The Unofficial Astros Blog: Because Drayton said I couldn't use the word official

Drew Sutton

2009-04-17T19:04:00.001-05:00

Apparently the Reds website said it is Sutton. No time to confirm gotta get the kidd-o's! have a great weekend and sorry for my absence. I'm trying to get a new laptop soon.

Reds will announce PTBNL

2009-04-17T19:02:00.000-05:00

FROM MLBTR:

4:19pm: The Enquirer's Nick Hurm has the name. The Reds will recieve infielder Drew Sutton, who will head straight to Triple-A Louisville. Sutton, 25, hit .317 with 20 home runs and 69 RBI last season at Double-A Corpus Christi.

He was named the Astros' eighth best prospect by Baseball America prior to this season.

1:28pm: According to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Reds found out Thursday who they'll be getting for Jeff Keppinger.

Keppinger was dealt to the Astros on March 31 for a player to be named later. That mystery man will be revealed shortly. "We'll probably announce it this week," said Reds GM Walt Jocketty. Fay also adds this:

When the deal was made, Jocketty said the player-to-be-named was a minor leaguer. He wouldn't say that Wednesday. So I guess there's a chance it's a big league player. I believe the Reds need to clear a spot on the 40-man, if that's the case.

Some new stuff

2009-04-17T09:55:00.002-05:00

So I think what I will be doin' in order to keep up with work, kids, court and no lap top is to post at the end of a series and give you a recap of what took place.

Also, If someone would like to write for The Unofficial Official, it would be greatly appreciated. I refuse to delete this blog regardless of the lack of time I have in front of me. I will have some stuff put together about the Pitt series later this afternoon. To all those who have "checked in" on me, thank you and yes, we will move forward as we can and go from there.

Copper first manager on the Block? NAH

2009-04-15T09:31:00.002-05:00

So this article form Ken Rosenthal is pretty, well, stupid.

and I quote:

Cooper is a ready scapegoat; McLane allowed him to enter the final year of his contract without offering him an extension. The Astros' veterans do not care for Cooper, and the team's 1-6 start — following its 1-16-3 start in spring training — points to a lack of preparation.

First, What's wrong with evaluating a manager in a full year as opposed to a half season-like last year. I think I would want to see what I'm paying for on an entire evaluation, not a snippet. Second, Who is his source of veterans that don't like Coop? I honestly don't think that Berkman and Roy Oswalt, being the veteran leaders they are, would come out and say that to someone. I may be mistaken and missed this but honestly, it's my blog! Thirdly, the 1-16-3 start is attributed to letting the AA, AA and invites play. We already know that the big 3 and a handful of other guys are going to make the team.

So he fired me up today. He goes on to say that Buck Showalter should be manager and that Drayton is blind if he thinks the 'Stros are going to contend. Ever wonder if Drayton ever really thought that?

Pedro Martinez should be an Astro

2009-04-15T09:24:00.003-05:00

Honestly, nobody else in baseball will accept his terroristic like 5 million dollar a year demand. I could see Drayton forking it over, I mean it's in his blood to overpay for over pitchers over the age of 35. I'm not in any way saying this will happen, just a thought.

Pedro is turning into The Manny Saga part deux. He wants too much money, but SOMEONE will pay it eventually. The Angels' balked at his demands the other day as it appears Pedro's agent reached out to them. They are waiting on Lackey and Santana to recover. The Met's pretty much said see ya'. I could really see someone like the A's paying just a tad too much for him or the O's who missed out on Teixera & Burnett.

What do you think? Will Pedro pull a Roger and pitch a half season in Houston for too much money?

Off day links and news

2009-04-15T00:36:00.001-05:00

Kinda bored so thought I would throw some stuff out there.

Harry Kalas, famed Philadelphia Phillies broadcaster, and voice of NFL Films died yesterday at the age of 73. A member of the original Houston Astros radio crew along with Gene Elston, Kalas worked in Houston from 1965 to 1970. A true legend, indeed. He passed away while at the ballpark. I suppose that's fitting for a man such as Mr. Kalas
Just hours after Harry Kalas' death, the sadness around MLB was exacerbated as former pitcher Mark Fidrych was found dead at his Massachusetts home. He was 54. "The Bird" was the 1976 AL Rookie of the Year. A character on and off the field, baseball has lost one of it's genuinely good people
Fangraphs lists the top ten prospects of the NL Central clubs. Our top guy is Jason Castro, followed by Drew Sutton and Brian Bogusevic. I like that Sutton is getting some dap nationally
Richard Justice has a suggestion for Drayton McLane: Cut out the middle men, and manage the Astros yourself. He seems to be on point for the most part in his takes...I fear the apocolypse as a result
Bud Norris' PCL debut was yesterday: 4.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 K, 3 BB, 4 H. I think we're all waiting for him to step up and pitch the way he's capable of. Offensively, JR Towles hit a double in three plate appearances in a 8-4 loss to Omaha
On Sunday, Jason Castro and Koby Clemens continued slugging en route to a 7-4 victory for Lancaster
Burger King is under fire from multiple fronts. First, Mexicans are upset at the fast food chain for their recent ads for the "Texican" burger. Second, feminists are up in arms over a commercial advertising their Kid's Meal...The day it's inappropriate to air sexually suggestive material aimed at children will be a sad day indeed
Unfortunately, I can see Astros fans being sent this card in July.
The Nationals have the right idea- let fans bring their own food into the game. With the economy as poor as it is, any inducement to come out to the park is well worth the effort
We're not the only team struggling with a veteran starting pitcher. Jeff Suppan isn't exactly thrilling the folks up in Milwaukee
A scoreless bottom of the eighth inning of a blowout 15-5 victory for the Tampa Bay Rays was a bit more interesting than one would have thought. New York Yankees first baseman Nick Swisher came in to pitch, and didn't allow a run. He even struck out Gabe "The Babe" Kapler. That's for having a first name that easily lends itself to having the nickname, "The Babe." Here's what his pitches looked like.

thank god it's an off day.

2009-04-14T18:51:00.001-05:00

Busier than a hooker in a Korean brothel on "sailor day". Will have some stuff up later tonight.

Rant of the week. AND I'M OUT

2009-04-14T14:30:00.001-05:00

What an awful 2 days.

First, Kyle Freaking Lohse throws a 3 hit shutout. The next day, Zach Freaking Duke throws a four hit 2 walk shutout. We're not talking aces here.

When Michael Bourn is leading your team in RBIs, you KNOW you are in trouble. The guys look absolutely lifeless up there, to put it mildly VERY mildly.

In Lohse's game, Wandy walked 3, trying not to give up any runs, and his defense sure 'nuff didn't do him any favors. Moehler was simply awful from the get-go. His ERA went DOWN from 38 to 27 - turns out he is having knee pain (what a surprise) and is going for an MRI - wonder what they are going to do if he goes on the DL - Capellan, probably, as I doubt Backe will be ready.

I have no idea what to do or say about Berkman and Lee not hitting. If they don't hit, we're not gonna win too much, and they picked a bad time to slump together. I also don't like Pence in the 2-hole because he's gotten overly aggressive and is swinging at pitches low and away again. Might could be time to get another hitting coach.

Yes, I know that the pitching has been rotten, too, except for Sampson and Wandy. Then again, I've never been a fan of Dewey Robinson.

I remember that in 05, we lost something like 20 of our first 21 away games. It wasn't quite as demoralizing because we won at least half of our home games, and so far this year, we've only had 3 home games. The only way that a long long losing streak would be good is if it somehow shakes Drayton out of his complacency, not that I'm holding my breath.

So overall, I hereby think it is time to quote that great baseball mind, George Scott (ex Brewer):

"If we're gonna win, the players gotta play better, the coaches gotta coach better, the manager gotta manage better and the owners gotta own better."

Couldn't of said it better my own self.

Game delayed but underway..

2009-04-13T12:53:00.001-05:00

So far, Matsui grounded out to second and Tejada doubled to center. Berkman is up with 2 balls no strikes. Not sure why the game was delayed.

Pirates kick off home opener with a noon'er against the 'Stros

2009-04-13T10:19:00.004-05:00

Brian Moehler will try to recover from a bomb of a game last week. Zach Duke will try to keep control of the big 3. Zach Duke is so a fantasy sleeper. Nobody in Pitt gets credit except for Nate McClouth, who couldn't hit Tina Turner if he tried. OUCH, I'm going to hold my tongue on the what do you think Moehler is going to do today, etc. Let's just see what happens since it's still early. Literally, it's early for me.

Today is a noon'er game. I will try to post an update around 1-2.

Oh, hope everyone had a great Easter, here is a pic of the kids getting some egg huntin' on

Baby momma left, me top, Peyton left, Malorie bottom, Kylie right.

The Unofficial has switched to a new template.

2009-04-12T23:53:00.000-05:00

Thought it looked a little neater and less confusing....or something like that. Let me know what you think

Brocail hits the DL...Fulchino called up

2009-04-12T23:30:00.002-05:00

Doug Brocail never lies. At least about his injuries. the 13 time DL'er told Ed Wade and Cecil "The Incredible Hulk II" he was having trouble with his arm, and as a result, the veteran right-hander was placed on the 15-day disabled list with the rotator cuff strain he was diagnosed with on Saturday. Sorry, I know this was on Saturday, but i'm playing "ketchup" at the office and tomorrow is hot dog Monday.

Jeff Fulchino got the call to join the big league club. Fulchino started for the Express on Saturday, but anticipating they may need him, the Astros put him on a strict pitch limit. Fulchino threw approximately 35 pitches over two innings, while Alberto Arias pitched the next 2 1/3 innings.

Lohse throw a 3 hitter. Astros Lose 3-0

2009-04-12T19:37:00.002-05:00

So on one hand i'm happy. I got Lohse off waivers yesterday in my Roto keeper league. On the other hand, it was a depressing series against the Redbird's. Is that one word or two? Anyhow, let's not beat around "the Busch" ha, ZINNNGG. I was kind of scared when the Astros lost to the Cubs but had all those homeruns. Guess I wasn't overly worried bacause it looked like the bats were connecting, mostly. Well have you noticed something? How about the RISP and left on base stats. It's still pretty early in the season to get all puffed up over a minimal amount of stats, but hell i'm already delving deep into em' in all my fantasy leagues, so, why not? Obviously we already know that the 'Stros lost 3-0, let's not talk about that much.

The Astros are dead last in the NL in runs. 15th in the NL (out of 16 teams) in XBH's, and have left an ungodly amount of runners on base. At first, the Cub's game didn't scare me too much because, like I said, the 'Stros covered it with the schlama ding-dongs. There seems to be a trend happening thus far this season, the Astros aren't getting key hits, which means they aren't producing runs. Someone needs to step up, I know Berkman is hitting, he just isn't hitting a godly like .375 like he needs to be for the season. In time the luck will correct itself and the Astros should fly a little straighter, but for now, this is sickening. If this happens much longer, someone is going to have to get some fire lit under these guys. Wonder if Coop will turn into the Hulk again.

Sunday Match-up. Wan-Rod against Kyle Lohse

2009-04-10T17:31:00.002-05:00

Saturday April 12th

Wan-Rod will pair off against Kyle Lohse, who is coming off a stellar performance against Pittsburgh.

Scouting Report:
Astros: Rodriguez will stay on his regular schedule despite Thursday's off day. The lefty was 1-2 with a 1.11 ERA over four starts against the Cardinals in 2008, allowing three runs over 24 1/3 innings. In his career, Rodriguez is 2-6 with a 4.08 ERA against St. Louis. He's allowed 24 earned runs over 53 innings.

