2015 Astros Regular Season Thread

[eagle eye]

It had to happen eventually but it sort of stung when Dallas Keuchel suffered his first loss of the season on Monday. Keuchel made two mistakes all game and the Orioles hit both out of the park for a pair of two run homers that gave them a 4-3 victory. Keuchel pitched very well except for two pitches he left up and had to watch them fly over the fence. The Astros offense had a slew of base runners and plenty of opportunities to score a lot of runs but they couldn't generate a meaningful hit. The Stros had the chance to score twice the 3 runs they ended up with but they couldn't get it done. The hell of it all is it was Keuchel's first complete game of the season. What a kick in the teeth? Last season Keuchel lead the majors in complete games with 5 but his record was 4-1 in those games. So, this is not a new experience.

 

The offense could have scored more than the 4 runs they ended up with but they couldn't get a hit when it counted, again. At least until the 7th and 8th innings when they scored 2 runs in each inning to help Scott Feldman get his 4th win on the season and even his record up to 4-4 with a 4-1 victory over Baltimore to even the series at 1 apiece. It's looking like maybe AJ Hinch has found a combination he likes at the top of the order with George Springer leading off and Jose Altuve hitting second. Hinch looked at rookie Preston Tucker in the 3 hole but he didn't provide any spark there last night. Luis Valbuena, who has been hitting 3rd was moved down to sixth and he actually came through with 2 hits and 2 RBI's. Chris Carter, hitting 7th had an RBI and run scored, and Jason Castro, hitting 8th were responsible for the other RBI in the game. Feldman went 6 innings allowing 4 hits and the one run with 3 walks and 2 K's. Pat Neshak, Chad Qualls and Luke Gregerson combined to shut out the O's in the final 3 innings. Gregerson notched his 13th save on the season.

 

Remember, the Astros play a get away game at 3:35 this afternoon with Collin McHugh (5-2) against Ubaldo Jiminez (3-3). The Astros return home after today's game to begin a 3 game series with the White Sox. Lance McCullers will get his 3rd start in that game.

[eagle eye]

Houston lost to Baltimore in the series finale yesterday by a score of 5-4. They lost on a home run given up by Tony Sipp in the 8 inning on the first pitch he threw. It's kind of the same way Houston has been beating people. Houston tried to make one of their patented late inning comebacks in the 9th. They had 4 really hard hit balls but 3 of them were fielded and resulted in an out. Pinch hitter Jonathan Villar ripped a ball to left that nearly sailed over the head of the O's left fielder David Lough. Nearly is the key word as Lough tracked down the ball for out #1. George Springer was up next and hit a sharp grounder up the middle that would have been a base hit if not for the quick reaction by O's closer Zack Britton who caught the ball and completed the put out throw to 1st. Jose Altuve camp up next and doubled down the left field line to give the Astros the tying run in scoring position. Preston Tucker was up next and he smashed a ball to deep left field that he thought was out of the park at first but, again, David Lough tracked down the ball and caught it on the warning track. Game over. It was another frustrating night for Houston as they out hit Baltimore 11-10 but couldn't get hits when they had runners in scoring position. In fact it wasn't just a failure to hit it was the fact that most of the time is was due to Astros hitters striking out. At least that's the way it seemed. The Astros only had 5 K's in the game with Preston Tucker having one and Chris Carter and Jason Castro with 2 each and both times there were runners in scoring position.

 

This team is doing what Big T predicted early on about Houston striking out a lot. They are 2nd in all of baseball in K's with 437---after 2 freaking months! They have got to find a guy who can teach these guys some plate discipline. Only the Chicago Cubs are worse at the plate than Houston racking up 451 K's so far. Houston set the MLB record for K's in a season in 2013 with 1,530. Projected at the current rate Houston would top out at about 1630 K's for the season. That just sucks and the worst part is if all the home runs go away for long stretches Houston won't stay in first place in the division for long. BTW, Chris Carter became the 3rd leading strike out leading in MLB history by getting punched out 212 times in 2013. So far he's tied for the lead for most K's with the D-Rays Stephen Souza Jr with 65. Times 4 (we're roughly at the quarter mark of the season) and that gives Carter 260 K's for the season which would be good for #1 on this dubious list. Please stop killing me with all these K's!!!!! This should be on the top of AJ Hinch's and the Houston front office's list of important things to do---get guys who at least make contact with the freaking ball.

 

Carlos Correa in a game the other day hit a home run completely out of the stadium! Here's an article with video of the mammoth HR.

