Dusty must have some kind of super powers ive never seen a man chew on so many toothpicks without impaling the roof of their mouth.
It's clear that the players absolutely love Dusty. It's just hearing Dusty doing interviews in Spanish, thanking parents of players or when he puts himself in the position of these Latin players' background in their upbringing. That goes a long way. Hinch and Dusty are in the Houston's sports history books, both with their own style. Hinch with the psychology background and more reserved. Dusty by being Dusty. Who would you guys want to play for if you could swing a bat?
At this point, has Baker earned the right to manage until he decides to retire assuming he doesn't want manage until he is 80.
Unless we fall off a cliff with the same talent yes his call and the chance of Dusty losing the clubhouse is pretty much zero since he took them to the promise land. I'm totally fine with it. We just need a stable skiper to oversee this window and run.
Please, Please, Please leave Pena 2nd in batting order. Brantley against RH will be great wherever you bat him. Pena still needs that protection.
I am a bit torn. Yes Pena needs the protection but Altuve, Yordan, Bregman, Tucker, and Abreu are your best hitters. The best hitters should get the most plate Appearances. Altuve hitting lead off is a no Brainer based on this roster. Yordan needs to hit in the 1st inning every single game, but so does Bregman. This lineup would score a ton of runs if it was set up that way: Altuve Bregman Yordan Abreu Tucker Pena Brantley McCormick/Meyers Maldonado Or Altuve Yordan Bregman Tucker Abreu Pena Brantley McCormick/Meyers Maldonado I am fine with keeping Pena in the #2 spot. If it ain't broke don't fix it. But I really like this too. With Bregman's on base skills he should be ahead of the boppers. Tucker is also primed for another big step up into top 10 MVP range which means the team would be better with him getting more plate appearances. For me the biggest question is how much protection does Pena need and can Brantley provide it? His low OB% profile would serve the team better lower in the order, unless Brantley can't protect him and he ends up significantly less productive.
Tucker/Pena in front of Brantley seems like it would work really well. It would free them both up to steal bases at every opportunity since Brantley is probably not hitting with lots of power anyway.
Pena's bat will be much better this season than his regular season results from last year would indicate. If I was going to move him at all it would be to the three spot. He will hit for average and power should get all the at bats a team MVP should get.
In a perfect world: Altuve Pena Yordan Bregman Tucker Abreu Brantley ... ... We'll see how it all shakes out. Dusty has nothing if not options.
Hit run with Brantley is a solid option at least it used to be, dude can make contact every pitch it seems.
3rd spot? Hahaha ha If Pena actually meets 100% of his offensive potential he will still be nowhere near Yordan, Tucker, Bregman, Altuve, or 2023 Abreu. I can see him in the #2 spot between Altuve and Yordan because it maximizes his potential, but no way he supplants the top 4 or 5 hitters in the Astros lineup.
Offensively he will be behind Yordan only, defensively behind no one. It's gonna be a good year for the Astros.
Embarrassment of riches. I personally would hit Pena lower given his low OBP, but his speed keeping him out of double plays is nice.
His splits last year had such a stark contrast b/t 2nd and everywhere else, I'd roll with it early and see what happens. Trophies aren't won in April.
I can see him hitting there because that's his current spot and where he and the Astros had the most success. But if I had not witnessed it I would think it was a very stupid decision. I guess that's why I'm not a pro manager or front office employee.
I hope you're right if this is because of Pena's improvement and not everyone else falling apart.. I think you're wrong because the rest are really good too. If you limit this to overall WAR, I think you'll be closer to the mark with Superior D and improving O.