Cardinals: It will be interesting to see how Lohse responds after a pretty tough assignment in his first start. He grinded out seven innings, with the last two being fairly eventful, and needed 108 pitches to do so. Those certainly aren't red-flag numbers, but Lohse did work hard on a chilly night early in the season. It's reasonable to expect him to show no ill effects, but if he does look a bit winded against Houston, his battle against the Pirates may partly explain it.

Saturday Match-up

2009-04-10T17:26:00.003-05:00

Saturday April 11th

Roy Oswalt faces off against Adam Wainwright at Busch Stadium.

Scouting Report:

Astros: Oswalt will stay on schedule to pitch every fifth day, which pushes the fifth starter, Russ Ortiz, out of the rotation the first time through. Oswalt was 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA over two starts vs. the Cardinals last year. He is 9-6 with a 2.90 ERA in his career against St. Louis.Cardinals: Wainwright's first regular season start looked a lot like most of his games in the spring. There was plenty to like, starting with seven strikeouts. But there was also plenty to give pause, most notably five walks, tying a career high. Wainwright needed 94 pitches to get 16 outs, and that's not going to be good enough. He must be more efficient and get deeper into games.

Cardinals: Wainwright's first regular season start looked a lot like most of his games in the spring. There was plenty to like, starting with seven strikeouts. But there was also plenty to give pause, most notably five walks, tying a career high. Wainwright needed 94 pitches to get 16 outs, and that's not going to be good enough. He must be more efficient and get deeper into games.

Astros claim Wilton Lopez from the Padres

2009-04-10T16:14:00.001-05:00

The Astros added a right-handed pitcher to their organization on Friday, claiming Wilton Lopez off waivers from the Padres. They optioned him to Double-A Corpus Christi, and, to make room for him on the club's 40-man roster, transferred infielder Aaron Boone to the 60-day disabled list.

The 25-year-old Lopez has a 6-5 record and a 4.13 ERA and 16 saves over 111 relief appearances during three Minor League seasons with the Padres and Yankees organizations. In 2008, he pitched at three levels within the Padres farm system: Class A Lake Elsinore, Double-A San Antonio and Triple-A Portland, making a combined 58 relief outings.

Lopez was originally signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent in 2002.

Anyone think this could be the PTBNL in the Keppinger deal?

Lap top wanted

2009-04-09T10:22:00.000-05:00

So, as stated the other day, I am going through some legal stuff for my kids, work is crazy and NOW all of a sudden my laptop screwed up. i know the problem and just need to get a new one. No sense in resurecting the dead. If anyone knows someone who wants to sell, trade or GIVE a lap top, let me know. I'm not looking for a hand out by any means, just something affordable in these weird times. If anyone points me in the right direction, I will make them an Unofficial Official, or something really cool!

Brandon Backe throws like a girl...still

2009-04-09T10:18:00.000-05:00

So Backe may not be Backe for a while...or something like that. interpret it how you would like. Let's skip the part where I show you the article and give you my thoughts....so now for my thoughts......See ya Backe....that's pretty much it in a nutshell. So he threw like 40 pitches and gave the cliche statement any pitcher gives when trying to re-bound from an injury....something to the effect of: I was just trying to get used to the mound and re-acquaint myself with the rubber. bla, bla, bla.

Honestly, I don't think we need him with the exception of when/if Hampton or Ortiz or Moehler or Wan-Rod or Oswalt gets hurt. OK, so we need him...damn it.

Next Up: Friday @ St Louis

2009-04-09T09:20:00.000-05:00

Mike Hampton will make his first start of the year against Albert Pujols and company on Friday. Hampy is attempting to throw a complete season for the first time since 2004. After ending a strong 08' with the Braves and a decent spring training with the spacemen, Hampton has more confidence than ever, plus he uses Head & Shoulders, which helps. During ST Hampy Hamperton threw 30 innings with 22 K's and 7 free rides to candyland. More impressive was his 4.80 ERA. OK, it wasn't that impressive, but still, for a number 5 starter who is like 68 years old, pretty impressive.

Let's look at some lifetime stats against the Red Birds.

Hampy has logged 150.1 IP's, 144 hits, 95 K's and a 3.71 ERA.
This is nothing spectacular by any means, but it is somewhat impressive given his career averages being a little bit higher against other teams. Don't look for Hampy to overwhelm anyone in the game, but he will provide enough support for the Astros to get something going offensively.

The tale of the tape: Joel Pineiro:

Astros hitters have only logged 27 Ab's lifetime against Pineiro. The big 3 of Berkman, Lee and Tejada have pretty much owned Pineiro in the small snippet of AB's. Berk and Tejada are sluggin like 2.100000 against him. Hell, even Brandon Backe has a .333 avg against the guy. All of that really may not matter as Pineiro threw six scoreless innings on Monday to close out spring training. He was a former potential closer for Boston before Papelbon was well, before Papelbon was Papelbon. Pineiro was converted to a back end starter for the 2009 campaign. Pineiro's 6-2 record, 3.94 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 14 career games (13 starts) at Busch Stadium paints the picture of a match ups pitcher with minimal appeal.

Swami says:

Look for the big 3 to mash against the Puerto Rican on Friday. Astros 6 Card's 4

May Fortune Favor the Foolish.

2009-04-07T23:25:00.000-05:00

Another installment from Scott Barzilla, very good read. Any Bill James fan is a friend of mine! once again, thanks Scott.

May Fortune Favor the Foolish

By Scott Barzilla

It’s hard to call Ed Wade foolish considering that the club nearly pulled off a miracle in 2008 and had a better draft than the club had had in years. However, a series of winter moves seem to be either head scratchers and/or duds. Toby Hall was brought in to solidify the catching situation. Oops. The club let Ty Wigginton go because he was too expensive only to see him sign for three million a season. Then, they quickly scooped up washed up third baseman Aaron Boone only to lose him to open heart surgery this spring. Despite all of these events, everything seems to be working out. The club has a significant upgrade at catcher with Ivan Rodriguez and presumably a defensive upgrade at third base with Jeff Keppinger and Geoff Blum.

Fielding is kind of a new wave in statistical analysis. Bill James and his ilk have pretty much pegged offense at this point in time, but we have a number of different approaches to fielding analysis. Part of that is dependent on how you approach fielding. Some look at pure volume of plays made while others look at percentage of plays made. My personal favorite is the Fielding Bible approach. John Dewan takes plays that other players at the position routinely make, sometimes make, and rarely make and then creates a +/- approach to the analysis. However, this isn’t to say that this is necessarily the best approach.

One of the things we have learned across the board in fielding analysis is that players can have career seasons and slumps just like they can with the bat. Anyone that bases any analysis based on only one season deserves what they get with the glove or the bat. The Yankees seem to use this approach and they’ve been burned more than occasionally. You don’t have to be a seamhead to know that you better steer pretty clear of A.J. Burnett. Of course, the Yankees and Braves didn’t know that. Most reasonable people could see Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright’s meltdown coming a mile away. The same is true with hitters and fielders. The Cubs are buying big into Milton Bradley after one great season in Texas. If you drafted Josh Hamilton in your fantasy draft then I wish you the best of luck.

When we move back to fielding we look at one of the facets of baseball people rarely focus on. Who could blame them? A scant ten years ago you had about as good a chance of picking out a truly good fielder as winning at the roulette wheel. Sure, everyone can pick out the butchers and the best, but the in between is harder to peg. Now, those odds are a little better. Still, very few teams make moves based on the sabermetric fielding numbers I described above. The Astros may have lucked out based on everything that has happened. Since Morgan Ensberg melted down, the Astros have seen a collection of butchers man the position regularly. Mike Lamb and Ty Wigginton aren’t going to win any gold gloves. Before we look at 2009, we should look at how the old Astros did the last three seasons at the position.

INN +/-

Ty Wigginton

1573.2 -26

Geoff Blum

854.1 +12

Aaron Boone

1024.0 -20

Which of these don’t belong? Well, it would be the guy who is staying. Through their bumbling, the Astros managed to shed themselves of the two worst defensive options they had at third base. They replace them with Blum and Jeff Keppinger. Keppinger has a zero (average) rating at the position in over 250 innings over the last three seasons. So, a weakness has become a strength. Kaz Matsui has a good defensive pedigree even if he didn’t perform well last season and Miguel Tejada played inspired (for him) defense last season. Combine that with Lance Berkman (who is second to only Albert Pujols in defensive prowess) and you have one of the better defensive infields in baseball. Imagine what would have been if the Astros had any luck.

On the other hand, the Astros probably considered the offensive numbers and they are beginning to change the high strikeout tendencies of their offense. Below we will look at last season’s lineup with their walks per 100 PA and strikeouts per 100 PA. Then, we will look at the current lineup assuming that Keppinger gets the majority the plate appearances at third base. Hopefully, this projects to the Astros having fewer slumps than they have had in the past.

2008

SO/100 BB/100

CF Michael Bourn

21.60 7.20

2B Kaz Matsui

12.56 8.77

1B Lance Berkman

16.24 14.89

LF Carlos Lee

10.19 7.69

SS Miguel Tejada

10.81 3.60

RF Hunter Pence

19.31 6.23

3B Ty Wigginton

16.08 7.46

C Brad Ausmus

16.40 10.00

When you only have two guys in the regular lineup that even draw ten walks in 100 plate appearances then things are bad. If you have three regulars that have three times as many strikeouts as walks it’s really bad. No wonder this team scores runs in bunches. We can only hope that things will be better with a little more contact in 2009.

2009

2B Kaz Matsui

12.56 8.77

3B Jeff Keppinger

5.06 6.71

1B Lance Berkman

16.24 14.89

LF Carlos Lee

10.19 7.69

RF Hunter Pence

19.31 6.23

SS Miguel Tejada

10.81 3.60

C Ivan Rodriguez

16.34 3.81

CF Michael Bourn

21.60 7.20

Pudge isn’t exactly an efficient hitter, so the talk of having him hit in the two hole is downright scary. Having Keppinger in the second spot is actually an appetizing thought. He isn’t a traditionally high OBP guy, but he will make contact. He is a great guy to do hit and runs with because he will put the ball in play. The key for this season is for Hunter Pence to continue improving as he did at the end of last season. Keppinger and Rodriguez are mixed blessings, but overall the lineup is better since Rodriguez and Bourn are able to hit near the bottom.

Astros top Cubs 3-2

2009-04-07T23:06:00.001-05:00

So, it's 11 at night. I found some time to get on here. Yay me! (unenthusiastic)

Here's the skinny from Yahoo:

Jeff Keppinger’s broken-bat single in the 10th inning off closer Kevin Gregg gave the Houston Astros a 3-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night.

Hunter Pence homered and Michael Bourn had an RBI single for the Astros, who carried a 2-1 lead into the eighth before Alfonso Soriano hit a long home run off LaTroy Hawkins.

Ivan Rodriguez opened the bottom of the 10th with an infield single down the third-base line, his first hit with Houston after starting the season 0-for-7. Lance Berkman followed with another single off Neal Cotts (0-1) before Cubs manager Lou Piniella brought in Gregg.

First off, Hunter Pence, I screwed myself by not starting you tonight in my fantasy leagues (got him in 2 out of 4). I thought you were going to start off slow this year after your performance last night. I no longer have a man crush on you.

The Astros piled 10 hits through 10 innings. Pretty impressive considering. Hitting .277 (.278 if you're a rounder) as a team is pretty impressive as well, considering.

Ah, do you smell it? No, it's not what the Rock is cookin, ya Jabroni. It's the smell of seeing the ball, making contact and things happening. Wait, does that really have a smell?

