*** Houston Astros Minor League Report - July 12th *** From The Sports Network

NEW ORLEANS ZEPHYRS - The Zephyrs split six games this past week, bringing their record to 42-48 on the season, which places them in third place in the Eastern Division of the Pacific Coast League. Royce Huffman had a average week at the plate recently, going just 5-for-19 with four runs, two home runs and four RBI. Phil Hiatt was 4-for-20 this past week with three runs scored, three homers and six RBI. Hiatt has struggled early in July, posting a batting average of just .188 for the month, far worse than his average in June which was .311. Carlos Hernandez defeated Oklahoma on July 6th for his second straight victory. In that outing, Hernandez allowed just one run on three hits in seven innings of work. After going 0-2 with a horrid ERA of 7.77 in the month of June, Hernandez has been sensational in July, going 2-0 with a miniscule 0.69 ERA.

ROUND ROCK EXPRESS - The Express were victorious in five of seven games this past week to bring their second-half mark to 9-9, which is good for second place in the West Division of the Texas League. First baseman Todd Self had a strong performance at the plate this past week, collecting seven hits, two runs, two doubles, three RBI, eight walks and five stolen bases. Charlton Jimerson added five hits, two runs, one long ball and three RBI for the Express. Will Taveras went 8-for-22 with four runs scored and two stolen bases which gives him 33 on the season. D.J. Houlton notched his second straight victory on July 10th against El Paso. In that game, Houlton was phenomenal in tossing eight scoreless innings, scattering just three hits while striking out eight. The young hurler is 6-3 with a 3.44 ERA on the season. Ezequiel Astacio lost his second straight contest and the third in his last four starts. On July 7th, Astacio was hammered by Midland, allowing seven runs on nine hits in 6 2/3 innings of work.

LEXINGTON LEGENDS - The Legends dropped four of seven contests this past week, bringing their second-half mark to 9-8, which is good for fourth place in the Northern Division in the South Atlantic League. Beau Hearod had a nice week at the plate, going 9-for-27 with five runs scored, three home runs and seven RBI. After batting .241 in June, Hearod is batting .351 in the first 10 games of July. Edwin Maysonet went 8-for-23 with five runs, two triples and three RBI for the Legends. Ervin Alcantara is in the midst of a six-game hitting streak in which he is 9-for-22 with three runs and four RBI. Chance Douglass dropped his third straight decision, his fourth loss in his last five starts. In the setback to Lakewood on July 10th, Douglass allowed three runs on three hits in four innings of work. On the season, the young hurler is 5-1 at home, but at the same time he has struggled on the road, going just 1-4.

SALEM AVALANCHE - The Avalanche dropped four of their last seven games to bring their second-half mark to 9-7, which places the squad in third place in the Carolina League's Southern Division. Mark Saccomanno was a big source of offense for the Avalanche this past week, going 7-for-30 with three runs, one long ball and three RBI. In 11 games this month, Saccomanno is batting .311, much better than his .234 average in the month of June. Adam Seuss also supplied some offense for Salem, collecting five hits and five RBI in 19 at-bats for the Avalanche. Fernando Nieve has been tough as nails recently, going 5-0 in his last nine starts. In his most recent outing, Nieve tossed eight scoreless innings against Lynchburg, scattering five hits. However, the dominant performance did not get him the decision. On the season, Nieve is 8-3 with a 2.77 ERA.

GREENEVILLE ASTROS - The Astros dropped four of their seven games this past week to bring their season mark to 10-11, which is good enough for third place in the West Division of the Appalachian League. Mitch Einertson continues to swing a hot bat, going 9-for-23 with seven runs scored, five home runs and seven RBI during his six-game hitting streak. Waladimir Sutil had a tough time at the plate this past week, going 5-for-24. On the season Sutil is batting an impressive .344. Starting pitcher Juan Gutierrez won his second straight start for the Astros on July 8th against Elizabethton. In that outing, the young hurler allowed one run on two hits in five innings. It was the also the second straight contest where Gutierrez recorded 11 strikeouts, which gives him a total of 28 on the season in just 19 1/3 innings of work. In the month of July, Gutierrez is 2-0 with 0.75 ERA.

TRI-CITY VALLEYCATS - The ValleyCats were defeated in four of seven games this past week, bringing their overall mark to 15-8 on the year, which places them in first place in the Stedler Division of the New York-Penn League. Johnny Ash collected four hits, scored four runs, hit one homer and tallied two RBI in 20 at-bats, while Ben Zobrist went 8-for-24 with three runs scored and three RBI. During the month of July, Zobrist is batting an impressive .395, while Ash is hitting .316, which is much better than his .237 average from the month of June. After winning Pitcher of the Week the previous week, Ronnie Martinez went to the mound on July 9th looking to continue his excellent play. In that contest against Lowell, Martinez lasted six innings, allowing just one hit, but he walked five batters and allowed three runs in the contest. The young hurler did not factor in the decision, leaving his record at 3-1 on the year.