 

http://m.mlb.com/cutfour/2015/05/27/126911550/top-prospect-correa-crushes-ball-out-of-stadium?partnerId=as_mlb_20150527_46515366&adbid=603582558467588097&adbpl=tw&adbpr=241544156

[eagle eye]

Tonight's game between the Astros and the White Sox will feature two the brightest prospects in baseball, Lance McCullers and LHP Carlos Rodon. Rodon was discussed on this site at length when the Astros had the first pick in the 2014 draft. The Astros opted instead for RHP Brady Aiken who never signed his contract and went back into the draft pool for 2015. Aiken's draft stock will undoubtedly fall like stone since it was found he had to have Tommy John surgery earlier this spring. I would think that the Astros front office is kicking their own arses over this one. The White Sox picked Rodon with the 3rd pick and he actually made his first MLB start this season, a win, against the Reds on May 9th. This will be Rodon's 4th career MLB start tonight as he carries a 1-0 record with an ERA of 4.03 into the game.

As for McCullers, he was drafted in the 1st round, 41st pick overall, in the 2012 draft. This was the same draft that Houston selected SS Carlos Correa. This will be McCuller's 3rd MLB start as he sports a 1-0 record with a 2.53 ERA into the game. It is looking like McCullers could be sent back to the minors after this start as Brett Oberholtzer is scheduled to come off his minor league rehab assignment next week. It could be a really difficult decision though if McCullers pitches well. He showed a lot in a no-decision in 4 innings of work in his first start last week against the A's which the Astros lost 2-1. He struggled through his second inning of work in that game but only allow one run to score, the only run he allowed in the game. He got his first win last Saturday against the Detroit Tigers going 6 innings giving up 2 runs with 1 walk and 6 K's as the Astros scored 2 runs in the top of the 6th to take a 3-2 lead which the McCullers and the bullpen make hold up for the win. If McCullers pitches well tonight then the Astros could be in a spot like last year when Collin McHugh was brought up for a spot start and pitched so well he never went down. It make you wonder if Roberto Hernandez is getting a little ansy or maybe Oberholtzer is wondering if HIS job is safe. You gotta love the quality of the pitching that make these decisions so difficult.

Should be a good game but you have to wonder what could have been if Houston had taken Rodon last summer.

[KABrother88]

I was a big Rodon fan going all the way up to the draft last season but felt the Aiken choice at 1.1 was a good move for the potential of sustained success and spreading the talent out vs Rodon being viewed (and correctly at that) to have a short minor league career. In the end, the Aiken pick didn't work out but even after all the backlash the media gave Houston claiming they were trying to manipulate the draft and then later the MLBPA stepping in, they sure don't mention much about how Aiken threw just 13 pitches this year and ended up having TJ surgery. Guess that's good work by Houston's medical staff.

 

Speaking of the draft the 2015 edition is set for June 8th and Houston will be very active very early picking at #2 and #5. The number #2 pick is compensation for not signing Aiken and is not a protected pick this year meaning if they do not sign the player taken here they will not receive another compensation pick next year. Look for them to take a more singable guy here and potential save to potentially get a high ceiling guy that might slide (exactly what they did in 2012 saving with Correa and able to land McCullers). Names to keep an eye on as potential picks revolve around a trio of SS, a pair of college pitchers, and a couple outfielder with good bloodlines.

 

Per the MLB.com rankings there are as follows:

1.) Brendan Rodgers - SS (HS)

2.) Dansby Swanson - SS (Vanderbilt)

3.) Carson Fulmer - RHP (Vanderbilt)

4.) Alex Bregman - SS (LSU)

5.) Dillon Tate - RHP (UC Santa Barbara)

6.) Daz Cameron - OF (HS)

7.) Kyle Tucker - OF (HS)

 

There have been reports out of Arizona that they will not select Rodgers at 1.1 and instead appear to looking as Swanson. Rodgers is the top player in the draft in almost all, if not all publications.

 

Dillon Tate is getting a lot of attention as the guy that Houston take at 1.2 if they aren't taking Rodgers and some people have him as the top college arm.

 

Cameron and Tucker are getting some run of late. Cameron is the some of former All-Star & Gold Glover Mike Cameron. Tucker is the brother of Astros OF Preston Tucker. Wonder if they could still go high end if they think they Tucker will still be at 5 and give them their discount there?

