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2019 Houston Astros Thread

Planet Houston

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My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer 3 weeks ago. Tomorrow she starts her treatment. She's been a wreck ever since the diagnosis. I mentioned a few pages back how a friend of the family manage

Rustic Horn
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Mez2
Mez2

Newest Astro fan was born earlier today at 12:09 am Mez3, holla!

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Mo Horn

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2 minutes ago, Guadaloopy said:

He’s been off for two days.  There are two off days this week.   I was hoping he would pitch today.  It’s definitely not a problem.  

Good point. More frustrating that James couldn't just finish it. 

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formermav43

formermav43 4606

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2 minutes ago, HtownHorn said:

You trust Devenski, Harris, and Rondon in the playoffs, that's hilarious.

Devo might not even make the playoff roster. Rondon is fine. Harris is a top 30 reliever at worst in his time here, and he’s the 3rd man out of the pen.

I imagine he trusts actual facts over gut overreactions. What’s truly hilarious is people ignoring reality due to some narrative they’ve built in their minds.

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Wishbone

Wishbone 4759

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Posted (edited)
12 minutes ago, HtownHorn said:

You trust Devenski, Harris, and Rondon in the playoffs, that's hilarious.

It’s a long way to the playoffs. We have Smith coming back soon and he should have the rust off by then. Plus, don’t forget we have Presley. And you should know to have a little faith in Luhnow this point.

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HtownHorn

HtownHorn 14677

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4 minutes ago, Wishbone said:

It’s a long way to the playoffs. We have Smith coming back soon and he should have the rust off by then. Plus, don’t forget we have Presley. And you should know to have a little faith in Lucknow by this point.

Faith, yes, but on days like this having to burn Osuna sucks. Maybe MuHugh and Smith fill out the bullpen fine, but there are plenty of guys in this organization that can be flipped for elite bullpen help.

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Wishbone

Wishbone 4759

Posted
Posted (edited)
7 minutes ago, GreenspointTexas said:

Lol a friend of mine caught this ball

 

csb

That’s cool that he gave it to Yordan. By the way, does your friend have a glass eye by any chance? Sure looked like it. No offense meant.

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UTexasFight

UTexasFight 9431

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Since Alvarez plays 1st base and left field about an equal amount of time between between those positions, he’ll be able to alternate between Yuli and Brantley and all three alternate at DH. This should leave White, who only plays 1st, and sucks at DH, fucked.

Does he really play a lot of 1B?

I think you’re overestimating how much first he’s going to play. Luhnow has made comments to the effect that he’s not going to be the answer at first for a while.

 

Maaaaybe he gets a random start there once or twice a month on a getaway day like Straw did at SS the other day, but I don’t think they are going to be putting him there a lot.

 

I think you’ll see they’ll mostly hide him in LF at MMP and put him at DH on the road.

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TonyTexas

TonyTexas 10510

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Alvarez has played 9 games at 1st base at RR this year. 40 games in his career. He’s not playing there for the Astros this year. He will probably only play left when Hinch wants to give Brantley, Springer or Reddick a day off (or 1/2 day). It will be interesting how they work him in when we go to Cincinnati next week. Once Diaz, Altuve and Corre get back, White will be gone. This, of course, is assuming Alvarez performs and is up for good.

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henrygandorf

henrygandorf 29189

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re: bullpen issues...

i trust between harris, rondon, smith, mchugh, peacock (assuming we trade for an sp3), that we can find a 7th inning guy.

i don't see devo making the playoff roster unless he really gets hit shit together or people are injured.  

maybe they have a pressly type on their radar.  one year ago i hadn't even started reading about pressly (i remember reading about his swing and miss numbers with minny).

as for anecdotal memory, all 4 of our top arms gave up runs in that mariners game, and our entire bp has been in a slump the last couple weeks.

personally, i would like to see rondon or peacock get the 7th.  they have strikeout stuff we need to get out of jams.

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TonyTexas

TonyTexas 10510

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re: bullpen issues...

i trust between harris, rondon, smith, mchugh, peacock (assuming we trade for an sp3), that we can find a 7th inning guy.

