Hello everyone! It's Players Weekend! So for this edition of Hot Links, you are not allowed to refer to be by my real name, Flick Nickem, but my Player's Weekend Name, Pilot Terry Byrd. Why is my name Pilot Terry Byrd? Let's start with my title. If you were familiar with my #online #brand, then you would understand that I stan Pilot G2 pens. The Pilot G-2 07 mm Fine Point Retractable Premium Gel Ink Pen IS the #1 gel pen on the market today, so it only makes sense that my favorite company gets a shoutout in my Players Weekend name.
But Terry Byrd? Well, Terry Byrd is the last three syllables of my favorite flying friend, the secretary bird. My entire Twitter persona revolves around these dudes, and I always go the extra mile to show everyone I meet just how awesome these birds really are, like how they kick snakes in the head until they die. So now you know. Is Pilot Terry Byrd stupid? Yes. But so is Flick Nickem. Let me have fun.
Anyways, A's lost! Astros are now up 1.5 games on them and 5.5 up on Seattle this morning as we inch ever so slowly into September and seeing all our injured fellas and Fresno friends in Houston again. We take on the Angels this weekend, who currently aren't at full strength right now with Trout and Upton on the DL. The A's are also playing a less-than-stellar Twins team with weekend, so it is imperative for the Astros to pick up these wins in order to stay atop the standings by weekends end.
Let's get down to linking!
The Ringer's Zach Kram talks about why there is no good reason to worry about the Astros.
The Major League Baseball Creators of Content made an Astros Infield Highlight Reel.
The plan is for Springer to get back into the lineup tonight.
Do you like the Astros stare home run celebration? Buy a T-shirt of it.
These people waited absolutely too long for an Alex Bregman bobblehead. Who does this? why?
Minor League Ball gives us the midseason review of the top 20 2018 Astros prospects (we have seen a lot of them so far this season).
Andrew McCutchen addresses clearing waivers and not being in the lineup. My favorite part:
“I don’t really understand that process. I don’t get it. I don’t know waivers or clearers or revocables. I don’t know what that stuff means, man. I have a better chance understanding trigonometry.”
Same.
The Astros have hit into a LOT of double plays.
J.D. Davis is on an unreal tear in Fresno right now.
Speaking of Fresno Grizzlies on an unreal tear right now, Kyle Tucker is hitting .700 in Fresno since his demotion.
Ken Giles has gotten his ERA under 10 in Toronto!
Jacob DeGrom has been absolutely unreal this season. He might win the Cy Young this year. He has 8 wins to show for it.
Paris is rolling out sidewalk urinals where you pee in this mailbox-looking thing in very public areas because they have a problem with "wild peeing." This is the most important link of the whole post.
Professional cuddlers are now making over 30 euros an hour (roughly $35 USD an hour)
On This Day In Baseball History
In 1919, Indians pitcher Ray Caldwell was struck by lightning after pitching 8.2 innings. He was knocked unconscious, revived after a 5 minute delay, refused to be taken out, and got the last out for a complete game win.
In 1951, the St. Louis Browns had the Grandstand Managers Night, where the fans democratically coached the team.
In 1983, Orioles pitcher Tippy Martinez picked off three Toronto Blue Jays players in one inning.
In 2007, Greg Maddux became the first pitcher ever to win 10 games in a season for 20 years in a row.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
Friday, August 24, 2018
Thursday, August 23, 2018
Thursday Morning Hot Links
The Astros had a laugher of a game which suddenly wasn't so fun and then turned out okay in the end, which is, ideally, a microcosm of what the 2018 season will be. The Astros won 10-7 over Seattle. The A's lost to the Ramgers. Houston is 77-50 with a one-game lead and 35 games to play.
*Houston has now won back-to-back games for the first time since August 6-7. Houston has won 14 out of their last 18 games at Safeco Field.
*Yesterday was the 16th time the Astros have allowing 7+ runs. They're now 2-14 when allowing 7+ runs, the other win coming against Arlington on June 10. Over their last 12 games the Astros are 4-8 and have allowed 57 runs.
*It was the 15th time Houston has scored 10+ runs. The Astros are 51-9 when scoring 5+ runs in a game.
*With two more GIDPs the Astros now have 22 GIDPs in August. GIDPs by month, 2018:
March/April: 22
May:25
June: 35
July: 21
August: 22
*Tyler White was 3x5 with a single, triple, and a home run (wink). Martin Maldonado was 3x5 with 3RBI on a single, double, and a home run.
*Behold, the Astros GIF to end all Astros GIFs:
*Carlos Correa was the only player in the lineup without a hit. In 40 PAs since returning from the DL Correa is hitting .171/.250/.200 with 12K:4BB and one extra-base hit, a double.
*Charlie Morton, Innings 1-4: 4IP, 2H/1ER, 5K:1BB
Charlie Morton, Innings 5-6: 1+IP, 5H/2ER, 2K:0BB, 2 HBP
Morton:
Good and then bad. I gave up a bunch of runs in the sixth. I wasn't really mixing very well and I wasn't executing my sinker in good locations, and the offspeed I did throw was awful.
Tony Kemp, who had three hits:
I think the good thing about our team is that once someone gets out or gets a hit, they come back to the dugout and are really communicative toward their teammates. That's good. Sometimes you hit slumps, you hit ruts, and people don't talk as much. But I think the main thing is our communication is at a high level right now, and that's what we have to keep doing to be successful.
*Ryan Pressly since joining the Astros: 9.2IP, 6H/2ER, 13K:0BB.
*Roberto Osuna since joining the Astros: 7IP, 8H/2ER, 7K:1BB. He recorded his first save since May 6.
