2023 Houston Astros Thread

[Gourmand 7774]

Gaining ground tonight feels like a miracle. We haven't been within 1.5 of first place since Aug 4th. So very stupid that this team couldn't take advantage of the Rangers getting swept over the weekend and decided it was a great time to get swept as well. 

[Wulaw Horn 18977]

Podcast 21: Group Therapy! We try to come to grips with the Astros season- rationalize what’s been going on, talk schedule some and lick our wounds after a rough week. Plus, Gabe says something nice about Maldonado

Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2KLpqSJoZGJQPWn38ZDVNI?si=qT0HNjcbQfmjbRdy5KkTMw

Apple:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podca...n-astros-podcast/id1683955456?i=1000625205985

Amazon:
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/8...he-season?ref=dm_sh_rGGN13AwkM7vb2ce7RKdXt5qX

Edited August 22, 2023 by Wulaw Horn

[Guadaloopy 10921]

7 hours ago, Gourmand said:

Gaining ground tonight feels like a miracle. We haven't been within 1.5 of first place since Aug 4th. So very stupid that this team couldn't take advantage of the Rangers getting swept over the weekend and decided it was a great time to get swept as well. 

Yeah... the buried lede with all of the moaning this weekend is that despite tripping over our dicks, we lost no ground on the division lead.  Astros can still easily win this division and get the bye.  And the Astros still potentially have a couple of rounds in the chamber for the final stretch with Brantley and Abreu.  Yeah, they are longshots, but maybe one of them is the draw that gets us to an inside straight on the river.  Of course, you should never draw to the inside straight, but we are where we are.

[Wulaw Horn 18977]

40 minutes ago, Guadaloopy said:

Yeah... the buried lede with all of the moaning this weekend is that despite tripping over our dicks, we lost no ground on the division lead.  Astros can still easily win this division and get the bye.  And the Astros still potentially have a couple of rounds in the chamber for the final stretch with Brantley and Abreu.  Yeah, they are longshots, but maybe one of them is the draw that gets us to an inside straight on the river.  Of course, you should never draw to the inside straight, but we are where we are.

Brantley should be a platoon guy that hits 7th against RHP.  But if that happens and Abreu gets back to where he was in June/July before the back flared up that would be pretty sexy lineup.

vRHP

Diaz Abreu Altuve Pena Bregman Alvarez Chaz Tucker Brantley.  If Pena is your #9 hitter and Abreu is your #8 hitter that lineup fucks.  

[Js1 85095]

18 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Diaz Abreu Altuve Pena Bregman Alvarez Chaz Tucker Brantley

[Gourmand 7774]

1 hour ago, Guadaloopy said:

Astros can still easily win this division and get the bye.

fify.

If this season has proved anything with all the injuries and illnesses and inconsistent play, it's the difficulty with which this team has gaining ground on the Rangers. One thing this team has not done this year that every Astros team since 2017 accomplished (covid season excluded for obvious reasons) was a double-digit winning streak. This year's longest winning streak was eight games back in May and during that streak the Astros went from 4 gb to 1 gb and then promptly lost two straight to fall to 3 gm behind. That is this season in a nutshell imo. 

I don't expect this current margin of difference in the standings to improve positively in our direction with the way this lineup is hitting and the state of the starting pitching lately. It's not impossible of course and Fangraphs says the Astros are the current favorite out of the AL to win the WS but nothing about winning this division will be easy. We still have not logged a single day of sole possession of first place. 

[Guadaloopy 10921]

10 minutes ago, Gourmand said:

fify.

True... nothing this season has come easily.  When I said easily, I was simply referring to the math.  Overcoming a 1.5 game deficit with 36 left to play is not a huge stretch. 

[Js1 85095]

26 minutes ago, Gourmand said:

We still have not logged a single day of sole possession of first place. 

That’s why it will be so much sweeter when we still win the division 

[Wulaw Horn 18977]

Right now if you could guarantee me the 3rd WC spot right now I would take that.  

[Guadaloopy 10921]

Just now, Wulaw Horn said:

Right now if you could guarantee me the 3rd WC spot right now I would take that.  

[Gut Wagon 8052]

5 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Right now if you could guarantee me the 3rd WC spot right now I would take that.  

Come Oct. 1, I'd certainly take playing well in the final WC spot over leading the West with key guys gimpy or our rotation still a train wreck. 

[David Dennison 18653]

2 hours ago, Js1 said:

That’s why it will be so much sweeter when we still win the division 

https://www.fangraphs.com/standings/playoff-odds

[Guadaloopy 10921]

13 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

https://www.fangraphs.com/standings/playoff-odds

[Scraps 13541]

Diaz sit the fuck down loser

[Guest]

No.  We do NOT want to have the best chance to win.

[Make em eat Taco Bell 1549]

Singleton over Diaz is clearly the choice of a mastermind. 

