We Bee-lieve...a Blog for Astros Fans

What a GRAND(slam) Day!!

2007-05-06T07:54:00.000-05:00

Congrats to Matt Albers for his 1st Major League win and to Hunter Pence for his 1st Career HR, which just happened to be a Grand Slam! Good Job boys, lets continue with the offense today and help Chris Sampson out.

On the Trade Front - Morgan Ensberg seems to be catching the eye of the Angels. Also, I've heard the Dodgers are looking for a third baseman. That could be interesting....Has Mo's offense uptick the past couple of days stamped his ticket out?

Injury Update - Rick White is in Corpus Christi making some Rehab throws, while on Monday, the Astros Brain Trust will hash out Jason Jennings schedule for return. Let's hope it's sooner rather then later.

The interesting thought becomes who is going away when Rick and Jason return?

Neive Out!

2007-05-02T11:11:00.000-05:00

John Lopez forwarded me this article in the Houston Chronicle today. Fernando Neive will be shut down for a bit with a partial tear in his elbow. That does not bode well for the 'Stros as their farm system is very depleted right now. Some hopefuls that the Astros might need to lean on if the pitching woes increase due to injury.

Paul Estrada with a 2.19 ERA over 11 games working the RR 'pen. Starter Phillip Barzilla has been good with a 3-1 record, but a high ERA of 5.97 in 7 games. Juan Gutierrez is posting a 1-2 record over 5 games with an ERA of 3.18. That's what cooking in Round Rock.

In Corpus Christi, our Hooks pitching staff looks like this, Felipe Paulino in 1 game is 0-1 with an ERA of 5.40, while Jimmy Barthmier is 1-1 with an inflated ERA of 9.26. Our rising star, Troy Patton has posted the following line in 5 starts, 1-2 record, 3.18 ERA, 17Ks/8BBs and a Batting Average Against (BAA) of .241.

We need to stock these teams with some consistent and healthy talent. That is why Jason Lane, Chris Burke and Morgan Ensberg should be on the trading block next to Brad Lidge.

I'll work in doing a position by position breakdown of our minor league prospects just to see where we stand.

A big thanks to Tim over at MLBTraderumors.com for posting We Bee-lieve on his site. Visit MLBTR often. Great stuff always.

Astros Talk with John Lopez

2007-05-01T20:58:00.000-05:00

Earlier this month, I asked numerous sports writers and talk radio personalities in Houston to take part in an "Email Round Table" discussion about the Houston Astros. The first to respond is Houston Chronicle writer and co-host of the "Monsters of the Midday" afternoon radio show on ESPN790 The Sports Animal. My questions and John's answers are below. Enjoy!

1.) We are now through the 1st month, are you concerned with the direction or is it too early?Absolutely concerned. The front office convinced itself that Carlos Lee was some kind of magic pill to make everything better. He'll make the offense better (marginally), but there are too many other things going wrong and they saw them coming. Lidge, Burke in center, Ensberg, starting pitching (although that hasn't been a problem).
2.) If you could look into a crystal ball and see the team on July 31st, from what you know now, who can you see packing their bags for another city?
Ensberg, if he doesn't pick things up. There are too many options at third and he holds more value than anyone else. Second option: Lidge.
3.) Everyone knows that Houston's pitching is suspect right now, but we do have some bright spots in the minors. What are your thoughts on the Astros minor league pitching talent?Fernando Nieve belongs up here sooner rather than later, even if his numbers haven't quite been overwhelming. I think Troy Patton and Felipe Paulino have the brightest futures from what I've seen. Beyond that, haven't seen anything out of this world yet.
4.) Now that Hunter Pence is in his proper place (Centerfield in the Majors), does this make Chris Burke/Luke Scott/Jason Lane expendable?
Yes. Lane should be the one out on the market, but the Astros love him for whatever reason. I'm guessing Scott will be odd man out.
5.) What is your greatest Astros memory?
Too many to name them all. Most recently, though -- Bagwell's opposite-field single to beat the Brewers in '05, Oswalt's effort at St. Louis to clinch the NL, Burke's extra-inning blast, Kent's walk-off homer in the playoffs.
6.) Tim Pupura is facing a big year. Should he be more flexible in the talks of trading Brad Lidge? Also, does Brad Lidge still have good value on the trade market? Also, if Lamb and Loretta could provide a serviceable platoon at 3rd, do you see Morgan being moved?
THat's pretty much what I answered a few questions earlier. Lidge, not so valuable on the market, but still would bring something. And yes, Purpura needs to be more flexible, as you put it.
7.) If the Astros remain a .500 team throughout the season, will Phil Garner be looking for a new job?
Only if the Astros want him to.
8.) What player in the Major League do you want to see play more then any other?
You probably won't like it: Carlos Beltran. Or Albert Pujols. Pitching-wise, Roy O or Johan Santana.
9.) Is the Rocket headed back home to Houston? With the Yankees in serious trouble, they are not looking that hot right now, but the Red Sox are sure pouring it on.
I think he'll end up in Boston. But I've been in the minority on that opinion for months now.
10.) If to win the division, the number is 87, are the Astros over or under?
Under.

