Top prospect outfielder and left-handed reliever honored by Astros
HOUSTON, Texas -- The Houston Astros Player Development Department announced Tuesday that outfielder Kyle Tucker is the May Player of the Month for the Quad Cities River Bandits and left-handed pitcher Zac Person is the team's Pitcher of the Month. Tucker led the league in stolen bases for the month while batting over .300 and Person surrendered just one earned run in the entire month of May.
Tucker, the fifth overall pick in last year's draft, hit .316 (31x98) in May, with seven doubles, three triples, 20 RBI, 16 steals and a .384 on-base percentage in 26 games for the month. He had multiple hits in 12 of his May games, which was a higher total than his hitless games (9) for the month. The 19-year-old leads the league in steals (23) on the season and has hit safely in seven of his last eight games, collecting 11 hits in that span.
Person posted a 0.54 ERA (1ER in 16.2IP) with 20 strikeouts and a .175 opponent batting average in eight May games. He finished the month with five consecutive scoreless outings totaling 8.2 innings. Overall, Person has allowed runs in just two of his 13 games this season, with three of the four earned runs he's allowed coming in his first appearance of the year. He is currently on a 12-inning scoreless streak after a 3.1-inning scoreless outing to start his June. Person was drafted in the ninth round of the 2015 draft out of Louisiana State University.
Here is the full list of Astros Players and Pitchers of the Month, as announced by the Player Development Department Tuesday:
FRESNO (AAA)
Player: INF Danny Worth
Pitcher: RHP Brady Rogers
CORPUS CHRISTI (AA)
Player: INF Alex Bregman
Pitcher: RHP Brady Rogers
LANCASTER (Hi-A)
Player: C Garrett Stubbs
Pitcher: RHP Josh James
QUAD CITIES (A)
Player: OF Kyle Tucker
Pitcher: LHP Zac Person
ABOUT THE BANDITS: The 2016 season marks the River Bandits’ fourth year as the Astros’ Class-A affiliate and the ninth season since regaining the River Bandits moniker, which was voted a top-8 nickname in all of Minor League Baseball in 2015. Also in 2015, Sports Business Journal named Quad Cities the number one minor league sports market in the country. In recognition for giving back to the Quad Cities community, the River Bandits were the 2015 recipient of the Ballpark Digest Best Charity Event or Campaign in Baseball award. For more information on the Quad Cities River Bandits, visit www.riverbandits.com or contact Jake Levy at (563) 333-2727.
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