[KABrother88]

Looks like McCullers might stay a little longer...Scott Feldman to the DL and Michael Feliz will be called up from AA to pitch out of the pen. Feliz was just called up from A+ and had only made 1 appearance in CC. We will see what is moves are made when Obie comes back Edited May 29, 2015 by KABrother88

[eagle eye]

Obie will obviously slide into Feldman's spot in the rotation. I'm really surprised that Houston jumped Feliz all the way up from A+ ball. I would have thought that maybe they would give Mark Appel a look. He could actually go the same route as Carlos Rodon when he was brought up in April in that he could gain a little confidence pitching out of the bullpen and give him a taste of the atmosphere in the bigs. It's hard to imagine that Feliz is farther along than Appel. I'm sure there are guys in AA and AAA who would be better choices but that's why I'm here in my study and they are they actually making the decisions.

 

Thanks KABro for the draft info. It's really very timely info considering the draft is a week from tomorrow. Seems like you can never go wrong by taking pitching but if they take a position player I want one of the main criteria to be that the player makes consistent contact and DOESN'T strike out a lot. I am really tired of Houston's main club whiffing at the alarming rate they do.

 

Is it just me or is everyone watching baseball games frustrated at the inability, or unwillingness, of batters to make adjustments to either go the opposite way of the shift or to lay down a bunt for a single. I really don't care if it's your 3, 4 or 5 hitters. You can undermine the shift by putting guys on base. George Springer and Jose Altuve were both robbed of base hits yesterday because of the shift. They hit the ball right back up the middle of the field in an area that, in the past would have been a hit, only to have the 2nd baseman or SS playing behind the 2nd base bag and getting an easy out. I don't know if it's tradition or ego or what it is that makes a batter who is known as a pull hitter unable to go opposite field to get a hit. Wasn't it Yogi Berra who once said, "Hit it where they ain't."? Seems like there's a lot of open area when teams go into the shift. Why teams can't seem to take advantage of this strategy is beyond me.

Edited May 31, 2015 by eagle eye

[KABrother88]

Really what's odd to me is how Luhnow values low strike out guys in the draft but then goes and aquired high K rate guys via trade and free agency.

[eagle eye]

It's the last day of the week and also the last day of the month. Let's review both.

 

This week was not a good one for Houston as they lost their first back to back series of the season. Overall they were 2-4 for the week losing to Baltimore on the road 2 games to 1 and losing this weekend's series with the White Sox 2-1. The common thread in this week's games was the inability of the Astros to get a hit with runners in scoring position. Not only that but between some questionable base running and some lousy base coaching, particularly by 3rd base coach Gary Pettis, Houston cost themselves several runs this past week. One disturbing thing that has become a trend over the past two weeks is that inability to get a meaningful hit when the opportunity presents itself. The week began with Dallas Keuchel suffering his first loss since August 14th last year. It was partly Keuchel's fault as he gave up two 2-run HRs in a complete game where two walks and the two dingers was just about the only thing Keuchel allowed the Orioles and despite 11 hits by the Astros they couldn't get one when they needed one to score more runs and Houston lost 4-3. Today was kind of like that as the offense banged out 10 hits, 5 were extra base shots but between poor base coaching, poor base running and lack of a hit that mattered Houston was shutout 6-0 by the White Sox. It didn't help any that Roberto Hernandez wasn't on top of his game allowing 5 runs in his 5.2 innings of work. If Scott Feldman was healthy Hernandez could very well have been the odd man out in the Astros starting rotation based on today's work coupled with the strong showing of Lance McCullers in his 3 starts since he was called up around 10 days ago. Michael Feliz did a nice job finishing off the game by pitching a strong 9th inning in today's game. After giving up a leadoff double he retired the next 3 batters with little trouble for a scoreless inning of work in his MLB debut.

 

As for the month of May, it's been like two different teams or maybe just both sides of the same coin. The Astros record for May is 15-12 with an overall record of 31-20 and a 4.5 game lead in the AL West with the 2nd place Angels due to play Detroit at home tonight. Regardless of the outcome tonight Houston will still end the month in 1st place in their division with either a 4 or 5 game lead over their closest division rival. As is usual for a season some guys have good months and others not so much. Jose Altuve has struggled and he has tumbled from a season best .368 BA to a .296 BA to end the month. He has really struggled at the plate. He will throw in an occasional multi-hit game but then he goes back to a 1 for or an oh-fer game or series of games. While George Springer's BA has come up from below the Mendoza line to a much healthier .222 you know he's capable of much better. A guy who has fallen off the table over the last two weeks is 3B Luis Valbuena. In just this past week, playing in 5 games he's gone 0-3, 2-4, 0-5, 0-3 and 0-4 for a combined 2-19 stretch that has really hurt his own stats but killed the Astros. He fallen from a .224 BA to begin the month to his current .188.

