Castro out for the year

As suspected yesterday, it looks as though Jason Castro will be out for (most of) the year with a torn ACL.

Wade:
"The recovery for ACL and meniscus is about six months plus conditioning. There's going to be things as a catcher he's not going to be able to do. We're looking at sometime in September before he'll be back playing."

What the hell do we do now? Doesn't it seem strange to fret so much over a player with a .573 OPS (59 OPS+)? Well, the Astros are now going to take a harder look at J.R. Towles and Carlos Corporan. Brian Esposito and Rene Garcia are also in camp, but it's likely that the catcher they choose will get the majority of starts, as the Astros are sticking with Quintero at C2.

Free Agency, you say? Yeah...the only catcher available on the free agent market is Bengie Molina. And I'm not sure I want the Astros to go down that road. Molina is 36, and made $4.5m in 2010. Of course, you're virtually assured of going to the World Series with him on your roster. But still, Molina will likely want at least $4m, and his OPS+ was 67 in 2010. That won't cut it. Can J.R. Towles post a .623 OPS? Maybe, but it's worth saving that money to try to find out. And now that his nemesis, Roy Oswalt, is gone, there's less of a chance that a pitcher will go all Michael Jordan v. Kwame Brown on him. And I know it feels like Towles is as old as Molina, he's still only 27.

I just can't envision a scenario where a trade makes any sense. J.R. Towles, you've got more lives than an alley cat. Make it count.

Options "inside and outside" abound for the Astros to replace Castro

Steve Campbell's article on Jason Castro lets us peer into the mind of Ed Wade, as he weeps and gnashes his teeth about the knee of Jason Castro, and just who in the world is going to start the season (because it ain't gonna be Castro).

Wade:
“We’ll give J.R. lots of opportunities, Corporan lots of opportunities, and Q will continue to do what he’s been doing, and we’ll see if we have any answers internally. If we don’t, then we’ll look for possibilities. There’s not a lot of quality depth out there. I don’t know what we’ll necessarily be able to go outside the organization and get anybody the quality of Jason Castro.”

From the Office of the County Clerk - ST4: Astros v. Marlins

So the Astros have kinda-sorta won two in a row with a 5-3 win over the Marlins today.

*As the Astros look at different options for temporary C1, Humberto Quintero was 2x2 with 2RBI. Drew Locke had your other multi-hit game, going 2x2 (3B) with a run.

*Brett Wallace was 1x3 with a two-out, 2RBI hit.

*Jason Michaels (1x2), Chris Johnson (0x2), and Koby Clemens (0x1) all drew walks, while Clemens and Bill Hall provided the only strikeouts on the day. Walking more than you strikeout, as a team = good.

*Somehow Michael Bourn grounded into two double plays. Either the Marlins are all on speed, or Bourn is lolly-gagging. There is no in between, no other possibilities.

*Nelson Figueroa was relatively sharp with 2IP, 2H/0ER, 0K:1BB. Aneury Rodriguez (who is legally required to refer to as "Rule 5 pick Aneury Rodriguez") threw 2IP, 3H/1ER, 1K:1BB.

*Enerio Del Rosario had your only perfect outing of the day. Wesley Wright allowed two hits and a walk, and Henry Villar allowed a triple to Whatshisname Bonifacio, and a sac to allow the Marlins to cut the score to its final margin.

Man of the Match: Humberto Quintero! Step up and claim your prize!

Goat of the Game: Michael Bourn. Though he was 1x4 with a run, those two GIDPs...

FanGraphs' Team Preview

Here's your FanGraphs preview for the 2011 Astros.

It's a decent rundown, and here's your money quote:
The best-case scenario has Houston finishing fourth in the division, as they did in 2010. If the Astros hit some bad luck, there is a good chance they finish last in the division and maybe the league.

Earmuffs! Castro has a torn meniscus

Jason Castro is likely headed for surgery after being diagnosed with a meniscus tear, and no one knows just how long he'll be out.

Mills:
"If he does have to have surgery, they're going to have to see once they get in there how much damage and what they have to do. If they have to do more. It might be a little bit longer. We'll see."

Castro:
"It could have been a lot worse. We still have to talk to Dr. Lintner and get his opinion on everything. Once we speak and I'm able to see him and we'll just go from there. Obliviously, it's frustrating. It's happened and it's over with and now we have to really focus on doing everything I can to get back as soon as I can."

Berkman dealt with a moderately similar injury last spring, and we all saw how well that worked out for him.

According to Dr. Jonathan Cluett, a torn meniscus is often accompanied with ACL/MCL injuries, as well.

So who benefits from this development? J.R. Towles, whom Alyson Footer has already noted will get more ABs in Spring Training, though the Opening Day catcher is yet to be determined.

Castro Update

Steve Campbell has an update on Jason Castro's knee:

(Over two tweets):
Astros C Jason Castro waiting on results of MRI he had on his right knee this a.m. Castro says knee fees pretty much the same as yesterday...Castro said there has been no additional swell, which he takes as good sign. Has been icing knee and taking anti-inflammatory medication.

He's had the MRI, but the results have not yet been revealed.

Collectively, FANs think the Astros are a disgrace

David Cameron posted a link to FanGraphs' FAN projections (which I got a little fussy about, admittedly) for 2011.

Where can you find the Astros? 60-102.

J.A. Happ is an anomaly

I'm left-handed. I write left-handed. But I bat right (poorly), swing a golf club right (also, poorly), play guitar (somewhat better, but overall, poorly) right.

J.A. Happ throws left. But he writes with his right-hand. And does everything else right-handed. You know what that makes him? Weird.

Happ:
"I don't know why. It's a weird thing. I would think I would at least kick with my left."

Castro:
"His biggest asset is not only does he have good stuff, he's very deceptive when he throws. He's very, very hard to pick up. He hides the ball really well."

From the Office of the County Clerk - ST3b: Astros v. Tigers

Well, well. Collect your $500,000 if you bet a dollar on Oswaldo Navarro getting the first homer of the Spring. The Astros defeat the Tigers 6-3 for the first Grapefruit League win.

*Navarro's homer was a three-run, two out shot in the 8th inning that made the game 6-1.

*T.J. Steele was 2x4 (2R), Hunter Pence was 2x3 (RBI), and Tommy Manzella was 2x3 for the multi-hit games.

*Chris Johnson was 0x3 with a K, and others who may make the 25-Man Roster include Angel Sanchez (1x4, R, RBI).

*Austin Wates was 0x0 with a sacrifice. Drew Locke was 0x3 with a BB, SB, R.

*J.A. Happ threw 2IP, 1H/0ER, 1K. Ross Wolf threw 2IP, 1H/0ER, and David Carpenter (picked up in the Pedro Feliz trade with STL - ha ha), threw two perfect innings.

*Wilton Lopez also threw a perfect inning with a K. Sergio Escalona had another rough outing with 1IP, 2H/1ER, 0K:1BB. Jorge De Leon gave up 1H/2ER, 1K:1BB, WP in the 9th inning.

From the Office of the County Clerk - ST3a: Astros v. Yankees

The Astros snatched defeat out of the jaws of victory by allowing five 9th inning runs for a 6-5 loss.