*Hinch, on Pressly/Rondon/Osuna:
You can't hate how you win if you win. It was good for us, especially the last three innings with the guys we threw. That's exactly how you draw it up. All three were dominant. The way those guys responded and held it down was pretty nice.
*George Springer was out of the lineup for the third straight game as the Astros try to manage quad soreness and probably some residual soreness in his thumb. Hinch:
I know we're all frustrated and he's frustrated that he's not going to play today. He ran really hard [Wednesday]. He told me and the trainers told me he could probably play at a reduced level, whether that's 90 percent, 80 percent or whatever. The recommendation is to give him another day, and we have the day off [today], and we'll aim for Friday.
*The two-time defending World Series Champion Houston Astros will open the 2019 season at Tampa Bay on March 28. They'll play games in Mexico next year, too. More thoughts on this later.
*In The Athletic, Jake Kaplan takes a look at which minor-leaguers might get called up in September.
*Fresno was down 8-3 after six innings at Sacramento. Kyle Tucker hit a solo home run in the 7th and a grand slam in the 9th to tie the game as Fresno went on to a 10-8 win after a 6-run 9th inning. Grizzlies pitchers need just 57 strikeouts to break the all-time PCL record for strikeouts in a single season.
*Corpus took a 9-3 lead and held on to a 9-8 win over Midland. Brian McCann was 0x3 with a walk. Chris Devenski threw 1IP, 2H/1ER, 3K:0BB.
*At Buies Creek, 1-2 in the lineup Corey Julks and JJMatisyahu Matijevic combined for a 5x8 night with 3HR and 8RBI total. Seth Beer hit his 2nd High-A homer.
*Houston has now won back-to-back games for the first time since August 6-7. Houston has won 14 out of their last 18 games at Safeco Field.
*Yesterday was the 16th time the Astros have allowing 7+ runs. They're now 2-14 when allowing 7+ runs, the other win coming against Arlington on June 10. Over their last 12 games the Astros are 4-8 and have allowed 57 runs.
*It was the 15th time Houston has scored 10+ runs. The Astros are 51-9 when scoring 5+ runs in a game.
*With two more GIDPs the Astros now have 22 GIDPs in August. GIDPs by month, 2018:
March/April: 22
May:25
June: 35
July: 21
August: 22
*Tyler White was 3x5 with a single, triple, and a home run (wink). Martin Maldonado was 3x5 with 3RBI on a single, double, and a home run.
*Behold, the Astros GIF to end all Astros GIFs:
Legends. pic.twitter.com/Z0UiCAxGCd— Houston Astros (@astros) August 22, 2018
*Carlos Correa was the only player in the lineup without a hit. In 40 PAs since returning from the DL Correa is hitting .171/.250/.200 with 12K:4BB and one extra-base hit, a double.
*Charlie Morton, Innings 1-4: 4IP, 2H/1ER, 5K:1BB
Charlie Morton, Innings 5-6: 1+IP, 5H/2ER, 2K:0BB, 2 HBP
Morton:
Good and then bad. I gave up a bunch of runs in the sixth. I wasn't really mixing very well and I wasn't executing my sinker in good locations, and the offspeed I did throw was awful.
Tony Kemp, who had three hits:
I think the good thing about our team is that once someone gets out or gets a hit, they come back to the dugout and are really communicative toward their teammates. That's good. Sometimes you hit slumps, you hit ruts, and people don't talk as much. But I think the main thing is our communication is at a high level right now, and that's what we have to keep doing to be successful.
*Ryan Pressly since joining the Astros: 9.2IP, 6H/2ER, 13K:0BB.
*Roberto Osuna since joining the Astros: 7IP, 8H/2ER, 7K:1BB. He recorded his first save since May 6.
*Hinch, on Pressly/Rondon/Osuna:
You can't hate how you win if you win. It was good for us, especially the last three innings with the guys we threw. That's exactly how you draw it up. All three were dominant. The way those guys responded and held it down was pretty nice.
*George Springer was out of the lineup for the third straight game as the Astros try to manage quad soreness and probably some residual soreness in his thumb. Hinch:
I know we're all frustrated and he's frustrated that he's not going to play today. He ran really hard [Wednesday]. He told me and the trainers told me he could probably play at a reduced level, whether that's 90 percent, 80 percent or whatever. The recommendation is to give him another day, and we have the day off [today], and we'll aim for Friday.
*The two-time defending World Series Champion Houston Astros will open the 2019 season at Tampa Bay on March 28. They'll play games in Mexico next year, too. More thoughts on this later.
*In The Athletic, Jake Kaplan takes a look at which minor-leaguers might get called up in September.
*Fresno was down 8-3 after six innings at Sacramento. Kyle Tucker hit a solo home run in the 7th and a grand slam in the 9th to tie the game as Fresno went on to a 10-8 win after a 6-run 9th inning. Grizzlies pitchers need just 57 strikeouts to break the all-time PCL record for strikeouts in a single season.
*Corpus took a 9-3 lead and held on to a 9-8 win over Midland. Brian McCann was 0x3 with a walk. Chris Devenski threw 1IP, 2H/1ER, 3K:0BB.
*At Buies Creek, 1-2 in the lineup Corey Julks and JJ
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
Wednesday Morning Hot Links
Good morning one and all and welcome back to another day of Hot Links at the Astros County establishment. I'm your host, Flick Nickem, and today we will be talking about the baseball game that occurred late last night in Seattle, Washington.
The Houston Astros defeated the Seattle Mariners 3-2 last evening thanks to big hits by Josh Reddick and Yuli Gurriel. Carlos Correa seemed to finally get back on track at the plate as he went 3-3 last night in addition to the other two players I previously mentioned above.
