One Third of the Way Done

Well, we're at the one third mark of the 2013 season and the Astros find themselves coming off a 3-1 series win over the Rockies bringing their record on the year to 17-37. That puts them on pace to go 51-111 on the year, which doesn't sound great, but it at least isn't going to set any records for futility outside of Houston. Some projections based the first third:

C - Jason Castro .286, 45 2B, 18 HR, 48 RBI, 45 BB, 141 K

1B - Carlos Pena .231, 27 2B, 12 HR, 42 RBI, 87 BB, 165 K

2B - Jose Altuve .302, 33 2B, 6 HR, 63 RBI, 42 BB, 75 K, 24 SB

3B - Matt Dominguez .238, 24 2B, 24 HR, 78 RBI, 18 BB, 96 K

SS - Marwin Gonzalez .237, 21 2B, 9 HR, 33 RBI, 15 BB, 75 K, 12 SB

LF - J.D. Martinez .282, 30 2B, 15 HR, 60 RBI, 15 BB, 99 K

CF - Brandon Barnes .295, 12 2B, 6 HR, 36 RBI, 21 BB, 78 K, 12 SB

RF - Jimmy Paredes .237, 12 2B, 3 HR, 21 RBI, 12 BB, 57 K

DH - Chris Carter .218, 12 2B, 30 HR, 84 RBI, 60 BB, 231 K

BN - Carlos Corporan .311, 9 2B, 9 HR, 24 RBI, 15 BB, 48 K

BN - Ronny Cedeno .288, 12 2B, 3 HR, 27 RBI, 9 BB, 54 K

BN - Trevor Crowe .243, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 9 BB, 24 K

SP - Bud Norris 12-12, 3.71 ERA, 189 IP, 114 K

SP - Lucas Harrell 12-18, 5.37 ERA, 191 IP, 105 K

SP - Erik Bedard 0-6, 5.32 ERA, 132 IP, 126 K

SP - Jordan Lyles 6-3, 4.50 ERA, 96 IP, 69 K

SP - Dallas Keuchel 3-6, 5.53 ERA, 122 IP, 84 K

RP - Hector Ambriz 3-6, 4.68 ERA, 75 IP, 63 K, 27 HLD

RP - Travis Blackley 0-0, 3.66 ERA, 59 IP, 54 K, 21 HLD

RP - Wesley Wright 0-3, 4.22 ERA, 64 IP, 54 K, 12 HLD

RP - Paul Clemens 9-6, 4.13 ERA, 98 IP, 72 K, 15 HLD

RP - Jose Cisnero 3-0, 3.13 ERA, 69 IP, 57 K

RP - Brad Peacock 3-9, 8.51 ERA, 73 IP, 63 K, 3 HLD

CL - Jose Veras 0-12, 4.70 ERA, 69 IP, 72 K, 24 SV

Some of the highlights for the first half as far as numbers go:

*Paul Clemens and Jose Cisnero each earned their first Major League wins.

*Jose Veras already has a career high 8 saves

*Hector Ambriz already has a carer high 9 holds and recorded his first Major League save.

*Carlos Corporan is just one homer shy of tying his career high of 4 set last year.

*Jason Castro's 15 doubles and 6 homers have tied career highs set last year.

*Marwin Gonzalez already has set career highs in homers and steals and needs just 1 more rbi to match last year's total.

*Trevor Crowe's home run was his first at the Major League Level since 2010.

*Erik Bedard is on pace to make 27 starts this year, the most for him since 2007 when he made 28.

*Carlos Pena's .231 average is his highest since he hit .247 in 2008 for the Rays.

The following Astros have made their Major League Debuts this season:

Paul Clemens

Brett Oberholtzer

Jose Cisnero

Robbie Grossman

Josh Fields

Random Thoughts on Things We Can Do Better

1) While I understand Bo Porter wants to settle on a lineup instead of continuing to play musical chairs with his outfielders, I can't say I'm thrilled that he selected J.D. Martinez over Trevor Crowe or Brandon Barnes. While J.D. hits for power, and he's had a good series against Detroit so far (4/7 with 3 doubles in the first two games), he doesn't strike me as someone who's ever going to be anything more than mediocre. He doesn't run well, he's not a plus defender, he doesn't draw many walks... I guess I'm not sure why he opted to go that direction instead of giving more playing time to Barnes (the only outfielder we have hitting over .250), or Crowe (switch-hitter with good speed). The only thing I can think of is that J.D. is getting one last chance to prove he's able to play at this level, and playing him every day is the only real way to assess that. And if that's the case, I'm all right with it as I get that this season is about more than just winning games. Still, I think Barnes and Crowe both deserve a chance to show they're more than role players... And as I write that J.D. hits a 3-run homer off Scherzer. Still not in love with the guy's game though.

