2020 astros offseason

[Jshep34 2,308]

Banner wont be taken down but have fear of huge fine and draft picks taken away. Thatll put our window closing after 2021. Hope im wrong

[David Dennison 18,851]

26 minutes ago, UTexasFight said:

No... but depending how it all shakes out, this very much could take away another one or two from the future.

I'm OK with that. 

[David Dennison 18,851]

24 minutes ago, Jshep34 said:

Banner wont be taken down but have fear of huge fine and draft picks taken away. Thatll put our window closing after 2021. Hope im wrong

I don't expect baseball to be played in 2021 anyway. I think the CBA re-negotiation will lead to a very long work stoppage.

2020 or bust!!!

 

[Jshep34 2,308]

I don't expect baseball to be played in 2021 anyway. I think the CBA re-negotiation will lead to a very long work stoppage.
2020 or bust!!!
 

Very true. Years of service is going to be the huge fight this time

[Trey3216 15,345]

1 hour ago, David Dennison said:

The only severe punishment that matters is taking away a championship.

That's not going to happen, so play ball.

What if they took away the Astros International signing $$ for 3-5 years.   That would be pretty devastating 

[David Dennison 18,851]

37 minutes ago, Trey3216 said:

What if they took away the Astros International signing $$ for 3-5 years.   That would be pretty devastating 

Speaking of devastating:

[runthebone 7,967]

Manfred can do whatever, but then once it becomes apparent that other teams cheated, then they should get the exact same punishment.

 

Because if we did it, others did also.

 

 

[APMP 688]

I am not advocating that this happen, but if the sign stealing using tech was truly rampant around the league, I wonder if any current Astros would narc on their former clubs a la Fiers. Hell, Luhnow could probably convince the right player to...

[tx 3 putt 76,881]

[FondrenRoad 4,378]

3 hours ago, runthebone said:

Manfred can do whatever, but then once it becomes apparent that other teams cheated, then they should get the exact same punishment.

 

Because if we did it, others did also.

 

 

Nothing will happen to the others.  Unfortunately the writing is on the wall.  The Astros aren't the Yankees or the Red Sox, or even the Dodgers.  The Yankees could shoot down an opposing team's plane during the World Series and nothing would happen.  Remember how A&M violated NCAA rules with reckless abandon and got a slap on the wrist while SMU got the death penalty for lesser infractions? That's not even including schools like Miami and OU who basically bought mansions for players' moms while the players themselves were on work release from prison for domestic violence.

We are about to be SMU.  The example that tells the Yankees and Red Sox to pretty please cut it out too.

Edited November 20, 2019 by FondrenRoad

[DaysOff 7,947]

Jesus. Calm down.

[David Dennison 18,851]

1 hour ago, FondrenRoad said:

Nothing will happen to the others.  Unfortunately the writing is on the wall.  The Astros aren't the Yankees or the Red Sox, or even the Dodgers.  The Yankees could shoot down an opposing team's plane during the World Series and nothing would happen.  Remember how A&M violated NCAA rules with reckless abandon and got a slap on the wrist while SMU got the death penalty for lesser infractions? That's not even including schools like Miami and OU who basically bought mansions for players' moms while the players themselves were on work release from prison for domestic violence.

We are about to be SMU.  The example that tells the Yankees and Red Sox to pretty please cut it out too.

The commissioner can't do that. The owners won't let him.

[FondrenRoad 4,378]

2 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

The commissioner can't do that. The owners won't let him.

More likely the players union that squashes it, but you're probably right. If it's widespread, and it probably is, it will just be a stern league wide warning and the Astros will lose a draft pick or two that they can live without anyway. 

Or maybe here come the Tennessee Astros. 

[Planet Houston 4,930]

This just sucks all around. From a fan’s perspective, I don’t care as much about the sign stealing because it’s obvious that it’s fairly widespread. Why do you think everyone has been silent about it until Fiers went on record to seemingly punish an arrogant front office (my speculation on his motivation)?