But it wasn't all lollipops and rainbows oh no it was not. The Astros grounded into a franchise record 6 double plays last evening, killing a lot of potential offensive opportunities. The team was carried by the phenomenal pitching performances from Peacock, newcomer Framber Valdez, Smith, Osuna (kind of), and Rondon.
Here's A.J. Postgame: *click me please I have a family to feed*
It was an emotional day for myself as I had to say goodbye to Cionel Perez (or as I like to call him, Cy-onel. Just kidding I do not say that. Love that guy though.) in order to make room for Framber. While I was very excited to add yet another name to the list of funny Astros players, this isn't the way I wanted it to happen. Farewell, sweet prince. Until September :'(
However, Framber lived up to the hype. After being named minor league pitcher of the month, he notched his first career win after going 4.1 innings allowing only 2 hits and striking out 4.
Devo and McCann were hanging out with the team yesterday since Fresno was playing in Washington as well and they are on the longest "rehab assignment" in franchise history probably.
Osuna is allegedly the closer even though Rondon closed last night.
There is currently a $2 ticket available for the Angels game in Anaheim on Sunday. However if you aren't a poor, there are still tons of $4 tickets you can splurge on as well.
I don't plan on linking a whole lot of my tweets, but it is kind of terrifying how similar Josh Reddick and short-haired Kurt Cobain look.
Just in case you forgot, our last 4 regular season games are against the Baltimore Orioles, who is very well on pace to be worse than these historically bad Orioles teams.
Altuve is very proud after collecting his first career hit in AAA.
a BASEBALL PLAYER named CHICKEN WOLF?
Apparently the Huffington Post has no shame in posting an article headlined "Famously Thicc Cat, High Maintenance Cat Finds New Human As Extra As He Is." Somebody needs to lose a job over this.
It's "near-on impossible" to pick Shed of the Year this year.
On This Day In Baseball History
In 1965, Juan Marichal attacked Johnny Roseboro with his bat, sparking a nearly 15 minutes brawl.
In 1966, Orioles player Davey Johnson saved teammate Frank Robinson from nearly drowning in a pool.
In 1982, Ernie Banks number was retired by the Cubs.
Also in 1982, Cardinals catcher Glenn Brummer stole home to walk off St. Louis in extra innings. He had 4 career stolen bases.
In 1989, Nolan Ryan became the only pitcher to strike out 5000 batters.
In 2007, the Rangers became the first MLB team post-1900 to score 30 runs in a game.
In 2011, Matt Holliday was forced to leave the game after a moth got stuck in his right ear.
The Houston Astros defeated the Seattle Mariners 3-2 last evening thanks to big hits by Josh Reddick and Yuli Gurriel. Carlos Correa seemed to finally get back on track at the plate as he went 3-3 last night in addition to the other two players I previously mentioned above.
But it wasn't all lollipops and rainbows oh no it was not. The Astros grounded into a franchise record 6 double plays last evening, killing a lot of potential offensive opportunities. The team was carried by the phenomenal pitching performances from Peacock, newcomer Framber Valdez, Smith, Osuna (kind of), and Rondon.
Here's A.J. Postgame: *click me please I have a family to feed*
It was an emotional day for myself as I had to say goodbye to Cionel Perez (or as I like to call him, Cy-onel. Just kidding I do not say that. Love that guy though.) in order to make room for Framber. While I was very excited to add yet another name to the list of funny Astros players, this isn't the way I wanted it to happen. Farewell, sweet prince. Until September :'(
However, Framber lived up to the hype. After being named minor league pitcher of the month, he notched his first career win after going 4.1 innings allowing only 2 hits and striking out 4.
Devo and McCann were hanging out with the team yesterday since Fresno was playing in Washington as well and they are on the longest "rehab assignment" in franchise history probably.
Osuna is allegedly the closer even though Rondon closed last night.
There is currently a $2 ticket available for the Angels game in Anaheim on Sunday. However if you aren't a poor, there are still tons of $4 tickets you can splurge on as well.
I don't plan on linking a whole lot of my tweets, but it is kind of terrifying how similar Josh Reddick and short-haired Kurt Cobain look.
Just in case you forgot, our last 4 regular season games are against the Baltimore Orioles, who is very well on pace to be worse than these historically bad Orioles teams.
Altuve is very proud after collecting his first career hit in AAA.
a BASEBALL PLAYER named CHICKEN WOLF?
Apparently the Huffington Post has no shame in posting an article headlined "Famously Thicc Cat, High Maintenance Cat Finds New Human As Extra As He Is." Somebody needs to lose a job over this.
It's "near-on impossible" to pick Shed of the Year this year.
On This Day In Baseball History
In 1965, Juan Marichal attacked Johnny Roseboro with his bat, sparking a nearly 15 minutes brawl.
In 1966, Orioles player Davey Johnson saved teammate Frank Robinson from nearly drowning in a pool.
In 1982, Ernie Banks number was retired by the Cubs.
Also in 1982, Cardinals catcher Glenn Brummer stole home to walk off St. Louis in extra innings. He had 4 career stolen bases.
In 1989, Nolan Ryan became the only pitcher to strike out 5000 batters.
In 2007, the Rangers became the first MLB team post-1900 to score 30 runs in a game.
In 2011, Matt Holliday was forced to leave the game after a moth got stuck in his right ear.
Tuesday, August 21, 2018
Tuesday Morning Hot Links
It's the first day of school, and I've basically been up since about 4:15am because I'm stoked. That said, in the last week I've managed to drop my wife's full-ass Yeti Cup on my toe, breaking it, and then in an unrelated incident, I have a grade 2 strain of my left hamstring. A.J. Hinch described it as "hamstring discomfort" and I'm really nervous about that. Good luck to all you teachers (and students, I guess, though you should know we do absolutely everything we can to make sure you pass. You either have to not show up or be a complete jackass in order to fail.) Oh, and the Astros lost to the Mariners. Idiots.
