Astros Minors: Barrios, Ferrell, Starters Shine, Bandits Win 11 Straight

Astros Class-A Report: Quad Cities River Bandits (August 1-7)

The River Bandits won their 11^th straight game on August 7, beating Dayton 7-1. Bandits starting pitchers had not given up a run in seven games and 41 innings before surrendering a run in the first inning against the Dragons. Losing several key players to promotion has not hurt this team, as they continue to be one of the hottest squads in baseball.

During the streak, Agapito Barrios lead the way with 11 scoreless starting innings, with Justin Ferrell at 7.2. Joshua James threw 5.2, with Brock Dykxhoorn, Elieser Hernandez, and Dean Deetz each pitching five no run frames.

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Dykxhoorn and Eric Peterson lead the Bandits in wins (6), with James throwing the most innings (86). Dykxhoorn, James, and Peterson are 1-2-3 in strikeouts (77, 66, 60).

Infielder Nick Tanielu continues to lead the team in batting average, hitting .311, with CF Jason Martin (#27 Astros prospect) second at .292. Martin’s .362 OBP tops the team, with Tanielu right behind at .357.

The River Bandits are 28-13 in the second half (73-36 overall), tied for second place with Peoria, two games behind first-place Kane County. As a team, they are first in the league in OBP (350) and OPS (.737). The pitchers lead in ERA (2.56), WHIP (1.15), fewest hits allowed (809), fewest runs (346), and earned runs (276).

Cover photo courtesy of @QCBanditPhotog.

Other notes:

• LHP Michael Freeman moved up to Lancaster on August 2. He was the Astros seventh round pick in the 2015 amateur draft and was 1-1 with a 1.50 ERA, six walks, 14 strikeouts, in 18 innings.
• Nick Tanielu was named the Quad Cities Player of the Month for July. The All-Star infielder hit .340 with 24 RBI in 27 games.
• LHP Steve Naemark was assigned to Quad Cities from Tri-City on August 4. The 2015, 40^th round draft pick is 1-0, with a 1.23 ERA, with three walks and 12 strikeouts in 14.2 innings with the Valley Cats (A), and Greenville (Rookie) since he signed a professional contract.
• Quad Cities’ leading hitter, Nick Tanielu, is fourth in the Midwest League in batting average (.314).
• C Jamie Ritchie still leads the league in walks (70 – 11 more than second place), and OBP (.428) even though he was promoted to Lancaster several weeks ago.

Next: Astros Minors Report: Who's Hot and Who's Not for AA Corpus Christi