What really sucks is how the whole Osuna and Taubman fiasco shows the real lack of integrity in our front office. We deserve to get punished disproportionately over the sign stealing, because it’s clear we have leadership who lacks basic human decency. The handling of the Taubman incident and the culture that allowed someone like that to rise to the top is beyond problematic. To prove the point, I know for a fact that the guy who hired Taubman (no longer with the Astros or in baseball, I believe) thinks he did nothing wrong and is getting railroaded. Unfuckingbelievable. 
 

Doesn’t make me love our players any less, but it makes me respect the logo a bit less. And that blows. 

[David Dennison 18,851]

7 minutes ago, Planet Houston said:

This just sucks all around. From a fan’s perspective, I don’t care as much about the sign stealing because it’s obvious that it’s fairly widespread. Why do you think everyone has been silent about it until Fiers went on record to seemingly punish an arrogant front office (my speculation on his motivation)?

What really sucks is how the whole Osuna and Taubman fiasco shows the real lack of integrity in our front office. We deserve to get punished disproportionately over the sign stealing, because it’s clear we have leadership who lacks basic human decency. The handling of the Taubman incident and the culture that allowed someone like that to rise to the top is beyond problematic. To prove the point, I know for a fact that the guy who hired Taubman (no longer with the Astros or in baseball, I believe) thinks he did nothing wrong and is getting railroaded. Unfuckingbelievable. 
 

Doesn’t make me love our players any less, but it makes me respect the logo a bit less. And that blows. 

If I weren't a lifelong fan, I would hate our organization from top to bottom. The only reason I care about the team as much as I do is 100% childhood nostalgia.

 

 

[FondrenRoad 4,378]

22 minutes ago, Planet Houston said:

This just sucks all around. From a fan’s perspective, I don’t care as much about the sign stealing because it’s obvious that it’s fairly widespread. Why do you think everyone has been silent about it until Fiers went on record to seemingly punish an arrogant front office (my speculation on his motivation)?

What really sucks is how the whole Osuna and Taubman fiasco shows the real lack of integrity in our front office. We deserve to get punished disproportionately over the sign stealing, because it’s clear we have leadership who lacks basic human decency. The handling of the Taubman incident and the culture that allowed someone like that to rise to the top is beyond problematic. To prove the point, I know for a fact that the guy who hired Taubman (no longer with the Astros or in baseball, I believe) thinks he did nothing wrong and is getting railroaded. Unfuckingbelievable. 
 

Doesn’t make me love our players any less, but it makes me respect the logo a bit less. And that blows. 

You have it both right and wrong.  Your Astros homerism is making you judge the Astros more harshly than other teams.  The sports media has also been out to get the Astros because they are an upstart.  But the Astros aren't unique at all.   Personally, I never wanted Osuna on the team.  Both when he first came on last year and now.  He could have actually pitched well in the World Series and I would have said the same thing.  I'd be happy if he was cut tonight even.

But the other side of the evil Astros story is that Aroldis Chapman choked and pulled a gun on his girlfriend and fired multiple shots to threaten her.  He was acquired by the Yankees in the midst of it.  They traded him and got him back, and he was still outright celebrated by Fox Sports during the ALCS. A guy that choked and fired shots at his girlfriend.  I don't recall even a single negative tweet about the Yankees for it.  But I'll say it.  The Yankees suck for Chapman and the Astros suck for Osuna.  There does need to be a league wide concerted effort though.  You can't let the league's premier team get away with it if you don't want teams like the Astros to get away with it as well.

The Astros handled the Taubman incident wrong.  They could have just fired him quickly and replaced him with someone almost identical and everyone would be happy.  The real issue is that the front office of every single other organization is made up mostly of entitled white males as well even if they can keep their mouth closed when necessary.  The bigger incident for the Astros is that the team owner replaced Nolan Ryan's son with his own.  But even then we are talking about two sons who were both given a job they didn't deserve because of their father's position.  One nepotism is bigger than another.  But its all nepotism.  Fuck that.

