Prediction- the Astros trade Alex Bregman, Derek Fisher, Joe Musgrove, and Riley Ferrell in a deadline deal involving Tyson Ross.
Totally agreed, he is my favorite prospect by far. But I think we go after Tyson Ross, and Martes is the price.
Oswalt may be one of the most under-appreciated Astros ever... if you really honestly believe what you just said. While he was 3 or so years older at his debut... go back and watch how dominant Oswalt was when he was first called up... in the midst of the PED era. What was more impressive is how he consistently altered his repertoire and reinvented his stuff/strategy as he got older (notably beating the Cardinals in 2005 with mostly different versions of fastballs).
Better stuff doesn't mean better pitcher. At the same time, more velocity doesn't necessarily mean better stuff (movement matters). LMJ has more velocity than RoyO, but his fastball was below average according to Pitchf/x data, while RoyO's was one of the best in the game.
Agreed...but even if velocity is what some people focus on, people tend to forget that Roy had a dynamite 95-97 mph rising/explosive fastball as well during his debut seasons. Him and Ausmus (by design) worked on things to develop more movement/location spotting which did take a few ticks off the fastball, but ultimately kept him pitching at an elite level. His debut season was electric... far more so than what McCullers had shown (which shouldn't take anything away from LMJ and his accomplishments... just that Roy O was that great).
...on the flip side, LMJ has the most effective curveball measured by pitch f/x before his 22nd birthday (minimum 100 inn).
I would agree with that whole-heartedly. His curveball is better than Roy's was... in fact, Roy would struggle often with the feel of that pitch, which really was only effective as a pseudo-changeup, and not in the way a traditional curveball was. More often then not, when he was taken deep, it was due to somebody sitting on that slow looping/hanging pitch. LMJ's curve-ball is Ryan-esque. Unhittable if his power stuff is working for him.
By no means am I saying pitcher. Talent is there. McCullers hit 99 a few times last year. Best slider the Stros have had since Lidge and his change up runs 87-91 sign wicked dive. Yeah he's got better stuff.
Yes let me pull up the 2016 Predictions thread in the GARM. How many posters were optimistic saying the Rockets would win 60 games and finish 1st? :grin:
On that note, you should read the predictions threads from the past few years here. I wouldn't be surprised to see the following: -Clint Barmes breaks out to hit above .220 -Jesus Guzman puts up Justin Maxwell-ian power numbers -Jason Castro changes his name to JR Castro after having 8 RBIs in a series multiple times -Jason Bourgeois makes us forget about Michael Bourn -Bob Grossman changes his walkup song to another Sublime song (while Dominguez continues his walk down electric avenue) -Kaz Matsui only misses 3 games this year due to anal related injuries
Agree to disagree then. Roy's stuff was just as electric. And he had full command of the zone from his debut (which is what LMJ has to work on the most). LMJ + Keuchel = Roy.
Is it really fair to be comparing a 23 year old Oswalt to a 21 year old McCullers? If we are into comparisons year, why don't we look at Oswalt's age 21 season in the minors... 4.46 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, and was giving up 3.2 BB/9...a higher BB/9 than McCullers last year.
Random question and off topic but does anybody have a idea who will pitch the home opener I'm going to the game and kind of hoping its keuchel?
Who knows...maybe McCullers will hold onto a sparkplug and all his shoulder soreness will go away and he'll begin having pinpoint control too.
Not going to happen. Most likely McHugh, but if they skip the #5 spot it could be whoever they pick as the #3 starter, which I don't see them doing.
That was before the electrocution. Care to look at his numbers both the year before and the year after? I already brought up the fact that Roy was older... but just way too much recency bias in general if people don't remember how electric his stuff was at his debut (with full control, moxy, and bad-assness already at full steam).
