2016 season has been The Perfect Storm for Astros

If 2015 was a snapshot of things to come and 2017 is the Year of the World Series, what in the heck is 2016?

I’ll tell ya! It’s The Perfect Storm!

Could — or even should — Jeff Luhnow and/or A.J. Hinch have seen this coming? I mean, if they’re rocket scientists and magicians with a splash of soothsayer, palm reader and Kreskin. Heck, maybe even part Carnac (that will send some of you to Google rather quickly)!

The Perfect Storm?

Perhaps. The perfect storm is a meteorological term, but it’s also transferable to other situations and circumstances.  A la the 2016 Houston Astros. Here’s the definition:

“…a particularly bad or critical state of affairs, arising from a number of negative and unpredictable factors…”

Does that define the Astros in 2016? Sure it does. About the only things that are living up — or down — to expectations this season is that Jose Altuve (and maybe George Springer) continues to play at an MVP level and ticket prices continue to rise.

Here’s a short list of things that have contributed to the 2016 Perfect Storm Season.

  • Dallas Keuchel. Who among us doesn’t believe the team would be in contention if Keuchel was even a shell of his 2015 self?
  • The Carlos Gomez Debacle. Again, who among us could have predicted this disaster. And, who among us foresaw that Josh Hader and Brett Phillips would struggle in Milwaukee’s minor league system thus far?
  • Ken Giles. Yes, virtually everyone among us believe the Astros gave up too much for Giles. Still, who among us would have figured Giles would struggle like he has? But…who among us wouldn’t give a nickel to have Vincent Velasquez in the rotation right now?
  • Injuries. Well, every team has injuries, but Lance McCullers Jr., Luis Valbuena, Max Stassi and a few others have forced the Astros’ hand where they had nothing to give.
  • Hitting. Who among us would have thought that the Astros would have been in the bottom third of all these categories: batting average, OPS, OBP, slugging percentage, runs, hits? All the while still leading the league in strikeouts? Of course, no one among us ever predicted OBP, hitting and running, high average of RISP were ever a strong suit for this team.
  • Be honest now. Who among us knew, predicted or would otherwise have thought that none of Tyler White, A.J. Reed, Colin Moran, Preston Tucker or Tony Kemp would succeed?  Where would the Astros be now if only one of them had become a regular contributor? Obviously, the jury is still out on Alex Bregman, but he’s the most likely to succeed at some point in 2016. The others have had more incubation time and should have been ready for some level of prime time.
  • Colby Rasmus is earning, umm, making $15.8 million on his qualifying offer this season and he just has been diagnosed with vertigo.  Wait, there are fans among us — many — who are experiencing vertigo symptoms watching the 2016 Astros!

Yes, those are only a few of the elements involved in the Astros’ 2016 Perfect Storm season. You can add your own, but these are the things that general managers and managers are fired over, players are released over, youngsters are rushed over and trades are made for.

Now, before you shout me down — and some of those among us may have started typing before getting this far — this is not intended to absolve management at any level. Yes, there are some horrible trades, though many of the players traded away aren’t performing with their new teams either. The GM is always responsible. He gets the blame when the team fails and rarely gets the credit with the team wins.

But there are many factors in the Astros’ failures of 2016 and time is running out to right the ship.

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204 responses to “2016 season has been The Perfect Storm for Astros”

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  1. The Whites and Reeds and Morans. I’d rather give them an incomplete to date. Those guys have not had enough time for us to be convinced they won’t hit. I’m a bit more on the fence about Tucker, since he’s had more at bats and he really can’t help us by doing anything else well. And shame on the club if they don’t let Kemp loose to play daily right now.

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    • Agree, DaveB. Kemp is hitting .269/.361/.726 so far. That puts him with the highest average on the club except Altuve, the highest OBP on the club except Altuve and Correa, and the 6th highest OPS of anybody on the club. It is time to see if he can maintain – or even improve – those already good numbers. White is not performing up to his potential, but he really hasn’t had a chance. With us virtually out of the race for the playoffs this year, he should be given every opportunity to catch up to the game and get his numbers up to where they have always been after he adjusted to a new level.

