Norris	Wainwright
1.39 FIP	3.48 FIP

Norris is a 24 year old rookie making his first start in the big leagues after 3 really nice innings in relief the other day against the Cubs. He was the Astros' #2 prospect, as ranked by BA, entering the season. The righty is listed at 6'0" and 225 lbs. Wednesday he threw 52 pitches and recorded 5 swinging strikes in just 3 innings. He seems to be a ground ball pitcher though he recorded 7 fly balls and 1 ground ball against the Cubs. His minor league GB% is 47.4% and his HR/9 is 0.58. He has a career BB/9 of 3.68 and K/9 of 9.26 in the minors. His numbers this year at AAA Round Rock were: BB/9 -- 4.11; K/9 -- 8.09; HR/9 -- 0.43.

Wednesday, about 2/3 of the pitches he threw were fastballs and they averaged 93.7 mph. He also throws a slider and a change up -- both of which were effective pitches for him against the Cubs. Still, we're talking all of three innings but that's the best scouting report I can provide.

The guy we're sending to the mound is pretty good. As I alluded to earlier, he hasn't been quite as good as Pineiro or Carpenter this season, but he's still been very good. Right now he's 11th among NL pitchers in FIP and 8th in RAR and Value. It's still amazing to me that those numbers are the third best on our staff. We have 3 of the top 8 pitchers in the NL this season. Blows my mind!

It's sweep time, baby!