So my prediction of Lee being the game breaker wasn't true, so what? he went 0-4. Gulp, pride swallowed.

Offensive player of the game: Hunter Pence

Offensive suck of the game: P-Rod"less" (went 1-4 with 3 K's and left 2 guys on base)

Pitcher of the game: Wan-Rod and Valverde. Wandy had 4 K's and 3 free rides to Candyland in 6 IP. Valverde was Valverde K'ing two in the ninth.

Next up: Wednesay VS Chicago Cubs - Moehler will take the mound against Ted Lilly.

I got some time!!! Next Game Tonight

2009-04-07T18:48:00.000-05:00

Wan-Rod is on the mound against Ryan Dempster. The tale of the tape:

Dempster:

Dempster proved last season that you can go home again. He successfully made the transition back to starting and won a career-high 17 games. Named to the All-Star team, the right-hander became just the second pitcher since 1969 to record 25 or more saves in a season, then win at least 17 games the next year (baseballstats). John Hiller was the last to do so in 1973-74. There's no place like Wrigley Field for Dempster, who was 14-3 at home. It's the most wins in Chicago since Fergie Jenkins won a franchise-record 15 in 1967.

Dempster is 4-10 lifetime against the spacemen with a 4.50 ERA over the course of 122 IP's. Look for him to have a mediocre game against the 'Stros tonight.

Wan-Rod:

Rodriguez has won nine games in each of his four Major League seasons and ranks in the top 10 among all NL left-handers in wins (sixth), innings pitched (ninth) and opponents batting average (seventh) during that span. Rodriguez was 5-5 with a 2.99 ERA over 14 home starts in 2008, and he posted three months with a sub-3.00 ERA: April (2.31), June (2.30) and September (1.38).

Wan-Rod really needs a good start to the year. If he can get the confidence wheels rolling, I see him winning 13 games +/- this year. Wandy is 4-4 with a 4.68 ERA lifetime against the Cubbies. With that being said about Wandy and Dempster, look for this game to be won in the batters box.

Astros Lineup against the Cubs (in no particular order):

Berkman .240
Bourn .341 (in 41 AB's)
Blum .225
Keppinger .343
Matsui .275
Tejada .349 (in 68 AB'S)
Pence .283
Lee .310

That's all I have time for, but you get the point. Look for Lee to be the deciding factor in the game tonight for the 'Stros. Wow, I did this in 5 minutes. Like I said earlier, sorry for the hiatus I HAVE to take. I will be posting but it won't be the in depth, good stuff. Good luck and thanks to the guys that sent me some emails. I am looking at adding one-two bloggers to keep this thing going! Email me if you want to help!

Astros Lose....and i'm on hiatus

2009-04-07T10:35:00.000-05:00

So, I vowed to never do this, but I must take a break. I just started a custody case for my kids and on top of that everyone and their mom are ordering appraisals. I have absolutely no time. Stay up to date with Astros County until further notice. Oh and the Astros lost 4-2 to the Cubs.

Gone fishin'

2009-04-03T10:44:00.000-05:00

be back tomorrow. Today is toooooo pretty to worry about Astros stuff. Will upload a pic of whatever I catch. I hear Lake Houston has some nice white Bass.

Thanks for the success.

2009-04-02T10:30:00.000-05:00

The Unofficial Astros Blog has reached 13,120 visitors as of now since early March of this year. Thanks to all the readers.

To Twitter or not to Twitter, that is the question.

2009-04-02T10:05:00.000-05:00

I have been trying out Twitter for about a month and have gained a cute little following. Join me on Twitter.

Next Game: At Corpus Christi Hooks 04/02 6:05 PM

2009-04-02T09:33:00.000-05:00

Click to enlarge.

Astros 7 Reds 2. Kepp on former team, Johnson rises like a star and falls to RR

2009-04-02T09:01:00.000-05:00

Michael Bourn led off the third with a double, stole third and scored on a base hit by Kazuo Matsui. Darin Erstad knocked a solo homer in the sixth. Chris Johnson drove in a run with a triple in the seventh and scored on a Reggie Abercrombie sacrifice fly.

Roy Oswalt made his last start before the regular season, and threw only four innings cause he didn't eat his Wheaties.

Michael Bourn was an unusual suspect in yesterday's game. Bourn went 3-for-3 including a two-bagger in the third, and swiped two bases to push his Grapefruit League-leading total to 11. As I noted in a post not too long ago, Bourn would get the average up and only patience would bring it. He has hit .247 in ST, however, he has raised that average from a dismal .167 since late march to the current .247. Look for him to continue to grow as a player with the boost of confidence he is getting.

Keppinger on former team:

“It’s been exciting, actually,” Keppinger said. “It’s a better opportunity for me over here, and I like this ballclub. This ballclub looks good.”

Keppinger, 28, will platoon at third base with Geoff Blum, taking a position originally held by Aaron Boone, who is out for the year after undergoing open-heart surgery. Keppinger hit .360 last year against lefthanders and is a career .287 hitter overall.

“They’ll be on a left-right kind of (platoon),” manager Cecil Cooper said. “(Keppinger) is a guy who can also play short or second. There are more options there.”

When talking about his new team, Keppinger smiled as he looked around the clubhouse at the lockers or Roy Oswalt, Lance Berkman, Carlos Lee and Ivan Rodriguez.

“You look at the Reds, and that’s pretty much the kind of guys they don’t have over there,” he said. “They don’t have a big three-hole guy who can knock it out of the park in any direction and hit .300 every year.”

Chris Johnson shines before being sent down:

Third baseman Chris Johnson was reassigned to Class AAA Round Rock but will travel with the Astros to Corpus Christi for today’s exhibition and this weekend’s games against Cleveland in Houston.

The Astros’ top position-player prospect, Johnson hit .245 with one homer and seven RBIs in 53 at-bats in his first major league camp.

The move leaves the Astros with 28 healthy players and all but guarantees Jason Smith has made the club as a backup infielder. The other three players likely to get cut before Monday are outfielder Reggie Abercrombie, catcher Lou Santangelo and pitcher Jose Capellan.

Astros receive NL Murcer Award

2009-04-02T08:56:00.000-05:00

First off, let's figure out what the award is.

The Murcer Award is given to the team in both the American League and NL whose players contribute the most amount of money to B.A.T. through the Major League Baseball (MLB) Payroll Deduction Program. The award will be presented by Bobby's widow Kay during the 2010 Annual B.A.T. Dinner. The Astros contributed the most money of any NL team, and the Yankees were tops in the AL.

Organizers of B.A.T. revealed that they have collected nearly $1.5 million during their seventh annual Spring Training tour to raise funds for members of the baseball family in need.

Not sure how much the 'Stros or Yank-me's raised. This just goes to show that no matter the make up of a major league club, everyone still gives a litle, Even Drayton. Here is what he had to say about the fundraiser:

"We are extremely proud of all the MLB players and their generous dedication to helping those in need within the baseball family. These funds are especially critical during these difficult economic times. It really lifts my spirits to know that the Houston Astros players have made such a sizeable commitment and are being awarded the Bobby Murcer Award for contributing the most in the National League. We are very honored."

In the Astros Blogosphere: Thoughts on Jeff Keppinger

2009-04-02T08:42:00.000-05:00

Tim Dierkes, with MLBTR, chimes in with his thoughts on Keppinger:

"I don't mind adding Keppinger in a utility role, it seems like the price won't end up being anything significant. But a Keppinger/Blum platoon...unless these guys are amazing defensively, that is going to hurt the team. The Astros' offense seems neither great nor terrible, and finding a league average hitter for the hot corner would add a few wins."

Scott Barzilla over at Astrosdaily.com:

"It’s funny how perception works. The Astros sign Ivan Rodriguez and it’s a stroke of genius. The Astros trade a player to be named later for Jeff Keppinger and people don’t blink an eye. Keppinger has been playing off and on since 2004. He has amassed 968 plate appearances in that time as a utility infielder. He became the regular shortstop last year in Alex Gonzalez’s absence. Funny, when you compare the two in basic terms it’s hard to tell the difference.

AVG OBP SLG OPS

Keppinger .287 .338 .390 .728

Rodriguez .295 .325 .444 .769

The difference between the two is primarily in slugging, but the differences have been diminishing as Rodriguez’s power numbers are going. Irod slugged .394 last season. So again, how much are they different? This isn’t to say that this is a bad deal. In fact, there are rumors that Brandon Backe is the player to be named later. Ridding themselves of Backe is enough to make this a good deal. However, what this deal is really about is plugging a gaping hole with someone that won’t kill you. Keppinger isn’t the missing piece, but he does make third base a little more palatable."

Astros County has his take:

"I like the Keppinger trade. He's young-ish, cheap ($475,000, or thereabouts), can play a lot of different positions, and can drill lefties. Providing he's over the kneecap injury, I think he'll be a good addition if/when Chris Johnson is ready to take over full-time in 2010. I'm going to withhold complete judgment until I see who the PTBNL is..."

County and I talked VIA email over this PTBNL (player to be named later). Dusty Baker seems to think that the player is Drew Sutton. Not Cool. On one hand, Baker also thinks signing Gary Sheffield is a great idea. We all know Dusty is a little crazy, but he has been saying he wants to get younger and faster. This would be one of those opportunities. More on this later.

I would say the overall consensus here is that "The Kepp" isn't going to kill the Astros. I do agree with Tim about the platoon role, and that the move will bring in minimal wins. I definitely like the analysis from Scott. I was hoping that Backe would be the PTBNL. I really don't think it will be, but then again, I think Backe is done in Houston one way or another this season, just depends on when the Astros decide to get rid of him. Astros County is right, Kepp is relatively cheap (minus Drew Sutton) and can fill in as necessary. This Drew Sutton thing getting thrown out there really makes this move a little more to the negative to me. Drew Sutton shouldn't be given up for Kepp. Straight up. More on that later.

The Astros optioned pitchers Alberto Arias and Jeff Fulchino to the minors

2009-04-01T09:11:00.000-05:00

Announcement came after the win over the Braves yesterday. Not much to report there.

Arias threw 10 innings with 8 hits, 9 K's and 2 BB over the course of ST.

Fulchino's line looks somewhat similar, 14 innings with 11 hits, 5 K's and 2 BB.

Astros beat the Braves. NICE

2009-04-01T09:06:00.000-05:00

With Russ Ortiz leading the charge against the Braves, the 'Stros easily walked away with a win on Tuesday night. Astros player of the game had to be Carlos Lee, who was hitting .178 heading into the game. Lee went 2-for-3 with a double, home run and four RBIs. This win was pretty impressive seeing as the Braves have been pretty decent through spring training, Derek Lowe was on the mound for the Braves and the Astros were still missing Berkman, who has sat out the last four games with biceps tendinitis in his left shoulder.

Berkman said Monday that he planned to DH on Tuesday, but Houston manager elected not to use a DH against the Braves in order to give Berkman another day of rest. Berkman is expected to play Wednesday against Cincinnati.

Ortiz will get the nod at SP5, Unofficially. Maysonet sent to RR

2009-04-01T08:54:00.000-05:00

Alyson Footer thinks so anyhow. Ortiz threw amazing last night against the Braves, with the exception of the 3 run shlamma-ding-dong he gave up to Chipper Jones. Although it hasn't been made official, and nobody in the Astros organization has mentioned anything, Ortiz has to have the SP5 spot on lock-down like a prison guard. Capellan was/is his only competition thus far, and although Capellan has thrown great, Ortiz has to either make the team or be released. Capellan can be sent to the minors, so, the choice is obvious. Here is what Ortiz had to say about IF and WHEN he gets the official notice.