Will Harris is fine as the 7th inning guy. The bullpen is close to the bottom of my concerns for this team. Actually, I have very few concerns for this team. SP3 is really my only one and it isn’t keeping me up at night.

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henrygandorf

henrygandorf 29189

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5 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Will Harris is fine as the 7th inning guy. The bullpen is close to the bottom of my concerns for this team. Actually, I have very few concerns for this team. SP3 is really my only one and it isn’t keeping me up at night.

agree with both.

although a bit of lulz with "concern" we both have for sp3.  peacock and miley have both been very solid lately.  again, we are fucking spoiled.

the last series we lost started in april.

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Seasick Sailor

Seasick Sailor 3747

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Yordan Alvarez Finally Arrived to the Astros. So, How Often Will He Play in the Field?

By Jake Kaplan

 

 

Yordan Alvarez finally arrived to the Astros. So, how often will he play in the field?

GettyImages-1154831280-1024x752.jpg
By Jake Kaplan 2h agocomment-icon@2x.png 8 save-icon@2x.png

Yordan Alvarez’s position in the Astros’ lineup for his impressive major-league debut Sunday is telling of where he will garner most of his playing time, not just for the rest of this season but also likely for his entire career.

But Alvarez cannot play exclusively as the designated hitter, especially not after Houston’s roster returns to full strength. Astros manager A.J. Hinch likes to sprinkle in DH starts for George Springer, Michael Brantley and José Altuve in an effort to keep them fresher, so once or twice a week, at least, Alvarez will have to play the field or sit on the bench.

“He’s not going to be a DH only,” Hinch said. “He’s way too young for that.”

The 6-foot-5 Alvarez will need to play left field at least sporadically. Because of his size, he’s long been pegged by prospect evaluators as a future first baseman. But the Astros actually believe he has a better chance to be serviceable in left field than he does at first base, a position at which he’s not currently an option, Hinch said Sunday.

Alvarez arrived at Minute Maid Park only a couple of hours before first pitch Sunday, so there was not time for any pre-game work in the field. He will get a crash course in the awkward angles of his new home ballpark’s left field dimensions from coach Gary Pettis before Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s games against the Brewers. He has the speed and the arm to play left, but his reads and routes have been issues in the minors.

First base could be an alternative for Alvarez in the future, but it was clear as his promotion neared that the Astros didn’t feel comfortable playing him there in the short term. After splitting his time between left field, first base and DH for much of the Triple A season, Round Rock played him only at left field and DH in the past couple of weeks.

It sounds as if Alvarez won’t make his first start in the field for the Astros until next weekend’s series against the Blue Jays at the earliest. Their off-days Monday and Thursday should alleviate the need to mix in a DH start for Brantley before Friday, and Brantley was off Sunday. The Astros visit the Reds on their next road trip, so Alvarez will play left field in at least one of those three games when the DH will be out of play.

It’s evident that all of Alvarez’s value to Houston will come from his bat. Before the soon-to-be 22-year-old became the youngest DH in Astros history, he tortured Pacific Coast League pitchers to the tune of a .343/.443/.742 line in 253 plate appearances, and his 23 home runs led all minor-league hitters. In Triple A, teammate Myles Straw said it felt like he was watching a player created in a video game.

“Like it was MLB The Show, that’s what it felt like honestly,” Straw said. “I don’t even know if I could make a guy who does that well. It was nuts. If you got on, even at first base, you expected to score on all of his hits. … It’s hard to even put into words what that guy has done this year. I feel like you just have to witness that kind of thing because I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

Alvarez’s plate discipline and approach are advanced for his age. Even though he bats from the left side, he will benefit from the short porch in left field at Minute Maid Park in addition to the dimensions in right. As he demonstrated with his home run off the Orioles’ Dylan Bundy on Sunday, he hits the ball to all fields. In Triple A this season, he actually hit most of his homers to the opposite field.

Alvarez-spray-chart.png
Source: Baseball Savant

“He’ll take heaters in, heaters away and hit them out to left, and then if you hang a breaking ball he’ll freaking crush it to right,” said Garrett Stubbs, another Triple-A teammate. “I don’t think there’s really any holes, at least that I’ve seen, to get him out.”

