In the last few weeks, we’ve run Q&A sessions with Chip Bailey asking me questions about Astros baseball.
Chip & Dan Part 1. • Chip & Dan Part 2. • Chip & Dan Part 3.
Since Chip is the founder of this blog, which he created after having run the Astros fan blog for years on the Chronicle (Spit!!), it seems only fair to flip the script and have Chip answer some questions himself. We will split this down the middle – half today and a half in our next post.
- So, Chip, tell us what you have been up to in this latest stage of your life, and (shameless plug request) tell us about your new book, which I found both interesting and personally challenging.
Dan, we’ve been on a journey for the past few years. I served as the Chaplain at a large resort in Colorado Springs (The Broadmoor) until COVID (March 2020). Since then, I have worked with Dave Ramsey’s team as a Ramsey Preferred Coach and, last year, became a team member at John Maxwell Leadership. Your Fab 5 was a #1 New Release and #2 Best Seller on Amazon last December. Here are a few links to catch up with us.
- About Chip and Elizabeth.
- Get Chip’s book.
- Sign up for our daily inspiration, blog, and/or newsletter.
- Read our blog.
- Looking back, how do you compare the Astros’ 2017 and 2022 championships? How did you feel about them when they happened, and how do you look back at them now?
I remember where I was sitting in 2017 for the final out. I didn’t scream or yell, just smiled really big and had a sense of satisfaction. It was a different era than 2004-05, when they came close with Biggio and Bagwell. Now, everyone seems to be an Astros “fan,” right? There were still some holdovers from the previous regime (e.g., Jose Altuve and Dallas Keuchel), so there was a bit of sadness that Drayton couldn’t get it done. 2022 was different: The team not only had fully transitioned to have Crane’s stamp on it, but it was now in a transition away from Jeff Luhnow, even though – in my opinion – it still clearly had his stamp on it. More than the championship last year, though, the Astros have positioned themselves as a dynasty – or at least on the brink – with five consecutive trips to the ALCS (not counting COVID’s 2020).
- Over time, there has been a lot of talk about how the 2017 Astros, who no doubt cheated, hit better on the road than they did at home throughout that season. Do you think they needed to cheat to win that championship?
Nope. While they obviously had a system, I’m still not convinced it was a game-changer for them. I’ll probably get pushback on this, but how is what they did different than a runner at second base tipping off the hitter with a pitch call or stealing signs from the third base coach? Now, I’d draw the line at technology usage to steal signs, and that’s out of bounds in my book. But how much of what they did was actually derived from tech?
- You are a big LSU fan. Is an LSU NCAA championship or an Astro World Series championship a bigger deal to you, and why?
My true allegiance lies with UL-Lafayette, also known as Lafayette. I’m a Ragin Cajun die-hard. My son played college baseball there for one of the best college coaches ever. You can read about the legacy of Tony Robichaux here. LSU is great, and I love to follow them more than I used to. Then again, I love college baseball in the playoffs, starting with the conference tournaments and regionals. I go season-to-season, so I’m focusing on an Astros’ World Series now and will keep tabs on UL-Lafayette and LSU as the football season approaches and progresses. I’m also a fan of LSU-Eunice, where my son played junior college baseball. LSU-E is the #1 junior college baseball program in the country, and Josh won a World Series there in 2008. He pitched twice in four games in that series, with a win and a save.
- This run since 2015, I call a Renaissance for the Astros, is by far the most successful period in their history. How long do you think they can sustain this?
You and I have had this discussion via text once or twice. Luhnow was the architect, and I view the Astros struggling to settle into their new identity. They’ve gone through Click and Brown, with Crane somewhat sandwiched in the middle. Can Crane keep his hands off? I believe the jury is still out. Can Brown make his own mark? Hopefully, but we’ll see. I do believe this offseason and next will be critical in determining whether they can continue to build a dynasty or need to go through a rebuild. FWIW, I like how they drafted this year (i.e., college players). That strategy may help rebuild the minor league system more quickly.
So, here is the first half of our “interview” with Chip. Whatcha think? The second five will be equally interesting.
ALL THINGS ASTROS 
95 responses to “Astros Q&A with Chip Himself – Part 1”
Lineup is out:
Altuve 2B
Bregman 3B
Alvarez, Y LF
Tucker RF
Diaz, Y DH
Kimchi, J 1B
Peña SS.
Meyers CF
MaldoNADA, M C
Nothing innovative about it. Nothing particularly encouraging about it. No Chas.
I’m predicting another 10 strikeouts and maybe 3 runs. It won’t be enough and the Stros will fall to 4 games back of the Strangers before the sun rises again.
LikeLike
Good to hear from ya Chip. My daughter is also a Ragin Cajun, class of 2018.
The 2017 and 2022 teams were very different. One was constructed fairly balanced, they got it done with the bats a lot of times in the playoffs. The other was built around the staunchest, stingiest pitching staff I’ve seen in a playoff run and timely hitting.