The Astros have had a microscope on them since the rebuild as they have become MLB's model franchise, but the issues that have been uncovered by that microscope aren't really the Astros' alone.  They are all of baseball.  And it is a huge problem.

[Fudge Nuggets 19,189]

13 hours ago, Jshep34 said:

Banner wont be taken down but have fear of huge fine and draft picks taken away. Thatll put our window closing after 2021. Hope im wrong

I hope I’m wrong but I got a bad feeling it closed this year. Things lined up perfectly and we still couldn’t get it done. Now we have to try again without Cole. 

[Hank Chinaski 6,314]

2 hours ago, Fudge Nuggets said:

I hope I’m wrong but I got a bad feeling it closed this year. Things lined up perfectly and we still couldn’t get it done. Now we have to try again without Cole. 

This year was as good a shot as they’ll ever have, I agree, but that doesn’t mean the window is closed. This team was probably better than the ‘17 team, for example. Playoff series are damn near coin flips, especially when you get to LCS and WS. 
 

they probably won’t have teams as good as the ‘19 team going forward, but as long as they’ve got teams that can get into the postseason, the window will be open. 

[Beau Vine 54,209]

8 hours ago, FondrenRoad said:

You have it both right and wrong.  Your Astros homerism is making you judge the Astros more harshly than other teams.  The sports media has also been out to get the Astros because they are an upstart. 

Do you really believe this?  The Golden State Warriors were an upstart not too long ago, and the media not only didn't go after them for some reason, but wrote thousands of fawning stories about them.  You can apply Occam's Razor to this situation pretty easily -- how many franchises in any sport have accused a member of the media of fabricating a story that turned out to be completely true?  The old adage was "Never pick a fight with someone who buys printer's ink by the barrel" -- adjust that for the internet, and it's exactly the rule that the Astros organization broke that has them in so much trouble right now.  

The Astros could make this go away more quickly by cleaning out their front office, starting with Luhnow.  Would that be worth it to make this go away?

[Mez2 4,023]

no, evil will always triumph because good is dumb

[pepper brooks 580]

11 hours ago, Planet Houston said:

This just sucks all around. From a fan’s perspective, I don’t care as much about the sign stealing because it’s obvious that it’s fairly widespread. Why do you think everyone has been silent about it until Fiers went on record to seemingly punish an arrogant front office (my speculation on his motivation)?

What really sucks is how the whole Osuna and Taubman fiasco shows the real lack of integrity in our front office. We deserve to get punished disproportionately over the sign stealing, because it’s clear we have leadership who lacks basic human decency. The handling of the Taubman incident and the culture that allowed someone like that to rise to the top is beyond problematic. To prove the point, I know for a fact that the guy who hired Taubman (no longer with the Astros or in baseball, I believe) thinks he did nothing wrong and is getting railroaded. Unfuckingbelievable. 
 

Doesn’t make me love our players any less, but it makes me respect the logo a bit less. And that blows. 

the front office has a win at all costs mind set above anything else.  this is a zero sum game for them.  Doesn't make them bad people away from baseball, but makes them highly competitive, edge seeking, rule bending, and somewhat arrogant within the confines of their jobs.  I don't think what Taubman did was a fireable offense either.  I think what he did was stupid, but getting fired over someone not liking your words is a bit of a stretch for me.  the astors handled that poorly from the jump.  no question.  

This sign stealing thing is bad.  on the one hand it's something on another level that could potentially get people banned from baseball.  on the other hand, there are likely guys now managing the Mets and Red Sox who would also need the ban hammer, and that isn't happening.  The Astros are going to be punished, and it is going to be harsh.  

[pepper brooks 580]

5 hours ago, Fudge Nuggets said:

I hope I’m wrong but I got a bad feeling it closed this year. Things lined up perfectly and we still couldn’t get it done. Now we have to try again without Cole. 

I think the window is still cracked open.  It is easy to believe the window is closed because the team is not going to be as good going forward as the 2019 version.  they did't get it done, but the 2017 team did and they were not as good as the 2019 team.  Let's see how it all plays out.  They're still the favorite in the west.  