"The biggest thing is, I try not to get caught up in that and it's hard," Ortiz said. "I want to make the team and be in Houston. I just always go back to, I can't control any decisions, I can't worry about tomorrow. Just work on what I need to work on that day, and that's how I've done it all spring. I'm not going to change until I hear one way or another."

In other Astros news, Edwin Maysonet was sent to RR. Maysonet played decent this spring and although he is heading to RR, look for him to get some time with the big league club this year.

MLBTR says the Astros got Keppinger.

2009-03-31T15:38:00.000-05:00

According to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Astros acquired out of options infielder Jeff Keppinger from the Reds for a player to be named later. Looks like Keppinger will be Houston's third base addition.

Keppinger, 29 in April, hit .266/.310/.346 in 502 plate appearances last year while playing all around the infield (mostly shortstop).

This isn't a bad signing at all, considering. He will throw a decent glove at the hot corner and can also fill in for Miggy and Kaz assuming Tejada can't hack it full time and Matsui has another round of anal fissures. Didn't really need to add the last part about Kaz, but it's fun making fun of someone with anal problems..

De La Vara sent back to Royals.

2009-03-31T15:33:00.001-05:00

De La Vara cleared waivers and was then shipped back to the Royals for half ($25K) of what the Astros paid. Over a span of eight games, he allowed nine earned runs in 9 2/3 innings, for an 8.38 ERA.

Take a look at the MLB site, which has the info. Read the first comment, this guy is an ignoramus.

What have I missed?

2009-03-31T10:16:00.000-05:00

Well, Berkman appears to be getting strength in his shoulder again. Let's move on. He basically said in an interview that he wants to play and it's getting better daily. Whether or not he misses a game or two, let's not panic.

Hampton had a bad outing against the Phil's. We can't expect him to play like Hampton, class of 99' everyday, but we can expect him to do this on occasion.

The front office still has some decisions to make for the roster. LINK.

MLBTR has a rather bleak outlook for the 2009 Astros.

Covered some fantasy stuff of Chron.com

Not really Astros stuff here, but Gary Sheffield was released today and the Tigers will eat 14 Million of his salary. Wow, tough economic times, huh?

busy day

2009-03-30T10:48:00.001-05:00

Will be back tomorrow. Check Astros County for anything you might need to read about today. Refi's are a plenty!!! Everyone know what tomorrow is?

Tejada doesn't need the juice anymore

2009-03-27T17:23:00.000-05:00

After standing up to his unimaginable crime of injecting his ass with syringes full of HGH, Tejada wanted to show everyone he doesn't need the juice anymore than Pete Rose didn't need to gamble on baseball. What? Anyhow, Tejada homered for the first time since hearing his sentence for possibly taking steroids (which was way too harsh, I think) (Sarcasm anyone?). Who needs the juice if you can jack dingers all day? Among his schlama damma ding dong was two hits and driving in two runs to lead the Houston Astros to a 6-5 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Tejada went 3-for-3 with an RBI double and a single to back Roy Oswalt, who was making his first start since returning from the World Baseball Classic.

Roy Oswalt allowed 10 hits and three runs in six innings. OUCH, guess not being on the world platform doesn't give you that adrenaline sometimes. Bring it back next time Roy.

Norris, Towles cut

2009-03-27T12:13:00.000-05:00

The Astros made two roster moves Friday morning, sending right-hander Bud Norris and catcher J.R. Towles to Minor League camp.

Norris will join the Round Rock rotation, but he will be the first pitcher considered if a need arises in either the rotation or the bullpen in Houston.

Towles was edged out when the club signed Pudge Rodriguez, which moved Humberto Quintero to a backup role.

Astros catcher Castro only top 100 prospect

2009-03-27T09:21:00.000-05:00

Not like this is news or anything. We all know the Astros farm system stinks worse than that ugly girl you took to prom. I forgot to post this when it first came out. Not only that but I had two Monster Energy Drinks this morning on the way to work, so, i'm kinda ready to GGGGITTTY UP!. Have a look at the prospects.

Bits & Pieces

2009-03-27T09:02:00.000-05:00

Bits and Pieces from around the Internet:

"Lance Berkman's improvement as a baserunner last year extended beyond his surprising 18-for-22 performance as a basestealer. "He also scored from second 16 times, after having done it only six times the year before, and was thrown out on the bases five fewer times."

"The third base platoon position is still not settled and neither is the backup infield slot. Otherwise, in spite of the fact that final moves have not been made, Lance is starting to hit like his usual self, Clank and Bourn are also picking it up and now that Miggy Te-roider has gotten his wrist slapped, maybe he will settle down and at least hit for average, if not power. Pudge Rodriguez appears to have hit it off with Wandy (thank God) as well as the rest of the staff, who, by the way, are still pitching decently."

Who is the NL Central sleeper team:
This division belongs to the Cubs, and Milwaukee finished with 90 wins. They're expected to regress, but even if they don't, it's not a Cinderella team. Houston finished 86-76, which shocked a lot of pundits and they're expected to finish in the basement. Okay, they could be a Cinderella team. St. Louis also went 86-76 but strangely seems to be completely off the map. There's another option. Cincinnati, like Florida, is trendy. Pittsburgh... next!

Rockies infielder Jeff Baker, unaffected by the trade rumors, homered twice yesterday.

Brian McTaggart of the Houston Chronicle talked to Astros GM Ed Wade about the difference between guaranteed and non-guaranteed contracts.

Boone's surgery a success

2009-03-27T09:00:00.000-05:00

Aaron Boone underwent open heart surgery Thursday at the Stanford University Medical Center, and early indications are that the procedure was successful.

"I spoke to Aaron's father Bob and he indicated that things went well," Astros General Manager Ed Wade said in a statement released by the Astros. "Certainly our prayers are with Aaron and the entire Boone family in hopes of a full recovery."

Dr. D. Craig Miller was scheduled to perform the surgery, which was to include the replacement of an aortic valve. In medical terms, the procedure that Boone was scheduled to undergo is called bicuspid aortic valve aneurysm surgery, which included an aortic valve replacement.

The 36-year-old Boone revealed last week that he has had the heart condition since he was in college and categorized the surgery as "not an emergency situation."

Boone said he would like to play baseball again but was not sure he would. It is highly unlikely he will play again this year. Boone described the recovery time for the surgery to be "several months."

Courtesy of Alyson Footer.

Richard Justice wears flip flops year round

2009-03-27T08:52:00.000-05:00

So when the Astros got Tejada Justice was beside himself. When Tejada hit well the first couple months he was in Houston, Justice said, "I told you so". When Tejada slumped the last few weeks, Justice, of course, barked up Wade's horrible trade history, wondered how anyone could trade for Tejada and criticized everything possible involved with Tejada. Well, Justice is now on the path of flip flopping like a crappie on the dock once again. I think last week Justice praised McLane for signing Pudge (steroid user), however, Tejada gets a thumbs down because he used steroids and got a slap on the wrist? Honestly, how does Justice get to write for the Chron? He should pick a position and stick with it. I understand Justice includes a lot of sarcasm, I can pick up on that, but writing something for the sake of writing it isn't a great way to work. Guess I just don't know enough, seeing as he writes for Chron and i'm stuck to my small piece of the pie.

Appearence on Chron.com

2009-03-27T08:50:00.000-05:00

Here is a link to an article on Chron.com of some Astros fantasy baseball breakdown stuff I did for Kyle C. Have a look.

Tejada Sentenced

2009-03-26T15:25:00.000-05:00

"Miguel Tejada was sentenced to one year of probation and 100 hours of community service, in addition to a $5,000 fine, for lying to Congress about performancing-enhancing drugs."

Shame on you Tejada, and that gigantic fine should serve you right, all 5K of it.

So who is REALLY playing 3rd..UPDATE

2009-03-26T09:53:00.000-05:00

Scouring the depths of the web for something to post today, I keep seeing possible players being named that the Astros may acquire. Let's take a look at who they are and the odds on getting picked up.

Jeff Baker - Uber utility man for the Rockies, who has spent a portion of ST dealing with an inflamed right elbow, is out of options. He specialized in second base but has played pretty much everywhere. He hit .309 in his first two major league seasons (07' & 08'). He is making roughly 400K, which is within the Astros payroll. He would be a clear upgrade over Blum/Insert name here. Baker is my first choice.

Mark Teahan - Another utility man, kinda. Teahan is just above league average in HR's, Avg, and RBI. He is currently 3B2, LF2 and has been playing 2nd in ST this year. Still unclear if he will remain with the Royals or not. Another good pick if the Astros can make something work, although, he is making 2 million and change. Baker still gets the edge as he costs significantly less and projects about the same as Teahan.

Melvin Mora - Originally signed as an amatuer free agent in 1991 by the Astros, Mora will not be with the Astros come opening day. Although his age (37) fits the Astros quite well, his price tag is around 7 Million. Nobody was really interested in Mora during the offseason and I highly doubt that even though the Astros need for a 3rd baseman are that bad. Compare Mora to Johnson and I think the Astros would rather just let the newbie work it out at the hot corner.

That is really about all I have heard in the rumor mill. I keep racking my brain to wonder who the Astros would possibly trade for and it just isn't working. I know the only real trade bait right now is JR Towles, but he had a lackluster spring and probably won't get many GM's peeing their pants to get him. In addition, the Astros would only get prospect(s) for Towles and they severely need a major league ready guy.

Unless Wade pulls a couple million out of his ass, don't expect much at the hot corner.

Another win.

2009-03-26T09:13:00.000-05:00

So as you may have noticed, I haven't really been reporting on the Astros wins thus far. I didn't want to sound to pessimistic in their lose every day campaign. Looks like I won't have to worry about that anymore.

The Astros rallied in the ninth to win against the redbird's 4-3 in last nights game. P-Rod cranked dat like Soulja Boy in the 3rd last night for a solo HR. Jason Smith and Hunter Pence had 3 hits a piece. The biggest hit of the night came from Michael Bourn who hit, what Snoop would call a drizzler, up the middle to bring in the go ahead run.

Gret performances from the mound as well. Russ Ortiz threw 5 great innings. After breezing through his first inning, Geoff Geary was touched for two runs in his second. Wesley Wright picked up the win in relief with a scoreless eighth.

Next Up: Houston is off on Thursday, then returns to action with an appealing pitching matchup at home on Friday. Roy Oswalt will make his first start since returning from the World Baseball Classic when he pitches at home against Brett Myers and the Phillies at 12:05 p.m. CT.

Ryan Gaydos with Bleacher Report thinks Astros finish 5th

2009-03-25T09:32:00.000-05:00

I honestly think they finish better than that. Pittsburgh can't possibly be better than the Spacemen. Cincinnati does have some good arms, young speedy guys, however, they lost several key players including Jeremy Affeldt, Josh Fogg, Matt Belisle, Ryan Freel, Corey Patterson, Paul Bako, David Ross, Javier Valentin, and of course, Adam Dunn, Ken Griffey Jr., and Todd Coffey were lost mid-season.

Still feel we finish a hair higher than the red birds and just below the Bre Crew, for 3rd in the Central.

Oh yeah, article here.

Paronto's injury better than thought

2009-03-25T09:29:00.000-05:00

Paronto left Monday's game with what was originally diagnosed as a right shoulder muscle strain, but after undergoing a series of strength tests the next morning, the right-hander was told he should be OK after a few days of rest. The source of the pain, according to Paronto, is isolated to where the back and shoulder meet.

"I've been playing for 13 years, and this is the first thing that's ever happened to me," Paronto said. "I don't know how to go about it."

