The one thing Bregman and Tucker gave us was several players that we could depend on to heat up at some point and take over. Now that burdens falls on two shoulders of Altuve and Yordan while everyone else is a transplant from the original Stros teams of 5-8 years ago. I don't see this team gelling together at all and guys like Pena, Parades, Walker are all playing out of lineup position from what they would have played on our team a few years back. Imagine having Walker batting 7th? Or Perades batting 8th? That's the type of lineup we once had. Now, we are a barely average hitting team at best and bottom of the league when not at our best. Our pitching has been overhauled as well making this a brand new team from what was fielded just a few years ago. Our magic of raising home grown players to take over the reigns and be that missing cog is over. Too many parts needed to eventually be replaced and not all are as good as the factory originals. I will support this team through and through, while enjoying it for the team it really is. A middle of the road 75-81 win team that now has too many holes to fill to be a contender anymore. And unfortunately, there isn't a single free agent that can be brought in that can change that. Only real hope is that we somehow play over our heads enough to get to the playoffs and keep providing confidence for the young guys to carry on. Oh and to get a true manager that helps bring FIRE to this team to compete. The fire that was there in 2015-2019.
I posted something similar regarding JE and losing our stars. This team is barely a playoff team and knowing this was coming I’d like to have a steady vet steering that can steal some wins along the way and not get all goofy and overthink moves. The roster talent no longer outruns the manager……
Yeah so far it looks like the lineup is at least one elite bat short. In 2017, Bregman and Yuli were hitting in the top 5 of the order and they were Paredes/Walker/Diaz level hitters. McCann and Beltran were middling hitters on that team. The heavies were Springer, Altuve, and Correa; Marwin had a fluke monster year. In 2022, Yuli and Maldy sucked and Pena was a middling hitter. Brantley and Chas were Paredes/Walker/Diaz level hitters. The heavies were Yordan, Tucker, Altuve, and Bregman. Pena, Meyers, and one of Rodgers/McCormick/Dezenzo are a fine bottom of the lineup. And Altuve, Paredes, and Alvarez are a fine 1-2-3. But if this team is going to contend, Diaz, Smith, and Walker have to exceed their projections. I think if Smith were a Springer/Correa/Tucker level hitter then everything would be fine.
Chas has the least at bats of everybody on the team, including Dubon. Very surprised he isn't getting more run to see if he can get his swing back. Either they've already given up on him or it's an Espada being a moron thing. The fact he didn't start today against a LHP is pretty nuts.
I was thinking Pena would have a good year with the bat hitting 8-9th. Looks like I'm going to be wrong. He's a true guess hitter.
From 14 to 1. Game was over before the Astros recorded an out. Glad I slept thru this one. The offense slept thru it too.
Glad they were allowed to stay https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6275187/2025/04/12/astros-fan-interference-mike-trout/ An Astros fan was relocated to different seats after ripping a baseball out of Mike Trout’s glove on a foul ball that went into the first row of the right-field seats. “I just didn’t know what was going on,” the Astros fan, Jared Whalen, told The Athletic from the Daikin Park concourse while flanked by security. “I didn’t realize it was a play. It was coming at my son’s face. I just reached out.” The fan was almost immediately escorted from his seat, leaving his young son with team security. Soon after, Astros fans in the section booed wildly as the son was escorted by security out of the section to be reunited with his father. Whalen seemed bewildered in the immediate aftermath, completely unaware of the implications of what he’d done. “I was more looking at the ball coming for my son’s face,” Whalen said. “I made sure I wasn’t in the field of play. I apologized, and (Trout) nodded his head and we’re good, I think.” “I wasn’t in the World Series,” said crew chief umpire Alan Porter, when asked by a pool reporter why the play was different from the one in last year’s World Series, which was called for interference. “I don’t even remember seeing the play.” Security on the scene in Houston said the decision whether to eject the fan ultimately rested with the Astros and Major League Baseball. Trout met with Whalen and his son after the Angels’ 4-1 win over the Astros, and the outfielder signed the foul ball. Trout said he wanted to meet them, knowing how apologetic the fan was and that he had a young son. “I got kids myself. The way he reacted, he obviously didn’t do it on purpose,” Trout said. “Well, I don’t know if he didn’t do it on purpose. But just the way he reacted, and his kid, and they got moved. They probably spent hard (earned) money on those tickets.”
Multiple things can be true: Dubon should never start in the OF over Chas unless Chas is hurt or playing somewhere else in the OF Meyers is playing quite well (that's a good thing right?) so that naturally cuts into Chas's starts Having a rookie RF (who everyone is/was absolutely in love with all of 3 weeks ago) and needs playing time just *might* cut into RF innings early in the season and people still b!tch about Dezenzo not playing enough
I just watched a video, Trout met with the fans, chatted, signed a ball for the kid etc, Trout is a class act.
