tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62975102011-08-16T22:09:32.292-05:00The Juice Box'The Juice Box' is a nickname for Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros.
Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.comBlogger5951100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-61973965816861474352007-12-17T02:36:00.001-06:002007-12-17T03:27:32.848-06:00Well, there goes the farm.At least we got two of the most exciting and dynamic players in the game in last week's dealings. If nothing else, Miguel Tejada and Jose Valverde will sell tickets and generate excitement. I, for one, am DYING to see the 2008 lineup in action. It might not be ideal, but it'll be fun to watch:BournMatsuiTejadaBerkmanLeePenceWiggintonTowlesEd Wade had better be the great Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-3809127100591595792007-12-05T00:39:00.000-06:002007-12-05T01:18:17.643-06:00Hello, Mr. Matsui. Goodbye, Mr. Burke. I can't help but think what a shame it is that Burke, the heir apparent to succeed Biggio at second base, is now all but out the door. Anyone remember his 18th-inning homer to beat the Braves in the 2005 NLDS? I remember thinking how awesome it'll be to have this guy for the next five years. Oh well. I guess you can say that Burke had his shot, though his Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-72967114069170642007-11-19T03:27:00.000-06:002007-11-19T05:15:48.755-06:00After a thoroughly forgettable 73-89 campaign, the Astros appear to be starting fresh.First off: Farewell, Craig Biggio. The man has been an absolute pleasure to watch and root for since I started caring about baseball. Bidge wasn't ever the biggest, the quickest or the strongest player on the field, but by God he tried the hardest. Even in his last years, when his keen batting eye and his legs Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-64242529463937719472007-04-03T11:52:00.000-05:002007-04-03T11:54:10.311-05:00All I gotta say about Brad Lidge is.......I told you so.The Barstoolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07670792723819340917noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-43409019777933844622007-04-03T10:50:00.000-05:002007-04-03T11:10:56.117-05:00Three words: What the crap? In the last four days, the Astros have: 1) Sent down their second-best starting pitcher this spring (and quite possibly their second best starter overall). Nieve in my mind was a lock to make the rotation. He had very good numbers and showed no signs of the elbow problems that plagued him late last year. But no, Chris Sampson overtook him despite Sampson allowing eightAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-57679656180984864802007-03-27T14:54:00.000-05:002007-03-27T15:11:10.913-05:00Post No. 600. Yay. Dude, how about March Madness this year? Admittedly, I haven't been as excited as I was a few years ago when I was in college, but this year has been terrific. Incredible games, dominant players, thrilling endings, heartbreaking losses. This year's tournament has had it all. I caught the second half of the UNC-Georgetown game on Sunday, and it was the most well-played game I'veAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-11752971922143879472007-03-27T10:57:00.001-05:002007-03-27T11:24:11.117-05:00Time for a reality check. Posters all over the message board are either crowning us champions or getting ready for a last-place finish. Let's take a look at what's going to happen over the 2007 season. First, the offense:1. Carlos Lee will bring much-needed offense. Yes, he'll 'provide protection' for Berkman, not that he needed any in the first place. The duo will combine for at least 65 homers Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-16383625700041329472007-03-27T10:57:00.000-05:002007-03-27T11:17:40.154-05:00BASEBALL!!!Man, April can't get here soon enough. I've been reading Astros Daily, Rotoworld, Baseball Prospectus, Baseball Primer, and Aaron Gleeman so much lately that I felt guilty for not making a post of my own. So here goes.Astros NotesRichard Hidalgo and Ezequiel Astacio are gone. One had a bad spring (Hidalgo) and one had a good spring (Astacio), but Hidalgo was sent to the minors and Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-46856590860181475032007-03-23T02:37:00.000-05:002007-03-23T03:03:35.065-05:00The offseason's not quite over — 10 more days til Opening Day! — but I think we can safely assume Purpura's done dealing. Of course, there are several players being shopped around, guys like Jon Lieber, Josh Fogg, Byung-Hyun Kim … maybe Brad Penny. I can't say I'm a huge fan of how the 2006 offseason played out, but at least it's been exciting. You can't tell me that shelling out $100 million forAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-51315149272774367282007-03-07T13:57:00.000-06:002007-03-07T14:13:27.833-06:00I've wanted to reserve judgment on the Astros for the first few weeks of spring training, so I've held off posting through our first handful of games. But I can't contain my excitement! Hunter Pence is knocking the cover off the ball. He's 9 for 12 with an OPS over 2.000. On the flip side, Richard Hidalgo was 0-for-ST until Wednesday's game, when he finally collected his first hit with an infieldAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-89227673726298487202007-02-28T00:46:00.000-06:002007-02-28T01:09:12.414-06:00The Astros are shaking off a few bumps and bruises down in Kissimmee. The most notable injury belongs to Héctor Giménez, who will undergo surgery next week to repair a torn right labrum. He'll probably miss the whole year, but Giménez, 24, should be OK in the long run. He hit very well in Venezuela this winter, but was facing an uphill battle to claim the backup catcher spot over Humberto Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-89533395728849710872007-02-21T11:10:00.000-06:002007-02-21T11:38:32.185-06:00I read an interesting article by Dayn Perry over at Fox Sports describing how the NL Central is by far the weakest division in baseball. He's right, too; he calculated the overall records of every division both for all of 2006 and against out-of-division opponents. In both cases, the NL Central was dead last by plenty. Don't believe that yet? Let's take a look at a few of the flaws for everyJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-2404629299819156302007-02-21T01:05:00.001-06:002007-02-21T01:22:18.663-06:00Hello, everyone out