Ok, so obviously I have no say in what happens to the Astros as they move forward from last night's debacle, but here's what I would do:
1) Send Jimmy Paredes back down to AAA where, if we're serious about making him an outfielder, he plays nowhere but the outfield EVERY DAY. Just pencil him in there: Paredes, 9. While the error was inexcusable last night, let's face it, the guy was a second baseman, we turned him into a third baseman, then last year he was a second baseman again, and now he's looking like an outfielder. Yes, playing the outfield is easier than playing the infield, but a guy's still not going to be good at it without playing time. Paredes can hit, but letting him learn the outfield at the Major League Level isn't going to do anything but mess up his confidence.
2) Keep Jake Elmore around. Elmore is versatile, and he can hit, run, doesn't strike out... In three games in which he spelled Jose Altuve, he basically was Jose Altuve hitting safely in every game and batting .364 (4/11). Reminds me of a faster Mark Loretta.
3) Make Brandon Barnes our every day centerfielder, shift Grossman to left and put J.D. Martinez out in right. Barnes is the only outfielder on the roster hitting above .240. And he's hitting .320. He's our best defensive outfielder, he runs well, he has some pop. LET HIM PLAY.
4) Move Hector Ambriz out of the 8th inning slot. Hector gets a bad wrap for what's really only amounted to two blown leads, but I don't see him as an 8th inning guy. I'd like to see him flipped with Paul Clemens or Travis Blackley and take some of those 6th inning responsibilities until he can harness his stuff. The only pitcher in the Astros pen with worse numbers is Edgar Gonzalez, there's no way he should be in there with the game on the line right now.
5) Less over-managing. I appreciate that we're playing the percentages, but I'd like to see our lefties face more than just lefties. Travis Blackley was an effective Major League starter last year, and Wesley Wright sports the lowest ERA in the bullpen. They don't have to come out of the game every time they're due to face a right-handed hitter.
Showing posts with label Wesley Wright. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wesley Wright. Show all posts
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Another Series Slips Away - Changes on the Horizon
The Astros overcame an early 4-0 deficit, but fell short in the end, losing to the Yankees 5-4. As the Astros now prepare for Detroit, they'll do it with some new, albeit familiar faces, as Jordan Lyles and Dallas Keuchel are back up, and Brad Peacock and Rhiner Cruz are bound for Oklahoma City (no real surprises there). Some more thoughts on the loss:
1) Jason Castro is really getting things going at the plate. With two more doubles last night, he now has 10, and if you take away that 0/11 in the Rangers series, he's hitting .325 (25/77) on the year. He's really taken to the 3-hole too which is only going to help the guy hitting ahead of him (Jose Altuve). Speaking of Altuve, he's just a machine. The Pocket Jesus is hitting .336 now and has 38 hits to go along with a team high 14 runs batted in.
2) Over his last 4 games, Carlos Pena is 7 for 14 with 3 of his team high 16 walks. Could he be starting to get things going? His average is still a pedestrian .234, but that's a heck of a lot better than the .180 range he was living in last week. I'd still like to see more power from him though. Two homers in 28 games just isn't going to cut it.
3) Brandon Barnes continues to do little things that are going to keep him in the lineup. He beat out a double play ball to drive in a run, got a bunt down, and even started a failed 9th inning rally with a leadoff single off of Mariano Rivera. This kid is making it really hard on Bo Porter which is every manager's dream.
4) Speaking of the failed 9th inning rally, how many games are we going to endure just ZERO luck at all. Barnes gets a big jump, Dominguez hits into a line drive double play. We're going to lose enough games just on talent, we don't need any help from the baseball Gods.
5) Erik Bedard endured another subpar start lasting just 4 innings and allowing 4 runs on 6 hits to go along with 4 walks. He also gave up a home run to Ben Francisco (former Astro) who with the home run is now hitting .133 on the year. It's getting harder to defend the guy, so hopefully he figures it out soon. With 4 long relievers on the Astros roster right now (Keuchel, Clemens, Cisnero, Blackley) and Josh Fields on the mend, Bedard has to be next in line to get sent down or let go. I really want the guy to succeed and he's shown glimpses of what he can do, it's just got to be more consistent and more efficient. That said, time is running out for him to prove himself.
6) Big time pitching from Hector Ambriz last night who pitched his way out of a bases loaded, one out jam in the 8th without allowing a run to keep Houston in the game. That very easily could have turned into a big inning, and it was nice to see one of our relievers pitch their way out of trouble and getting some big strikeouts when they needed to.
7) Wesley Wright has really turned into a nice find. A Rule 5 Draft Pick back in 2008, it was touch and go for a while, but he's followed a solid 2012 and a good start to 2013. After last night's outing, Wright has now put together 7 straight scoreless outings spanning 9 innings.
1) Jason Castro is really getting things going at the plate. With two more doubles last night, he now has 10, and if you take away that 0/11 in the Rangers series, he's hitting .325 (25/77) on the year. He's really taken to the 3-hole too which is only going to help the guy hitting ahead of him (Jose Altuve). Speaking of Altuve, he's just a machine. The Pocket Jesus is hitting .336 now and has 38 hits to go along with a team high 14 runs batted in.
2) Over his last 4 games, Carlos Pena is 7 for 14 with 3 of his team high 16 walks. Could he be starting to get things going? His average is still a pedestrian .234, but that's a heck of a lot better than the .180 range he was living in last week. I'd still like to see more power from him though. Two homers in 28 games just isn't going to cut it.
