Written the week of August 31-September 7, 2026

Okay, we’re not worried about the playoffs any longer. Hypothetically speaking, the Hooks can still make the playoffs. Practically speaking, they cannot. It’s over!

Let me say that this has been the most interesting baseball season in ages for me. When it’s all over, I’ll let you know why.

For now, I must face the truth about my belief. I was wrong. God did not whisper, “The Hooks will be Texas League Champions.” It was the simple hope of a curmudgeonly old man. I will remain hopeful, as we fans are wont to be, but it just may be a little less so next year.

Tuesday, I arrived an hour before game time and started my walk around the stadium. I had a conversation with several folks, and through one of those discovered two players received promotions after the Amarillo series. The person said Trevor Austin moved to Triple-A along with another player, but at the time couldn’t remember who that was. Nic Swanson, our relief pitcher, turned out to be the other player. They both played for Sugar Land a day later and did well in a 2-1 loss.

We’ve experienced player losses but not additions at this juncture of the week. Max Holy remains on the 7-day IL as of this writing. I talked with Max on Tuesday, but he had no answer about a return date. He may be done for the remaining two weeks of the regular season.

Tuesday’s game went very quickly for a couple of reasons. The first was simply because time flies when your team is behind and crawls when they are ahead. It flew.

The second was I had several interesting conversations during the game. One long-time fan said that he hadn’t come to a game in years. He complained about how bad the recent teams were. Their poor play had turned him off as a fan. I couldn’t disagree with his sentiment. I’d been under the same impression because the 2025 season was miserable. I was surprised to discover that we had a winning season in 2023, because it seemed the team hadn’t been any good since before Covid.

Hooks fans had grown accustomed to winning during a 7-year window, 2012-2018, where the team qualified for the playoffs five of the seven seasons. Our last run through the playoffs was the 2018 season, one I remember well because the team had momentum until a rain delay halted a game in progress. They were winning the series, 2-0, and tied 8-8 in game 3 when hard rains suspended play. They never won another game after the rain delay and lost the series 3-2.

A list of players during those winning years includes George Springer, Chris Devenski, Josh Hader, Lance McCullers, Teoscar Hernandez, Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez, Myles Straw, and Framber Valdez. Those are names that have dotted the Astros’ rosters from 2017 to the present.

J. D. Martinez and Jose Altuve played for the 2011 Hooks team, just outside the winning years.

The disgruntled fan talked mostly about the lean years. “High schoolers could have beaten those teams.”

When I pointed out a great play, our guy Will Bush leaning into the visitor dugout to make a spectacular catch, he said, “Oh, I didn’t see that.”

When right fielder Chase Call fired a rocket home to throw out the runner, his fourth such throw of the season, again the guy didn’t see it. Great plays were happening right in front of him, but he couldn’t see the present because he was so caught up in the past. Do I need to state the obvious here?

The other conversation was less aggravating and more enjoyable. My friend Scott sat with me and talked about several things related to baseball. We revisited the great George Bush foul ball story with me asking for more details to include in the book that I’ll put together after the season ends.

Scott talked about a Hooks player who sat in the stands before games and talked or texted on his phone. He mentally checked out for five or six weeks. It showed up in his pre-game preparation, almost nonexistent, and on the field of play. The Astros released him.

He told me the story because he had seen another player displaying the same behavior in the last month and a half, a player who had been a key player in the Hooks’ success. The player seemed to wake up in recent weeks, and Scott expressed relief in seeing the change. I was relieved as well.

Our conversation lasted until he left to drag the infield with the rest of the grounds crew. Isn’t that a cool excuse to leave in the middle of a good talk?

The other interesting conversation took place between me in my rocker and Tre Richardson III, Springfield’s left fielder. In the 7^th inning, the Whataburger Field DJ played the universal 7^th-inning stretch song, “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” followed by a Texas favorite, “Deep in the Heart of Texas.”

I said, “I’m sure you don’t hear that song in Springfield.”

He said, “It’s been a while, but I like it. I grew up in Houston.”

When Jesus Baez’s stats came up, 3 hits, .750 BA, I recognized the stats reflected a recently promoted player. I asked Tre if that night’s game was Baez’s first at Double-A.

“Nah, he came up in June about the same time as me. Those stats are wrong.”

The adjusted stats later agreed with Tre’s comments.

I enjoy when the Springfield Cardinals come to town. The Cardinals as an organization encourage their players to engage with the fans, and their willingness to sign autographs and take pictures is different from many typical encounters with other teams and their players. Tre embodies that attitude well.

On Tuesday I ended up with two home run balls, both clearing the fences in the early part of the game. An opening shot on the first pitch of the game ended up in front of a garbage can behind the bullpen. I was nowhere near that area when the ball was hit, but I was on my way to my rocker in left field. I easily snagged Josiah Ragsdale’s home run ball. Why? Because not many people came early to the game, and no one sat in the berm area.

