass the 90-win mark in 2024... Their 48 road victories this year were also the most by any team in Minor League Baseball.

STOREY'S TIME : In his sixth season managing and his fifth season leading the Astros' Triple-A affiliate, Manager Mickey Storey won his first Championship as a manager, guiding the Space Cowboys to the PCL and Triple-A National Championship... Storey was also recognized as the Pacific Coast League Manager of the Year in 2024, the first Manager of the Year honor for him... Storey did have experience in a one-game playoff, leading the Surprise Saguaros of the Arizona Fall League to the AFL title in 2022.

GOOD PITCHING BEATS GOOD HITTING : Facing the Reno Aces, who led Minor League Baseball in batting average (.286) and were second in MiLB in runs scored (910) in the regular season, the Space Cowboys stifled the Aces bats in the Pacific Coast League Cham- pionship Series, holding Reno to four combined runs and nine total hits (9-for-63, .143) across two games....

The Aces nine hits were the second fewest in the Minor Leagues in the postseason and their four combined runs were tied for the second fewest runs.

AT THEIR BEST WHEN IT MATTERED MOST : During their three postseason games, Sugar Land combined to hit .340 (36-for-106) with nine doubles, seven home runs and 32 runs scored... They led MiLB in the postseason in batting average and tied for the MiLB postseason lead in home runs, despite playing fewer games than Omaha (4 games) and Lake County (5 games)... Every batter for Sugar Land scored at least one run in the postseason and all but two of the 12 total hitters recorded at least one RBI.

OUT IN FRONT : In their three postseason games, the Space Cowboys scored first in all three games and never finished an inning trailing... The only deficit Sugar Land faced was in the top of the third in the Triple-A National Championship Game, falling behind 4-3, but the Space Cowboys promptly scored five in the bottom of the frame to take the lead for good.

COOP GOES CRAZY : Designated Hitter Cooper Hummel was a menace at the plate during the post- season, going 9-for-14 (.643) with three doubles, two home runs, four RBI and five runs scored for Sugar Land... In the Pacific Coast League Championship Series alone, Hummel went 7-for-9 with two doubles, a home run, two RBI and three runs scored.

CABBAGE-MANIA : OF/INF Trey Cabbage paced the Space Cowboys with five RBI in the postseason... He registered an RBI in every contest and homered in both games of the Pacific Coast League Championship Series.

VANWEY IS THE GUY : RHP Logan VanWey pitched in relief in all three postseason games for the Space Cowboys, hurling 3.1 shutout frames with a strikeout and a double play, registering two holds for the Space Cowboys... The 25-year-old inherited at least one runner in every relief appearance that he made and stranded all five total runners that he inherited.

ABOUT THE 2024 SEASON: In their fourth season as an affiliated team, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys went 93-56 overall in the regular season, setting a new single-season Space Cowboys record for victories (pre- vious - 75, 2021)... Sugar Land compiled a 49-26 record in the first half and went 44-30 in the second half... The Space Cowboys clinched home-field advantage in the Pacific Coast League Championship Series by virtue of winning the First Half, and also clinched the Second Half Pacific Coast League Title as well... Sugar Land swept the Reno Aces in two games, 14-2 and 5-2, clinching their first Pacific Coast League Championship while advancing to the Triple-A National Championship Game to take on the winners of the International League, the Oma- ha Storm Chasers... At Las Vegas Ballpark, the Space Cowboys beat the Storm Chasers 13-6 on September 28, winning their first Triple-A National Championship.

TRIPLE-A CHAMPIONSHIP RECAP : After sweeping the Reno Aces in the PCL Championship Series, the Space Cowboys took on the Omaha Storm Chasers for the Triple-A National Championship Game at Las Vegas Ballpark... Sugar Land took a quick 3-0 lead in the first two frames on a sacrifice fly from Trey Cabbage and a two-run single from Omar Narváez... LHP Colton Gordon got the start and hurled two scoreless innings before giving up four in the third on a solo homer and three- run home run... However, the Space Cowboys regained the lead and never looked back, powered by a pair of bases-loaded walks, a bases-clearing double from Shay Whitcomb, and solo home runs from Cooper Hummel and Brice Matthews... Scoreless relief efforts from Nick Hernandez, Logan VanWey, Forrest Whitley, Luis Contreras and Wander Suero helped Sugar Land take the contest 13-6 to claim the 2024 Triple-A National Cham- pionship, their first in their four-year history.