3) Brandon Barnes continues to do little things that are going to keep him in the lineup. He beat out a double play ball to drive in a run, got a bunt down, and even started a failed 9th inning rally with a leadoff single off of Mariano Rivera. This kid is making it really hard on Bo Porter which is every manager's dream.
4) Speaking of the failed 9th inning rally, how many games are we going to endure just ZERO luck at all. Barnes gets a big jump, Dominguez hits into a line drive double play. We're going to lose enough games just on talent, we don't need any help from the baseball Gods.
5) Erik Bedard endured another subpar start lasting just 4 innings and allowing 4 runs on 6 hits to go along with 4 walks. He also gave up a home run to Ben Francisco (former Astro) who with the home run is now hitting .133 on the year. It's getting harder to defend the guy, so hopefully he figures it out soon. With 4 long relievers on the Astros roster right now (Keuchel, Clemens, Cisnero, Blackley) and Josh Fields on the mend, Bedard has to be next in line to get sent down or let go. I really want the guy to succeed and he's shown glimpses of what he can do, it's just got to be more consistent and more efficient. That said, time is running out for him to prove himself.
6) Big time pitching from Hector Ambriz last night who pitched his way out of a bases loaded, one out jam in the 8th without allowing a run to keep Houston in the game. That very easily could have turned into a big inning, and it was nice to see one of our relievers pitch their way out of trouble and getting some big strikeouts when they needed to.
7) Wesley Wright has really turned into a nice find. A Rule 5 Draft Pick back in 2008, it was touch and go for a while, but he's followed a solid 2012 and a good start to 2013. After last night's outing, Wright has now put together 7 straight scoreless outings spanning 9 innings.
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Astros Drop Third Straight in Fenway
The Peacock did not fly yesterday and Houston dropped a third straight to the Sox at Fenway. A promising start quickly went up in smoke as a 2-0 lead became a 5-2 deficit that the Astros just never recovered from. Some more thoughts on the loss:
1) Brad Peacock once again struggled to hit his spots, watching his pitch count spiral out of control and failing to get through the 4th inning. When the dust cleared, Boston had drawn 5 walks off of Peacock, 4 of them in the second inning, and the kid's ERA had jumped to 8.44. Peacock has made it through 5 innings just once this year, and it's largely due to his inability to put hitters away early in the count. You can't keep running counts full on every hitter and expecting to pitch deep into games. It's starting to raise questions as to whether or not Peacock projects to be a rotation guy, or someone destined to pitch out of the bullpen. I still think it's too early to make that call, but if he goes another 4-5 starts and things don't start to get better, I think you have to consider making a change.
2) Jose Veras was sharp once again extending his scoreless streak to 5 innings following his blown save against the Angels. He's actually lowered his ERA down to a respectable 4.66 and he's taken a leadership role out in the bullpen which is good to see. Now we just have to figure out how to get him some leads to protect.
3) Houston hitters drew 7 walks, but struck out 12 times and were just 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position. That makes them 1 for 24 with runners in scoring position over the past two games. Hard to win a lot of games that way. While it's impressive that we've been scoring runs without the benefit of hits (bases loaded walk, rbi groundout, sac fly), the Astros have to do better with runners in scoring position. But that shouldn't come as a surprise seeing as it's been our achilles heel for a couple years now. Not sure what the answer is other than that someone needs to step up.
4) Chris Carter struck out 4 times yesterday, including once with the tying run on first in the 7th inning. Carter now has 43 strikeouts in 24 games, but this marked the first time that he'd fanned four times in a game this year. In case you're keeping track, Carter is now on pace to strike out 290 times. And yes, that'd be a record. I realize he's tied for the team lead in rbis and he's second on the team with 12 runs scored, but can you really keep hitting him in the 3-4-5-6 spots in the order when he's hitting .216 and striking out in practically 50% of his ABs? Would it be so bad to trot out OBP machine Brandon Barnes, Fernando Martinez and Robbie Grossman as our starting outfield for a while?
5) Wesley Wright was bailed out by a line drive double play, but he now hasn't been scored on in 5 straight outings spanning 6 2/3 innings. His ERA has dropped down to 3.00 and he hasn't allowed a home run in 12 innings this season.
6) Two more hits for Marwin Gonzalez last night (two of our FIVE hits) as our 8 hitter raised his average on the year to .321. Marwin, who continues to play stellar defense, clubbed his fourth double, stole third for the second time in the series, and scored a run, continues to do almost every right (minus that bunt he didn't get down last weekend). Not sure what he has to do to hit somewhere higher in the order, but at least he's hitting.
7) As bad as things seemed at times yesterday, Houston had Chris Carter at the plate with the tying run on first in the 7th, and Rick Ankiel at the plate with the bases loaded representing the tying run again in the 8th. So even though we're losing, we're right in these games, which is all you really want. Baseball's one of those games where you just need to be competitive and eventually the law of averages will even out and we'll start winning some. Hey, it's better than losing every game 10-0.
