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Astros Weekly Hooks Update: Yulieski Gurriel Struggles

By Matthew Bartlett |
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Big league call-ups to the Astros make room for new talent in Corpus Christi with mixed results against the two Arkansas clubs.

En-route to Houston, Yulieski Gurriel made his third stop in the Astros system in Corpus after brief stints with the Gulf Coast League and the California League. In five appearances with the Hooks, the Cuban national hit .071 and made starts at third base and designated hitter.

In addition to Gurriel, outfielder Bobby Boyd was promoted to Corpus Christi from Lancaster this week. Boyd was an 8th round pick out of the University of West Virginia in 2014 and has a .287 batting average throughout his minor league career. Outfielder Alejandro Garcia was promoted to Fresno on Friday.

Game Results

Monday: Off

Tuesday: NW Arkansas L 1-4

Wednesday: NW Arkansas W 5-4

Thursday: NW Arkansas L 3-13

Friday: Arkansas W 2-1

Saturday: Arkansas L 4-5

Sunday: Arkansas? W 5-2

Second Half Record: 17-21*, 3rd in the South Division, nine games behind Midland

Next: Offense

Offense

On Friday the Arkansas Travelers sent the first 26 Hooks batters down in order and came within one strike of a 1-0 victory and a perfect game. With two outs pinch hitter Ramon Laureano walked, Bobby Boyd singled, and Nick Tanielu singled in the game-tying run bring Yulieski Gurriel to the plate with the winning run on third base. With the count at 1-2, pitcher Eduardo Parades through a wild pitch, scoring Bobby Boyd and giving the Hooks their most improbable win of the season.

Related Story: Corpus Christi Spotlight: Yulieski Gurriel

The Hooks did not receive the injection of offense they were expecting from Gurriel this week. After going 8-21 in six combined games between the Gulf Coast Astros and Lancaster JetHawks, “El Yuli” was only able to scratch across two hits in 17 at-bats in Double-A competition. Gurriel was expected to join the Astros on Tuesday. Instead, he will go to Triple-A to work on his timing.

Gurriel wasn’t the only Hook that struggled at the plate this week. Coming into last Tuesday’s game Corpus Christi hitters were hitting .247 this season, averaging 8.5 hits and a little over one home run per contest. This week the Hooks were held without a home run in six games and managed a meager .197/.280/.268 slash line.

Next: Defense and Pitching

Pitching and Defense

Trent Thornton continues to be a key addition to the Corpus Christi rotation which has seen several key pieces promoted to the AAA club during the summer. After throwing a gem on Friday night (7 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 6 K, 0 BB) the 6’0″ righty saw his AA ERA fall to 3.24 in four starts. He had one rough outing on August 8th, allowing five runs in six innings of work. In his other Double-A starts he’s allowed two runs over six innings and one run through six innings.

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Francis Martes has been the closest thing the Hooks have to an ace in the second half of the season. Over the first half of the season, the Astros #3 prospect had a 4.12 ERA with a 2.85 strikeout to walk ratio. Since the second half began, however, Martes has a 2.87 ERA with a 4.33 strikeout to walk ratio. Saturday night the 20-year-old Dominican native allowed two runs in six innings, striking out seven in a no-decision. Martes’ is now averaging 9.58 strikeouts per nine innings.

Ryan Thompson continues to be a force out of the bullpen for the Hooks, who worked four innings of scoreless relief this week. In 19 appearances, Thompson’s 1.060 WHIP trails only David Paulino among current Hooks pitchers. Paulino has not been with the team since June after a suspension and an injury to his pitching arm. Over the past several weeks Paulino has made three rehab starts with the Gulf Coast League. He is expected to rejoin the Hooks as early as this week.

Paulino has a 1.86 ERA and .930 WHIP through 58 innings this year. Those stats would lead one to believe that his stay in Corpus Christi will be brief, especially with the recent promotion of James Hoyt, Jandel Gustave, and Joeseph Musgrove to the major league roster in addition to the trade of Josh Fields to Los Angeles.

Next: Houston Astros’ Young Guns Picking Up Slack on Tough Season

Paulino got the start on Sunday night. It was one of his best starts of the season as he went six innings allowing one run (homer) on four hits. He walked zero and struck out six to get his fifth win of the season.

***Statistics from MiLB.com and Baseball Reference***

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