Yeah that’s horrible. I suppose if Abreu’s gonna be on the roster he has to play enough to (further) prove he is cooked, and with Tucker out they need another lefty in the lineup, but it sure seems like they’d have a lot better chance to win if Meyers was in the lineup over Abreu, even if Meyers took DH to get a rest day.
Bregman getting an even more premier spot at #2? this is like when I said Pressly was moved out of the 8th inning role… only to be given the closers role yesterday.
And worked out as well. Pressly was magically back to himself when given the 9th in a save situation. And Bregman was 1 for 3 w/ a HBP and BB scoring 3 runs. I'll take that everyday from any lineup spit. It's time to get off Alex's back - Since April 30th ( more than 1/2 the games played so far) he is 2nd on the team behind Tucker in just about every hitting category. SLG over .500 and 125 wRC+ Time for a new whipping boy.
Would much, much rather see Caratini play than have Abreu and Singleton in the lineup. Meyers has been slumping the last week, no issue getting him a day off. Even with Abreu having the HR, his OPS since return is still an abysmal .588. The next hit he is able to pull will literally be his first of the year.
Can Grienke play 1B? He might actually provide better offensive production (his career OPS is only .020 behind Singleton) and he could eat up low leverage innings on the mound.
I was never on the "bench Bregman" parade. And when he wasn't batting cleanup, the Astros still weren't getting much production from there. But alas, things have to happen in a certain way... so if he's hitting now because he was pissed off, or because it takes him 2 months to find his swing, or simply dumb luck, so be it. Pressly is probably fine anywhere with a 3 run lead... but I'll have the same concerns about him being brought in with a 1 run lead regardless of which role he's in.
They've gotta have a target date in mind for improvement or DFA. Hopefully Tucker can come back soon enough because Dubon needs to be among the 1B rotation if/when that happens.
Pressly has the third best FIP on the team. His issue seem to be more about luck than anything mental or opportunity related. I don’t think Espada has handled him well, but I’d out his performance on sample size and bad luck.
Bregman didn't need to be benched because of his history as a slow starter and the fact that he's played some great defense this yr. But he didn't need to be batting cleanup either. I'm going to the game today, hopefully Blanco pitches another gem. I think the bullpen is Montero/Pressly/Hader today.
Also, Caratini is 6-16 with a HR against Mikolas And has been giving us great at bats, but it's obviously very necessary to make sure Abreu, Cabbage and Jon all get in the lineup I hope we win and think we probably will, but with all three of those guys in the lineup I did bet Mikolas over 3.5 K's today. He could get that just against those three guys
He's had trouble protecting 1 run leads or keeping games tied... regardless of luck/sample size. His stuff also wasn't the same at the start of the season (lower velocity, lower spin). Maybe he needed more build up in spring training? Maybe he needs more rest in between appearances? Unfortunately high leverage relievers are going to have BABIP discrepancies here/there given their built-in small sample sizes. Its also why guys who get a lot of K's are more valued back there. His stuff was sharp last night. Probably a little extra juice from it being the 9th but also probably angry from the failure the game before. As long as his knee is right and he can figure out the appropriate amount of rest needed to bring 'that' stuff each time, he'll be fine.
The only player in MLB you could justify using Abreu as a PH for is Maldy, and then it's only justified if he is the ONLY player available to hit for him
Abreu and Scott aren't available. The rest should be. Usage of Montero vs. Pressly in 7th vs. 8th should be based on matchups. Espada may go nuts and put Hader in for two given the off day tomorrow. First gotta get to those late innings with a lead. How's the weather holding up there?
I don't care if he is left handed or not, as long as he can hit RHP well We have to get to the break and be in the race before we worry about dealing for anyone though
Agreed about Pressly. RP are simply inconsistent. He has been great for several years, but very very few don't have a stinker of a season along the way. Montero, Scott, and Martinez have been good enough to cover the 7th and occassional 8th innings when needed. I think it would be best to give Pressly the 6th and occasional 7th innings for a while at least. As for Bregman, it was an even more brutal start than usual, but here it is June 5th w/ 100 games remaining and he has his wRC+/OPS+ up to 99
Scott and Martinez would probably be worse if given more high leverage situations. Their stuff doesn't really play up... but they've been perfectly fine where they are. Montero can go back as an late inning reliever at any point. His fastball command is much better than it was last year. Still not quite at 2022 levels, but he's rebounded nicely this year.
They need to figure out about Abreu and Chas in the next couple of weeks and adjust from there. If that means bringing up Loperfido or trading for a guy like Pederson to get back into the race then so be it. Now looks like they need to add a SP too. I would be happy with a Lorenzen type SP. I said they needed to add a SP in TC and that's before Blanco's breakout.
He has a: .375 BABIP w/ bases empty .438 with runners on .439 with runners in scoring position. All of these are well below average (for a pitcher) so that does point to bad luck. But it feels like he can't just allow 1 baserunner. It feels like the damn breaks every time a batter reaches.
Steady but not a hard rain. The bad stuff is supposed to roll through during the game. I dont think Martinez is available either.