1) Brad Peacock once again struggled to hit his spots, watching his pitch count spiral out of control and failing to get through the 4th inning. When the dust cleared, Boston had drawn 5 walks off of Peacock, 4 of them in the second inning, and the kid's ERA had jumped to 8.44. Peacock has made it through 5 innings just once this year, and it's largely due to his inability to put hitters away early in the count. You can't keep running counts full on every hitter and expecting to pitch deep into games. It's starting to raise questions as to whether or not Peacock projects to be a rotation guy, or someone destined to pitch out of the bullpen. I still think it's too early to make that call, but if he goes another 4-5 starts and things don't start to get better, I think you have to consider making a change.
2) Jose Veras was sharp once again extending his scoreless streak to 5 innings following his blown save against the Angels. He's actually lowered his ERA down to a respectable 4.66 and he's taken a leadership role out in the bullpen which is good to see. Now we just have to figure out how to get him some leads to protect.
3) Houston hitters drew 7 walks, but struck out 12 times and were just 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position. That makes them 1 for 24 with runners in scoring position over the past two games. Hard to win a lot of games that way. While it's impressive that we've been scoring runs without the benefit of hits (bases loaded walk, rbi groundout, sac fly), the Astros have to do better with runners in scoring position. But that shouldn't come as a surprise seeing as it's been our achilles heel for a couple years now. Not sure what the answer is other than that someone needs to step up.
4) Chris Carter struck out 4 times yesterday, including once with the tying run on first in the 7th inning. Carter now has 43 strikeouts in 24 games, but this marked the first time that he'd fanned four times in a game this year. In case you're keeping track, Carter is now on pace to strike out 290 times. And yes, that'd be a record. I realize he's tied for the team lead in rbis and he's second on the team with 12 runs scored, but can you really keep hitting him in the 3-4-5-6 spots in the order when he's hitting .216 and striking out in practically 50% of his ABs? Would it be so bad to trot out OBP machine Brandon Barnes, Fernando Martinez and Robbie Grossman as our starting outfield for a while?
5) Wesley Wright was bailed out by a line drive double play, but he now hasn't been scored on in 5 straight outings spanning 6 2/3 innings. His ERA has dropped down to 3.00 and he hasn't allowed a home run in 12 innings this season.
6) Two more hits for Marwin Gonzalez last night (two of our FIVE hits) as our 8 hitter raised his average on the year to .321. Marwin, who continues to play stellar defense, clubbed his fourth double, stole third for the second time in the series, and scored a run, continues to do almost every right (minus that bunt he didn't get down last weekend). Not sure what he has to do to hit somewhere higher in the order, but at least he's hitting.
7) As bad as things seemed at times yesterday, Houston had Chris Carter at the plate with the tying run on first in the 7th, and Rick Ankiel at the plate with the bases loaded representing the tying run again in the 8th. So even though we're losing, we're right in these games, which is all you really want. Baseball's one of those games where you just need to be competitive and eventually the law of averages will even out and we'll start winning some. Hey, it's better than losing every game 10-0.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Winning is Way More Fun
1) Bud Norris didn't have his best stuff last night, but pitched out of trouble all game and earned his third win of the season. That means he has 50% of our 6 wins. With lots of speculation that Norris is going to get moved come the trade deadline, it's beneficial to Houston that he continues to perform so if we do end up dealing him, we can justify getting a lot in return. If it comes to that, I'll certainly be sorry to see him go, but if you believe in what the organization is trying to do right now, it makes sense. And if you want proof that we're on the right track, all four of our minor league clubs currently have winning records.
2) The loss of Maxwell is going to hurt, but Houston's got some intriguing options able to take his place. First off, defensive specialist Brandon Barnes who's been solid so far this year off the bench. And then there's newly recalled prospect Robbie Grossman who's been tearing it up in AAA. Grossman is especially enticing because he does something most of the current Astros don’t do: he draws walks!! If he can hit at the big league level, he might even be the leadoff hitter we're looking for which would allow us to drop hit machine Jose Altuve down in the order where he might actually be able to drive in some runs.
3) Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi Oi Oi! Travis Blackley was solid in relief last night retiring the first six hitters he faced before surrendering a mammoth home run to Kendrys Morales. With three long men now on the roster (Blackley, Clemens, Cisnero), it'll be interesting to see how roles evolve as we go forward. I personally think Clemens has the stuff to be a back of the bullpen type guy, but I don't know that his long term role won't be in the starting rotation. Things are going to get even more muddled up when Josh Fields comes off the DL in a little bit. Don't be surprised if Rhiner Cruz draws the short straw and gets sent down. While he has the physical tools, I think he'd benefit from some more time in the minors to hone in his stuff. Plus, everyone else is starting to pitch better: Ambriz has only allowed 1 run over his last 7 outings, Wesley Wright has been pitching better, Veras has 2 straight saves, and all the long men in the bullpen have been delivering. I think the only other real plausible option if it's not Cruz is for it to be Cisnero, but after his performance against Seattle on Monday, he's kinda earned the right to stick around a bit. We'll see though.
4) Speaking of Veras, the closer finally delivered last night making by far his most dominant appearance of 2013 setting down all three hitters he faced, two by strikeout. That makes 4 straight scoreless outings for Veras after his blown save against the Angels including a pair of saves. As a former collegiate closer, I can speak to how important confidence is when you're that guy and it's looking like Veras is starting to grow into the role. Over the past week, Veras has seen his ERA drop from 9.64 to 5.19. Still not great, but getting better. It should also be noted that both of his converted saves were 1-run games with no margin for error.