RING SECURED : By sweeping the Reno Aces in their best-of-three series, the Space Cowboys clinched their first Pacific Coast League title, winning a championship in their fourth season in the league after joining the affili- ated ranks as the Astros' Triple-A affiliate in 2021... As a part of Independent Baseball, the Sugar Land Skeeters were Atlantic League Champions in 2016 and 2018.

M-V-P! : INF Shay Whitcomb was named the MVP of the Triple-A National Championship game after going 3-for-5 with a double, three RBI and a run scored on his 26th birthday.

BACK ON TOP : Sugar Land became the second Astros Triple-A affiliate to win the Triple-A National Champion- ship since the event began in 2006, joining the Fresno Grizzlies in 2015.

TALE OF TWO HALVES : During their run to a First Half PCL Title, Sugar Land sported the best offense in baseball, leading both Major and Minor League Baseball in runs scored (507), averaging 6.7 runs per contest...

They also led MiLB in homers, knocking 116 in their first 75 games and had a collective .850 OPS, the highest in full-season MiLB.

In the second half of the season (since 6/25), Sugar Land had the best pitching staff in Triple-A, registering a 3.70 ERA as a staff... They were the only team in Triple-A to record an ERA under 4.00 during the second half of the season (next - Columbus, 4.07)... The Space Cowboys also led Triple-A in batting average against (.222) and saves (26), were tied for the lowest WHIP (1.30 - Scran- ton W/B) and were fourth in strikeouts (693, most in the PCL).... Overall, the Space Cowboys finished 2024 with the best ERA in the Pacific Coast League, pitching to a 4.41 ERA while allowing the fewest hits (1231) and finishing second in K's (1379).

NICK THE GREAT : Missouri City, TX native Nick Hernandez helped con- tribute to a pair of firsts in the postseason for the Space Cowboys... The righty collected the final three outs in the Space Cowboys first ever Triple-A post- season victory on September 24 against Reno, and was the winning pitcher for Sugar Land in the Triple-A National Championship on September 28.

HEY NOW, YOU'RE AN ALL-STAR : Six Sugar Land Space Cowboys were named Pacific Coast League All-Stars in 2024, the most of any team in the circuit... It included Outfielder Pedro León, Designated Hitter Shay Whit- comb, Starter AJ Blubaugh, Starter Ryan Gusto, Starter Colton Gordon and Relief Pitcher Wander Suero... It is a single-season record for Sugar Land for All-Stars after five players were selected in 2021... The Space Cowboys did not have any All-Stars in 2023.

ONE-TWO-THREE PUNCH : RHP Ryan Gusto, LHP Colton Gordon and RHP AJ Blubaugh dominated the Pacific Coast League during the regular season and finished at the top of the leaderboard in multiple categories, including being top three in ERA (Gusto - 3.70, Blubaugh - 3.83, Gordon - 3.94), top three in BAA (Gordon - .238, Gusto - .242, Blubaugh - .250), top four in WHIP (1st, Gordon - 1.22, 2nd, Gusto - 1.27, 4th, Blubaugh - 1.35), top three in win percentage (1st, Gordon - .800, 2nd, Blubaugh - .750, 3rd, Gusto - .571) and top five in strikeouts (1st Gusto - 141, 3rd, Blubaugh - 128, 5th, Gordon - 124)... The last time a team held the top three spots in ERA in the Pacific Coast League was the 2005 Memphis Redbirds with Kevin Jarvis (3.38), Chris Gissell (3.54) and Anthony Reyes (3.64).

WANDERED INTO THE HISTORY BOOKS : RHP Wander Suero racked up 37 saves in 39 opportunities this season in 67 overall appearances, all leading MiLB... After a save on 9/7 to secure a 4-1 win against Oklahoma City, the Space Cowboys closer took sole possession of the PCL single-season saves record at 34, surpassing Chris Hatcher (2013 - New Orleans) and Ryan Speier (2007 - Colorado Springs)... Including the postseason, Suero convert- ed 30 consecutive saves since May 30 to finish out his year.

