Corpus Christi Report: Hooks Dominate Month of May
Just like the last few seasons, the Corpus Christi Hooks are loaded with talent in 2016. Unfortunately it didn’t all come together in April with the team finishing with a 9-12 record. But a team this talented wasn’t going to play under .500 for long and that definitely changed in May.
In May, the Hooks finished with a record of 21-8 vaulting them up the standings to second just behind Frisco. The 21 wins also set a Corpus Christi record for most wins in a month. The pitching was better but the main differences came from the offense. Multiple guys had fantastic months of May. Let’s take a look at a few of the standout performances for Corpus in May.
Alex Bregman, SS
Everyone knows Bregman is raking this season, but it has truly been impressive. From being drafted just last season to dominating AA in less than a year. Even more impressive is how he is hitting for power while barely striking out. The month of May was no different as he only struck out 9 times in 25 games but had 16 extra base hits.
May Stats: 25 G, .309 BA/.414 OBP/.628 SLG, 23 R, 9 2B, 7 HR, 21 RBI, 15 BB/9 SO
Derek Fisher, OF
Fisher is one of the highest potential players on the Hooks roster and he put together a great month of May. He showed off the power/speed combo with 7 HR and 4 SB in 25 games. He struck out a bit more this month but overall he is hitting .276 with 10 HR in 45 games. That is 30+ HR pace for a full season.
May Stats: 25 G, .323 BA/.383 OBP/.604 SLG, 17 R, 4 2B, 7 HR, 21 RBI, 10 BB/33 SO
JD Davis, 3B
Davis had a good season last year with Lancaster but was a bit overshadowed with Reed there. He started off slow in April but caught fire in May. While he only drew 2 BB, the 9 HR and 25 RBI led the Hooks for the month of May. 9 HR is impressive considering he didn’t have a homer in April.
May Stats: 26 G, .306 BA/.315 OBP/.639 SLG, 19 R, 9 2B, 9 HR, 25 RBI, 2 BB/26 SO
Teoscar had a solid month of April but turned it up in May. While he only had 2 HR, he only struck out 14 times in 25 games. The 10 stolen bases are great to see as well. His walk rate has increaded, 6.4% to 11.1%, and strikeout rate has decreased, 24.5% to 18.6%, from 2015 to 2016. His full season pace right now would put him around 40 2B, 10 HR, 50 SB.
May Stats: 25 G, .327 BA/.370 OBP/.469 SLG, 16 R, 8 2B, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 8 BB/14 SO, 10 SB
**They also got great contributions from rehabbing Astros, Evan Gattis and Carlos Gomez. So the hitting stood out, but the pitching was solid too. Here are some of the best performances in May on the Hooks pitching staff.**
David Paulino, RHP
Paulino had a breakout season in 2015 pitching between three levels with a 2.81 ERA. Corpus was the next test and he has killed it. A good month of may and he now has a 2.02 ERA with 8 BB/44 SO in 40 innings. He has definitely put himself in top 100 prospect range and is one of the top pitching prospects in the Astros system.
May Stats: 1-2, 2.35 ERA, 23.0 IP, 22 H, 6 ER, 4 BB, 21 K
Keegan Yuhl, RHP
Yuhl has been a steady starter for the Hooks this season and while he had a good April (3.63 ERA), he was even better in May. The Hooks won all five games he started in the month of May. The 24 year old has also logged a team high 45.2 innings this season and has an overall ERA of 2.76.
May Stats: 3-0, 2.22 ERA, 28.1 IP, 25 H, 7 ER, 7 BB, 16 K
Evan Grills, LHP
Grills has been in the Astros system since 2010 and has started to show some progress this season. He was promoted to Corpus and made his debut in style with a complete game shutout (7 innings). He hasn’t allowed more than 1 earned run in any of his outings for Corpus and had done a good job limiting baserunners.
May Stats: 1-0, 0.90 ERA, 20.0 IP, 15 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 9 K
Aaron West, RHP
West caught the eye of many Astros fans when he dominated the NYPL in 2012. Last season he was moved to the bullpen for the Hooks and he has been great in that role. He is a guy who can give you multiple innings as well and helped the Hooks with 3 wins himself. He has only walked 5 in 30 innings this season.
May Stats: 3-0, 1.47 ERA, 18.1 IP, 15 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 17 K
Brendan McCurry, RHP
The Hooks closer, acquired in Jed Lowrie trade, has been fantastic. He has a 3.95 ERA in April with 3 of the 6 earned runs coming in one outing. While it was a solid month, he was dominant in May. McCurry went 9-for-9 in saves and had 1 BB/21 K in his 16.1 innings of work. That gives him 5 BB/41 K in 30 innings this season.
May Stats: 1.65 ERA, 16.1 IP, 12 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 21 K, 9/9 SV
After a great month of May, I’m excited to see what the Hooks will do in June!
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**Photo Credit: Tammy Tucker*