5) I thought it was kind of funny that twitter was blowing up last night with people dogging Hector Ambriz before he'd even thrown a pitch. Including last night's 1-2-3 8th, over Hector's last 7 appearances, he's thrown 8 1/3 innings and allowed just one run (solo homer to Mark Reynolds) on 6 hits while walking 1 and fanning 5. He's had 3 holds, more than anyone else on the team, and has held hitters to a .207 average during this stretch.
6) "Defensive Specialist" Marwin Gonzalez set a new career high in home runs last night with his 3rd of the young season (and it's till April!). He's also just 5 RBIs shy of the 12 he had in his rookie season. One of Houston's more consistent hitters this year, Marwin's power surge is a pleasant surprise to say the least and while he probably won't stay on this pace and eclipse 20+ homers, he may end up with 10 or 12 which would be great. I'd really like to see Marwin get a shot at hitting higher up in the order instead of sitting down in the 9 hole, but as long as we win, I suppose I can deal. All three of Marwin's homers have come against Seattle, and all of them from the left side of the plate.
7) Lefty reliever Xavier Cedeno was claimed off waivers by the Washington Nationals after being designated for assignment by Houston. The 26 year old Puerto Rican pitched in parts of 3 seasons with the Astros posting an ERA of 6.00 with 1 save and 6 holds over 52 games. In 44 games in 2012 he had a 3.77 ERA striking out 36 in 31 innings.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Week 3 in Review
Rough week for the Astros as three times they saw their starters knocked out in the first inning and they finished the week 1-5, dropping them to 5-13 on the season. On the bright side, they didn't get shutout:
Weekly Results
4/15 L Athletics 11-2
4/16 L Athletics 4-3
4/17 L Athletics 7-5
4/19 W Indians 3-2
4/20 L Indians 19-6
4/21 L Indians 5-4
Overall Record: 5-13
Team Batting Average: .250
Runs For: 74
Runs Against: 108
Home Runs: 20
Strikeouts/Walks (Hitting): 173/47
Stolen Bases: 7
Caught Stealing: 3
Team ERA: 5.40
Team WHIP: 1.58
Starters ERA: 5.73
Bullpen ERA: 5.04
Strikeouts/Walks (Pitching): 100/73
Times Shutout: 3
Shutouts: 1
Team Leaders (Hitting):
Average: Jose Altuve .370 (27/73)
Runs: Carlos Pena 12
Hits: Jose Altuve 27
Doubles: Carlos Pena 5
Triples: Justin Maxwell 2
Home Runs: Chris Carter/Rick Ankiel 4
Runs Batted In: Chris Carter/Rick Ankiel 10
Walks: Carlos Pena 9
Stolen Bases: Justin Maxwell/Jose Altuve 2
Team Leaders (Pitching):
Games: Rhiner Cruz/Wesley Wright/Hector Ambriz 10
Innings: Lucas Harrell 21 2/3
Wins: Bud Norris 2
Saves: Erik Bedard/Jose Veras 1
Holds: Hector Ambriz 2
Strikeouts: Lucas Harrell/Brad Peacock 15
Quality Starts: Philip Humber 2
ERA: Bud Norris 4.74
WHIP: Bud Norris 1.47
On the Farm:
Oklahoma City (AAA) - 10-7
Corpus Christi (AA) - 9-7
Lancaster (AdvA) - 11-6
Quad Cities (LoA) - 10-5
Minor League Leaders:
Runs: Nolan Fontana (AdvA) - 17
Hits: Jake Elmore (AAA) - 23
Walks: Nolan Fontana (AdvA) - 17
Home Runs: Preston Tucker (AdvA) - 5
RBIs: Marc Krauss (AAA) / Zachary Johnson (AdvA) - 18
Stolen Bases: Austin Wates - 9
Wins: 9 tied with 2
Saves: Jose Valdez (AAA) - 5
Strikeouts: Luis Cruz (AdvA) - 22
Weekly Results
4/15 L Athletics 11-2
4/16 L Athletics 4-3
4/17 L Athletics 7-5
4/19 W Indians 3-2
4/20 L Indians 19-6
4/21 L Indians 5-4
Overall Record: 5-13
Team Batting Average: .250
Runs For: 74
Runs Against: 108
Home Runs: 20
Strikeouts/Walks (Hitting): 173/47
Stolen Bases: 7
Caught Stealing: 3
Team ERA: 5.40
Team WHIP: 1.58
Starters ERA: 5.73
Bullpen ERA: 5.04
Strikeouts/Walks (Pitching): 100/73
Times Shutout: 3
Shutouts: 1
Team Leaders (Hitting):
Average: Jose Altuve .370 (27/73)
Runs: Carlos Pena 12
Hits: Jose Altuve 27
Doubles: Carlos Pena 5
Triples: Justin Maxwell 2
Home Runs: Chris Carter/Rick Ankiel 4
Runs Batted In: Chris Carter/Rick Ankiel 10
Walks: Carlos Pena 9
Stolen Bases: Justin Maxwell/Jose Altuve 2
Team Leaders (Pitching):
Games: Rhiner Cruz/Wesley Wright/Hector Ambriz 10
Innings: Lucas Harrell 21 2/3
Wins: Bud Norris 2
Saves: Erik Bedard/Jose Veras 1
Holds: Hector Ambriz 2
Strikeouts: Lucas Harrell/Brad Peacock 15
Quality Starts: Philip Humber 2
ERA: Bud Norris 4.74
WHIP: Bud Norris 1.47
On the Farm:
Oklahoma City (AAA) - 10-7
Corpus Christi (AA) - 9-7
Lancaster (AdvA) - 11-6
Quad Cities (LoA) - 10-5
Minor League Leaders:
Runs: Nolan Fontana (AdvA) - 17
Hits: Jake Elmore (AAA) - 23
Walks: Nolan Fontana (AdvA) - 17
Home Runs: Preston Tucker (AdvA) - 5
RBIs: Marc Krauss (AAA) / Zachary Johnson (AdvA) - 18
Stolen Bases: Austin Wates - 9
Wins: 9 tied with 2
Saves: Jose Valdez (AAA) - 5
Strikeouts: Luis Cruz (AdvA) - 22
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Astros Swept By A's Again
Another sweep at the hands of the Oakland Athletics. At least we were in a couple of the games this time around. Heck, if J.D. Martinez doesn't strike out with the bases loaded and one out in the second game, or Rick Ankiel's rocket line drive down the first base line doesn't miraculously find the first baseman's mitt, we probably come away with a win. We knew the 'Stros weren't going to be great this year, all you can really ask is for them to be competitive. Some more thoughts on the past two games:
1) I love Brad Peacock's stuff. I'd love it more if he'd pitch deeper into games, but he's showing more and more every outing. I know he's failed to get out of the fifth in two of three starts, but his 7 strikeouts were a team-high this year. I look forward to seeing him develop over the course of the season.
