Let's do a little self-indulgent run-down of Astros County's 2013, shall we?
January
The Batguy offered up his Astros Top Ten prospects
The Constable and (Not Hank) Aaron tore up the BBWAA
(Not Hank) Aaron was excited, sort of, about Erik Bedard
We looked back at Jeff Bagwell and the Insurance Fiasco of 2006
February
We looked at the Jed Lowrie trade (and took on Ken Rosenthal)
The Batguy wrote the Parable of the Bar Chicks
(Not Hank) Aaron wondered if the 2013 Astros would strike out a lot
How I Learned to Buy Into the Rebuild
March
(Not Hank) Aaron thought about signing Kyle Lohse
And then he squared up on Peter Gammons
We yelled at Scott Boras and Buster Olney
We defended the Piggyback System
We gave you an Opening Night Bingo Card
April
We thought about Yu Darvish's almost-perfect game
We offered a Bounty for Astros' minor-leaguers
May
(Not Hank) Aaron wondered how many strikeouts were too many for Chris Carter
We looked back at the 15th anniversary of the Kerry Wood 20K game
(Not Hank) Aaron had it with Houston, You Have A Problem
We offered Jose Altuve an extension worth approximately $28m more than he got.
We criticized the Astros for their HAWC decision, and then criticized the reaction to the criticism
A Girl In The South was impressed by Reid Ryan
We asked if Bud Norris was really J.A. Happ
June
We used one box score to highlight just how the Astros overhauled the team
We yelled at the New York Times
July
We asked what happened to Jose Altuve
(Not Hank) Aaron looked at how we evaluate trades
(Not Hank) Aaron was first with the Worst Bullpen Ever question
The Batguy wrote about the Rebuild
August
We asked what happened to Lucas Harrell
We tag-teamed an update on the Worst Bullpen Ever
We yelled at SportsCenter
We made a case for keeping Springer at OKC
We made fun of Travis Blackley
Kevin Bass Stache found Kyle Weiland!
The Front Office as Wu-Tang Clan
A Girl In The South looked at the bullpen
September
We mocked USA Today
Ah, the buttslide
(Not Hank) Aaron looked at Jason Castro's season
LJ Hoes called a guy a "Slapdick"
We yelled at Olney, Gammons, Stark, basically everybody
We dubbed 2011-2013 as the Crynasty
October
2013 in 162 words
November
We offered you a 156-page compendium to celebrate our 5th anniversary
(Not Hank) Aaron's Hall of Fame preview
We yelled at the Houston Chapter of the BBWAA
December
(Not Hank) Aaron compared Bagwell and Frank Thomas
We asked non-Astros fans for their thoughts on the Astros
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
Showing posts with label Year in Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Year in Review. Show all posts
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Monday, October 5, 2009
Moves that worked, moves that didn't
Note: This is a retrospective of moves made in the 08-09 offseason, and during the 2009 season. So you won't find "Signing Kaz Matsui" in the list of Moves That Worked, Moves That Didn't.
Moves That Worked
Trading Pudge for two prospects
Pudge was supposed to be the stop-gap at catcher for two reasons: (1) To allow time until Jason Castro was major-league ready, and (2) to keep Quintero from becoming the full-time starter. It worked alright, but it was clear that Pudge was old, and his effect on the pitching staff was negligible (Wandy originally attributed 09 success to working with Pudge, and then imploded in May/June, and then righted the ship - even after he was gone). So to trade Pudge to the Rangers for anything more than a copy of The Sandlot 3 and some Icy Hot was impressive. To get two prospects out of it is nothing short of amazing. The Rangers acquired him to help with their push for the post-season, but were 14-14 in games Pudge started down the stretch.
The two players the Astros received have done well. Matt Nevarez, a 22-year old RH reliever, only played in 8 games (8.1IP), but had a 0.00 ERA / 0.36 WHIP, four saves, and 13K:0BB. 22-year old infielder Jose Vallejo had limited time with the Astros, but put together a .289/.318/.349 line at Double-A Frisco, and was 7x20 (.350/.350/.500) in seven games at Round Rock.
Signing Chia-Jen Lo
The Astros' first foray into Pacific Rim scouting culminated in the November signing of RHP Chia-Jen Lo. The 23-year old split time between Lancaster and Corpus, where at Lancaster, C-Lo had a 1.78 ERA / 0.91 WHIP in 25.1IP, with a 36:13 K:BB ratio. At Corpus, despite battling injury, C-Lo had a 2.31 ERA / 1.28 WHIP, allowing just one homer in 39IP at Corpus. He'll compete for a bullpen spot in 2010, and will start at Round Rock if he doesn't get the spot out of Spring Training.
Claiming Chris Coste
It may not look like it, but the Coste experiment wasn't such a bad one. Despite posting a .204/.259/.252 line with the Astros, with five extra-base hits in 103 plate appearances, having Coste on the roster allowed Ed Wade the ability to trade Pudge. Making 14 starts behind the plate, and 13 starts at 1B to spell Erstad when Berkman went down, Coste didn't make a single error behind the plate, and only one at first.
