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Crosby High School - Texas
· MVP
. 3 time All–District
· Represented Crosby In The Houston
Area Baseball Game
· Full Baseball Scholarship
· Drafted By Oakland A’s (2002)
Junior College-
Collin CC and North Central
·
Drafted By Oakland A’s (2003)
·
MVP
· 2 time All Conference
· Rawlings Big Stick Award ( Best
JUCO Hitter In The Southern US)
· All–American Honors
· Received Full Baseball Scholarship
To Oklahoma State University
· Drafted By Houston Astros 20th
Round (2004)
· BA .484, OBP .546, SLG .588
2004
Astro Rookie Year – Greeneville, Tennessee
·
Won Appalachian League Championship
· 2 Time Defensive Player Of The
Month Award
2005 Lexington Legends
· 2 Time OPR Player Of The Month
· Led Team With Highest Batting
Average
· BA .346, OBP .436, SLG .549
2005 Honors
· Best Late Round Pick (Baseball
America)
·Best Defensive Catcher (Baseball
America)
· #11 Top Prospect Overall In The
Astro Organization (Baseball America)
· 2nd Team All-Prospect South
Atlantic League (On Deck Baseball Prospect)
· Rated #5 Batter In The South
Atlantic League (On Deck Baseball Prospect)
· Tough As Nails Award (Alan
Awards-Lexington )
Baseball America
2006 Prospect’s Handbook
Towles turned down the Athletics
twice, as a 32nd rounder in 2002 and a 23rd
rounder in 2003, before signing with the Astros as a 20th
rounder in 2004. After he had a lackluster pro debut at
Rookie-level Greenville and needed surgery on the tip of his
right index finger after getting hit by a foul ball in
instructional league, Houston started him in extended spring
training last season. The plan was to have him repeat Rookie
ball or maybe go to Tri-City But when Lou Santangelo went down
with a torn labrum in June, Towles was needed in low Class A,
and he responded by emerging as the system’s best catching
prospect since John Buck. Towles put on 15 pounds of muscle and
moved closer to the plate, and he looked like a different hitter
than he had in 2004. He started driving the ball and handled the
bat much better. Athletic for a catcher, Towles has average
speed and showed bunting and base running ability. He’s also the
best all-around defensive catcher in the system. His receiving
and blocking skills are strong, and he has arm strength.
Towles’ pop times from his mitt to second base generally sit at
an average of 2.0 seconds because he has a long release, though
he did throw out 33 percent of base stealers last year. Besides
his obvious tools, he also has good instincts and a strong work
ethic. Towles could open this year back in Lexington if the
Astros want to give him regular action behind the plate, or
could move up to high class A if they don’t mind a timeshare
arrangement with Santangelo.
Year Club (League Class AVG
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RB1 BB SO
SB OBP SLG
2004
Greeneville (Appy) R .243 39 111 17
27 6 0 0 8 12 23
4 .370 .297
2005 Lexington
(SAL) A .346
45 162 35 56 14 2 5 23
16 29 11 .436 .549
MINOR LEAGUE
TOTALS .304
84 273 52 83 20 2 5 31
28 52 15 .409 .447
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MINOR LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Catcher seeking full set of skills
Starting role suits
Towles well at Class A Lexington
By BRIAN MCTAGGART
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
When Roger Clemens
arrived at spring training last month to pitch a simulated game
in minor-league camp, he ran into catcher J.R. Towles in the
clubhouse and asked Towles if he knew who would be catching that
day.
Towles had no idea
at the time that Clemens was looking for him. "I go back in the
clubhouse and Dewey Robinson, our pitching coordinator, said I
was going to catch," Towles said. "It kind of surprised me, but
I took at as a privilege. Not a lot of people get an opportunity
to catch a future Hall of Famer."
That was only the
beginning of what has been a memorable season so far for Towles,
who hit .463 with a home run and 10 RBIs through 13 games for
the Class A Lexington Legends.
"He's making
progress," Astros director of player development Ricky Bennett
said. "He's started to block the ball a lot better and his
throws have been much more accurate. He's just getting better
all the way around, and a lot of it has to do with him playing
and getting the reps."
Towles, 22, has
emerged as perhaps the Astros' best young catching prospect. He
grew in Crosby and was drafted in the 20th round of the 2004 by
the Astros out of North Central Texas College in Gainesville.
After signing, the
right-handed hitter batted .243 at rookie-league Greeneville
before spending the first half of last season at extended spring
training while awaiting a place to play. He went to Lexington in
July and hit .346 with five homers and 23 RBIs in 45 games.
Towles — who went
1-for-3 with an RBI on Monday in a 7-4 win over visiting West
Virginia — has been pleased with his season so far, especially
his defense.
"I think that's my
strong point of my game," he said. "I've been doing well there.
This year it seems I have a better understanding of what we're
trying to do since I played here last year. It makes it a lot
easier."
And getting
consistent has helped him, too.
"Once he started to
play every day he really took off," Bennett said. "He carried it
over to the winter to his off-season workout program, and he
brought the same attitude and approach into spring training
early and he's really done a nice job.