*The Astros actually out-hit the Yankees, 12-8, with two hits coming from Jason Michaels (2x3), Bill Hall (2x3), and Jack Shuck (2x4). J.R. Towles was 1x3 (2B, 2R).

*Among the Players Not Likely To Be On the 25-Man roster, Jay Austin was 1x2 (with an outfield assist), Jio Mier was 0x3 (BB, 2K), Jon Gaston was 1x1 (RBI), Jonathan Villar was 0x1, as was Mike Kvasnicka and Rene Garcia.

*Brett Wallace grounded into two double plays, and continuing the miscues, errors by Kvasnicka and Mier helped the Yankees put up the five-spot.

*Bud Norris got the start, going 2IP, 1H/1ER, 0K:1BB. Jordan Lyles threw 2IP, 1H/0ER, 0K:2BB. Jose Valdez was the only pitcher to have a perfect outing.

*Doug Arguello got 0.2IP, but allowed 4H/5R (2ER), 0K:2BB, WP, and left the bases loaded for Lance Pendleton, who walked the game-winning run in.

It took approximately 27 hours for one of Will Carroll's prophecies to come true

Yesterday, Will Carroll said that Jason Castro was on Red Alert for an injury. Today, it happened.

Alyson Footer:
Castro sprained knee running down line & trying to avoid tag. He stepped on side of base, his foot stuck and his upper body kept turning.

Tweets from McTaggart and Steve Campbell say that Castro is "cautiously optimistic," but that he will have an MRI tomorrow.

Mills just referenced Arias' career in talking about his shoulder

Scary words from Brad Mills regarding Alberto Arias' shoulder:

"He's going to be behind, there's no doubt. This latest incident that has come up is really going to put him back there. The important thing is to get him healthy and strong and going again. In the long run, we hope that's going to happen for him.

"We haven't seen him pitch now in quite a while. We need to get him back and healthy and strong for his sake and his career, and if he can help benefit us, we're all better off."

The Astros gave out the 2nd-highest bonus in the league

When the Astros gave Ariel Ovando $2.6m, it was the 2nd-highest bonus given out to an international player, $200K behind the Blue Jays' bonus to Adonys Cardona.

Wonderful Flowchart

And accurate, if I may say so.

Arias' news getting worse

Brian McTaggart continues to share bad news about Alberto Arias, as he'll have an MRI today on his shoulder.

Farmstros posts Locked In With Drew

Farmstros has managed to get Drew Locke to post regular updates from Spring Training. Give it a click and read.

Duncan back with the Astros

With a captip to Farmstros, Baseball America tells us that the Astros have re-signed pitcher David Duncan.

Follow him on Twitter.

Chris Johnson's approach: To not have an approach

Steve Campbell's article on Chris Johnson is an interesting one, with the traditional "veteran-tricks-rookie" story, courtesy of Roy Oswalt.

But on to how Chris Johnson is going to adjust to pitching in 2011:
“Everybody’s always asking me, ‘What adjustments are you going to make this year, because guys are going to adjust to you?’ I really don’t know the adjustment yet. I don’t know what they’re going to do. I’m going to stick with what I was doing until it doesn’t work. Then I’m going to have to adjust.”

Ed Wade:
“CJ last year got challenged late in the season and made the adjustments. He made them in a very significant way. I wouldn’t be surprised at the end of the season to see CJ hit 30-plus home runs.”

30 HRs? Johnson hit homers at a rate of one every 32.9 plate appearances. So to hit 30 homers - based on last year's limited sample - he would need 987 plate appearances. Of course, this doesn't take into account any growth on his part over the course of the season. That number came down slightly in August-September, with a homer coming every 32.3 PAs (1HR/21.4PAs in September alone). What say you? Does Johnson have 30+ HR power?

Meat Wagon Update

McTaggart has your ST2 reaction and some injury updates, which we'll pass along here:

-T.J. Steele (elbow) and Anderson Hernandez (back) are dealing with some issues, but were cleared to play.

-J.D. Martinez (quad) will be out until Thursday, when the Astros can reevaluate him.

-Fernando Abad had a temperature of 101, and was sent back to The Facility.

Ed Wade: Friends are fleeting, but Major League glory IS FOREVER

McTaggart has an article on the Law Offices of Shuck, Steele, and Gaston, and the friendship they've developed from playing next to each other since the dawn of time.

Not so fast, sez Ed Wade:
"We tend not to look at them as a trio. We tend to look at them as individuals, because we're not looking for all them to graduate at the same time to the big league level. We're looking for the best player who can help us at any particular time and can get here and excel.

"It's great for them to have the camaraderie they've got and established those relationships, but at the end of the day, we're putting the best 25 players on the field, and if at some point in time, one of them is here, or all of them are here, the No. 1 criterion is how they help the Major League club."

'Stros before Bros.

Gaston realizes that, with the Astros outfield as it is, he may be auditioning for someone else, too:
"It's not just playing for the Astros, because you're playing for the other 29 teams, too. Whether you make it with the Astros or not, ultimately your goal is to make it to the Major Leagues. You've just got to get your opportunity and take advantage of it."

From the Office of the County Clerk: ST2 - Astros v. Braves

Your Astros drop to 0-2 on the Spring, with the pitching holding up but the offense doing two things:

1. Jack
2. Crap

in a 3-0 loss to Atlanta.

Hunter Pence got a triple for the Astros' first extra-base hit of the Spring, with Carlos Lee and Brian Bogusevic collecting your other hits. Lee also drew the only walk of the day.

Eight pitchers got work in today, including starter Brett Myers (2IP, 2H/0ER, 1K:0BB), and Brandon Lyon (1IP, 2H/1ER, HBP). The Astros then trotted out three pitchers who had perfect outings - Ryan Rowland-Smith, Mark Melancon, and Jeff Fulchino. Pat Urckfitz got knocked around for 3H/2ER, 1K:1BB in his 1IP, while Wesley Wright (1H) and Gustavo Chacin (perfecto!) closing out the game.

Your Astros not likely to make the Opening Day squad saw some action on the day: T.J. Steele (0x1), Jon Gaston (0x1, K), Drew Locke (0x1), Koby Clemens (0x3, 2K).

So. What can we take away from it? Pitchers were good. Hitters were bad.

Man of the Match: Brett Myers, I suppose. Nine pitches, nine strikes.

Goat of the Game: Anyone who held a bat.

Will Carroll's Team Health Report

Our collective man-crush on Will Carroll is well-documented, but he straight brings it today on SI with the Astros' Team Health Report (including an incredible intro paragraph).

Read it for yourself, but there are seven players on his Red Light list:

I don't expect to see the Astros anywhere near October glory but if they surprise us, it will be because the medical staff worked a miracle, holding together a team that's risk profile is alarmingly high. If it all goes wrong and the Astros are back on the bottom of a weak NL Central, the DL days stacking like so much cordwood, don't blame the medical staff. This one's on the front office.

The players with a higher injury risk: Jason Castro, whom Carroll describes him as such: The System seems to have something against Castro, rating him as one of the highest risks in the league despite a clean injury history. Also, Brett Myers, Wandy Rodriguez, J.A. Happ, Bud Norris (yes, four of the five starting pitchers), Carlos Lee, and Brandon Lyon.

