Today we return to a fun little ditty called “Would You Rather” allowing you to make some choices for the Astros down the stretch. (Yeah, I know we don’t really get to choose, but wouldn’t it be fun?)
Would you rather……
- Have the Astros trade for starting pitching assistance, bullpen assistance or a first baseman (or more than one above)?
- See the Astros make a trade or trades based on prospects only, or utilize a Chas McCormick or Jake Meyers as the base of a trade or some type of hybrid?
- Have Chas McCormick or Rafael Montero turn things around down the stretch?
- Have Justin Verlander return to the roster healthy or have Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. return healthy?
- Have Kyle Tucker or Yordan Alvarez lead the team in homers and RBIs down the stretch?
- Have Ronel Blanco (9 wins currently), Framber Valdez (8 wins) or Hunter Brown (7 wins) end the season with the most wins?
- Have Yainer Diaz (49 RBIs currently), Alex Bregman (47 RBIs), or Jose Altuve (44 RBIs) finish with the most RBIs?
- Have Bryan Abreu (46 appearances), Josh Hader (42), Tayler Scott (41) or Ryan Pressly (39) finish with the most appearances?
- Have Jeremy Pena (7 HRs), Jon Singleton (7 HRs) or Yainer Diaz (7 HRs) end with the most homers?
- See the Astros win the AL West through strong play down the stretch or by default as the Mariners fall to earth? (OK, I think I can answer that one).
What do you want to have happen down the stretch? You can answer these questions or just wax poetically on whatever you want to see happen between now and the end of the season. It is your turn.
ALL THINGS ASTROS 
80 responses to “Astros after the break: Would you rather…”
It’s been awhile since I’ve been truly insufferable, I think, so let me ask if anyone can put together a reasonable defense for Joe Mauer making the HOF? He was elected with 76.1% of the ballots voting for him in his first year of eligibility. Now, I think he was a fine player and maybe someone like Steven can spell it out for me, but here’s what annoys me:
Billy Wagner is on his last chance
Jeff Bagwell was elected on his 7th try
Mauer was a catcher except for his final 5 seasons. Over those final five seasons as a 1B/DH he had roughly 800 of his 2100 career hits
Mauer never had 200 hits in a year
Mauer had a career high of 28 HR in 2009 when he won MVP in a season unlike any other in his career
Never had more than 13 HR in another season
3 Gold Gloves for Mauer
Career Postseason OPS of .641
7 of Closest 8 comps on baseball-reference are second basemen: Marty McManus, Michael Young, Dustin Pedroia, Bill Madlock, Jose Altuve, Pinky Higgins (3B), Placido Polanco, and Ray Durham
I’m cherry picking here. I’d just like to know what I missed.
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Maybe Joe bought a lot of cocktails for people over the years.
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If I put Lance Berkman’s career up next to Joe Mauer, there is no doubt about which career I would want. Mauer is not a HOFer, much less first ballot. But I guess it pays to be a great guy sometimes. He lived off of one unforgettable, almost mythical season, and maybe 2 other HOF worthy years, and the rest were a lot of .290s and not even double digit homeruns. Great ambassador for his team and his sport. No Lance Berkman.
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I think Mauer got in because he was considered the best catcher of his generation. He was a six-time all star and five-time silver slugger.
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The baseball HOF (along with the Rocknroll HOF, the Grammys, the Oscars, and a slew of others) all have absolutely nothing to do with excellence and everything to do with the fake ass media pumping a line of “acceptable” norms. Usually on a general population who couldn’t care less outside a remote niche of demographic oddballs and misfits.
So, to cut to the chase; who cares?
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