*The Astros and A's currently have a 75-50 record, thanks to the Rangers completely soiling the bed after eating a gas station burrito on the way to the brick-oven ballpark in which they play. The Astros have scored 17 more runs than the A's, and have allowed 104 fewer runs. Yet here we are. FanGraphs still projects the Astros to win the AL West by four games but the fact that I even needed to look this morning fills me with rage.
*The Astros have lost five straight games to the Mariners, and they're 5-16 against AL West opponents since July 4. Hinch:
They outhit us and put a lot of pressure on us from the very beginning of the game. We had one baserunner after the third inning. They did enough to win the game, obviously, with some big at-bats.
*Robinson Cano had three hits - all for extra-bases, including a three-run home run off of Collin McHugh that turned a 4-4 game into a 7-4 game. It was the first home run McHugh had allowed since July 25, and the first home run he had allowed with a runner(s) on base since September 8, 2017. It was poorly-timed.
The last four home runs that Seattle has hit off of Collin McHugh:
August 20, 2018: Robinson Cano
September 26, 2016: Robinson Cano
May 8, 2016: Robinson Cano
April 27, 2016: Robinson Cano
McHugh:
We just have to play consistent baseball through the end of the season, and I think we're pretty confident if we do that we're going to win this division. That's where our minds are at. That's where we're headed. We have some work to do.
*Mitch G.D. Haniger was 2x4 with a walk. Against the Astros this season he's hitting .315/.339/.463 with five doubles, a home run, 16K:2BB.
*Mariners relievers Adam Warren, Alex Colome, and Edwin Diaz needed 36 pitches to no-hit the Astros over the last three innings. Adam Warren started each of the three batters he faced with a ball and still only needed nine pitches to retire the side.
*Jose Altuve is set to return after having been out of the lineup since July 27. The Astros will finish up his first career DL stint with an 8-13 record. They've lost eight of their last ten, nine of their last 13 games. Since the 2-1 win over the Giants on August 7, Houston has lost 5.5 games in the standings to Oakland. Kyle Tucker was sent back to Fresno after a relaxing few days in Seattle with the Astros.
*Add "quad soreness" to the list of things ailing George Springer. Also, McCann and Devenski will head to Corpus to complete their rehab stints. McCann will be in Corpus' lineup on Wednesday. Today is a bullpen day as it's McCullers' turn in the rotation. Brad Peacock will start, and will be just the 6th person to start a game for the Astros this season. After tonight, Friday's game against Anaheim will be the last 9pm start of the regular season.
*Eno Sarris in The Athletic: Why do the Astros struggle at Minute Maid Park?
*Jeff Sullivan: The Mariners still look like an all-time anomaly.
*Notable: Rian Watt on the unlikely ascent of Oakland's bullpen.
*FanGraphs' Sheryl Ring: How an agent who represents multiple players avoids conflicts of interest.
*The Astros and A's currently have a 75-50 record, thanks to the Rangers completely soiling the bed after eating a gas station burrito on the way to the brick-oven ballpark in which they play. The Astros have scored 17 more runs than the A's, and have allowed 104 fewer runs. Yet here we are. FanGraphs still projects the Astros to win the AL West by four games but the fact that I even needed to look this morning fills me with rage.
*The Astros have lost five straight games to the Mariners, and they're 5-16 against AL West opponents since July 4. Hinch:
They outhit us and put a lot of pressure on us from the very beginning of the game. We had one baserunner after the third inning. They did enough to win the game, obviously, with some big at-bats.
*Robinson Cano had three hits - all for extra-bases, including a three-run home run off of Collin McHugh that turned a 4-4 game into a 7-4 game. It was the first home run McHugh had allowed since July 25, and the first home run he had allowed with a runner(s) on base since September 8, 2017. It was poorly-timed.
The last four home runs that Seattle has hit off of Collin McHugh:
August 20, 2018: Robinson Cano
September 26, 2016: Robinson Cano
May 8, 2016: Robinson Cano
April 27, 2016: Robinson Cano
McHugh:
We just have to play consistent baseball through the end of the season, and I think we're pretty confident if we do that we're going to win this division. That's where our minds are at. That's where we're headed. We have some work to do.
Man, if that’s a blowpen, then what do you call the— Zachary Levine (@zacharylevine) August 21, 2018
...
(starts counting)
...
(keeps counting)
...
(counts some more)
...
29 teams that came into today with worse bullpen ERAs? https://t.co/eCyolL47aJ
*Mitch G.D. Haniger was 2x4 with a walk. Against the Astros this season he's hitting .315/.339/.463 with five doubles, a home run, 16K:2BB.
*The Astros managed five hits last night. It's the 31st time this season they've recorded five or fewer hits, out of 125 games.
*4-9 in Houston's lineup combined to go 0x20 with 7K:2BB.
*Felix Hernandez recorded a Game Score of 50, his highest Game Score since putting up a 53 against [squints] Baltimore on June 25. Last night was the first game the Mariners had won with Felix on the mound since June 30. Felix struck out six of the 25 Astros he faced. He had struck out six of the previous 76 batters he had faced over three starts. So way to go, defending World Champs.
*Mariners relievers Adam Warren, Alex Colome, and Edwin Diaz needed 36 pitches to no-hit the Astros over the last three innings. Adam Warren started each of the three batters he faced with a ball and still only needed nine pitches to retire the side.
*Jose Altuve is set to return after having been out of the lineup since July 27. The Astros will finish up his first career DL stint with an 8-13 record. They've lost eight of their last ten, nine of their last 13 games. Since the 2-1 win over the Giants on August 7, Houston has lost 5.5 games in the standings to Oakland. Kyle Tucker was sent back to Fresno after a relaxing few days in Seattle with the Astros.