Can you imagine what will happen if all these actually stop at the Red Light? Apocalypse.

Rob Neyer had a hard time coming with with one interesting thing about the Astros

It's basically, if Chris Johnson and Brett Wallace can hit...

...there might actually be a couple of reasons to watch the 2010 Astros, even when Wandy Rodriguez isn't pitching.

Barmes or Wallace could be hitting #2

Brian McTaggart mentions within this notebook that the 2-hole is up for grabs, with Barmes - or Wallace - hitting in that spot.

Oh great, Abad is sick

Brian McTaggart just noted that Fernando Abad has been sent home because he's ill. And apparently not in the Beastie Boys sense of the word.

Delino DeShields got himself a #54

Baseball America posted a list of the prospects who each received a vote on somebody's Top 150 list.

Delino DeShields peaked on Somebody's Ballot at #54.

The Most Vague Travel Guide Ever

Yahoo.com has the most vague guide to Minute Maid Park, where it's pretty clear the writer didn't actually visit the venue.

Just in case you give a crap what the sports editor of a newspaper in Illinois thinks...

Paul Hines thinks the Astros will finish last.

I don't.

Lance Pendleton isn't really interested in rejoining the Yankees

Steve Campbell interviewed Lance Pendleton yesterday (as did Stephen Goff), and found that Pendleton isn't so interested in going back to the Yankees.

Pendleton:
"I enjoyed my time with the Yankees, but if you understand, I'm not really itching to go back,. I want to stay."

Arnsberg:
"I like him a lot. I like his stuff. He's kind of that older guy with a younger arm, a fixed arm, a new arm. I see some great upside."

Mills:
He's throwing the ball very well. He's really made a good impression. He's a strike-thrower. He's been consistent so far. That shows he was really working in the offseason."

Pendleton was one of three pitchers to not crap his pants on the mound yesterday, so that's a good start for the Rule 5 pick.

Bagwell to Clemens: Maybe it won't work out here

Jerome Solomon has an interesting article up today, in which Bagwell talks to Koby Clemens:

“I told him, ‘You can’t worry about who is in the big leagues. You’ve just got to do your thing. As long as you keep hitting, they’re going to find a spot for you. There is a place for you to play, and if it’s not here, it’ll be somewhere else.’

“There are not a lot of guys who get drafted by and finish with the same organization.”

This one time, I was dating a girl who told me, "You're going to make some girl the luckiest girl in the world." That was nice to hear. And then she broke up with me. This sounds like that.

ST1 Reaction

McTaggart has your reaction from ST1 vs. Atlanta.

3x3 Wallace:
"We've all been champing at the bit to get out there and play games, and to finally get out there and play another team it's definitely exciting. I think we were all so ready to go. We faced some good pitchers today and it's you start to get timing down and see balls coming out of guys' hands."

Ball-rocked Wandy:
"You know what, today I tried to work on my location and I got a lot of guys behind in the count. That was my mistake today."

Bald Brad Mills:
"It happened with a couple of guys today, but with Wandy I think he missed on a couple of pitches early in counts with guys in that second inning. He tried to make adjustments mechanically and left some balls right over the middle of the plate, and they hit them hard."

From the Office of the County Clerk - ST1: Astros v. Braves

(This post is brought to you with the disclaimer that it's Spring Training for the County Clerk, too. And he'll likely suck up the joint until April 1.
-TC)

Jeebus, Wandy. And the entire bullpen. No pitcher made it through their prescribed outs without allowing a baserunner as the Braves racked up 15 hits and drew eight walks in a 13-3 win over the Astros for ST1.

Wandy opened up the Grapefruit League by getting rocked, posting a final line of 1.2IP, 5H/6ER, 0K:3BB - though to be fair, two of those runs came courtesy of Enerio del Rosario, who inherited a field in which every single base was occupied by Braves.

del Rosario went 1.1IP, 2H/0ER, 1K:0BB, and Aneury Rodriguez is now -1 on Lance Pendleton with his 1IP, 3H/2ER, 0K:2BB performance.

Sergio Escalona kept up the ass-whoopin' with 1IP, 3H/4ER, 0K:2BB. The second half of the bullpen did fairly well, allowing 2H/1ER, 3K:1BB in 3IP - with Lance Pendleton allowing 1H/0ER, Henry Villar allowing 1H/1ER, and Fernando Rodriguez as the only pitcher to not give up a hit, but got 2K:1BB.

Brett Wallace was 3x3 with three singles on the day. Other Astros collecting multiple hits were T.J. Steele (2x2), Carlos Lee (2x3, RBI), and Tommy Manzella (2x3).

Jason Castro was 0x3 with a K and an inning-ending GIDP in the 5th. The GIDPs were a trend, as the Astros hit into five of them sum-bitches (four of them inning-ending GIDPs), went 4x14 w/RISP, and left ten men on base.

Of course, of the 14 hits the Astros got, 14 of them were singles (100% single rate).

Man of the Match: Brett Wallace! Hit 1.000 for the entire year, and expect a FanGraphs post entitled "Brett Wallace...meh."

Goat of the Game: The pitchers.

Dierker: Screw Spring Training, it's too long

Larry Dierker has a "Spring Training is too long" column on MLB.com:

I think every team could be ready to go in a month. Players are generally in better shape when they arrive in Spring Sraining than they were in my day. Most teams have offseason training programs to make sure they can hit the ground running in February. Agonizing over which players to cut and which to keep isn't really necessary. It seems like a big deal, and it gets a lot of print in the last week of spring training, but by the time May comes around, most teams have sent some guys down and brought others up anyway.

Some compelling arguments here, but I disagree if only to note that I would have been ready to rampage if baseball hadn't "started" today. Waiting another couple of weeks would have been like waiting for Christmas 25 years ago.

USA Today's Power Rankings

USA Today released their Power Rankings today, and we find the Astros at #25.

Need strong pitching to avoid tumbling to bottom on NL.

And in other news, grass is green.

And in other actual news, Astros County's Top 25 will return next Monday morning!

Update on J.D. Martinez

Alyson Footer tells us a little more about J.D. Martinez' sore leg:

JD Martinez has tight quad and will be sidelined a couple of days.

Monday Morning Catch-Up

As Astros County was busy doing husband/boyfriend/loser things (respectively) all weekend, here's what you missed from Saturday and Sunday:

*If Brett Wallace can be Brett Wallace, he won't be seeing Oklahoma City.

*The State loves them some Jordan Lyles.

*Chris Johnson knows his defense kind of sucked.

*The cuts will come early and often in March.

*Koby Clemens dominated Astros pitchers, again. J.D. Martinez was supposed to start, but already has a sore leg, so he was the DH, and went 1x2, BB.

*In signings news, the Astros agreed to deals with J.A. Happ ($474,000) and Angel Sanchez ($432,500)

*In today's Spring Training opener, the following players will see some action: Castro, Wallace, Manzella, Johnson, Lee, Bourn, Pence, and Downs.

Towles taking grounders at 1B

In one of the what I'm sure will be, "Huh." moments of the Spring we learn that J.R. Towles is taking grounders at 1B "to increase versatility."