I don’t think they needed the boost. I’m skeptical about how much effect it actually had. It may be the fan in me, but I think they win it that year anyway. I don’t think of it as tainted or with an asterisk at all, and I think those stuck on it just live with a degree of anger that their franchise can’t be this successful.
I think they have a good chance to go another 5-7 years. Alvarez is young. Tucker is young. Framber is very middle-aged but not overextended. Javier, Garcia, Urquidy, and this new crop, Chas, Diaz, Pena, there is a young core that is going to stay together a little while. Five years from now they won’t all be here, but the 2017 and 2022 championship teams have a very different core while just enough of the same pieces to keep the culture. Of course, bullpens turnover more than anything else, so we will see – if Brown can keep that together year to year they should keep it going for a little while longer before picking 26th or later every draft finally catches up.
LikeLike
Regardless of what the “official” scorer says, when the ball bounces off the inside of a man’s glove, I call it an error. Nice going, Tucker. I never have liked his one handed stance when making a catch. That’s not the way my coach taught me to do it……
LikeLiked by 1 person
The team is being destroyed from within.
FUNDAMENTALS!!!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah, that’s what Coach Kaltved called it 50 years ago. But I wasn’t sure that hadn’t been changed when Boyfred became commish.
What I do remember is running a lot of laps around the field whenever I didn’t use both hands making a catch or didn’t get down in front of a ground ball to make a play. He didn’t tolerate stupidity. Dusty the clown doesn’t just tolerate it, he promotes it!
LikeLike
Blummer just said a mouthful. “The Orioles are playing mistake free baseball.”
So far (T5) Tucker has made 1 and freaky Framber has made many. This is unpleasant to watch.
LikeLike
Another rally killed stone dead by a MaldoNADA strikeout. Good job, lardazz……
LikeLike
Can’t imagine why this song popped into my head while I was watching this so-called baseball game…..
LikeLike
So is Tucker forgiven for not using two hands earlier?
Uh yeah
LikeLiked by 3 people
Yes, sir. He sure is! Kimchi let me down by grounding out and popping up today or my 10 strikeout prediction would’ve been right on. MaldoNADA never lets me down.
Been a long time since I’ve been so happy to be so wrong about the 3 run prediction.
But Road to Nowhere is still a great song. Brings back so many good memories…..
LikeLike
Well to be fair your three run prediction was right for 25 outs. It just got changed by one swing.
LikeLike
I’m so happy it changed! That swing was beautiful!
LikeLike
Couldn’t see the game due to MLB blackout restrictions (@!%$#) but what a comeback as King Tuck hits a Grand Slam in the 9th for the win. Singleton in his debut draws a walk and we’ll take that. And of course Maldy 0 for 3 with 2 K’s and Abreu 0 for 5. Pena with 3 hits and an RBI. Not a good night for the Framber Man band Stanek and Pressley did their jobs. I’ll have to watch the condensed game when available.
LikeLike
Two of Pena’s hits were cheapies. But, along with that final “strike” from Pressly (that really wasn’t), we’ll take it! It was good to see Pena hustling for a change, though.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I see little to no risk involved with putting Singelton at 1b and sitting Kimchi until…..2026.
That was a nice at bat in the ninth today! MaldoNADA would’ve been swinging and missing at that garbage. And we all know the only thing that Kimchi knows how to do is STINK!
LikeLike
Good morning! Another tough game to watch, for eight innings anyway. The O’s are a very solid young club and once again we looked like a moribund troop of disinterested guys playing out the string. I think there is some unhappiness in Astroland.
But if there was ever a moment for a team to finally wake up and start a streak in chase of the Rangers, last nights ninth inning was that moment. It’s time. I’m certainly dubious though. Which guys get penciled in tonight? That’s what it comes down to.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Renaissance? My post just went off to space, so I’ll try quicker bullet points.
*Crane has got to let Brown run the club. If he wants to bring in a full new staff, so be it.
*He has to pay someone to take Abreu. It might cost 15 million a year, but I’d rather have an athletic rookie at first base.
*Let Bregman play out his contract. He continues to decline in all categories.
*Maldonado has got to go. He might even be a bad influence on a couple of his pitchers. It’s a 26 man team and he hurts it.
*Play Alvarez in the outfield at home only. He’s too valuable.
*Resign Tucker. Even if it takes 8 years. Resign Altuve. Give Framber your best shot. I really don’t think he’d want to leave and start ver somewhere else, unless Maldy becomes a coach somewhere!
*Redesign the bullpen. Younger, more power pitchers like Abreu. That’s Browns job.
*Don’t assume Pena is our longterm guy at short.
*Pray the rotation comes back together in good heath.
*Keep rebuilding the system.
LikeLiked by 2 people
All those bullets hit the bullseye as far as I’m concerned!
LikeLike
Some Wednesday morning hot takes –
Dave – I don’t think Abreu is tradeable. But stranger things have happened. I mean as long as the Mets exist to make really bad deals, it’s possible. After all they still cut a check to Bobby Bonilla this month.
