They have a swagger about them, like they are supposed to win. I like it. It is the mind frame of a winner, and that is what they are doing. I have been real impressed with their fielding/defense. Wilson has been one of the few diappointments. They are fun to watch.
They've gone 148-104 since Garner's been here for a winning percentage of .5873. Williams was 215-197, which comes out to .5218. That's pretty substantial. Not to mention what Garner did with a bunch of unknowns last year. Williams' teams were pretty stacked.
Astros are the best team right now, but im still not convince that we will win with Bucholez,Wandy, and Nieve. Backe is very injury prone. Remember Wandy, Nieve, and Bucholez have pitched against not so great teams. The real competition to them will come against Cards, Cubies, Mets, and Braves. If they can continue to pitch great games against the top teams then Fo Sure we will win the championship. Or just bring back Roger and we will win the championship.
Burke said in the post game interview that they go into every single game expecting to win. When is the last time a Houston team got off to a fast start? I honestly can't remember. We struggled out of the gate the last 2 years. When is the last time the Rockets started a season this hot? Obviously the Texans haven't. This is (finally) a fun time to be a Houston sports fan.
Well the Texans were 4-3 in 2004 that was just as good or better than the 2004 Astros and better than the 2005 Astros or even the 51 win Rockets who started 6-11 and of course this years Rockets. Well as far as Burke goes we have been on fire ever since that 15-30 record last year (best record in baseball) so I am glad to hear those comments about expecting to win every game. BTW the Rockets started hot in both the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 seasons.
It's a long season. With or without Clemens it's still too early to tell. That said, I'm pleased with the results so far.
I agree with you on this...let's wait and see how they fare against the Cards and the Braves. Clemens coming back next month would just set it off assuming we get last year's edition with some decent run support this year. It's nice that we have something to cheer about.
Since we're talking about the teams mentality, here's an article where Berkman talks about it. ASTROS NOTES: Team adjusts to life without Clemens April 23, 2006 By Larry Wade shreveportsports@gannett.com Lance Berkman was recently asked what he thought former teammate Roger Clemens would do this season. "Who's that?" replied Berkman, Astros first baseman and resident comedian. "Oh, yeah. I remember that guy. I don't know (what Clemens is going to do)." But Berkman and his teammates know what they have to do -- move on without the seven-time Cy Young award winner. And so far, they're doing quite well. Entering Saturday's game, the Astros were perched atop the National League Central Division with an 11-5 record. After 16 games last season, they were 8-8. They've got a team batting average of .280, third-best in the National League. And their pitching staff has the NL's fifth-best ERA (4.41). "Guys are confident," said Berkman, who's batting .344 with six home runs and 18 RBIs. "We won the National League last year. The last couple of years we've had some success in the postseason, and so the nucleus of those two teams is still largely intact and you've got guys that now instead of thinking we might win know we should win. And it's a completely different mind-set and it enables us to play with a lot more confidence." "When you get in those close games in the regular season, it's not quite like the close games in the playoff environment. And once you've competed at that level, it's a lot easier to get the job done in a regular-season game." The Astros have won six one-run games this season. But no matter success the Astros enjoy this season, speculation about the 43-year-old Clemens' future will continue until he formally announces his intentions. What would Berkman do if he were in Clemens' shoes? "There's really nothing left in the game for him to accomplish," said Berkman. "And yes, he still can compete and can still pitch. But for me personally, I want to go out on my own terms and I want to go off on a high note. And I think he's done that by pitching well and helping us get to the World Series last year. So if I was him, I would probably stay retired." The week ahead The Astros will host the Los Angeles Dodgers Monday-Wednesday (7:05 each night) before a scheduled off day on Thursday. They'll play the Reds in Cincinnati at 6:10 p.m. Friday, and 12:15 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. One-two punch Roy Oswalt and Wandy Rodriguez are among the league leaders in victories and earned-run average. Both pitchers are 3-0. Rodriguez' ERA is 2.52 (No. 7 in the NL) and Oswalt's is 2.76 (No. 8). ©The Times April 23, 2006
I hate that the Cubs are having such terrible injury problems this season...I just know that the myopic Cubs fans will use that as reason why they don't win the division. It must suck to root for the Cubs.
Is it just me, or does it sound like Berkman is a bit irked with the Clemens situation and maybe even Roger and his ego?
nice observation. i got the same feeling. it seems Berkmans is saying, if you're gonna retire or play Roger, just come right out and say it. It doesn't matter to me either way, i'm just tired of your shenanigans.
Personally, I'd almost rather Roger not come back at this point...maybe then Drayton will be more inclined to make more substantial trade deadline deals if they are necessary. IMHO, while we are all deservedly excited about the fast start, I still think that it's a little bit early to gauge how the rest of the season will go. Having said that...there is something noticeably different about this team. It's as though the swagger is already in place.
Is it too early to tell? Yes. Anyone care to remember the Astros record last year after15 games or so.