2) Nice to finally see Carlos Pena start hitting the long ball. Two home runs in two days after none in the first 13 games of the season. And now he's back to where he should be, with more home runs than bunt singles. I would like to see a few more rbis from him though as he only has 6 through 15 games, but I could say that about almost anyone on the team. Like I said the other day, it's not like anyone other than Jose Altuve is a really tough out right now.
3) What's up with our starters not getting out of the first inning? Twice in the same series? I read that this was like only the third time since 1900 that pitchers on the same team had allowed at least six runs in a start while pitching less than an inning in the same series. Awesome! Of course one of the guys involved in the most recent time prior to this one was a former Astro. Hooray Jim Clancy! Anyhow, if there's a silver lining to the poor starting pitching it's that our long relief was terrific. In this series we got 5 1/3 scoreless innings from Paul Clemens, 3 scoreless innings from Dallas Keuchel, 2 1/3 scoreless innings from Wesley Wright, and 2 2/3 innings of one run ball from Xavier Cedeno. Now we just need to figure out how to translate those performances into games when we NEED them!
4) Nice to see the Astros FINALLY start stealing some bases. After just 1 steal (and 3 caught stealings) in the first 14 games, the Astros stole three bases on Wednesday afternoon (Brandon Barnes, Marwin Gonzalez and Jose Altuve). I really think this is a MUST for this team. If you're not going to hit for a high average, you have to be proficient on the basepaths. Get 'em over, get 'em in. Hopefully we'll see more of that moving forward. And yes, its helps if you have guys on base to start with.
5) Brett Wallace is headed back to Oklahoma City to get some more playing time and figure out what's going on with his swing. As a result Brandon Laird got the call, but it wasn't thanks to John Ely going on the 60 Day DL like I'd initially thought. Instead, Xavier Cedeno and his 11.37 ERA was designated for assignment which means he's off the 40-man roster. I'll be the first to admit, I'm somewhat surprised that that was the route that took. But then again, you can't average 3 baserunners an inning, and pitch at the Major League Level. Plus, we do still have to lefties in the pen with Keuchel and Wright. And another one starting a rehab assignment in Oklahoma City in Travis Blackley. So maybe having that lefty specialist isn't all that valuable. You could probably also argue that having a closer on this team isn't very valuable, but that's another story. Anyhow, Brandon Laird, who was hitting .353 for the RedHawks with 5 doubles, 2 homers and a team high 14 runs batted in is going to get his shot. Now 25 years old, Laird was 9 for 35 over 17 games for the Astros late last year with a homer, a double and 4 runs batted in. He was absolutely smoking the ball this spring though, and has continued to play well in AAA. He certainly deserves the opportunity. But now with Wallace gone, it will be interesting to see who goes down if/when Fernando Martinez finishes his rehab. My money is on J.D. Martinez (.227 1 HR), especially with Laird (a righty) replacing Wallace (a lefty). We'll see though. I've been wrong many times before.
6) The A's have now swept us twice this month. The good news for Astros fans? We get THIRTEEN MORE SHOTS AT THEM! We're bound to win at least ONE, right?
7) Jose Veras pitched a scoreless inning on Wednesday, but he still has yet to put together a 1-2-3 inning this season now allowing baserunners in each of his first six outings.
8) Next up, the Cleveland Indians and a return to Houston for Brett Myers and Brad Mills. It'd be a homecoming for Michael Bourn as well, but he's on 15-Day DL right now. Cleveland was 5-8 heading into today, so let's see if we can snap this skid and get Win number FIVE!
1) I love Brad Peacock's stuff. I'd love it more if he'd pitch deeper into games, but he's showing more and more every outing. I know he's failed to get out of the fifth in two of three starts, but his 7 strikeouts were a team-high this year. I look forward to seeing him develop over the course of the season.
