Baseball America says that the Astros, in addition to re-signing Carlos Corporan, have signed 3B Diory Hernandez.
Hernandez will be 28 in April and comes from the Braves' organization, where he was signed as an amateur free agent in 2002. He appeared in 22 games for the Braves in 2011, hitting .212/.212/.333, while playing 3B, SS, and 1B.
In nine minor-league seasons, he has a .272/.323/.378 line, with 463K:169BB. In four Triple-A seasons, he hit .275/.315/.375. The peak of those four seasons was 2009, when he hit .319/.399/.422 in 54 games. In 79 Triple-A games in 2011, he hit .201/.229/.308.
This is probably the best news possible for Jimmy Paredes, who looks likely to open the season with the Big Club. If the Astros play him at shortstop, he'll compete with Brian Bixler and Angel Sanchez.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