Would you rather see Carlos or Towles at 1B if Brett Wallace struggles?

One bullpen session, one cortisone shot

McTaggart tweeted this morning that Alberto Arias took a cortisone shot in his shoulder after being examined by the team physician.

So this isn't looking good for Arias.

Wesley Wright is no longer a starter

McTaggart has an article for you on Wesley Wright, who is no longer a starter.

Wade:
"We feel with the competition we have going on right now [for the fifth spot in the rotation] and the guys that are stretched out and in position to assume more of the longer innings, Wright's probably in the bullpen at this stage."

Wright, on the importance of getting lefties out:
"You ask any left-handed reliever, and that should be their main focus," Wright said. "Now the way the game is specialized, your opponents' batting average against lefties is very, very important. Most teams feel they should be able to get righties out and you need to the lefties to be able to come in and get lefties out, especially in this division."

Now BP is just being mean

A few hours after projecting the Astros to go 10-152 in 2011, BP's Ben Lindbergh posted a column on ESPN (Insider-Only) calling Hunter Pence "among the worst Team MVPs" in baseball.

The problem with Pence is that he's, at best, a complementary player in a good lineup. Most clubs would be happy to have him audition for a supporting role, but he would be miscast as the leading man in a championship-caliber production. From 2008 to 2010, NL right fielders as a group produced a .266/.341/.443 triple-slash line, comparable to Pence's .278/.330/.466 performance, although the Astros' unremarkable offense was bolstered by his above-average work in the field and on the bases.

If the Astros do the unthinkable this season and go to the playoffs, it's stories like this that I will refer to when I explain why I set cars on fire and urinated off high-rise buildings while screaming.

Thankfully, we don't have to actually play these games in 2011

Because Baseball Prospectus' projections are out! And it's ugly.

So ugly that, at 67-95, the Astros have the worst record in baseball, four games behind the Pirates.

SI has a nice little recap

SI's Joe Lemire has a nice article up on the off-season, and it's not a "Jeebus, you guys suck" article.

Lots of good stuff, but we'll pull our favorite part - click it and read.

Lemire:
The Astros have the makings of a nucleus that should contend in the NL Central in a couple years.

Much of that group -- largely at the urging of All-Star rightfielder Hunter Pence -- worked out together at Minute Maid Park four days per week in November and December and five days per week starting in January. Among the young players working out regularly alongside Pence, 27, were third baseman Chris Johnson, 26; Norris, 25; catcher Jason Castro, 23; Wallace, 24; and outfielder Brian Bogusevic, 26.

In all, about a dozen major leaguers and the rest minor leaguers gathered to have their butts collectively kicked by Coleman.

"When they went to walk out the door," Coleman said, "they could barely walk to the door."

Lyles could open the season as SP5

It's something we've heard about for a while: If Jordan Lyles goes out and earns the SP5 job, they'll give it to him. But Ed Wade is okay with Lyles going back to Triple-A.

Wade:
"His performance and the level of competition around him will dictate the timetable as to when he gets here or if he stays here. If we're only focusing on the fifth spot, we do have competition and we do have some experienced guys there who conceivably could put Jordan in a position where he's back at Triple-A getting more experience...

..."I've said all along, in a perfect world, he gets more time [in the Minor Leagues]. His performance could dictate otherwise, and he could be here sooner rather than later. We're not closed-minded about it, but at the same time, he shouldn't be putting added pressure on himself."

Don't underestimate the allure of keeping him in the minors until the All-Star Break, so the Astros don't give him a Super-Two status, and give him an extra year of arbitration (see: Pence, Hunter).

The Astros will continue to play like it's August 2010

Fox Sports Houston has an article up on whether or not the Astros can carry the success they enjoyed in the 2nd half of 2010 to the 1st half of 2011:

Chris Johnson:
"We're a group of guys who are going to work hard and come to play every day. That's how it happened. We just gelled. But we still have a lot to prove, and we can't wait to get into the games and continue to progress. That's the key. We want to build and improve on what we started. We're not banking on anything. So even in spring training, we're going to take a different approach, with more intensity, ready to play and ready to win."

Bourn:
"We were very loose and we didn't just throw the season away when things weren't going well. We just relaxed and concentrated on playing baseball. I see the same thing this year. Even though this is a different season, we still have the same energy that we had last year. You can feel it in the clubhouse."

Drew Meyer retires

According to the South Carolina State, former Astros prospect Drew Meyer will retire from baseball.

I missed my friends and family. Over the years, being away made me realize there’s more to life than just baseball.”

He'll return to USC to finish up his business degree.

Meyer was the Rangers' 1st Round pick in 2002, and played in Corpus in 2009, hitting .291/.362/.395, and played 46 games in 2010 at Round Rock, where he hit .241/.339/.352. He was released last July, and finished up the season with the Angels' Triple-A team.

Arias' shoulder now beyond rest

McTaggart has an update on Alberto Arias, whose shoulder has not loosened up after reporting tightness over last weekend.

Mills:
"He's still a little on the stiff and sore side, and we kind of want the doctor to take a look at him."

Arias was scratched from his scheduled BP session yesterday.

Not to be outdone, Jim Bowden ranks his Top 50

With a captip to Steve Campbell, Jim Bowden ranked his Top 50 prospects.

Jordan Lyles comes in at #37:
He has a smooth, easy delivery with deception. A consistent release point allows him to throw four different pitches average or above with his change-up being his best pitch. His up-side looks to be a middle of the rotation starter unless his velocity improves from 89-91.

And Anthony Gose, who was an Astro for about eight minutes before getting traded for Brett Wallace? He's #43:
Acquired in a deal of top prospects with the Houston Astros, Gose is expected to be the Blue Jays long-term solution to CF and the leadoff spot in the lineup. Gose is a burner but still need to improve his base-running and base-stealing. He has above average range in CF, a strong arm and a solid glove. His batting needs to improve and he needs to learn how to bunt and slap the ball to better utilize his speed. He won’t be fast to the big leagues and his bat will determine his future success.

2011 Astros = 2005 Brewers

McTaggart has a Q&A with Bill Hall, who was asked what he thought of this team:

"This team is what you would say is in a transition period with Roy [Oswalt] being gone and [Lance] Berkman being gone, and they have some younger guys who are expected to go out and produce and help this team win. In Milwaukee, I was one of the first guys to come - prospects - and I was in the clubhouse first and got to be with all those other guys who are turning into superstars now, with Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, Rickie [Weeks] and J.J. [Hardy], when he was there. All of us came up at the same time as a group and had to learn how to win together and know the meaning of going out and competing every day. That's the knowledge I can give to these guys, being that I was through it before and I know what they're feeling."

Hell no the rotation isn't set yet

While it looks like Myers is lined up for the Opening Day start vs. Roy Halladay, the rest of the rotation isn't set, as far as Mills is concerned:

"No, no, not at all yet. We come up and read in the paper some clubs are already announcing their rotation for the season. This is just our club I'm talking about, but if we start to make those plans now, we don't know what's going to happen as far as injuries, how guys throw the ball, how guys do things.