Chris Carter has begun to show some of the hitting that made him the best hitter in baseball the last half of 2014. He began the month with a .160 BA and finished up the month with a .190 BA. Still not great I know but he's getting at least one hit a game lately and he's not striking out the way he had been prior to the last two weeks. Houston also has seen the emergence of some minor league talent. First Preston Tucker came up as a temporary replacement for an injured George Springer. When Springer came back Tucker had done so well they sent Robbie Grossman down to the minors and kept Bam-Bam on the big league roster. Lately, the Astros have gone with Springer, Altuve and Tucker at the top of the lineup. They've been hitting but they haven't been able to mesh when they hit so run production isn't there as yet. Next came Lance McCullers who came up as a replacement for Brett Oberholtzer to make a spot start or two. He has pitched well enough to last through 3 starts and with Scott Feldman missing significant time due to a torn meniscus in his knee McCullers could remain with the big club for a while. Roberto Hernandez has been less than impressive in his last few starts and when Houston gets healthier or when they get tired of him struggle he could very well be gone by the trade deadline. Speaking of players being lost due to injury the Astros lost SS Jed Lowrie to a thumb injury suffered sliding into a base. He will be out until after the All Star break. With Astros #1 prospect Carlos Correa tearing up AA ball and getting promoted to AAA speculation is Correa may see Minute Maid Park sooner rather than later.

One thing I have to comment on that has been true all season, Houston plays much smarter baseball in 2015 than they did in 2014 under Bo Porter. Under Porter teams were taking extra bases because throws from the outfield were not on target or missed the cutoff man or were too high to force runners to stay at their current base because the ball could be cut off and runners gunned down. Houston gave up big innings because of these very things. I never really thought much of Porter as a manager and while I had a lot of skepticism about AJ Hinch the team has played much better fundamental baseball since he took over the team. The 3rd base coach needs to pull his head out of his ass and stop getting base runners cut down at the plate because he misjudged either the outfielder's arm or the speed of the base runners. I'm talking about being cut down by 4-6 steps, these are not close plays at all. This is not being aggressive on the bases which I support this is bad coaching in the box.

The pitching continues to be very good for the most part. Dallas Keuchel is proving that 2014 was no fluke and he's carved out a 7-1 record so far after recording his second consecutive complete game, this time a win over the White Sox recording a career high 11 K's. I hate to jinx anything but he sure looks like a left handed Greg Maddux in the way he pitches. Collin McHugh has been solid with Feldman improving his overall record to 4-4 with a win in his last start before he was injured. Lance McCullers has looked like he could stay on with the big club. There's no doubt he has the stuff to pitch in the bigs, he just needs to find a little more consistency. Brett Oberholtzer looked good in his one and only start earlier this month but he has been struggling with a blister on this throwing hand since spring training. Hopefully, he has learned how to take care of that issue and shows the stuff he showed last season. Roberto Hernandez is 1-2 in 6 starts in May and his 4.92 ERA overall and his 5.96 ERA in May aren't all that great. To me, Hernandez is leaving the door open for a Michael Feliz or a Mark Appel to come up and take his job. The relievers have been statistically one of the best units in baseball and they are a big reason for Houston having the best record in 51 games in franchise history. What was once broken is now fixed even though closer Luke Gregorson scares me.

I'm encouraged by the prospects coming up, I'm hopeful the veteran guys in slumps can turn things around and I'm sure we'll start getting timely hits to score runs again. I'd love to see somebody replace Luis Valbuena because while he's been better than Matt Dominguez overall there is definitely room for improvement. Considering how much Houston has struggled at times this month, particularly the past 2 weeks, I'm glad to see the month of May over with. I'm hoping as Houston flourished in May in 2014 followed by a dismal June the Astros will come out of a rough May this season to a hot June similar to their April start to the season. New month, new challenges.

[Big T]

Three in a row for the Stros against the Orioles. Tonight Lance McCullers pitched a four hit one run gem and Carter went yard twice and Springer once. Astros go for the four game sweep tomorrow.

[KABrother88]

Incredible game for McCullers...CG, 4 H, 1 R, 11K, 0 BB

[eagle eye]

Big T it's beginning to look like you've got that dominant #1 type you've been wanting. It was reported he hit 96 mph with his 100th pitch. A complete game in his 4th mlb start? Wow. The series finale has Dallas Keuchel looking to avenge his only loss of the season 10 days ago against the same pitcher, Yen-Wei Chen. Both Keuchel and the Houston offense were to blame for that loss. Both should be looking for some payback.

