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Memorial Day ’24 and Astros’ thoughts

As always, today (and every day), we honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country and our way of life. I am honored to have the middle name Lee, which is named after my great uncle Leroy Klug.

We pray for all those souls, the ones remembered and those forgotten who died for this wonderful country. A look back at Memorial Day 2023.

Astro’s Thoughts

  • Well, there is one big thought today, and that is that we are probably not going to see a 6 man rotation any time soon for the Astros. The Astros have gone from a potential plethora of starting pitching options to a bare minimum in a weekend. Jose Urquidy was making what was supposed to be his last rehab start with Sugar Land before joining the Astros when he left the game with forearm discomfort. Seeing the wet noodle of a practice throw he attempted before leaving the mound was not reassuring. Then the news came on Sunday that Cristian Javier is day to day with – you guessed it – forearm discomfort – and did not even attempt his between-starts bullpen session. They may list him day to day, but we heard this tune before.
  • Question – what is the status of J.P. France? He is conspicuously missing from their injury report, that includes everyone and their brother. https://www.mlb.com/astros/news/astros-injuries-and-roster-moves The last thing I could find is something that says he went down with a shoulder injury in the minors on May 7th and would be out “for some time”.
  • There is good news about the rotation with the return of Ronel Blanco, who threw 7 innings of 4 hit/ 1 run ball Sunday. In addition, Hunter Brown and Spencer Arrighetti have pitched better recently. Brown is coming off his best start of the season, six innings of two-run ball, and Arrighetti, while not great, has been solid and improving his last few starts. This is important as the team absolutely needs them while waiting for whoever returns from among Luis Garcia, Lance McCullers Jr., Urquidy, and Javier.
  • I’ll give you four guesses of who has the second most RBIs on the team behind MVP leader Kyle Tucker and his 39 ribbies. Yordan Alvarez? Nope. Alex Bregman? C’mon. Jose Altuve? Sorry. Jeremy Pena? Nah. It is Yainer Diaz of all people, who has not hit a homer since April 11th. Despite putting up a cringy slash of .212 BA/ .225 OBP/ .507 OPS since April 28th, he has 12 RBIs in that time period giving him 23 for the season. Though he is disappointing us vs. what was promised last year, he is putting up a decent Astros’ catcher season. He has to lay off the out-of-zone strikes to get back to what he was doing early in the season.
  • Kyle Tucker has been tremendous so far this season, leading the majors in HRs (18), OPS+ (195), second in slugging (.624), and OPS (1.034). It is interesting to compare Tucker against a certain Yankee, who gets the media’s attention, Aaron Judge. Judge – 37 runs/17 HRs/ 39 RBIs/ .279 BA/.410 OBP/ 1.039 OPS / Tucker – 38 runs / 18 HRs/ 39 RBIs/ .280 BA/ .409 OBP/ 1.034 OPS. That is amazingly similar. I’ll give Tucker the edge for AL MVP with his 9 SBs vs 2 SBs for Judge and the way he is walking more than striking out – he has 36 Ks vs. 61 for Mr. Judge.
  • Jose Abreu went 0-for-8 in his two games at Sugar Land and did not play Sunday as it was announced he would. He is meeting up with the team in Seattle and one can only pray that either he has figured it out or that he won’t hurt the team badly. Truthfully, Abreu hitting like he did for the second half of 2023 and in the playoffs would be better than Jon Singleton. But a repeat of his start to 2024 would be worse.

Any thoughts from my friends today?

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41 responses to “Memorial Day ’24 and Astros’ thoughts”

  1. Thank you again PFC Klug, for making the ultimate sacrifice to our country.

    Gosh, there are so many Astro storylines right now. All I can think to say is that this is a pretty big four game series for so early in the season. One game at a time. We need the best of Framber to show up tonight.

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  2. I guess this is a good time to mention my great uncle whom I never knew. He was an Army chaplain who was captured in the Philippines. He was put aboard a Japanese transport ship to a POW camp. Unfortunately the transport ship was torpedoed by a U.S. submarine who did not know it was transporting POW’s. As the ship was going down the POWs tried to get out of the hold but the guards shot many of them attempting to get off the ship. Over 500 servicemen died as a result. I’m sure there are stories that others can relate to but on this day I take a moment to give thanks for him and others who made the ultimate sacrifice.

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    • I’m guessing Angel will be comfortable in his retirement. MLB has continuing credibility issues though. Too many hitters know the zone better than the guys calling balls and strikes. And look at the strike three call on Jake last night. That one had to be a lack of focus. The game is compromised far too often at the plate. Even some version of a challenge system for balls and strikes would be a start.