BRINGING HOME THE HARDWARE : Over the course of the 2024 season, nine different Space Cowboys were awarded a variety of accolades from Minor League Baseball and the Houston Astros... From the Pacific Coast League, Joey Loperfido was named the Player of the Month for April and the Player of the Week on April 15... RHP Ryan Gusto was named the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Month for July and the Pitcher of the Week for August 15... INF Jesús Bastidas was named Player of the Week (May 20), while Sugar Land had three pitchers earn PCL Pitcher of the Week honors including RHP Blair Henley (May 28), RHP AJ Blubaugh (June 25) and LHP Colton Gordon twice (August 26 and September 9)... From an organizational perspective, Shay Whitcomb was twice named the Astros Upper-Level Minor League Player of the Month (May and June) while Joey Loperfido was recog- nized in April and C César Salazar was honored in August... On the mound, RHP Logan VanWey earned Upper-Level Minor League Pitcher of the Month for May and RHP Ryan Gusto was recognized in July as the Upper-Level Minor League Pitcher of the Month.

FIRST HALF CHAMPS! : With their 7-1 win on 6/19, the Space Cowboys clinched the first half Pacific Coast League title, securing the best record in the first half in the entire league... Sugar Land played their best baseball down the stretch, going 12-2 in their last 14 games en route to the franchis- es' first postseason berth in affiliated history... After taking over the best record in the league on 4/26 with a record of 17-8, the Space Cowboys never fell out of first place or a tie for first place in the PCL standings the rest of the way...Sugar Land finished the first half with a 49-26 record, tied for the most wins in Minor League Baseball in the first half in 2024 with Omaha.

THE GOOSE GOT LOOSE : After registering a 8.03 ERA in his first 11 appearances of the season, RHP Ryan Gusto was one of the best pitchers in Minor League Baseball after June 6... From June 6 to the end of the season, Gusto went 8-5 with a 2.08 ERA in 18 outings, 17 starts, throwing 108.0 in- nings, only giving up 25 earned runs with 27 walks and 98 strikeouts... Gusto registered a 0.96 WHIP and held opponents to a .199 batting average against in that stretch... After June 1, Gusto did not have an outing where he went less than 5.0 innings, and he turned in 11 quality outings, 10 of them starts, in his final 18 appearances.

From June 6 through August 11, Gusto led Minor League Baseball in innings pitched (68.2) while registering the second lowest ERA among qualified pitcher in MiLB (1.31) and the sixth lowest WHIP (0.84). For the season, Gusto led the Pacific Coast League in strikeouts (141), setting a new single-season Space Cowboys' franchise record, and was second in innings pitched (148.1), while finishing first among qualified pitchers in ERA (3.70) and second in BAA (.242) and WHIP (1.27).

MR. CLUTCH STRIKES AGAIN : Shay Whitcomb launched nine game-ty- ing or go-ahead home runs in 2024, with five of the nine coming in the sev- enth inning or later... Sugar Land would go on to win all nine games in which Whitcomb hit a game-tying or go-ahead homer.

4/18 vs. RR - Solo HR in the 6th to break a 5-5 tie (W, 7-6)

5/3 @ ELP - Solo HR in the 4th to tie the game at 5-5 (W, 9-6)

6/6 @ SL - Solo HR in the 7th to tie the game at 1-1 (W, 3-2 in 10)

6/12 vs. OKC - 3-R HR in the 8th to break a 2-2 tie (W, 6-2)

6/27 vs. TAC - 3-R HR in the 8th to break a 6-6 tie (W, 9-6)

7/23 vs. SAC - Grand Slam in the 5th with Sugar Land trailing 3-2 (W, 7-3)

7/31 @ RR - Solo HR in the 8th to tie the game at 4-4 (W, 7-4)

8/4 @ RR - 2-R HR in the 6th to break a 0-0 tie (W, 4-1)

8/13 @ TAC - 2-R HR in the 7th to break a 4-4 tie (W, 6-5)

A NEW RBI LEADER : INF Shay Whitcomb's 91 RBI in 2024 set a new Space Cowboys single-season record, surpassing Corey Julks 89 RBI in 2022.

WHAT'S A LOSING STREAK? : During the 2024 season, Sugar Land only lost three or more games in a row three times, dropping three in a row from May 31 to June 2, falling in six straight games from August 14 through August 20 and dropping three in a row from September 12 to 14.