"We're going to utilize this time to the best of our ability to kind of let guys get in shape and do the things they need to do to be ready. There's enough first time through that we can kind of map things through later."

There's also a sad funny story about Carlos Lee's conditioning in Footer's blog.

What sign should grace the Astros' clubhouse?

With the news yesterday, or the day before (who really cares?), that the Yankees have a sign in their clubhouse that just says, "Compete," that got us thinking:

What sign should the Astros have in their clubhouse? This is a photo contest, so send your signs to astroscounty (at) gmail.com! We'll get you started:


(And there's nothing we can apparently do to get it to be in the right orientation.)

Astros sign three more

The Astros have agreed to terms with:

Matt Downs ($421,000)
Cesar Carrillo ($414,000)
Lance Pendleton ($414,000)

As Zach Levine notes, the only unsigned players are now J.A. Happ, Tommy Manzella, Angel Sanchez, and Mark Melancon.

You, too, can take a shot at Ed Wade!

I'm a fan of Rob Neyer, and was insanely jealous when he spurned writing for Astros County to join SB Nation. But today, he has a post in which he reference Justice's post on the Brandon Lyon signing last December.

Justice:
All heck broke loose when Astros GM Ed Wade gave Brandon Lyon a 3-year, $15-million contract in December 2009. They said Ed got taken to the cleaners. They said Ed would end up looking real bad. Let's just say I'm real glad I was on Ed's side.

Neyer, today:
I don't remember all heck breaking loose, if only because it's real hard to look real bad when you're committing only $15 million over three years...

...We might expect Lyon to wind up giving the Astros around $10 million in value, for their $15 million. Was three years and $15 million an overpay? Absolutely. But Ed Wade has done far, far sillier things since taking over in Houston.

That's interesting. On the day of the signing David Cameron wrote:
Ed Wade is the GM equivalent of a bad SNL sketch. The first time he overpaid a middle reliever, we figured out that he didn’t really know how to build a roster. Now, when he gives Brandon Lyon a 3 year, $15 million deal, we just shrug our shoulders and say, “Yeah, that’s Ed Wade for ya.”...

...They don’t have any money to spend to fix the rest of their bad, old roster, but they can commit $5 million a year to Brandon Lyon through 2012. Moves like this are why the team isn’t good, and won’t be good any time soon. This move is just the latest act in a joke that’s gone on far too long.

Neyer, referencing Cameron, on Dec 10, 2009:
I'm glad Cameron said it instead of me ... but, yeah...

...The No. 1 argument against Ed Wade's competence is not this ridiculous contract. The Astros should be able to blow $5 million per season on freely available talent like Brandon Lyon and still win. The No. 1 argument against Wade's competence is that the Astros have been outscored by 232 over the last four seasons, and there's no reason for optimism about 2010 or beyond.

It's not hell breaking loose, and Neyer was somewhat consistent from December 2009 to today, but at what point is Wade allowed some slack? We're just one year into a three-year deal. Lindstrom was expendable - and traded - because Lyon was solid, more solid than Lindstrom, and brought in two prospects. Was Lyon lucky in 2010? Apparently that's what giving up two home runs in 2010 means. Neyer quotes FanGraphs as saying that Lyon was worth approximately $4m in 2010. If he does as well in 2011 as he did in 2010, the Astros will have gotten out of him almost what they put in.

Lyles, Villar part of BA's Top 100 prospects

Over at Baseball America, they have their Top 100 prospects, and Jordan Lyles (#42) and Jonathan Villar (#94) are right on there.

Levine on the waiver wire

And the final catch-up post of the morning has Zach Levine talking about the waiver wire, and how effectively the Astros have used it. Seven players on the 40-man roster were waiver wire pickups, meaning that 18% of the Astros' 40-man roster consists of players other teams didn't want.

Ed Wade:
“Our pro scouting staff does a tremendous job all year long in putting ourselves in position to evaluate talent. In the case of Wilton Lopez, Fulchino, Bourgeois, any number of guys wearing our uniform right now, it’s a direct result of the work our pro scouting staff does.”

Steve Campbell breaks down everyone else's "Big Three"

Here's an interesting article from Steve Campbell about how the Astros' rotation compares to the rest of the NL Central.

Meat Wagon Update!

With the arrival of Bill Hall, who is now off diaper duty until October, everyone's in camp.

With that, we get a couple of Meat Wagon updates:

-Angel Sanchez is about ready to hit him some singles. Mills:
“He’s stepping up a little bit, and we’re hoping that he can hit against live pitchers tomorrow."

-Alberto Arias might not be able to throw live BP tomorrow. Mills qualified his scheduled appearance with a "hopefully."

Bald Barmes is ready to get this going

McTaggart has an article up on Bald Clint Barmes, and his role in 2011.

Barmes:
"I was excited to hear they said the majority of my time was going to be at shortstop. Hearing that and getting an opportunity to get back to the other side [of second base] and play every day, I was very excited about that. Colorado was starting to look at moving me into a utility role, and I feel I have a lot of years left to play and I want to do it as long as I can. I was very excited to get an opportunity to come over here and do that...

..."I like the direction this team is going and I would like to stay here. I'm going to go out and have a solid year and compete, and every team's coming in looking to try to get to the playoffs and win a championship, and this team is going in that direction. I'm not saying this year could be one of those years, but I'm excited to be thrown in the middle of it all. Hopefully I stick."

Click the link for info on what exactly happened with his numbers over the last two seasons...

McTaggart's Update

Brian McTaggart has his update from today's Spring Training:

-Keep Nelson Figueroa in your thoughts and prayers, as his grandfather has passed away, and Figueroa will miss some time to attend the funeral.

Figueroa:
"He instilled that hard-work mentality into my father and he instilled that into me, and dad still works as hard as ever. I go and play this game with a workman mentality and take nothing for granted, and realize I'm blessed to play this game. I've paid my dues time and time again, and will continue to do so in [his grandfather's] honor. We're a very close family, and this will make us even tighter."

-Bill Hall is expected in camp for the first time tomorrow, as he has been with his fiancee for the birth of their child.

Astros agree to deal with Abad

Zach Levine says the Astros have agreed to the one-year deal with reliever Fernando Abad for $418,000.

Abad not a candidate for the rotation

Fernando Abad is no longer in the running for the SP5 spot, according to Zach Levine.

Wade:
“In the meetings that we’ve had, we think that the role that he’s capable of playing in the bullpen as a key lefty for us probably takes precedent at this point in his career. That doesn’t mean that at some point he isn’t going to be a successful starter, but for the time being, we’re going to focus on him as a reliever.”

So that leaves the candidates for SP5 as such:
Rule 5 picks Lance Pendleton and Aneury Rodriguez, as well as Ryan Rowland-Smith, Nelson Figueroa, and Jordan Lyles.

I'm not sure how I feel about this. The Astros do already have two lefties in the rotation with Happ and Wandy (and Rowland-Smith is a lefty), but Abad dominated in the Winter Leagues this off-season. It is comforting to note that the Astros haven't completely ruled Abad out for the rotation. Ah, so be it.

No one gets this excited when I put on 20 pounds

Jiovanni Mier has done some working out this off-season, apparently.