2) Nice to finally see Carlos Pena start hitting the long ball. Two home runs in two days after none in the first 13 games of the season. And now he's back to where he should be, with more home runs than bunt singles. I would like to see a few more rbis from him though as he only has 6 through 15 games, but I could say that about almost anyone on the team. Like I said the other day, it's not like anyone other than Jose Altuve is a really tough out right now.
3) What's up with our starters not getting out of the first inning? Twice in the same series? I read that this was like only the third time since 1900 that pitchers on the same team had allowed at least six runs in a start while pitching less than an inning in the same series. Awesome! Of course one of the guys involved in the most recent time prior to this one was a former Astro. Hooray Jim Clancy! Anyhow, if there's a silver lining to the poor starting pitching it's that our long relief was terrific. In this series we got 5 1/3 scoreless innings from Paul Clemens, 3 scoreless innings from Dallas Keuchel, 2 1/3 scoreless innings from Wesley Wright, and 2 2/3 innings of one run ball from Xavier Cedeno. Now we just need to figure out how to translate those performances into games when we NEED them!
4) Nice to see the Astros FINALLY start stealing some bases. After just 1 steal (and 3 caught stealings) in the first 14 games, the Astros stole three bases on Wednesday afternoon (Brandon Barnes, Marwin Gonzalez and Jose Altuve). I really think this is a MUST for this team. If you're not going to hit for a high average, you have to be proficient on the basepaths. Get 'em over, get 'em in. Hopefully we'll see more of that moving forward. And yes, its helps if you have guys on base to start with.
5) Brett Wallace is headed back to Oklahoma City to get some more playing time and figure out what's going on with his swing. As a result Brandon Laird got the call, but it wasn't thanks to John Ely going on the 60 Day DL like I'd initially thought. Instead, Xavier Cedeno and his 11.37 ERA was designated for assignment which means he's off the 40-man roster. I'll be the first to admit, I'm somewhat surprised that that was the route that took. But then again, you can't average 3 baserunners an inning, and pitch at the Major League Level. Plus, we do still have to lefties in the pen with Keuchel and Wright. And another one starting a rehab assignment in Oklahoma City in Travis Blackley. So maybe having that lefty specialist isn't all that valuable. You could probably also argue that having a closer on this team isn't very valuable, but that's another story. Anyhow, Brandon Laird, who was hitting .353 for the RedHawks with 5 doubles, 2 homers and a team high 14 runs batted in is going to get his shot. Now 25 years old, Laird was 9 for 35 over 17 games for the Astros late last year with a homer, a double and 4 runs batted in. He was absolutely smoking the ball this spring though, and has continued to play well in AAA. He certainly deserves the opportunity. But now with Wallace gone, it will be interesting to see who goes down if/when Fernando Martinez finishes his rehab. My money is on J.D. Martinez (.227 1 HR), especially with Laird (a righty) replacing Wallace (a lefty). We'll see though. I've been wrong many times before.
6) The A's have now swept us twice this month. The good news for Astros fans? We get THIRTEEN MORE SHOTS AT THEM! We're bound to win at least ONE, right?
7) Jose Veras pitched a scoreless inning on Wednesday, but he still has yet to put together a 1-2-3 inning this season now allowing baserunners in each of his first six outings.
8) Next up, the Cleveland Indians and a return to Houston for Brett Myers and Brad Mills. It'd be a homecoming for Michael Bourn as well, but he's on 15-Day DL right now. Cleveland was 5-8 heading into today, so let's see if we can snap this skid and get Win number FIVE!
Monday, April 15, 2013
Philip Humber Just Can't Catch a Break
Another tough loss, but getting shut down by C.J. Wilson isn't exactly anything to be ashamed of. Nor is losing a series on the road against the Angels. Let's face it, even though they're struggling, they still have arguably three of the best players in the game right now, and they're going to get theirs. And hey, even with the loss, we're looking at a 3-3 week in which we were in every game. Throw out a blown save and we win both series and go 4-2. Anyhow, here's some more thoughts on the loss:
1) Not a lot of offense yesterday, BUT it should be noted that the Astros worked 5 more walks including 2 apiece for Chris Carter and Carlos Pena. I love seeing this from Carter because a little bit of plate discipline is just going to make him that much more dangerous as a hitter.
2) You've gotta feel bad for Philip Humber. The guy has pitched his heart out in 3 straight starts. He's got an ERA of 2.89, and zero wins to show for it thanks in large part to the fact that the Astros have managed to score exactly one run TOTAL in his three starts. That's just not going to get it done.
3) Rhiner Cruz made his team high eighth appearance of the season yesterday afternoon and surrendered a two-run home run to Josh Hamilton. The flame-throwing righty has worked 8 innings out of the pen this year and has a 4.50 ERA while allowing 10 hits, but only fanning two. I'm not sure why Rhiner is getting the lion's share of the late innings right now, other than that he is probably the only guy that really has the stuff to be a dominant late innings pitcher. Figure Bo's going to give him every opportunity to be that guy this year. Kind of the same way we're going to keep sending Brett Wallace out there even though he's struggling. You've got to find out what you've got. Personally I'd like to see Wesley Wright get a longer look as a true setup man, especially given that we have two other lefties in the pen right now. That's just me though.