GORDO GOES OFF : Across his final seven outings (after August 18), LHP Colton Gordon was lights out, going 2-1 with a 1.62 ERA, giving up seven total runs in 39.0 innings of work with nine walks and 47 strikeouts... Gordon held opponents to a .157 batting average against with a 0.77 WHIP to close out the year... Five of his last seven starts were quality outings, with Gordon tying a single-game career high 6.2 innings twice (August 18 and September 21) while setting a single-game career high in strikeouts with 11 on August 24.... Including the postseason, Sugar Land went an incredible 21-4 in 25 games started by Gordon in 2024.

AJ IS A1 : RHP AJ Blubaugh became the first Space Cowboys hurler ever to register double-digit victories in a season, going 12-4 with a 3.83 ERA in 27 appearances, 25 starts... He led the Pacific Coast League in victories and was fourth in the league in strikeouts (128)... The 24-year-old was the lone representative for the Houston Astros in the MLB All-Star Futures Game in 2024... He was the starter for the Space Cowboys in Game One of the Pacific Coast League Championship Series, throwing 5.2 innings and giving up just two runs, receiving the win in Sugar Land's first ever Pacific Coast League postseason victory.

A HIGH QUANTITY OF QUALITY : Sugar Land received 26 quality starts from their starting pitchers in 2024, with Ryan Gusto (10), Colton Gordon (7), AJ Bluabugh (6) and Blair Henley (3) delivering the quality starts for Sugar Land... It set a new single-season record, passing 18 quality starts in 2021.

LEÃ"N KING : With another outstanding season with the Space Cowboys, OF Pedro León is now the all-time franchise leader in hits (360), total bases (639), doubles (77), home runs (62), RBI (227), walks (191), runs scored (234), stolen bases (92), hit by pitch (44), plate appearances (1676), at bats (1426) and games (378).

(VAN)WEY USE SOMEONE ELSE? : RHP Logan VanWey made 60 ap- pearances for the Space Cowboys in 2024, the second most appearances of any pitcher in Minor League Baseball, trailing only teammate Wander Suero...

VanWey recorded 98 strikeouts, the most among relievers in the Pacific Coast League in 2024 and 18th most overall among pitchers in the PCL.

CRAZY EIGHT: OF/INF Trey Cabbage had an explosive game on May 29 against the Aviators... It all started in the fourth inning when the lefty smashed a grand slam to put the Space Cowboys ahead after finding themselves with a 6-0 deficit early on... Cabbage knocked a three-run shot in the seventh inning to give Sugar Land a 14-7 lead... In the ninth, he capped off his impressive night with an RBI double, his eighth RBI of the night, a career-high for Cabbage... It also tied the most RBIs in a game in Space Cowboys franchise history, joining JJ Matijevic, who collected eight RBI on May 2, 2023 @ ABQ.

PROSPECTING : With MLB Pipeline's post-draft adjustment, the Space Cowboys roster sported eight of the Astros' Top 30 prospects to end the season, including: OF Jacob Melton (#1), INF Brice Matthews (#3), RHP Miguel Ullola (#7), RHP AJ Blubaugh (#9), LHP Colton Gordon (#11), INF Shay Whitcomb (#14), OF Pedro León (#21) and OF Kenedy Corona (#22)... Melton ranked in MLB Pipeline's Top 100 Prospects at #93.

SERIE-OUSLY SPEAKING : In 2024, Sugar Land went 16-5-6 in series... The Space Cowboys lost just two six-game series all season, with their other series defeats coming in a five-game set and a pair of three-game series.

FROM WORST TO FIRST : After finishing 2023 with a 61-89 record and placing last in the Pacific Coast League, Sugar Land authored a 32-win im- provement in 2024 en route to the Triple-A Championship.

TRANSACTION TRACKER : During the 2024 season, the Space Cowboys made 222 transactions, sending 23 players to the Astros throughout the year... Overall, Sugar Land had 28 different position players and 39 different pitchers for a total of 67 players in 2024.

LOPERFIDO LAUNCHING : OF Joey Loperfido started the season hot, homering three times in his first two contests, including his first plate ap- pearance of the season on March 29 in Round Rock... Through March/April, Loperfido hit 13 home runs in 25 games, the most home runs by a Triple-A batter in March/April since 2013... He surpassed Astros DH Yordan Alvarez, who hit 12 home runs in March/April in 2019.

In his first 25 games with Sugar Land, Loperfido slashed .287/.393/.713 /1.106 with four doubles, 13 home runs, 27 RBI, 31 runs scored with 16 walks and five stolen bases... At the time Loperfido had his contract selected by the Astros on April 30, he led MiLB in home runs and runs scored and was third in slugging percentage.

