Houston Astros System Flourishing as Grizzlies Win Class AAA Title
It might have been the Columbus Clippers night in the class Triple-A finals in 2010 and 2011, but not last night. In the same kind of fashion an apex predator might devour a lesser mammal in the wild, the Fresno Grizzlies took care of business swiftly and did little to give way for Columbus bleeding out slowly. The Triple-A affiliate to the Houston Astros, Fresno’s championship shows just how far this organization has come in a short time.
Until this year, Houston hadn’t won more than 75 games in a regular season dating back to 2010. Now, the Astros occupy a wild card seed with only 10 games to play and their Triple-A team is winning national titles. Growth is happening and it’s due to deft scouting practices, player development and being financially responsible.
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Fresno defeated the Round Rock Express in five games for the right to be named the Pacific Coast League champs. In the International League, Columbus took down the Indianapolis Indians in the same manner for advancement to Tuesday night’s single game showdown with the Grizzlies.
In a 7-0 win, Fresno’s clear MVP on the night was starting pitcher Chris Devenski. A West Coast kid from Long Beach, CA, the 6-foot-3 right-hander answered the call when manager Tony DeFrancesco brought him up after a full 2015 season in Double-A to pitch for the Grizzlies in the PCL’s postseason.
Devenski left the Corpus Christi Hooks as the Astros’ No. 18 ranked prospect on the farm. He posted a 3.01 ERA over 24 appearances, 17 of them starts. Knocking almost an entire run off his 3.92 ERA mark in 2014 showed promise for Devenski. His un-compromising ways when thrust into a high pressure start — his first ever in Triple-A — showed serious mettle.
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Before his start in the class championship game, Devenski had only two relief appearances for the Grizzlies in their series against Round Rock. He got out of both unscathed with no runs crossing the plate on his watch, but for a player to make his first ever start at a level of ball never played before in what could be called the MiLB championship game, those are even higher stakes. The 24-year-old spun seven innings, allowing only a single hit and striking out nine. On the day, no Clippers player earned a walk from Fresno pitching and none of their players found themselves in scoring position throughout the affair.
Columbus had only three singles in the game, while Fresno rattled off 13 hits. Many faces are ones familiar with Minute Maid Park in Houston. Their success in this game is evidence the Astros are building a team in the smart, fiscally responsible way where club control of contracts and tactfulness are key elements being looked at.
Between RF Alex Presley, 1B Jon Singleton and LF Robbie Grossman on Fresno, the three have played in 360 MLB games. While they might not have panned out yet at that level, proof that they’re still around and playing pridefully within the Astros organization is proof players want to be part of the baseball resurgence in Houston.
While those three are yet to find their strides, it’s guys like Colin Moran and Tony Kemp waiting for their special moment who keep the engine finely tuned. Moran and Kemp are the No. 10 & 11 prospects in the system, respectively. By trade a third baseman, Moran was drafted in the first round of the 2013 amateur draft by the Marlins. He hit .306/.381/.459 for the Hooks this year. Kemp, meanwhile, is a speedster who hit .308/.388/.386 across Double-A and Triple-A this season.
Then there’s Tyler White, a corner infielder buried as a 33rd round draft pick by the Astros in the same year as Moran. White is a full two years older than Moran at 24, but he has been producing very well in comparison to most players selected in his draft slot. He split time in Double-A (59 GP) and Triple-A (57 GP) this year and slashed a combined .325/.442/.496 with 14 home runs and 99 RBI, actually having a higher OPS (1.026) with Fresno. White also hit better than any other Grizzly in the postseason with a .364 BA to go along with three home runs, two doubles and 12 RBI.
The Houston Astros as a club are one of the younger, yet more well-rounded and talented clubs in MLB this season. The youth is being backed up by even more youth in the minors. The system is excelling. Having players like Devenski, Kemp, Moran and White who will potentially be road-blocked from the Majors is a great problem to have. Both for the purpose of depth, but also as trade chips once Houston is done with a pennant race and winter meetings proceed ahead.
The talent pool only gets deeper still. Skimming over the list of top prospects on MLB.com, you’ll notice four of their top five prospects haven’t even advanced their careers beyond Double-A ball yet. It’s a great time to be a Houston Astro, or for that matter, someone upper management is staking the future of the club on.