At the end of a baseball season, crowds lighten. School has started. Football has started. Weekday-game attendance dwindles to hundreds rather than thousands. It’s the best time to build up your baseball collection with foul balls and home run balls. After three games, I have three home run balls, missing a fourth, Jason Schiavone’s shot over the left field berm, only because a father and his boys were strolling by when the ball hit the ground near them. It is that desolate.

In game 1, the Hooks lost 3-2. The highlights for the Hooks were the two plays mentioned earlier, Will Bush’s and Chase Call’s, and a 2-run homer belted by Hector Salas.

Before game 2, the Cardinals were hitting batting practice on the field, and during BP, the team’s pitchers hang out in the outfield and shag fly balls. I met Michael Watson who stood in left field. He and I talked about the days when pitchers took batting practice, something he’d never experienced in the minors but had heard about from an old-timer (who was probably all of 30-something).

Liam Doyle shagged balls on my side of the fence. He stood in the berm catching home runs. I’d learn later that he was the #2 prospect in the Cardinals’ organization.

When he tossed a ball back, I said, “You need to leave those for the kids.” I didn’t see him throw back any more after that. (In case you’re wondering, I did leave the balls for the kids.)

Springfield seemed very loose on Wednesday, because during and after BP, about a half dozen pitchers played half-court basketball in the kids’ playground area. How do I know they were pitchers? When you’ve been around baseball long enough, you know it’s the pitchers who do weird things to amuse themselves. They aren’t everyday players, so they’ve got time on their hands.

Wednesday’s game went very well for the Hooks. The next day, my usher friend Craig would describe it as our best defensive game of the season. Considering how many guys have been hurt or promoted, which has resulted in guys playing together for the first time, some in positions they’ve never played before, that was a surprising assessment.

For me, I’ve seen some great defensive plays this year, so it would be hard to put a number on it. A top defensive effort? For sure. THE top effort? Who’s to say?

The 1^st inning went 1-2-3, them, and single, 2-run homer, us. Jason Schiavone hit his 14^th home run in a Hooks’ uniform and his 31^st of the 2026 season. Walker Janek would homer in the 3^rd to put Corpus Christi up 3-0.

You might be asking, what do you mean 14^th and 31^st home runs?

Jason Schiavone played at High-A Asheville before coming to Corpus Christi in mid-May. He hit 17 home runs for the Asheville Tourists and 14 with the Corpus Christi Hooks. That number will probably rise even more before this series ends, but he did have a homerun drought in July.

In the 3^rd inning, Forrester to Hernandez to Bush completed a well-executed double play. Brandon Forrester, our second baseman, is one of those guys who arrived less than two weeks ago. Alberto Hernandez has been up to Triple-A and back in that same amount of time. Our guy Will Bush has been here the entire season.

In the top of the 4^th inning, shortstop Alberto Hernandez snagged a ground ball, touched second base, and fired a strike to our guy Will Bush at first for the Hooks’ second double play of the game.

In the bottom of the 4^th, Tyler Whitaker doubled to bring home Marcus Brown from second. That ended the scoring for the day for the Hooks. They led 4-0 after four complete.

Cole Hertzler started and pitched three scoreless innings, recording one walk, two hits, and four strikeouts. Joey Mancini pitched three more scoreless innings to get his third win of the season. He and I talked about that the next day because we both remembered his winless season last year. He pitched well but never long enough or well enough to be credited with a win. Wednesday, he did both, pitching well enough and long enough for the win.

Colby Langford, Andrew Marrero, and Amilcar Chirinos each pitched an inning of scoreless baseball. Pitching, hitting, and defense came together in championship form after such a luckless series in Amarillo. Final score: Hooks 4-Cardinals 0.

The opposite proved true one night later. The Hooks pitchers had a no hitter after 1.1 innings but gave up 6 runs before the Cardinals first hit. Two pitchers combined for two hit-by-pitches, seven walks, a balk, and two singles.

Left fielder Alejandro Nunez threw out Jack Gurevitch at home to end the misery. Gurevitch running home felt like a mercy out, but it did depend on a good, accurate throw from Nunez.

The sizeable crowd made their feelings known. Alonzo Tredwell, the starting pitcher, had another bad outing where the strike zone eluded him. The fans weren’t angry, but they were vocal with each walk. I was in my left field rocker so I couldn’t hear what they were yelling, but I think the comments were directed more toward the coaches than the pitcher. They clapped when Alonzo walked off the field. Relief would be a good description of the prevailing emotion for the fans and the starter. As Ellen said, no one felt worse than Alonzo.