LONG GONE SUMMER: From May 19 to June 12, the Space Cowboys hit at least one home run in every game, marking 21 straight games with a long ball... The 21-game home run streak is a franchise best, surpassing the season high set earlier in 2024 after hitting a homer in 10 consecutive games from April 27 to May 8... It came one game shy of tying the Pacific Coast League record for consecutive games with a homer, set in 1958 by the Phoe- nix Giants, who hit a home run in 22 straight games from May 26 to June 16.

400 CLUB : Manager Mickey Storey collected his 400th career win on May 14 at Albuquerque when Sugar Land took down the Isotopes 16-7.

TWICE IS NICE : On April 12 at Albuquerque, OF Joey Loperfido homered twice in the seventh inning, hitting a two-run homer in his first time up before connecting for a grand slam in his next turn in the frame... He became the first player in the Pacific Coast League to hit two home runs in an inning since Brett Eibner on May 12, 2016 with Omaha against Memphis.

WHITLEY'S RETURN : Following a stint on the IL from April 26 to June 19, RHP Forrest Whitley returned to the mound on June 23 and was dominant the rest of the season... Across 27 relief appearances, Whitley went 3-1 with a 0.95 ERA, giving up just three earned runs in 28.1 innings, surrendering only one home run and 13 walks with 37 strikeouts, holding opponents to a .192 batting average against... The righty made 15 straight appearances without allowing an earned run from June 29 through August 13, the most consecu- tive games without allowing an earned run in the PCL in 2024.

DEZENZO'S BARNSTORMING TOUR : All INF Zach Dezenzo needed was 11 games in Triple-A to show what he was made of before getting pro- moted to Houston on August 6... The infielder was promoted to Sugar Land on July 23, and in his debut, Dezenzo homered on the first pitch he saw and went 3-for-4 with four RBI, coming a triple shy of the cycle... In 11 games before his promotion, Dezenzo was 18-for-46 (.391) with four doubles, four home runs, 12 RBI and 14 runs scored, reaching safely in all 11 games and hitting safely in 10 of them.

LEFTY LEVERAGE : After allowing two runs in his second outing with the Space Cowboys, lefty Bryan King made nine consecutive scoreless out- ings from April 4 through May 2... He then made 10 consecutive scoreless appearances from May 24 through June 16, including eight hitless appear- ances... Before having his contract selected by the Astros on June 22, King was 1-0 with a 1.87 ERA in 31 appearances with Sugar Land, allowing only seven earned runs in 33.2 innings with 41 strikeouts and three saves in three chances with 11 holds in his first 31 outings... Despite making 28 appearanc- es with Houston, King still finished ninth in Minor League Baseball in holds with 13.

SET UP SPECIALIST : RHP Luis Contreras primarily served as the Space Cowboys setup man in 2024 and was exceptional, going 4-1 with a 1.74 ERA in 47 appearances... The right-hander recorded 15 holds in 2024, tied for the most holds in Minor League Baseball... Contreras did not allow a run in his first nine outings of the season and also had a 14-game scoreless streak from July 14 to August 22... Additionally, Contreras turned in 11 straight hitless appearances from July 21 to August 15, the most consecutive hitless appearances in Triple-A in 2024.

TWIN KILLINGS: Sugar Land generated 120 ground ball double plays in 2024, the sixth most in Minor League Baseball and third most in the Pacific Coast League (Tacoma - 131, Reno - 121).

HUMMEL-ING ALONG: OF/DH Cooper Hummel led the Pacific Coast League in on-base percentage, registering a .419 OBP in 101 games... Hum- mel also finished third in the PCL in walks (79)... He put together the second longest on-base streak of the season for a Space Cowboys hitter, reaching in 26 straight games from May 21 through July 21, the third longest on-base streak in franchise history (Whitcomb - 44, 2024; Hensley - 30, 2022).

KEEPING IT LOW: Among pitchers that made at least 10 appearances in the Pacific Coast League in 2024, the Space Cowboys had four of the top 10 best ERAs, with all four hurlers registering an ERA under 2.00... They included Kaleb Ort (2nd - 1.13), Seth Martinez (3rd - 1.46), Luis Contreras (8th - 1.74) and Forrest Whitley (10th - 1.89)

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