Quintero still hot in Venezuelan Winter League
That trend appears to be continuing in the Venezuelan Winter League where the 27-year-old Venezuelan is batting .406 with five doubles, a home run and seven RBIs in eight games with the Aguilas de Zulia. Fellow Express catcher Hector Gimenez, 24, is batting .265 with three doubles, a homer and seven RBIs in 11 games for the Navegantes de Magallanes.
Both Quintero and Gimenez spent the bulk of the 2006 sharing dish duties for Round Rock before joining Houston late in the season.
Left-handed pitcher Carlos Hernandez, who spent much of the 2006 sidelined as he recovered from surgery on his throwing arm, is 1-1 with a 4.18 earned run average and 19 strikeouts in 23 2/3 innings for the Navegantes. Infielder Jesse Garcia, 33, is batting .253 with two homers for the Aguilas de Mexicali in the Mexican Pacific League.
Arizona Fall League update: Infielder Brooks Conrad was added to the Mesa Solar Sox roster on Nov. 3. Conrad, 26, is hitting .538 with four doubles and a home run in 13 at-bats for the Mesa Solar Sox. He's also drawn five walks, ramping his on-base percentage up to .632. The primary second baseman batted .267, notched 40 doubles, 94 RBIs and scored 100 runs for the Express during the 2006 season.