Hector

Gimenez

With John Buck out of the way, Gimenez has a pretty good chance of developing into a regular for the Astros. The 21-year-old isn’t much of a hitter -- he’s at .247/.287/.370 this year -- but he projects as a very good defensive catcher. He could take over for Brad Ausmus in 2006.

He’s likely to get an invite to spring training, but only to serve as an extra backstop in camp. Gimenez picked up one hit in seven at-bats for the Dodgers last season in what was his first appearance back in the majors since 2006. He’s merely organizational depth.

Flowers left the team on Thursday so he could be present for the birth of his first child. Hector Gimenez will remain with the team when Flowers returns, as rosters expand on Saturday.

Gimenez will backup A.J. Pierzynski with Tyler Flowers on the paternity list. It’s possible he could stick when rosters expand this weekend, but he’s nothing more than organizational depth.

Houston’s catcher of the future is 5-for-8 with two doubles after two games.

Gimenez started all three games of the series in place of Tyler Flowers, who is dealing with a back issue. White Sox manager Robin Ventura said Flowers was being held out as a precaution, and noted that Flowers could have entered the game if Gimenez had gotten hurt. Gimenez had a career game on May 18 against the Angels, going 4-for-5 with a homer. In his three-game starting gig over the weekend against Miami, he was 1-for-8 with a walk, a run and an RBI.

Despite playing just 11 major league games in his career, the 30-year-old backstop is in a position to earn his first significant playing time. A capable defender, who can also play the outfield in a pinch, Gimenez does have upside offensively. He’s smashed 41 homers and driven home 183 runs over the last three seasons in the minor leagues, spanning 259 games. Should Tyler Flowers prove incapable of handling the job full-time, Gimenez could have value in deep two-catcher formats.

Gimenez does have a 19/2 K/BB ratio in 20 games, so it’s not all good. Still, it’s an improvement over his .245/.284/.366 line from Double-A last season. Gimenez is viewed as the Astros’ catcher of the future, but it’s unclear whether he’ll be ready to replace Brad Ausmus in 2006.

Gimenez was unable to put much weight on the leg as he limped to the dugout. That said, he should be fine and wouldn’t be due for another start for a while, anyway.