2019 Houston Astros Season

[eagle eye]

If I was Verlander, I would be pissed. There's a special place , in heaven, reserved for him.

 

Eagle, the floor is yours.

On second thought, hang on. It is now 12:47 am and just a few hours after the Nostro's embarrassing mail in.

https://www.chron.com/sports/astros/article/Astros-leave-Justin-Verlander-out-to-dry-in-loss-14369362.php?cmpid=trend

https://www.espn.com/chalk/story/_/id/27435865/astros-stunned-historic-upset-sportsbooks

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2850615-tigers-beat-astros-as-biggest-underdogs-to-win-mlb-game-in-15-years

and how about this idiot:

B/R Betting

✔

@br_betting

Someone just bet $55K on the Astros at -550 to beat the Tigers tonight ��

and secondly, please turn off the dugout camera. Maybe, if Bregman, would have paid more attention , to the absolute jewel, of a game, that Verlander was throwing, instead of the camera, He might not have gone 0-3 with a BB's.

 

now defend those Sorry$%#*(&) and overpaid &%$#&^%(.

 

Drac, I don't intend to defend anyone after Verlander's awesome start last night. The only gripe is that Verlander is serving up way too many home runs this year but when your line score reads 2 runs on 2 hits, 0 BB's and 10 K's in 9 innings of work with only 99 pitches thrown in a game that lasted just 2 hours and 12 minutes, my eyes are squarely on the asshats who failed to score more than one run against a lousy pitching staff on the worst team in this 2019 MLB season. This is the second game in a row for Verlander that should have been a win if not for the lack of run support. Aaron Sanchez' first two Houston starts Houston scored 31 runs in his third they scored 9 more for a total of 40 runs of support in 3 games. In his last two starts Verlander got 2 freaking runs of support from his offense. Sheesh. If I was a position player I couldn't make eye contact with Verlander out of shame for being a part of that debacle.

Edited August 22, 2019 by eagle eye

[puddin tane]

Drac, I don't intend to defend anyone after Verlander's awesome start last night. The only gripe is that Verlander is serving up way too many home runs this year but when your line score reads 2 runs on 2 hits, 0 BB's and 10 K's in 9 innings of work with only 99 pitches thrown in a game that lasted just 2 hours and 12 minutes, my eyes are squarely on the asshats who failed to score more than one run against a lousy pitching staff on the worst team in this 2019 MLB season. This is the second game in a row for Verlander that should have been a win if not for the lack of run support. Aaron Sanchez' first two Houston starts Houston scored 31 runs in his third they scored 9 more for a total of 40 runs of support in 3 games. In his last two starts Verlander got 2 freaking runs of support from his offense. Sheesh. If I was a position player I couldn't make eye contact with Verlander out of shame for being a part of that debacle.

 

hell, major kudos to verlaner. After seeing that he got straw, marisnick, and mayfield, he coulda just said f@#k it.

[puddin tane]

Annnnnd, re:altuve and chorinos....do they even glance at 3rd base coach? Turrible base running

[Dracula]

How many Cy Young pitchers does Detroit have? Zimmerman is pitching a one hitter thru 3. Luckily, for Detroit's next opponent, Zimmerman has to go back to Detroit and pitch for his co-ed softball team.

[Dracula]

Astro's, somehow are up 6-0 thru 7. The well rested bullpen should be able to cover. Good night.

[Dracula]

Astro's, somehow are up 6-0 thru 7. The well rested bullpen should be able to cover. Good night.

 

I get up, check the score, and the Stro's hold on 6-3. Okay, and then I check the highlights. &^%*()*&&*%^%$#$#. In the ninth, Osuna has two on and the batter hits one about 2 ft shy of tying the game. I just don't know.

[puddin tane]

I get up, check the score, and the Stro's hold on 6-3. Okay, and then I check the highlights. &^%*()*&&*%^%$#$#. In the ninth, Osuna has two on and the batter hits one about 2 ft shy of tying the game. I just don't know.

 

that was mainly biaginis mess

[Dracula]

Watched the 9th and dreaded Osuna coming in, but give him credit, he tore the Angels a new one. Toro, where did he come from?