*Add "quad soreness" to the list of things ailing George Springer. Also, McCann and Devenski will head to Corpus to complete their rehab stints. McCann will be in Corpus' lineup on Wednesday. Today is a bullpen day as it's McCullers' turn in the rotation. Brad Peacock will start, and will be just the 6th person to start a game for the Astros this season. After tonight, Friday's game against Anaheim will be the last 9pm start of the regular season.
*Eno Sarris in The Athletic: Why do the Astros struggle at Minute Maid Park?
*Jeff Sullivan: The Mariners still look like an all-time anomaly.
*Notable: Rian Watt on the unlikely ascent of Oakland's bullpen.
*FanGraphs' Sheryl Ring: How an agent who represents multiple players avoids conflicts of interest.
Monday, August 20, 2018
Monday Morning Hot Links
More Like Oakland L's!
What a big day for the Houston Astros yesterday afternoon. These bats were alive and the Astros have thankfully regained sole control of first place in the west. Everybody got a hit (except Reddick) and Maldonado was a single shy of the cycle, which would have been the first cycle since Luke Scott in 2006 (because I strongly believe Brandon Barnes was out at 2nd base in 2013 do not @ me).
Another big moment in yesterday's game is Justin Verlander collecting his career 200th win, and he got dunked in champagne to celebrate. Verlander, Hinch, and other key players to the game post-game interviews and recapped can be found here (you might read something about Verlander being dunked in champagne, and that's because I stole that bit because I wanted to tell you that first. Don't worry though, sources cited).
Anyways, now its time for the rapid fire Hot Links part of the program.
Rondon has not had the greatest few outings. Will Osuna become the closer anytime soon?
Josh Reddick apologized after Oakland fans took one of his quotes out of context.
Altuve was hit by a pitch in his Fresno rehab assignment. He is expected to be okay.
This is the last week for 9:10 CST first pitches. The Sun People are very excited for this, and the Night People are also kind of happy about it as well because then the Sun People don't judge us to harshly about our tweeting habits at that hour of night. Pretty much a win-win everywhere.
The Astros are now ever so close to being #onpace for 100 wins. FiveThirtyEight also gives the Astros a 97% chance of making the playoffs and a 74% to win the division.
Hinch is basically as fast as Jake at this point, in case you were wondering how that was progressing.
Julia Morales blew the lead in the mascot race. Unacceptable imo.
Felix Hernandez is back in the rotation just in time for the Houston Astros to roll into town.
Here is a piece on Ex-Astros prospect Ramon Laureano and how he's been since he went on to pursue other opportunities.
Bryce Harper AND Daniel Murphy were placed on revocable trade waivers.
I listened to the new episode of Lima Time Time while making these and it is good. You should listen to it.
Big Al was quite the hit at the Williamsport Sunday Night Baseball game.
On This Day In Baseball History
In 1921, Ty Cobb got his 3000th hit.
In 1997, Wade Boggs pitched. He threw one inning and did not allow a hit.
In 2010, the Astros traded Pedro Feliz to the Cardinals for David Carpenter. The trade was made so the Cardinals could replace injured third baseman David Freese.
In 2012, the Mets-Nationals game screeched to a halt after a praying mantis was discovered in the outfield.
Sunday, August 19, 2018
The Setbacks of Francis Martes and David Paulino
Tuesday's clash against the Mariners will be the Astros fifth straight game without an off-day, and will be the first time that the squad has had to go beyond its five man opening day roster to find another starting pitcher. Let us first note how remarkable this is. As of Friday, 304 men had started a game in the major leagues this year. That's an average of over 10 starters per team Even if you take the Tampa Bay Rays and all of their "openers" out of the equation (they've had 15 different starting pitchers), each team has averaged 9.96 different starting pitchers. The Astros have used only 5.
Here's to having good starting pitchers, their health, and a speedy recovery for Lance McCullers.
On Friday, AJ Hinch announced that Tuesday's start would likely be a bullpen start.
Earlier this month, right after McCullers went on the DL, GM Jeff Luhnow gave a list of potential minor league candidates to take McCullers's place in the rotation.
To me, the most notable thing about Luhnow's list is the names that it does not include--Francis Martes and David Paulino. Both had started a handful of games in the majors in 2017 filling in for injured starting pitchers. While both had graduated from prospect rankings, both had been ranked going into the 2017 season. Martes was a consensus top 30 prospect and Paulino was ranked in the top by 60 by Baseball America and MLB Pipeline (though Baseball Prospectus was more bearish, ranking Paulino 83rd).
Both started the year in Fresno, ready to answer the alarm if and when an Astros starter went on the DL, or a hard thrower was needed to make some bullpen appearances. But the alarm never rang, and based on the seasons by these two, that turned out to be a good thing.
Martes never was able to harness his command while on the mound in 2018. At Fresno, he walked nearly a batter an inning--17 bases on balls in 18 2/3 IP. The Astros thought they had found the culprit--injury. After only 4 stats, the Astros places Martes on the disabled list. But, as reported by Jake Kaplan in The Athletic, tests showed no structural damage. By early August, Martes was working his way back to the rotation when he had a "setback" while re-habbing in West Palm Beach. The setback turned into Tommy John surgery, and a 12-16 month recovery that will keep Martes out of the Astros plans in not only the rest of 2018, but also 2019 as well.
For Paulino, the story is similar, even if the end is different. Paulino was placed on the DL at the beginning of the Triple-A season. He returned to pitching in early May, and was ineffective. Paulino gave up 12 runs (11 earned) in 16 innings across four starts in Fresno. Paulino then returned to the DL, making 3 rehab appearances in the Gulf Coast League. And then, Paulino was traded along with Hector Perez and Ken Giles in the deal to acquire Roberto Osuna (whose value had dropped after details of his arrest for domestic violence against his girl friend came to light). Paulino has remained on rehab assignment with the Blue Jays.
