Astros Triple-A Notes: Toro makes debut, Peacock struggles

Infielder Abraham Toro recently made his Triple-A debut while Brad Peacock struggled in a rehab outing.

The Round Rock Express lost a couple of key contributors in Derek Fisher and Joshua Rojas as part of the Astros‘ trade deadline moves. Recent call-up Abraham Toro has helped fill the void since then, while Brad Peacock did not have much success in his latest rehab outing.

Toro has rapidly ascended to be the Astros’ No. 6 prospect according to MLB.com after starting the year ranked No. 23. He made such a big leap due to the .306/.393/.513 line he put up in 98 games for Double-A Corpus Christi with 16 homers and 70 RBIs. In his first four games for Round Rock, he’s hit .273 with a .500 on-base percentage.

The scouting report notes the switch-hitter is a strong all-around hitter with solid power and a good batting eye. He’s played mostly third base and has a good arm and hands, but also has experience at second base and first base. The former catcher could be pushing for a roster spot before too long.

More from Climbing Tal's Hill

• Just how much better is the Houston Astros playoff rotation than the rest?
• Houston Astros: A Lineup Change to Spark Offense
• Astros prospect Hunter Brown throws 6 shutout innings in debut
• Always faithful Astros World Series champion Josh Reddick defends the title
• Michael Conforto declines Astros’ 2-year, $30 million offer

Meanwhile, Peacock pitched on Saturday but only recorded four outs. He allowed five runs on three hits and two walks, though the prognosis appears to be good. He’s on the mound and feeling fine, which bodes well for the Astros.

Tanielu hits stride, Tucker keeps it steady

Nick Tanielu has been on fire, hitting over .460 in his last nine games. Seven of those were multi-hit efforts, and he also chipped in two homers and six RBIs in that stretch. He’s up to .288/.348/.490 on the season with 13 homers and 61 RBIs, playing a mix of third, second and first base.

Kyle Tucker has hit safely in eight of his last nine games with three homers and 11 RBIs. The Astros’ top prospect is up to 28 homers, 81 RBIs and 24 stolen bases this season, sitting in the Top 10 in the Pacific Coast League in all three categories.

Framber Valdez has turned in two straight quality starts, the first of which saw him toss seven scoreless frames with 11 strikeouts on July 30. More recently, he struck out eight in six innings of two-run ball on Monday. He now has a 2.37 ERA in 30.1 innings at Triple-A this year.

Jack Mayfield has hit safely in each of the last 18 games in which he’s had an at-bat. He’s hitting .349 with 16 RBIs in his last 10 games and is up to .292/.364/.574 with 20 homers and 60 RBIs on the season.

Finally, infielder Alex De Goti is hitting .400 over his last 10 games with two homers and 11 RBIs. Primarily a middle infielder, the 24-year-old is up to a .281/.349/.435 line with 11 homers and 57 RBIs in 100 games.

***Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference and MiLB.com***