Director of Player Development Fred Nelson:
"One of the things that we were hoping he'd be able to do over time would be to add some weight, hopefully body strength, and by the same token not lose any quickness or running speed."

Wade, on what Mier needs to develop:
"It's consistency and plate discipline more than anything. He's going to grow into a little bit of power with the body he's got, but it's really just a case of getting professional at-bats."

As Levine mentions, Mier is kind of behind the eight-ball with the Astros trading for Jimmy Paredes, who's officially one-step ahead of Mier in the system. Mier's 2011 destination is up in the air, but it's logical to think he'll be back in Lexington to start the year.

Well, not having a cyst in your shoulder will help that

Brad Mills noted yesterday that Brandon Lyon was "light years ahead of where he was last year."

Matt Musil breaks down Day Two

KHOU's Matt Musil has a pretty nice rundown of the 2nd full day of full-squad workouts. Among the nuggets:

-Apparently Chris Johnson looks much more comfortable at 3B than he did last year.
-Nelson Figueroa's grandfather isn't doing so well in New Jersey.
-Hunter Pence wants to win every Spring Training game.

Bourn tried to recruit Crawford

So apparently it came up in conversation between Bourn and Carl Crawford that Crawford should take his talents to the Gulf Coast.

Bourn:
"Yeah, I said something to him, but whenever you've got the Yankees and Boston involved, it's kind of hard. He didn't say he wouldn't play in Houston, but you know, it's kind of hard to turn down $142 million."

Yeah, especially when the Astros can't offer more than $14.2m...

Here's some good news

Hunter Pence just tweeted:

This team has come together more than any I've been a part of.

Considering the team has been together as a whole for approximately 36 hours, that's damn skippy.

Pendleton and Rodriguez are under the microscope

While other pitchers and position players hope to impress, Rule 5 picks Lance Pendleton and Aneury Rodriguez have to impress, if they want to stay with the club, according to McTaggart (and the general rules of baseball).

Wade:
"To some extent, they're under more scrutiny. There is a timetable that dictates you have to make your determination sooner rather than later. Every time one of those guys steps on the mound, you're going to have to be bearing down on what they're seeing."

Click the link to see how both are dealing with the pressure, and words of wisdom from Wesley Wright.

Lyles isn't so much with the Twitter

A nice little piece on Jordan Lyles from his hometown paper gives us a glimpse into the life of a 20-year old, who in his very hands holds our hopes and dreams. A vulnerable, creepy feeling, no?

(Lyles' agent Lee) Long and his marketing team at Palmetto Sports Group wanted him to start a Twitter account, but he passed on the idea.

“His response was, ‘that brings more attention to myself,’” Long said. “It is refreshing to see that a kid with all the accolades and praise he has maintains that kind of humility.”

More Long:
“He has shown a maturity and commitment this offseason. His post-workout evaluation was just off the chart. He has really grown and proper nutrition and putting time in the weight room.”

So what do you think? September? Or earlier?

More Long:
“I would never bet against Jordan Lyles. He might be considered to some as an underdog, but any time he has been in that role he has thrived. So it wouldn’t surprise me one bit if he creates a situation where the Astros have a very tough decision to make. Ed Wade has made it clear that if Jordan Lyles is the best guy to win the position, that it will be his job.”

Apparently it took Mills' Panama trip for Carlos to feel wanted

USA Today's Seth Livingstone talked to Carlos Lee, who was downright flattered by Mills going to Panama this off-season.

Lee:
"I didn't know he liked me that much. It means a lot. It makes you feel like you're part of the main guys. We talked about the team and expectations. We talked about everything. "We had a great time. He was there for 50 hours. We talked baseball for 52."

I don't get it.

Plutko impressive for UCLA

This will likely be the last time we bring this up, but we feel bad for leaving you hanging out to dry for the weekend and most of Monday. Remember 6th Round pick Adam Plutko, who turned down the Astros' reported offer of $1m+ to go to UCLA? Yeah...he threw 6IP, 2H/0ER, 6Ks in his college debut against San Francisco. Ah, well.

How pumped would you be to go 1-2 to start the year?

Especially with Phillies.com's Todd Zolecki's report that it looks like the Astros will face Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Roy Oswalt to start the season...

Astros agree with Arias

And speaking of paying the protected, the Astros have signed Alberto Arias to his requisite one-year deal for $439,500.

Justice...

Just...here.

Astros to treat Arias like he's carrying eggs

Brian McTaggart lets everyone know the Astros are treating Arias like he's got a Johnny Damon arm after feeling some tightness in his surgically-repaired shoulder.

Mills:
"We're going to have to give him a couple of more days off and see how he comes back and how he works with that. He wasn't able to throw the ball like he really wanted to [Sunday], but we'll see how he is after a couple of days off. We're going to bring him along slower to build up that range of motion and everything else."

We also learn that Manzella is going to consider himself a Jeff Keppinger-esque player, all over the infield:
"I'm a pretty strong believer, and I think a lot of people will agree, that if you can play shortstop, a lot of the other positions -- I don't want to say easier -- but they're easier to transition to rather than if you were a second baseman who tried to switch to third or tried to learn third base, or a third baseman trying to learn second. Just from seeing the game from the shortstop's perspective, it makes those two a little bit easier to transition to."

Pence wins arbitration case

So it turns out that the arbitration panel has sided with Hunter Pence's $6.9m case for 2011, and not the Astros' $5.15m offer. Surprising, since NOBODY BEATS TAL SMITH AND LIVES TO TELL ABOUT IT.

We'll examine what this means for the Astros moving forward early next week.

Apparently, things between Hunsicker/McLane and Biggio got "animated"

Evan Grant has a tantalizingly brief note on the Michael Young situation, referencing Craig Biggio.

Following the Jeff Kent signing in 2003, apparently nobody thought to include Biggio - which, depending on your view of labor/management rights, may or may not matter. But...

He went directly to GM Gerry Hunsicker and owner Drayton McLane for direct "animated" discussions. But Biggio never requested a trade and never accused management of any mistakes publicly.

I'd like to know more about this, Mr. Grant.

Ryan Rowland-Smith's exit interview

With a captip to the Crawfish Boxes, there's an interview between Ryan Rowland-Smith and Lookout Landing on his time in Seattle.

Don't want to pull too much from the excellent interview, but thought this was an interesting note about the potential differences between Safeco and Minute Maid:

Put it this way: you make good pitches, keep the ball down, ahead of the count, it doesn't matter if you're pitching on the moon. Sure, the ballpark plays a role in success, but looking back I have succeeded in parks where the ball flies out and I have been lit up in parks where it's a graveyard. There are other factors that go into a ballpark as well. Basically, If I am comfortable in a place, it really doesn't matter if it's a pitchers park or not. Plus half your starts are on the road anyway.

Everyone loves Jason Castro!

Last year? Don't worry about last year. So says everyone concerned about Jason Castro.

Jamie Quirk:
"There's a reason he's a No. 1 pick. He's got the great mental makeup and really picked things up well. We expect him to get better and better."

Ed Wade:
"He has to figure out the strength and weaknesses of the staff he's catching. You put all that stuff on a guy's plate at the same time, and his own personal statistics become somewhat secondary."

