2022 Houston Astros Thread

[tx 3 putt 77939]

skye bolt foaming at the mouth 

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

Fuck. This feels fucking inevitable.

[cabowabo 4578]

Man, fuck you Stanek. 

[David Dennison 19121]

Exhale.

[Scraps 13598]

A lot harder than that all needed to be but survived

[tx 3 putt 77939]

maybe pena is waking up 

[tx 3 putt 77939]

big run 

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

Keep it boring, Hector.

[elfenix 34387]

geico run there (still can't believe they haven't sold that)

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

Presley have another kid or something?  

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

Vazquez hasn’t gotten the big hit for us yet but that throw out and moving Pena to third were huge in this game.

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

This team is a lot better when Tucker and Peña are not complete garbage. 

[UTexasFight 9628]

I love that late ‘80s baseball inning we just had to get a key insurance run

[perfectchaos007 6717]

Astros win! We overcame the pesky As

[elfenix 34387]

astros win!

[Smax 3800]

astros win!

[tx 3 putt 77939]

that was nasty 

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

That was as boring a 9th inning as can be had. Love it. 

[WBT 20750]

2 games up

[maninblack 7975]

 

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

2 minutes ago, UTexasFight said:

I love that late ‘80s baseball inning we just had to get a key insurance run

Tal talking about the 1980 team talked it into existence.

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

I haz the excite for LMJ tomorrow. We are getting back the 2nd best pitcher in the organization, (behind Forest Whitley of course) in the month of August, to a team on pace to win 105. That’s pretty cool. 

[WBT 20750]

The postgame show just showed executive producer Murphy Brown (not that one) is retiring.  This was his last game.  He helped launch HSE in 1983.

[TonyTexas 10571]

6 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

I haz the excite for LMJ tomorrow. We are getting back the 2nd best pitcher in the organization, (behind Forest Whitley of course) in the month of August, to a team on pace to win 105. That’s pretty cool. 

You really think LMJ is better than Framber?  He’s never had a season like the one Valdez is having. Hell,  Framber’s career numbers are better as well. 

[tx 3 putt 77939]

framber has passed LMJ, not sure if LMJ can catch up 

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

I remember Dallas had a "stiff neck" in 2017 and was out for a month or more:

 

[rvm96 1643]

3 hours ago, rvm96 said:

I'm not watching the game and just following the thread. I thought we were down 6-0 until checking the score

[Gourmand 7776]

 

[Bregs 225]

2 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

I remember Dallas had a "stiff neck" in 2017 and was out for a month or more:

 

[tx 3 putt 77939]

2 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

I remember Dallas had a "stiff neck" in 2017 and was out for a month or more:

 

 

better 8/13 than 9/13. maybe he needs a better pillow 

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

8 hours ago, TonyTexas said:

You really think LMJ is better than Framber?  He’s never had a season like the one Valdez is having. Hell,  Framber’s career numbers are better as well. 

Got cruising through 7 innings in July?  Probably Framber. 
For shutting down top end lineup in October?  Give me LMJ, his stuff is better imo. 
LMj has a 2.83 ERA in the playoffs, 16 appearances and only 2 in looking at the game logs that I would describe as bad, none of which were disastrous. 
Frember has an ERA of 4.8 or something like that, and you could argue that he lost us the World Series. Yeah- I’d still take LMJ when it’s nut cutting time which is how everything should be judged with this team when it keeps ripping off 100 win seasons. 
Is that actual ability or small sample size fluke?  I tend toward LMJ’s stuff is so nasty it plays up in the playoffs, but maybe it’s just all meaningless- I’m open to believing that. Also, I can’t be rational about LMJ ever since he shined his foot up the Yankees ass, sonning them with 87 curve balls in a row. Most utter display of contempt I’ve ever seen for another team in my life. 

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

5 hours ago, Gourmand said:

 

I listened to this whole thing yesterday during the game.  Lots of people give Backe shit about being dumb or a meat head or whatever but I thought he came off really well in that interview. 

[Gut Wagon 8119]

9 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

This team is a lot better when Tucker and Peña are not complete garbage. 

When we have at least four of nine spots in our lineup not slumping, our pitching usually will give us a chance to win. If Altuve is one of the hot bats, so much the better. As much as we need everyone hitting well, I feel he's the main key to a deep run. 

[Hank Chinaski 6324]

2 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Got cruising through 7 innings in July?  Probably Framber. 
For shutting down top end lineup in October?  Give me LMJ, his stuff is better imo. 
LMj has a 2.83 ERA in the playoffs, 16 appearances and only 2 in looking at the game logs that I would describe as bad, none of which were disastrous. 
Frember has an ERA of 4.8 or something like that, and you could argue that he lost us the World Series. Yeah- I’d still take LMJ when it’s nut cutting time which is how everything should be judged with this team when it keeps ripping off 100 win seasons. 
Is that actual ability or small sample size fluke?  I tend toward LMJ’s stuff is so nasty it plays up in the playoffs, but maybe it’s just all meaningless- I’m open to believing that. Also, I can’t be rational about LMJ ever since he shined his foot up the Yankees ass, sonning them with 87 curve balls in a row. Most utter display of contempt I’ve ever seen for another team in my life. 

I’m not much of a believer in a guy being meaningfully different in October than in April-September. This came up in the Jeter thread…Jeter has almost the exact same numbers in the postseason as his career regular season numbers - both large sample sizes. There is a belief that that actually means he hit better in the postseason because he faced better pitching. I don’t know that that is true - seems like an assumption. It seems more likely that, over enough PAs in the wild card era, the quality of pitching faces in the postseason was probably similar to what he faced in 20 years of regular season games - and the fact that the numbers are almost identical supports that.