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      • I don’t think the Astros make the playoffs, but 4 games back on August 10th is not ‘virtually out of the race for the playoffs this year’.

        I do agree with you that Kemp should be starting as many games as possible to see if he can continue doing what he is doing.

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      • I don’t expect you to ever not find something in my posts with which to take exception, Tim, because it is who you are and what you do. But let me state very clearly that it is not just the number of games we are behind that matters in my mind, or forms the basis for the assessment I have made. It is the vastly superior quality of the teams we are behind by those 4 games [WC] and 8 games [division]. We are not a really good team ‘getting off to a slow start’ and looking to ‘get in a groove’. We simply aren’t anywhere near as good as the Rangers, the Blue Jays, the Red Sox, or the Tigers. When we play well, we are probably about as good as the Mariners – but that’s it. We are ‘virtually out of the playoffs’ because the teams in front of us are not just marginally, but significantly, better up and down the line-up. I’d match up Jose Altuve with anybody those teams have. After that, however, I tentatively say ‘maybe Correa’ matches up with their SS, and that’s it.

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      • I think the good folks of Toronto might feel, especially based on career numbers, that Troy Tulowitzki matches up pretty well with Carlos Correa. But I’ll grant you, I;’d gladly match up Correa against the Tigers’ iglesias. But right now Elvis Andrus’ .296/.351/.766 for a team that’s up on us by 8 games in mid-August, isn’t that different than what Carlos has given us.[.277/.355/.829]

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      • Tulo has a wRC+ of 103 and Andrus is 100. Correa has a wRC+ of 126. Correa is head and shoulders better than both of them and it’s not even close. The only other SS in the A.L. that can be even in the same discussion with Correa is Lindor at 117 and Bogaerts at 123. Basically, the Astros have the best 2B AND SS in the A.L.

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      • One of the two shortstops we are talking about has a throwing error and a single tonight, and his team is down 5-0 to the worst team in the league in the 2nd inning The other is 2-3, with a BB, has no errors, hit a home run, and drove in 5 runs to lead his team to a 7-0 massacre of Tampa Bay. WR crap.

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      • Oh Bill, you’re so funny. Using an extremely small sample size to try to prove what has already been disproven. Correa is the best SS in the A.L. and the statistics prove it. How did Tulo do last night when Correa was 2-4 with 5 RBIs? By the way, the Twins are the 2nd hottest team in baseball since July 1st. Every dog has their day or, in this case, month.

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    • Oh, it is sample size you want, Tim. I am happy to oblige. Over 13 years – so far – in the major leagues, Troy Tulowitzki has played in 1175 games. [Correa has played in 208 at last count]. Tulo’s lifetime BA is .293 [Carlos’ is .274 and he’s giving us 5 points under that in this his second season]. Tulo’s lifetime OBP is .366 [Carlos’ is ,355]. Tulo’s lifetime OPS is .871 [Carlos’ is .843]. Tulo has hit as many as 30 HRs in a season twice [Carlos has hit a total of 38 in two years]. Tulo has driven in over 90 runs a season four separate times [Carlos has yet to do it once – although hopefully this will be the year].

      I am a diehard Astro fan and homer, and Carlos is a lot younger than Tulo, so I clearly prefer Carlos, and want him to develop into Tulo and more. But in honesty, compared to Tulo, and his proving through the years in real games, what a star shortstop can do for a team, Carlos Correa – as much as we may love and believe in him – is still just a prospect.

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      • “I tentatively say ‘maybe Correa’ matches up with their SS, and that’s it.”

        This is your statement, which implies that those teams have a SS that matchup with Correa today. What Tulo did in the past is irrelevant to how they matchup today. With this logic that would mean A-Rod matches up at 3B with, let’s say Travis Shaw of the Red Sox, simply because he put up better career numbers. Tulo was a great SS in his day and is still a good SS, but he is not on the same level of Correa today and the numbers prove it. The only 2 SS that we can say could matchup with Correa are the 2 I listed above, Bogaerts and Lindor.