[Beau Vine 54,209]

50 minutes ago, pepper brooks said:

I don't think what Taubman did was a fireable offense either. 

You don't think lying to your boss and making the entire organization look bad when they stick up for your lie is a fireable offense?

[David Dennison 18,851]

51 minutes ago, pepper brooks said:

the front office has a win at all costs mind set above anything else.  this is a zero sum game for them.  Doesn't make them bad people away from baseball, but makes them highly competitive, edge seeking, rule bending, and somewhat arrogant within the confines of their jobs.  I don't think what Taubman did was a fireable offense either.  I think what he did was stupid, but getting fired over someone not liking your words is a bit of a stretch for me.  the astors handled that poorly from the jump.  no question.  

This sign stealing thing is bad.  on the one hand it's something on another level that could potentially get people banned from baseball.  on the other hand, there are likely guys now managing the Mets and Red Sox who would also need the ban hammer, and that isn't happening.  The Astros are going to be punished, and it is going to be harsh.  

Define harsh.

[Jshep34 2,308]

Ive been speaking to some current and former employees, the one thing they have all said. The work environment is super toxic and cut throat.
Dont like the idea of promoting nepotism. It doesnt work.

[pepper brooks 580]

4 minutes ago, Jshep34 said:

Ive been speaking to some current and former employees, the one thing they have all said. The work environment is super toxic and cut throat.
Dont like the idea of promoting nepotism. It doesnt work.

not sure I would do so far as to say, "toxic".  it is most certainly geared towards "winning" at all costs, and many are trying to one up their colleagues in order to move up, out, and onto bigger things.  It is similar to what you'd find at any I-bank or consulting firm.  most front office people get that and know the game.  current and former players likely do not get that aspect of work culture.  I am not saying it's the best culture either, just saying, most there know what to expect.  

[HtownHorn 14,673]

32 minutes ago, Jshep34 said:

Ive been speaking to some current and former employees, the one thing they have all said. The work environment is super toxic and cut throat.
Dont like the idea of promoting nepotism. It doesnt work.

Sounds like Enron when I worked there. Wouldn't be surprised to hear that co workers give bad reviews of each other to get ahead. Also sounds a lot like the culture that Crane had at his shipping company before he bought the team. Culture is set from the owner on down.

Edited November 20, 2019 by HtownHorn

[TexArcher 37,771]

I don't believe the window's closed at all.  Brantley and Yuli are into their mid-thirties, but as they get old, Yordan and Tucker will mature.  The rest of the core (Altuve, Springer, Bregman, Correa) are in their primes.

We get LMJ back and Whitley is coming soon.

Yeah, we lost Cole, but this team has signed a huge free agent pitcher three years in a row.  Why wouldn't we do it again in '20?

I still think we're entering year 4 of an 8 to 10 year run that will yield 3+ championships.  And I refuse to listen to any logic that says otherwise.

[WBT 20,561]

3 hours ago, Jshep34 said:

Dont like the idea of promoting nepotism. It doesnt work.

As long as nepotism is confined to the business side and not baseball ops, it doesn't really make a shit.  Reid Ryan having his job through nepotism wasn't exactly holding us back.

[Mez2 4,023]

1 hour ago, TexArcher said:

I don't believe the window's closed at all.  Brantley and Yuli are into their mid-thirties, but as they get old, Yordan and Tucker will mature.  The rest of the core (Altuve, Springer, Bregman, Correa) are in their primes.

We get LMJ back and Whitley is coming soon.

Yeah, we lost Cole, but this team has signed a huge free agent pitcher three years in a row.  Why wouldn't we do it again in '20?

I still think we're entering year 4 of an 8 to 10 year run that will yield 3+ championships.  And I refuse to listen to any logic that says otherwise.

brother?

[mycox 582]

7 hours ago, WBT said:

As long as nepotism is confined to the business side and not baseball ops, it doesn't really make a shit.  Reid Ryan having his job through nepotism wasn't exactly holding us back.

I'm more concerned about Reid Ryan getting reassigned after 2020 than the sign stealing mess.