In short, Martes and Paulino have gone from the doorstep of the majors with a chance to establish themselves as bonafide major leaguers to career crossroads in a short period of time. This year has been a disaster of epic proportions from the standpoint of both players
From an Astros standpoint, the travails of Martes and Paulino have had a more muted effect in 2018. The health and quality of the team's starting pitchers--as well as the development of Cionel Perez--has meant that the setbacks experienced by Martes and Paulino has not affected the major league squad so far.
But the impact of their lost seasons might be felt in 2019. Dallas Keuchel and Charlie Morton are both free agents at the end of this season, which will open up two spots in the starting rotation. With one injured and the other north of the border, Martes and Paulino are not candidates to fill it. Combine their setbacks with the frustrating season of Forrest Whitley (bizarre PED suspension, injuries), the Astros may lack an internal candidate to fill one of those vacancies in April 2019. Without a "cheap" option to fill those two spaces, the team may have to turn to the free agent market to find starters, either by re-signing Morton and/or Kuechel, or by identifying a player on another team to join the Astros rotation. This is, of course, not a cheap proposition. The real cost of Martes's injury and Paulino's trip to Toronto is less their individual lack of development, than in compelling the Astros to spend a greater share of resources on their rotation in 2019.
Here's to having good starting pitchers, their health, and a speedy recovery for Lance McCullers.
On Friday, AJ Hinch announced that Tuesday's start would likely be a bullpen start.
Several factors are driving team management to this decision. 1) The closeness to the September roster expansion means the team may have to do a bullpen start only once more this season. 2) The closeness to October (and quit your yapping, we're going, this week's games be damned) has prompted the team to want Collin McHugh and Brad Peacock to remain in the bullpen and on routine, and 3. the lack of a reliable option from Fresno. There is no clear candidate on the Fresno roster, though it is of course possible that they bring up that day's scheduled Grizlies starter and see if he can get through the Ms lineup two times.Barring the Astros’ bullpen being overworked in this series, A.J. Hinch said the person who will start Tuesday in Seattle is currently on the club. He listed Brad Peacock, Collin McHugh and Cionel Perez as the three candidates.— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) August 18, 2018
Earlier this month, right after McCullers went on the DL, GM Jeff Luhnow gave a list of potential minor league candidates to take McCullers's place in the rotation.
On @AstrosRadioMLB, Jeff Luhnow listed Brady Rodgers, Josh James, Trent Thornton, Rogelio Armenteros and Framber Valdez are the "main candidates" to possibly make starts with the major league club should Lance McCullers Jr. be out a while.— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) August 5, 2018
To me, the most notable thing about Luhnow's list is the names that it does not include--Francis Martes and David Paulino. Both had started a handful of games in the majors in 2017 filling in for injured starting pitchers. While both had graduated from prospect rankings, both had been ranked going into the 2017 season. Martes was a consensus top 30 prospect and Paulino was ranked in the top by 60 by Baseball America and MLB Pipeline (though Baseball Prospectus was more bearish, ranking Paulino 83rd).
Both started the year in Fresno, ready to answer the alarm if and when an Astros starter went on the DL, or a hard thrower was needed to make some bullpen appearances. But the alarm never rang, and based on the seasons by these two, that turned out to be a good thing.
Martes never was able to harness his command while on the mound in 2018. At Fresno, he walked nearly a batter an inning--17 bases on balls in 18 2/3 IP. The Astros thought they had found the culprit--injury. After only 4 stats, the Astros places Martes on the disabled list. But, as reported by Jake Kaplan in The Athletic, tests showed no structural damage. By early August, Martes was working his way back to the rotation when he had a "setback" while re-habbing in West Palm Beach. The setback turned into Tommy John surgery, and a 12-16 month recovery that will keep Martes out of the Astros plans in not only the rest of 2018, but also 2019 as well.
For Paulino, the story is similar, even if the end is different. Paulino was placed on the DL at the beginning of the Triple-A season. He returned to pitching in early May, and was ineffective. Paulino gave up 12 runs (11 earned) in 16 innings across four starts in Fresno. Paulino then returned to the DL, making 3 rehab appearances in the Gulf Coast League. And then, Paulino was traded along with Hector Perez and Ken Giles in the deal to acquire Roberto Osuna (whose value had dropped after details of his arrest for domestic violence against his girl friend came to light). Paulino has remained on rehab assignment with the Blue Jays.
In short, Martes and Paulino have gone from the doorstep of the majors with a chance to establish themselves as bonafide major leaguers to career crossroads in a short period of time. This year has been a disaster of epic proportions from the standpoint of both players
From an Astros standpoint, the travails of Martes and Paulino have had a more muted effect in 2018. The health and quality of the team's starting pitchers--as well as the development of Cionel Perez--has meant that the setbacks experienced by Martes and Paulino has not affected the major league squad so far.
But the impact of their lost seasons might be felt in 2019. Dallas Keuchel and Charlie Morton are both free agents at the end of this season, which will open up two spots in the starting rotation. With one injured and the other north of the border, Martes and Paulino are not candidates to fill it. Combine their setbacks with the frustrating season of Forrest Whitley (bizarre PED suspension, injuries), the Astros may lack an internal candidate to fill one of those vacancies in April 2019. Without a "cheap" option to fill those two spaces, the team may have to turn to the free agent market to find starters, either by re-signing Morton and/or Kuechel, or by identifying a player on another team to join the Astros rotation. This is, of course, not a cheap proposition. The real cost of Martes's injury and Paulino's trip to Toronto is less their individual lack of development, than in compelling the Astros to spend a greater share of resources on their rotation in 2019.