        I’m sorry if you took offense to my statement disagreeing that the Astros are virtually out of the playoff race. While I agree with you that they probably will not make it and the other teams you mentioned have a more complete roster the young players on the Astros may finally make that adjustment and the team gets hot over the final 7+ weeks of the season.

        I don’t take offense to your comments when you disagree with me. I just will engage you in a conversation giving my reasons. I don’t make statements like “I don’t expect you to ever not find something in my posts with which to take exception, Tim, because it is who you are and what you do.” I simply disagreed with your statement, but you took exception to that, for whatever reason. Thanks for the frank discussion.

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      • They were addressed in my comment, Nance. They still have a lower wRC+ than Correa this year, but they are, at least, in the conversation. We have the best middle infield in baseball. No one doubts we have the best 2B and we very well may have the best SS, even though he is only 21.

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      • Look, Bogaerts and Tulowitzki would die for the opportunity to hit behind Jose Altuve. The guy has a BA of over .360, an OBP of over .425, 159 hits, 29 doubles and 3 triples this year – all right in front of Carlos Correa. Carlos should be leading the league in RBIs. As soon as he starts regularly taking advantage of the fact that he has the privilege of hitting behind who he’s hitting behind I’ll laud him as a step above guys who have done more with less – like Troy Tulowitzki and Xander Bogaerts.

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      • Wait a minute, Bill. You have gone on and on about how weak the Astros lineup is compared to Boston, Toronto and almost every other team in the league, but now want to say, because he hits BEHIND Altuve he has an advantage. Wow! You could make a small case if he hit in front of Altuve, but you’re really reaching trying to make a case that isn’t there. I’m sorry Bill, but you’re not going to find anyone outside of Chipalatta land that thinks Correa is not better than Tulowitzki. It is such a wide disparity between Correa and Tulo in wRC+ that he could hit in front of 2001 Barry Bonds and it wouldn’t justify the large discrepancy in the statistics.

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      • Exactly where did I say that Tulo is ‘better’ than Correa, Tim? Move on, son – you are out of your league.

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      • You said, Tulowitzki and others could match up with Correa. That is such a blatant misstatement. Listen, you lost this battle, but you’ve won some in the past. It happens to the best of us.

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  3. I’m a little late to the Gomez news today, but I’ll put my 2 cents in. Yes, I was hard on him NOT because I didn’t like him, but because he made some glaring errors that he SHOULD have known about. He was a clubhouse favorite, and it’s clear the guys will miss his energy. Yes, I’ve said over, and over again this was a HORRIBLE trade, and if I’m in Luhnow’s shoes today…..having to admit to Jim Crane I screwed up, wouldn’t be very nice. I believe Hader, and Maverick WILL end up being major league players. I have no idea if it was his vision that he hid, or his legs that are to blame. He was taking up a spot on the roster that this club badly needs a productive player. I am a gambler, and I think Luhnow will try to make another “trade” for another OF. In the mean time I want Kemp in left field everyday from here on out, or until Hernandez comes up when the rosters expand. Reed might need more seasoning, and sending him down again might be detrimental to his confidence. I love what I see with Bregman, and White. The bullpen is starting to look “lights out” with all those big arms!! Any one of them can step up to the 9th inning.
    No Chip, I don’t think any of us saw the poor start this club had, or that the 2015 Keuchel would dissappear. I’m pretty sure most of us realized last year that McCullers arm is one DL from Tommy John. Thank goodness we have Musgrove here, and Brady Rogers in Fresno! So….we have options. Sooo glad to see you back!!
    Dan does an EXCELLENT job of giving us something to “chew” on every day!!!