4) On the injury front, Fernando Martinez started his rehab stint in AAA this weekend and could be back in Houston by midweek. It'll be interesting to see who gets sent down if/when Fernando comes back. My money is on Brett Wallace just because he's in the biggest slump right now, although J.D. Martinez is certainly a possibility as well simply because those two play the same position. In other injury news, Houston lost yet another fringe arm to Tommy John surgery as John Ely, acquired from the Dodgers, just got shut down for the season. Ely had pitched in just one game in AAA this year working 4 scoreless innings and earning a save. What this means moving forward is that another spot on the 40-man roster is opening up. So someone like Brandon Laird, who's hanging out in AAA, may now have a clear path to Houston should a roster spot become available. It alternatively gives Houston a chance to sign a player off of waivers without making a corresponding roster move. Just something to keep an eye on.
5) Houston's starters have a 3.39 ERA through 12 starts this season led by Bud Norris (1.96) and Humber (2.89). Only one starter - Lucas Harrell - has allowed more than 3 earned runs in one of his starts. The bullpen, by contrast, has a 5.72 ERA and has allowed 63 baserunners in 39 1/3 innings. If Houston is ever going to be competitive, those numbers MUST get better.
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Albert Pujols is a Bad Man
Losses like that one are always hard to swallow. You can't help but look at missed opportunities, and wonder about what might've been. That said, it's one game, and if you're going to get beaten by someone in the bottom of the 9th, it might as well be one of the greatest players to ever play the game. Hats off to Albert, once again he beat us. Some more thoughts on last night's game:
1) I've mentioned before how I'm not sure Jose Veras is the answer at closer. But when you look at our bullpen right now, I don't know who is. Wesley Wright hasn't been as effective in 2013, Rhiner Cruz is still learning the finer points of pitching, Hector Ambriz has allowed more than 2 hits an inning, Xavier Cedeno has control issues, Paul Clemens has pitched in exactly one major league game, and Dallas Keuchel is, at best, a serviceable long reliever. Now last night wasn't exactly an easy save situation, but Veras has yet to put together a 1-2-3 inning and any of his 5 outings now. You can't put that many runners on base and expect to be effective in the late innings. Plus, you can't walk the #9 hitter. Make him put the ball in play! We'll see how Veras bounces back. Hopefully his next opportunity involves a three run lead so he has more of a margin for error and can gain some confidence.
2) I probably should have led with this, but Brett Wallace had 4 at-bats last night and struck out exactly ZERO times! He even battled for a walk which helped facilitate Houston's 2-run 7th. I don't want to say he's on the verge of breaking out of his season long slump, but last night was a good step in the right direction. We'll see if he can build on that moving forward.
3) J.D. Martinez's error proved to be pretty costly. And let's face it, errors in close games usually are. You've got to make that play though if you're a Major League outfielder. Now I realize J.D.'s game is probably better suited for left field, but still... If he's going to be out there, he needs to make those types of plays.
4) Chris Carter is a beast. Trogdor bashed his 4th home run of the season and extended his hitting streak to 6 games. He's still managed to strike out in 11 straight games passing Wallace for the team lead with 18, but so long as he's producing, I can live with the occasional (or more than occasional) strikeout. After starting the season 1 for 19, Carter has raised his average up to .289 during the streak.
5) Lucas Harrell pitched much better this time out. After getting roughed up pretty good by Oakland, he continued the trend of solid starting pitching for the Astros allowing just 1 run in 5 2/3 innings. Houston starters have allowed more than 3 earned runs just once this season and have a 3.49 ERA through 11 starts.
6) Marwin Gonzalez executed a perfect bases loaded squeeze play in the 7th inning to bring home Houston's 4th and final run. It's nice to see us able to bring that runner home from third base this season. Houston stranded just 3 runners last night and was 2 for 5 with runners in scoring position.
Houston sends Philip Humber to the mound today in an effort to win their second straight series. The Astros have not scored a single run in either of Humber's two previous starts this year.
1) I've mentioned before how I'm not sure Jose Veras is the answer at closer. But when you look at our bullpen right now, I don't know who is. Wesley Wright hasn't been as effective in 2013, Rhiner Cruz is still learning the finer points of pitching, Hector Ambriz has allowed more than 2 hits an inning, Xavier Cedeno has control issues, Paul Clemens has pitched in exactly one major league game, and Dallas Keuchel is, at best, a serviceable long reliever. Now last night wasn't exactly an easy save situation, but Veras has yet to put together a 1-2-3 inning and any of his 5 outings now. You can't put that many runners on base and expect to be effective in the late innings. Plus, you can't walk the #9 hitter. Make him put the ball in play! We'll see how Veras bounces back. Hopefully his next opportunity involves a three run lead so he has more of a margin for error and can gain some confidence.
2) I probably should have led with this, but Brett Wallace had 4 at-bats last night and struck out exactly ZERO times! He even battled for a walk which helped facilitate Houston's 2-run 7th. I don't want to say he's on the verge of breaking out of his season long slump, but last night was a good step in the right direction. We'll see if he can build on that moving forward.
3) J.D. Martinez's error proved to be pretty costly. And let's face it, errors in close games usually are. You've got to make that play though if you're a Major League outfielder. Now I realize J.D.'s game is probably better suited for left field, but still... If he's going to be out there, he needs to make those types of plays.
4) Chris Carter is a beast. Trogdor bashed his 4th home run of the season and extended his hitting streak to 6 games. He's still managed to strike out in 11 straight games passing Wallace for the team lead with 18, but so long as he's producing, I can live with the occasional (or more than occasional) strikeout. After starting the season 1 for 19, Carter has raised his average up to .289 during the streak.