The rest of the game didn’t go any better. The Hooks regressed to the point that ineptitudes from seasons past haunted my thoughts. They didn’t look good in any phase of the game.

The most exciting moment came in the bottom of the 3rd. Hector Salas hit a slow roller to first baseman Jack Gurevitch. At some point, Salas and starting pitcher Liam Doyle realized it was going to be a foot race to the bag. They both picked up noticeable speed trying to beat the other to first base. Salas won that race by a toe.

In the 6th inning, Corpus Christi got their first and only run of the game when Walker Janek hit a deep sacrifice fly to right field with the bases loaded and one out. After six complete, Springfield 10-Corpus Christi 1.

Marcus Brown, our third baseman, entered the game in relief of Ramsey David. In two innings, he gave up 5 hits, 2 runs, a homer, and 2 walks. He hit 48 MPH on the radar gun.

Brandon Forrester, our replacement third baseman, swapped places with Marcus in the 9^th and closed out a scoreless 1-2-3 inning in relief. With two on and one out, Marcus Brown grounded into a double play to end our worst night in defeat this season. Final score: Springfield 14-Corpus Christi 1.

Prior to Friday’s game, I stopped by the visitor’s tunnel as the Cardinals returned to the clubhouse after infield practice. I had dropped off a poster picturing their home stadium, Route 66 Stadium, and I was trying to track it down.

Cade McGee and I talked for a few minutes about his recent, as in Tuesday’s, promotion from High-A Peoria. That brought back a flood of memories.

During the early part of this century… That sounds so ancient, but it’s only 25 years or so ago, and that makes me feel old just writing that because most of the players on this week’s rosters were either toddlers or not yet born…

Anyway, in those early ancient days, two pastor friends and I frequented many games in the Midwest League—Appleton, Beloit, Burlington, Clinton, and the Quad Cities, all cities in either Wisconsin or Iowa.

The Peoria Chiefs, Low-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs at the time, played the Burlington Bees, affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, on June 23, 2008. I know this because I keep my ticket stubs for games.

Ryne Sandberg managed the Chiefs and Josh Donaldson caught for them that day. The Chiefs lost 4-1 in the shortest game of the season for the Burlington Bees, 1 hour and 46 minutes. Donaldson had a 2-hit game, including his 6^th homer. I know most of that because of the Internet. What baseball fan would forget meeting Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg?

Johnny Giavotelli (I’ve always loved saying his name) played second base for the Bees and made one of the greatest catches I’ve ever seen at any level of baseball. When he played for the Kansas City Royals and I attended a game with my pastor friends there, I saw Johnny on the field and yelled, “Johnny Giavotelli, I saw you play in Burlington. You made the best catch I’ve ever seen.”

When someone pointed out his mother sitting in the stands, I yelled to her, “Mrs. Giovatelli, I saw your son play in Burlington. He made the best catch I’ve ever seen.” As I’ve said before, when I enter a baseball stadium, I turn into an 9-year-old kid.

After talking to Cade, I went to the home team tunnel and waited for the Hooks battery to enter the playing field. Alejandro Torres, our longest tenured player, was the starting pitcher for the first time since his arrival in 2024. Jason Schiavone started at catcher. Later I met Alejandro’s father and brother and immediately saw the family resemblance in both the physical makeup and in their general cheery disposition.

Dad and brother heard the news on Thursday about the start. They caught a flight from Florida to Texas Friday morning. Asked if Alejandro knew they were coming, his father said, “I don’t know. We didn’t tell him, but his mother has a hard time keeping secrets.”

I learned a lot about Friday’s starting pitcher during the late innings. In his college years, Alejandro pitched for Florida International University and the University of Miami. When he had a year of eligibility left, two scouts called him before the draft.

The first one called and said, “We’re taking you in the sixth round.”

Family and friends gathered together in a festive atmosphere and waited for the call on day one of the major league draft. It didn’t happen.

Then the second scout called and said, “We’re taking you in the eleventh round.”

Once again, they waited. The call never came.

After the draft, Alejandro prepared to return to play for the Hurricanes, but those plans changed after a call from the Astros. He played rookie ball in 2023, then, after a short stint at High-A Asheville, he packed his bags for Corpus Christi in 2024. Friday, he made his first start for the Hooks.

The night didn’t go well for Alejandro which, for me, was a shame. He has been so steady for the Hooks over three seasons and a fan favorite here. We long-time fans wanted to see him pitch into the middle innings. After a 1-2-3 1^st, he gave up a lead-off homer to Cade McGee, the first of McGee’s short Double-A career.

Andrew Marrero relieved Alejandro in the 3^rd inning after a lead-off walk.

The game had its moments, but only two highlights stood out for me.