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  5. Part of the storm arrived when Rasmus took the QO and really shook things up. There was no way Luhnow meant it when he said that was great. He wanted that pick and he wanted that $16 million. That money hamstrung the Astros from the beginning. It looked ok for a month before Rasmus just fell off a cliff.
    The part of the storm that involved White, Reed, Moran, Kemp, Tucker and Bregman all not hitting was predictable. Every one of us here questioned, no envisioned, Dave Hudgeon’s inability to correct or guide anyone on this team and those six youts all came up to a club that was struggling and they weren’t, until they got here and got with all the guys who were swinging out of their socks.
    Now I am going to say the same thing we all said a year ago: Dave Hudgeon’s has not, does not and will not have the ability to get guys to hit and he needs to go! That part of the storm could have been averted last offseason.
    I said to trade Castro last offseason and that should have been done. With Stassi’s injury, that meant we would already had a look at what Heineman was capable of. Castro has sucked again and we still don’t know about Heineman. That was a waste. We could have gotten a lot for Castro in the offseason, added to our prospects and avoided Castro’s part of the storm.
    The worst part of the storm was the good June we had. That kept Luhnow from selling. We could have traded more of the baggage we now carry and will have to unload for nothing. Gomez was the biggest bag.
    Oh, well. Great blog Chip!

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    • While I am no Hudgens fan,and I agree he sucks, White, Reed, Moran, Kemp, Tucker and Bregman not hitting was not predictable (nor for the most part true). Neither Heineman nor Stassi are major league catchers at this point and would have never made a major league roster this season. The sad part is that it is doubtful that they will ever make a ML roster. Castro is NOT this team’s problem.

      I’ll agree that Hudgens is and issue, however I will not agree that Castro is, nor will I agree that 2 marginal minor league prospects are the answer to any of the woes we have seen this year. Castro is one of the better catchers in the league, whether you like him or agree or not.

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      • Castro is lousy. I got the numbers to back me up. If you want to argue that most of the catchers are badder and he is good because they are badder, that is an argument that I am very used to by now.
        If Heineman never makes a major league roster because he is not good enough that is one thing. But how come you consider a catcher with .5 WAR one of the better catchers, and yet are down on Heineman, who has never, ever had one chance to prove himself fit to be in the major leagues, even though he was the only catcher on our AAA Championship team last season, because Stassi was in Houston? If a guy catches for the AAA Champions, shouldn’t he get a shot at the next natural step. Hell, we’ve had the two worst catchers I’ve seen in years on the Astros in the last two years, Kratz and Conger. Certainly Heineman deserves a shot, if those two stooges deserved it.

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      • 1OP, Stassi deserves a shot too, because he *has* hit MLB pitching in his limited opportunities, and he already has the defense.

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    • Castro being one of the better catchers in the league is quite a claim.

      There are 35 catchers in the major leagues with a better OPS that have 100 AB’s while catching.

      He is ranked 28th in batting average among catchers.

      He has struck out 35% of the time.

      His offensive production is so bad that I can do this all day.

      Just from the old smell test – I would rather have Ramos, LuCroy, Perez, Vogt, McCann, Martin, Wieters, and Suzuki. I would rather have some of the backups out there like Perez, Leon, Avila, youngsters like Romine. I mean, thats quite a list of catchers I would rather have. I would argue that I would even rather have Gattis and we have Gattis.

      I respect some of his defensive toughness. I respect that he has a hard job with a staff of finesse guys that throw some in the dirt. I know the physical turmoil he has been through. I respect his contributions, but we can’t simply wash away his rapidly declining offensive skills because while he maybe better than Gattis defensively he isn’t exactly Ausmus.

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    • I think Rasmus accepting the QO is where everything went awry. Led to trade of Lowrie and tied up a lot of Salary hat could have been spent elsewhere. Shouldn’t one of the best GMs in baseball anticipated that given his knowledge of Rasmus and his history and how happy he was to be in Houston????