there in InternetLand. Not too much news to report, other than the fact that Richard Justice is a moron. Way to call all of your "readers" idiots, Dick. Real classy. Apparently he was fed up of his "readers" complaining about Ausmus and Everett being useless. Justice wrote that if fans don't appreciate the value of those two players, then the fans are stupid. First off, as a Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-57730424964742387342007-02-21T01:05:00.000-06:002007-02-21T01:22:07.490-06:00Hello, everyone out there in InternetLand. Not too much news to report, other than the fact that Richard Justice is a moron. Way to call all of your "readers" idiots, Dick. Real classy. Apparently he was fed up of his "readers" complaining about Ausmus and Everett being useless. Justice wrote that if fans don't appreciate the value of those two players, then the fans are stupid. First off, as a Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-36188896535586267422007-02-16T15:51:00.000-06:002007-02-17T13:18:10.138-06:00Great day. My roommate Chris and I went to the batting cages to get ready for our slow-pitch co-ed D-league softball season that starts next week. Man, those pitches come slow. You gotta WAIT! Afterwards, we went back home and tossed the baseball around. My right arm has been pretty banged up since I ran into David Pillar playing ultimate three weekends ago. But it's feeling better, and I should Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-63744487908911647902007-02-16T12:00:00.000-06:002007-02-16T12:03:49.039-06:00I think Phil Garner is a pretty decent in-game manager, and I also think he does a pretty good job of getting his players ready to play. Every now and then, though, he lets loose with something like:"Those guys have not had more success," manager Phil Garner says in response to fans who believe the righthanded candidates have better major league track records than Rodriguez. "Wandy's won (19) Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-59587641263510777342007-02-14T19:22:00.000-06:002007-02-14T19:38:13.725-06:00I was browsing our archives today, and found some gems from the past two offsesasons. Back then, we did a bit more speculating, and most of it was complete garbage. Stuff like, "Trade Tim Redding and Raul Chavez for Mike Cameron." Obviously, we didn't know what we were talking about. Anyway, check this baby out:Tuesday, February 22, 2005, posted by Jack:My dream world:Astros trade Taylor Bucholz Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-73460928179510489262007-02-14T11:59:00.001-06:002007-02-14T11:59:11.357-06:00The Astros have been busy inviting a lot of washed-up pitchers to spring training (Rick White, Scott Sauerbeck, Kelly Wunsch, Ben Weber) and 'flirting' with Steve Trachsel (he gets HAMMERED by righties; he would be a terrible fit at MMP). Let's look at what Baseball Prospectus's projection genius PECOTA thinks of the Astros pitchers:Roy Oswalt: 213.0 IP, 3.67 ERA (seems like a high ERA, but he'sJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-62835228921990823072007-02-13T12:18:00.000-06:002007-02-13T21:05:09.896-06:00I'd probably feel more comfortable right now if I were a Brewers fan. At least they have a solid rotation. Sure, Ben Sheets has injury concerns, but look at their starting 5: Sheets, Capuano, Dave Bush, Suppan and Claudio Vargas. Pretty sick. Almost every teams has 4 or 5 huge questions to answer before the season starts. Most are something like this: "If ________ pitches 200 innings, we'll Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-50588002582285125052007-02-10T23:42:00.000-06:002007-02-09T19:23:12.271-06:00It's official: Baseball season is upon us. The rents and I drove down to Minute Maid today to watch Vanderbilt play in the Houston College Classic and to check out the Astros Fan Fest going on around the park. Vandy beat ASU on the most ridiculous game-ending play I have ever seen. It was an exciting, well-coached and well-played game throughout. The Sun Devils started hot, just like they did Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-64558119188136346732007-02-09T19:10:00.000-06:002007-02-05T16:08:01.239-06:00Missed the Astros caravan in College Station this week. Probably didn't have time to stand in line for a few hours anyway — I've been swamped at work all week. Baseball Prospectus has ranked their top five second basemen for 2007 in VORP:Chase Utley, 49.0Ray Durham, 38.7Eric Patterson, 34.9Brooks Conrad, 29.2Jeff Kent, 28.2Free Brooks Conrad! Dude went .267/.334/.534 and led the PCL in extra-baseAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-28577178246100001192007-02-05T15:31:00.000-06:002007-02-14T11:58:24.578-06:00The Astros have been busy inviting a lot of washed-up pitchers to spring training (Rick White, Scott Sauerbeck, Kelly Wunsch, Ben Weber) and 'flirting' with Steve Trachsel (he gets HAMMERED by righties; he would be a terrible fit at MMP). Let's look at what Baseball Prospectus's projection genius PECOTA thinks of the Astros pitchers:Roy Oswalt: 213.0 IP, 3.67 ERA (seems like a high ERA, but Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-6605093519621803892007-02-05T13:19:00.000-06:002007-02-05T16:08:01.909-06:00Long time, no post. Only 50+ days til Opening Day!Since we last posted, the Astros have made several minor moves. Really, though, it's the minor moves that can make the difference between an 85-win season and a 90-win season. So let's check 'em out:• Signed Richard Hidalgo to a minor-league contract. Nothing is guaranteed, but in my mind this is a fantastic low-risk, high-reward move that PurpuraAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1169154427614345572007-01-18T14:20:00.001-06:002007-01-18T15:07:07.653-06:00Every year, Baseball Prospectus comes out with their annual PECOTA projections, which estimate what every major league baseball player will do in the coming year. They're more than estimations, really; year after year, PECOTA is by far the best projection system out there. I thought I'd take a lot at a few of their Astros projections, and analyze what I think of them.In alphabetical order, hereJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1168482693116602672007-01-10T19:47:00.000-06:002007-01-10T20:31:33.243-06:00The offseason isn't over yet — and with only three legitimate starters, let's hope it isn't — but I thought I'd take a look at our team's moves so far this winter. Pretty much all of our major