[eagle eye]

Abraham Toro comes from AA Corpus Christi with a very brief stay in Round Rock before getting called up to the big club the other day. How brief? He was promoted to AAA on August 1st and he was called up to the Astros on August 23rd.

 

It sucks but Ryan Pressley was put on the IL on Wednesday to get the knee that been giving him trouble scoped. The Astros sent Jake Mayfield back to AAA to make room for Toro. I think AJ Hinch flipped a coin to see who got sent down after both Mayfield and Myles Straw failed to get a hit or even a walk for Verlander's 2 hit complete game loss on Tuesday. Joe Biagini was called up to fill Pressly's spot and he was the one who was responsible for the Tigers coming back on Thursday. Cole had them 6-0 through 7 and Joe Smith got them thru the 8th. Biagini came on in the 9th and he couldn't seem to get anyone out. He gave up the three runs, A 2-run homer and solo shot that closed the gap to 6-3 and he walked a batter when AJ Hinch had had enough of him. Osuna walked the first guy he saw and then he got the fly ball out to end the game. The thing is, Osuna faced a guy in Dawel Lugo who was hitting 8th in the Tiger's lineup and he is just one tick above the Mendoza line at .201 and Osuna almost let this chump tie the game. I'll bet Osuna almost crapped a goose when the ball left Lugo's bat. He definitely owes Josh Reddick a dinner for saving his bacon. Hopefully, Ryan Pressly will be back before the playoffs. A healthy Pressly has been nearly unhittable for Houston since coming to the team last August.

 

Will Harris and Osuna closed the door on the Angels last night but Hector Rondon was sandwiched between them and he gave up a homer to tighten what was a 5-3 lead down to 5-4. Osuna got two groundouts around a K to get the save, his 31st save of the season. Osuna is actually 2nd in saves in the AL to the Yankees Aroldis Chapman and 3 overall. It still doesn't mean my rear end doesn't pucker up when he comes in the game.

 

The Astros haven't announced who will start on Sunday but I wouldn't be at all surprised if Brad Peacock didn't get the nod. He looked good in relief earlier this week and he hasn't been used so far in the past 3 or 4 games so I figure Hinch has been saving him for this coming start.

[Dracula]

How are you watching the game? I like to have one page open to Astro's play by play so as to see the lineups and individual stats but I watch at http://www.720pstream.me/houston-astros-stream. I don't know about the security of this site and some of the sidebar and bottom ads are certainly gamey but Norton has blocked attempts and I've run several system scans, which has found nothing. The video and audio feed is good. Sometimes, I have to close and reopen the page but so far no problems have surfaced.

[Dracula]

I'm watching the Angels vs Astros, with Astro Framber Valdez pitching. The game is in the top of the 1st. Valdez is shaky having walked 2 and thrown only three strikes but somehow gets out of it. He throws a gopher ball, which ties the game and then, with the game still early, he loads the bases with no one out, which , at that point, a nap seemed to be a better alternative than watching the Angels bash his brains out, with a big inning. Later, I check the score and the Astros had won big,11-2. I check the inning scorecard and there was no big inning by the Angels. The Best, that I can tell, is that Valdez loaded the bases, with no one out, then strikes out 2, and leaves the bases loaded. His final box score was 6.0 innings, 2 hits, 1 run, 5BB, and 8 SO's. His nickname was Del Fina but it should have been Houdini.

 

Contrast this with JV's last start vs the Tigers. JV throws a complete game. A 2 hit, 2 run, no walks, and 11 SO masterpiece but loses the game, 2-1, with no Astro run support. Valdez is in constant trouble but somehow gets out of it and the Astro bat's ring up 11 runs. Go figure.

 

Based on run support, for these two games, JV, during the playoffs, needs to go to the bullpen and Valdez is going to have to anchor the rotation and do whatever it is, that he does. Is there a volunteer to tell JV, that he needs to go to the bullpen? Anyone, anyone, Bueller?

[puddin tane]

I'm watching the Angels vs Astros, with Astro Framber Valdez pitching. The game is in the top of the 1st. Valdez is shaky having walked 2 and thrown only three strikes but somehow gets out of it. He throws a gopher ball, which ties the game and then, with the game still early, he loads the bases with no one out, which , at that point, a nap seemed to be a better alternative than watching the Angels bash his brains out, with a big inning. Later, I check the score and the Astros had won big,11-2. I check the inning scorecard and there was no big inning by the Angels. The Best, that I can tell, is that Valdez loaded the bases, with no one out, then strikes out 2, and leaves the bases loaded. His final box score was 6.0 innings, 2 hits, 1 run, 5BB, and 8 SO's. His nickname was Del Fina but it should have been Houdini.