Alvarez’s promotion came at the expense of lefty reliever Reymin Guduan, who was optioned back to Triple A. The Astros shifted back to the seven-man bullpen configuration with which they opened the season, a transition made easier by the two off-days this week. To create a spot on an already full 40-man roster, Lance McCullers Jr. was transferred from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL.

Demoting Guduan wasn’t the Astros’ only option to clear a spot for Alvarez, but the fact that Alvarez isn’t viewed as a viable option at first base is Tyler White’s saving grace right now. At least until Aledmys Díaz returns from his left hamstring strain — Díaz actually had a setback Sunday morning, as he felt tightness while running — White represents the only backup first-base option behind Yuli Gurriel. White, who is out of minor-league options, has batted only .220/.315/.291 in 149 plate appearances.

If Alvarez’s minor league career is over, it consisted of just 250 games and 1,080 plate appearances. The Cuban’s career stateside began in earnest in June 2016, when the Dodgers signed him for $2 million toward the end of a 2015-16 international signing period spending spree. They curiously flipped him to the Astros six weeks later for reliever Josh Fields.

Alvarez was in the Dominican Republic for his first partial season of pro ball. He made his stateside debut in 2017 and shot through the Astros’ system despite missing time because of a wrist issue. His absurd production in Triple A coincides with his healthiest season to date. For Cuban players, there’s often an adjustment period to the everyday grind of pro ball in the U.S.

Hinch batted Alvarez fifth Sunday, a spot higher than Carlos Correa and Alex Bregman in their major-league debuts in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Alvarez was jammed and hit a weak fly ball to left field in his first plate appearance before homering in his second trip to the batter’s box, on a 1-and-0 changeup he casually launched out to left-center field.

“I think if you go 1-0 changeup, oppo, upper tank, (it’s) a decent day,” Bregman said, smiling. “It’s going to be fun to have him. … What a great swing. He’s had an unbelievable year, and I can’t wait for him to continue it up here and help us win games.”

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henrygandorf

henrygandorf 29189

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If Alvarez’s minor league career is over, it consisted of just 250 games and 1,080 plate appearances. The Cuban’s career stateside began in earnest in June 2016, when the Dodgers signed him for $2 million toward the end of a 2015-16 international signing period spending spree. They curiously flipped him to the Astros six weeks later for reliever Josh Fields.

if he plays well the rest of the season and the astros play the dodgers in the world series, you think the announcers might mention this a time or two? 

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tx 3 putt

tx 3 putt 76905

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Posted (edited)
16 minutes ago, Dennis Taylor said:

I'm not panicking about the bullpen, but ERA can be a misleading stat for the bullpen...inherited runners stranded is all that matters

#1 batting avg 

8 blown saves is right at league avg, piss poor

70% save % also sucks 

Edited by tx 3 putt
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tx 3 putt

tx 3 putt 76905

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Yordan Álvarez becomes the 7th Astro to homer in MLB debut, joining:

2017 - Derek Fisher

2016 - Teoscar Hernández

2014 - Jon Singleton

2008 - Mark Saccomanno<<

2003 - Dave Matranga<<

1987 - Ken Caminiti

>>Only career HR

 

i wonder what Jon Singleton is doing ?  Besides getting high 

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henrygandorf

henrygandorf 29189

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51 minutes ago, tx 3 putt said:

#1 batting avg 

8 blown saves is right at league avg, piss poor

70% save % also sucks 

blown saves/save pct is misleading.  you can blow a save in the 6th inning by giving up a 1-2-3 run lead.  osuna and pressly have been lights out since they arrived.

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HtownHorn

HtownHorn 14677

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31 minutes ago, henrygandorf said:

blown saves/save pct is misleading.  you can blow a save in the 6th inning by giving up a 1-2-3 run lead.  osuna and pressly have been lights out since they arrived.

and the discussion is not about them. It's about filling out the bullpen with guys better than Devenski, Harris, James, Rondon, Perez, and Guduan such that Osuna and Pressly have plenty left in the tank for October.

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