I hope the "right deal" comes along but I have a feeling we aren't going to be making any big upgrades this off-season. As we talked about earlier, if Drayton wants to bring in even one Type A after re-signing all the obvious players, he would have to shatter the Astros record for opening day payroll on top of forfeiting their 1st rd pick. Drayton always wants to appear to be trying to contend, but I think even he realizes that we are more than one piece away.
http://blogs.chron.com/gamedayastros/2008/10/drayton_says_dont_expect_bigna.html Drayton says don't expect big-name pitcher I recently spoke with Astros owner Drayton McLane about a story that appears in Tuesday's paper. The story is about what the Astros plan to do in the offseason, and McLane made it clear they club isn't going after C.C. Sabathia because he will command too much money. I don't blame him. You think the Giants regret giving $126 million to Barry Zito? But McLane said the Astros probably aren't going to make a run at some of the other top free agent pitchers, without saying names. Perhaps that means Ben Sheets, Derek Lowe, Jon Garland and guys in that class. If it does, the Astros better hope to be able to sign Randy Wolf. Based on my conversations with GM Ed Wade and McLane, it appears the Astros are going to aggressively pursue Wolf, meaning he might be their big free agent catch of the winter. The way Wade put it: signing Wolf would excite the fan base if he wasn't already an Astros. It's the new kid on the block that brings the most excitement. He's right on both accounts. The Astros already have about $72 million committed to the payroll next year, and that doesn't include 10 players that are abitration eligible. Assuming most of those players return, that could add another $10 million, bringing the payroll total to $82 million. If they re-sign Wolf at, say, $8 million per year, that brings the payroll to $90 million. That's about where it was last season, and I don't expect it to get much higher. Thus, it appears less likely they would spend another $10 million a year on a starting pitcher like Sheets or Lowe to bring the payroll to $100 million. I could be wrong, but McLane doesn't appear ready to up the payroll just yet. **************************************** This is almost word for word the conclusion I drew a few weeks ago when looking at our payroll situation. I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to baseball and I was able to figure it out. At least we may keep our 1st round pick. This organization has a long way to go.
Yep. I *loved* C4 while he was here. It's like the only town he wasn't a complete idiot. To the other point, I'm starting to wonder if I'm the only guy who remembers that game.
I remember it happening...in that I remember that Spiers was attacked in RF in Milwaukee. But I can't get a picture in my head, nor did I remember Hampton going out and kicking his butt. Not sure why.
The Astros signed 22 year old Taiwanese pitcher Chia-Jen Lo. Any guesses as to what level this guy starts out with us? He's supposed to have a great fastball.
thanks for the info....here's what I found searching around...kinda sounds like a potential closer or setup man, really: http://taiwanbaseball.blogspot.com/2008/03/chia-jen-lo-update.html Wednesday, March 19, 2008 Chia-Jen Lo Update... Taiwanese news reports are stating that amateur pitcher Chia-Jen Lo has received quite a bit of interest from three MLB clubs: the Texas Rangers, the Oakland A's, and the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox reportedly offered Lo ~ a $200 K signing bonus, an amount Lo considered too low. The 21 year old (about to turn 22 next month), who was the hardest throwing NT member at the Final OQT, has been listed anywhere from 5'10" to 6'1" (as listed on his web profile). If he doesn't sign a pro contract, Lo hopes to make the NT and participate in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. http://taiwanbaseball.blogspot.com/2008/10/houston-astros-sign-chia-jen-lo.html Per Taiwanese news sources (UDN), the Houston Astros have signed their first Taiwanese baseball player, Chia-Jen Lo. His signing bonus is rumored to be ~ $250K. The Astros beat out the Royals who were said to have offered ~$175K and the Red Sox (rumored to have offered ~$200K). The Angels were also interested as were the Twins at one point in time. The signing is pending on Lo passing his physical, which will take place after he heads over to the US on Nov. 5th.*Updated http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Chia-Jen_Lo Bats Right, Throws Right Height 5' 11", Weight 179 lb. School Chinese Cultural University Born April 7, 1986 Chia-Jen Lo is a pitcher who has appeared for Taiwan's national teams in junior, college and senior level competition. As of June 2008, he has not begun his professional career though he has been scouted by US and Japanese teams. Lo throws a curveball and a fastball that has peaked at 95 mph. Lo was with Taiwan for the 2004 World Junior Championship when they finished fifth; he pitched two innings, allowing no hits or runs, striking out three, walking one and plunking one. He played with the senior team in the 2005 Asian Championship despite still being a teenager. In the 2006 World University Championship, he again represented his country. In the 2006 Haarlem Baseball Week, he threw 3 2/3 innings, fanning four and allowing two hits and a walk while saving one game. He was Taiwan's worst hurler in the 2007 World Port Tournament, with a 5.00 ERA and no decisions in two games. Lo returned to the senior team for the 2008 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament. He allowed one run in 3 1/3 innings and saved one outing as Taiwan locked up a spot in the 2008 Olympics. His save came against the German national team and was not without difficulty; with a 2-0 lead in the 9th, he allowed a double to Jendrick Speer and Dominik Wulf single but recovered to get cleanup man Kai Gronauer (a future US minor leaguer) and former minor leaguer Michael Franke. He blew a save against Team Canada - with a 5-4 lead and two outs in the 9th, he allowed a Stubby Clapp single and Mike Saunders drove home Clapp. Chien-Ming Chiang relieved and lost the game in extra innings. Lo threw three scoreless innings for Taiwan in the 2008 World University Championship, when they won Bronze. Lo was ineffective in the 2008 Olympics, allowing 4 baserunners and a run in 2 innings of work. He relieved Fu-Te Ni with two on in the 8th with a 2-0 lead against the Chinese national team and blew the game open, allowing a RBI single to Yufeng Zhang and 2-run double to Wei Wang; Taiwan went on to lose in an upset in extra innings. In October 2008, Lo signed with the Houston Astros for around $250,000. He was the first Taiwanese player ever signed by Houston.
Oh great, a Brad Lidge redux. I bet the double from Wei Wang will forever haunt him and ruin his confidence until an inevitable one-sided trade.