[DallasGatr 216]

Isn’t Lunhow still the GM? Well then I’m not at all worried about my Astros.

[tx 3 putt 76,881]

1 hour ago, mycox said:

I'm more concerned about Reid Ryan getting reassigned after 2020 than the sign stealing mess.

yes, im worried that the new guy will further fuck up $1 hot dog night 

[kevwun 15,770]

Reid Ryan had nothing to do with baseball operations.  His being gone effects nothing.  I don’t know how to convince people of that.

For some real baseball talk, I read a rumor yesterday that the angels will try to sign Cole and Wheeler.

[Ichabod 184]

Yasmani Grandal signs 4 year 73 million dollar deal with the White Sox

[mycox 582]

Reid Ryan isn't responsible operations, but he fixed everything Drayton Mclane and others screwed up as far as fan experience goes. 

[Mack Tripper 696]

Sure, but that doesn't mean that Sheriff Blaylock is coming back just because Reid is gone. 

[TonyTexas 10,508]

They’re going to hammer us, aren’t they?

 

[David Dennison 18,851]

33 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

They’re going to hammer us, aren’t they?

 

If they punish the Astros too much, they hurt the sport. Manfred is in a tough spot.

[tx 3 putt 76,881]

they're going to drop the hammer on us 

[David Dennison 18,851]

19 minutes ago, tx 3 putt said:

they're going to drop the hammer on us 

The hammer won't be all that bad.

[henrygandorf 29,189]

12 hours ago, kevwun said:

Reid Ryan had nothing to do with baseball operations.  His being gone effects nothing.  I don’t know how to convince people of that.

For some real baseball talk, I read a rumor yesterday that the angels will try to sign Cole and Wheeler.

he was my ticket hookup.

[tx 3 putt 76,881]

in your case, that does suck 

[Horny Bull 2,759]

 

[Rimbo 25,916]

for the record

- f Mike Fiers

- f the Dodgers

- f the Yankees

- f bud selig

they hate us because they ain't us. I smile a little bigger every time they compare us to the Patriots, and i flavor my whiskey with Yankees and Dodgers fan tears

Edited November 23, 2019 by Rimbo

[ckhorn 208]

On 11/21/2019 at 7:38 AM, kevwun said:

Reid Ryan had nothing to do with baseball operations.  His being gone effects nothing.  I don’t know how to convince people of that.

For some real baseball talk, I read a rumor yesterday that the angels will try to sign Cole and Wheeler.

I'm sure they would if they can make it work, but they still will be chasing us. I would be really concerned if they did get them and hire Strom and who ever the freaking A's pitching coach is. Strom is great, but the A's coach is a wizard.

[thetruth 149]

 

 

 

 

Jake Kaplan

 

@jakemkaplan

·

17m

 

The Astros have agreed to a one-year deal with free agent catcher Dustin Garneau, pending a physical, a source tells The Athletic.

[Seasick Sailor 3,747]

Have to assume he will be our backup catcher. He's never played in more than 41 games in a season. 

[Mack Tripper 696]

Astros all decade team. Springer's 24.6 WAR is second only to Altuve's 38.5. We need to lock up George. 

The 2010s: Houston Astros all-decade team features some of the greatest players in franchise history

 

No team went through a greater transformation in the 2010s than the Astros, losers of 100-plus games in three consecutive seasons (2011-13) and winners of 100-plus games in three consecutive seasons (2017-19) in the same nine-year span.

As dramatic a teardown and rebuild as the sport has witnessed gave way to a golden age of Astros baseball that is poised to extend into the early 2020s. Along with it have come some of the greatest players in the franchise’s 58-year history, which makes an all-decade Astros team read more like an all-2017-to-2019 Astros team.

Even so, there were a few close calls here. Feel free to debate the selections in the comments section, not that you have ever needed an invitation. The creation of this all-decade team is part of a company-wide effort at The Athletic, where this week writers across the major sports are commemorating the 2010s.

