A two-homer game is plenty impressive on its own, but how about crushing a pair of dingers in consecutive games?
Astros No. 6 prospect Jason Schiavone did just that on Wednesday, hitting two home runs for the second straight game at Double-A Corpus Christi. Schiavone’s 3-for-4 performance came in a back-and-forth, 10-9 loss to Amarillo at HODGETOWN.
The 23-year-old catcher went deep in the top of the first inning Thursday, giving his team an early 2-0 lead with an impressive bomb to right-center field.
The righty-swinging Schiavone showed off oppo pop again in the fourth inning. He went back-to-back with Trevor Austin, this time driving a ball just inside the right-field pole. His fourth homer in five at-bats, dating back to Tuesday, gave Corpus Christi a 5-2 lead that Amarillo battled to take back.
With a single in the third inning, Schiavone raised his season slash line to .261/.402/.551 across two levels. He hit his 28th and 29th four-baggers on Wednesday, which leads all Astros prospects and are second most in the Minors among primary catchers, behind only Mariners prospect Boston Smith.
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Schiavone’s breakout season has been something special. The 2024 11th-round Draft pick has an OPS more than 200 points higher than his previous best and saw the largest rise in prospect rankings before the Trade Deadline this year, up 28 spots in the Astros’ Top 30.
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His reputation as a “baseball rat” has helped him continue growing on the defensive side while channeling serious raw power at the plate.
“To expect this type of performance this year would have been a lie," Astros director of player development Sam Niedorf said. "But given the work ethic and the commitment of the player, I'm not surprised by the success he's having. … The work has never scared him, and that separates him from most guys at that position specifically.”