Claiming Jeff Fulchino off waivers from the Royals
When the Astros claimed the huge righty off waivers from the Royals last December, he was coming off a season in which he allowed 14 ER in 14IP for Kansas City and a combined 4.87 ERA for Double-A NW Arkansas, and Triple-A Omaha. So I don't know that anyone was expecting Fulchino to throw up a 3.40 ERA / 1.18 WHIP over 82IP for the Astros this year, earning Rookie of the Year honors from the Houston BBWAA. He struck out 71 batters in 82 innings, and has put himself in a position to emerge as an 8th inning option in 2010.
Letting Ty Wigginton walk
The Astros were looking at a hefty little bump from Wigginton's $4.35 million salary in 2008. Instead, Easy Eddie declined to offer him arbitration, and he signed with the Orioles, where he signed a two-year $6 million deal. Wigginton hit .273/.314/.400 with 11HR and 41RBI, but also played below-average defense at 1st and 3rd. The offense was okay, but certainly not worth the $6 million he probably would have received.
Moves That Didn't
Picking up Cooper's option
Obviously, this was a pretty short-sighted move on Drayton/Ed's part. Perhaps this precipitated Cooper losing the clubhouse as the players realized they would likely be dealing with a lack of communication and questionable tactics for two more seasons. And while the Astros were never considered contenders, except for a two-week span in July, Astros players looked like they would rather be anywhere else except on the field in the second half.
Signing Mike Hampton
In 21 starts for the Astros in 2009 in which the Astros were 7-14, Hampton put up a 5.30 ERA / 1.55 WHIP in 112 IP. He allowed 13 homers, and had seven quality starts, compared to five disaster starts, and five starts in which he didn't make it out of the 5th inning. It was a low-risk, high-reward signing, but the Astros paid almost $300K per win.
Trading Jordan Parraz for Tyler Lumsden
The Astros sent Jordan Parraz to the Royals for Tyler Lumsden, a minor-league pitcher who was initially assigned to Round Rock. Except it didn't last. And Lumsden was sent down to Corpus on July 2. Lumsden was another "project pitcher" (see: Fulchino, Jeff) coming off Triple-A seasons in Omaha with ERAs of 5.88 and 7.21, respectively. He came to Round Rock, and put up a 4.42 ERA / 1.91 WHIP in 18.1IP, and 5.15 / 1.72 in 43.2IP in Corpus. And he's 26. Meanwhile, 24-year old RF Parraz ( 2004 3rd round pick) hit .358/.451/.553 for Double-A NW Arkansas, and .298/.358/.426 in Omaha.
Not re-signing Randy Wolf
By all accounts, Randy Wolf was open to coming back to Houston in 2009. The Astros allegedly had a 3-year $29.5 million offer on the table, then the economy tanked, and that offer was pulled. Wolf re-signed with the Dodgers for $5 million, and went 11-7 in 214.1 IP, with a 3.23 ERA / 1.10 WHIP. His 2.76 K:BB ratio was his highest since 2001, and his 2.4 walks/9 were his lowest since 2004. It's doubtful that Wolf would have taken a $24 million pay cut to come back, but it is what it is.
Anything I missed?
Moves That Worked
Trading Pudge for two prospects
Pudge was supposed to be the stop-gap at catcher for two reasons: (1) To allow time until Jason Castro was major-league ready, and (2) to keep Quintero from becoming the full-time starter. It worked alright, but it was clear that Pudge was old, and his effect on the pitching staff was negligible (Wandy originally attributed 09 success to working with Pudge, and then imploded in May/June, and then righted the ship - even after he was gone). So to trade Pudge to the Rangers for anything more than a copy of The Sandlot 3 and some Icy Hot was impressive. To get two prospects out of it is nothing short of amazing. The Rangers acquired him to help with their push for the post-season, but were 14-14 in games Pudge started down the stretch.
The two players the Astros received have done well. Matt Nevarez, a 22-year old RH reliever, only played in 8 games (8.1IP), but had a 0.00 ERA / 0.36 WHIP, four saves, and 13K:0BB. 22-year old infielder Jose Vallejo had limited time with the Astros, but put together a .289/.318/.349 line at Double-A Frisco, and was 7x20 (.350/.350/.500) in seven games at Round Rock.
Signing Chia-Jen Lo
The Astros' first foray into Pacific Rim scouting culminated in the November signing of RHP Chia-Jen Lo. The 23-year old split time between Lancaster and Corpus, where at Lancaster, C-Lo had a 1.78 ERA / 0.91 WHIP in 25.1IP, with a 36:13 K:BB ratio. At Corpus, despite battling injury, C-Lo had a 2.31 ERA / 1.28 WHIP, allowing just one homer in 39IP at Corpus. He'll compete for a bullpen spot in 2010, and will start at Round Rock if he doesn't get the spot out of Spring Training.
Claiming Chris Coste
It may not look like it, but the Coste experiment wasn't such a bad one. Despite posting a .204/.259/.252 line with the Astros, with five extra-base hits in 103 plate appearances, having Coste on the roster allowed Ed Wade the ability to trade Pudge. Making 14 starts behind the plate, and 13 starts at 1B to spell Erstad when Berkman went down, Coste didn't make a single error behind the plate, and only one at first.
