Totally agree with this. Regardless of his comfort level, he's just not the ideal #2 hitter. At least flip him and Tucker - if Tucker gets on, he can move around the bases with steals or hit & runs or whatnot rather than cluttering the bases. Yordan needs to be in a place where he has the most people on base - sure, he'll get 10-20 fewer ABs over a season, but he'll get a ton more opportunities to drive people in, which is something he is really good at. The whole "put your best batter 2nd" tends to apply to guys who have some speed - Yelich was kind of the original guy to make it popular, but it's guys like Trea Turner or Ohtani or whatnot. Doesn't tend to be where you play the David Ortiz's of the world.
Hiring Espada, a novice manager, in my opinion is a huge risk the Astros may come to regret this year. We have (as of now ) a small window to win it all and if your manager has to figure things out on the fly or finds himself in situations where he may panic or act erratically , then the Astros are in for a long season. And if they do end up making it to the post season, undoubtedly experience will play a huge role in key decisions … and a new manager could just as easily falter. I’m hoping he figures it out , he seems like a good guy, but he has very little margin for error. This is where clubs like the Rangers and Cubs made smart decisions with their manager hires- experience pays off.
It's too early, but Espada has made a lot of questionable moves so far. Enough of them to be more than a little concerning. Hopefully things fall better into place soon, because right now it doesn't look so good. I mean, he's better than this, right? I'm sure he is. It'll get better...
Positives - Framber was awesome -- his ERA is now 2.19. Zero walks and he pitched deep. - Bullpen got rest and should all be available tomorrow besides Hader. - Diaz was productive from the DH spot. Two hits, including a double, a walk, and no K's. Negatives - Espada ruined the game with several bad moves. - Hader had zero business pitching yesterday -- 4th game in 6 days. He's being overworked. He shouldn't pitch again until Friday, preferable Saturday. - PR'ing Diaz for Meyers. Jake's speed isn't so overwhelming compared to Yanier's, plus you remove his bat. - Removing Framber was questionable, but you definitely don't pitch a rested Pressly for one out (4 pitches) then remove him for a guy pitching his 4th game in 6 days. - Offense sucked. Our guys don't even get productive outs most times. No sac-flies and barely any runners ever move up any base. And of course the lack of hitting RISP. - Baserunning. Go watch ESPN "Not Top 10 Plays". Witness the Astros represent more than once. Astros will play better and be real contenders once again. Espada will settle down. We will get healthier. Bregman and Abreu's track record shows they're slow starters in a season -- well, Bregman will improve at least. Yordan is too good. Terrible dramatic loss, but baseball gives another chance next day.
Serious Question, Do Astros players even like Framber? Yainer Diaz not even catching him and want to call his own game and players not even giving a real a real hard fought effort on offense. Fouling off pitches, working the count running hard. Joe Espada needs to take take a Stand against some Players Spoiled Children Syndrome especially Framber not wanting Yainer Diaz as Catcher, because his Buddy Martin Maldonado is gone because of Yainer. Grow Up Framber.
I love everyone blaming Espada and Hader, but passing the buck for our completely limp dick offense. IT WAS THE OFFENSE THAT BLEW IT. We scored ONE ****ING RUN.