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      • Considering Rasmus put up a 2.4 WAR last year and was well on that way this year before the inner ear cyst caused balance issues for him it can be argued that giving Rasmus the QO was a good decision. The going rate for 1 WAR is roughly $7-8M so Rasmus was compensated fairly and it was only for 1 year. If he had rejected the QO the Astros would have gotten a compensation pick. I think it’s safe to say that one of the best GMs in baseball, who has an advanced degree from Northwestern University, probably had prepared for the chance that Rasmus may accept the QO. Luhnow probably thought he would reject it, but as smart as he is, he had a contingency plan in place in the event Rasmus accepted.

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      • Rasmus started off well, dipped in May, came back in June, and then struggled ever since. Now…when did he start having vertigo due to his ear issues? Even though he has gone out of his way not to use that as an excuse, if one wants to determine just what effect vertigo can have on a career, look at what happened to Nick Esasky in the late 80s.

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      • Agreed, Billy. It is difficult enough to hit major league pitching, but then to try doing it with inner ear balance issues makes it nearly impossible.

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  8. He’s given up 5 or more runs eight times this season. Of course those errors hurt, but five hits and 2 walks in two innings. What was it, three hits in a complete game over the weekend?

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    • And I would argue he is the same pitcher he was in 2015. I have never seen an “elite” pitcher squeezed more than I have see Keuchel this year.

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      • I won’t even argue that point, but you do give the umps far too much credit, if you think they can impact the game that much.

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      • I would agree that Keuchel is getting squeezed more this year, but I think teams the bigger issue is his velocity is down a tick this year and batters are laying off his pitches out of the strike zone that they were swinging at last year.

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      • I think the problem is the hitters are not off balance. In 2015 he managed to induce weak contact off elevated pitches. In 2016, he is getting hammered on his mistakes. I don’t think this happens if his control was still pinpoint.

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  9. Love the post, Chip – especially since I was in brain freeze on something new to say – haha.
    About the only exception to your Perfect storm bullets I take is Kemp, who has performed better than anyone else of the call-ups.
    I agree with old pro that Rasmus surprised them and screwed up some of their plans. No one had ever excepted a QO ever, but those QO’s are getting big.
    I think one of the shocks to me is how many guys who are playing for either a good contract (last year of their contract) or a possible extension or new contract are struggling.
    Keuchel is a big surprise to me, but I don’t think it is just being squeezed. He is just not that great with his control this season in his stinkers. But he was almost inhumanly accurate last season.
    I did not like all the talent they sent away for Giles, but I sure did not expect him to pitch so poorly the beginning of this season and I am sure they did not either.
    I think it should not be a big surprise when an overall younger team gets into slumps or goes on streaks.
    I do believe that they should never have hired Hudgens. I have seen very little that has made me feel good about hitter’s approaches, since he has been here. Even guys who seemed to have decent approaches like a Tyler White end up turning into Evan Gattis lumberjackers. A guy like Springer just does not have to swing for the 600 foot HR. The ball will go somewhere if…. he hits it.
    Oh well – let’s see if they can turn things around. Maybe a rainout when trailing 5-0 will be the springboard to new ….no I can’t even talk myself into this one right now.

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  10. I had a much longer reply but it got lost in the Internet. So I will shorten by saying thatI don’t think being squeezed explains Keuchel in 2016. I think league has adjusted and he doesn’t have the stuff to retaliate. All of the Starters have basically the same approach except LMJ because that’s how Strom works. If I can guess when Keuchel is going with the back foot slider so can a professional hitter. And I would be happy with Castro as catcher at market
    Rice if the other offensive black holes are fixed.

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  11. I am happy with Castro as catcher if we eliminate the other black holes of offense at other positions. I am not sure that I agree that Keuchel is a victim of a
    getting squeezed any more than any other MLB pitcher. Is not consistently getting a strike call for pitches 1-2 inches out of the zone like last year squeezing him? He simply does not have the stuff to succeed when forced into the strike zone and hitters have adjusted. When he faces teams that are patient and have learned to recognize when he is going to go with the back foot slider and lay off of it, they either take their walk or wait for him to have to come in to the happy zone. I have learned to predict when it is coming and I am not a professional baseball player. It’s too bad LMJ got injured. We need more starting pitchers that have some heat with movement. A rotation of soft tossing finesse pitchers like Keuchel, Fister, McHugh all using the Strom pitching philosophy makes it easier for hitters to prepare for series against us.