moves were of the "good news/bad news" variety. That is, each of them had value, but with a cost. The Carlos Lee signing was a big boost for next year's offense. We haven't had a decent lineup since 2004, Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1168302543745162292007-01-08T18:14:00.000-06:002007-01-08T18:29:03.783-06:00I think I'm going to get a Mark Loretta Astros uni. The funny thing is, I don't own any Astros jerseys. Berkman or Biggio would be my other top choices... maybe Burke or Oswalt. But just reading about Mark Loretta over the past week has really excited me. The fact that he really wanted to sign here despite the lack of a starting position really signals that he's in it for the right reasons. He Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1168289529479554712007-01-08T14:43:00.000-06:002007-01-08T14:52:09.503-06:00It's good to be back in Flagstaff. I'm ready for the new semester, I'm ready to drive my new car (a white 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid) all over the place, and I'm ready for baseball!....but I'll have to hold off on the last one for a while longer. How are the Astros doing these days?I really like the Mark Loretta deal. He's great insurance for Biggio, and Everett to some extent. I really hope he Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1167936558846818412007-01-04T12:35:00.000-06:002007-01-04T12:49:18.876-06:00Hope everyone had a nice, relaxing holiday season. The Astros didn't do much over the break until this morning, when they *allegedly* signed Mark Loretta to a 1-year, $2.5 million deal. Apparently only Loretta's agent has announced it, so the deal is far from official, but if it's true, I like the signing a great deal. Loretta hasn't slugged much over the past two seasons, but his career .299 BA Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1166061584485130332006-12-13T19:24:00.000-06:002006-12-13T19:59:44.576-06:00I can't decide whether I hate the Jennings trade or just dislike it. No matter how you look at it, we overpaid. But big-league experience is crucial in evaluating pitchers. I'm not saying I value 'veteran presence,' but Hirsh's minor-league dominance might not translate into major-league success. At least not for a while. Jennings is hard to evaluate: His walk totals over the course of his careerAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1165975198328005532006-12-12T19:01:00.000-06:002006-12-12T19:59:58.523-06:00OK. Deep breath. Purpura just traded Willy Taveras, Taylor Buchholz and Jason Hirsh to Colorado for Jason Jennings and Miguel Asencio. My first impression was that we got absolutely ripped on this trade. We panicked after losing out on Pettitte and overpaid for a 'quality starter' who's only had two decent years. We gave up a terrific prospect in Jason Hirsh and two improving young players. But Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1165893966011568282006-12-11T20:42:00.000-06:002006-12-11T21:26:06.043-06:00If you missed my rundown of free-agent starting pitchers the Astros should target, scroll on down to check it out. My mind's been rambling this Monday, so I decided to investigate possible trades the Astros might be looking to work out. There are quite a few teams with a plethora of pitchers — the Dodgers, Phillies, White Sox, Pittsburgh and Florida. We should definitely explore our options with Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1165882307580827752006-12-11T15:59:00.000-06:002006-12-11T18:11:47.816-06:00Geez... I leave town for a weekend and we lose Andy Pettitte. I'm actually not sure what to make about this whole deal. One thing's for sure: People are making way too big a deal out of it. Players leave all the time. Maddux and Glavine left Atlanta, after all. Houston shouldn't feel like we're different from other ball clubs just because we have this "hometown team" image.Here's what I know Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1165550789330745592006-12-07T21:40:00.000-06:002006-12-07T22:06:29.360-06:00I spent much of Wednesday throwing up. Thanks a lot, cajun catfish. I was well on my way to recovery when Jack text-messaged me this morning: "Garland!" I raced to the computer to check the wires: Different sites and sources were claiming different deals, but as soon as I saw Jason Hirsh's name thrown around, I nearly wanted to puke again. Yes, Jon Garland is a good pitcher. I might go so far as Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1165369635014703632006-12-05T18:32:00.000-06:002006-12-05T19:50:53.580-06:00Holy crap there's been a ton of rumors around the league lately. Manny Ramirez could go anywhere, and teams are lining up to throw gobs of money for crappy starters like Gil Meche, Ted Lilly and Jeff Suppan. J.D. Drew and Julio Lugo appear to be headed to Boston, but you never know. Maddux is a Padre. Jason Jennings, Adam LaRoche, Pat Burrell, Kevin Mench, Jon Leiber, Jorge Cantu, Craig Monroe Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1164925886543238372006-11-30T16:28:00.000-06:002006-11-30T16:31:26.620-06:00Lots of new Astros-related contact on Baseball Prospectus in the last day or two. Since I'm a subscriber, I guess I can copy / paste it here. Enjoy!Transaction Oracle:Houston Astros Signed LF-R Carlos Lee to a six-year, $100 million contract, and RHP Woody Williams to a two-year, $12.5 million contract. [11/24] So, no repeat of the Preston Wilson exercise, as the Astros go straight from Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1164655146590465982006-11-27T13:18:00.000-06:002006-11-27T13:19:06.646-06:00"We listen to music, have a couple of drinks. We'll talk about baseball, about women. Baseball, women, and beer, that's what we do."--Felix Hernandez, on what he does to relax in the offseason.Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1164647070358708722006-11-27T10:58:00.000-06:002006-11-27T11:04:30.363-06:00From the Houston Chronicle:If that's the case, Morgan Ensberg, Aubrey Huff, Dan Wheeler or perhaps Willy Taveras should be expecting calls soon. If the Astros have to trim $10 million in order to keep the payroll around $100 million in 2007, that's where they figure to find it. Ensberg, who made $3.8 million last year, and Wheeler ($930,000) are arbitration-eligible this offseason. Huff ($6.8 Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1164646109280000612006-11-27T10:28:00.000-06:002006-11-27T10:48:30.286-06:00I've spent a lot of time thinking and talking about the Carlos Lee deal, and I think I've finally come to a conclusion: it's a mistake. It was a deal that we "had" to make based on our inadequate offense the last few years. But wait a sec - why has it been inadequate? Has it been because of our production from left field? Nope. It's been our 'production' from center field, shortstop, catcherJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1164519155611891852006-11-25T22:50:00.000-06:002006-11-25T23:32:36.063-06:00Welcome to Houston, Mr. Lee. Oh, and here's your $100 million. Enjoy. Don't eat too many moon pies. Jack and I have had dozens of discussions about Carlos, and here's what we came up with: We'll just have to wait and see. Maybe he'll get fat and become terrible on defense. But maybe he'll hit 40 bombs. Maybe he'll do both.It's hard to say it was a bad decision to sign him. We had a terrible Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1164075871090473432006-11-20T19:57:00.000-06:002006-11-20T20:24:31.123-06:00Exciting time to be a baseball fan. Alfonso Soriano cashed in with the Cubs, signing an 8-year, $136 million deal. If he can perform like he did last year with the Nats, I can see him being worth the money for the next 4-5 years. But he wasn't an amazing player when he was a Ranger, so it'll be interesting to see what the Cubs get here. Now their offense looks damn good. Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1163696154569754122006-11-16T10:32:00.001-06:002006-11-16T10:55:54.606-06:00Some trade rumors...Wily Mo Peña for Brad Lidge: First of all, I don't know if this has been offered by either side, and it probably wouldn't be a straight-up deal. At first glance, I would tell Boston to go shove it. Wily Mo strikes out a TON, and walks seldom. He's never had more than 350 ABs in a season, so it's hard to assume he'd succeed in a full-time role. But he'll turn 25 in January, he Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1163523917330444532006-11-14T10:32:00.000-06:002006-11-14T11:05:17.640-06:00Obviously our pitching staff needs a lot of work this off-season. But the outfield is also a bit up in the air. As it stands right now, we have Taveras, Scott, Pence, Lane, Palmeiro, and sometimes Berkman and Burke who can play outfield. I'd really like Taveras to work on a few things over the winter, namely, improving his patience and shortening his swing. He turns 25 in December, so there's no Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1163299965267082822006-11-11T20:41:00.000-06:002006-11-11T20:52:45.293-06:00Biggio re-signed for $5.15 million. You know, Clemens and Pettitte could learn a thing or two from Biggio. Bidge always seems to get his deals doen early. Whether it's because he has fewer demands, or because he knows he wants the team to worry about other deals, it is nice that he doesn't cause us the wait-and-wonder grief that Clemens and Pettitte like so much. Pettitte, by the way, indicated Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1163189323436266412006-11-10T13:09:00.000-06:002006-11-10T14:08:44.050-06:00J.D. Drew?He just opted out of the last three years of his contract with the Dodgers. He would have made $33 million, but he wasn't satisfied In Los Angeles. I know, I know... we don't need another left-handed hitter, but he's available, he smashes the ball when he's healthy, and he would appear to be a good fit with our club. Just another option for Purpura to think about. I'd still rather sign Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1162934481602729132006-11-07T15:09:00.000-06:002006-11-07T15:21:21.636-06:00Clemens and Pettitte filed for free agency, and they both are undecided if they'll pitch next year. Jack and I both want to re-sign Pettitte despite his disappointing year. How many stud lefty starters are available with postseason experience? I hope we give him $10 million per year for up to three years. Clemens can go either way. He'll dominate if he pitches, but it's really up to him. I don't Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1162918674331061062006-11-07T10:26:00.000-06:002006-11-07T12:23:11.856-06:00Every offseason the guys at Baseball Think Factory do ZIPS projections for every baseball team. I won't go through all the details on where they get these projections from; you can check that out at their website here.I tried copy-pasting the projections from their website for our likely starting lineup as it stands right now, but it didn't work so well. Instead, just link to that page right Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1162592462148995332006-11-03T15:22:00.000-06:002006-11-03T16:21:02.466-06:00The 2000 season was quite possibly the weirdest year ever for the Astros. I was looking up Berkman's career stats on baseball-reference.com. The kid can hit. Then I notice that Berkman finished 6th in Rookie of the Year voting in 2000. my first though was, "Only sixth?!" He had a great rookie campaign, hitting .297 with 21 homers and a .949 OPS in 353 ABs. Who could have done better? Any guesses?Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1162519732517884852006-11-02T19:58:00.000-06:002006-11-02T20:08:52.583-06:00The Astros extended Purpura's contract through 2008. Tim's been a decent GM. Not great, but his actions have generally helped the franchise. To his credit, he makes smart moves and is willing to admit and correct mistakes (see Wilson, Preston). His faults are harder to quantify: He hasn't made that huge blockbuster trade or free-agent signing, but it's hard to know exactly what was on the table.Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1162429702162519382006-11-01T18:41:00.000-06:002006-11-01T19:08:22.283-06:00Jack and I both love the offseason. I think it's even better than spring training, because not only is every team tied for first, but every team has the chance to do great things and improve the team by making smart signings and trades. Plus, all the fans get to debate who we should sign and who we should trade.Barzilla from AstrosDaily reported that Purpura said that replacing Ausmus AFTER 2007 Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1162244970318624982006-10-30T12:32:00.000-06:002006-10-30T15:49:30.683-06:00Ok, after spending most of the 2 hour drive from Flagstaff to Phoenix talking Astros baseball with Andy, I figured it's time for a nice big post.First of all, I've decided I'm pretty much ambivalent about Carlos Lee. If we give him 5/65, I won't be ecstatic, but I won't be depressed. I will say that I'd rather we give Alou 2/10 and Piazza 1/7. There' s just no way you can convince me that Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1160419643249357072006-10-09T12:09:00.001-05:002006-10-09T13:47:24.273-05:00Well, the Astros sure made it interesting toward the end of September, but the 2006 season was simply a case of "too little, too late." After a hot 19-9 start, the team just seemed stuck in doldrums of summer, always waiting for the "big run" to take them back to the postseason. In a way, it might be a good thing that we didn't make the playoffs this year. Lets face it: we didn't deserve it, and Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1159828385640336622006-10-02T17:31:00.000-05:002006-10-02T17:33:05.676-05:00> Here's a summary of what the Astros should do this offseason. By the way, a> good link towards 2007 free agents is here:>> http://msn.foxsports.com/fantasy/story/5916868>> Well, it was a fun last two weeks, but the 2006 season> for the Astros is over. We finished at 82-80, which> is about where we belong considering we scored 735> runs (12th out of 16 teams in the NL) and allowed 719> runs (Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1158356276520459922006-09-15T16:34:00.000-05:002006-09-15T16:37:56.546-05:00Another day, another Astros Daily link:Apparently the D-Backs are shopping Johnny Estrada because they've got a good catching prospect coming up from the minors next year.As I said last offseason, I like Johnny Estrada a lot. He hits for a good average, draws a few walks, and hits for some power. He's at .302 / .326 / .454 this year, with most of his power coming at home. He also hits rightiesJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1158341752834152622006-09-15T12:34:00.000-05:002006-09-15T12:35:52.863-05:00Brad Lidge is a frail shell of his former self. He's done. Let's trade him.The Barstoolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07670792723819340917noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1158340138619997732006-09-15T12:00:00.000-05:002006-09-15T12:08:58.686-05:00A recent post at Astros Daily described Morgan Ensberg, Brad Lidge, and Jason Lane as the three most disappointing Astros in 2006. While it's true that none of them have had great years, I believe that there is reason for optimism for all three:Morgan Ensberg is only hitting .229, but he's drawn 92 walks this year and his OBP / SLG is 389/458, good for an 847 OPS , which ranks 7th among NationalJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1157581513006087312006-09-06T17:00:00.000-05:002006-09-06T17:25:13.510-05:00State of the AstrosWhat's new with the Astros? Phil Garner is still talking loudly about making the playoffs ("We have to win every game!"), but at this point it's fairly obvious that there are too many teams ahead of us to make another playoff surge very likely.Brandon Backe is going to miss the rest of the season and all of 2007 from Tommy John surgery. It's not a huge loss - Backe has neverJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1156973518522292692006-08-30T16:04:00.000-05:002006-08-30T16:31:58.666-05:00Cinco de Roy O!After slaughtering the Brewers 10-3 last night, my dad gave me a call and said that Jason Lane had hit a pinch-hit grand slam and that the Astros had scheduled a press conference after the game. I didn't really know what we'd announce - had we traded for someone? Then I remembered reading on Astros Daily (the best Astros site there is) that we had started contract talks with Roy Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1156695129878508722006-08-27T11:04:00.000-05:002006-08-27T11:12:09.983-05:00Willy Taveras has a 29-game hitting streak going, and he's hitting .340 / .383 / .407 for the 2nd half, which is actually pretty similar to his minor-league numbers. I still get frustrated watching his at-bats because it seems like his swing is way too long, but you can't argue with the recent results.Chad Qualls has had a disappointing year (4.33 ERA), but some of that might be due to the factJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1156256949946207422006-08-22T09:20:00.000-05:002006-08-22T09:29:10.746-05:00The Astros made an interesting move yesterday, calling up catcher J.R. House yesterday and sending Eric Munson down. House has been tearing up minor-league pitching all year and was an excellent prospect for the Pirates a few years ago before injuries hit him hard. Munson doesn't have to accept the minor-league assignment, but it looks like he probably will:Munson, who hit .204 (28-for-137) Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1155850241285891462006-08-17T16:10:00.000-05:002006-08-17T16:30:41.340-05:00In the spirit of re-jump-starting this blog (I've been away for a while, and I miss talking about the Astros), I decided to try a new design. It's a little simpler and it doesn't have that tan background. Maybe it's better, maybe it's worse, but it's different.Let's jump right into Astros news:- So we got swept by the Cubs at home, and we're now 4.5 games back in the wildcard and 7 back in the Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1155064731671722302006-08-08T13:55:00.000-05:002006-08-08T14:18:56.730-05:00Still treading water... still alive. As of August 8, we are 53-58. That's five games under .500, with 6 teams ahead of us in the Wild-Card race. The good news? We're only 3.5 games out of the WC lead! The Reds and Dodgers are tied for the lead, but they're both only 57-55. How bad is the NL this year?! So, we're coming home for a 9-game home stand. We've lost three straight series at home, but weAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1154711916948059982006-08-04T11:44:00.000-05:002006-08-04T12:18:37.273-05:00I've got a few friends going to the Astros / Diamondbacks game in Phoenix tonight, so I'll be watching Roy Oswalt dominate. It looks like the Astros have basically treaded water since I was away; here are a few notes:Astros Daily is giving up on the Astros playoff chances. I'm inclined to agree. Just because we've come back from the dead the last two years doesn't mean we can do it again, and Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1153849264731887162006-07-25T12:24:00.000-05:002006-07-25T12:41:04.793-05:00Some buzz about Miguel Tejada lately. There's been buzz before, and I think both teams' managements were inches away from a deal last off-season, but