Catcher: Jason Castro

(2010-16, 8.9 WAR)

Believe it or not, Castro is the franchise’s WAR leader among players who caught in at least 20 percent of their games. The 10th overall pick in the 2008 draft, he was one of the Astros’ better players throughout the dark days of their rebuild. Castro represented the Astros at the 2013 All-Star Game and guided Dallas Keuchel through his AL Cy Young Award-winning 2015 season. Though Brian McCann was the catcher on the 2017 World Series team, he spent only two seasons with the Astros and missed a lot of time in 2018 because of his knee injury.

First base: Yuli Gurriel

(2016-present, 8.0 WAR)

A constant in their three 100-win seasons, Gurriel has more than lived up to the five-year, $47.5 million contract he signed with the Astros in July 2016. The Cuban star has been a force in the middle of the lineup and become a sure-handed defender. Plus, the Astros might not have won the 2017 World Series without his Game 5 homer off Clayton Kershaw. The first-base position amounted to a turnstile in the post-Lance Berkman years before Gurriel.

Second base: José Altuve

(2011-present, 38.5 WAR)

The biggest no-brainer selection of this list, Altuve was the best Astros player of the decade. He already ranks eighth in WAR in franchise history and should pass Jimmy Wynn (41.6) next season. The only others ahead of him: Jeff Bagwell (79.9), Craig Biggio (65.5), Jose Cruz (51.4), Cesar Cedeno (49.6), Berkman (48.2) and Roy Oswalt (46.1). Altuve is third in WAR this decade among all major league second basemen, behind only Robinson Canó (54.2) and Ian Kinsler (40.5), and he didn’t debut until July 2011.

Third base: Alex Bregman

(2016-present, 20.8 WAR)

The 25-year-old Bregman is the best third baseman in franchise history, and he’s played only three full major-league seasons. The former No. 2 overall pick has improved his production annually so far and has been the Astros’ best position player over the last two seasons. The team’s next-best third baseman of the 2010s was the late Luis Valbuena (5.0 WAR).

Shortstop: Carlos Correa

(2015-present, 21.0 WAR)

Correa’s predecessors at shortstop in the 2010s? How about Angel Sánchez, Clint Barmes, Jed Lowrie, Jonathan Villar and Marwin Gonzalez? The Astros’ second-best shortstop this decade was Bregman, who played there only because of the time Correa missed due to injuries in each of the last three seasons. Despite his frequent unavailability, Correa is the best shortstop in Astros history.

Left field: Marwin Gonzalez

(2012-18, 11.7 WAR)

Gonzalez played almost every position during his time with the Astros, but he manned left field during the Astros’ championship run in 2017 and frequently in 2018. There is also a dearth of other candidates. Colby Rasmus and Michael Brantley might be the runners-up at this position despite having played only two and one years for the Astros, respectively. And it probably wouldn’t be a credible all-decade Astros team if it didn’t include Gonzalez, the Rule 5 draft pick turned 2017 World Series hero.

Center field: Jake Marisnick

(2014-present, 10.4 WAR)

George Springer could have easily fit here, but we pushed him to right field to get each of the three most valuable Astros outfielders of the decade onto this team. Springer has also played more than twice as many innings in right field than in center field in his six major-league seasons. Marisnick’s value stems from his elite defense at a premium position. The runner-up here is Michael Bourn, a 7.7 WAR player from 2010-11.

Right field: George Springer

(2014-present, 24.6 WAR)

The three-time All-Star and 2017 World Series MVP was by far the Astros’ best outfielder of the decade. Despite not debuting until 2014, he led the team in home runs in the 2010s with 160, 32 more than the player with the next most, Altuve. He was also third among all Astros this decade in games played, behind Altuve and Gonzalez, and second in plate appearances, behind Altuve.

Designated hitter: Evan Gattis

(2015-18, 5.3 WAR)

Gattis beat out Chris Carter and Yordan Alvarez, mostly because of volume. He played four seasons in Houston and produced a 109 OPS+. That Alvarez was even a candidate after only one partial season is telling of the Astros’ track record at DH since they moved to the AL in 2013.