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    • wewill, a back foot slider is one that breaks toward a hitters back foot. It is meant to start out over the plate and end up hitting the ground by his back foot. It is a weapon that opposite handed pitchers are using more and more to get out those batters that they used to be hesitant to throw curves to because the old thinking was that curves from a lefty broke right into a right handed batter’s wheelhouse. Back foot sliders can be especially effective against hitters with two strikes because it appears to start out over the middle of the plate and they are protecting the plate and end up swinging at a pitch that ends up in the dirt by their feet.

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  12. DAAANG Keuchel!!! You are truly an enigma this year. How in the heck does he pitch a 3 hit shut out at home, and 1st game on the road give up 5 runs in two innings???
    Two errors must have put his brain in the ditch, he did the same thing in Tampa when we played there earlier in May. Whoa fellas…..ya’ll need to get back on the horse and start getting hits….you STILL have time guys!

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  16. Official: Game has been called due to inclement weather. Game will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader tomorrow – 12:10 and 6:10.

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  22. The Astros are allowed an extra player for today’s double header and it is Kevin Chapman because of roster reasons. Chapman is already on the roster and Devenski, a reliever, is making the start tonight.

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    • That gives them 14 pitchers and only 12 bats. I’m not sure that they need pitching help as much as they need bench depth. I’m not sure that a three deep bench is enough. Especially if Gattis is at DH and is forced in to catch.

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  23. Hopefully the offense will get back on track as the results have been abyssmal since the AS break.
    Shut out 17%
    1 run 22%
    2 runs 22%
    3 runs 17%
    4 or more 22%

    You’re not going to win many games with this kind of production as noted by our wins since the break. I like our pitching core and what we have in the minors. What concerns me is the run production. We have cut Gomez loose which although it’s unfortunate was a given, but we definitely need something to get the bats going again. I have no faith in our “no-hitting” coaches so lets get that resolved first. In the off season let’s go after some established contact hitters. Quite a few holes to fill in the off season. We should have some cash available so lets do it.

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  28. Sipp…..might force Luhnow’s hand before they get back home. You can’t keep a guy in your bullpen who can’t get anyone out. Sipp can’t be trusted to get lefty OR righty’S out. Time to go see if Luhnow can find a warmed over lefty to trade for. He’s not fooling anyone anymore. Agree??
    On a lighter note how ’bout the game A.J. Reed is having!! Altuve is being Altuve!!!

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    • Unfortunately, this situation is different than Gomez. I don’t see any way they DFA Sipp. It’s almost September so they will have call ups and they can just use Sipp in very low leverage situations and see if he bounces back next year.

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      • We all undertake that Tim, but by CHANCE we get to the wild card game and Hinch NEEDS a lefty…..I would be very hesitant to use Sipp. Yes….a BIG lead maybe….but the team rarely has a lead like today. So….. guess we will wait to see how he pitches to begin the season, but Luhnow simply MUST get another lefty, and keep Sipp on a very short leash.

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      • I completely agree, Becky. It wouldn’t surprise me, if they make the playoffs, that Sipp is off the playoff roster. Chapman has pitched a little better, and I’m not suggesting him, but if he continues to improve down the stretch they may use him strictly as a LOOGY for the playoffs. I’m with you that I have no trust in Sipp right now.

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  30. On another note a lot of us have watched a lot of baseball over a lot of years. I don’t think I have ever seen a year like Altuve is having , he is amazing.

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    • Well – I hate to be Debbie Downer or even Dan Downer, but this is the type of game they traditionally follow-up with a 1-0 loss. let’s hope they break with tradition.