I want to thank John for taking the time to read and respond to my questions. I'll post my responses to his answers in the next post.

A Fresh Start?!?!

2007-05-01T08:57:00.000-05:00

Saturday's excitement turned into Sunday's disapointment real quick. But, with the day off yesterday and some time to regroup and rethink about where we are on the 1st of May, maybe our boys can get it rolling tonight.

Sundays game was another dose of 'same ol same ol'. They sure crashed off Saturday's high. But what a rush to hear that crowd whenever Hunter Pence was near the plate or a ball was hit anywhere near centerfield. I said in previous posts that he doesn't have to come up here and tear the cover off the ball, he's just got to play and be exciting, and fun and give this listless team a much needed spark. The one thing that you can easily see about this team is that they are not really playing with all they got. Something is missing. Maybe Hunter can bring that to them. Maybe seeing his youthfull love of the game will light a fire under Carlos Lee and Lance Berkman, Luke Scott and Morgan Ensberg. From what I've seen, this team plays the best and is winning the best when they are just playing baseball and not trying to press.

So tonight we face Bronson Arroyo is looking for his first win this year. Let's deny his bid again with another strong outing by rookie Matt Albers and let's get this offense rolling.

On the Trade Front, all is quite right now, but I sence a storm brewing. If Morgan can't get things clicking, he might end up as bait. With the need for solid starting pitching and some top rated bodies for the Minor League system, some of our boys might find themselves packing bags by July.

On the Injury Front - Jason Jennings threw off the mound on Friday (40 pitches), all fastballs. If he feels all right, he was supposed to throw 50-60 pitches off the mound on Sunday (a few breaking balls too), but I have not heard an update on that session. Rick White is still out and Brandon Backe is just cruising through his rehab. It's a little scary if you ask me. I want to see Brandon out there as much as anyone, but good lord I hope he doesn't do more damage then good.

Here he comes....!!!!

2007-04-28T07:29:00.000-05:00

It's about time, out boy is getting his chance. Last night Tim Purpura made the best move of his short and thusfar uneventful GM career. Hunter Pence is going to be the Astros starting Centerfielder tonight!! Now, he might not show up and starting slamming homers, and racking up doubles, but just him being on this roster is a step in the right direction. Something had to be done and it needed to be done NOW!!

Last night, another masteful outing by Roy O was wasted by a lame offence. Again, we left almost 10 men on base. We had numerous runners in scoring position and we just couldn't do a darn thing to get them home.

So now the 'Stros are under the microscope and we'll see what happens. I'm just to damn happy about the Pence promotion that I just don't know what to write...so, I'll wait until tonight.

Go 'Stros!!

How depressing!!!

2007-04-26T08:13:00.000-05:00

16 innnings, 18 men LOB...not cool. What a dismal display of hitting last night. Mo went 0-7 w/10 LOB, Lance was 2-7 w/4 LOB, Chris Burke was 0-2 w/1 BB and 3 LOB, and Carlos Lee was 2-6 with 2 LOB. If Ensberg had just gone 2-7 or 2-6 with a walk, the game would have had a very different outcome and I would have gotten to sleep a lot earlier. What is the problem with situational hitting with this team? Every night we find ourselves in a position to put the game away with timely hitting and fail. Sean Barry and Phil Garner need to concentrate on this aspect of the game.

One bright spot was our 'pen pitched very well and held us in the game until the very end. (Side note - Brad Lidge pitched 1IN, had 1 SO and 1 Hit allowed; very encouraging). Bad news this morning though, Rick White was placed on the 15 day DL with a strained side muscle. Does this open the door for Troy Patton or Fernando Neive? Also in DL news, Woddy Williams was sent back to Houston yesterday to get a cortizone shot in his right elbow due to some "soreness." Team officals say that Woody is fine and will not miss any starts. Jason Jennings threw 25 fastballs yesterday off the mound, I wonder how he feels today.

All is pretty quite on the trade front right now. I feel that Astros are in a wait and see mode.

One thing I have to vent on is yesterday, Charlie Palillo from ESPN790 had an interview with Phil Garner and I got the impression that Gar is feeding a line of bull. When asked if 150ABs would be a good sample to deceide if a player has it together, he says "I don't believe there is a number to look at." What the heck? Do we just let Chris Burke flunder at the plate because he "earned" the spot? I can understand (not agree, but understand) about the SS and C positions since we have no viable options, but we have a RED HOT centerfielder in RR who is "RIPPING" up the pitching. When CP asked "Scrap Iron" about Hunter Pence he was very non-commital.