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      • It looked like Larry Vanover was honoring Angel Hernandez by handing out unearned strike out on balls well outside the zone.

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      • Thanks Dan, had a good belly deep laugh on that one.

        Vanover had a rough night. he just got fooled himself on so many of those outside pitches. Since Miller is throwing in to out to get outside on a righthander it was definitely to his advantage. Framber could hit those same spots but because the ball doesn’t cross the zone to get to that spot he wasn’t getting the calls.

        In the Army we would just say his weapon was definitely not zeroed.

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  5. Good morning,

    Jose Abreu, as Joe Espada said, did look”fresher” at the plate last night. I don’t know about any weight loss though. We already know he’s not going to make many tough plays at first. We already know he’s much too slow to score from first on a double in the corner with two outs. But we lost last night because our 1 through 5 guys went 1 for 18. Like the Astros, the M’s only had 6 hits. But they seen to awaken when we show up. I just want to split this series. It gets tougher now.

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    • I’m sure you feel the same as I did. When that 1st inning liner got past him on a bounce it set a tone for the inning, and that inning ended up being the game. I’m not sure Singleton makes that play either. I would say the Astros need to find an answer at 1B, but you would remind me they probably have one and they just sent him to Sugar Land.

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  6. I get that we can beat up the middle of the order yet again. But got to give credit to Miller and the Mariners bullpen. They can chunk it. It’s not going to get easier either. This is what prime, healthy quality pitching can do to you.

    Abreu did look better. Everything was still to the right side, even his foul balls, but he looked more aggressive and less lost. I didn’t expect it. I would actually get him back out there tonight. Espada should take him day by day. As long as he looks aggressive and confident, an opposite field hit is as good as any hit.

    He hit a rope off the bat to right-center. My only problem with what he did – he put good wood on it – but the pitch was in the middle of the plate. He should have pulled it. I’m concerned that the days of him getting ahead of a pitch are done. He will still catch some. The power is there, and the swing looked fresh. It comes down to frequency.

    I’m not gonna lie. I like Singleton. I like the at bats. But I am getting frustrated with the lack of timely production. The hit last night was key to that inning. But he had a really good chance to make more impact through the night. This seems to be a pattern. He has had 2 key 2 run jacks this year that either tied a game or put us up (oddly enough, one against Miller earlier in the year), but overall, the 14 RBI is tough when you are batting 6th most nights. The lack of bat to ball with any real authority consistently is leading fans into feeling some feast or famine in his at bats.

    The thing is – to me – he has the quality of a star. He sees more pitches than Bregman this year, and that is saying something because Alex has had for years one of the best eyes in the business. He draws walks, which you love because it extends pitchers and creates leverage. But the difference is when a star goes 3-23 in a stretch his next stretch might be 12-24 with 2 HR. These streaks just never seem to come to Singleton. He just kind of piddles along, never taking his turn in the offensive carousel of carrying the team for a week. But he is a patch, a temporary fix at minimum salary, until the position gets figured out in the offseason.

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    • I don’t know if we need to give them credit. They were throwing what looked like very hittable pitches to me between the mid-thigh and belt but we were watching them or swinging through them. In my opinion Framber looked rough the whole game, but only surrendering 3 runs should have been enough to win. Obviously they aren’t must-win games in May, but missing opportunities in head to heads means you have to rely on the other teams in the league to help you out. The Astros somehow have the highest BA in all of baseball, are 15th in BB, and have struck out the fewest times in the league. They have the 4th highest slugging percentage as well, but watching games like last night you wouldn’t believe any of that.

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    • I should say I hope they do.

      The worst thing that can happen is either Singleton or Abreu get hot, and that makes the Astros think they are fine for 2025.

      Jake Meyers maybe the entire key to 1B in 2025, or at least key to Loperfido getting a shot at 1B.

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  8. Spec 4 tiredoldfan checking in. My middle name is Lee. So we have that in common!

    U.S. Army 1976-1982

    Just a quick check in. Got hit by a tornado Wednesday evening and was without electricity, phone, or internet for >4 days.

    Cleanup & recovery is underway but will take some time. I’m just grateful to have that A/C working again!

    What a mess!

    I don’t know how anybody lived in Texas before it was invented. I know I wouldn’t want to!

    I have a little damage to my laptop so am posting this with my phone. But won’t be doing much posting until that’s repaired, too.

