Prospects Play Part In Swap
Former BlueClaws Buchholz, Astacio Help Phillies Land Astros Closer Billy Wagner.

11.07.03 - Lakewood, NJ -- Two of the top pitchers to don a Lakewood BlueClaws uniform have been traded to the Astros in a deal that landed the Phillies one of the game’s top closers, Houston’s Billy Wagner.

Righties Taylor Buchholz and Ezequiel Astacio joined Brandon Duckworth in the trade, announced on November 3, 2003.

Buchholz, was the first former BlueClaws pitcher to play in Double-A, and spent the entire 2003 season in Reading, posting a 9-11 record with a 3.55 ERA.

A Florida State League All-Star in 2002, Buchholz was 9-14 with Lakewood in 2001 with a 3.36 ERA. He threw an SAL-best five complete games and three shutouts, going 8-4 in the second half, and was in the top five in the South Atlantic League in innings pitched, shutouts and complete games.

Buchholz, the sixth round pick of the Phillies in 2000, hails from Springfield, PA.
Ezequiel Astacio blossomed this season, setting a Clearwater record with 15 victories and a 3.22 ERA.

Picked up as a free agent from the Dominican Republic, Astacio had an impressive 2002 season with Lakewood, going 10-7 with an ERA of 3.31 and one complete game.

Astacio and Buchholz were considered two of the top pitching prospects in the system prior to the trade.