Missing AE?

2007-04-24T06:31:00.000-05:00

With the first swing of the bat, all of Astros Nation thought this game was going to be a great one....and it was, for the Phillies. Jimmy Rollins was friggin on fire last night and Chase Utly showed why he's one of the sweetest hitting second sackers in the game.

But, how many of those seeing-eye shots up the middle would have been outs had Automatic Adam been at Short last night, instead of Mark Loretta? Makes you think a little.....

Lance went yard, but I still get the feeling his timing is still off at the plate. Maybe he's pressing, maybe he's just not seeing the ball well, whatever it is, I hope he breaks out soon.

Regardless of the pitching line, I think Chris Sampson pitched a solid game, Adam Eaton was just better. I've not given up hope that Sampson is going to be a huge lift to this pitching staff.
Sampson (L, 2-1)
4.0 IP
14 H
7 R
7 ER
1 BB
4 SO
1 HR
4.26 ERA

Biggio's .222 BA is not very heart warming. He's just not getting good hits, and Luke Scott needs starting putting the ball in play or he's going to see JLane taking some more of his playing time. It's interesting that in small samples, Luke's numbers have been great, but over a longer period of time, is his true talent going to be exposed?

If you could get a front line starter for a Luke Scott/Chris Burke/Lidge package, would you think about it....?

What a weekend!!

2007-04-23T10:18:00.000-05:00

Well, this weekend didn't go as well as most Astros fans would have liked. Wandy got shelled, Roy had a bad night, the bats still are slow to awake, and Brad Lidge just can't get fixed. So, what is our more pressing problem right now? Pitching!! Lance will get his bat going, Morgan is having a solid start, Luke his performing well, Jason Lane has been a suprise off the bench, AE has been serviceable at the plate and Carlos has been..well, Carlos.

What's scaring me right this moment is Chris Burke. He's not looking comfortable at the plate, he's not hitting the ball hard or playing to contact. Is the pressure of a new postition waying too heavily on his mind and affecting his swing? He's batting a low .268, with 5 BB's, 15 hits, 7 of those for doubles and no HRs.

Compare that to Hunter Pence's line at RR - Hitting .324, 22 hits, 6 doubles, 3 HR's, 16 RBI, and 7 BBs. Hunter has an OPS of .931 and is slugging .544. Chris has an OPS of .740 and he's slugging .386. I'm thinking that Phil and Tim need to be sitting down with Chris and and letting him know that while he "earned" the starting job, it's not his to keep no matter what.

As far as the pitching situation, how's Troy Patton doing?
1W-1L, 2.37 ERA in 3 games. 11K's and 3 walks.
Sounds like he's doing pretty darn good to me!

Tidbits, info, rumors and stuff....

2007-04-21T07:56:00.000-05:00

I took a cruise around and visited some of my favorite Baseball Sites and thought I would share what I found interesting.

At The Baseball Analysts they have a pretty cool little "over/under" line on team and player events. Very cool. I'll take the under on Roger coming back before June 22.

Minor League Ball has good article on feature prospects Jeff Clement of the Mariners and Jarrod Saltalamacchia of the Braves. Very thoughtfull breakdown.

Interesting article in the Chicago Tribue this morning by Phil Rogers. He says "The Tigers are worried their pitching staff is a little too right-handed these days. Don't be surprised if they make a move for a left-handed reliever. The Cubs' Will Ohman is among those they are studying".

What happened?!?!

2007-04-21T07:36:00.000-05:00

A 1-2 count, facing a left handed power hitter....sure, throw the slider, sounds like a great idea right? Well, Prince Fielder thought it was great idea and launched a Brad Lidge slider into the outfield deck seats at Miller Park last night. Our Astros sure don't make it easy. After another slow start with the bats, against a Ben Sheets who was pretty darn close to the Ben Sheets of old. Matt Albers, while not pitching excellant, kept the game at a 1 run difference. Then in the 9th, with the basesloaded and 1 out, Criag Biggio stepped to the plate....and promptly hit his 3rd grand slam of his stellar career. 6-2 'Stros!! Bottom of the ninth and who walks out of the visiter's bullpen....Brad Lidge. The Astros faithfull hold thier breath, glance at the score....and watch as Brad Lidge again comes apart on the mound.

My feelings are this on Brad Lidge. If he continues to stuggle, if he just "CAN'T" find his groove and is not getting himself out of trouble, he needs to be sent to Triple A for some extended work in non-pressure situations. Remove him from the big leauge club, clear a roster spot, put him on the 15 day DL, call a cab, and send him to Nolan's little play house in RR and maybe he'll get fixed.