it didn't get done. I wanted it then, and I want it now. Here's why:1) Tejada is awesome. He leads the Orioles in AVG, HR, RBI and R (.323/18/69/68). He is superb defensively, and supposedly is a great team leader in the dugout. Remember his days Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1153800146541820072006-07-24T22:42:00.000-05:002006-07-24T23:02:26.573-05:00It's been a wild few weeks for me - I got back from an ultimate frisbee tourney in Chicago and a family vacation to the Galapagos a few days ago, and immediately found out I got a job and that an apartment that I had been looking at for a while was available. So today I went to NAU, chose an office, moved out of my place, filled out the application for the new place, and packed for a river trip Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1152902528962790792006-07-14T12:55:00.000-05:002006-07-14T13:42:09.170-05:00Howdy everyone. I actually didn't watch the Home-Run Derby OR the All-Star Game. Frankly, I needed a break from baseball as much as the players did. Too many fantasy teams (once again), and too many crummy Astros defeats have left me somewhat burned on this whole national pasttime thing. But a few days off, and a few interesting moves by the Astros have gotten me right back into the swing of Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1152725501590170382006-07-12T11:34:00.000-05:002006-07-12T12:31:42.270-05:00As you've probably read in the last post, Jack has split for the Galapagos Islands. He must be so desperate for a job that he's even looking in undeveloped islands for employment. Good luck to you, Jack, we're rooting for you!Meanwhile, after mentioning Jason Lane in the last post guess what the Astros did? That's right, kids! They sent his under-performing posterior to the minors whilst The Barstoolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07670792723819340917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1152206388896455092006-07-06T12:13:00.000-05:002006-07-06T12:19:48.973-05:00I made it back from my river trip - on the day I returned, after de-rigging the boat, I ran off to find a newspaper to see how the Astros had been doing. Their last 10 games: 2-8. Ugh. Then I looked up some box scores and saw how the White Sox and Tigers basically obliterated us. Luckily we ran into the Cubs who are pretty bad right now, although the mighty Sean Marshall managed to shut us Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1151104857540291222006-06-23T18:18:00.000-05:002006-06-23T18:20:57.570-05:00Well, Clemens lost to Francisco Liriano, but that's nothing to be ashamed of. Roger had a tough 3rd inning, throwing 30+ pitches, but other than that, I thought he looked fine - just a little rusty. We start a series with the White Sox today, who have won the last 3 games against the Cardinals by scoring 20 runs, 13 runs, and 1 run (on 1 hit!) They're hot. Let's hope we can win a close game Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150999691989001172006-06-22T12:26:00.000-05:002006-06-22T13:08:20.796-05:00Astros NotebookThe big news today is Roger Clemens makes his Astros return against Francisco Liriano (who was 1 year old when Clemens made his first MLB start) and the Twins tonight. Clemens by himself won't automatically make us a great team, but if he can get his good buddy Andy Pettitte back on track, get the fans fired up, and pitches great, that will work. We're making room for Clemens by Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150827979201998772006-06-20T13:26:00.000-05:002006-06-20T13:26:19.226-05:00Just when things were looking up (my last post was a little over-optimistic), we lose 2 out of 3 at home to the mighty Royals. We've got the Twins coming up next:Radke vs. OswaltSilva vs. WandyLiriano vs. ClemensThat last match-up is going to get all the attention, as Roger Clemens returns to the Astros. I'm almost as concerned with tonight's game, just to see how Roy O looks on his 2nd start Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150827836070378942006-06-20T13:18:00.001-05:002006-06-20T13:23:56.113-05:00Just when things were looking up (my last post was a little over-optimistic), we lose 2 out of 3 at home to the mighty Royals. We've got the Twins coming up next:Radke vs. OswaltSilva vs. WandyLiriano vs. ClemensThat last match-up is going to get all the attention, as Roger Clemens returns to the Astros. I'm almost as concerned with tonight's game, just to see how Roy O looks on his 2nd start Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150827827718955292006-06-20T13:18:00.000-05:002006-06-20T13:24:13.720-05:00Just when things were looking up (my last post was a little over-optimistic), we lose 2 out of 3 at home to the mighty Royals. We've got the Twins coming up next:Radke vs. OswaltSilva vs. WandyLiriano vs. ClemensThat last match-up is going to get all the attention, as Roger Clemens returns to the Astros. I'm almost as concerned with tonight's game, just to see how Roy O looks on his 2nd start Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150482622766768782006-06-16T13:09:00.000-05:002006-06-16T13:30:22.796-05:00The Astros finished up a sweep of the Cubs at Wrigley yesterday, as Brad Ausmus had a 2-run single in the 8th that gave us a 3-2 win. Fernando Nieve pitched well, almost certainly insuring that Taylor Bucholz will be the one sent back to AAA when Roger Clemens joins the team on June 22. Chris Burke continued his great June (.405 / .476 / .578 for the month) with 2 hits and 2 walks yesterday. Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150325365773531712006-06-14T17:45:00.000-05:002006-06-14T17:49:25.796-05:00Roy O is back tonight, as we take on slumping Greg Maddux and the Cubs. The offense continued its recent tear last night - Chris Burke went 4-for-4 with a walk and scored all 5 times, Jason Lane had a hit and drew two walks, and Lance Berkman and Preston Wilson each had 5 RBI's. Sweet. Andy Pettitte looked smooth, giving up 1 run in 7 innings. All in all, a great win. I like this team again!Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1150145604990173282006-06-12T15:47:00.000-05:002006-06-12T15:53:25.020-05:00Things are looking better for the Astros - we took 3 of 4 from the Braves, and got our offense on track, as guys like Mike Lamb, Eric Munson, and Jason Lane had some big hits. It was great to see Lane have a big night - he's been the victim of some bad luck this year, and I still believe he can be a solid outfielder in this league. The Munson signing has also worked out nicely; it's fun having Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1149616335833168932006-06-06T12:43:00.000-05:002006-06-06T12:52:15.856-05:00Well, things can't get too much worse for the Astros:Roy Oswalt misses a start due to back painCarlos Zambrano almost no-hits us in a 8-0 winWe get swept by the Cincinnati RedsJason Lane isn't playing much despite having a higher OPS than Preston WilsonAdam Everett has a 576 OPSAndy Pettitte has a 6.03 ERAShall I go on? Ok, so we're struggling. We've been down and out the last two years and haveJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1149356280578318982006-06-03T12:13:00.000-05:002006-06-03T12:38:00.636-05:00Ouch! Wandy was absolutely pounded last night, giving up 7 runs, 6 hits and 5 walks while only recording 4 outs. Recently-promoted-from-AAA Chris Sampson came in and did a decent job in his first major-league appearance, giving up 3 ER in 5.2 innings.In the best news of the day, we demoted Mike Gallo to AAA to make room for Sampson. Gallo had a 6.02 ERA and a 2.14 WHIP in 16 innings this year,Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1149126178357793822006-05-31T20:28:00.000-05:002006-05-31T20:42:58.413-05:00Lost in 11 innings to St. Louis. It would have been a sweet to take 2 of 3 after sweeping a two-game set earlier in the year, but we didn't take advantage of baserunners and Mike Gallo pitched, so we lost. Don't know why, but we're having terrible road woes for the second straight year. And it starts with the big boys. Mo and Lance both have OPS 200 points higher at home! What's the deal? Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1148924210226922622006-05-29T12:27:00.000-05:002006-05-29T12:36:50.283-05:00Well, after a hot start (19-9 at one point), the Astros have returned to Earth and now sit at 26-25. We can still expect our starting pitching, bullpen, Preston Wilson, and Jason Lane to get better. A big 3-game series against the Cardinals starts today. The pitching matchups:Roy Oswalt (5-3, 3.36 ERA) vs. Jason Marquis (6-4, 5.12)Andy Pettitte (3-6, 5.76) vs. Chris Carpenter (4-2, 2.63)TaylorJackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1148575237952087522006-05-25T11:20:00.000-05:002006-05-25T11:40:38.053-05:00Sorry, it's been a while. I graduated, went to a bachelor party in Vegas, and got my river-rafting schedule for June, and I've been catching up with the Astros. Let's jump right in:Preston Wilson looks BAD. I've been watching the Astros-Nationals series, and maybe I should have noticed this before, but Wilson takes absolutely HUGE swings at everything, and whiffs most of the time. Maybe he's Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1148338906635815692006-05-22T17:57:00.000-05:002006-05-22T18:01:46.663-05:00Munson's batting fifth in today's game against the Nationals. Wilson sixth, Lane seventh. I really don't understand this. Lane has a higher OPS than Wilson and Munson. If anyone should be benched, it's got to be Preston. .247 / .287 / .380 is not what we signed him up for. Well, let's hope he takes his frustation out on his old team. Or at least swings really, really hard and falls down.Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1148326066318984292006-05-22T14:22:00.000-05:002006-05-22T14:29:29.430-05:00Doggy's back!The Yankees reportedly have signed Richard Hidalgo to a deal. I don't particularly like the Yankees and have no strong ties to Hidalgo, but it's always nice to see a former Astro get a chance with another team. Doggy sports a .269 / .345 / .490 career line with 171 homers and 560 RBI in 987 games (including a .314/44/122 monster year in 2000). I think he'll either be a huge force or Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1148315456794528462006-05-22T11:14:00.000-05:002006-05-22T11:30:56.820-05:00Sorry for the delay folks, but there haven't been too many positive things to write about during the last week. We got absolutely walloped by the Giants to the tune of 34-5 over the series. Yikes. Of course, that's becoming commonplace when the Giants come to town. But we bounced back and won 2 of 3 against the Rangers, capped by Buchholz's 5-hit shutout on Sunday. Buchholz is turning into a Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1147738272513312572006-05-15T19:05:00.000-05:002006-05-15T19:11:12.543-05:00Lance is out, Barry is in. Lance's hamstring may be tight again, as Lamb is filling in for him at 1B and batting third. Bucchholz could enter the record books tonight, but I've heard that Garner will not pitch to Bonds in any sort of meaningful situation. We'll see. I flew out to Flagstaff for the weekend for Jack's graduation (and to see Mama wade for Mothers' Day). Congrats on the master's, bigAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1147553028011152002006-05-13T15:28:00.000-05:002006-05-13T15:43:48.526-05:00A nice 12-2 win for the home team over the Rockies last night. I got chills from reading this paragraph:"Ensberg took Rockies starter Jason Jennings to a full count with the scored tied 1-1 and the crowd on its feet and cheering wildly. He then homered to left field to drive in Biggio and Lance Berkman. "During my at-bat you couldn't hear a thing," Ensberg said. "That stuff helps. I mean you Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1147375243172921442006-05-11T14:08:00.000-05:002006-05-11T14:20:43.196-05:00Six straight losses... not good. But unlike last year, when we suffered through two 6-game losing streaks and a 7-gamer, our offense is actually producing. We've scored 25 runs in the last six games, but lost by 1,5,2,2,5 and 3. So, the law of averages attacks us earlier than we thought. It's a shame Roy and Pettitte got rocked this week. After getting swept in Colorado, I expected at least one Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1147130715641738882006-05-08T18:25:00.000-05:002006-05-08T18:25:15.670-05:00Another ugly, painful loss. I'm referring, of course, to Burke's shoulder injury on Saturday. I'm hearing it's a subluxed left shoulder: a partial dislocation. Alyson Footer says he won't have surgery, just rehab. Why, I wonder, did Garner start him in RF anyway? Getting swept by the Rockies doesn't upset me too much. Not that it doesn't suck, but everyone's going to get swept at some point, and Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1147019355433671612006-05-07T11:26:00.000-05:002006-05-07T11:29:15.460-05:00Well, two