    Y’all take care, God bless, and good luck Astros!

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    • Good luck TOF. Thank you for your service. Are you in north Texas? Trying to remember where the Wednesday tornadoes were. Hope you get everything fixed up soon.

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      • I live in Temple. 65 miles north of Austin on the 35.

        The storm came into town on the west side, hit the new Wal-Mart out there, and headed through town to the southeast.

        From the damage tracks, they think there were 3 or 4 twisters that eventually merged into one F3.

        Lots and lots of big beautiful trees are now firewood waiting to be cut into fireplace size chunks.

        But nobody got killed or seriously injured. So we were blessed!

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      • power came back on memorial day @ ~2000 cdst

        spectrum (isp & mobile) towers providing servicce in this area) are still not fully restored. it will be a minute or two. astound (formerly grande) & other isp substantial, too, i’m sure.

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    • TOF, I lived in Houston (Pasadena) until 1964 when we moved to NC and have been back a few times since then. We didn’t have AC until 1961/62 and that was because I had bad asthma and allergies. My Grandparents lived in the Heights and he didn’t until ’63 with only a one room AC. My other grandparents lived in Huntsville with no AC. In those days you just laid down and did nothing or sat in front of a big rolling fan. I don’t know how I or others survived it but obviously we did. As yes, it did get hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk.

      Take care and stay out of the way of the Tornados. Thankyou for your service.

      Hopefully, we can split the Seattle series or get really lucky and win 3/4.

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      • Yeah, that’s about the same time my parents got their first window A/C unit.

        But we only used it occasionally in Minnesota. You really do need it when the temp is 80 some degrees with 80 some % relative humidity. That’s miserable sticky hot, too.

        I figure the World Series will work itself out with or without me.

        I’ll watch as I can. Right now, all I want is to rest. That 4 days took a lot out of my old body.

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    • tiredoldfan, first off, glad you’re well. Your neighbors too. And thanks for your service. Had a girlfriend with a family house in Brenham in those days. We used to drag the boat up there and ski on Belton Lake. It was full of water then with very little activity out there. We’d sleep aboard under the stars. Every now and then we’d hear the distant rumbling from Fort Hood. Those were indeed the good old days.

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      • The key between “e” & “t” is fouled up afte the stom. So I may have a sububan Hanoi accent to my typing. 🙂

        “Every now and then we’d hear the distant rumbling from Fort Hood.”

        I’ve always slept vey well to the sound of outging mail. Still do. Light now, those kids ae helping clean up the aea.

        The badly damaged spots ae between me & the lake, so I haven’t wandeed out that way. I’m sue it’s full/nea full now.

        Been hanging out noth of home at the Love’s tuck stop in Toy (aka: fist name of QB Aikman) duing the hot aftenoons and coming back to the la hacienda afte sundown. Within distance to a woking Spectum cell towe.

        Now I’m gonna take a nap because I can.

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  10. Glad to see Castllio head to the showers. All that movement on his P was giving this lineup fits, nor could they lay off chasing all those outside P. Yordan needs more PT in left. The graph displayed of his numbers hitting when playing the field is off the charts

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  11. Pressly can’t hold a lead and Heinz Abreu can’t field his position any better than he can hit the breaking stuff.

    Great job coach Bagwell.

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  12. Heinz misses a play he should have made and Pressley ain’t worth a Tinker’s damn. A game that we should have won barring a miracle.

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  14. Would I rather have the Mariners stellar rotation or the Astros “5th ranked” offense (funny it is absent so much for a 5th ranked offense?). Easy answer. Head to head, 4-1. Overall record, now separated by 5.5 games. Their offense stinks. The guy they bat cleanup is worse than the guy we have batted cleanup all year and we deride that guy.

    Altuve. Alvarez. Tucker. Bregman. Verlander. We got the stars. We got the salaries. It doesn’t matter, they have the rotation. And winnings seasons are founded in rotations.

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    • When they made their moves from Nov – January it sure looked to me like Seattle was waving the white flag. It now looks more like clearing out some surplus and a malcontent. Sure, their offense is going to keep them from actually winning, but that rotation does look strong.

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      • Yea, I sit next to a Mariners at work all day. We were talking about this. They have the rotation to get to the playoffs. I expect them too. With that rotation I don’t expect a fall off that will open a door for us, sans injury.