Bregman is tough. He has the best eye on the team, and that is value added on this team particularly. But man Bautista blew 102 by him. He wasn’t catching up to that. And the number of pop ups – he just doesn’t seem to be center cutting stuff anymore. It’s hard to say, bat slowing or does he need to adjust something? Still at 18 HR and 70 RBI and just staying in the lineup he is important. I think the two sides will at least have a discussion. It might also depend on if they have other options, are they still in the window, lots of factors.
With this mancrush Baker has for Maldy – Alvarez in LF is what gets Diaz in the lineup. I really was laughing when that fly ball to left, and make no mistake, it was 100% in LF, had Alvarez turning and twisting, and Meyers just comes out of nowhere and catches it. Meyers ran literally 100+ feet to get to something that landed 15 feet from where Alvarez was standing out there. And did you notice how Jake turned and looked at him after like, bro, it was right there. There are no gold gloves in Yordan’s future.
No one is tougher on Pena than I am. Last night was classic Pena. His athleticism beat out a groundball – partially because of a bad throw, but also because he just got down that line – and it helped him place a seeing eye one – and he drilled a 97MPH fastball just above the zone for a hard hit, critical RBI single. He also swung at 47 sliders all out of the zone. Well maybe not 47, but a lot. As critical as I am, he is value added, for now, as long as he is cheap he plays above his salary he allows us to sign these other guys.
I’m still very optimistic about their playoff chances – they are not slinging the ball like last year so the offense is going to have to help more – I haven’t thought about next year. No way all of them are healthy (I don’t think Garcia is even scheduled for playing toss until March?) – but no other team has those 8 names on a dry erase board to start their rotation with.
LikeLike
Steven, I mentioned that if Brown picks up 15 million a year, maybe they can find an interested party. How about 16?
LikeLike
As for Singleton – remember, walks start rallys! It was hard to tell, the 2-1 pitch was probably the toughest lay off, it started in the zone and broke out. I think about half our roster would have swung out of their shoes. The 3-1 pitch bounced so far up maybe me and my 50 year old self would have swung, but not many people would have offered at that. Still, it led off the moment.
LikeLiked by 1 person
He looked more like a professional hitter up there than most of the Astros last night. Even my 65 year old self could see that, kid! 🙂
But of course, Kimchi is back in the lineup tonight and Singelton’s not. With that moron Baker, we are doomed to failure. Miracles don’t happen every game. Not even for Dusty the Clown.
LikeLike
As for Singleton – remember, walks start rallys! It was hard to tell, the 2-1 pitch was probably the toughest lay off, it started in the zone and broke out. I think about half our roster would have swung out of their shoes. The 3-1 pitch bounced so far up maybe me and my 50 year old self would have swung, but not many people would have offered at that. Still, it led off the moment.
LikeLike
From my baseball coaching days, I remember this stat: A leadoff walk scores 86% of the time. Just sayin’…
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was a good walk Chip. That’s why as long as he’s here, I think most all of want to see him get a shot, even if it means sitting Abreu. But again, will Dusty do it?
LikeLike
No, he won’t.
LikeLike
Not gonna lie – Tucker at bat in the top of the 9th with the bases loaded … watching tall-drink-of-water fighting off cruise missile after cruise missile from the O’s superstar closer until he got a pitch to square up … it made me feel like a kid again. I yelled so loud I think I may have pulled something.
LikeLike
I just watched the MLB Network’s segment on the AB and Tucker from last night. It was an amazing AB and showed how far Tucker has grown in his short career. Speaking of, his numbers for the first 510 games of his career are (arguably) better than Larry Walker and Mookie Betts. Also, from their infographic, he’s in the 88th percentile for hard hit %, 94th percentile in K rate, and 85th percentile for BB rate this season. He’s the only player in the 85th percentile for all three of those.
I wish I could have watched the AB live, but MLB in their infinite wisdom thinks by blacking me out I’d drive 450 miles to Baltimore to catch a middle of the week game in person. Regardless, my daughter and I watched the gamecast of the pitch by pitch. After a few foul balls I was expecting Bautista would walk him and take his chance with Diaz.
LikeLike
Dan’s thoughts
– Last night was a bit of family time and we watched a movie together, while I kept track of it like Devin on Gamecast. Even on Gamecast that Tucker AB was exciting and seeing the GS flash up on the 9th pitch of the AB was exhilarating. (I did DVR it – so I was able to FF to all the key parts of the game and I was not disappointed).
– They made a good point after the game that Bautista usually mixes in his off-speed effectively – but last night he was having control problems with it – including a splitter that went about 50 feet – literally hitting 10 feet short of the plate against Tucker. I guess with a 102 MPH fastball you think you are invincible. You are not. Tucker did a masterful job of working an 0-2 count and staying alive through seven more pitches. He had the most RBIs since the All Star break (22) BEFORE his grand slam.