 

Contrast this with JV's last start vs the Tigers. JV throws a complete game. A 2 hit, 2 run, no walks, and 11 SO masterpiece but loses the game, 2-1, with no Astro run support. Valdez is in constant trouble but somehow gets out of it and the Astro bat's ring up 11 runs. Go figure.

 

Based on run support, for these two games, JV, during the playoffs, needs to go to the bullpen and Valdez is going to have to anchor the rotation and do whatever it is, that he does. Is there a volunteer to tell JV, that he needs to go to the bullpen? Anyone, anyone, Bueller?

 

dunno bout dat, but I know Devinski sucks

[eagle eye]

This past week was a better week. Houston went 6 for 7 games played. The lone loss was the Verlander debacle. How does a guy pitch a complete game giving up just 2 hits and 2 runs with no walks and 10 K's and lose? As usual the offense took the game off against a half assed pitcher. The Astros have a day off and they have the Rays coming in for 3. Tuesday's matchup is the marquee event in the series with Verlander taking on former Astro starter Charlie Morton. You remember Charlie, one of the heroes of the Astros 2017 World Series Champs, the Game 7 winner. Morton is doing a great job this year for Tampa going 13-5 with a 2.85 ERA facing the Astros ace who has a line of 15-5 with a 2.77 ERA. The Rays are the first of the 3 teams with a winning record down the stretch. The Astros have two with Milwaukee and 4 with the A's and the rest of their schedule, all 18 games are against sub .500 teams including 15 against division foes. Houston's division record is amazing. They are almost unbeatable in the division and they are an incredible 23-2 at home against the division.

 

So, after being spanked by the A's 8 days ago losing 3 of 4 to allow the A's to get within 6 games of the Astros division lead. This past week Houston got back on the winning track and the A's actually helped Houston out by sweeping the Yankees in a 3 game set and then they lost 2 straight to San Francisco. The wins over the Yankees helped get Houston back even with the Yanks for the best record in the AL and Houston actually had the best record for a few hours until the Yankees beat the Dodgers Sunday night to take the series 2 games to one. The Yanks beating the Dodgers got both the Bronx Bombers and the Astros to within one game of LA for the best record overall.

 

This is the last week of August and all eyes will be on the division and Wild Card races. All the teams will be able to expand their rosters and if all goes well Houston should start getting healthy. In September Houston should get Aledmys Diaz and Carlos Correa back. Aaron Sanchez should be close to getting back although if Framber Valdez pitches like he did Sunday the team won't miss Sanchez much. Honestly, Sanchez' biggest improvement will come with a full offseason with pitching coach Brent Strom. Yordan Alvarez has fallen off lately but the hope is he will get back on track once August turns into September. This week is a big one for Houston as the Wild Card hopeful Rays have been very pesky to deal with for Houston for the past couple of years. Houston needs to make a statement and beat the Rays, at least win the series, to keep pace with the Yankees who don't have the starting pitching the Astros have but they bash home runs like nobody's business. Damn Yankees, indeed.

[eagle eye]

The Astros have 30 games left in the regular season. The Astros record is 85-47 which means Houston needs to win 15 games for their 3rd consecutive 100 win season. My question for you is, WILL THEY DO IT?

[eagle eye]

WTF???? Verlander getting run support????!!!! Astros still batting in the 4th and they’re up 6 zip!!!!’n

[puddin tane]

i think if you bring in a postion player to pitch, and he only throws 60 mph...he oughta hafta wear a pink ballet tutu

[Dracula]

i think if you bring in a postion player to pitch, and he only throws 60 mph...he oughta hafta wear a pink ballet tutu

I wonder what he was thinking,when Alvarez stepped into the box?

[Dracula]

The Astros have 30 games left in the regular season. The Astros record is 85-47 which means Houston needs to win 15 games for their 3rd consecutive 100 win season. My question for you is, WILL THEY DO IT?