exciting one-run victories over the Cardinals have been followed by two ugly losses to the Colorado Rockies. In the first loss to Colorado, Brad Lidge comes in with a 4-3 lead in the 9th, gives up a leadoff double, Ensberg throws away a bunt (tying run scores), Lidge walks a guy, Wheeler relieves, walks another guy, and then walks in the winning run on a 3-2 pitch. And yesterday Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146676902400248122006-05-03T12:09:00.000-05:002006-05-03T12:21:42.426-05:00I'm following the Astros game last night on Yahoo! Sports, and I see that we score a run in the 1st off Ben Sheets (despite Willy Taveras sacrificing Biggio over to 3rd). I go to work on a PowerPoint presentation, come back about an hour later.....7-3 Astros in the 3rd???!!! Holy crap - apparently we had a bunch of hard-hit singles off Sheets, whose velocity was slightly down. When I checked Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146612158097161362006-05-02T18:20:00.000-05:002006-05-02T18:22:38.123-05:00Interesting lineup for Garner tonight vs. Milwaukee:BiggioTaverasBerkmanLaneLambWilsonAusmusEverettNieveAgainst Ben Sheets. Look for lots of Ks. And for the Brewers to test Lamb at third. Let's hope Nieve can quiet the Crew's bats... they've been going nuts. Hopefully he can go 6 innings for once.Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146589523273546452006-05-02T12:03:00.000-05:002006-05-02T12:05:23.296-05:00I actually didn't watch any of last night's 4-2 loss to the Brewers, but apparently Wandy pitched well again but our offense (besides Eric Munson and Craig Biggio) didn't do much and the bullpen (Wheeler, this time) stunk it up again. I'm surprised the bullpen has been having so much trouble, but I wouldn't be too worried - Qualls / Wheeler / Lidge is still a great end of the pen, and they Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146497828744442672006-05-01T10:34:00.000-05:002006-05-01T10:37:09.456-05:00Whew - we needed that one. The Astros squeezed out a 3-2 victory over the Reds yesterday to avoid a sweep. Taylor "Double-H" Buchholz pitched very well again, with only a little wildness in the 7th forcing him to leave. Chad Qualls came on and got 5 outs in a row. Good job Quallsy. Then Lidge in the 9th...man, what a nerve-wracking experience. He can't throw his slider for a strike and he Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146359949187055422006-04-29T20:12:00.000-05:002006-04-29T20:19:09.233-05:00Another loss to the Reds today. Pettitte was cruising through 3 innings but then collapsed in the 4th and 5th, giving up hits and walks galore. I was a little depressed so I decided to go on a bike ride, which ended up turning into a 2-hour marathon ride up Mt. Humphreys. By the time I was finished I was too tired to care anymore. Taylor Bucholz tries to help us avoid the sweep tomorrow.The Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146155286544143612006-04-27T11:14:00.000-05:002006-04-27T11:28:06.566-05:00I think you meant that Adam Everett is leading all NL shortstops with 13 RBI, Andy. 'Cause I think Mr. Lance Berkman has about 23 RBI!I passed my oral exams on Monday, essentially guaranteeing that I'll graduate with a master's degree in Statistics in two weeks. I'd like to say they were a long, grueling ordeal, but they weren't too bad - actually kind of fun. Ok, not fun, but I guess I was Jackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369450585644633280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146093951514938722006-04-26T18:21:00.000-05:002006-04-26T18:25:51.540-05:00X-rays were negative on Everett's left hand. Phew. He's hitting .273 / .310 / .379 and leads the NL with 13 RBI, so he's exceeded expectations at the plate. Interestingly enough, Chris Burke is getting the start at shortstop tonight, not Bruntlett, like I had thought. Oh, and Kent, Furcal and Lofton are all sitting out tonight's game after the 14-inning affiar last night. Git 'em, Wandy.Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146033880003300072006-04-26T01:19:00.000-05:002006-04-26T01:44:40.056-05:00Ok. So Lidge blew another save. So we continued to fail with runners in scoring position, missing easy opportunities to win a game. What matters is, we did enough to eke out a victory. It sure wasn't pretty — two of our runs came on errors — but the only important stat is the W. In fact, the two newest Astros, P-Dub and D-Bork, had great games. Preston needed a good game to right his funk, and Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1146007816399469862006-04-25T18:27:00.000-05:002006-04-25T18:30:16.430-05:00Nieve starts against Brad Penny in an hour. Yahoo has the regular lineup posted. The parents are driving up here to catch The Will Rogers Follies. I'm going with them, so I'll miss the first few innings. Nieve's first start at The Juicebox... let's wish him the same result as Buchholz.Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1145933230504651032006-04-24T21:41:00.000-05:002006-04-24T21:47:10.533-05:00B'oh. Hey, at least when Lidge blows 'em, he REALLY blows 'em. No simple homer, or a doubles and a single. Oh no. That's not Lidge's style. He got Furcal to ground out, then gave up a triple to Lofton. Walked Drew on four straight pitches after he got ahead 0-2, and walked Kent after that. Nomar wasn't chasing his sliders, so Lidge blew a couple fastballs by him. The third fastball landed about Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1145931981413322212006-04-24T21:24:00.000-05:002006-04-24T21:26:21.413-05:00Berkman homers to DEEP left-center with two outs in the bottom of the eighth to give the Astros a slim 2-1 lead. Lidge better get ready, he's got the top of the order coming up. Damn, Lance! You so sexy!Andreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6297510.post-1145931645659946762006-04-24T21:17:00.000-05:002006-04-24T21:20:45.660-05:00Jack takes his oral exams today to find out if he has the kung-fu skills to defeat the dragon master. I mean... to see if he knows enough about statistics. Good luck, buddy. In honor of Jack's big day, Pettitte has thrown 6 innings of no-hit ball. J.D. Drew hit a solo homer with one out in the sixth to break it up and tie the game at 1-1. Ausmus has two monstrous doubles, the first of which droveAndreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16930905445765012214noreply@blogger.com0