 

How about Chris Carter breaking out of hibernation? He's on an 11 game hitting streak that has seen him hitting .389 over that span. He went 2-3 last night including two solo jacks that brought his BA above .200 (.205) for the first time in 2015.

 

The Stros are 34-20 at the 1/3 point in the season, best ever in franchise history.

 

Dallas Keuchel won AL Pitcher of the Month for May after winning the award for April too. Only Randy Johnson has won that award in back to back months in Houston franchise history.

 

Does anyone but me notice how often we see some accomplishment by this team is a franchise record? We are literally in the midst of an historic season. Let that sink in for a minute. Each and every day we are watching history being made! After a decade of disappointment this is freaking awesome!

[eagle eye]

The Astros are kicking their own arses lately. I know they have their moments and despite all the historical milestones they keep eclipsing they have one Achilles heel---hitting. Ironic isn't it? The lack of consistency at the plate is killing them. The seems to be depending too much on the home run to score and the only reason is why is because they have holy hell doing it any other way. Of course there are exceptions but it's seems to be a really unhealthy trend for the last few weeks. Guys who started off hot like Jake Marisnick can't buy a hit these days. In Marisnick's case he seems to be not-hitting himself right to the bench. Lately, Marisnick and Colby Rasmus have been platooning in center field and it's not doing either one of them any good. Prior to the call up of Preston Tucker Rasmus and Marisnick played every day and both hit pretty consistently. When Tucker came up he hit well and he forced his way onto the everyday lineup. Unfortunately, Tucker has cooled off and Rasmus and Marisnick are ice cold right now. They aren't the only ones, Jose Altuve has only been able to hang around just short of .300 now for several weeks. He'll have one multi-hit game and back it up with 2 or 3 oh-fer's the next few games. Evan Gattis is a strange one too. He began the season horribly then in mid April he caught fire but now he's a feast or famine type of hitter. And don't get me started on Luis Valbuena. That guy has one good game a week at the plate and he's hit himself right down to the bottom of the 2nd third in the batting order. All this and we are happy the Astros are still in first place but they had better watch out because the Texas Rangers are surging. Ever since the Rangers swept the Astros on May 4-6 in Houston the Rangers have fought their way out of the AL West cellar and they now sit alone in 2nd place just 4.5 games back of Houston. Houston has been anything but hot losing 3 series since the Rangers kicked their asses. I really think maybe Preston Tucker should go back down to AAA Fresno for a little confidence boost and give Marisnick and Rasmus more PT to straighten them back out. I like what AJ Hinch has done to improve the team's defense but we seem to be missing the hitting coach, John Mallee, who moved on to the Cubs when Bo Porter was fired. Current hitting coach, Dave Hudgins, doesn't seem to have the same success as Mallee had. Hopefully, the Astros will figure it out and start hitting again soon and it wouldn't hurt to have the Rangers hit a slump pretty soon as well.

 

Next season the Astros will continue renovations to Minute Maid Park that began this past off season. Next year they will change a lot of the center field area including moving the fence in about 30 feet so the flag poles will no longer be in the field of play and they intend to do away with Tal's Hill. It was a unique feature of the park but many feel it poses a hazard to players having run back to center field wall to make a play. At any rate the hill will be gone.

 

The MLB draft is Monday and here's an article from Astros.com about the options for the Astros who have 4 picks in the first 46 selections including 2 in the top 5.

 

http://m.astros.mlb.com/news/article/128172772/astros-in-new-territory-with-two-top-5-draft-picks

 

For those interested in the draft here's a link to a page full of draft info from MLB.com.

 

http://m.mlb.com/draft/2015

[eagle eye]

