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Thursday, July 13, 2006
Baseball Notebook: Devil Rays trade Huff to Astros
Houston dismisses hitting coach Gaetti
HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros acquired third baseman Aubrey Huff, along with cash, from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for two minor league prospects, hoping Huff can help revive the Astros' struggling offense.
Houston also fired hitting coach Gary Gaetti on Wednesday. Sean Berry, the Astros' minor league hitting coordinator, will serve as interim hitting coach.
Gaetti had been with Houston since 2004.
The Astros have the second-worst batting average in the National League and their run total (408) ranks 23rd in the majors.
Huff, 30, is hitting .283 with eight home runs and 28 RBIs in 63 games this season.
Houston will pay $1.4 million of the $3 million that remains on the final year of Huff's contract. Tampa Bay gets right-hander Mitch Talbot and infielder Ben Zobrist from the Astros' system.
ALL-STAR RATINGS UP: Television ratings for Tuesday night's All-Star Game on Fox were up 15 percent over last season's contest, the largest increase in 24 years.
The game had a 9.3 rating and 16 share with an average of 14.4 million viewers.
Last year's game got an 8.1 rating and a 14 share, the second year in a row it had plummeted to an all-time low.
The Home Run Derby on Monday, televised by ESPN, had a 10 percent increase. The contest had a 5.4 rating; it was 4.9 last year.
A ratings point represents 1,096,000 households, or 1 percent of the nation's estimated 109.6 million TV homes. The share is the percentage of in-use televisions tuned to a given show.
PCL ALL-STARS LOSE: Kevin Witt of the Durham Bulls hit a two-run homer and an RBI double Wednesday to lead the International League to a 6-0 victory over the Pacific Coast League in the Triple-A All-Star game in Toledo, Ohio.
Seven pitchers combined on a two-hitter for the IL. Portland's Justin Leone was the first PCL hitter to reach base when he doubled off the left-field wall in the fifth inning.
Syracuse's Kevin Barker and Toledo's Ryan Raburn hit back-to-back home runs for the IL in the seventh inning to make it 6-0.
Tacoma Rainiers outfielder Adam Jones did not play.
SHORT HOPS: To make room for Huff, Houston will send OF Jason Lane to Triple-A Round Rock. Huff's arrival could affect 3B Morgan Ensberg, who has struggled at the plate. ... Red Sox OF Manny Ramirez is expected to start in left field tonight and RHP Wily Mo Pena should be off the disabled list today. ... Cubs RHP Carlos Zambrano was diagnosed with only a bruise on his elbow after being hit by AL coach Joey Cora's backswing at the All-Star Game on Tuesday. His next scheduled start is Saturday against the Mets.
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