– Have all the umpires suddenly gone to the Angel Hernandez school of calling strikes? The last strike of the game was not a strike, but both sides got hit by bad strike calls last night. Jon Singleton started his at bat with a “strike” 6 inches above the zone. But he coolly worked the walk. Sure, some of those pitches were way off the plate, but he didn’t pull a Pena and go outside the zone. He had to be ecstatic to ride home on Tucker’s blast.
– On both Yordan’s blasts last night I thought they were gone when they left the bat. The first one might have gone if the CF did not make a great catch. The second one had so much spin on it the CF got turned around and just missed pulling it in. I guess he did not quite square up either, but even then he sure puts a charge in them.
– The five runs given up by Framber early were very disappointing, especially after his no-no, but you have to be proud of him for shaking off those first two innings and adding on five more innings with one more run allowed. The Astros were able to only use the two relievers to finish off the game. Glad Stanek got his head back on straight.
– Funny – I just watched a rerun of Mom that had Kimchi in the title. We have to hope that Abreu starts hitting again, because he certainly is going nowhere, much less the road to nowhere, any time soon. If they wanted to trade him in the off-season they would have to swallow most of his salary or trade him along with a good prospect.
– I will miss most of today’s game – we are doing something different – going to a concert here in Sugar Land. Darryl Hall (without Oates) is bringing his Darryl’s House band with him and Todd Rundgren is opening for him. If you ever get to watch any of the Darryl’s House episodes on AXS TV, I would recommend them. He has a musical guest on each episode, some newbies, some classic older folks. He normally does the show at his house in upper New York state where the folks come in play some songs from the guest and from Hall and Oates history, have a meal where they yap about “stuff”. Very enjoyable. One of my favorites was when he went to Hawaii to Rundgren’s house. Also loved him having Tommy Shaw from Styx, the O’Jays, Smokey Robinson and lots of others. And no he is not paying me.
LikeLike
Sounds like a blast! Have a good time!
LikeLike
A shout out to the crawfishboxes for shouting out to us
https://www.crawfishboxes.com/2023/8/9/23825635/astros-crawfish-boil-august-9-2023
LikeLike
The lineup nobody would want to face, but we will probably never see:
Altuve 2B
Tucker RF
Bregman 3B
Alvarez LF
Diaz C
Brantley DH
McCormick CF
Singleton 1B
Pena SS
LikeLike
1OP, I think Singleton is a bit presumptuous, but I’d be very pleased if he became successful at this point in time. But again the conundrum is what the line up maker is thinking!
LikeLike
To me, it’s not necessarily his performance or even the threat of his possible performance. It’s about what the RLRLRLRLR and the threat of extra base hits and walks from that lineup offers in comparison to a lineup containing a Maldonado/Abreu one. This lineup is balanced and makes opposing managers use up their bullpens and creates duress for pitchers on every pitch.
Singleton may not be the answer, but he is a helluva lot bigger threat against RH pitchers than Abreu or Maldonado have been.
LikeLike
1OP, absolutely no argument but again, the line up maker is not going to cooperate. Wittingly or unwittingly, he will continue to sabotage the season unless unless dragged away. And that’s not going to happen.
LikeLike
Thinking is another of those things that Dusty Baker is not good at.
LikeLike
One thing that I think is funny in retrospect – it felt like right off the bat that both of Alvarez’ blasts were going out (and yes they were close). When Tucker’s came off the bat I thought it was a gap double. It was not one of his majestic moon shots – it was a blistering line drive that just carried and carried.
I’m not the person to research this, but I wonder how many at bats that go 8 pitches or more end up with a hit or home run for the hitter. It just seems like when they get that many looks at it, that a hitter will barrel up something.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The apex of Tucker’s HR was 58 feet off the ground.
LikeLike
On the season, Bautista had given up 5 earned runs in 52.1 innings, before giving up the 4 last night in 1 IP.
LikeLike
A couple of tidbits. Since you’re talking about Singleton, he hit a ninth-inning grand slam back in 2014, though it only added to a 14-5 win. Singleton’s was the second of the game (Chris Carter). And Brian Bogusevic (remember him?), hit a walk-off grand slam against the Cubs in August 2011.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bogusevic is now an occasional commentator on the Astros network, whether in the studio pre and postgame shows or the tv or radio airings.
LikeLike
I remember that Bogusevic walkoff very well – one of the few highlights that year.
LikeLike
Our lineup tidbits for the day. Diaz sits, that’s 4 of the last 6, with just one start behind the plate.
Chas has been pipped again. Frenchy and Jake have retaken ownership of center field.
The inexplicable manager. And we’re hoping to have Abreu sit for Singleton?
LikeLiked by 2 people
I was just looking at that and thinking the same.
LikeLike
I was just wishing out loud for Singelton to replace Kimchi. Much like I did when I was a kid sitting in the outhouse reading the Sears & Roebuck Christmas wish book before I started tearing pages out of it for obvious reasons. Yes, I am that old. 😉
There is a reason why Chas keeps getting “pipped” (as you call it. I have a different word) by this so-called manager. But because the more sensitive types (I have another word for that, too) around here don’t want to hear it, it doesn’t get mentioned. That doesn’t make it less of a fact, however. Every day, we see more evidence of it.
