I get your point, but I do recall there being some buzz about JD putting things together in spring right before he was waived. I definitely saw flashes of a good bat his rookie year, but obviously no one could have expected what he became. Still think we **** the bed giving up on him too early.
I get your point, but I do recall there being some buzz about JD putting things together in spring right before he was waived. I definitely saw flashes of a good bat his rookie year, but obviously no one could have expected what he became. Still think we **** the bed giving up on him too early f
And that's why Luhnow takes the L on him... he had pleaded personally to Luhnow to see if his adjustments (made at the fear of being released) would stick. Paredes, on the other hand, has not made any adjustments. His brief moments of MLB success came in the covid season with no fans and a different overall atmosphere. You can't have any sort of bullpen pitcher who has mental lapses in command. Maybe he can get with Framber's psychologist?
Click built the bullpen and re-signed Luhnows guys. I'm not sure he should get credit for the re-signs.
It all depends on the situation. With McCullers and Pressly, for instance, they were not even thinking about possibly leaving yet as they had months left before FA and clearly wanted to stay above anything else. But what about Brantley, who was all but already on the Blue Jays when the Astros snatched him away. Caveat: I don't know enough to tell the difference between Click's vs Crane's involvement and impact, but the owner is always involved in high commitment deals so all GMs should have some question about how much the owner gets credit for a signing ( or a veto)
I would put Bullpen as the main reason the Astros won the world series. Yes, Alvarez was heroic at times and he will get the casual fans admiration in Houston due to his homeruns.... but the bullpen's ability to make inning 6-9 relatively unhittable causes so much internal pressure on hitters from the get go. We have to get to X guy to get any runs. Kyle Schwarber was bunting with two strikes in game 6 of the world series with the game on the line. Thats how defeated that team ultimately felt. Its a huge factor.
Thoughts on potentially moving Dubon, Chas, Meyers, etc. to the #2 hole? I thought about it and we all know the bottom of the lineup is just not on par with the top half. Basically minimizing this by putting one of these hitters at the top whereas they can get better AB's. I doubt Dusty does this but can't wait to hear an interview in late April about Dusty wanting more from the bottom of the lineup. Pena Dubon/Chas/Meyers/etc. Alvarez Bregman Abreu Tucker Dubon/Chas/Meyers/etc. Dubon/Chas/Meyers/etc. Maldanado
Why wouldn't Hensley get more playing time at 2B? His numbers in AAA and short stint in the majors shows he may be poised to break out and mash. Is his Defense at 2B that bad? I would hope Hensley would get at least 60% of the starts at 2B. Replace Dubon with him and the bottom of the lineup doesn't look as bad anymore.
Lots of speculation he won't play 2B when we have a ground ball pitcher starting. Dubon is the better 2B and if so, Dusty probably opts for more defense.
Mixing a bad hitter in with the good hitters at the top is the worst mistake you can make in lineup construction. The only thing that is truly important when building a lineup is making sure your good hitters get as many AB's as possible. If you insist on trying to give one of them protection then hit them 9th in front of the good hitters.
AB's matter but it wouldn't surprise me if Dusty went with the hot hand in the two hole. That could be any of the utility players. All of this changes when Altuve and/or Brantley comes back of course.
Yeah, I feel like moving a bad hitter up to the 2 hole would just end up neutralizing your leadoff guy. They would never get any good pitches to hit and if that is someone like Pena then his production would really suffer. Plus fewer people on base for your best hitters.
Umm...when did Hunter Brown become a black man?: Click link below and scroll down to 2023 MLB PREDICTIONS and AL ROY row award picks. Who is that? 2023 MLB Opening Day: Picks for division winners, World Series, MVP, Shohei Ohtani and more (yahoo.com)
That's really a weak bottom half of the lineup with Altuve and Brantley out. Be nice if one or two of those guys (Dubon, Chas, Meyers, Hensley and Maldonado) surprises and is a .270 hitter. I fear it's much more likely Maldy will be a .150 hitter. Need Alvarez to stay in the lineup. If he sees significant time on the IL, this year could be a struggle to make the playoffs.
It is very weak at the bottom and could be one of those years where we aren't completely healthy. One guy in and one guy out type of year. We just need to lock in the division and get healthy at the right time. Imagine where the Astros would be without Jose Abreu...
