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Astros Minor League Recap April 23-29: Fresno leads the pack

By Andrew Gleinser

HOUSTON, TX - JULY 05: A.J. Reed #23 of the Houston Astros hits a home run in the fourth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Minute Maid Park on July 5, 2016 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - JULY 05: A.J. Reed #23 of the Houston Astros hits a home run in the fourth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Minute Maid Park on July 5, 2016 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /
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The Houston Astros‘ Triple-A affiliate Fresno Grizzlies continue to lead their division.

In their fifth series of the season, the Fresno Grizzlies suffered their first series loss. After losing the rubber match of a three-game road series against Reno, the team returned home. They were able to get back on track, taking a five-game series against Tacoma. Not a bad start for the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, right?

The Letdown

Fresno dropped the final game of the series against Reno by a score of 3-2 on April 23. Trent Thornton tossed six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and striking out nine. Tim Federowicz hit a two-run homer, while A.J. Reed had two hits and a walk. Reliever Brendan McCurry surrendered three runs in the eighth to take the loss.

The Bounceback

After a day off on Tuesday, Fresno opened a five-game home series against Tacoma with a 10-0 win on Wednesday. Cy Sneed hurled five shutout innings to earn the win, dropping his ERA to 1.83. Reed, Garrett Stubbs and Jack Mayfield had two hits and two RBIs apiece, while Drew Ferguson reached base four times.

The Grizzlies took game two of the series 4-3 on Thursday. Rogelio Armenteros went five innings, giving up two runs on five hits with five strikeouts. J.D. Davis reached base three times and drove in a run, while Tony Kemp had two hits, including a triple.

The Fresno bats went cold on Friday as they fell 3-1 to Tacoma. Starter Kent Emanuel took the loss despite surrendering just two runs in five innings. Reed provided all the offense with a solo home run in the second inning.

The Grizzlies suffered a second straight loss, falling 7-3 on Saturday. Mike Hauschild gave up four runs (three earned) on six hits in five innings. Reed hit a two-run homer, while Kemp had two hits and stole his eighth base of the season.

Fresno won 11-5 on Sunday to win the series 3-2. Francis Martes gave up three runs on four hits with eight walks in 4.1 innings. Kyle Tucker finished a triple shy of the cycle, driving in three. Federowicz added a three-run shot among his three hits, while Tyler White added two hits and two RBIs.

Player of the Week: A.J. Reed

Bit of a tough call this week, but we’ll give it to Reed. The slugging first baseman reached base safely in all six games this week. He also drove in at least one run in each of his past five games, including belting two homers.

It was a slow start for Reed in the power department, as he homered just once in his first 19 games. But with two dingers in his past three games, Reed may finally be heating up.

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What’s Next

The Grizzlies hit the road again, opening a four-game series at Salt Lake on Monday. Then they’ll return home for four games against Sacramento beginning Friday. Coming into Monday, Fresno sits at 16-8 on the season, holding a 3.5-game lead in the division.

***Statistics courtesy of MiLB.com***