LikeLike
The lineup posted on facebook 51m ago shows Chas in the lineup.
I will say this – having Chas/Diaz in the lineup sparingly while protecting the playing time of his offensive blackhole of a catcher and his 20M dollar man smacks of protecting the ego of the owner who gave said 20M his 20M without a GM advising and the ego’s of all his veterans at the expense of a better lineup.
And Singleton, he was in the middle of the one of the hottest streaks at any level of baseball this year, and he was taken out of that to sit and watch baseball. The guy is seeing beach volleyballs up there right now, in the last few weeks he had even driven down his usually insanely stupid K rate down to 20%, something I would have never thought could happen. He is so hot that you have to think that could carry on a week here – but alas, Dusty don’t care.
I just think Dusty is more interested in happy veterans in the clubhouse than winning. He is not a serious manager.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Chas is playing left. He is not sitting. Dubon, hitting .175 with a .434 OPS in the last four weeks is in center. Chas has not been in center since the Cleveland series.
I think Abreu is 2 for his last 31.
6,7,8,9 in tonights line up is flat out thrilling.
And I don’t think Baker necessarily has happy veterans in the clubhouse. Most of them prefer to win.
LikeLiked by 2 people
“He is not a serious manager.”
Well, he’s not a funny one, either. Unless you’re the type of sicko who laughs at somebody having a case of the hives.
I think your point is valid. He doesn’t care about winning. That we knew before he ever started in Houston, for crying out loud. He cares about Dusty Baker.
I think my point is also valid. Just unmentionable. The Orwellian world we live in and all.
I, for one, don’t care a furry rodent’s rump whether these pampered feminized brats get upset at being benched, traded, DFAd, or waived. I would care even less if I were a millionaire – check that billionaire owner paying them.
They are merely entertainers and their job is to entertain me by winning. They can just STFU about all the societal horse hockey and community events BS and visiting the White House and play ball like they’ve been taught to play ball. Or they can get their happy azz on the Greyhound and go somewhere else.
Simple as that.
LikeLike
OK, boys, here’s your chance to pick up a game on the Strangers. Please try not to f*** it up. Dusty doesn’t care, but we (the fans) do!
Nice start, Tucker! Don’t let up on em now!
LikeLike
I guess even kimchi can be all right now & then. If you’re stuck on a frozen reservoir, you’ll take whatever you can get.
LikeLike
Article at mlb.com: https://www.mlb.com/astros/news/j-p-france-moves-back-into-astros-six-man-rotation
““He earned it,” Baker said. “This is an ‘earn it’ business.””
Yeah, right. Tell that to Yainer Diaz and see if he agrees with you, Dusty.
Next I’m sure he’ll be on an HEB commercial trying to tell me there’s no inflation…..
LikeLiked by 1 person
I read that just now and was prepared to comment on it in the same vein as you just put it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
GMTA Sarge! 🙂
LikeLike
Four strikeouts through 3 innings. Yup, right on track….. 😦
LikeLike
Eight strikes through 5 innings. Bases stranded full TWICE. Nice going Pinhead – I mean Pena. Stay away from Yordan. He doesn’t need anything from you. He’s already absorbed too much!
LikeLike
Monterrible warming up. So now the big question is whether I should choose a thriller or a western……
LikeLike
11 K’s through 6 innings. Pitiful. Wish I could get paid a dollar for every time I’ve hollered “what the hell are you swinging at, dumb****?” at my TV!
LikeLike
If Frenchy gets on, you’ve gotta PH for MaldoNADA. Got to.
LikeLike
Obviously, Dusty doesn’t care about winning.
LikeLike
Good to see Tuve & Breggy remember how they earn their daily bread. Winning despite Dusty!
LikeLike
Not too often you have 12 strikeouts and strand that many runners on base and still pull out a win against a team as good as the Orioles. Just enough timely hitting before it was too late.
And the bullpen FINALLY did their jobs effectively!
Javier settled down after that shaky 4th inning and earned a solid win. Even Kimchi contributed a little with his bat and didn’t screw up with his glove.
Alvarez, however, has me worried. He didn’t look good at all. I hope he’s all right.
Think I’ll tune in about an hour after first pitch tomorrow so I can skip all the ugliness and watch only the good parts!
Never have been a morning person and in this heat, I much prefer living like a snake. Up at night and sleep all day!
LikeLike
I have been here for something like 12 years and I have never heard anyone cut the players and coaches down like you do, even in the years when we were starving for wins.
I wish you would stop it. I’m very tired of you coming here and bad mouthing my team.
I criticize them and I brag on them and I bleed orange but this is an Astros blog, not an Anti-Astros blog. We blog, you rant. Everyone across the nation hates the Astros because the Astros kick their team’s asses. Why don’t you act like an Astros fan for a change?
Please stay and offer your thoughts. But please try to control your rants.