Mike Barnett:
"He's a much better hitter than what he showed last year. He had a lot to be accountable for. His mind is relaxed. He knows what he needs to do mechanically. It's just a matter of time. He's got the intangibles. He knows the strike zone. He doesn't swing at a lot of bad pitches. Now it's just a matter of smoothing him out."

Do the numbers agree with Barnett? Well, sort of, yeah.

FanGraphs says Castro swung at 27.4% of pitches outside the strike zone. Chris Johnson took a hack at 43.1% of pitches outside the zone, and Humberto Quintero came in at 44.2%. The only everyday players with lower O-Swing% were Keppinger (20.8%), Berkman (21.2%) and Bourn (23.8%). It's not like the Astros have much of a choice besides giving Castro a season-long look, anyway.

Nothing helps your confidence like getting mopped by Randy Couture

Nice article article on Ryan Rowland-Smith by Zach Levine, who attributes his increased confidence this Spring to two items:

1) MMA training with Randy Couture and bald Jay Glazer:
"There was a lot of stuff I went through last year where I lost my confidence and doubted my ability. Just being around those guys reminds you of that competitive aspect, and it brought that back."

And 2) Shacking up with David Aardsma's sister:
"I was at my girlfriend's parents' place and was at their house and thought, 'I might just try to get a trade to Houston and shack up here,' just joking. Sure enough, two weeks later, I was a free agent."

We seriously need an "Australian" font for when he's quoted. In the meantime, this had better happen when he pitches against the Cardinals:

Arnsberg is all up in Wandy's house

Interesting little note in Levine's blog about how quickly pitchers warmed up to Brad Arnsberg.

Arnsberg:
"For the most part, most of them let me in somewhat quick. Even with Wandy (Rodriguez) last year, I know it had been tough on Wandy having gone through a couple different pitching coaches in his last three or four years. It took me awhile to get into his house, but when he let me in and realized that I might be a little bit smarter than I look, we became great friends."

Does that explain his - and others' - slow start? Bud Norris seems to think it's a possibility:
"Making adjustments with a brand-new coaching staff was hard for everybody last year," Norris said. "It might take a half a season. That's pretty much what it did for us."

Casey Fien could have been Deputy Casey

In an article on non-roster invitee Casey Fien, it turns out that he was going to the first bidder.

Fien:
"I told my agent whatever team comes after me, that's the team I want. They obviously want me so I'm going to go to that team."

Within the article, it turns out old college roommate Bud Norris is the one who suggested the Astros give him a shot.

According to Fien, the Tigers were kind of jerks about his brief stints in the Majors in 2010:
"They actually told me I was going down before I pitched. They were like: 'Listen, just go out there and try to get some outs. You won't be here long.'"

Just think, had we come up with a per diem, Casey Fien could have been writing for AC.

It's Arbitration Day!

The Astros and Hunter Pence prepare for a steel cage match, with the loser being forced to shave their head. Last year, the Astros and Pence avoided arbitration by meeting in the middle for a $3.5m one-year deal. This year, Pence will either make $5.15m (the Astros preference) or $6.9m (Pence's preference). Stay tuned - whoever comes out of the room with a bald head loses.

Just because the Astros like Wallace doesn't mean everybody does

The invaluable Minor League Ball, by John Sickels, has an interesting note on Brett Wallace:

There are all kinds of stories/rumors floating around out there about how disappointing Wallace has been, with scouts picking apart his swing mechanics and many predicting that he'll never pan out at all.

He's clearly got some plate discipline issues to work out, too. I am no expert on swing mechanics, but while it is apparent to me that expectations for Wallace were too high, I just can't get behind writing a hitter off after 51 games and 144 at-bats. Sociologically and psychologically speaking, people tend to over-correct in cases like this. Everyone was too high on him, now people are swinging back in the opposite direction too strongly given the evidence we have. Serious swing flaws or not, it is way too soon to say that he can't or won't fix them.

Odds "overwhelmingly" in Wallace's favor for 1B1

Alyson Footer's new blog post discusses the chances of who will be 1B1 come Opening Day.

Right now, around 10 days before the first Spring Training game, the odds are overwhelmingly in Wallace's favor.

Lee is a backup plan in case Wallace really, really, really scuffles this spring (yes, it deserves three reallys, to illustrate just how disastrous of a showing Wallace is going to have in order to not be the Opening Day first baseman.)

Levine's Morning Notes

Hey so we get a little update from Zach Levine for this morning:

-There will likely be a seven-man bullpen, meaning that there will likely be 13 position players.

-Delino DeShields' has a March 24 court date in Georgia for his "too much drinky while drivey" incident.

This is amazing

We've posted this before, but I felt as though you should just see it again.

Ed Wade wasn't prepared for just how $@%@ed the Astros were

In Richard Justice's Hope-Springs-Eternal column this morning, we hear your regular "Mills is awesome," "The Astros are better than people think" line of reasoning. But there's an interesting quote from Ed Wade on this rebuilding process:

"The system was thinner than I anticipated. I wasn't aware it was as tough as it was."

And then it's comparison time from Justice:
They're not there, but they're a lot closer than they were this time last year. They appear to be long shots in 2011. Just like the Reds were in 2010.

To call the 2011 Astros the 2010 Reds is a stretch. But what we should focus on is Wade's quote. This either tells you one of two things:

1. The farm system was so brutal that it shocked a baseball lifer.

Or

2. Wade didn't really do his homework. Any serious Astros fan could have told you that the system was in trouble, and two or three bad drafts can set your team back for years.

Still, with the progress made over the last couple of seasons, I'll give Wade the benefit of the doubt. Somebody should.

Wesley Wright signs

Wesley Wright has signed his one-year deal for $466,000.

Your likely new owners: Faceless Conglomeration, Inc.

In an article detailing the sad last Spring Training of Drayton's tenure, we see how things are going with the impending sale of the Astros.

Drayton:
"It's a big process, and we're evaluating a number of different individuals and groups. Nothing is ready to come about. Something could come about in four to six months or a year or two...Very few teams in Major League Baseball or the NFL, one individual owns it. It's most likely [going to be purchased by] a group of people, but anything can happen."

More players sign for the amount of money that Carlos Lee will make in a homestand

Courtesy of Brian McTaggart, the Astros have signed:

Jason Castro ($421,500)
Bud Norris ($437,500)
Jorge De Leon ($414,000)

Here's one of the more worthless articles, ever

Good work, SI.

Lyons says it's important that players don't overdo things before the season starts. He says pitchers want to avoid breaking down in August and September because they were throwing too much during workouts in December.

I'm not sure who this "Lyons" fella is, anyway, but we're working to confirm whether or not he's working on trying to put a cyst back in his shoulder to help get out of Spring Training.

Geoff Geary got a job!

Former Astro Geoff Geary signed a minor-league deal with the Padres, without an invitation to Major League Spring Training, and will report on March 4.

Five days can a season make or break, or at least delay

In your typical Pitching Matters column, we hear about some of Bud Norris' 2010 Spring Training issues, and what he's ready to become:

"A lot of people don’t know I had a stomach flu in spring training and I missed my throwing program for about five days which really kind of screwed me up. I’m glad the Astros gave me the time to get healthy down there with those three rehab starts and when I came back I proved to them that I was healthy and ready to go...