2) I get that our pitchers are young, but you CANNOT give up a Grand Slam on an 0-2 pitch. That's horrendous. I pitched through college, and I know nothing would fire up my coach like a bad 0-2 pitch. And by bad, I mean good. That pitch is supposed to be unhittable. It's a pitcher's opportunity to waste a pitch and get a guy to chase. Bud Norris, our ace, giving up a Grand Slam on an 0-2 pitch in a 3-2 game is not good. It put a close game out of reach and as the ace, it's his job to keep us in games like that and give us a chance to win. It's little things like that that separate us from the good teams in the AL, and until we can learn to execute, we're going to continue to struggle.

3) We're 40 games into the season and Carlos Pena has THREE home runs. That concerns me. I think it's great that he draws walks, and that he's scoring runs, but how's a guy like that only have three homers? Carlos Corporan has three homers. MARWIN GONZALEZ has three homers. If Pena's not going to hit for power, he shouldn't be hitting in those power spots in the lineup. Let him hit #2, we know he can bunt.

4) What's Paul Clemens got to do to get some meaningful innings? Yes, he's been great as the long man in the pen, but why not use his talents at the back end of the bullpen. Let Cisnero and Edgar Gonzalez be the long relievers. Ambriz hasn't been BAD, but he hasn't been good enough that we shouldn't be looking at other options there. I think Clemens has that power arm that could be a game changer for us, and I just feel like we're wasting him on mop-up duty right now.

5) Couple roster decisions looming as Josh Fields continues his rehab and Justin Maxwell gets closer to a return from his broken hand. My gut tells me Cisnero and J.D. are the two on the hot seat. Cisnero hasn't necessarily done any wrong, but he's not getting any work, which means he isn't going to be getting any better. He's young enough that he still needs to get innings so when Fields comes back, it makes sense that he'd go unless Ambriz just completely implodes. For the outfielders, I think it has to be J.D. unless he keeps hitting the way he has in Detroit in which case it probably means Crowe is the odd man out. At least there's competition. It's not much, but it's a start.

Humber Out, Edgar Back In

After last night's Philip Humber meltdown, you kinda saw this move coming. After starting the season 0-8 with a 9.59 ERA in 9 appearances, Humber was designated for assignment today. The Astros didn't waste any time filling his roster spot either as they signed free agent Edgar Gonzalez who was recently released by Toronto. If the name sounds familiar, it's because Gonzalez made the Astros out of Spring Training, but was designated for assignment before appearing in a game this season to make room for Travis Blackley. Now he's back and will help out in long relief for the Astros. How long he stays on the roster remains to be seen as Josh Fields is getting closer to returning from injury. Gonzalez made 4 starts for AAA Buffalo going 1-0 with a 5.49 ERA, and 3 relief appearances for the Jays in which he posted a 7.88 ERA (7 runs in 8 innings). Gonzalez made 6 starts for the Astros a year ago, going 3-1 with a 5.04 ERA. He beat the Pirates, Reds and Brewers. Is he "the answer" to our problems? Probably not. But, he buys us some more time so we don't have to rush the kids (Cosart, Wojo, etc.)

Some other notes from last night:

1) I really like Trevor Crowe. He did three things last night that stood out for me:

*A two-strike base hit off of closer Joe Nathan in the 9th inning to drive in a run
*Threw out Ian Kinsler at home on a would-be sacrifice fly
*Went from 1st to 3rd on a wild pitch in the 9th inning to set up a run

A switch hitter with good speed, Crowe present us with some interesting possibilities moving forward. A former first round pick, it'd be great if he finally put things together.

2) Erik Bedard was terrific yesterday and deserved to win that game. He left with a 3-1 lead in the 6th after fanning 7 and allowing just 4 hits in 5+ innings. His most impressive inning was the 5th in which he worked out of a 1st and 3rd no out jam without allowing a run. That's the Bedard we thought we were getting when we signed him. He's had an interesting season so far. Let me break it down for you in three parts:

Part 1 (Apps 1-2): 7 1/3 IP 2 H 0 ER 2 BB 5 K - 0.00 ERA 0.55 WHIP
Part 2 (Apps 3-6): 11 1/3 IP 21 H 17 ER 10 BB 16 K - 13.50 ERA 2.74 WHIP
Part 3 (Apps 7-8): 8 1/3 IP 6 H 3 ER 3 BB 10 K - 3.24 ERA 1.08 WHIP

Now if we could just harness parts 1 and 3 and keep THAT guy going forward...