[perfectchaos007 6596]

I want Diaz the whole game, but I would settle for having him sub in for Maldy the inning JV gets pulled 

[UTexasFight 9376]

Diaz was 2 for 5 vs lefties  last night so I guess this means he only starts vs lefties now.

[The Dog 43796]

 

[Wulaw Horn 18977]

I am such a stupid mother fucker. I've been reading the tea leaves and I said that I thought Dusty had his reign of terror yanked from him and that the organization was going to have a sense of urgency.  Wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong. You are a dumb motherfucker Wulaw.  Dumb motherfucker. 

[The Dog 43796]

 

[Wulaw Horn 18977]

3 minutes ago, The Dog said:

 

From not in the lineup to hitting cleanup.  Fuck you Dusty Baker.  Also- fuck- Yordan is hurt.  That ain't great. 

Just now, The Dog said:

 

For fucks sake.  This fucking team.  this fucking year. 

[dr99 551]

2 minutes ago, The Dog said:

 

This doesn't make any sense

[tx 3 putt 76332]

Hopefully Yordan survives that accident 

[Dutchrudder 11115]

He probably saw the lineup that Diaz was on the bench and punched a wall. 

[UTexasFight 9376]

Yordan with 9 fingers is still better than the slapdicks from 6 to 9

[Gut Wagon 8052]

1 hour ago, The Dog said:

 

He's a B2 bomber that keeps missing missions because we're always out of fix-a-flat. 

[HtownHorn 14475]

1 hour ago, dr99 said:

This doesn't make any sense

This is a lie on the level of Correa's shower incident and Alou running on a treadmill. What I don't understand is why they told the truth for poor ole Kazuo.

Kerry Von Erich wrestled with a fake foot for the last 8+ years of his career. C'mon a fucking jammed finger.

Edited August 22, 2023 by HtownHorn

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

Baseball players are just soft. The shit they come up with to miss time is laughable. Unless that finger is broke, put your glove on, tape the motherfuckers together and go swing the bat. Only have had warning track power lately anyway. Slap the ball into right field slappy.

[runthebone 7932]

Well, the way Yordan heals, he is going to be out for 4 weeks.

[Lat22 3994]

1 hour ago, The Dog said:

 

Horseshit. What really happened? When was the last time anybody on here jammed their finger in a door?

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

I’m not sure why Dusty wouldn’t just put Diaz at first and Singleton at DH. In the event we have to pinch hit for Maldy we could move Diaz to catcher and not lose the DH. Not that we really have a pinch hitter on the bench anyway. 

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

Fuck it. We don’t need Yordan. We had a meeting. 

[tx 3 putt 76332]

33 minutes ago, Mitch Hedberg said:

Fuck it. We don’t need Yordan. We had a meeting. 

we need Yordan to bring more energy to the bench 

[Wulaw Horn 18977]

44 minutes ago, runthebone said:

Well, the way Yordan heals, he is going to be out for 4 weeks.

If we are lucky enough to make the playoffs as the wild card maybe he will be ready to PH by then. Maybe. 

[The Dog 43796]

 

[cabowabo 4452]

Yordan must have gotten caught fucking around on his woman and she kicked his ass. 

[tx 3 putt 76332]

Every Astro should agree to let a surly poster be with them 24/7, it’s the only way we’ll get accurate info 

[dr99 551]

54 minutes ago, Mitch Hedberg said:

I’m not sure why Dusty wouldn’t just put Diaz at first and Singleton at DH. In the event we have to pinch hit for Maldy we could move Diaz to catcher and not lose the DH. Not that we really have a pinch hitter on the bench anyway. 

 

11 minutes ago, The Dog said:

 

Proof that Dusty reads Surly

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

11 minutes ago, dr99 said:

 

Proof that Dusty reads Surly

Well damn! I did say that Chaz should bat after Tucker and Yordan to take advantage of left handed relievers coming in to face them….hey Dusty…about this Maldonado thing….

[Overlord 366]

Singleton will go 0 for 3, with a walk. 
 

Or he’ll get some bullshit infield hit or blooper that came off his bat like a wet noodle. 

[Mitch Hedberg 2090]

Brantley hits a hard line drive right at second baseman for an out in first AB. 

[closetojumping 62227]

Baker is such an old coot. Trying to bench Diaz to play Singleton. Fuck you, you old fart. Singleton isn’t someone that needs to be getting reps. Motherfucker. 

[Smax 3800]

Pay him

[Rip76 4914]

Holy shit Ted.

[Slacks 6791]

I'm trying to post in the basketball thread... Let's go. 

[Overlord 366]

Tuck’s going to be a 30/30 guy this year. 
 

And he made 5 million last year. 

[Scraps 13541]

Red sox are so bad a defense

[Overlord 366]

Is Rafael Devers really 26?

I was thinking more like 37. 

[David Dennison 18653]

Feels like a bad inning.