Yes, Nacogdoches gets the Astros on Channel 51. I've told you before that the channel is FSN-Houston, however, the guide gives the schedule for FSN-Southwest (Dallas). It's been like that for ages, even when Cox Communications was the cable provider before Suddenlink. The My20 games are not shown on Channel 51. Sometimes, they will show them on Channel 8, but it's becoming rarer and rarer lately.
Good luck to the Astros this season. I'm not very optimistic for this season. However, I hope they pull a rabbit out of the hat and surprise the league by finishing in first place. If the 'Stros get stuck in mediocrity then I expect Lee and/or Tejada to be dealt mid-season. We should be able to get some nice young talent for either one of those players.
Cool thanks. I knew they would show the Rockets, but I didn't know they were actually FSN-Houston complete stream. Nice to know. Wish we would get them on 750 (FSN-HD). Beggars can't be choosers though.
I'll make the first complaint of the season by saying this is ridiculous. Pence is a fastball hitter with lightning quick bat speed/hands who struggles with breaking balls and creates havoc with his speed... so naturally, Cooper puts him at the bottom of the order with Bourn behind him. I hope Hunter's ready for breaking balls (doubt it), because with Bourn behind him he'll see a lot...
Yeah, don't really see the point in starting Pudge in the 2-hole right off the bat. At least try Pence/Bourn up there to see if it's productive...Pudge is going to miss more games as a catcher than most positions, so why disturb the top of the order by having to reset the lineup every few games when he's out? Not a good way to establish continuity, and it certainly can't help the confidence of Pence or especially Bourn.
Think I read somewhere that Pence saw a higher percentage of sliders than anyone in the league, last season. The book's out on him, he wasn't going to get fastballs anyway, at least not in the zone. I'd bat Pudge lower just because I think he'd clog the bases and is little threat to steal if he gets on. But as mentioned earlier, we don't exactly have good options for the #2 spot.
I would argue that that was somewhat correlated with Cooper's decision to bat Pence either 6th or 7th for 388 (65%) of his 595 at-bats last season. If you put him ahead of Berkman/Lee, there's no doubt he sees more pitches in the zone than he does near the bottom, and his speed is a potential asset there as well. Moreover, from a statistical standpoint, it's optimal to put your best (or second-best) hitter at No. 2, and I think it's a pretty safe bet that Pence will have a more productive year than Pudge.
After having such a stinky year I dont know if Pence deserves the # 2 spot. He wasnt good at moving the runners over, he struck out a lot, and ran into a hell of DPs. If he can lay off sliders though, the # 2 will be his for the taking later. Also, with Pence, Bourne, and Matsui (with pitcher bunting possibly) batting together, if one or 2 of them get on, get moved over by the pitcher, they can be a menace on the base path, and Pudge will have chances to drive them in. And if Pudge can get on, then we could be looking at a huge inning with the big bats to follow. At least thats what I think Coop is thinking
Berkman just smashed a comebacker into Zambrano's knee! They're saying hes done for the season. .......................fingers crossed.