 

(Elsa / Getty Images)

Starting pitcher: LHP Dallas Keuchel

(2012-18, 18.5 WAR)

Keuchel logged 1,189.1 innings for the Astros in the 2010s, a whopping 436 more than the pitcher with the next most, Collin McHugh. He had a 109 ERA+ in that span and was the team’s ace as it transitioned from laughingstock to powerhouse. His 2015 Cy Young was one of only four in the franchise’s history, and he made two All-Star teams (2015, 2017), the first of which he started.

Starting pitcher: RHP Justin Verlander

(2017-present, 15.9 WAR)

The Astros don’t win their only World Series without Verlander, whose 178 ERA+ for the Astros is their best of the decade. The future Hall of Famer was their ALDS Game 1 starter in each of the last three postseasons and finished in the top two for the AL Cy Young Award in each of his two full seasons with the team.

Starting pitcher: RHP Gerrit Cole

(2018-19, 12.1 WAR)

Cole ranked fourth in strikeouts among all Astros pitchers in the 2010s, and he spent only two seasons with the team. His run in Houston was remarkable and has helped set him up to potentially become baseball’s first $250 million free-agent pitcher this offseason. He pitched to a 163 ERA+ in his 412.2 regular-season innings with the Astros, who acquired him in a trade with the Pirates in January 2018.

Starting pitcher: RHP Collin McHugh

(2014-19, 11.4 WAR)

The Astros claimed McHugh off waivers from the Rockies in December 2013 and turned him into one of their most valuable pitchers of the decade. He was a mainstay in their rotation in 2014 to 2016 and a key member of their bullpen in 2018.

Starting pitcher: RHP Lance McCullers Jr.

(2015-present, 6.3 WAR)

McCullers beat out Wandy Rodriguez (2010-12, 6.6 WAR) and Charlie Morton (2017-18, 5.6 WAR) because he impacted four Astros seasons this decade as opposed to three or two. The knock against him is he hasn’t pitched more than 128.1 innings in any of his four major-league seasons. On the other hand, the Astros might not have advanced to the World Series in 2017 without him.

Relief pitcher: RHP Will Harris

(2015-19, 7.5 WAR)

Harris was another waiver claim from which Houston extracted immense value. His 309 regular-season appearances were the most by any Astros pitcher this decade, and he performed to a 2.36 ERA in 297 innings. The 2016 All-Star also pitched in all four of the team’s postseason runs, albeit to varying degrees of success.

Relief pitcher: RHP Chris Devenski

(2016-present, 5.0 WAR)

Even in the wake of his post-2017 decline, Devenski was one of the Astros’ three best relievers of the 2010s. He pitched 305.1 regular-season innings across 221 games with a 3.21 ERA. In 2016 and 2017, he was an absolute force as a multi-inning weapon. His ’17 success landed him in the All-Star Game.

Relief pitcher: RHP Brad Peacock

(2013-present, 5.0 WAR)

On the whole, Peacock gave the Astros a league-average ERA in 540.1 regular-season innings from 2013 to 2019. In the last three seasons, though, he was significantly better than league average while shifting between the rotation and the bullpen. And he was arguably the pitching staff’s MVP in 2017, by far the best season of his career.

[Seasick Sailor 3,747]

On 11/7/2019 at 8:30 AM, Fozzz said:

Assuming the Astros do not go after a more expensive pitche like Cole or Wheeler, I'd really like them to go after Kyle Gibson.  His breaking/offspeed stuff is elite for a starting pitcher.  His combined SwStr% on his slider, curve, and change was around 7-8th best among SP last year (depending on where you set your minimum filter), ahead of Verlander, Hamels, Strasburg, Buehler, etc.  It looks like he could benefit from reducing his four-seam fastball usage as well.  

 

On 11/7/2019 at 11:24 AM, henrygandorf said:

i like gibson a lot. his k rate and k/bb have been improving and i bet strom could get him over the hump. solid sp3/4 type. 

Bad news, boys:

 

Edited November 27, 2019 by Seasick Sailor