Much needed great start from Blanco Hader is lights out so far We have the pitching, hitting is easier to fix. great win!
- Ronel with a '24 performance - Won 4/5 games (2 consecutive twice) - Won 2 consecutive series - Walker beginning to un-suck - Peña faster than a mofo - scoring at home - Hader "worth" 95 million.. awesome season thus far - Stros only AL West with a + run-diff .
This team so deep we got Yainer and Cam batting at the bottom of the order. people sleeping on the astros is going to be a fuel on the fire for this team.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves. We are a 3 game losing streak away from stating this team sucks again.
I think there is a lot to be optimistic about. Blanco hasn't been his usual self and a lot of our hitters are way below average. I find it hard to believe that Walker, Diaz and Alvarez won't bat atleast at their average for their career. Yordan is not batting .200 and Diaz is not batting .150 for the rest of the season you can take that to the bank. Once they come alive we will be even better than what we are now.
It’s still early enough that not much has changed since the season started in terms of expectations. I like the roster. I think it’s deep on both sides of the ball with more upside than downside. The 3 weeks of games have add fuel to the idea that Hunter Brown is a bonafide ace, that the Tucker trade was really good for Houston, that Bryan King can replace Ryan Pressly, and that Jeremy Pena has another gear. There’s probably more doubt on Christian Walker than there was when he signed, eyebrows are raised in Yainer Diaz’s direction, and we still don’t know what the Astros have at 2B.
There are very few players that deserve success more than Jeremy Pena. He absolutely busts his ass to get in the best physical shape possible and is incredibly smart about it. He is a lot faster, stronger and agile than he was when the Astros drafted him. I was texting with someone that has worked with the Astros on the finance side for decades and was an intern before that. He has 30 years of time with the Astros and on top of that is a genuine fan and very baseball knowledgeable. He said that out of all the Astros players to come through - only one guy has been at the game earlier, stays later, worked harder than Pena and that was Roger Clemens. He said it is close too. Pena has some limitations as a hitter and some of those will always be there - but Pena is the type of guy I would be comfortable signing to a reasonable extension because of the way he treats his body, his intelligence and effort.
If anything, I’m more optimistic. I’m not worried about Yordan or Walker. Diaz has been a streaky hitter since he came up - I’m sure he will get hot at some point but I guess there’s some concern. Very optimistic with Pena. Cam should only get better as the season goes on. If Rodgers doesn’t work out, hopefully we can find someone at the deadline there. Offensively, I’m actually more worried about Altuve than anyone the rest of the year. Think it’s becoming obvious he’s declining. That said, shouldn’t be that big of an issue this year hopefully. As I said earlier, if McCullers comes back and pitches well the rotation is in a great spot, especially when Arrighetti is back. Hopefully Javier comes back at some point as well. With how Brown looks, I’ll put him up against almost anyone in the league right now. Edit: A few other points - the defense has been great. Hader looks like he might have one of his dominant years this season.
You are right it is early- but about 10 days ago I said I believe in this group of pitchers and believe it can be good enough to anchor a World Series type team and is irrational as it may be to believe that this early, I do. The quality and depth across the board is there. I really hope Brown is actively looking for another near all star bat. There is a lot of dead money between Abreu, Montero and Pressly - and Bregman and Tucker are major losses, but I like this team more than last years team and I believe they can be as good as anyone in the AL if they stretch the line up. The cost of Lowe is likely more early but may be worth it.
I think Rodgers is only going to get better. He's had really smart at bats and he doesn't seem like he is chasing. I think the floor for him is a league average batter, but he has another gear once he feels comfortable.
This is what I keep saying to all of the posters that say the dynasty run is over. As long as they have and keep developing pitching the run will continue.
Its amazing to see Hunter brown has a 1.16 ERA after 4 games. He might be a legitimate ace similar to Tarik for the Tigers. Also just curious if this myth is true, isn't it historically harder for right handed pitchers to be this dominant?
I really don't understand his swing decisions. He LOVES to swing and chase more than anybody (except maybe Yainer) but yet decides to TAKE middle-middle meatballs on hitter's counts?? Then swings at pitches above his head and at the shoelaces. Cmon Tuve!
