[EPSN Insider] - Astros may need to rethink plan going forward

Dude, they did rebuild. They started two rookies all season long and found significant playing time for a third. They mixed in two rookie starting pitchers throughout the season. And found a very good one in Qualls in the bullpen. (yes, Qualls qualified as a rookie this season). Their team MVP is 30 years old (Morgan Ensberg). Meanwhile, Lance Berkman isn't exactly an old grizzled veteran.

This article breaks down on two players. Biggio and Clemens. And I won't argue they're old. I won't argue that at all.

But the article draws the assumption that every flip that could go either way...basically whether or not guys will improve or not improve...or whether or not guys will still play to the same level they did last season or not....he finds going the other way. Just guessing. All on assumption.

It ignores that we've been hearing about how Clemens CERTAINLY can't go out and have another season like the one he did previously again...can he?? And it ignores the fact that Biggio was more than productive in this year's lineup after many said he should have been replaced last year. (it also ignores the possibility of a platoon situation at 2B with Biggio and Burke). In the end the worst thing he can say about Biggio is that he's 40.

So what is rebuilding then?? Baseball teams rarely turn over an entire roster. He's talking about replacing Biggio and Lamb. Is he seriously advocating giving up on Taveras? Would it be enough to merely replace Everett (something I'd be very open to)??

 

He's just being realistic. On paper this team does not look that great. You look at the lineup and the age of some of our better players and you wonder how they did it. But then again we've said that the last couple of years.

I think the writer is ignoring one thing though. With the steroid era over, the game is now about pitching. We had the best pitching in the league, that is why we won.

 

Who wrote this?

 

but age is really only a big issue with 2 players who were major contributors on this team.

EDIT: and one of those guys finished 1st in ERA this year. the other hit 26 dingers.

he groups oswalt, clemens and pettitte together, and puts their age. pettitte is closer in age to the youngest guy in the next group (Wandy) then he is to Clemens. i just don't get this article. this was not a real old team that won this year. if you think they're not talented, that's one thing...but that they're this old over the hill team?? i'd argue they did rebuild. and for as good as roger clemens was, they didn't really take advantage of it during the regular season. nevertheless, they won enough games to make the playoffs and went on to be NL champs.

 

I don't think this is too unreasonable an article. This team was virtually the definition of a "chemistry" team - it somehow won a lot of games, but no one would have predicted this to be better than last year's team just based on personnel. Chemistry teams are notorious for not duplicating whatever magic made them successful.

Looking at the roster, we got extremely lucky with health. Outside of Berkman's pre-season injury and Roger for a few starts in September, no one on the roster was hurt for any significant length of time. It's also unlikely that our pitching can keep up that level of performance. Both Clemens and Pettite had career years, with Oswalt coming pretty close until an August stumble. Can they repeat that? Possibly - but it's not likely.

The offense should improve with all the youth we had, but it's still not a powerful offense.

He admitted he's been wrong twice. But from a personnel standpoint, a lot went right last year - even the rotation for each of our playoff series came out perfectly - and those types of things tend to balance themselves out.

 

if that's what he's saying, fine. i just don't read that as what he's saying. he spends a lot of time telling you how old everyone is. that they need to rebuild...and that it's been overdue to rebuild. of course, just last year they added pettitte and clemens. this year they had two rookie starters...and threw in two rookie starting pitchers, particularly when Backe was down for a good part of the season.

 

Outside of mentioning that Biggio is 40, did he mention age at all? Or just that our pitching is likely to regress and our hitting is ... uhh, not so good.

 

Phil Neyer? There's a Phil Neyer?

 

look up at the article..he cites the age of almost every player he mentions.

 

he is not that off....clemens did drop off toward the end of the season

we need bats and another pitcher

i would be happy with a decent pitcher, a big name bat, and a bat that gets it done

and throw in a consistent morgan ensberg

 

But outside of Biggio and Clemens, none of them are old. It doesn't seem like he's talking about them as those they are old, just as mentioning their ages. For example, he mentions Astacio (25), Wandy (26), Backe (27), Oswalt (28) etc.

 

What are these expensive moves that he recommends? There's not many free agents worth what they are going to get this year. I don't think we want to take a big money gamble on pitchers like K. Millwood, J. Washburn or Burnett (maybe). Or hitters- Giles (old) R. Sanders (old) Alou (old) Damon? We have a better shot with working more with the kids that we have.

 

Rob Neyer lives about 2 mile from me. Should I egg his house?

 

Nah... the guy has always been a big Astros supporter... in fact, he cares enough about them to constantly write about them, even if he isn't really supporting them with this article.

If it weren't for him and Jayson Stark, people around the country may still not realize that we even have a baseball team. They're always the first (and only) guys to write about the Astros... while the rest of the staff is devoted to the Yankees, Red Sox, Yankees, Red Sox, Yankeees, Braves, Red Sox, Yankees.

 

that's what i'm saying..i don't understand the article. maybe someone needs to define rebuilding for me. we had young players making HUGE contributions this year. as regulars in the lineup. as starters in the rotation. as relievers in the pen. does he propose we trade all those guys away?? would that be rebuilding? he's saying he's been telling the astros to rebuild for 2 offseasons...fine...what does that mean??