Midland (34-23, 71-56) @ Corpus Christi (25-32, 56-71)

Chris Carter went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBI’s and Arnold Leon tossed five innings of shutout ball as Midland opened this series with an 11-6 win last night.  Carter got the RockHounds into high gear with a line-drive, two-run homer to the berm in left in the top of the first.  His RBI single in the seventh gave the Hounds a 10-0 lead.  He finished a triple shy of the cycle.

Leon (2-1) allowed just three singles and three walks while striking out three.  In three starts against the Hooks this half Leon has yet to allow a run over 12.0 innings of work. 

Trailing 11-0, the Hooks scored six runs from the seventh inning on.  Drew Locke went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI to extend his hitting streak to six games.  Felix Molina clubbed a two-run homer into the RockHounds’ bullpen, giving him hits in five straight.              

Tonight’s Matchup:  RHP Travis Banwart (9-5, 4.99) vs. RHP Sergio Perez (10-10, 4.69)

Banwart, Oakland’s fourth-round selection in the 2007 draft out of Wichita State, makes his 25th start for the Hounds and his sixth against the Hooks.  Friday against Northwest Arkansas, Banwart had his personal three-game winning streak snapped when he allowed four runs on eight hits over three innings.  He took a no-decision as Midland rallied late for a 7-5 win.  Despite getting roughed up, Banwart is having a solid August, going 3-0 with a 2.45 ERA in four starts.  In five starts against the Hooks, Banwart is 3-1 with a 1.55 ERA.        

·        Is 4-2 with a 4.26 ERA in 14 road starts

·        Made one start for AAA Sacramento, July 8 at Fresno (6.0-11-7-7-1-5, loss)

·        Was a combined 4-7 with a 3.59 ERA in 21 starts for Kane County and Stockton last season

Perez, selected by the Astros in the second round of the 2006 draft out of the University of Tampa, makes his 25th start and his fourth against the RockHounds.  Friday at Dickey-Stephens Park, Perez worked his way through 5.2 innings to get the win over the Travelers.  He allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits and four walks.  Perez has also had a fine month, going 3-1 with a 3.97 ERA in four August starts.  He’s had mixed results against Midland, with a record of 1-2 and a 4.96 ERA in three starts.  His win over the Hounds came here on June 11 when Perez tossed six innings of shutout ball, one of three outings for the right-hander in which he has blanked the opposition over six frames.                        

·        Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 13 prospect in the Houston system

·        Has held opponents to three or fewer runs in 16 of his 24 starts

·        Is one of four pitchers in franchise history with at least 10 wins in a season (Hirsh, Albers, Miller)

·        Ranks sixth on the club’s all-time wins’ list with 12

Carter to AAA

In a move that is sure to have an impact on both clubs, first baseman and outfielder Chris Carter received the news last night that he’s been promoted to AAA Sacramento.  Carter, tied for the Texas League lead with 24 home runs, is also among the league leaders in batting (.337, 2nd) and RBI’s (101, T-2nd).  Carter also leads the circuit in doubles (41), on-base percentage (.435), slugging percentage (.576), extra-base hits (67) and runs (108).

Carter has been especially tough on Hooks pitching.  In 29 games against the Hooks, Carter has a .377 average with 13 doubles, 1 triple, 7 HR’s and 25 RBI’s.  Sacramento, at 81-49 with the best record in the PCL, plays host tonight to Fresno, and will have former Hook Chad Reineke on the hill as its starting pitcher.

Locke keeps plugging away

Locke matched Carter with three hits last night and the two are tied for the league lead with 165 hits each.  Locke is now eight hits shy of the Hooks’ franchise record for hits in a single season, held by Josh Anderson, who had 173 hits in 2006.

Locke enters play tonight as the league leader in two of the three Triple Crown categories, batting .339 with 107 RBI’s.  His 20 HR’s have him four off the pace and in a fourth-place tie with Corey Smith of Northwest Arkansas. 

Locke has six straight multi-hit games and is 15-for-26 with 3 doubles, 1 HR, 6 runs and 4 RBI’s.   

The Cactus boys

Seven Astros farmhands, including six currently on Corpus Christi’s roster, have been selected to play for the Peoria Saguaros in the upcoming Arizona Fall League season, which begins October 13.  The six Hooks on the roster are pitchers Evan Englebrook, Chia-Jen Lo, Wilton Lopez and Danny Meszaros, along with catcher Jason Castro and infielder German Duran. 

The seventh farmhand is outfielder Jonathan Gaston, who plays for Lancaster in the California League and leads all minor leaguers with 74 extra-base hits.  He’s also tied for the minor league lead with 30 home runs.

Goin’ to the show

Most all of our news here relates to players, but this segment is reserved for the only person who has seen all 693 games in the five-year history of Hooks baseball.  We’re talking about the club’s athletic trainer, Jamey Snodgrass, who found out recently that he’ll be joining the Astros training staff from September 8 through September 21.  That includes a road trip to his home state of Ohio, when the Astros travel to Cincinnati and Milwaukee Sept. 14-20.

Congratulations Jamey!

Hitters update

Jason Castro has hits in 5 of his last 6 games, 9-for-26 with 1 double, 1 HR, 1 run and 6 RBI’s.

Drew Locke has a 6-game hitting streak, 15-for-26 with 3 doubles, 1 HR, 6 runs and 4 RBI’s.  He also has hits in 12 of his last 13 games, 24-for-53 with 5 doubles, 2 HR’s, 10 runs and 6 RBI’s.  Locke leads the Hooks with 46 multi-hit games.

Felix Molina has a 5-game hitting streak, 5-for-18 with 1 double, 2 HR’s, 3 runs and 5 RBI’s.

Jimmy Van Ostrand has hits in 11 of his last 13 games, 14-for-44 with 1 double, 2 HR’s, 4 runs and 8 RBI’s.

Pitching Rotation vs. Midland

Thursday:  RHP Kyle Middleton (3-1, 2.63) vs. LHP Tyler Lumsden (1-2, 5.65)