Astros bring in five new scouts

HOUSTON -- The Astros, as part of their ongoing efforts to upgrade the club's player development pipeline, on Monday added five new scouts to the organization and named longtime scout Ralph Bratton as Midwest scouting supervisor.

According to Astros director of amateur scouting Bobby Heck, the club has named David Post as national crosschecker and Clarence Johns as East Coast scouting supervisor. Jim Stevenson was tabbed to be area scout for North Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri, Joe Graham as area scout for Northern California and Nevada and Keith Bogan as area scout for Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and West Tennessee.

Bratton, a longtime Astros scout and former national supervisor, will begin his 18th season within the organization as its Midwest scouting supervisor.

Post spent four years as a Northwest and Florida area scout for the Marlins. Before his scouting career, Post played 12 years in the Minor Leagues for six organizations, including his last six seasons with Triple-A clubs.

Johns served as a Southeast area scout for the Colorado Rockies the last four years. Before joining the Rockies, he spent five years with the Dodgers organization, where he signed current Major League players Russell Martin and Reggie Abercrombie.

Stevenson served as a scout for the Milwaukee Brewers for six years. In 2007, he served as a professional scout with responsibilities for the NL Central Division for the Brewers. Before joining the Brewers organization, Stevenson spent five years with the Cleveland Indians as an area scout. During his time as a scout, Stevenson signed Yovani Gallardo, Dana Eveland, Mike Bacsik and a number of prospects within the Brewers system.

Graham, a native of Northern California, joins the Astros organization after serving four years with the Cleveland Indians as an area scout for Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah. While with the Indians, Graham signed Trevor Crowe and Jordan Brown.

Bogan previously served as a part-time scout for the Astros, covering the North Texas area. He joins the organization in a full-time position, covering Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and West Tennessee.