1990 Asheville Tourists player profiles, Houston Astros

-
A look up the right field line toward home plate
Asheville's McCormick Field, home to the 1990 Asheville Tourists, in 2016. (Greatest 21 Days)

Features on each member of the 1990 Asheville Tourists, then the single-A affiliate of the Houston Astros.

Interview (1)
1 - Frank Cacciatore, Head Start
Frank Cacciatore had short playing career, but has had a long coaching career. For 2013, he was coaching with AA Reading.

Asheville Tourists (31)
1990 Asheville Tourists team card
1 - Rick Aponte played in minors, coached in bigs with Nationals
2 - Perry Berry saw 4 seasons, high-A, went into education
3 - Ed Beuerlein took work ethic to three pro seasons, made AA
4 - Frank Cacciatore took coaching from college to minors
5 - Craig Curtis proved bright spot, saw 4 seasons, high-A
6 - Gershon Dallas played over four pro seasons, made high-A
7 - Troy Dovey played five pro seasons, later went into movies
8 - Juan Encarnacion went from baseball city to 1 pro season
9 - Chris Gardner built confidence, made 5 ML appearances
10 - Ben Gonzales pitched well at Osceola, saw 6 seasons, AA
11 - Anthony Gutierrez saw six seasons with Astros, high-A
12 - Dave Hajek turned prospect, saw 13 major league games
13 - Brett Holum played 3 pro seasons, later coached youth
14 - Brian L. Hunter showed speed over 10 major league seasons
15 - Luther Johnson saw ups, downs in 4 seasons, made high-A
16 - T.J. Lucin hoped to be FMLBBP, saw 2 seasons, single-A
17 - Justin McCray played 3 pro seasons, later turned scout
18 - Mike McDowell played 3 pro seasons, coached, instructed
19 - Orlando Miller made 4 majors seasons with Astros, Tigers
20 - Julio Munoz got big Asheville win, saw two pro seasons
21 - Francisco Perez played over four seasons, made single-A
22 - Jorge Pineda made perfect throw, played one pro season
23 - Ed Quijada played 7 seasons, later paralyzed in crash
24 - Limbert Rivas played two pro seasons, made single-A
25 - Eliezel Rosario started strong, saw 3 seasons, single-A
26 - Jose Santana showed speed quickly, saw four pro seasons
27 - Kevin Scott saw 5 pro seasons, called 'veteran-type'
28 - Mark Small got taste of majors with Astros, passed in 2013
29 - Edwin Valentin saw 3 seasons, single-A, from Puerto Rico
30 - Donne Wall proved hungry, made 8 major league seasons
31 - Ken Wheeler saw marathon outing, 5 pro seasons, high-A

The 1990 Single-A South Atlantic League
-Asheville Tourists (31)
-Augusta Pirates (26)
-Columbia Mets (29)

Browse By:

-Player Name
-Player Team
-Date Featured

Players A to Z

Popular posts from this blog

A to Z: 1990 Minor League Players, Baseball Profiles

-
Image
What happened to your favorite minor league team in 1990? Find out here. Since late 2009, the players of 1990 have been featured at Greatest21Days.com, one at a time. Here, they've been ordered here alphabetically.  Every player has a story. With the help of contemporaneous newspaper articles, find that story here. Most recent players added Dec. 1, 2024 List of 1990 minor league players featured, in alphabetical order: Total: 4,457 A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z A  -  Bill Abare  got big hit at Dunedin, saw three pro seasons , 10/31/13  -  Glenn Abbott  saw bigs over decade, later turned coach , 7/27/14  -  Kurt Abbott 's first ML hit went for homer, saw 9 seasons , 3/22/15  -  Kyle Abbott  saw time in four major league seasons, Japan , 10/4/17  -  Paul Abbott  returned from injuries, made 11 ML seasons , 5/23/11...
Read more

Bryan Foster improved enough for 5 pro seasons, high-A

-
Image
Newly minted Brewers minor leaguer Bryan Foster got limited playing time early at rookie Helena in 1986, but the Indianapolis-area product looked past that, he told The Indianapolis Star that July. "I'm learning an awful lot," Foster told The Star then. "It's disappointing that I don't get to play more, but I'm improving. Just working out every day, taking infield practice and B.P. helps." Foster eventually improved enough to make five pro seasons with the Brewers and Astros . He topped out a high-A. Foster's career began in 1986, taken by the Brewers in the eighth round of the draft out of North Central High School in Indianapolis. At North Central, Foster drew high praise from his coach Tom Bradley the month before the draft, as the coach told The Star of the college and professional scouts watching him. "He's the most outstanding shortstop in the state," Bradley told The Star . "He is an all-around ball player. He is e...
Read more