3) Nice to see Sweet Matty D go yard twice against Darvish yesterday getting his first 2 home runs of the year and notching his first career multi-homer game.

4) Jose Cisnero pitched well in relief of Humber allowing a Lance Berkman home run in 3 1/3 innings of work. While Cisnero has pitched well for the most part during his brief tenure in Houston, I think he's the likely guy to get sent back down when Josh Fields returns. It's not a knock on Cisnero's performance at all, but being a young guy, it's more important for him to get work than it is for him to sit on the bench in Houston.

10 Reasons to be Optimistic Even Though We Lost the Last Two Games:

1) Chris Carter has struck out just 4 times in his last 7 games after striking out 49 times in his first 28. During this recent stretch, Carter is 6 for 18 with 5 runs batted in.

2) Philip Humber pitched 1 1/3 innings out of the bullpen on Thursday night and didn't allow a hit while fanning 3 and walking one. Maybe a move to the pen is just what he needs to turn things around.

3) Trevor Crowe, not known for his power, hit his first home run as an Astro last night off of Alexi Ogando.

4) When Houston faced Ogando in April he fanned 10 hitters in 6 1/3 shutout innings. Last night he didn't make it through six innings and fanned only 3. That, my friends, is progress.

5) Dallas Keuchel turned in a quality start in his first appearance in the Astros rotation this year allowing just 2 runs on 5 hits in 6 innings. Yeah, we didn't get a win, but if you're a realist, you recognize this year isn't about wins, it's about evaluating talent. Keuchel has been a pleasant surprise this year in whatever role he's been asked to fill and could help bolster a shaky rotation if he continues to pitch well.

6) Losing close games is frustrating, but having close games is a step in the right direction. If you think about it, the Astros could have very easily gone 6-2 over the last 8 games. Yeah, we're only 2-6 during that stretch, but that's about learning how to win more than it is learning to play good baseball. We're getting there, and that's reason to be excited.

7) We're two weeks into May and Brandon Barnes is still hitting .327 with an on base percentage of .413. What's more, he's been able to sustain his hot bat despite not playing every day.

8) A day after making an uncharacteristic 3 errors at third, Matty Dominguez was back to his old self again last night. Always nice to see young players with a bad short term memory and able to shake things like that off.

9) Marwin Gonzalez has put together back-to-back multi-hit games after enduring a 1 for 24 slide raising his average back up to .264. Put that together with Ronny Cedeno's .314 clip and suddenly the shortstop position has become fairly productive offensively for us.

10) Lucas Harrell struggled with his control walking 6 in 5 innings on Thursday night, but allowed just 1 earned run. I'd still like to see him work through his control issues, but it was nice to see him battle through a tough lineup despite not having his best stuff.

Down on the Farm - 5/6/13

AAA - Iowa 6 Oklahoma City 1

Trevor Crowe, Jonathan Villar and Carlos Perez all had 2 hits, but the RedHawks (18-12) fell behind early, and never recovered losing to the Cubs 6-1. Ross Seaton's struggles in AAA continued as he allowed 4 runs in 5 innings of work to fall to 0-2 with a 10.42 ERA. Former Astro Brian Bogusevic continued his big series against the RedHawks reaching base 3 times and raising his average on the year to .419 (39/93). Another former Astro, Edwin Maysonet homered and drove in 3 runs for the Cubs.

AA -  Corpus Christi 3 San Antonio 0

Mike Foltynewicz announced his presence in AA with authority striking on 9 in 5 shutout innings in which he allowed just 1 hit and 1 walk as the Hooks (19-12) defeated the Missions 3-0. Folty's relief, David Martinez (4-0), was equally impressive throwing 3 1/3 shutout innings to earn the win and lowering his ERA on the year to 0.87. George Springer hit his 11th homer of the season and Domingo Santana followed it up with his 4th to lead the offense.

