To me, if the Astros had a CF who played dependable- good defense and hit RHP well, I would LOVE him to start 70% and Meyers 30%. If that guy also hit LHP well, I would LOVE him to be an everyday starter. The reason Jake is the starter is because none of the other options hit RHP either, but at least he does hit lefties and play the best defense among them. My point was not that Jake should be the starter. I was replying to posts that he does not belong. He clearly belongs, but should be much lower in the pecking order. He started 40 games hitting in the middle of the lineup - that's 1/4 of the season. That's crazy! And that's the epitome of a team that can not compete.
My guess is he probably had an injury or two, but he let it get in his head such that he developed the yips.
Yep, looks like you see Meyers in the same light I do. A 4th OF type that would be a good fill in when injuries strike. I really hope they can add Robert this off-season.
Diaz struggled? Chas had a terrible year and you couldn't afford to carry hit bat with the Stros crappy lineup. I'm not against bringing back Chas as a bounce back candidate in CF or even LF if Dana trades for Robert/Lowe or signs Walker in FA. But Chas isn't a guy I would lose sleep over if they let him go in arb or traded him.
Hard to say because he had less than half a seasons worth of at bats. He definitely sucked but it’s not unheard of for players to suck for less than half a season, especially if there is an injury involved as well.
There are posters who like to see Diaz struggle. I wasn’t saying that he struggled overall, I was just saying that it’s to the chagrin of some here that he is doing well. Some are more obvious than others about this.
The fact that you can't even remember tells you how great our production from LF was in October. If I recall it was Mancini and Aledmys Diaz. We got absolutely jack s**t from LF and C the second half of the season and into October.
I can’t remember who started in left in the WS. I guess it was Aledmys and Mancini. Didn’t they put Yordan out there and those guys struggled at DH? Yep, I can’t remember.
Lowe isnt a free agent. Robert may be an upgrade from Meyers... if he decides he cares next season. He wasn't a better than Meyers last season. I'm not sure thats the type of player/person I want to invest what little trade assets I have in. If the price is right I wouldn't mind adding him, certainly has the upside of being an impact player. Even with Robert/Walker that still leaves you 2 holes in the lineup.
A guy who quit on his team seems like a headcase that I want no part of. Lots of players playing for shitty teams who still put out effort. This was a Derek Bell, Operation Shutdown, sort of season. Man pouted while making $12.5 million.
In general, teams don't generally have the resources to dedicate to having 9 average hitters or better and still have resources devoted to pitching and defense. Also, something always goes wrong so teams tend to spread out resources instead of making themselves too thin. I don't have anything against signing Walker. My guess is that Brown will add one bat and all other resources go towards pitching (not counting cheap guys).
Limited trade assets? They've got plenty of trade assets. I can make a fair trade for both Lowe and Robert if you would like me too. Robert, for Melton/Fleury/Gordon/Jaworski Lowe for Blubaugh/Pecko/Hicks/Cole You should get prospects back in trades for Pressly/Caratini. If they trade these guys and let most of the arb eligible guys go they should have around 60 to 65 mil to spend. I would fill the 3rd hole with a cheap FA LF like Slater or bring Chas back and hope he can rebound. That would fill 3 of the 4 holes and if Chas didn't workout, I would hope Whitcomb could play some LF. Dezenzo would play 3B if they let Bregs walk. This can be done. Hopefully guys like Matthews and Baez will be ready by the all star break.
I hope this doesn't mean they will be running Singleton/Chaz/Meyers etc... out there next year. You make it seem impossible for Dana to build a lineup with no holes in it and I just dont believe that to be so. I believe they could add a guy like Robert/Lowe in trades and sign a guy like Walker with the 65 mil they've got to spend. Even if I'm wrong, then I hope they trade Framber to clear up money and fill a couple of holes. Might as well trade Framber since you're nor going to win a championship with the current lineup anyways even with Framber. What I hope they dont do is sign a guy like Walker and think their job is done like you think they're going to do. No way Luhnow does do what you are suggesting, and also there's no way he would've run out the crap lineup they ran out last year. Did Luhnow set the bar really high? Of course he did, but I expect Dana to live up to those expectations or else Crane needs to hire a new GM. It's not a promising development that Dana's running off most of the minor league coaches and instructors. Player development under these guys used to be a strength of the org.
So basically, it is add one bat and a guy that has hit about as well as Chas the past three years, or it is give up?
Another huge issue is Altuve continuing to play 2B. He is terrible defensively at this stage of his career. At 35 it’s time for him to start more games at DH.
Man if he was taller he would be perfect for first base. I just want Yordan DHing as much as possible.
Signing just a full time 1b is a waste. Singleton against rh and Diaz against lh gives you above average hitting at both 1b and catcher. 3b, of, and bringing back kikuchi make us contenders in 25. If there is not a 3b, then sign one + of bat and let Myers/McCormick/dicenzo bat 8th and 9th. Maybe one of our minor leaguers light it up before years up. With our pitching staff and only 2 below average bats at the end of the order we can win it all. If we are not leading the division at the trade deadline trade Tucker and Framber.
