Astros Prospects: Interview with No-Hit Trio McCanna, Garza, and Person.

Interview with No-Hit Trio McCanna, Garza, and Person.

On Thursday night, three rookie pitchers in the Astros Organization were part of something awesome, they threw a no-hitter just a month or so after being drafted by the Houston Astros in the 2015 MLB Draft. To add to the link that these three pitchers will always have after this game, they also all, for the most part, played high school baseball in Astros fan territory. This territory includes most of south Texas and Louisiana, or as Jonathan Papelbon would say, the “Dirty South.”

The moral of the story is that any “Person” can be part of a no-hitter at any moment (Sorry Zac, couldn’t resist). For more about the no-hitter itself, you can check out David’s post: Houston Astros Minors Update: Three prospects work no-hitter for Tri-City. Before we get to the interviews, let’s get a little background information on the three pitchers.

Kevin McCanna

The starting pitcher was McCanna, whose name might be familiar to Rice University Alumni or Houston baseball fans in general. McCanna grew up north of Houston in The Woodlands, went to Woodlands High School. He was drafted in 2012 by the San Diego Padres in the 22 round but choose to go to play for Rice instead. He was drafted by the Astros in the 2015 draft with the first pick in the 13th round.

McCanna’s stats during the no-hitter: 4 innings/ o hits/ 1 walk/ 5 strikeouts (51 pitches).

McCanna’s 2015 stats: 0-2/ 3.28 ERA/ 20 strikeouts in 24 2/3 innings.

Ralph Garza Jr.

The middle guy who got the win was Garza, maybe Sooner Alumni might know him. He played high school ball at New Braunfels HS, which is northwest of Houston in New Braunfels. He went to the University of Oklahoma and was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 26th round of the 2015 draft. Unlike McCanna, Garza was not drafted prior to 2015, so this was a new experience for him.

Garza’s stats during the no-hitter: 4 innings/ 0 hits/ o walks/ 7 strikeouts (50 pitches).

Garza’s 2015 stats: 1-1/ 2.59 ERA/ 36 strikeouts in 24 1/3 innings.

Zac Person

Person is a Louisiana boy who played with the Astros second-overall pick Alex Bregman. Unfortunately, I did not ask him what it was like to play with Bregman at LSU. He was drafted by the Astros in the ninth round of the 2015 draft and is thought to have much promise.

Person’s stats during the no-hitter: 1 inning/ 0 hits/ o walks (15 pitches).

Person’s 2015 stats: 1-3/ 8.44 ERA/ 8 strikeouts in 10 2/3 innings.

They all had control of the game and maintained a low pitch count. While none of these three are in the top-30 Astros prospects lists, their performance on Thursday could eventually lead to them moving up the totem pole. Let’s get to know these three kids fresh out of college.

Next: Starting Pitcher Kevin McCanna