Valbuena is a good 3rd baseman, he should remain at 3rd, Lowrie should play first if they are both in the lineup.
I do like Valbuena at 3b, but it all depends on where both guys help the team the most. I think Valbuena is easier to move, as he has played in the past at 2b, 3b and LF. Few innings at SS, but played there also. So he may be easier to put in a "NEW" position.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Welcome to the Cal League, Mr. Martes. 97-98 heater painted on both corner, hard "CH" 89-90, filthy 2-plane SL 84. 2 K's, 1-2-3 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Astros?src=hash">#Astros</a></p>— Wilson Karaman (@vocaljavelins) <a href="https://twitter.com/vocaljavelins/status/624755574035447808">July 25, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> This kid is going to be top 50 sooner rather than later.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Francis Martes struck out 9 over 5.2 innings in his <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JetHawks?src=hash">#JetHawks</a> debut. I counted 7 strikeouts on the slider. 5 looking (6 looking overall).</p>— Jason Schwartz (@jasondschwartz) <a href="https://twitter.com/jasondschwartz/status/624790661124915201">July 25, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Spring Training next year is going to be incredibly fun to follow, there's going to be about a dozen seriously talented AA/AAA guys that will have the chance to earn jobs, if not out of ST then in the first couple of months.
If Martes is good enough to debut in the majors at age 20, that would be the best throw-in in the history of trades.
Yeah, no kidding. I wasn't really thinking about him specifically, but if he's in AA in the first half of the year, why couldn't he be in the Stros bullpen sometime in the second half? Little Billy Wagner Junior, but with more than one good pitch? I was more in the mind of the most-ready: Kemp, Moran, Singleton, Appel, Hader, Santana, Feliz, Gustave, Reed, etc... Or whoever's left after the offseason.
wow he is one sick puppy (in the best way possible). i'd have given that more credence if he said it at the time of the trade. i guess "throw-in" is a bit of a misnomer, but that's definitely how the public (sensibly) viewed him when the trade was made.
I think they try to move Feldman before the deadline. Feldman's 10,000,000 off of the books would go along way to picking up an impact bat in FA next yr and I like Feldman more than most. Now back to the MINOR LEAGUE thread. Moran is the 3b of the future. Where are all of the Cosart fans/family talking about how bad that trade was? Trust Luhnow, he will make some mistakes. (DD Jr.) But he will get it right about 90% of the time. It sure is great to have genius level people Morey/Luhnow running Houston's sports teams. Rick Smith/Genius level = LOL. Of course that's why the Texans have stunk for almost a decade.
They're not trading Feldman mid-season...unless he's part of a deal to upgrade (which is highly unlikely with his contract). Feldman will remain the 5th starter while McC and VV divy up innings. Feldman, assuming we get there, will not start playoff games. Now, there would be no surprise if they traded him for a bag of chips in the off-season. That, IMO, is the most likely scenario.
Cosart will go down as one of the most important Astros, simply by the haul he brought. And it was quite the haul ( Moran, Marisnick, Dez Cameron, and Martes). In Marisnick the Astros have the ideal 4th outfielder, pinch runner, and defensive specialist. Moran was always touted as a high average guy who was rock solid with his defense. Without the 1st round pick from the Marlins, Arizona would have had a pick before the Astros and likely taken Cameron with their 2nd round selection. Martes has been throwing so well, that he is making waves into catapulting up the Astros prospect list, and right now that is a hard thing to do..... Few disagreed Cosart was on his way to being a perennial 15 game a season winner. He may still, but he has regressed. Talk about giving up the farm for practically Cosart.
Could Keegan Yuhl possibly be the pitching version of Tyler White? He's having a fine season at both A stops. Yuhl was drafted in the 35th round in 2014 out of Concordia University in California, an NAIA school. <script type="text/javascript" src="http://widgets.sports-reference.com/wg.fcgi?css=1&site=br&url=%2Fminors%2Fplayer.cgi%3Fid%3Dyuhl--000kee&div=div_standard_pitching"></script>