Author: Chip Bailey
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Questions for you to ponder, discuss and debate
Hello from California, the first of three stops on my Tour of America this week. Albuquerque tomorrow, then Charlotte and Greensboro. The Astros have their own “tour” this week through New York and Cleveland as the embark on the last 37 games of the season. Here are three questions for you to ponder, discuss and…
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Free Blog Weekend: Crystal ball on the off-season
It’s Friday and the weekend is on. That means a Free Blog Weekend. It’s a 9-year tradition, starting back in 2005 on that other site. Six months ago, if you’d been offered a 66-96 record — a 15-game improvement and 30-game swing — for the 2014 season, most of you would have accepted the offer,…
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Rumblings: Should Luhnow be on the hot seat?
Are the rumblings growing louder for Jeff Luhnow’s head? Maybe, but it would take failure of a gargantuan level for owner Jim Crane to blow it all up three years into the reconstruction blueprint that promises and improvement this year. Wouldn’t it? From Ken Rosenthal over the weekend. Internal tension seems unavoidable. Owner Jim Crane has…
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August and September about Astros’ improvement
Just two wins shy of the entire 2013 total, the primary question now for the Astros is how much improvement the team will realize over the next 44 games. With the talent on the roster now, the team should avoid a repeat of the horrific August/September (15-41) from last year. And that will be the…
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Some Astros’ catch up after a 3-game win streak
The Astros are 3-0 in August and should be getting some of their future back soon. Meanwhile, with 50 games to go, the Astros are on pace… For 68 wins, a 17-game improvement over 2013. To hit 178 HRs, the most since 2004 (187). For 1.8 million attendance, the most since 2011 (2.067 million). To get…
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Deep pitching: Are Cosart, McHugh, Keuchel expendable?
Maybe it was Jeff Luhnow’s plan all along. Trade Jarred Cosart, Dallas Keuchel or Collin McHugh? Talk about pulling the rug out from under a delicate reconstruction project! Unfortunately, Michael Foltynewicz, Mark Appel, Josh Hader and their friends aren’t quite ready. Maybe Luhnow is taking a gamble. Then again, maybe it isn’t a gamble at…
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MMQB: Astros entering damage control phase
Everyone expected the 2014 season to be pivotal, even critical, for the Astros’ reconstruction project. The organization was hoping the media and fans would be using terms like “step forward”, “progress”, “significant improvement” and “momentum” as the season progressed. Instead, recent articles and radio shows have been littered with these words and phrases: “embarrassing”, “blunders”, “disingenuous”,…
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MMQB: Astros are playing, but is anyone noticing?
Believe it or not, they’re actually playing baseball. Yes, the Astros salvaged a win Sunday in the three-game series with the White Sox. Missing three starters, the Astros pounded out 17 hits in the 11-7 win after two one-run losses to start the second half. Unfortunately — or maybe fortunately for Bo Porter — the…
ALL THINGS ASTROS 