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      • I don’t know, Dan. First of all, the Astros know what to do with a mulligan. Secondly, I have been waiting for a game where Bregman and Reed both contribute with their bats and they start to feel freed up and act like they are part of this team and that happened today. Bregman actually moved to SS and did well there and the Astros took five runs off the board and picked up Keuchel, like he picked them up so many times last year.
        They are gonna have a good meal, play some video games, listen to some tunes and go have some more fun tonight. Last night actually gave most of the bullpen an off day, so everyone is available except for Sipp. The moment Gregerson returns, one of the relievers will be sent back down. What will be interesting is to see who goes down when Gurriel comes up.
        Great win today, but can the Rockies do anything right?

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  33. Dan P……..go brush your teeth with Clorox!! Get that bad taste outta your mouth!
    If they can hang on the Rockies are ahead, in arlington.

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  35. I’m sorry folks – it is just that the last time they did this – the followed scoring 13 runs against the Angels with losing 2-1 behind Keuchel. Maybe playing the second game so quickly after the first will help.
    And I prefer to gargle with Windex….

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  38. This Prince Fielder thing is priceless.

    The Rangers can’t release him or they won’t be able to file the insurance claim.

    That means he remains on the roster for the next 3 offseasons. Now, they can put him on the 60 day DL 45 days before the season, but he must be put back on the 40 man in November. So from November to February they effectively only get a 39 man roster. If this ends up costing them some young player it will be justice for trading for the guy to begin with.

    Say what we will about the cheapness of Crane or how frugal Luhnow is but that situation is going to put a dent in their plans.

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      • Insurance is going to pay 9 mil a year, and Detroit is obligated for 6 of it. The Rangers only have to pay 9 mil of it a year. I mean, funny world when its “only” 9 mil.

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    • I’m not in the Chapman fan club, but could he really be a worse lefty option than Sipp? Or do you just cede the fact that you have no LOOGY in the pen?

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      • Yes, he is worse. He absolutely gets murdered by right handed batters, even in AAA. Chapman may stay up while Giles is on maternity leave, but after that I don’t think you will see him again.

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  42. And how come Tucker is in RF. Jeez, the guy can’t even play left, much less right. Hinch better start treating every game as a game 7 or we are done.

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    • Look at all of Tuckers minor league defensive stats. He is a much better fielder in RF than in LF. He doesn’t have an arm, but he is a better fielder in RF. You have seen him play left and he is bad. But he is twice as comfortable fielding the ball in RF. Don’t ask me why.

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  43. So none of my reliable associates here have a definitive answer for me? Does that mean I should blame it on our GM, Tim?

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  44. Should we shut down Devo for the night and see how many pitches we can get out of Chapman before optioning him back to AAA? If we leave him or pull him he is burnt for 4 days so I would expect to see him optioned and pulled back up Tues or Wed.

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  46. My bet is that Tucker will be up until Gurriell arrives next week, then will be sent down. I would like to see Tucker have enough time at AAA to build his stats back up to the level that he has some (any) value as a trade chip.

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      • Hey BIlly,

        I was just thinking about you and your family. How’s everything going? Are things getting better? I’ve been praying for you and will continue to do so. Good luck and many blessings, brother.

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  47. The Yankees just went ahead of the Red Sox 4-2 in the 8th. If the scores hold up the Astros will be 2 games back of the WC. I like to keep the faith otherwise why watch the games? I still believe in this team and will continue believing until there is no reason to believe anymore. I’m silly that way.

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    • im with you tim. i wont give up until the math says we are out. 2 games back in the WC with 47 to play isnt a huge climb. we are heading out of the last turn into the homestretch, lets give it all we got and see where it gets us.

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    • Tim, remember that I wasn’t throwing in the towel in the previous blog. I said to play the youngsters instead, because they are gooder. I believe that.