5) Lucas Harrell pitched much better this time out. After getting roughed up pretty good by Oakland, he continued the trend of solid starting pitching for the Astros allowing just 1 run in 5 2/3 innings. Houston starters have allowed more than 3 earned runs just once this season and have a 3.49 ERA through 11 starts.
6) Marwin Gonzalez executed a perfect bases loaded squeeze play in the 7th inning to bring home Houston's 4th and final run. It's nice to see us able to bring that runner home from third base this season. Houston stranded just 3 runners last night and was 2 for 5 with runners in scoring position.
Houston sends Philip Humber to the mound today in an effort to win their second straight series. The Astros have not scored a single run in either of Humber's two previous starts this year.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Hard to Win if You Can't Score
The bats were lifeless for a second straight game as the Astros fell to the Rangers 4-0. The Astros racked up double digit strike-outs for a third straight game to start the year and wasted another strong pitching performance, this time from newcomer Philip Humber. Some more observations from Game 3:
1) The inability to put balls in play is killing the Astros right now. They have ten times as many strikeouts (43) as walks (4), and hit just .172 in the series while fanning in 46% of their at bats. You can point your finger in any number of directions too as every Astro with the exception of Carlos Corporan struck out at least once in the three game series. Top offenders: Brett Wallace (8), Chris Carter (7), Carlos Pena (6), Justin Maxwell (5), and Rick Ankiel (5). Even pitchers don't strike out at that rate, so you have to figure things will get better and average out, but still...
2) Jason Castro and Chris Carter both went 0 for 11 in the Rangers series. Have faith, both will break out of their mini slumps. Hopefully sooner rather than later.
3) Lance Berkman is not welcome in Houston any more. The Big Puma reached base in 9 of his 13 at bats and drove in 3. His "replacement" Carlos Pena was just 2 for 11 and as previously noted struck out six times. I say the word replacement loosely because Pena didn't really "replace" Berkman, we just opted to sign him instead. Any regrets yet?
1) The inability to put balls in play is killing the Astros right now. They have ten times as many strikeouts (43) as walks (4), and hit just .172 in the series while fanning in 46% of their at bats. You can point your finger in any number of directions too as every Astro with the exception of Carlos Corporan struck out at least once in the three game series. Top offenders: Brett Wallace (8), Chris Carter (7), Carlos Pena (6), Justin Maxwell (5), and Rick Ankiel (5). Even pitchers don't strike out at that rate, so you have to figure things will get better and average out, but still...
2) Jason Castro and Chris Carter both went 0 for 11 in the Rangers series. Have faith, both will break out of their mini slumps. Hopefully sooner rather than later.
3) Lance Berkman is not welcome in Houston any more. The Big Puma reached base in 9 of his 13 at bats and drove in 3. His "replacement" Carlos Pena was just 2 for 11 and as previously noted struck out six times. I say the word replacement loosely because Pena didn't really "replace" Berkman, we just opted to sign him instead. Any regrets yet?
Whirling Darvish Dazzles Astros
Not quite the follow-up to the season opener we were all hoping for, but hey, at least we didn't get no hit. Thank you, Marwin Gonzalez. Some observations on the loss:
1) Yu Darvish made our lineup look silly. I made a comment the other day that there are going to be days where this team resembles a minor league ball club at the plate, and this was one of those days. Yu Darvish cruised through the Astros lineup retiring 26 in a row - 14 of them via the strike out - as the Rangers evened the series at one game apiece. In fact, the only Astro not to strike out last night was backup catcher Carlos Corporan. Now it's not like Darvish is a slouch. As we saw last year, he's a legitimate ace. But even as good as he is, you expect to hit more than one ball out of the infield. It's not going to get much easier today when the Astros get Alexi Ogando, but I don't think anyone will miss Darvish.
2) One of the many, many questions surrounding this year's Astros team is their bullpen. And the bullpen looked REALLY shaky last night. Yes, it's a small sample size, but it wasn't pretty. The pen inherited a 1-0 deficit in the 7th inning last night, and between Xavier Cedeno, Rhiner Cruz, Wesley Wright, Josh Fields, and Jose Veras, they surrendered 6 runs turning a close game into a rout. Only Fields managed to get through the game without giving up a run, and he pitched just 1/3 of an inning.
1) Yu Darvish made our lineup look silly. I made a comment the other day that there are going to be days where this team resembles a minor league ball club at the plate, and this was one of those days. Yu Darvish cruised through the Astros lineup retiring 26 in a row - 14 of them via the strike out - as the Rangers evened the series at one game apiece. In fact, the only Astro not to strike out last night was backup catcher Carlos Corporan. Now it's not like Darvish is a slouch. As we saw last year, he's a legitimate ace. But even as good as he is, you expect to hit more than one ball out of the infield. It's not going to get much easier today when the Astros get Alexi Ogando, but I don't think anyone will miss Darvish.
2) One of the many, many questions surrounding this year's Astros team is their bullpen. And the bullpen looked REALLY shaky last night. Yes, it's a small sample size, but it wasn't pretty. The pen inherited a 1-0 deficit in the 7th inning last night, and between Xavier Cedeno, Rhiner Cruz, Wesley Wright, Josh Fields, and Jose Veras, they surrendered 6 runs turning a close game into a rout. Only Fields managed to get through the game without giving up a run, and he pitched just 1/3 of an inning.
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