"He's catching
every day, gaining a lot more confidence and is swinging the bat
well. He's really separated himself from a lot of the other
younger guys."
|
May. 27, 2006
Legends' Towles has been
a blessing
CATCHER
POSSESSES ALL-AROUND GAME
By Mark Maloney,
HERALD-LEADER STAFF WRITER
About 30 minutes before each game, before most fans have
reached their seats at Applebee's Park, J.R. Towles
heads to the warning track in center field.He takes a
knee, then bows his head, just as he has done since his
high school days."I just go out there and have a talk
with the big man upstairs," said Towles, the Lexington
Legends' catcher. "I just ask for our protection and to
do the very best I can. ... I just try to use my talents
to glorify him."
So
far, so good. Through Thursday, Towles was hitting .341
with four homers, 22 RBI and 22 runs, and had a
five-game hitting streak. "J.R. Towles has got a
well-rounded repertoire of being offensive as well as a
good defensive player," Manager Jack Lind said. "He's a
lot of fun to watch. He brings a lot of energy to the
game." Former Legends manager Russ Nixon, now a roving
instructor for the Astros, recalls Towles was full of
potential but "thin as a rail" when he first saw him,
two years ago. "Now, he's matured both in body and
mind," Nixon said, "and you're seeing a pretty darn
good-looking ballplayer out there." Towles, now
6-foot-2, 195 pounds, has added 15 pounds of muscle
since Nixon's first glance. Most Legends fans would
agree that Towles is a good-looking player. So would at
least one opposing fan.The Legends played a series
earlier this month at West Virginia, where a local
celebrity known as "The Toast Man" was hard-pressed to
taunt Towles.The Toast Man -- he throws toast to the
crowd and yells "you're toast" when a visiting player
strikes out -- was relegated to saying Towles' average
had dropped 100 points -- all the way down to .370 --
since his previous visit. Toast Man later confided to
Towles that he is too good to stay in this league.
J.R.
is short for Justin Richard."J.R. just sounds a little
better than Justin, I think," he said. "And my mom calls
me Justin when I'm in trouble." Ellie Towles, a retired
school teacher, doesn't have to call him Justin often.
She and Wesley, who is a manager at an industrial supply
company in Houston, come to see their son play several
times each season. J.R. not only is their favorite, but
a fan favorite. His chosen theme song when he goes to
bat is If You're Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have
a Fiddle in the Band). "It has a good beat, it gets
the fans into it and it's Texas," he said. Nixon, a
former big-league catcher who is in 54th year of pro
ball, is into what he sees in Towles.
"He's got all of the qualities and the talent to really
go far in this game," Nixon said. "I look for him to be
a front-line big-league catcher in the not too (distant)
future." Towles was drafted twice by the Oakland A's, in
2002 and 2003, but he opted to play for North Central
Texas Junior College. When the Astros took him in the
20th round of the 2004 draft, Towles signed. In his
debut pro season, with Greeneville of the Appalachian
League, he hit .243 with eight RBI in 39 games. He began
2005 in extended spring training. He came to Lexington
in June, when Lou Santangelo was hurt. Towles hit the
field in full flight. He hit .346 with five homers and
23 RBI over 45 games. Add to that 11 stolen bases --
very un-catcher-like, and another reason he is listed by
Baseball America as the No. 11 prospect in the Astros
system.
And
his defense may be better than his offense. Baseball
America calls him "the best all-around defensive catcher
in the (Astros) system," as well as "the system's best
catching prospect since John Buck." Towles says the best
aspect of his defense is his ability to block the ball.
He has a strong, accurate arm. What needs work, he says,
is his ability to handle pitchers. "I want to develop
that good relationship where they trust me," he said. "I
just try to do the very best I can every time." That
passion and work ethic figure to carry Towles well past
Low-A ball. The only question is when.
Said
Nixon: "Enjoy him while you have him here." |
A Letter From a Fan...
As a fan of the Lexington Legends and a lover of baseball,
I want to take this time to let your family and J.R. know how
much I and other fans appreciate the effort that J.R. gave for
our team. Before he arrived the Astros chose to take many of the
players we needed to be contenders in the SAL. I feel that the
team started to doubt themselves. I know the fans were
concerned. When J.R. arrived he brought with him a determination
to give his all to the game and us fans. I feel he played a big
part in bringing the team out of the funk. Though his bat was a
great addition to the team I felt that his determination desire
and hustle were his biggest contributions. I will always
remember the first charge he took at the plate where after the
play he showed the ball to the runner. You could feel a change
of attitude in the stands and i believe on the field. His work
ethic reminds me of one of my heros( Charlie Hustle).
My heart hopes that J.R. is in Lexington next year. My
head would like to see in in Salem or higher. Forgive me if I go
with my heart. We did not make it to the playoffs or win the big
one this year but I believe i enjoyed this year more than i have
all previous years except the first. I believe this team's heart
was as big as the first year but the first team was the FIRST
team.
I hope to see you again next year but, if not I will
follow J.R.'s career and hope to see if make it to the SHOW.
Michael Hall
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