So this is how bad it's getting, Houston has lost 3 games in a row while the Rangers have now won 3 in a row. Their lead in the AL West has gone from 6.5 games to 3.5 games in just 3 days. The Rangers wins have come at the expense of the defending AL Champion Kansas City Royals (2 games) and the Chicago White Sox (1 game). Houston has run into a red hot Toronto Blue Jay team that has scored more runs than anyone in the baseball (296) which is 35 runs better than the 2nd place team, Arizona. Now Houston is still the MLB leader in home runs (77) but they also are 2nd in K's and 26th out of 30 in total hits. Here lately Houston is getting hits to the tune of about 1 an inning. Trouble is that's HOW they're coming as well. Yesterday Jose Altuve went 3-4 in the 2 hole but George Springer and Preston Tucker, in the 1 and 3 holes respectively went a combined 0-8. Evan Gattis went 2-4 but a combination of 6 hitters in the 5, 6 and 7 holes went a combined 0-10. The 8 and 9 hitters, Marwin Gonzalez and Jonathan Villar combined to go 3-6 including a solo HR by Villar late in the game. This is pitiful and if it keeps up Houston's hold on the AL West division lead will be gone. Houston's best pitcher, Dallas Keuchel has, in his last 3 starts, pitched two complete games and gone 7 innings in the other one and his record is 1-1. With even a smidgeon of run support he would easily be 3-0 and tied for the MLB lead in wins with Seattle's Felix Hernandez.

 

In their last ten games Houston has scored 30 runs. Even I can figure out that's 3 runs per game. Their record is 4-6. See what I mean? This is just awful to watch. It's been like this for a while now, if one player is in a slump the whole damn team is in a slump. The trouble is one player can get hot but it doesn't help pull the rest up with him. The team needs to collectively get hot and it hasn't happened in almost a month. Remember when this team had a 10 game win streak? Seems like a long time ago doesn't it. I don't want to be all gloom and doom, it is just the first week of June after all. But, the Astros have some real issues and not just with their bats. The starting pitching is becoming a real concern. With Keuchel you know you're going to have a chance to win but if he doesn't pitch a shutout it's 50-50 whether he can get a win. Collin McHugh is second on the team with wins at 6-2 but he's been giving up runs in bunches lately. The big difference is he's getting run support! Last outing he gave up 4 runs in the 3rd inning but the Astros came right back in the bottom of the frame to score 5 and it held up for a 5-4 win. In his last 3 games McHugh is 1-1 and hasn't looked that good. Scott Feldman was getting his groove back and leveled his W/L record to 4-4 when he went on the DL with a meniscus tear in his right knee. Brett Oberholtzer can't stay healthy and when he has pitched it wasn't all that great. In his 3 starts in 2014 he is 0-2 and has given up 4 or more runs in all of his outings and he's only lasted into the 4th inning in two of his starts. To say Obie is a disappointment this season is an understatement. Lance McCullers was brought up to fill in for Oberholtzer and has really been a breath of fresh air. In 4 starts he's gone 2-0 (Houston is 3-1 when he pitches so far) with a 1.88 ERA and his last game was a complete game win over Baltimore this past Wednesday. The complete game was his first in the big leagues and the 11 K's he notched in the game was a pro career high. To say he's filling in nicely for Feldman is an understatement. The 4th starter in the rotation has been Oberholtzer, Brad Peacock, Asher Wojciechowski, Sam Deduno and McCullers. This spot has been an abject failure including McCullers who got a no-decision in a Houston loss in his first MLB appearance. The rest of McCullers' starts have been in Feldman's spot in the rotation. Michael Feliz made an appearance in a relief role and looked really good and if this spot in the rotation he could be the next man up to try to lock down what has been a black hole in the Astros rotation this season. Then there's the 5th starter's spot. (I'm shaking my head thinking about this one.) Veteran Roberto Hernandez is 2-5 in 11 starts this season with a 5.18 ERA. It's really worse than that though because in his last 3 games he's pitched a combined 16-1/3 innings giving up 16 runs on 26 hits, 6 walks with 8 K's with an 0-2 record. So who do you bring up to fill this spot in the rotation? Mark Appel? Vincent Velasquez? Josh Hader? Are any of these guys ready for the bigs yet? Or, will Houston wait until the trade deadline looms and go after a veteran? If Houston continues to slide it could very well be too late for any infusion of talent for a division race by then. "Houston, we have a problem." An old clichéd line but it really applies here. Hopefully, Houston can salvage on win in Toronto with Collin McHugh facing a really dreadful R A Dickey in the series finale.

 

One interesting note from the announcers in yesterday's game. For a team that leads the majors in home runs the Astros are not effective at all against the fastball. Houston hitters are much more likely to tee off on a slider or curve ball or a change up while the predominant sound vs the fastball is 'whiff'. I don't recall the numbers that back up this fact but man, is that weird or what?