Paronto became visibly agitated when the injury first happened, acting more out of frustration than pain.

"I was panicked," he said.

Understandably so. Paronto has had one of the better springs of all Astros relievers, and while he isn't expected to make the club out of Spring Training, he's hoping to finish the month strong. In seven appearances, Paronto has earned three earned runs over 10 innings for a 2.70 ERA.

"I've never had anything like this happen," he said. "I've never been hurt. I've been very lucky with that. Things have been going so well this spring that this isn't a good time for this to happen. You want to have a good showing, even if it's an outside shot."

Courtesy of Alyson Footer

Wan-Rod doesn't need a manicure anymore

2009-03-25T09:24:00.000-05:00

Apparently Wandy Rodriguez has no more pain in his fingernail. Whew, I was pretty scared for a second that his broken finger nail may hurt his mechanics and somehow injure his rib. OK, that was sarcasm, but it should be noted that this really could hurt him further. i don't know, guess I just don't like hearing that a professional athlete is pondering taking some time off because their fingernail is broken. Honestly, try using that as an excuse at your job.

Anyhow, Wan-Rod did appear stellar against the Mets. He allowed two hits and walked two, but did not allow a run in his longest outing of the spring. The true test arrived when he threw his curveball, a pitch that wasn't working for him last time out because he was unable to dig his fingernail into the ball as he normally would do.

This time, Rodriguez threw the curveball, and all of his other pitches, without any pain.

"I felt it a little, but I could control my curveball," Rodriguez said. "I felt it, but it wasn't bad. I need to work more because today, I missed my location a little bit. I'm going to be OK, I didn't feel any soreness."

Rodriguez is projected to fall somewhere in the middle of the Astros' rotation this year, although manager Cecil Cooper hasn't yet revealed how the remaining four will line up after Roy Oswalt. Cooper did reveal he's considering moving Rodriguez's next start up one day, to Saturday, "to line him up" for opening week.

Face it, Wan-Rod is our number 2 guy this year unless Ben Sheets, Andy Pettitte, Jake Peavy or Roger Clemens want to come this way.

"Da Foot" reports on the youngins' in camp

2009-03-25T09:22:00.000-05:00

Good read, Cooper gives some decent insight into his mindset with the rookies. HERE.

Brian Moehler dodges bullets, Bogusevic's fate sealed

2009-03-25T09:16:00.000-05:00

Brian Moehler is apparently dodging bullets these days. After taking a hit off his shoulder the other day, Moehler reports no lingering issues. he will throw a side on Friday and pitch on Sunday.

Copper sealed Bogusevic's fate in an interview when asked if he could be a backup option if Michael Bourn struggles, Cooper offered up two other options instead.

"We have two guys who we're counting on to play the corners and some center field and come off the bench -- [Darin] Erstad and [Jason] Michaels. And we'll have to look there before we go in another direction."

See ya at RR, buddy!

Who, REALLY, is going to play 3rd base?

2009-03-24T12:18:00.000-05:00

Catch me on Astros County

2009-03-24T12:00:00.000-05:00

Recently did an interview with Astros County. Very good guy, until we are both at the top and fighting for position. Muhahaha, yes, everything is going according to plan. Not only a great individual, but a good blogger who has very good stuff on the Astros. Go check it out! If you missed the Q & A I did with Astros County, check it out here.

In the Astros Blogosphere with Scott Barzilla

2009-03-24T09:46:00.000-05:00

I have been following fellow blogger, Scott Barzilla with astrosdaily.com, for quite some time now. I recently asked him to be the first guest blogger on “In the Astros Blogosphere” feature that I will be entertaining weekly. Scott is an amazingly bright individual who spends his free time with his two year old daughter, playing golf and baseball. He probably has a better collection of Max Bishop memorabilia than you in his closet. Scott has a book coming out in the spring covering his first ten years as a teacher, which is entitled; Combating Ignorance: Inside and Outside the classroom.

Gambling vs. Investing

By Scott Barzilla

I’m sure you think you are getting stuck in a financial seminar, but really I am talking about two ways to build a bullpen. You can either gamble or you can invest. There are general managers out there that are good at both. Believe it or not, it is one of Ed Wade’s strengths. The concept is pretty simple. I’m sure most of you have noticed that bullpen performance tends to fluctuate from season to season. In many respects, bullpen performance is one of the categories that makes predicting the final standings difficult. The reason is that most prognosticators go by what happened last year instead of looking at what might happen.

When you look at the Astros for instance, you will see a very good bullpen. In particular, after Latroy Hawkins was picked up, the Astros bullpen was nearly spotless. Overall, it was easily one of the top five bullpens in the National League. Surprisingly, the Astros were one of the top five or six teams in the National League despite having a roster that looked mediocre or worse. This is one of the many reasons why some optimistic fans have picked them to win while most casual observers see the same mediocre roster. Before we go too far, we need to have a primer course in why relief pitching is so unpredictable.

You can split fans and analysts into three categories. First, you have your simpletons like Joe Morgan. They look at wins and losses. Most fans and analysts don’t fall into that category. They recognize that winning and losing is predicated mostly on luck. The second category looks at statistics like ERA and WHIP. However, much of that is also predicated on luck. The sabermetricians are the third category. We look at statistics called DIPS (defense independent pitching statistics). In other words, you can learn a whole lot more by looking at strikeouts, walks, and home runs allowed than you can at ERA. In particular, another statistic (BABIP) really opens eyes.

Relief pitchers’ relative performance changes more from season to season than starting pitchers because of the sample size involved. In 200 innings, a pitcher’s luck will typically even out which makes using ERA a little more reliable. In 50 innings, a pitcher’s ERA is very dependent on luck. BABIP (or batting average on balls in play) fluctuates wildly from season to season and as BABIP goes so goes ERA. So, a pitcher with a 3.00 ERA might easily have a 5.00 ERA the next season without changing all that much. A good gambling general manager can take advantage of that.

In short, a gambler will sign guys who had down seasons expecting them to bounce back. If you look at BABIP for instance, you will notice that the league average BABIP usually comes in around .300. After you remove walks, strikeouts, and home runs, that is usually where most hitters and pitchers will wind up. If you find a pitcher that came in well above that then you can expect him to improve with even average luck. Some teams (like the Astros last season) came in below that overall. With a good defense, you can expect quite a boost in performance. Naturally, the reverse is true for pitchers with a very low BABIP. The temptation of the gambling GM is the same as the conventional gambler. It is easy to see success and expect that success to continue. Thus, the Astros have the same bullpen coming back. Here is a quick look at their collective efforts.

INN SO/9 BB/9 HR/9 BABIP

Jose Valverde

72.0 10.37 2.87 1.25 .281

Latroy Hawkins

62.0 6.98 3.19 0.44 .279

Doug Broacail 68.7 8.38 2.75 1.05 .289

Geoff Geary

64.0 6.33 3.94 0.42 .228

Chris Sampson

117.3 4.68 1.76 0.61 .287

Wesley Wright

55.2 9.22 5.50 1.29 .252

Tim Byrdak

55.1 7.64 4.75 1.63 .235

You might be thinking that ERAs and won-loss records are missing, but you really don’t need them. You know that Jose Valverde is the best pitcher based on his strikeout rate. You know that the two lefties are shaky based on their high walk and home run rates. This of course brings us to the whole art of gambling. The Astros gambled and gambled big on Geoff Geary and Tim Byrdak. Byrdak was an outrageously lucky bargain. The reason the house always wins is because the house knows you are stupid enough to keep playing long odds if your first play is a win. A smart gambler knows when he was lucky and walks away. The rest of spring will tell us if the Astros are smart enough to walk away from Tim Byrdak.

Geary was a gamble, but a calculated one given that he at least keeps the ball in the park. However, there are rumblings that he is on the trading block. If that is the case then the Astros could dodge two bullets and end up with another solid pen. If they keep Byrdak and Geary in place of someone else they could end up being a bad pen.

Investing always sounds better than gambling, but really they are not that much different. The only difference is that investing usually pays off over the long haul. In the short term, they are one in the game. If Ed Wade seems more the gambling sort we can’t blame him too much. Investing in the bullpen involves having live young arms that will tend to put up the kind of numbers that Valverde, Brocial, and Wright are putting up in the strikeout department. Once you get that, you simply bank on improvement as we hope to get from Wright this year. Since Wright is the only pitcher that can be called a prospect, Wade can’t do a whole lot of investing.

The trouble with investing is that those pitchers eventually become arbitration eligible or free agent eligible. So, the hope is that they get it before they become expensive. Wade would like to get to that point, but right now he has to keep looking for bargain players in the hopes they will strike it lucky with their BABIPs. The problem is that Wade has never mentioned BABIP before, so we don’t know if he agrees with the principles I’ve outlined. If he does, you can easily find a dozen or so guys that were bitten by the hit bug last year. Good luck and bad luck rarely repeat themselves two years in a row. Of course, it looks like Astros fans will have to hope that happens in 2009.

Once again, Scott, thanks for the insight and see you in the blogosphere!

This is a test for a feature I am working on.

2009-03-23T20:42:00.001-05:00

Alyson Footer's blog. Info for Pudge and Wandy.

clipped from footer.mlblogs.com

Wandy Rodriguez's next start was pushed back a day, and now the left-hander is tentatively expected to throw on Tuesday.

Rodriguez hurt the tip of the index finger on his left hand after being hit with a comebacker during his start against the Mets last Thursday.

"I was able to keep pitching in the game after it hit me," said Rodriguez, who gave up five runs (one earned) on three hits and two walks over two innings Thursday. "It just hurts a lot and feels like it's going to bleed when I throw my curveball. I even tried to [poke] it with a needle (Saturday night) to get the blood out of there, but the blood is still on the tip."

Because he digs that index finger into the ball when he he throws his curveball, he cannot pitch through this injury, as he discovered during a recent bullpen session.

Berkman has an awesome day against the Marlins

2009-03-23T18:49:00.000-05:00

Apparently Berkman decided enough was enough today and belted two homers, one in the 3rd and one in the 5th. Michael Bourn drove in a run in the 5th with a double. In addition, Tejada had a double in the 7th.

Looks like our big players are contributing and helping the Astros win some games.

Mike Hampton allowed three runs on seven hits over five innings, striking out four. Chad Paronto left the game after one-third of an inning with a right shoulder muscle strain, and Gilbert De La Vara yielded two runs over two-thirds of an inning.

Go Hampty!!!

NEXT UP: The 'Stros host the Met's tomorrow. Not sure what the MLB page is saying. Wan-Rod may throw tomorrow but will not work on his curve cause of an injured fingernail????? SISSY

Fox Sports Article on Hot Corner Candidates for the Astros

2009-03-23T18:40:00.001-05:00

"Astros third baseman Chris Johnson is another young player who might benefit from more minor-league experience. He started last season at Class AA, then was promoted to Class AAA and batted only .218 in 101 at-bats.

The loss of Aaron Boone leaves the Astros looking for a platoon partner for Geoff Blum, a switch-hitter with a .310 career on-base percentage, .287 last season. Blum, like most switch-hitters, generally is stronger from the left side.

The Reds, to the surprise of several scouts, are considering trading infielder Jeff Keppinger, a right-handed hitter. Keppinger would be a perfect fit for the Astros, alternating with Blum and representing insurance for oft-injured second baseman Kaz Matsui.

Juan Uribe could be another possibility for the Astros if he fails to stick with the Giants. Frankly, the player the Astros need is Ty Wigginton, whom they declined to re-sign for financial reasons."