Advanced A - Lancaster 8 High Desert 7

The JetHawks (18-12) overcame an early 5-1 deficit and held on late to defeat the Mavericks 8-7. Jonas Dufek and Brady Rodgers combined to throw 5 scoreless innings out of the bullpen setting the stage for the comeback as the JetHawks banged out 15 hits, including 2 apiece from MP Cokinos, Matt Duffy, Preston Tucker, Tyler Heineman and Chris Epps in the win. Travis Ballew surrendered a 2-run homer in the 9th, but still earned his 5th save.

Low A - Quad Cities 8 West Michigan 3

Colton Cain pitched his best game of the year tossing 5 shutout innings and was rewarded with his first win as the River Bandits (18-11) defeated the Whitecaps 8-3. Jordan Scott tripled and drove in 3 runs, and Jesse Wierzbicki, Ryan Dineen and Roberto Pena all had two hits to lead the Bandits offense. 

Astros Reshuffle Deck Again

Rick Ankiel, Fernando Martinez and Brandon Laird are all out, and J.D. Martinez, Jimmy Paredes and newcomer Trevor Crowe are in as the Astros shook things up a bit following their 4-game sweep at the hands of the Tigers. None of the moves come as a big surprise as all three of the players on the outs had struggled offensively. Ankiel was hitting just .194  with 35 strikeouts in 62 at bats, F-Mart was 6 for 33 with 12 strikeouts, and Laird was 7 for 35 with 13 strikeouts. The three did combine for 9 of Houston's 30 home runs, but they were few and far between, and given all of Houston's struggles, the inability to put the ball in play and/or get on base, just wasn't good enough. For Ankiel and F-Mart, it may be the end of the line, as both players were designated for assignment and could get claimed by other teams. For Laird, he'll had back to AAA where he'll hope to build on his early season success that saw him hitting .353 and earned him a call-up. I'll be honest, I liked all three of them, but the numbers don't lie, and so we move on. Here's a quick look at our two new call-ups. No need to reintroduce J.D. Martinez who hit .300 (6/20) in his rehab stint with Corpus Christi.

Jimmy Paredes

Paredes came to Houston in the Lance Berkman trade and debuted for Houston in 2011, so he's no stranger to Astro fans. After hitting .286 as a rookie in 2011, he spent most of 2012 in AAA before a late season call-up in which he hit just .189 (14/74). After hitting just .120 (3/25) this spring, Paredes found himself back in AAA, but he's absolutely raked for the RedHawks this year. In 30 games he has 41 hits, has dramatically cut down on the strikeouts and increased his walks (131/24 in 2011, 122/28 in 2012, 19/14 in 2013), and he's hitting at a .366 clip. He's also got 15 extra base hits, stolen 7 bases and scored 20 runs. The big thing for him is going to be keeping the strikeouts down, but he's shown before that he can hit big league pitching. He can play second, third, right field and left field, and with Houston's struggles, my guess is that he gets every opportunity to prove himself.

Year	Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
2007	DSL NYY1	DSL	.259	64	266	31	69	14	4	2	42	97	6	44	5	4	.287	.365	.652
2007	Minors		.259	64	266	31	69	14	4	2	42	97	6	44	5	4	.287	.365	.652
2008	YAN	GCL	.280	47	161	23	45	9	2	1	15	61	8	20	6	0	.328	.379	.706
2008	Minors		.280	47	161	23	45	9	2	1	15	61	8	20	6	0	.328	.379	.706
2009	SI	NYP	.302	54	205	36	62	8	4	2	17	84	10	30	23	9	.336	.410	.746
2009	Minors		.302	54	205	36	62	8	4	2	17	84	10	30	23	9	.336	.410	.746
2010	CSC	SAL	.282	99	404	59	114	24	6	5	48	165	18	82	36	10	.312	.408	.721
2010	LEX	SAL	.299	34	147	24	44	10	1	3	17	65	7	25	14	1	.331	.442	.773
2010	Minors		.287	133	551	83	158	34	7	8	65	230	25	107	50	11	.317	.417	.735
2011	CC	TEX	.270	93	385	69	104	22	4	10	41	164	15	84	29	12	.300	.426	.726
2011	Minors		.270	93	385	69	104	22	4	10	41	164	15	84	29	12	.300	.426	.726
2011	Majors		.286	46	168	16	48	8	2	2	18	66	9	47	5	4	.320	.393	.713
2012	OKC	PCL	.318	124	507	92	161	28	7	13	59	242	22	101	37	10	.348	.477	.826
2012	Minors		.318	124	507	92	161	28	7	13	59	242	22	101	37	10	.348	.477	.826
2012	Majors		.189	24	74	7	14	1	1	0	3	17	6	21	2	1	.244	.230	.474
2013	OKC	PCL	.366	30	112	20	41	9	3	3	15	65	14	19	7	4	.433	.580	1.013
2013	Minors		.366	30	112	20	41	9	3	3	15	65	14	19	7	4	.433	.580	1.013