T.J. Lucin hoped to be FMLBBP, saw 2 seasons, single-A

-
Image
T.J. Lucin 's main goal was so ingrained in his playing that he wrote it on each piece of equipment he had - "FMLBBP," The Berwyn Life wrote upon his selection by the Astros in the 1989 draft. The abbreviation stood for "future major league baseball player," The Life wrote . "It's something I've always dreamed of," Lucin told The Life . "In the past, I've done it, but I wasn't so outward about it." Lucin took a big step toward that goal with his selection that June. But he couldn't sustain his momentum. Lucin ended up playing two seasons . He topped out at single-A. Lucin's career began that June, taken by the Astros in the 21st round of the draft out of Morton College in Illinois. Lucin was also credited by his given first name, Anthony Lucin. Lucin arrived at Morton after transferring from Pima Community College in Arizona, as the team needed a catcher. He homered in a May 1989 game for Morton. As Morton prepared...
Read more

Matt Rambo had jitters early, saw 5 seasons, AA, injury

-
Image
During his first big practice as a professional in 1987, Matt Rambo pitched for the club's special instructor at Utica, showing what he could do, not through speed, but through pitching, The Philadelphia Daily News wrote . "I did have some jitters out there," Rambo told The Daily News for a feature on the Phillies minor league club. "I have dreamed of being a pro pitcher for as long as I can remember. I would have signed out of high school if some team had wanted me then." As it stood, Rambo gained enough notice in college to be taken in the second round of the 1987 draft. He went on from there to see time in five seasons. He topped out at AA . Rambo's career began that year in 1987, taken by the Astros 52nd overall out of Richland College in Texas. Rambo started with the Phillies at short-season Utica . He saw 13 starts and went 4-4, with a 3.74 ERA. He then moved to single-A Spartanburg for 1988 and went 12-10, with a 3.73 ERA. For 1989, he saw Sparta...
Read more

Features from the 1990 minor league sets (By Date)

-
Image
What happened to your favorite minor league team in 1990? Find out here. Since late 2009, the players of 1990 have been featured at Greatest21Days.com, one at a time. Here, they've been ordered here by the date published, newest first.  Every player has a story. With the help of contemporaneous newspaper articles, find that story here. Most recent players added July 6 ,  2025 Features in order of when the y appeared: July 2025 Bryan Foster  improved enough for 5 pro seasons, high-A , 7/6/25 T.J. Lucin  hoped to be FMLBBP, saw 2 seasons, single-A , 7/5/25 Edwin Valentin  saw 3 seasons, single-A, from Puerto Rico , 7/1/25 June 2025 Perry Berry  saw 4 seasons, high-A, went into education , 6/30/25 Jorge Pineda  made perfect throw, played one pro season , 6/29/25 Mark Stiteler  threw well in college, saw 3 pro outings , 6/29/25 Steve McCumiskey  went from college catching to pros , 6/28/25 Jason Wall  gave solid college relief, saw 1 pro ...
Read more

Vince Bradford played 2 pro baseball seasons, then football

-
Image
Vince Bradford played his first two professional seasons and looked around. The outfielder saw himself behind his teammates. He also saw himself moving to a different sport, football, according to The Tulsa World . "I think I was just a little bit behind and I realized that I couldn't catch up," Bradford told The World in September 1996. "I realized it would be better for me to stop playing baseball and come back to football, which I think I was better at." Bradford returned to football and to college, going to the University of Arkansas to play linebacker. Bradford went on to play football in Europe. He never saw the majors - or the NFL. Bradford's career began in 1990, taken by the Tigers in the third round of the draft out of Malvern High School in Arkansas. Bradford was also credited by his formal name, Vincent Bradford. Coming out of Malvern, Bradford gained enough attention to be thought of as a first-round pick. His football interest -...
Read more

Ed Quijada played 7 seasons, later paralyzed in crash

-
Image
Ed Quijada worked in 1991 to make the transition as smooth as possible, and have success . Quijada had played the last three seasons as an infielder. Now, in 1991, he was a pitcher . "It was tough," Quijada told The Houston Chronicle that August. "There was a lot of pressure on me coming out of the bullpen with the game on the line. The hardest thing for me was getting rid of the butterflies." Quijada never did make the majors, playing that year and parts of three more in the minors. He threw his last pitch after a return in 1997. More recently, though, Quijada has been trying to make the best of another transition, a life altering one . It's a transition forced by a 2009 car accident, one that left Quijada paralyzed from the neck down . In the months and years since, Quijada has been working to regain as much function as possible, as well as being a father to his kids and husband to his wife, according to a series of YouTube interviews . "F...
Read more