Crazy, that last sentence has been my sentiments all along. Astros really, really need Ty Wiggington back in town. I don't mind Keppinger. I remember picking him up in one of my fantasy leagues last year for a while. He was on a tear until he got some osrt of mild injury (if I remember correctly). Uribe may work but is pretty much an everyday average player. My wants for the Astros would be Teahan or Melvin Mora. Neither one of those guys are out of the question, with the exception Mora is a little bit more expensive but both are above average, barely.

Playing time swayed Pudge...DUH

2009-03-23T18:33:00.000-05:00

Decent article on Pudge not signing with the fish and the reasons why. Nothing we didn't already know other than the fact that P-Rod is taking some ground balls at different positions. Could he have a good enough arm to throw from 3rd?

Mark Teahan MAY BE on Astros Radar

2009-03-23T18:28:00.000-05:00

I posted several blogs (here & here) recently about who the Astros could snag up out in hot corner land. On my list is back up 3rd baseman Mark Teahan. MLBTR has a rumor that the Astros have either informally or formally expressed interest in Royal's 3rd baseman back up Mark Teahan. Nothing too particular on the subject and who knows who it came from or anything of that nature. As of now, I wouldn't look too much into it, although, that could have been said about Pudge.

Former Astro Daryle Ward released by Reds

2009-03-23T18:22:00.000-05:00

Former Astro Daryle Ward was released by the Reds today.

Daryle was a former Astro from 98' to 02' He averaged a .281 batting average in through 1083 AB's. Ward has gone through 7 teams since departing the Astros in 2002. Most recently with the Reds, Daryle hit .259/.310/.407 in 29 plate appearances this spring. The Reds apparently couldn't squeeze him in for a pinch-hitting role. Fultz, 35, posted a 3.38 ERA in 5.3 innings.

Wonder who could use him? Maybe the Marlins? Any Al team with a horrible DH would fit Ward.

Cecil Cooper. Mr. Optimistic

2009-03-23T09:52:00.000-05:00

Apparently Cecil Cooper knows something we don't. He predicts the Astros will win 90 games.

"We should win 90 games, without question," Cooper said this morning. "We have a terrific bullpen. We have one of the best closers in the game. We've got the ace in the National League. We've got three of the best offensive players at their position. We've got, if not the best, then one of the top catchers in baseball.

"I mean, c'mon. We've got what it takes. You're telling me we're not going to win that many games?"

I agree, but 90 wins is going to have to come from the players that he didn't mention. Bourn has to produce, Kaz has to be healthy, Pence has to show more than his sophomore slump, SP3-5 are going to have to win 5-7 games a piece. It's going to take more than Fat Elvis, Roy O and Lee to win.

I am glad to see he is so optimistic about this years team. Let's see in 13 days huh?

Roy Oswalt gets tattered by Japan, shows he is human at least....

2009-03-23T09:48:00.000-05:00

Japan completely tagged almost every pitch Roy O could muster. He gave up up six runs and six hits in 3 2-3 innings. He walked four and struck out one. The Houston Astros right-hander was 1-1 in three WBC starts, allowing nine runs, seven earned, in 11 1-3 innings. Not the best performance I have seen him give, but he got the rust out, performed well in most situations and now at least he'll be back at camp ready to go. No need to be worried about Roy Oswalt though, he has been one of the most consistent pitchers in the show since 2003 or so.

Hampton emerges as SP2, Wandy gets set back and Backe is at least guaranteed some money

2009-03-23T09:40:00.001-05:00

With all the injuries happening to the Astros pitching staff during spring training, Mike Hampton is now being scheduled as the #2 starter. Not saying the guy doesn't deserve it. He has thrown great this spring. Well, great in comparison to the other Astros pitchers. Well deserved and if this provides any insight to the season, Hampton is on his way to a mid 3 ERA and hopefully more wins than we can count on one hand. Good to see some pitchers emerging as great players this spring.

Wandy Rodriguez will be pushed back to a Tuesday throwing after he attempted, notice the word attempted, to catch a line drive with his bare hand. Honestly, who does he think he is? Anyhow, this is how Hampton really earned the SP2 spot, but not that it matters as Hampton has been, is better and always will be better then Wan-Rod.

Backe seems pretty frustrated that he hurt himself. I would too, considering my job would be in jeopardy, but apparently Ed Wade feels Backe still has something, so he will be on the DL for the start of the season and is guaranteed the money owed to him. Keep an eye on ESPN "the Ocho" around April 2. That is the day he COULD be released, although I don't see it happening, it just might.

Pudge Rodriguez is a hit!

2009-03-22T20:02:00.000-05:00

Pudge was 1-3 on the game in the 2 hole today. The Astros beat the Nat's 1-0 and continue on a tear by winning the last three. The Astros are still on pace for the worst spring training record EVER.

Look at the hits my god!!!

"The Astros logged seven hits, including six singles and a Reggie Abercrombie double in the eighth. Carlos Lee and Miguel Tejada led off the second with back-to-back hits, but Hunter Pence grounded into a double play and Chris Johnson followed a Jason Michaels walk with a groundout. Ivan Rodriguez made his Astros spring debut with a base hit in the opening frame. Kazuo Matsui singled in the sixth, and Lance Berkman singled in the seventh. Darin Erstad drove in the winning run with a fielder's choice groundout, scoring Michael Bourn."MLB.COM

Things are looking up as the 'Stros continue a home game in Kissimmee against the Marlins at noon tomorrow. Pretty excited other than the fact the P-Rod won't be playing against the fish. Only 14 more days 'til the regular season!!!!

Weekend Round Up

2009-03-22T17:05:00.000-05:00

Wandy Rodriguez's next start was pushed back a day, and now the left-hander is tentatively expected to throw on Tuesday. Rodriguez hurt the tip of the index finger on his left hand after being hit with a comebacker during his start against the Mets last Thursday. From "Da Foot"

Russ Ortiz pitched six scoreless innings to lead the Houston Astros to a 4-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday.Ortiz, vying for the fifth spot in Houston's rotation, allowed one hit, struck out two and walked none. Lance Berkman hit a two-run homer and Humberto Quintero had an RBI single for Houston. Johnny Cueto worked five innings in his second spring start for Cincinnati. Cueto, who played for Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, yielded two runs and six hits.

The Brew Crew declined on Palmisano. he got stash in the minors!! Good for the Stros. Story Here

Pudge is hitting second in today's lineup. huh?

Right-handers Clay Hensley and Danny Graves, lefty Neal Musser and infielders Matt Kata and John Gall all got sent down to the minors. Graves may sign with another team.

Backe is on the DL for the start of the season. YES!!!!

Astros beat the Nat's. LINK

I'll be back tomorrow afternoon with some new stuff i got in the works

Pudge deal official

2009-03-20T18:17:00.001-05:00

link here. Sorry, gotta get home to the kids. On Monday, I will be back full force.

Astros WIN WIN WIN against Reds

2009-03-20T18:15:00.000-05:00

ASTROS 4, REDS 2
at Kissimmee, Fla.
Friday, March 21

Reds at the plate: Laynce Nix logged two of the Reds' hits, singling in the fourth and again in the seventh. Wilkin Castillo doubled in the eighth, and Darnell McDonald doubled to lead off the ninth, when Jonny Gomes drove in two with a double off Bud Norris.

Astros at the plate: Humberto Quintero drove in the first run with a two-out base hit in the second, driving in Geoff Blum. Russ Ortiz followed with an RBI single, scoring Reggie Abercrombie. Darin Erstad led off the sixth with a double and scored on Lance Berkman's first homer this spring.

Reds on the mound: Johnny Cueto allowed two runs on six hits over five innings. Nick Masset threw three innings, allowing two runs on three hits with three walks and one strikeout.

Astros on the mound: Ortiz, the leading candidate to win one of the final spots in the rotation, turned in his strongest outing of the spring, allowing one hit over six innings with two strikeouts. Chris Sampson followed with two scoreless innings.

Grapefruit League records: Astros 2-16-3; Reds 9-12

Up next: The Astros head back out on the road Saturday to play the Blue Jays in Dunedin, Fla., at 1:05 p.m. ET. Jose Capellan, who is currently competing with Ortiz for the final spot in the rotation, will take the hill for Houston. Capellan threw five shutout innings in his last outing and has not yielded a run all spring.

Alyson Footer is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Houston vs. Reds

2009-03-20T13:17:00.000-05:00

Click to enlarge

Who is Astros County?

2009-03-20T10:48:00.000-05:00

Recently did a Q & A with fellow blogger Astros County. I always like to get to know who is out there in the "blogosphere" for Astros stuff. This guy is one of the only people I have found who is always posting about the Astros. So get to know him and make sure you check out his page. Eventhough I should consider him a rival, I don't, he is Astros County and we are all in the Astros Nation (not sure if that is © or anything):

Who or what is your favorite source for Astros info? (Besides you)
I like MLB Trade Rumors a lot, and Google News is a pretty good way to stay ahead of what's happening.

What is a "Pudge"?
I Googled this. A Pudge is a sandwich. Or it's a rip in a fat girl's jeans.

How do you feel about Ed Wade's performence since coming over to the Astros?
It's too early to tell. I think the best move he made was putting Bobby Heck in charge of the farm system and scouting, but we don't know enough about Bourn yet to make an accurate judgment call. Thing is, aside from Lidge, no one Wade traded has been on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Why don't I like Brandon Backe?
I don't think it's a matter of not liking Backe. I just don't get him. I think he was rushed back from TJ surgery too soon, and since he's a hometown guy, he wants to prove himself over and over again. The Astros paid him a good chunk of money the season he lost, and I think he has held that over himself to go out and throw no-hitters - except he loses something when he does that. I like Backe, and I hope he succeeds.

What originally made you an Astros fan?
Seeing Ken Caminiti at the Dot's Coffee Shop on 610 and 45 clear four plates of food when I was a kid. Not kidding.

"P-Rod's" projections for this year?
I think he'll do better than a lot of people think. He is in good shape, and while he isn't Popeye anymore, he was an asset until he went to New York mid-season last year. Plenty of great players have done well outside of New York. So I think he'll hit in the .280 range with 10 homers.

Does living outside of Houston make it difficult to cover or catch any Astros games? How have you overcome the distance issue?
Thankfully it's not too hard to stay connected to the Astros. MLB has their pretty incredible GameDay feature with locations of pitches, just in case I decide not to get the Extra Innings package (wife's call). It's more difficult in that we don't get Fox Sports Houston in Nashville, but not unmanageable.

Are you a fantasy baseball player?
I am. I'm in two leagues - one with some guys from school, and a dynasty keeper league (every roster spot is a keeper) with buddies from my last job.

Fill in the blank: Today JR Towles was traded to_______ with the Astros getting______________ in return.
Towles was traded to Iran, with the Astros getting eight political prisoners in return. Ha! Seriously, though, J.R. Towes was traded to the Giants, getting a mid-range Double-A prospect in return.

Comeback player of the year canidate for the Astros?
If anyone on this team is going to win the award, it's Hampton.

If Larry Dierker wanted to come back as coach, would you be for or against it?
I would be neutral to it. Dierker inherited a great team. Cooper? Not so much. Cooper inherited a team with two or three great players on it. I'd like to give Coop a fair shot.

annoying pessimistic "moonlight Graham" has a pesky little story on the Astros

2009-03-20T10:40:00.000-05:00

really don't think highly of this guy, he keeps on over exaggerating things and year after year predicts the Astros to finish last in the Central. He also has a little story on how P-Rod is screwing the Astros bla, bla, bla. Read it anyway.

Jorge says NO! thinks the 'Stros should get Pedro.