The most embarrassing thing of all is your offensive abuse of the player’s names. A man’s name is something that should be respected here and everywhere. No one on the Astros is named Kimchi or any other purposely altered name.
Straighten yourself up and let’s have some fun.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Around here, their names are Kimchi and MaldoNADA. I don’t care whether you like it or not. Not impressed at all by your alleged longevity.
If you want to praise the emperor’s new clothes, go right ahead. He’s still naked as a jaybird, pal.
As we used to say in the infantry, blow it out your stacking swivel.
LikeLike
Good morning!
I don’t know what to think about Cristian Javier. Maybe he’ll end up being a big help in the pen come the post season, assuming we get there. But he’s got to start throwing strikes, regardless of what he’s doing for us.
Six hits and 5 RBI’s from Altuve and Bregman. Two more on a dinger from Tucker. That sure helps. We were not expecting much from the bottom half of the line up.
If Singleton didn’t get a shot to pinch hit in the 8th with our weakest hitters coming up and a guy throwing 100 mph flat meatballs right down the middle, then I don’t think Dusty is prepared to play him very often.
tiredoldfan, last night you told my good friend to stuff it. That’s not going to work around here. You are certainly an excellent, colorful writer with an ability to share life experience along with your baseball knowledge. Maybe you can temper your posts, but I’m guessing you can’t or won’t.
LikeLike
“….you told my good friend to stuff it.”
Well, if you’re feeling left out, you, too, can go in through the out door.
“Maybe you can temper your posts, but I’m guessing you can’t or won’t.”
Not to suit you, no.
LikeLike
I forgot about Montero. Last four weeks the BA against is .147. ERA is 2.33. The .OPS against is still at .675 which is too high. He can’t give up the big hit. But he’s been around the plate and looks far more confident on the hill. If Graveman finds what he’s shown before, then we are really making progress in the pen. Can Phil regroup?
LikeLike
Good game last night. Man Javier was all over the place. When you manage to have 30+ pitch innings without giving up a run that is crazy. It’s like someone did the 3-2 challenge on him, see if he can break a record for 3-2 counts in a game.
You have to hand it to the Orioles though – for so many young players they are excellent at laying off pitches. Javier is just a bad match up for them.
Dana Brown said in an interview yesterday – “Lemme put it to you this way, Kyle Tucker will be a Houston Astro. We feel strongly about getting this done and I feel he will be an Astro for the rest of his career. We’ll get it done.” Pretty gutsy for our GM to go on like that about one player and one contract – if Tucker ends up not resigned he may end up chased out of town with pitchforks now. The amount of King Tuck stuff around the stadium now, really, any stadium, is crazy.
LikeLike
Tucker won’t be cheap but he should be worth every penny of it. We’ll have 12MM of Brantley’s to play with for next year but then there’ not a lot of room until 2025 when Bregman and Altuve’s come off the books. I suspect we’ll resign Altuve for a few more years but it’s less than 50/50 for Bregman. We’re stuck with Abreu’s and Montero’s 40MM total until 2026 but maybe Montero will get back to his good form. Abreu, well that’s another story. We also have to think about Framber. I don’t think that the management team is as hot on extending him as Tucker but I could be wrong. Yet it would be a good deal to extend him.
As for last night a good win for the good guys. Altuve, Bregman and of course Tucker accounting for 7 out of 8 RBI’s. Still leaving too many on base but a win is a win. Only two games out now.
LikeLike
You heard it hear first – I would not be surprised if Brantley is back next year, albeit on a very team friendly deal, like 2M guaranteed with heavy incentives. Not saying it will, not saying I want it, I’m saying, don’t be surprised.
LikeLike
Steven, if I have an early complaint about ur GM, it’s that he’s too candid. Tucker goes somewhere else and his credibility is shot. We needed a lefty bat. We did not need a starter. He’s a bit all over the place. Be positive but don’t promise.
LikeLike
I’m having a hard time dealing with the fact that Chas is back in the rotation with Dubon and Jake. Chas has become one of the best hitters at his position in the league. And he plays solid defense. He should be an everyday player as much Pena is. But again, I have to be resigned to the fact that performance, for whatever reasons, will be ignored.
LikeLike
It’s weird, the initial lineup released today had McCormick in it batting 7th, and was a last minute scratch to Dubon.
Makes me think Chas is fighting something nagging that we aren’t aware of. Of course that nagging could be Dusty’s dislike for him lol.
Other than that, he is giving us the lineup we have been clamoring for.
LikeLike
A note to Tired Old Fan and to Old Pro
The point Old Pro is trying to make TOF is that you are pounding and pounding the same points, most of which are not changing, while the Astros are going 8-3 in their last 11 games against tough competition. The name calling and same points gets old after a while.
Old Pro – I think we are in a Bopert situation here. May just need to let it roll and read other comments.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I understand a lot of what TOF is saying as I believe many of us do. However, there comes a time when the negativity becomes such that it becomes the only thing that we are focused on. That is not healthy. I will say that I find some of TOF’s comments humorous and I have a good laugh but let’s point out some positives. Having been an Astros fan since the teams inception I (we) have had to live through a lot of highs and lows and more lows than highs.