Reinforcing the Astros - August 17 and 18
The Astros lead in the AL West has now entirely evaporated, along with any of this "run scoring" thing that the stats nerds are so obsessed with these days. The argument that the Astros could do with some reinforcing is a strong one - in particular the roles of Evan Gattis (.194/.206/.452 in August), Yuli Gurriel (.183/.221/.268 over the last 28 days) and Josh Reddick (.200/.263/.343 in August) would be in danger from Tyler White and a cast of others... if only anyone were to be tearing the cover off the ball. Stay posted to find out if any of the Astros farmhands are, in fact, doing that...
Corpus Christi: Corpus managed a rare come-from-behind victory in their August 17 game against Springfield, winning by a score of 5-3. Both teams managed only five hits - for Corpus that involved two hits to RF Stephen Wrenn (2-4, 2B, HR) and 3B Abraham Toro (2-4). Anibal Sierra went 1-3 and was caught stealing, while DH Carmen Benedetti and LF Chas McCormick both walked once.
On the pitching side of the equation, Brandon Bielak threw 5IP, allowing 3 hits and 2 walks, which resulted in 2 runs but only one of those was earned. He allowed a home run, as did the guy who replaced him (Brett Adcock), who allowed 2 hits, 1 walk and struck out 4. Kit Scheetz finished the game with a perfect ninth, striking out two.
Springfield got their revenge on the Hooks during the August 18 game, with a two-run bottom of the ninth. Corpus lost by a score of 4-3, after they scored two runs in the top of the ninth to take the lead. Corbin Martin got the start, and he laboured through four-and-one-third, needing 81 pitches to do so. He allowed 3 hits and 3 walks, while striking out three, allowing 2 runs on two home runs. Alex Winkelman finished the fifth inning for Martin without incident while striking out one, then Ryan Hartman finished the game with three-and-one-third innings of 3 hit, 1 walk, 3 strikeout ball before allowing a 2-run walk off home run to something called a Johan Mieses.
Earlier, despite stringing together 11 hits and two walks, Corpus only managed to amass three runs. RF Stephen Wrenn (2-4, 2B, BB), CF Ronnie Dawson (2-5), C Eduardo de Oleo (2-4, HR) and DH Chas McCormick (2-4) all managed multi-hit games. Randy César was on base twice (1-3, BB) and 3B Abraham Toro and 2B Ryne Birk both went 1-4.
We have been mentioning Abraham Toro's name a bit lately, so I think it may be time to spill some ink arrange some pixels in his honour. He is a switch-hitting infielder who ranks somewhere in the 20's in the Astros system, according to FanGraphs. Also, according to FanGraphs, his walk rate and ISO have been impressive in spurts at AA, after he was promoted earlier in the season. He is still only 21, so he remains young for the AA level.
I guess the reason that we are mentioning Toro is because of his last 10 games. Over that time, he has 38 plate appearances, in which he has walked once and struck out 9 times. He also has 15 hits (.405 average) and one home run. His overall line for the season is only .237/.320/.389 at AA, so he nearly certainly isn't ready yet, but looking at how he is doing given the amount that we have mentioned him, having a look seems like a reasonable thing to do. So consider Abraham Toro "reviewed".
Fresno: Fresno smoked the Rainiers to the tune of an 8-1 victory on August 17. Homering twice, for the second straight game, was one Jonathan Gregory Davis, otherwise illogically known as JD Davis. That makes a .433 average with 7 HR in his last 10 games (some of which pre-date his most recent stint in the majors), but all 7 of those home runs have been hit in his last six games, which are all post-demotion. All of this hitting (including this games' 3-4, 2xHR, BB, K) take his AAA line for the 2018 season to .349/.412/.604 in 308 plate appearances, with 58 strikeouts against 30 walks. I was all for sending JD back down last time, but simply put, he is the hottest hitter in the Astros system right now. By my calculations, he is eligible for a recall (barring an injury to an Astros player) on 20 August - so shortly. Also of note, JD again played RF - in fact, all of his games since returning to Fresno have been in RF. So there may be something brewing there for some time-share with Josh Reddick.
Talking of ex-Astros, LF Derek Fisher had himself a night as well - 4-5, 2B. Myles Straw went 2-5 with a double. 3B Nick Tanielu went 1-3 with a walk and a double. 1B Taylor Jones went 2-4. DH AJ Reed managed 1 hit out of 5 at bats, striking out 3 times.
Note is made that Fresno scored all eight runs off ex-Astros great David Rollins. Current Astros great Trent Thornton pitched 6 innings, allowing 5H and 1BB, while striking out five. The only run he allowed was on a home run. Chris Devenski pitched an inning, allowing 2 hits while striking out the side. Matt Ramsey finished with two scoreless innings.
On August 18, Fresno eeked out a tight win against the Rainiers by a score of 3-1. Josh James got the start, which pretty much means that he will not replace Lance McCullers on Tuesday. And he was, uh, inefficient, needing 107 pitches to get through four-and-two-thirds. He worked around traffic, too, allowing 5 hits and walking 3, which striking out six. He allowed the only run (unearned) that the Grizzly pitchers allowed.
Dean Deetz relieved, and he worked two-and-one-third scoreless, walking one and striking out two. His ERA sits at 0.72 on the season. Reymin Guduan walked two while retiring one, and Brendan McCurry allowed two hits in one-and-two-thirds scoreless, striking out one.
Let's get the important position-player information out of the way first. JD Davis started in RF, and went 1-4 with a double. But 2B Jack Mayfield was the offensive star, going 3-5 with a home run and a double. Brian McCann caught, went 0-3, and was replaced by Jamie Ritchie, who went 2-2. Hmmm. 3B Nick Tanielu went 2-4. Myles Straw went 2-5.