2009-03-20T10:37:00.000-05:00

Definitely a good read. I agree with Jorge wholeheartedly. I definitely like the last sentence in his blog.

Cooper has more intensity than the whole team

2009-03-20T10:32:00.000-05:00

Apparently Cooper is getting fired up (don't forget he turns into the green guy) over a lack of, well, everything. No hitting is bothering him, especially "the lack of intensity".

“I’m seeing a lot of the same types of at-bats we’re having,” he said. “When you have at-bats and maybe you’re not getting hits, you have to kind of fight a little bit in the at-bats. I don’t see that level of intensity when you’re in there and you’re battling.

“Maybe people feel like they are, but from my point of view, it doesn’t look that way. So it gets a little frustrating. It’s got to be equally frustrating because I have to admit I didn’t have too much frustration as a hitter, so it’s equally frustrating for me to see it and watch it.”

It’s not as though a manager has enough time to focus on hitting in spring training. Among other things, Cooper is supervising coaches, monitoring the race for the fifth spot in the rotation, trying to see which young players will be ready to help this season and monitoring the fight for a utility infield role.

“I’m not the batting coach,” Cooper said. “There’s nothing I can do. It’s not like they’re not getting enough swings. It’s not like they’re not working at it. It’s just awful, and it ain’t just one guy. It’s widespread.”

also on Chron, it provides a record of the worst ST records in the previous 25 years. Worth a read.

I don't care what Alyson Footer says, Wade should apologize for something.

2009-03-20T10:24:00.000-05:00

Her is a link to "Da Foot's" blog. She basically provided an hour by hour update on the emerging P-Rod "siti" since last Friday. Honestly, it felt like a novel written by the writers of 24. The following takes place between Friday at 10:30 and 12:30 PM........Get em' Jack Bauer, ya alcoholic sum bitch!! Anyhow, I digress, Really do think "Da Foot" is a class act. Not only does she applaud Wade on the P-Rod signing, but goes on to say no apology necessary. Great job Foot!!!

My Time lately.....

2009-03-20T10:20:00.000-05:00

My time as of late has been focused on several different things. First, I would like to say thanks to all the Unofficial Official's that are following the blog. The last several days I have basically been copying links and allowing you to read them. I have been super busy with appraisal stuff, so, on Monday I will be back full time. Until then enjoy the links and if I get some time I will write about something. I will have a Q & A with fellow blogger Astros County later this afternoon. He did provide several chuckles and think he is a pretty smart tindividual that you should check out, in addition to my blog.

Tejada gets probation...

2009-03-19T19:32:00.001-05:00

Don't really feel like adding any quirky notes or anything. ESPN

Quote of the day: Cecil Cooper

2009-03-19T19:24:00.001-05:00

"It's kind of past frustration now," Cooper said. "We say every day it's frustrating, but it's kind of past frustration. It's problem time now."

We all know what happens to The Coop when he gets angry!!!!!!!

Berkman not concerned about ST

2009-03-19T19:21:00.000-05:00

Spring training records mean nothing. So why do I care that the Astros are now 1-16-3?

Well, I don't. Not that much, anyway.

But the Astros sure aren't making it easy to defend them. They looked every bit of 1-16-3 in today's 12-1 loss to the Mets. You can't even blame this one on minor leaguers, because the Astros brought a representative lineup to Port St. Lucie for the game (Lance Berkman, Miguel Tejada, among others), and they still looked absolutely awful.

"The fans, I'm sure they're in full panic mode," Berkman said.

What about Berkman? He's an outstanding player, and from the looks of things he's stuck with one terrible team.

Except he insists that's not the way he looks at it.

"I think this [record] is an anomaly," Berkman said. "I'm not the least bit concerned. As long as we stay healthy, our front-line guys are as good as anyone in the league. So I think we're going to be fine.

"I put zero stock in it. If we were 15-1, does that make us World Series favorites? These games are meaningless."

I agree with that. I've always believed that. I know that the White Sox had the American League's worst spring record last year, and they won the American League Central. I know the Mets had the National League's worst spring record in 2007, and while they didn't win the division, they should have (and they did win 88 games).

I know spring training records mean absolutely nothing. I also know that 1-16-3 looks ridiculously bad, and right now, so do the Astros.

"We can't have a good spring now, so we might as well lose the rest of them, too," Berkman joked. "Then when we get to the regular season, we'll be owed a lot of wins."

By the way, if you're wondering who the Astros beat, it was the Nationals, in the very first game of the spring.

Wandy feels no pain....physically anyway

2009-03-19T16:48:00.000-05:00

Story Here. Basically it goes on to say that his side doesn't hurt anymore, so the beatdown he took today was because he sucks as a pitcher. SIGH.

Mets 12, Astros 1

2009-03-19T16:47:00.000-05:00

METS 12, ASTROS 1
at Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Thursday, March 19

Astros at the plate: Lou Santangelo drove in the first run with an infield out in the fifth inning, but the Astros didn't do much else against Mets starter Mike Pelfrey, compiling just three hits in his six frames.

Mets at the plate: Jose Reyes, batting leadoff again, contributed a two-run double to a five-run rally in the second inning, and hit another in the fourth, when the Mets scored three times. The Astros contributed two errors and a wild pitch to the five-run second. Nick Evans led off the second with a sharp double and hit his third home run of the spring in the third. Seven of the Mets' runs were unearned. They increased the number of unearned runs against the Astros to 31 in 20 games. The 1999 Mets allowed 20 unearned runs in the entire regular season.

Astros on the mound: In two innings, starter Wandy Rodriguez, who is recovering from a strained muscle in his left side, allowed three hits, two walks and five runs, all but one unearned.

Mets on the mound: Pelfrey, making his third exhibition game start, retired the first 13 batters he faced. He allowed a single, a double and a walk to his subsequent three hitters, but finished allowing just one run on three hits in six innings, lowering his spring ERA to 2.77.

Grapefruit League records: Mets 8-10-1, Astros 1-16-3.

Up next: The Astros will play the Reds in Kissimmee, Fla., at 1:05 p.m. ET on Friday, with Russ Ortiz starting opposite Johnny Cueto.

The Mets travel to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Friday to play the Orioles at 1:05 p.m. Oliver Perez is to make his first exhibition start since Feb 26, and his first since he was battered -- five home runs in 6 2/3 innings -- in the World Baseball Classic. Bobby Parnell, Darren O'Day and Brian Stokes, all with chances to make the 25-man Opening Day roster, are scheduled to follow Perez. Danys Baez is to start for the Orioles.

Marty Noble is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

JJo's Article on Rodriguez coming to camp

2009-03-19T14:09:00.000-05:00

Catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez showed up at Osceola County Stadium late Thursday morning before heading to an Orlando area hospital to begin the physical he must pass before his one-year, $1.5 million contract is official with the Astros.

“I'm here to try to finish a physical and then be cleared to play,” he said.

Rodriguez took the first part of his physical before returning to Osceola County Stadium on Thursday afternoon. He'll take the second part of the physical Friday with Astros physician Dr. Tom Mehlhoff, who was already scheduled to be in town Friday.

Depending on when the results of Rodriguez’s blood work are back, the Astros probably won’t announce the signing until late Friday night or Saturday. Even then, Rodriguez might not join the club to play until Sunday because of a previous commitment.

“I'm very excited,” he said. “It's nice. I think it's a good team and I think probably what I got to do is just meet the players and spend time with them for the next two weeks and be ready for opening day.”

Rodriguez, who predicts his first day with the club will be Sunday, visited with Hunter Pence, Carlos Lee and Brian Moehler at the clubhouse Thursday.

“I just look forward to meeting everybody on Sunday,” he said. “I think when all the physical is done and I'm cleared to play, I'll be ready in the field on Sunday.”

Game Notes: March 19 2009

2009-03-19T10:28:00.000-05:00

From the Mailbag: "P-Roddy", JR Towles

2009-03-19T09:48:00.000-05:00

How much of an impact does A "Pudge" bring to the Astros?

All of that should be accredited to a "Pudge"Well, on paper he brings a replacement value (VORP) of about 1.3 games, which means that he will win the Astros 1.3 more games than the average catcher in the major leagues, however, off paper, Pudge probably brings a little more than a 1.3 VORP seeing as he is a 13 time gold glover (NO not like Danny), 14 time all-star, etc, etc. He knows how to handle a pitching staff, He will be above average defensively with the exception of throwing out runners. Obviously I wouldn't expect anything higher than a .270/310 OBP/10-15 HR/100 K/10 BB line for him in the juice box (HR's may be a little higher). His biggest impact will be developing Wan-Rod, Moehler and company into decent pitchers and helping them win games. That's were a pudge will make an impact. We won't ever be able to tell what Pudge's true VORP is, however, you should be able to see it in Wan-Rod's record for sure this year. I think Wandy goes 10-8 with a 3.65 ERA this year., "P-Rod", "P-Roddy" type player.

Is JR Towles time in Houston almost done?

The rumor mill has been buzzing lately. The catching market is severely thin and Towles is still touted as a great prospect. I wouldn't be surprised if Wade is dodging calls left and right about the catcher since the signing of P Roddy. Obviously, right now the Astros concern is adding depth the the hot corner. Johnson will more than likely make the team out of ST unless a Mark Teahan, Hank Blalock type player is made available at a signficantly low price. All in all, Towles career in Houston hinges off of Chris Johnson being the third baseman or not. If he isn't expect Towles to go packing for someone that can handle the corner. On a side note: The Giants are interested in obtaining a back up catcher. Any thoughts?

9 Galveston police reprimanded in Backe resisting arrest case

2009-03-18T22:50:00.000-05:00

Basically 9 cops got a slap on the wrist (leave of absence form work) for all the hoop-law (sp*) surrounding the Oct 5th incident with Brandon Backe at a wedding reception. I don't like Backe, so in other news.....The Mamas and The Pappas California Dreamin song rocks.

Astros Top Prospects.

2009-03-18T21:43:00.001-05:00

Great article. Found it on baseball-intellect.com. The second installment is here. Very long read but well worth it to the loyal "Stros legion.

Hampton continues strong campaign in loss to Yankees

2009-03-18T21:23:00.000-05:00

Hampton not only continues to impress me, I think I may have a little bit of a man crush. Honestly, who was the last pitcher outside of Roy Oswalt to impress you so much you scoured the depths of the Internet to find something, anything to post about him? yeah, me neither, I was just kidding, DUH. Hampton is the light at the end of the tunnel for the 'Stros this year. IF he plays well, so do the 'Stros. He has thrown 12 K's in 16 IP, 3.38 ERA and 16 hits over that span. Pretty impressive from the washed up over-paid former Astro, eh?

Up next: (From "Da footer")

The Astros will travel to Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Thursday to play the Mets at 12:10 p.m. Wandy Rodriguez will make his second appearance since returning from a strained left side muscle. Hunter Pence is not expected to make the trip, as he is still recovering from a mild strain of his left calf after making an "awkward" slide into home plate on Tuesday in Lakeland, Fla.

Zero, Zilch, Zip, Nada 3rd Basemen available.

2009-03-18T19:47:00.001-05:00

Have a look at MLBTR's current list of 2009 free agents. Notice anything? Well, I noticed the same thing Wade and company did. There are no 3rd basemen available. By none, of course, I mean no one of mention. There is no doubt in my mind that the gaping hole that is the hot corner will have to be filled internally, however, Wade mentioned this today:

"If we think there's a need at the end (of camp), there's going to be guys available," Wade said Wednesday. "I got a call today from a club that's got a guy that they want to make available so if we have the need. We know what Blum's capable of doing and we like what CJ's shown so far. We'll let them play and see what happens."