Maybe we’re a little bit spoiled from our last 8 years where we were in the playoffs for 7 of those. If there is one thing for certain in baseball as in all sports, there is the certainty that winners will become losers and losers will become winners (well almost). A changing of “the guard” occurs quite often and we have to deal with it. While we’re not at the top of our game we’re still on a path to the playoffs and I hope we get there. After all we could be the New York Yankees. Imagine how they’re feeling these days.
LikeLike
Well almost….. you had me laughing there. I was about to say, um, Pittsburgh just called, they would like to talk to you…..
LikeLike
Yes I’ve tired of the old fan come at already and skip straight past them. They are out of character with the rest of the many years of many calm and thoughtful comments on here, which is why many of us are still reading avidly, many years later.
I’m glad you stepped in.
Thank you.
SD
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m not as old as some of you old timers, hey, the franchise is actually slightly older than me, but I get where you can go sideways as a fan. My early years as a fan were at the dome screaming Cruuuuuuuuuuzzzzzzz” as a kid. My dad was a huge fan.
We watched a pretty good 80s team from start to finish of the decade be pretty competitive but Doran and Glenn and Cruz and Scott just couldn’t get them over the hump. As happens, rebuilds. Early 90s, not the best time. But then Bagwell and Biggio came along. But even with vacay stays from the Unit and Beltran we just couldn’t get the big one. Then we went to the Rocket and his pal (not the rocket with a tree pal from the Avengers, the other one, though Andy kind of resembles a tall tree). Got right there, but three aces couldn’t bring home an aging offense that just couldn’t get it done in multiple playoff trips and a WS (oddly enough, by the WS) sweep. Then we thought El Caballo is a horse we can hitch too, but the pitching fell apart right after. They just couldn’t get an offense and pitching staff together together. The great exodus, Roy O, Puma, Pence, everyone traded for our favorite flavors of ice cream and nothing else except failed pitching prospects – and the dark days. A promise from a new owner, but years of misery. Debates about Chris Carter and Robbie Grossman. Then 5’6″ (allegedly) of dynamite. He changed it all. A genius GM that maybe couldn’t draft a pitcher to save his life but he knew the hitters to draft, the guys to sign, a little Dallas in Houston, and there we were back in the thick of it.
Pops got to see most of it. We shared a long phone conversation that went to 2 a.m. on that night in 2017, remembering all the trips to the dome and MMP we shared and how sometimes baseball was bigger than life in our memories.
As fans we can get to caught up in it. I get alot of where TOF is coming from. I feel much the same frustration. Abreu just doesn’t have it anymore. That 60M is money that needs to be somewhere else when you are owned by an ownership group that isn’t led by a man worth 17.5B like the Mets. Steve Cohen could literally get divorced, give half to his ex, get remarried, divorced again, give half of that, repeat that process 3 more times, before Jim Crane has the same money. No one is going to feel sorry for a guy worth almost 2B like Crane, but he can’t go tens of millions into a luxury tax and the pay tens of millions into it. There can be a lot of frustration – and blame – onto guys that are just out there trying to make a living out of this game.
I share a military background with you tiredoldfan – I actually found Chip way back when he was on Chronicle website as a fanblog and I was in Iraq, 2007ish I believe (I spent alot of years there, so it’s easy to mix em up). I couldn’t watch the game obviously but I had some internet and used Chip as my news into the Astros, because, frankly the paid staffers on the Chronicle at the time were just not as insightful as the guy they got for free. And Chip will tell you, in my younger days I was a whipper snapper that would give him grief if I didn’t agree. When he announced his divorce from the Chronicle but said the world would keep spinning, I stuck it out. I’ve had my moments with OP in the past – but one thing we both always understood, it was for a love of our team. We just want them to make smart decisions because we all always knew the resources were limited. They can’t give someone an out of earth contract because another out of earth contract didn’t work like the Yankees, Dodgers or Mets. So we have had our arguments over bang for buck guys like Marisnick and Grossman, but I always knew, we loved this team, and that’s what it was about. So don’t take any of it personal, I did once, I left for a few years, I got over it, and I came back. They are patient lot TOF, don’t take any of it personal. The more voices we have here, the more debate we can have – even though we all are aware Dusty doesn’t actually read our comments and he is going to do what Dusty is going to do, it’s definitely fun to dream about what Yainer’s year could have been with 500 PAs.
LikeLike
A small but amusing side story on the 7-6 win …
Living here now, I only get to see the games live if I go to our local bar (The Yard House, as it happens, excellent, no affiliation).
I came to meet a couple of friends after the gym, and it was about the sixth inning. The TV screen near us had some soccer on, but no one was watching. So I asked the waiter if they could change the channel to the Astros, as many other screens in the bar were showing, but I had to crane my neck to see half a view.
