Kent likes Astros' chances in 2004 HOUSTON -- When Jeff Kent signed a free-agent contract with Houston in December 2002, one of the reasons was his belief that the Astros were close to reaching the World Series. Kent, a principal cog in San Francisco's 2002 National League Championship team, didn't get back to the Fall Classic during his first season with the Astros but the recent addition of Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte has Kent optimistic that 2004 could be Houston's year. "For (Astros owner) Drayton (McLane Jr.) and (general manager) Gerry (Hunsicker) to be able to make this move for pitching is huge," Kent said Thursday. "For me to come in last year to add some offensive help was a good boost, but adding good quality pitchers is an even better move. You need pitching to win ballgames, you need pitching to get you into the playoffs and more importantly you need pitching to get through the playoffs. To add that with our young studs that we've got, you better be buying your season tickets so you can get dibs on your World Series tickets, because I believe we've got a bigger and better team than we had last year." Kent, making his first public comments since the Clemens signing, spent Thursday visiting with patients at the Veterans Administration Hospital. Houstonians are already catching pennant fever and Kent, who like Clemens and Pettitte has played in the World Series, was asked if the Astros have what it takes to reach the World Series. "This team is even bigger and better," Kent said. "We lost Billy (Wagner), a quality closer, but I think we have the guys that can pick the slack up. But you add two great, great players and add to the fact that they're starting pitchers ... you never know. I've seen organizations and a lot of great teams in baseball, but I think this organization has done well to get some quality guys in the locker room. You've got the makings for a championship." The Astros came within a game of first place in the National League Central Division last year, but though the team came up short, it wasn't Kent's fault. He was batting .313 with 11 homers and a team-high 50 RBIs on June 18 when he injured his wrist. He rejoined the lineup on July 17 but clearly was not 100 percent, hitting only .196 with two homers for the month. Kent played through the pain and delivered several game-winning hits during the season's final two months. He wound up hitting .297 for the season with 22 homers and 93 RBIs. The wrist is still sore and yet Kent doesn't believe it will be a factor in 2004. "I've played for a long time so I kind of understand my body and the way it operates," he said. "The tendinitis that I had during the season is not gone. It's not going to go away. I abused it last year trying to play through it, I played through the pain quite a bit of the year last year. It's telling me right now it's still sore but definitely not to the extent that it was last year. I'm still making progress, it's getting better, come Spring Training in three or four more weeks it's not going to be an issue at all."
I agree with Kent and the team and players gotta believe they are destined for greatness... If they Keep Dalgy, then hands down WS...Without him, they'll get there, but I'm not sure JLane is going to be as dominant as Dalgy was last year...
It only takes a few games to blow all our aspirations to hell. Kent basically said we will go to the World Series. Why don't we see how it goes first before calling dibs on the World Series? Keep in mind the Astros have never won a playoff series. I'll be happy for starters if we can do that. That said...this is the best shot we've ever had in my opinion if everyone plays to their potential and is not hit by the injury bug(at least all at once). Surf
"Destined?" Someone explain something to me... Why do Houstonians automatically think that they are a shoe-in for the championship? I mean, I've seen it time and time again...our players/fans will get their hopes up sooooooo high that they forget to actually PLAY THE GAME!!! Think about this... What happens when we're in the NLCS and it's the 9th inning, and we have a man on 3rd with 2 outs, down by 2...what then? I hope we've learned from the past.... Winning a pennant requires talent, mental toughness, patience, money, and a little LUCK!!! There no "automatic championship." The Astros still have to prove it on the field.
Holy hell. You're right. Ever since I've been an Astro fan, I've totally forgotten to play the games. I usually just sit there in front of the TV...but now I see clearly. They need me.
When I said "we" I meant the Astros (our team). But the fans expecations do effect the team too... high expectations. The Astros never had the killer instinct, but rather a false sense of expectations. That's why they underachieve in the play-offs. It's ALWAYS BEEN THIS WAY. Just because we have the "Ryan Express" doesn't mean we were "destined" as champs. Just because we have the "Mike Scott" doesn't mean we were "destined" as champs. Just because we have the "Killer Bs" doesn't mean we were "destined" as champs. Just because we have the "Rocket" doesn't mean we are "destined" as champs. The fans seem to set themselves up for failure every year...too high expectations. It's about the hard work and the pragmatic approach. Not because we have a "star (with real talent)" with a flashy name.
anyone know what DavidS is talking about? i know you like to dust off your Amateur Sports Psychology Degree whenever you can, but since when have fans in houston (i.e. heartbreak/choke city), and astros fans in particular, who have watched us lose in the playoffs over and over, had a sense of entitlement? just about everyone i know thinks along the lines of and the general feeling i see is one of "we'll figure out a way to screw it up." sense of entitlement? you live in a different houston than i and a lot of other people do.
francis 4 prez, that's true... But you are talking about the *other far extreme*..." One extreme is: apathy from the fans, because of past chokes. But the other extreme is: high expectations that end up being dashed. It's a cycle...
Maybe "sense of entitlement" is the wrong phrase (that existed after the 61/62 AFL championships). But today it stems from "high expectations" OR "complete and utter apathy." One or the other. It's the high expecations that create the "false sense of entitlement," i.e. just show up to the game. By the way, the timeframe I was thinking about was 1975-2004. Not 1994-2003.
I don't know about other people, I find it to be much more fun to feel strongly about sports than to sit around and wait for the other shoe to drop. To me, that's the same thing as having high expectations. You expect good things out of the team, you are pulling hard for them, it makes it that much better when good things happen. Sure, it makes the lows that much lower, but I'd rather that than to suffer in the doldrums that so many Astros fans dwell in, sitting around waiting for the Astros to do something wrong or have a serious injury. Screw that. And I agree with f4prez, there are WAY more skeptical Astros fans than there are overly optimistic ones. There's a reason Houston is considered a "fair weather" fan city. Besides, if we just sat around and waited for the Astros to "shut up and do it", then there would be that much less discussion, that much less sports fun, and that's a big part of being a fan.
All I'm saying is lets be realistic about our teams chances. There can still be discussion about that. What lalala902102001 is talking about is the general tone comming from the Houston players, media, analysts, and fans: "We got the Rocket and Pettit. We're champs! Yeah!" Without playing the first game! Thus what lalala902102001 is saying to the Astros/fans is, "Stop making grand predictions before they happen. Just prove it." Now this may not apply to you Raven Lunatic. But some fans will belive what they hear coming from the media/players: "bandwagon/fair-weather." It's those fans that fuel the speculation from real high expectations to real low expectations.
Thanks for clearing that up, DavidS. I am a huge Astros fan, so I would definitely play if they asked me. But I'm not really in shape right now, and I am too lazy to work out hard.