No mention of who "the guy" or which club it was. We all know Wade's policy on trades, free agent signings, etc. So the questions arise in my mind.....

Who fills the vacancy?
Does Chris Johnson get the opportunity to get the nod at the hot corner? Does Blum, who turns 36 in a month, show that he is not a .250 lifetime hitter this year? Does Tejada REALLY make the move to 3rd? Can his arm handle it 5 days a week? (another question arises that I will cover in the post). Can Maysonett or Manzella make a transition to 3rd? With a depleted farm system and NO cash to spend (Supposedly) it is obvious that the Astros can only obtain someone without a high price tag. My thoughts are a Mark Teahan type. He is almost certain to be the 10th man with KC. Actually, that is what the Stros are probably looking for. Someone on a team where there are toooooo many players and not enough roster spots. With that being said, look out for the end of ST when the Stros pick up a average 3rd baseman to supplement Blum until CJ is ready.

Speculation on what team Wade is referring to:
Orioles - Melvin Mora, Cesar Itzuris OR COULD IT BE WIGGY???
Philly - Pedro Feliz
Angels - Chone Figgins, Brandon Wood
Royals - Mark Teahan
Blue Jays - Scott Rolen

any other team that has a 3rd baseman over 40 also fits the bill.

Did Boone tip off Tejada about him leaving so Tejada could make his little PR story about playing 3rd "If need be"? (rant from above made me think of this)

Yes, yes he did. I would bet that Tejada got word or was told directly about something along the lines of Boone possibly being out. He then wondered, should I say I can play 3rd? It would help me if I don't sign with the Stros next year and allow me to move to a less running filled environment over at the hot corner....hmmm..... makes you think huh?

too much work today!

2009-03-18T16:44:00.000-05:00

I'm up to my ears in appraisal stuff today. Will catch everyone up tomorrow morning or later tonight. My brain is mush. On a good note, it appears that refinance appraisal are booming again, which could help the Houston area. If you ever have a question about an appraisal or refinance or anything real estate related, I would be happy to help. END PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT.

Order an appraisal today in the Houston area.

Info on todays game Vs. Yankme's

2009-03-18T09:32:00.000-05:00

click to enlarge

Are the Cardinals worse off than the 'Stros?

2009-03-18T09:21:00.001-05:00

Article over at Fox Sports makes me feel a little better about all the question marks the Astros have this year. Outside of Pujols, Ludwick and Glaus, the 'Cards look about the same as the spacemen with the exception of their bullpen is far, far, far, far, far worse then the 'Stros. Still think Astros finish above the 'Cards.

JJO article on Aaron Boone. THIS WAS THE PRESS CONFERENCE

2009-03-18T09:19:00.001-05:00

Astros infielder Aaron Boone announced this morning that he will leave the Astros to have a bicuspid aortic valve eventually repaired.

The open heart surgery hasn’t been set, but it will likely be set shortly to replace his heart's aortic valve.

“We’ll probably schedule it this week,” he said. “It’s not an emergency situation. I don’t have to rush to the table. It is something I have to schedule this week but hopefully we’ll get done in the near future.”

It’s unclear when or if Boone will ever play baseball again.

“Will I play baseball again? I don’t know at this time,” he said. “We’ll cross that bridge as we get here.”

Most of Boone's Astros teammates attended his announcement at Osceola County Stadium.

Thank god I couldn't get to my computer....

2009-03-18T08:54:00.000-05:00

Last night Baseball Prospectus "reported" (notice the quotations) that the Astros were in negotiations to sign Pedro Martinez. Well, It was crap, supposedly. Ed Wade "denies" (notice the quotations again) having any negotiations with Pedro. I can neither confirm nor deny whether he is lying or not. Remember, he also said there was no interest in Pudge (let me clarify what a "Pudge" is: Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez. Thanks Astros County). The press conference should be underway any minute and will update you with whatever it is about.

Here is an idea though, BP should retract their statement and also never ever report on the Astros ever again.

Press conference tomorrow. NO, it's not about Pudge

2009-03-17T18:45:00.000-05:00

The Astros are holding an "important press conference" Wednesday at 9:45 a.m. ET at Osceola County Stadium. It has nothing to do with the Pudge Rodriguez signing, so now I'm left to wonder what is going on. Any ideas?

Biggio is unannouncing his retirement to play 2nd.
Ausmus got cut from The Dodgers
Astros signed Pedro Martinez?????
Mo Vaughn will now play first (thanks Astros County)
The Rangers are lending the Astros their farm hands

Really, I have no idea. It could only be to announce a Pence extension or Pedro signed with the team. Other than that no freakin idea.

Astros tie Tigers in 10 innings.

2009-03-17T17:49:00.000-05:00

A semi-impressive outing by the spacemen today. Although, they did "kiss their sister" on this one. The offense was powered by back-to-back walks by Pence and Lee with Tejada flied out to advance Pence. Pence scored on a Geoff Blum pop up to second.

The impressive side today was Brian Moehler who threw 5 scoreless innings, 4 hits, a walk and three K's. Chris Sampson pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the second time in four days.

Coming up: Mike Hampton will try to build on his four scoreless innings from last outing when he takes the mound against the Yankees on Wednesday afternoon at 12:05 p.m. CT at Osceola County Stadium. Chien-Ming Wang will start for the Bombers.

Hunter Pence on Pudge

2009-03-17T17:17:00.000-05:00

Having Pudge in Houston will be a treat for Astros right fielder Hunter Pence, who as a child watched Rodriguez play for the Rangers.

"He was one of my favorites growing up in Arlington," he said. "So I'm very excited about it. I watched a lot of Rangers games and I loved Pudge. He was an incredible catcher."

Anyone notice the bold words are past tense? hmm. OUCH!!!

KHOU

couple more links for today.

2009-03-17T13:02:00.000-05:00

Crawfish Boxes (damn you!!) has the starting line-up for today's game. Adam Everrett faces his old team.

Richard Justice is an idiot. This is about a day or so old but c'mon, the guy doesn't deserve his credentials.

Article on Pudge from Scott over at Astrosdaily.com. Very GOOD read. I thoroughly enjoy his stuff.

Bleacher Report chimes in on Pudge. Although I don't agree with the post at all, it is half way interesting. Basically goes onto to say Pudge can't help because Astros pitching stinks. So how would a veteran, hall of famer, all star catcher help a pitching staff again? HMMMM...

Blogger Richard Zowie has an interesting idea for new Astros logo's.

Once again Hunter Pence's Girlfriend.

Steroid Nation article on Pudge

2009-03-17T12:54:00.000-05:00

Click here. Interesting read.

Great Post on Astros Over at Razzball

2009-03-17T10:40:00.000-05:00

Great 2009 outlook for Astros by a great guy over at Razzball. Check it out.

Astros Option Paulino to RR

2009-03-17T10:29:00.000-05:00

Astros optioned Paulino to RR before the game against the Tigers. Apparently the SP5 spot is between Russ Ortiz, which was my feeling all along, and Jose Capellan. My gut tells me Ortiz is all over this like Obama on AIG.

Ivan Rodriguez. Nough' said.

2009-03-17T09:39:00.000-05:00

So, I slept last night. Pretty awesome considering I have twin girls. Anyhow, I slept and had a little time to think about this signing the Astros made.

At first I thought it was dumb. Not only are The Astros the oldest team in baseball, well, never mind that was the only thought at first. Then I thought how can they add another Miguel Tejada behind the plate? (used to be a really great player who now is on the downside of his career, used steroids and will never put up the numbers he once did).

I then thought, well, I really like Q as a player. I know he isn't the best alternative to a Brad Ausmus type but hell, he will get the job done. What if Q can't hack it? well, Towles surely could be proficient this year, right? Most "fantasy experts" were making Towles their sleeper pick at the backstop this year, maybe it was his year, now we will never know. What happened to Palmisano and Castro? I know these guys are young and all but that is the key word, YOUNG. To me I think my initial reaction of bitterness about the Pudge signing was due to the fact that we have a plethora of catchers as it is and not one of em' is a damn clear choice for C1. That's what led me to this:

Pudge is the "splash" that the Astros were going to make in the free agent pool this year. Drayton finally decided he had to produce something, put some asses in the seats, sell some damn beer. Although this won't truly be able to be analyzed for several months, I ultimately feel (keyword) that Pudge will have a fresh attitude and Towles, Castro and company will learn from the 14 time all-star.

The only resilience I still have is that the Astros are hinging their season off so many "if's". If Hampton throws 20 games...... If Bourn bats well............If Matsui is healthy......If wan-Rod doesn't blow it....If Backe ever gets Backe from his injury...........you see my point.

Most can argue Pudge is old. Pudge couldn't throw out a runner if he had a 60 ft. lasso. Pudge has a bad attitude. I mostly agree based on the previous two years (post steroid). Let's dive into some numbers for all the geeks like myself out there.....

Since 2003 P-Rod has consistently played in fewer games each season (mostly 10 games less a year with the exception of 2006). He hit .276 last year and 2005, his lowest since his rookie season. Not to exclude the good seasons, he hit .297, .300 and .284 in the other seasons since 2003. P-Rod's slugging % has gone down each year since 2003.

The 68 attempts to run against him last year tied his high since 1999, the 47 steals he allowed were his most since 1993, and his 31 percent throwout rate, though still above average, was the lowest of his career. Given where his offense has gone-39 unintentional walks since 2004 and sub-.300 OBPs twice in three years-he's now an average player at best.

I know this post is rather long, however, this is the only time I am going to "rag" on P-Rod. From here I will see how it goes. I like to be positive with baseball, even if right now, The Astros aren't the most positive thing I could write about. On a positive note, check out P-Rod's foundation.

Is P-Rod still better than Q, YES. Am I happy about this singing? Don't know yet. Still some unanswered questions. Where will he hit in the line-up? I think he should hit 7Th or 8Th. Will he catch for Roy O? Ask Roy Oswalt. From what I can tell Roy seems very happy he is here. That is the surface, media coverage angle though. What are my projections for Pudge this year? something like this .283/.320/.745, 11 HR/52 RBI/53 R in 445 AB. Nothing amazing.

Now onto salary. Don't know what the 1.5 mill in incentives is at this point but I would guess it has to do with games played and AB's. Let's say for example that he makes his full contract. That is 3 million for an aging catcher. Let's also say that Backe gets released and we don't owe him anything. that's roughly another million. If we didn't spend money on Boone that would be another 2 mill (correct me if I'm wrong, I'm not going to look that up as I'm in the middle of my rant). Also, I think some of the rule 5 guys might go back to their original teams which MAY free up a smidgen of money. For this example let's say the Stros' have roughly 6 mill including what they used on Pudge. 6 mill, hmm, didn't Wiggy want to stay for around that price? Doesn't Pedro (albeit he wants to play for a contender) want about that much for a one year deal? I know the Astros have to do something (it's kind of like the economy and Obama. He has to do something, yet everyone criticises him for acting on it, while others just stand pat) but I'm still curious if The Astros money management has been handled well. With the Plethora of catchers and the lack of SP or a 3rd baseman, I feel that the money would have been better suited at 3rd or for a true 4 or 5 spot pitcher with the ability to not hurt his core because of his mechanics or one that doesn't trip on the rubber and hurt his rib cage.

I sure hope that P-Rod (yes, I call him P-Rod, while others call him I-Rod) proves me wrong and the money was spent appropriately, for now, I'm being a pessimist but I am optimistic on the outlook of the 2009 Astros. Please Pudge, play over your potential.