Hooks, Cosart blank Frisco

The Corrpus Christi Hooks shutout the Texas Rangers AA affiliate Frisco RoughRiders last night. Jarred Cosart pitched into the eighth inning before being relieved by Kevin Chapman in the 3-0 win. Chapman recorded the final four outs for his first save of the season and Cosart evened his record at 5-5.

Cosart, acquired last year in the Hunter Pence trade, has put together a string of five solid starts after struggling earlier in the season.

There was a rough patch for four or five starts. I was leaving my pitches up. Being down in the zone, I’ve gotten a ton more ground balls, let the defense make plays behind me. I worked on my fastball and the hitter gets a different perspective when the ball moves, so the last five or six starts have been great.

Chapman was acquired from Kansas City during Spring Training and has been a consistent performer out of the Hooks bullpen. The lefty is proficient against both lefties and righties. He has struck out 47 batters in 43 innings while allowing a .214 average against. (.210 vs. righties & .220 vs. lefties) Chapman has a 6-3 record and a 2.09 ERA overall.

The Hooks are currently 19-9 and in first place in their division for the second half of the season. Frisco won the first half, finishing four games ahead of the second-place Hooks.

The big league team stinks right now but all of the Astros minor league teams are having excellent seasons. That suggests that there is light at the end of an otherwise dark and scary tunnel for Astros fans. The Hooks team should only get better down the stretch as Jeff Luhnow continues to add prospects in bulk with a flurry of trades.