..."I want more workload on my shoulders. I want the team to say, ‘hey Bud, it’s time to step up.’ I want to be with this organization for a long time and show them what I’m really worth."

At least we won't have to listen to Joe Buck obviously disparage the Astros on Saturday afternoons

That's because Fox won't be televising any Astros games on Saturday afternoons. Don't worry. The Brewers and Pirates share the same fate, while we'll get to see the Cubs and Cardinals nine times, and the Reds eight times.

Angel Sanchez hasn't even picked up a bat yet

So with Angel Sanchez's strained...ness, it's time that Zach Levine check in on him. The result? (If you're good at context clues, you already know this):

(Sanchez) still has not started swinging a bat and likely won't for the next few days

Q & Wade

Brian McTaggart has a Q&A with Easy Eddie.

On 1B1:
To me, the perfect-world scenario was that Brett Wallace comes in and wins the first base job and is our guy and Carlos is the everyday left fielder and we're not worried about mixing and matching in left with Carlos at first, or trying to push Bogusevic harder to play more.

On Aneury Rodriguez and Lance Pendleton's chances:
"Both guys at this point in time I think we'll look at them initially form a starting standpoint because both of them have very limited bullpen experience, particularly Pendleton."

On Chris Johnson:
"This is a guy that I wouldn't be surprised at the end of the season to C.J. at 30-plus home runs. But it's going to entail, how does he respond to the other teams' Brad Arnsbergs, who are back in the laboratory cooking up the formula to really make you fail? Believe me, when you have a couple of months like Chris Johnson had, there's a lot of pitching coaches in the lab right now. Rich Dubee's doing it right now in Philadelphia right now, getting ready for Opening Day against, trying to figure out how to shut C. J. down."

Everyone's so comfortable with Mills, they might just take their pants off

Kicking off what I'm sure will be six weeks of "We can win this!" and "Are you ready to be a champion?" (Like anyone is going to answer, "Nope. I'm ready to go 74-88!"), Brian McTaggart starts it off with how awesome Brad Mills is.


Wade, on Mills:
"I think Millsie has clearly established his role as the leader of this club on the field and the coaches have bought into Millsie's programs, his expectations, and I think the players have, too. They dealt with a guy that had their best interests at heart last year as individuals and the best interests of the team and the organization at heart. I can't imagine any manager that put more of himself into the effort than Millsie has."

My money's on Ozzie Guillen, but whatever. Wade knows that health is the key to the already-then Major League-ready roster:
"It would be great if you had three layers of depth and could cover yourself if you had major breakdowns, but we need to stay healthy. We're pressing some kids right now to step up and fill some roles that are challenging. If we have to go beyond some of those kids and dip down even further, it might get a little bit tough.

"We Are San Antonio and Austin's Astros, As Well"

A little note from the Houston Business Journal today explains that they aren't just our Astros in 2011. They're San Antonio's, and Austin's, Astros, too.

Props to the Astros for not giving up control of central Texas to the Fightin' Nolans of Arlington.

Bonus points will be given for stick figure Astros drawings in front of the Alamo, and Waterloo Records.

At least the Astros are "interesting"

Athlon Sports posted their 2011 Astros preview today. Your money quote:

The Astros aren’t going to be anyone’s pick to win the division, but they’re an interesting team. By adding Hall and Barmes to a lineup that includes Lee, Pence, Bourn and Johnson, they should score runs. The pitching staff could be one of the best in the NL, but they’ll need Myers to repeat what he did last year and Rodriguez to be consistent. They could have thrust themselves into dark horse contender mode with another quality starter and another solid bat during the winter, but they did enough in the offseason to remain relevant.

Lindstrom explains the source of his back problems

Matt Lindstrom explained the source of his back problems last year while with Houston. Hint: It was because of a rented bed. A rented. Bed.

"I had a day and a half from the time we broke spring training to get into a place. I didn't know the Houston area. I was going to a new team and I didn't really know anyone on the club as well. It was pretty much my fault. I needed a bed. It was about me being stubborn and seriously blockheaded. I didn't think my back was going to give out on me in July."

Five Burning Questions: Astros 2011

First things freaking first: Don't roll your eyes at Truck Day. I know it's fashionable to act as though putting nine bajillion boxes of sunflower seeds, eighty-five cases of Gold Bond and twenty ribbed condoms on to an 18-wheeler doesn't impact your existence. But it matters up north. I spent three years in Upstate New York, and the psychological impact of Spring Training is undeniable. Yes, it's 10 degrees with two feet of snow on the ground, but it'll get better. So shut your mouth about hating Truck Day.

Now, to the Five Burning Questions for Astros Fans:

1. Why, God, Why?

Come, now. If God didn't see fit to bestow a Super Bowl ring on Dan Marino's finger, then surely you don't expect Him to throw us a bone in matters of sport. I believe that God is omnipresent, omniscient, and all-powerful. Clearly the answer, then, is that there is sin in the Astros' camp. Personally, I've got money on Tal Smith and Pam Gardner. Once they restore themselves, or someone converts them, a la the Lost Tribes of Israel, we can expect more of the same, meaning 2006-2010. Not 2001-2005.

2. How did this happen?

It's because you did not buy enough Morgan Ensberg gear at your local Academy. Had you been a better fan in the feast years, you would understand the famine. Maybe it's not that dire, but the decline and fall of the Astros Empire is fairly well-documented. See, when Clemens and Pettitte decided to forsake the Yankees and come to Houston, I feel like management assumed this would repeatedly happen forevermore. Yet the Astros were drunk on power when we had our own Brokeback Mountain playing out two out of every five days on the mound. Drayton took two Yankees and then thought the Astros were the Yankees. Think it's a coincidence that Carlos Lee, Woody Williams, and Miguel Tejada soon followed? With those three deals, the Astros lost draft picks and eight prospects. Have those prospects done anything? With the exception of Luke Scott, not really, but it was a culture of trading and ignoring the draft that began under Hunsicker and continued under Purpura. Sins of the past, and whatnot.

3. When will it get better?

It'll be a while. One hundred things need to go right, in order, for the Astros to contend this year. But we don't have to wonder when the Astros are going to realize that they need to try a new model. It will be more fun than last year - for a while. It may not be fun after the All-Star Break. Jason Castro just might not ever figure out how to hit left-handed pitching. We might understand why Brett Wallace has been traded so often (personally, though, this is a bullcrap argument). J.R. Towles will certainly enjoy this season more, if only for the fact that Roy won't be hawking his ass for two months. But with each passing 75-win season, Bobby Heck's draft picks get closer to contributing. And don't let FanGraphs eat your soul by saying that Eddie's Farm is bereft of talent.

4. What stage of grief am I in?

Well, you're in one of the five stages: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance. So you choose:




Personally, I waffle between Anger and Acceptance. There was a period of Bargaining which was unbecoming for a man of my age, so I bounce around a little bit.

5. Is there anyone I can talk to?

Yes. Your friends at Astros County are here to help you. And you can gripe on John Wessling's show, Sunday Morning Live, from 7am to 9am, on 97.5 FM.