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      • And I think that is the best way to not only handle the rest of this year, but also prepare them for next year. All of these guys have proven themselves in the minor leagues and will just need to adjust to the major leagues. Some will take longer than others and some may never adjust, but I think the Astros have a good core of young players to help carry them in the future years. As with any prospects the majority will miss or be below average, but some will hit and those will really help this team. I like what I’ve seen of Tyler White and I want to see him getting more ABs going forward. I also like Tony Kemp and his ability to put the bat on the ball and use his speed on the bases. He will never be a superstar, but he can be that pest and, eventual, leadoff hitter this team needs.

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  48. with all the moves lately and some guys getting healthy, if gurriel comes up and hits consistently, we have a hot streak or two left in us.

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  49. The kids can play. With Kemp, Reed, Bregman, White playing in these two games, the kids can play. AND…..once again, WHERE would this team be without Devenski!!??
    Man….what a performance!! Ken Giles won’t be traveling with the team to Toronto, his wife is expecting any day. 35 hits, 25 runs in ONE DAY!! I hope this is the start to everyone saying ” here come the Astros”!! It wasn’t a good game day…it was an AWESOME game day! Last night we were 9 games back, tonight we are 7 1/2 games back!

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  50. Evan Gattis should sit when he isn’t catching and should catch a lot.
    Tyler White looks more like Tyler White all of a sudden. Stay away, Hudgens!
    Bye, Chapman.
    Devenski is gathering confidence.
    Springer looked so good in CF tonight! dave, how many times can we scream it from the rooftops and why won’t the Astros wake up?
    Hoyt is starting to find his major league mojo.
    Bregman is starting to feel comfortable. Where has the real Preston Tucker gone?
    Tony Kemp acts like this league is just like the minors. Line drives here, stolen bases there, put me in LF or 2B or DH, I don’t care. Bat me at leadoff, stick me in the 9-hole, because it don’t make no difference where I hit, because I hit.
    An African-American and a Canadian tie for swimming gold. How cool is that!
    Correa is Hot!
    Springer is Hot!
    Altuve is on fire!
    Hey, Joe Musgrove, your first road start isn’t even in the US, but it is against your former team. Git ‘er done.
    Now I will see how our MILB kids did.

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      • I would like nothing more than for this club to find a legitimate right fielder over the winter…….

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      • Tim, you and I should not worry about the cost. It’s time Crane got in line with other mid market payrolls in MLB. And it’s time we finally got a settled outfield. Springer belongs in center. I think Jake will continue to provide us with an OPS in the .600 range. That’s not enough to to be a starter on an excellent club, regardless of his other skills. I’m hopeful that Kemp will give us .700 plus. And maybe Hernandez plays his way into the picture. I’d go into 2017 with those three guys fighting over left.

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      • I will say this regarding Marisnick. Depending on how much difference there is between him and Kemp on OPS I still might consider Jake as the starter. Let’s say Jake has a .680 OPS and Kemp is around .715. Jake is such a difference maker on defense then I would prefer Jake in this situation. However, if Jake has an OPS around .620 and Kemp is around .715 then I go with Kemp.

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      • Dave…we know it was just one day…..but that was a major league ball club they played two games against yesterday! Granted their starting pitchers weren’t as good as ours, but still our guys put 25 runs on the board against them!
        Maybe it’s pure coincidence that the day after Gomez left…..these guys looked and played like they did last year, BEFORE he was traded to the Astros. I don’t care what it was, it was pure joy to see them win those two games!

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      • A few years back we were tossing out ideas on how HOU could average .700 OPS as a club. If JFSF is at .680 you take it seven days a week.

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    • Despite having a good day in the 2nd game I still never want to see Gattis at DH again (I realize he was the catcher last night). Gattis is serviceable as a catcher, but that is it, in my opinion. We have so many better options for the DH even if that means just rotating starters at DH to give them a rest from playing the field.

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    • OP, re your Olympics comment, how cool is it that the Gold for gymnastics AND swimming was won by the two “Simones,” BOTH from Houston? Can we maybe get a little help for the ‘Stros out of this here backyard? 🙂

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