[eagle eye]

Collin McHugh needs to go talk to Dallas Keuchel because Keuchel has experience in the bullpen letting a win become a loss. After battling for six innings and walking off the field with a 3-2 deficit he watched the offense come alive for him again as it did in his last outing vs Baltimore. What was once 3-2 lead for Toronto suddenly became 6-3 advantage for Houston after a 4-run 7th inning. McHugh qualified for the win and had to feel pretty good. At the time it didn't matter that Houston couldn't capitalize in the top of the 6th on a bases loaded situation that resulted in zero Astros runs because Houston had the lead now. It didn't even matter when Houston had men on 1st and 2nd and didn't score in the 8th because the bullpen never gives up 2 run leads. Well, almost never. Pinch hitting in the ninth spot left handed hitting Munenori Kawasaki, he of the .143 BA, reached down on a low and away pitch and doinked it to the opposite field for a double to begin the Jays 9th inning. It was just pure luck Kawasaki even got wood on the ball coupled with the fact that the outfield was way in because the little Japanese player has zip for power. It didn't matter the ball landed just fair and bounced into the field boxes. Jose Reyes singled next to score Kawasaki to draw the Jays up to a 6-5 deficit. Closer Luke Gregerson was in trouble with a one run lead and the speedy Reyes on 1st with nobody out. Gregerson got 3B Luke Donaldson to line out to LF for out #1 and Reyes still at 1st base. Then it got weird. Jose Bautista popped up in the infield by 2nd base. Jose Altuve should have fielded the ball but SS Jonathan Villar called him off and he promptly ran into Reyes would was standing on 2nd base tripping over him with the ball falling helplessly to the ground. Despite a protest by AJ Hinch the play was not ruled interference by Reyes and the Jays had men on 1st and 2nd with one out. The next batter was Chris Colabello. Gregerson tossed a breaking ball that was not fielded cleanly by C Hank Conger and the Jays pulled off a double steal. Now with Reyes on 3rd and Bautista on 2nd with one out Gregerson was in a full blown jam. With the count at 1-2 Colabello hit a Gregerson slider back up the middle for slow rolling base hit that scored both runners for a walk off game ending hit. Gregerson gave up 3 runs on 4 hits for his 2nd loss of the season and his second blown save on the season. Will Harris gave up a solo HR to Bautista in the 7th to cut the Astros lead from 6-3 to 6-4. It looked like a minor inconvenience at the time until the 3 spot Toronto put up in the ninth made the home run the difference in the game. This loss had to be a punch in the gut for the slumping Astros who, I'm sure, were confident they would wrap up the win and move on to Chicago to face the White Sox tomorrow feeling pretty good about themselves. It didn't work out that way and now Houston has now lost 4 straight, their longest losing streak of the season, with their confidence shaken up pretty good. The only good thing is the rest of the AL West lost today except Seattle who is losing to Tampa Bay in the 5th by a score of 1-0. So, essentially, Houston didn't lose ground in the division but they sure blew a prime opportunity to gain a game today.

 

The Astros were 3-4 for the past week. Not terrible until you realize that they lost the last 4 in a row and got slapped around in those losses except for today when they gave the Blue Jays an early Christmas gift. The plane flight to Chicago is liable to be fairly quiet but you never know. As fans we kind of wear losses like today's on their sleeve but players often times have to just shake it off and move on. Being swept by the Blue Jays makes me want to punch a wall, I can't imagine at least some of the Astros players feel the same way. The big question going forward is, will Houston get pissed and go on a new winning streak or will they fold up the tents and sink lower still into the losing quagmire they are in. Last weekend Houston lost 2 of 3 to the Pale Hose at home so who knows what's in store for them in Chicago. Lance McCullers hopefully can repeat his dominating performance from earlier this week. Maybe it's McCullers who can lift up the team on his shoulders and break out of this losing streak. Unlike last week's matchup of promising new comers when McCullers faced off against Carlos Rodon McCullers' opposite number will be veteran Chris Sale who has a 5-2 record and a 3.27 ERA.

 

Draft tidbit: Since tomorrow is the beginning of the MLB First Year Player Draft I thought a little Houston draft trivia wouldn't hurt. Both of Houston's 2010 first round draft picks OF Delino Deshields Jr (#8 pick) and P Mike Foltynewicz (#19) are both no longer with the team. Deshields was left unprotected for the Rule 5 draft and the Rangers picked him up at the 2014 Winter Meetings. He made his big league debut this season and was named AL Rookie of the Month for May hitting .296 with 22 runs scored. Foltynewicz was traded to the Braves along with Rio Ruiz and Andrew Thurman for Evan Gattis and minor league prospect James Hoyt. We all know the impact Gattis has had for Houston while Hoyt has struggled at AAA Fresno so far this season. Foltynewicz made his first MLB start for Atlanta earlier this season and so far he is 3-2 in 7 starts with a 4.29 ERA. Deshields and Foltynewicz were part of Ed Wade's final draft as GM. The next year Jim Crane bought the Astros from Drayton McClain and Jeff Luhnow took over as the Astros GM.