        That said, it’s hard to win in the playoffs if you can’t generate some runs against the pitching you will face in the playoffs. They don’t. They are scratching out against us by hitting our somewhat hittable guys. They won’t scratch like this against the Yankees rotation or the Orioles rotation (or bullpens). But those offenses are good, they are going to get their 3-4 runs on your guys no matter how much the Mariners pitchers ball out, and make a few bad pitches and Judge/Soto are going to crush you for more.

        Everything in my soul hates the Yankees. This is a tough season to watch on both fronts, but Soto and a healthy Rodon and Stroman, those 3 guys have completely changed the outlook of the entire American League. And now Judge is back to being Judge. It’s going to be a long season for a Stros fan/Yankees hater.

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  15. I don’t know if anyone else here watches a little “professional” wrestling. I do. Have since I was a kid listening to the Hulkster to tell me to eat my vitamins and say my prayers.

    Currently there are two big companies. Of course, the WWE (used to be WWF). There is a new company, couple years old now, started by the owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars (well his son, but the Khan family). Now, Vince McMahon, for all his scuminess, was born into the business. His dad started the WWF. He had to buy it from him, because McMahons don’t give away anything. But he was born into it. He learned early how to separate rubes from their money. He was around wrestlers. He put the ring together as a kid. He learned how the concessions worked. He learned how merch was sold. He even served as ref for matches early and learned how the wrestlers communicated and used the ref as a go between to call spots in matches. He served as a play by play commentator. He did backstage interviews.

    When he bought the company, he understood every aspect of that business. He understood how to help the wrestlers tell a long term story, good guy vs. bad guy (face vs heel). He knew how to create characters that illicit emotion from fans. He used that knowledge to build an empire.

    When I watch the other company, AEW, you can tell it was started by a fan with a lot of money. He has no clue what he is doing. Tony Khan grew up a fan of wrestling, and he thought this would be easy, because he was a fan.

    The Astros, since 2020, remind me that a fan owns this team. Yes, he found the right guy at first, and he let him have control. But then, when he let that guy go, he thought, I can do this myself. This roster is a bad match of under performing, highly paid veterans and youngsters that seem to be out of their own heads right now. Its hard for me to watch Yainer Diaz right now, because I am a huge fan, but Espada is so out of his depth on how to handle big leaguers and their psyches. Yainer has no confidence right now, and how could you when your manager has dropped you all the way to 9th, he is telling you what he thinks of you as well.

    The stories are so similar. In 1989 Jerry Jones bought the Cowboys. He let an architect come in and put that thing back to the base. 1-15 in Johnson’s first year. They went on to win 3 titles. After the 2nd, Jones and Johnson couldn’t co-exist, because Jones wanted more say. So Switzer, the old vet, is brought in and wins that third with Johnson’s guys. But you could see the holes. The owner thought he could do the job himself. The Cowboys have never been the same.

    It all comes down to an owner who thinks he knows the business, and really doesn’t.

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    • Yeah, everywhere one looks, we don’t exactly have an organization clicking on all cylinders. I’m humored though, that Bagwell, and for that matter, the entire committee, seem to have gone underground. Reggie got silenced. Biggio is too smart to say anything. Joe and Dana get to share the scattered company line on the state of affairs in Astroland.

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      • Right. No more interviews of Reggie saying this thing is a committee. Bagwell is “on vacation.” The front is quiet except the two guys holding the bag that can’t hide, Brown and Espada.

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  16. I went to sleep last night up 2-1. These days it’s tough to have confidence in waking up to a win. Hunter did great job after his traditional first inning troubles, although he threw two sweet strikes to Crawford and got 2 balls. That had to piss him off from the start. Not enough offense though. Again. Castillo looked hittable. And Pressly, right now, he’s the wrong guy to protect a one run lead. It’s a shame too. I know, some folks want to blame that second double on Abreu. But again, we already know he’s a liability at first. We’ve been forced by powers beyond our own to manage our expectations.

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  18. Stevem. I have been singing that tune lately and could not agree more on the front office missteps hastening the decline of this organization. You and Dave7 provide plenty of fodder commenting, none of which I can disagree with.

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  19. During the A’s series, Blum displayed a graphic of Yordan’s swing/hit % (I believe it was that. You guys would know better), from 2019-2023. It had always been in the 20-30ish + range. In 2023 it was 60+. This year it is -1 thus far. Blum also said Yordan is chasing more along with swinging at 1st P this season. Is he trying something new, making adjustments of some kind. Yordan appears out of sorts to me. Last night a graph displayed Yordan’s avg when playing L field over 162 gms. It was off the charts. Maybe he does not like DHing all the time

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