Trevor Crowe

Once upon a time, way back in 2005, Crowe was a first round pick for the Cleveland Indians. He reached the Majors in 2009 and even played 122 games and hit .251 in 2010, but he appeared in just 15 games in 2011 following shoulder surgery, and spent all of 2012 in the minors before the Astros took a flyer on him this year. A versatile outfielder with great speed, Crowe is off to a solid start with Oklahoma City hitting .307 in 30 games with 21 runs, 17 walks and 11 stolen bases. He's never hit for a ton of power (he homered a career high 9 times in 2008), but he'll hit you some doubles and triples. Another switch hitter, like Paredes, Crowe gives the Astros even more versatility off the bench. Now 29, Crowe isn't exactly a prospect, but on this team, anyone who can get a job done deserves a spot. Might as well see what he can do.

Year	Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
2005	MV	NYP	.255	12	51	9	13	2	1	1	6	20	6	8	4	3	.345	.392	.737
2005	LC	SAL	.258	44	178	18	46	8	2	0	23	58	18	25	7	5	.327	.326	.652
2005	AKR	EAS	.100	3	10	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	3	0	0	.100	.100	.200
2005	Minors		.251	59	239	28	60	10	3	1	29	79	24	36	11	8	.322	.331	.653
2006	LC	SAL	.000	2	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.000	.000	.000
2006	KIN	CAR	.329	60	219	51	72	15	2	4	31	103	48	46	29	6	.449	.470	.919
2006	AKR	EAS	.234	39	154	20	36	7	2	1	13	50	20	24	16	6	.318	.325	.643
2006	Minors		.286	101	378	71	108	22	4	5	44	153	68	71	45	12	.393	.405	.798
2007	AKR	EAS	.259	133	518	87	134	26	4	5	50	183	62	71	28	9	.341	.353	.694
2007	Minors		.259	133	518	87	134	26	4	5	50	183	62	71	28	9	.341	.353	.694
2008	AKR	EAS	.323	49	198	45	64	16	2	4	28	96	27	29	13	5	.404	.485	.888
2008	BUF	INT	.274	35	146	25	40	12	2	5	13	71	15	43	5	2	.350	.486	.836
2008	Minors		.302	84	344	70	104	28	4	9	41	167	42	72	18	7	.381	.485	.867
2009	COL	INT	.297	49	185	27	55	11	1	2	20	74	30	31	14	7	.401	.400	.801
2009	Minors		.297	49	185	27	55	11	1	2	20	74	30	31	14	7	.401	.400	.801
2009	Majors		.235	68	183	22	43	9	3	1	17	61	11	39	6	0	.278	.333	.611
2010	COL	INT	.244	29	119	21	29	4	1	1	13	38	7	19	6	1	.281	.319	.601
2010	Minors		.244	29	119	21	29	4	1	1	13	38	7	19	6	1	.281	.319	.601
2010	Majors		.251	122	442	48	111	24	3	2	36	147	29	73	20	7	.302	.333	.634
2011	IND	AZL	.444	6	18	9	8	3	1	2	8	19	6	4	2	1	.583	1.056	1.639
2011	COL	INT	.100	5	20	1	2	0	0	0	1	2	1	3	2	0	.143	.100	.243
2011	Minors		.263	11	38	10	10	3	1	2	9	21	7	7	4	1	.378	.553	.930
2011	Majors		.214	15	28	6	6	1	0	0	2	7	4	9	3	0	.313	.250	.563
2012	AKR	EAS	.333	4	15	1	5	2	0	0	1	7	2	0	0	0	.412	.467	.878
2012	COL	INT	.250	38	132	20	33	7	1	3	12	51	17	24	8	3	.336	.386	.722
2012	SLC	PCL	.301	42	163	26	49	10	3	0	16	65	15	28	10	6	.354	.399	.752
2012	Minors		.281	84	310	47	87	19	4	3	29	123	34	52	18	9	.349	.397	.745
2013	OKC	PCL	.307	30	114	21	35	3	2	2	14	48	17	17	11	4	.402	.421	.823
2013	Minors		.307	30	114	21	35	3	2	2	14	48	17	17	11	4	.402	.421	.823