Claiming Jeff Fulchino off waivers from the Royals
When the Astros claimed the huge righty off waivers from the Royals last December, he was coming off a season in which he allowed 14 ER in 14IP for Kansas City and a combined 4.87 ERA for Double-A NW Arkansas, and Triple-A Omaha. So I don't know that anyone was expecting Fulchino to throw up a 3.40 ERA / 1.18 WHIP over 82IP for the Astros this year, earning Rookie of the Year honors from the Houston BBWAA. He struck out 71 batters in 82 innings, and has put himself in a position to emerge as an 8th inning option in 2010.
Letting Ty Wigginton walk
The Astros were looking at a hefty little bump from Wigginton's $4.35 million salary in 2008. Instead, Easy Eddie declined to offer him arbitration, and he signed with the Orioles, where he signed a two-year $6 million deal. Wigginton hit .273/.314/.400 with 11HR and 41RBI, but also played below-average defense at 1st and 3rd. The offense was okay, but certainly not worth the $6 million he probably would have received.
Moves That Didn't
Picking up Cooper's option
Obviously, this was a pretty short-sighted move on Drayton/Ed's part. Perhaps this precipitated Cooper losing the clubhouse as the players realized they would likely be dealing with a lack of communication and questionable tactics for two more seasons. And while the Astros were never considered contenders, except for a two-week span in July, Astros players looked like they would rather be anywhere else except on the field in the second half.
Signing Mike Hampton
In 21 starts for the Astros in 2009 in which the Astros were 7-14, Hampton put up a 5.30 ERA / 1.55 WHIP in 112 IP. He allowed 13 homers, and had seven quality starts, compared to five disaster starts, and five starts in which he didn't make it out of the 5th inning. It was a low-risk, high-reward signing, but the Astros paid almost $300K per win.
Trading Jordan Parraz for Tyler Lumsden
The Astros sent Jordan Parraz to the Royals for Tyler Lumsden, a minor-league pitcher who was initially assigned to Round Rock. Except it didn't last. And Lumsden was sent down to Corpus on July 2. Lumsden was another "project pitcher" (see: Fulchino, Jeff) coming off Triple-A seasons in Omaha with ERAs of 5.88 and 7.21, respectively. He came to Round Rock, and put up a 4.42 ERA / 1.91 WHIP in 18.1IP, and 5.15 / 1.72 in 43.2IP in Corpus. And he's 26. Meanwhile, 24-year old RF Parraz ( 2004 3rd round pick) hit .358/.451/.553 for Double-A NW Arkansas, and .298/.358/.426 in Omaha.
Not re-signing Randy Wolf
By all accounts, Randy Wolf was open to coming back to Houston in 2009. The Astros allegedly had a 3-year $29.5 million offer on the table, then the economy tanked, and that offer was pulled. Wolf re-signed with the Dodgers for $5 million, and went 11-7 in 214.1 IP, with a 3.23 ERA / 1.10 WHIP. His 2.76 K:BB ratio was his highest since 2001, and his 2.4 walks/9 were his lowest since 2004. It's doubtful that Wolf would have taken a $24 million pay cut to come back, but it is what it is.
Anything I missed?
Ed Wade knew this wasn't exactly the best team
Telling quotes from Ed Wade in McTaggart's season-closing story on how maybe they had an idea that 1,194 things would have to go exactly right - consecutively - for this team to be competitive:
Wade:
"We knew a lot of things would have to go right, including Roy winning his normal 15, 17, 20 games and Lance having a big year and Carlos [Lee] having a big year. Those types of things didn't happen for us. It was a combination of a lot of different factors."
It's funny, because even though Roy had a down year, he still had 15 no-decisions, meaning he just might have won 15, 17, 20 games. But the offense was so terrible, namely because Lance was hitting well under .200 for the first two months of the season, that Carlos Lee - despite hitting .300 with 26 HRs (two fewer than his mark at G115 in 2008 when he went down with the pinky injury) - couldn't make up the productivity.
Anyhow, Wade, on the pitching:
"Our pitching was a strong as we could make it, probably not strong enough to stand the test of time, so to speak."
Ed Wade knew that this team wouldn't contend, and it's not his fault.
Wade:
"We knew a lot of things would have to go right, including Roy winning his normal 15, 17, 20 games and Lance having a big year and Carlos [Lee] having a big year. Those types of things didn't happen for us. It was a combination of a lot of different factors."
It's funny, because even though Roy had a down year, he still had 15 no-decisions, meaning he just might have won 15, 17, 20 games. But the offense was so terrible, namely because Lance was hitting well under .200 for the first two months of the season, that Carlos Lee - despite hitting .300 with 26 HRs (two fewer than his mark at G115 in 2008 when he went down with the pinky injury) - couldn't make up the productivity.
Anyhow, Wade, on the pitching:
"Our pitching was a strong as we could make it, probably not strong enough to stand the test of time, so to speak."
Ed Wade knew that this team wouldn't contend, and it's not his fault.
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