Certainly I get the logic/hypothesis, it is intuitive, just not sure it has been tested. (If it has, let me know - like you, I’m open to being wrong here.)

Anyway, Framber has been a starter in 2 postseason runs; the results were very good in 2019 and very bad in 2021. I think you have to assume the difference is small sample size noise, right?

Edited August 13, 2022 by Hank Chinaski

[Gourmand 7776]

I listened to this whole thing yesterday during the game.  Lots of people give Backe shit about being dumb or a meat head or whatever but I thought he came off really well in that interview. 

Agreed, I thought he had some valuable insight, especially his advice to McCullers on his first ML start back from injury.

[Js1 85764]

Man, that was the first win I’ve seen since the 2019 playoff opener. Granted a small sample size (a loss in 2021 and earlier this year, both to the A’s)

David slayed Goliath!

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

1 hour ago, Hank Chinaski said:

I’m not much of a believer in a guy being meaningfully different in October than in April-September. This came up in the Jeter thread…Jeter has almost the exact same numbers in the postseason as his career regular season numbers - both large sample sizes. There is a belief that that actually means he hit better in the postseason because he faced better pitching. I don’t know that that is true - seems like an assumption. It seems more likely that, over enough PAs in the wild card era, the quality of pitching faces in the postseason was probably similar to what he faced in 20 years of regular season games - and the fact that the numbers are almost identical supports that.

Certainly I get the logic/hypothesis, it is intuitive, just not sure it has been tested. (If it has, let me know - like you, I’m open to being wrong here.)

Anyway, Framber has been a starter in 2 postseason runs; the results were very good in 2019 and very bad in 2021. I think you have to assume the difference is small sample size noise, right?

I’ve pondered this a lot. It makes sense to me that some guys can do better against better competition and some compile numbers in the dregs of the regular season when scouting, effort level, rest and focus isn’t 100% but it’s certainly possible that is just ascribing meaning to randomness.
If  none of that is true then we are just spending a lot of time, Money, and emotions rooting over the toss of a coin, which is sort of pitiful and sad if you think about it. 

Edited August 13, 2022 by Wulaw Horn

[rvm96 1643]

Regarding Framber and the playoffs last year the Astros might not make it to the world series if not for his gem against the Red Sox. Also it was a career high in innings pitched by a good bit so it makes sense he would struggle at the end.

[Guest]

For all these hypotheses on facing better pitching or whatever, go ahead and explain the Astros completely sucking against some of the very worst teams in the American League the last two seasons. 
 

I’d posit that they tend to be gamers who show up vs great competition, while getting bored vs the dregs.  Anyone accounting for this phenomenon in your analysis wizardry?

[Hank Chinaski 6324]

49 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

If  none of that is true then we are just spending a lot of time, Money, and emotions rooting over the toss of a coin, which is sort of pitiful and sad if you think about it. 

I mean, yes, but it’s not like baseball is the only area in which we ascribe meaning to randomness. I might argue that the human condition itself is ascribing meaning to randomness. As a species we are generally loath to acknowledge that randomness plays much of a role in our life outcomes, and our ascribed narratives or meaning (constructed to replace any possibility of randomness) coming into conflict with others’ leads to most of our social problems. So why do we care about the coin flip? Hell, isn’t the coin flip all we really have?

All that is to say that, as much as I love LMJ and his postseason performances to date, I don’t think he has any magic in him in October. I think he’s a really good pitcher, whatever month it happens to be.

Edited August 13, 2022 by Hank Chinaski

[tx 3 putt 77939]

April and even May, doesn’t matter as much if you’re in first place in Sept

 

LMJ will have 5 to 6 starts to figure it out. 

 

Edited August 13, 2022 by tx 3 putt

[tx 3 putt 77939]

Having a big lead and being a rolling ball of butcher knives, gives us a loooooot of leeway with personnel decisions and letting guys play through things.

 

[TonyTexas 10571]

1 hour ago, slorch said:

go ahead and explain the Astros completely sucking against some of the very worst teams in the American League the last two seasons.

There might be a few weak teams that we haven’t dominated the way perhaps we think we should. But completely sucking against?  I’m not going to do the work but I’d love to see your list. 

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

36 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

There might be a few weak teams that we haven’t dominated the way perhaps we think we should. But completely sucking against?  I’m not going to do the work but I’d love to see your list. 

7-6 against the A’s. 1-1 against the DBacks?  I think that’s the list. It’s an overworn trope from our fan base. 

[tx 3 putt 77939]

We don’t hang banners for our record against the A’s. Just a fyi 

 

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

I know it’s fun to bitch and complain about stuff in here and we do it well.  The average age of Yordan, Pena, Bregman, Tucker, Framber, Garcia, Urquidy, Javier and McCullers is 26 with none older than 28. You could add Meyers and McCormick and it wouldn’t change but neither may be here next year. Probably will lose a pitcher in the winter but replace with Brown most likely. That is a young core on the mound and diamond. Get Tuck signed, free agent bat or two, couple farmhands pan out and the Astros, (and Surly posters) aren’t goin anywhere. Sorry Surly forum. Sorry baseball. #Levelup

 

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

Mancini in left today. 

[billfromlaketravis 11605]

3 hours ago, rvm96 said:

Regarding Framber and the playoffs last year the Astros might not make it to the world series if not for his gem against the Red Sox. Also it was a career high in innings pitched by a good bit so it makes sense he would struggle at the end.

I'll never forget this game. Froze my ass watching it at tailgate on Fort Hood. I didn't have cold weather gear so I pounded a liter of Early Times Bottled in Bond to stay warm. Cigars also helped. 

Edited August 13, 2022 by billfromlaketravis

[TonyTexas 10571]

 

[Wulaw Horn 19253]

6 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

 

As expected. I wanted it to be Phil gone like many here but predicted no way would that be the actual move.