I will admit that I have been a little critical of the Astro's offense. However, I think that they have gotten their second wind and I like Toro. I think that the Stro's set a new win total this year.

[eagle eye]

Zack Grienke and Chris Devenski molested the pooch last night. Too bad as Houston could have tied the Yankers for AL best record. Houston plays 5 on the road now, 3 in Toronto and 2 in Milwaukee. Oh, and I'm sure Drac is not happy with the Astros offense after leaving the bases loaded twice and going 2-11 with RISP and stranding 11 base runners last night and they still scored 8 runs. They could have molested the Rays with a couple more timely hits!!!

[puddin tane]

Devinski sucks and rondon needs to get his shat together

[eagle eye]

There must be some karmic influence that denies the Astros the ability to overtake the Yankees for the best record in the AL. It frustrates the crap out of me. The main reason for the Astros second longest losing streak of the season earlier in the month because the Astros ran into a stretch where their starting pitching was hampered by injury which necessitated the need to use a stream of AAA prospects who were clearly in over their heads. The Astros find themselves in the same dilemma now with Brad Peacock and Aaron Sanchez on IL. They are back to depending on a half assed AAA pitcher in Framber Valdez and, as you might expect, he screwed the pooch today. He gave up 5 runs in 5 innings of work and that's all that would be needed for the Blue Jays to beat the Astros today. Now, if the offense had not picked today to suck the Astros may have been able to overcome the Valdez factor. Houston had a lot of opportunities to blast through the porous bullpen of the Blue Jays but choking is becoming more and more prevalent for this team. Jose Altuve, Jake Marisnick and Abraham Toro all grounded into double plays. Houston was 1 for 8 with RISP and they stranded 8 base runners. Blue Jays pitching tried hard to set the Astros up for a comeback by issuing 9 walks which was three more walks than Houston got hits (6). In the top of the 7th the Jays walked the bases loaded and then walked in a run all with only recording one out. Jose Altuve came in after George Springer's RBI walk and he swung at the first pitch, which would have been a ball, hitting a weak comebacker to the pitcher who got the runner out at home. Yordan Alvarez then struck out looking to end the inning. The Yankees beat the A's to take a one game lead for the AL's best record. I'll worry about the Dodgers record when, and if, Houston passes up the damn Yankees.

 

The Astros had a good month overall going 19-9. Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole have been joined by Zack Grienke as a formidable top 3 in the rotation. Wade Miley has been struggling but he's managed to win more than he loses. Yesterday's game was weird because it's not often you throw 95 pitches in 3.2 innings but that was Miley's night. September has arrived and Verlander will lead off the new month for the Astros. Let's hope the offense gives him the same run support they gave him earlier in the week. Despite a pretty good month I don't look for anyone on the team to win Player of the Month awards because nobody has been special except for maybe Alex Bregman who has pushed his BA up to .290 which is a about a 25 point jump from the .265-ish he had been hitting when the month began. This season is past the 3/4 pole and heading for the home stretch. Let's home this team has a flair for the dramatic and finishes the season strong.

[Dracula]

Oh Lord, Saint JV is pitching and guess what is happening? The Nostro's are baaaaaaack. Through 5 innings and Verlander, with a 2.63 ERA, has 8 SO's with 1 BB's. He's pitching a freakin' nohitter. The Nostro's have backslid with a 1 hit and 6 SO's performance against a Toronto pitching staff, who have ERAs of 4.22, 4.5, and 6.15 and a combined record, of 11-10. My Lord, The new guy, with the 6.15 ERA and a record of 4-5, has struck out the first two Nostro's. Through 6 and JV is still pitching a no hitter. Through 7 and JV is still perfect, with 11 SO's, 1 BB and has lowered his ERA to 2.59 and the Nostro's are, too. Through 8 and JV is getting gassed but still is throwing a no hitter and now up to 13 SO's with 1BB. The Nostro's had better do something or they had better turn off their social media. In the top of the 9th,Toro saves their asses with a HR. I bet JV is pumped. JV is a baseball God. Congratulations.