 

Another draft trivia tidbit: The Astros own the 2nd and 5th picks in the 1st round of this year's draft. No other team in MLB history has had two picks in the top 5. This draft could set the table for Houston's success for years to come. Not only that but Houston also has the 37th and 46th picks overall giving them 4 picks in the top fifty. Experts are saying that Houston could actually get better value with the latter two picks assuming they hit on both of them.

Edited June 7, 2015 by eagle eye

[KABrother88]

IT'S HAPPENING! Carlos Correa has been called up to the Majors!

[KABrother88]

Another name that had been trending to the Astros at the 1.2 spot is LSU SS Alex Bregman. He's one of the top 7 guys I mentioned earlier but as of late there has appeared to be a lot more mocks with Houston going his direction. In fact, MLB.com's draft experts Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo pegged Bregman here in their final mock today. He would probably slide to 2B as a pro and a good comparison I've seen is to Dustin Pedoria.

[eagle eye]

IT'S HAPPENING! Carlos Correa has been called up to the Majors!

 

Is this move a reward for his true progression to the bigs or is this a desperate move by a team that is struggling? Preston Tucker was good for the first 2 weeks he was called up but he's been struggling lately. I'm worried the Astros are bringing up Correa to jump start their current slump even though he may not really be ready for the move.

[eagle eye]

Another name that had been trending to the Astros at the 1.2 spot is LSU SS Alex Bregman. He's one of the top 7 guys I mentioned earlier but as of late there has appeared to be a lot more mocks with Houston going his direction. In fact, MLB.com's draft experts Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo pegged Bregman here in their final mock today. He would probably slide to 2B as a pro and a good comparison I've seen is to Dustin Pedoria.

 

One article I read this weekend on Bleacher Report said that Houston could conceivably draft 2 shortstops with the 2nd and 5th pick because they would be the best available. That would be crazy and unprecedented. But, according to the article not a bad move if that's what happens.

[KABrother88]

I've always wanted Houston to know for sure that Correa was ready before calling him up. One thing I can see as a plus as far as the timing is that Correa is breaking a slump at the plate and starting to get hot again. If he can continue that hot streak at the MLB level it might give him the confidence he needs to be successful. I do think the timing is poor in the sense that his first MLB game will be against Chris Sale but Correa has killed LHP this season so we will see what happens

 

Also, it was reported this morning Houston is calling up our #4 prospect Vincent Velasquez from AA. He is REALLY good but just had trouble staying healthy at times. He will make the start in Wednesday.

[Big T]

Annddd Here comes Vincent Velasquez! Yeah, I think the Astros hit the panic button after the sweep by Toronto. They know that this is do or die. Velasquez is the potential ace of this staff in a few years in my opinion. His stuff is off the charts.

[KABrother88]

Annddd Here comes Vincent Velasquez! Yeah, I think the Astros hit the panic button after the sweep by Toronto. They know that this is do or die. Velasquez is the potential ace of this staff in a few years in my opinion. His stuff is off the charts.

 

A lot of scout agree with that statement, as do I. When he's on and healthy he's a beast...as evidenced by his 7 no hit innings last Wednesday. He's been dominating AA since coming off the DL which he had been on all season. It's refreshing to see the future getting the call ups after watching them progress through the minors the last few years.

[eagle eye]

Velasquez is a bit of a surprise but Lance McCullers came up straight from AA and he's doing fine so far but is Velasquez really more ready than Feliz or Appel? Again, the Astros are on top of this and they know first hand about their players but it's hard to imagine that a guy in AA is better than a AAA pitcher. As I mentioned in an earlier post that No 4 spot has been a black hole that has not been properly filled all season. If Velasquez has the success McCullers has, woo-boy! I think it's safe to say that, as far as the Astros are concerned, the future is NOW!

[Big T]

Oh, BTW, it's draft night and the D-Backs are on the clock with the 1-1 pick. Astros have the 1-2 and 1-5 picks tonight.

[KABrother88]

Arizona goes with Dansby Sawnson who most people had pegged there. Houston is on the clock!

[Big T]

Dansby Swanson, SS from Vanderbilt goes 1-1 to the D-Backs. Astros are on the clock.