Duly changed an inning later, we were 3-6 down still. Waiter came over to see if all was ok and I asked if they could also change the score. Much amusement and laughter from all us Astros fans including the waiter.
An inning later, when Tucker launched his bomb, we just stared open mouthed at each other. Wow.
LikeLike
Did the waiter look at you say “you’re welcome.”? That would have been funny.
LikeLike
I kind of think he did, although I can’t remember the exact words (3 excellent IPAs into an excellent evening). But we did indeed raise our eyebrows and giggle a lot.
LikeLike
Those of you who can’t even handle criticism of your local baseball team are going to find the next few years a very difficult time as your little world comes crashing down. I can find plenty of much more important things to write about than anything being discussed here. I feel sorry for you.
Not really. I’m going to enjoy watching this.
LikeLike
I’m a daily reader of this blog and have been since Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, and George Springer turned this franchise around. Like many here, I wonder why Abreu plays as much as he does. I wonder why Chas McCormick doesn’t start every game. I wonder what’s wrong (if anything) with Jeremy Peña. I wonder why Maldonado plays 4/5 days. I wonder about batting order and why it is the way it is. Criticism of those things is fair. But the recent barrage of ad hominem attacks on players and managers I find unnecessary and insufferable. The attacks by one poster here remind me of the people who sat behind me in the upper deck at OU Football in 1996 who constantly screamed useless and crude invectives at our QB. Or the ones who sat around me who regularly cursed Landry Jones in 2010-2011. I hope the long time posters here who also find this behavior insulting will not be driven away. As for me, I’ll be scrolling right past the personal attacks so I can get to the posts where I can read thoughtful, rational and intelligent analysis about a franchise that has been part of my life since Cedeno, Cruz and Puhl were patrolling the outfield in the Astrodome. As for the team; All in all, considering the tidal wave of injuries we’ve had, I think things are going pretty well.
LikeLike
Amen to all that Jeff. I am scrolling right past the tired old comments to read the usual thoughtful insight. Maybe they will just bopert away soon? The long held calm and thoughtful discussions here are always a high point of my daily few minutes of internet.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bruised knee for McCormick from the dive after the first inning triple / Abreu out with lower back pain. Both are day-to-day.
LikeLike
I don’t wish injury on Abreu, but Singleton has had a couple more good at bats today. Detmers is probably not a good match up for Singleton though. Chas seems to think he’ll be fine tomorrow. Detmers might be a good match up for him.
I thought Brown would get a pat on the back and be done after 6. And I was looking for Maton to get a fresh inning. Wrong again.
LikeLike
Yea for Detmers I would put Diaz at 1B, McCormick in LF and Alvarez at DH, with Meyers in CF. But then again, I never know where Dusty is going with the lineup.
LikeLike
I thank all of you for understanding and your kind comments – I was getting a bit frustrated. I never mind thoughtful criticism here – but I was struggling with the incessant nastiness.
I want this place to be a troll-less environment that’s all.
Always good to hear from so many of you and especially the long time readers like Jeff C and Simon D who may not post often but post respectfully when they do.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Carry on Dan.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Looks to be “All Quiet on the Chapalatta Front”. Had opportunities today but alas they weren’t taken advantage of. Altuve really heating up and if I saw it correctly (condensed game) Yanier cut down 3 runners (2 stealing and 1 trying to advance). He also had 2 hits.
LikeLike
Two out of three – and a hard push toward a sweep – in Baltimore?
No complaints here!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thoughts –
– They flipped one game with the top closer in the AL in the game and came with about 3″ of tying up another one against him. They really fought down to the final out.
– The bullpen seemed to be rolling a bit better this series.
– My brother and I were texting back and forth about Hunter coming out for the 7th in Thursday’s game – it seemed like a bridge too far and was.
– Let’s see – Yainer rips a HR to right center – quite a prodigious blast considering a 36 degree launch angle. Grounds out and then he lines out to CF at 106.5 mph (harder than his homer). Then in the 8th he hits one that is caught one step short of the fence in right field. In the 9th he whacks one that the 3B barely gets his glove on to keep it in the infield. Two inches to the right and it’s probably a tie game. He throws out three guys at 2nd (two stealing and one a pickoff I think). THIS MAN MUST SIT.
– Altuve heating up / Yordan cooling down
Let’s beat up on the Angels.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m hoping Abreu still has a sore back today and Yainer plays first, and then shows us that he can hit lefties too. Regardless of when it happens, he will hit lefties consistently one day soon.
LikeLike
The new MLB Top 100 Prospects list is out and there are no Astros on it.
In the same link is the new Astros Top 30 Prospects list and that has significant changes and adds. Zach Cole pops onto this list at #11. I have been following his slash line progress for most of this season.
https://www.mlb.com/astros/news/top-100-prospects-updated-2023-midseason-rankings?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage
LikeLike
Oh heck, our demise is imminent, again.
LikeLike
I would rather our guys fly under the radar – and then come out of nowhere to surprise everyone. Let the Yank, Dodger, Brave, and Met fans live on hype all they want.
LikeLike