[eagle eye]

Today was a very special day but it wasn't without some nail biting as Justin Verlander got his 3rd career no-hitter and his second against Toronto. Through 8 innings it was a 0-0 tie and you had to have visions of the complete game loss to Detroit a couple of weeks ago. The offense only managed 5 hits and two of those came in the top of the 9th, a bloop double by Alex Bregman and an opposite field HR by rookie Abraham Toro that gave the Astros the 2-0 lead that became the final score. Verlander, 35 years old, faced only 28 batters in the game, just one batter above the minimum. He gave up a walk to Cavan Biggio in the first inning, who was the 2nd batter of the game, and he retired the next 26 batters he faced. Verlander threw 120 pitches in the game, 79 were fastballs. It was nice to see that Ken Giles has not shed his choker tendencies as he was the pitcher in the 9th who gave up the winning runs to Houston. As is usually the case, a guy who makes a play on offense ends up making a play on defense or vise versa. Today it was Toro who hit the game winning home run and he was also the guy who made the play to get the final out of the game. A ground ball from Bo Bichette grounded to Toro who played 3B today and he fired across the field to Aledmys Diaz who was playing 1B and the celebration could finally begin. Toro, BTW, is a native of Canada so it seemed appropriate for him to play such a pivotal role in the game that won the series for the Astros in front of his family and friends in the stands.

 

For the week Houston went 4-2 in six games winning both series they played. They beat Tampa Bay and Toronto in their series. Houston leads the AL West by 10 games over 2nd place Oakland who did some choking themselves today. They had a 4-0 lead after the top of the 8th but their bullpen allowed 5 runs in the final two innings to lose the game and the series to the Yanks. So, Houston finishes the week one game behind them for the AL's best record. Arizona opened a can of whup ass on the Dodgers and they are actually now trailing the Yankees and Astros for MLB's best record. The D-Backs have beaten 3 straight and could make it four straight if they win today. Houston, for the season is 29-9-6 in series played which ain't too shabby.

 

Verlander became only 3rd player in MLB history to obtain 3 or more no-no's. The other five are:

Nolan Ryan - 7 NH'ers - HOF

Sandy Koufax - 4 NH'ers - HOF

Bob Feller - 3 NH'ers - HOF

Cy Young - 3 NH'ers - HOF

Larry Corcoran - 3 NH'ers - Pitched in the 1880's and was the first pitcher to throw 3 no-hitters in MLB history.

 

Corcoran's story is fascinating and he really should be in the MLB HOF. Check out this article from Yahoo Sports.

 

https://sports.yahoo.com/unbelievable-story-larry-corcoran-first-pitcher-three-no-hitters-141714011.html

[eagle eye]

I saw an article where Astros manager AJ Hinch still supports closer Roberto Osuna even after yet another blown save on Monday. Since the All Star break you just haven’t been able to depend on him. Of course Hinch is going to back his player but who is he going to turn to? The bullpen has been hit or miss almost as much as Osuna. Bad situation all around.

[eagle eye]

The Month of August was a good month judging by the accolades coming after the end of the month. First, Justin Verlander won AL Pitcher of the Week for the Week of August 26th when he tossed his 3rd career no-hitter. His 120 pitch gem came on Sept 1 which was Sunday and the last day of the week.

 

Next Yordan Alvarez was named AL Rookie of the Month of August with his continued success as a rookie. In August his stat line is .309/.425/.670 and he hit 9 HR’s and drove in 26 runs. It is the 3rd consecutive month Alvarez has won ROTM as he also won in June and July. He seems to be full steam ahead to win the 2019 Rookie of the Year award which would be the first time an Astro would win the award since Carlos Correa won it in 2015. Jeff Bagwell won NL Rookie of the Year in 1991 and these are the only players in Astros history to win ROTY honors.

 

Alex Bregman won AL Player of the Month of August as he caught on fire in August. Quote from Astros.com:

 

Bregman bolstered his standing as one of the best young players in baseball, ranking among the sport’s top players with a .487 on-base percentage (best in MLB, min. 100 plate appearances), .404 batting average (second), .747 slugging percentage (third) and 14 doubles (second). The third baseman is currently working on a 12-game on-base streak while the Astros have won nine games in that span. His OPS improved from .909 at the start of August to .976 at its conclusion, and his .985 mark after two additional games in September now places him third in the AL behind Mike Trout and Nelson Cruz. This is Bregman’s second career Player of the Month award after claiming the honor in June 2018.