On to the good news, some great late game hitting from 'Stros. We had some great AB's in the ninth. Qualls was again right on. So, things are starting to mesh, kinda working through most of our little kinks. Lance needs to find his stroke, then this team will be very scary.

Sampson gets the ball...

2007-04-18T11:08:00.000-05:00

So tonight, fan favorite and Channelviews' favorite son takes the mound in Cincy against an underated Reds team. Astros Killer Aaron Harung is on the mound, so let's hope our bats can beat him this time. I've got my fingers crossed that Lance gets hitting soon, he has played very well at Great American Ballpark in the past, so this maybe the spot for him to turn it on.

What a performance by Roy O last night, 6 1/3 ip, 7K, 1 ER allowed, all on 3 days rest. That man is a superstar and if our bats keep hitting for him, he will get to 20 wins this year. If that happens, he should get the Cy Young.

I'll tell ya what I've been impressed with so far this year, is Morgan Ensberg's D at 3rd. He has had some miscues, but his overall aggresivness, charging balls, making good throws, is very comforting. And what about Lee in LF? His defence was sorely underrated. He will do just fine out there.

The Biggio watch has been very impressive. But, as soon as he hits 3000, it's time rest him a little more. We need to get Loretta's bat in the game. He is one of the best 2 hole hitters out there. He hits to contact and his a very good table setter.

Chris Burke needs to get his bat hot soon or Phil Garner could be facing some tough questions. Hunter Pence is just starting to heat up at RR and within the week will be knocking on the door to play at the big show. If some progress is made in Brad Lidge, I still feel that he and Burke will be expendable.

Astros Email Round Table

2007-04-16T08:24:00.000-05:00

This week I will be completing my email for John Lopez, Carl Dukes, Brad Davies, and Ted DeLuca of ESPN790. Within in the email will be 10 questions or so about the Astros and some general baseball questions. All the above gentlemen were nice enough to agree to participate in this and I'm very excited about the feedback I will receive. Stay tuned for more regarding this.

Now on to some Astros news. Jason Jennings is "confident" that his elbow will feel better after some down time. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Out and about on the web, there are a number of trade rumors with Lidge's name in them. Some I just can't see happening though. Nothing even halfway interesting. The funny part about trade rumors is that you hear that the Phillies are looking at Lidge....but what do they have that we need? That is the important part of any trade, what are we getting in return? It's very easy to say...the Twins are interested in Brad Lidge. That's all well and good...but what do they have that makes them a viable trade partner. The one rumor that keeps popping up is D-Rays being interested because of the Jim Hickey/Gerry Hunsicker angle. I find it intriguing that Tim P and Gerry H have this relationship. So, the question is, what do the D-Rays have that the Astros need? They have some top prospects and they still are trying to find a good place for BJ Upton. Is he an upgrade over Mo at 3rd?

Here is my Astros Trade of Year prediction...With Hunter Pence knocking on the door and Astros feeling the heat at Mid-Summer...they trade Lidge/Burke for starting pitching...but with who do they complete this trade with...that is still an open question, I'll get back to you on that.

*Update - Ben Mailer found this article http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view.bg?articleid=195007&format=text, which says that Coco Crisp is in danger of losing his job to Wily Mo Pena. Does that make him available? and to whom....

*MLBtraderumors.com has some interesting update on the Lidge soap opera.

My first real blog...

2007-04-15T08:38:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my little slice of the World Wide Web...I've been trying to establish an Astros Blog for a couple of weeks now and I've moved to this site with the hopes that it will generate some more interest. So, please read, comment and add information. Thank you.

On to business...Jason Jennings is out for 2-3 weeks with tendinitis in the flexor muscle of his right arm. So now what happens? Does Matt Albers get a shot? Do we give someone out of the 'pen a spot start? Here's my take....call up Troy Patton for one game...I would love to see this kid throw at least one Major league game before he's 25. If he is such a prospect for our 'Stros...we need to throw him in the fire and see what happens.

Other news is that our bats were great last night for the most part...out pitching sucked. I'm very concerned about Woody Williams. I know it's only his 3rd start...but I haven't seen alot to like. He hasn't been down in the zone, batter's are working long counts, and he's giving up runs. That to me adds up to nothing but trouble. He's not going to be able to eat up innings if he's throwing 60-70 pitches by the 4th inning. Our pitching is defenitly suspect right now.

How about the Rocket on ESPN790 Friday morning, calling for Lidge to move to the starting rotation....interesting thought...

Well, tonight Wandy faces former Astros prospect Freddy Garcia...keep your fingers crossed, but don't hold your breath.