So that brings us up-to-date with what is happening in the upper levels of the minor leagues. Hope that this was informative. Take home messages - JD Davis is belting the ball at the moment, and Josh James won't be called up to start on Tuesday, not after throwing 107 pitches in an inefficient outing.
Will look at other options for spot-starts tomorrow, but I think that the Astros will probably choose to bullpen it.
Corpus Christi: Corpus managed a rare come-from-behind victory in their August 17 game against Springfield, winning by a score of 5-3. Both teams managed only five hits - for Corpus that involved two hits to RF Stephen Wrenn (2-4, 2B, HR) and 3B Abraham Toro (2-4). Anibal Sierra went 1-3 and was caught stealing, while DH Carmen Benedetti and LF Chas McCormick both walked once.
On the pitching side of the equation, Brandon Bielak threw 5IP, allowing 3 hits and 2 walks, which resulted in 2 runs but only one of those was earned. He allowed a home run, as did the guy who replaced him (Brett Adcock), who allowed 2 hits, 1 walk and struck out 4. Kit Scheetz finished the game with a perfect ninth, striking out two.
Springfield got their revenge on the Hooks during the August 18 game, with a two-run bottom of the ninth. Corpus lost by a score of 4-3, after they scored two runs in the top of the ninth to take the lead. Corbin Martin got the start, and he laboured through four-and-one-third, needing 81 pitches to do so. He allowed 3 hits and 3 walks, while striking out three, allowing 2 runs on two home runs. Alex Winkelman finished the fifth inning for Martin without incident while striking out one, then Ryan Hartman finished the game with three-and-one-third innings of 3 hit, 1 walk, 3 strikeout ball before allowing a 2-run walk off home run to something called a Johan Mieses.
Earlier, despite stringing together 11 hits and two walks, Corpus only managed to amass three runs. RF Stephen Wrenn (2-4, 2B, BB), CF Ronnie Dawson (2-5), C Eduardo de Oleo (2-4, HR) and DH Chas McCormick (2-4) all managed multi-hit games. Randy César was on base twice (1-3, BB) and 3B Abraham Toro and 2B Ryne Birk both went 1-4.
We have been mentioning Abraham Toro's name a bit lately, so I think it may be time to s
I guess the reason that we are mentioning Toro is because of his last 10 games. Over that time, he has 38 plate appearances, in which he has walked once and struck out 9 times. He also has 15 hits (.405 average) and one home run. His overall line for the season is only .237/.320/.389 at AA, so he nearly certainly isn't ready yet, but looking at how he is doing given the amount that we have mentioned him, having a look seems like a reasonable thing to do. So consider Abraham Toro "reviewed".
Fresno: Fresno smoked the Rainiers to the tune of an 8-1 victory on August 17. Homering twice, for the second straight game, was one Jonathan Gregory Davis, otherwise illogically known as JD Davis. That makes a .433 average with 7 HR in his last 10 games (some of which pre-date his most recent stint in the majors), but all 7 of those home runs have been hit in his last six games, which are all post-demotion. All of this hitting (including this games' 3-4, 2xHR, BB, K) take his AAA line for the 2018 season to .349/.412/.604 in 308 plate appearances, with 58 strikeouts against 30 walks. I was all for sending JD back down last time, but simply put, he is the hottest hitter in the Astros system right now. By my calculations, he is eligible for a recall (barring an injury to an Astros player) on 20 August - so shortly. Also of note, JD again played RF - in fact, all of his games since returning to Fresno have been in RF. So there may be something brewing there for some time-share with Josh Reddick.
Talking of ex-Astros, LF Derek Fisher had himself a night as well - 4-5, 2B. Myles Straw went 2-5 with a double. 3B Nick Tanielu went 1-3 with a walk and a double. 1B Taylor Jones went 2-4. DH AJ Reed managed 1 hit out of 5 at bats, striking out 3 times.
Note is made that Fresno scored all eight runs off ex-Astros great David Rollins. Current Astros great Trent Thornton pitched 6 innings, allowing 5H and 1BB, while striking out five. The only run he allowed was on a home run. Chris Devenski pitched an inning, allowing 2 hits while striking out the side. Matt Ramsey finished with two scoreless innings.
On August 18, Fresno eeked out a tight win against the Rainiers by a score of 3-1. Josh James got the start, which pretty much means that he will not replace Lance McCullers on Tuesday. And he was, uh, inefficient, needing 107 pitches to get through four-and-two-thirds. He worked around traffic, too, allowing 5 hits and walking 3, which striking out six. He allowed the only run (unearned) that the Grizzly pitchers allowed.
Dean Deetz relieved, and he worked two-and-one-third scoreless, walking one and striking out two. His ERA sits at 0.72 on the season. Reymin Guduan walked two while retiring one, and Brendan McCurry allowed two hits in one-and-two-thirds scoreless, striking out one.
Let's get the important position-player information out of the way first. JD Davis started in RF, and went 1-4 with a double. But 2B Jack Mayfield was the offensive star, going 3-5 with a home run and a double. Brian McCann caught, went 0-3, and was replaced by Jamie Ritchie, who went 2-2. Hmmm. 3B Nick Tanielu went 2-4. Myles Straw went 2-5.
So that brings us up-to-date with what is happening in the upper levels of the minor leagues. Hope that this was informative. Take home messages - JD Davis is belting the ball at the moment, and Josh James won't be called up to start on Tuesday, not after throwing 107 pitches in an inefficient outing.
Will look at other options for spot-starts tomorrow, but I think that the Astros will probably choose to bullpen it.
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