The first was the crowd reaction after Cardinal catcher Ryan Campos’s injury caused a delay. When he geared back up and returned to his position behind home, the crowd clapped and cheered his recovery.

When the home crowd cheers an opponent, it offers a glimpse into what Jesus Christ values. The Springfield Cardinals are far from enemies, but Christ’s words in this instance still come to mind.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:43-45, niv).

When a baseball moment reminds people of heavenly values, that is a good thing.

The second highlight happened in the top of the 4^th inning. Josiah Ragsdale scorched a grounder down the first base line. Our guy Will Bush leapt cat-like at the ball, snared it, and wriggled across the ground to tag the base a flash of lightning before Ragsdale.

I texted from Whataburger Field: Spectacular!

Ellen responded from home: What???

Me: You didn’t see Will’s catch?

Her: I didn’t!

Me: You absolutely need to see it.

She happened to be looking away from the television when the play happened, but she did see the replay. That WAS spectacular! That’s the word the announcer used!

The night’s play on the field went much better than on Thursday, but the result in the win-loss column was the same. Springfield 4-Corpus Christi 1.

Normally Friday night starts have belonged to Nolan DeVos, but sickness the week before delayed Nolan’s start by a day. That was the reason for the late insertion of Torres as Friday’s starting pitcher.

On Saturday, Nolan started the game and gave up a 2-run homer in the 1^st inning. He’d give up two more runs in the 3rd inning but record 1-2-3 innings in the 2^nd and 4^th. It wasn’t his best outing by far, and he’d surrender the mound after four complete innings pitched.

The Hooks scored in the bottom of the 4^th with a Justin Thomas Jr. leadoff double and a single by Will Bush. Score after four innings: Springfield 4-Corpus Christi 1.

Joey Mancini pitched the next three innings and gave up a lone run in the 5^th. The Hooks exploded for four runs in the bottom of the 5^th. Chase Call hit a one-out solo home run. Tyler Whitaker hit a two-out solo home run. With two out and two on, Jason Schiavone hit a 2-run double to level the game.

I could see all the movement on the field at once when Jason hit the ball. That’s the benefit of watching the game at the ballpark. Our guy Will Bush started his race around the bases from first. Grimacing face and churning arms and legs demonstrated Will’s determined effort to score. Ricky Rivera windmilled him around third base, and he scored without a throw home. After five complete: Springfield 5-Corpus Christi 5.

In the 8^th inning, the curse of late inning mistakes returned. It had been absent most of July. A walk and three wild pitches later, Springfield took the lead, 6-5. The Hooks would get a runner on in the 8^th and 9^th innings, but they would not score. Final score: Springfield 6-Corpus Christi 5.

On Sunday, James Hicks started and pitched deep into the game. The Hooks scored in the 3^rd inning when Chase Call went deep for the second time in as many days. A 2-run blast put Corpus Christi up 2-0.

Jesus Baez knotted the game at twos with his own 2-run bomb over the left field berm in the top of the 4^th. After two complete: Springfield 2-Corpus Christi 2.

James Hicks got the first two outs in the 7^th inning then handed the mound over to Ramsey David. He threw a wild pitch to send Tre Richardson III to second but induced Luis Pino to ground out to end the inning.

The curse reared its ugly 8^th-inning head for a second day in a row. A wild pitch with two on and one out scored a run to break the tie. A second wild pitch added another run. A walk, pitching change, walk brought Ian Petrutz to the plate with bases loaded. He registered his first Double-A hit as it bounced off the right-field foul pole for a grand slam. I had an excellent view of the terrible blow from my seat near the third-base batter’s circle.

Corpus Christi had six outs to make up lost ground but only managed a walk in two innings. Final score of the last homestand: Springfield 8-Corpus Christi 2.

With the exception of Thursday’s game, the 14-0 blowout, the Hooks played competitive baseball in the series. Even the 8-2 final loss at home remained competitive until a single swing of the bat put the game out of reach in the 8^th inning.

The two most recent series though have resulted in 1-5 series losses and a 2-10 record over the last twelve games. In the won-loss record books, it is the worst two weeks of Hooks’ baseball in the 2026 season. But we won’t break the 16-game losing streak set during the 2010 season. Thank goodness!

Springfield Cardinals 3-Corpus Christi Hooks 2                L

Springfield Cardinals 0-Corpus Christi Hooks 4                W

Springfield Cardinals 14-Corpus Christi Hooks 1              L

Springfield Cardinals 4-Corpus Christi Hooks 1                L

Springfield Cardinals 6-Corpus Christi Hooks 5                L

Springfield Cardinals 8-Corpus Christi Hooks 2                L

Texas League South 2^nd-half standings

Amarillo                          36-27

Midland                           31-32

Frisco                              31-32

Corpus Christi                  29-34

San Antonio                     27-36