i think it was actually 7! gunn -- we were considered world series contenders before the season started last year. you'll never give McLane credit, huh? even when he signs a guy to the richest deal a pitcher has ever seen.
not true at all. the astros were considered World Series contenders at the beginning of last season after they got Clemens. when beltran came on the team, the astros were struggling. the hope was that he could help turn the dissapointing season around, but no one was thinking world series at that point. the astros were thinking of getting back in the wild card hunt at best.
And those 7 RBIs (Thanks Max) really put us over the top. You know, I can understand the frustration regarding losing Beltran, but to use the resigning of last year's Cy Freakin' Young winner to bash the owner yet again is completely absurd. Not that I expect anything less.
Sure we were, at the begining of the season. They also had the Cardinals finishing third in the central; but I guess that's why they play the games. The fact of the matter is, once the season was under way, we were only average. And it's not that I will not give McLane credit; I'm glad we signed Roger, but are we in better or worse shape right now than where we were this time last year?
I think we may be in just a little worse shape. If Berkman was going to be healthy at the beginning of the season, I think it'd be a draw since we lost Kent. However, I think that we have a better starting rotation at this point, an absolutely dominant closer, and I think it'll be fun to watch a team full of young guys trying to prove something in the MLB. The state of the Astros isn't nearly as sorry as some of you make it out to be.
In part. However, the part about him making our rotation one of, if not the best in baseball has a lot to do with it as well.
i think we lie somewhere in the middle of the paradise that RM and Max see and the hell that you and I see...the pitching is certainly in place...I just dont see where the run production is going to come from.
Our lineup wasn't exactly our strong point last year either. It was home run or bust. You never knew which lineup would show up. The one that could pile runs on or the one that couldn't drive in runs to save their lives. Hopefully bringining new faces in will finally give some balance to the lineup.
and we are without our leading rbi guy from last year so thats a huge blow too. whether you think Kent was worth the money or not. he was our leading RBI guy.. he may have hurt as much as losing Beltran
Can someone point to a post where Max or I said we were in a rosy situation? We just choose to be optimistic about the situation. I don't remember either one of us saying we were sure fire WS contenders next year. Thanks in advance.
The team is definitely worse off than it was when we started last season. Could it change before spring training? Sure. But right now the lineup is lacking. No expert would tell you that we've got a good offense going into the season. There's not an all-star caliber player outside of the injured Berkman. And the rotation? Clemens, Pettite, Oswalt are the same. A healthy Miller is just a much more talented, and proven, pitcher than a Brandon Backe (and I like Backe).
Friday, January 21, 2005 Associated Press NEW YORK -- Roger Clemens is coming back for one more year -- and is getting the highest salary for a pitcher in baseball history. The Rocket and the Houston Astros agreed Friday to an $18 million, one-year contract, and the seven-time Cy Young Award winner made the commitment to play for his 22nd major league season. Houston called a news conference but did not reveal the subject. A baseball source familiar with the arrangements said it was to announce an agreement with Clemens that would give him a record salary for a pitcher, topping the $17.5 million Pedro Martinez earned with Boston last year in the option year of his contract. More On Arbitration Figures exchanged Tuesday for the 40 players remaining in salary arbitration and their 2004 salaries, as obtained by the AP from player and management sources. Complete list Clemens first retired after pitching for the New York Yankees in the 2003 World Series. But he changed his mind and agreed on Jan. 12 last year to join his hometown Astros, accepting a $5 million, one-year deal that was way below his market price. The 42-year-old right-hander helped lead the Astros within one win of their first World Series appearance, earning $1,825,000 in bonuses based largely on Houston's home attendance, then said again that he was "99 percent" retired. But momentum built after he returned earlier this month from a Hawaiian vacation, and he asked for $22 million salary -- matching his uniform number -- when proposed figures for salary arbitration were filed Tuesday. Houston offered $13.5 million, leaving the midpoint at $17.75 million. His agents, Randy and Alan Hendricks, then negotiated the deal with the Astros on Wednesday and Thursday. Clemens is agreeing to a contract that makes him the highest-paid pitcher for the fifth time, following deals with Boston in 1989 ($2.5 million average), with the Red Sox in 1991 ($5.38 million), with Toronto in December 1996 ($8.25 million) and with the Yankees in August 2000 ($15.45 million). The two contracts with Boston and the one with New York made him the sport's highest-paid player overall. Clemens also is getting the highest one-year contract in baseball history, topping Greg Maddux's $14.75 million deal with Atlanta in 2003. His decision to stay is one of the few bright spots in an otherwise miserable offseason for the Astros. All-Star second baseman Jeff Kent left to sign with Los Angeles; All-Star center fielder Carlos Beltran departed to sign with the New York Mets; center fielder Lance Berkman tore up a knee playing flag football at a church function; and promising but injured pitcher Wade Miller was let go. Clemens, a 10-time All-Star, is 10th on the career wins list with 328, one behind Steve Carlton. Clemens' 4,317 strikeouts are second to Nolan Ryan's 5,714. His decision to sign with Houston last year was spurred by former Yankees teammate Andy Pettitte, who left New York to sign with the Astros. Clemens went 18-4 with a 2.98 ERA and 218 strikeouts, winning his first Cy Young in the NL, but Pettitte hurt an elbow tendon while batting in his first start, was largely ineffective and had season-ending surgery in August. At $18 million, Clemens tied Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds for the fourth-highest average salary in the major leagues, trailing only Alex Rodriguez ($25.2 million), Manny Ramirez ($20 million) and Derek Jeter ($18.9 million).
Any PR move that gets my team the current CY YOUNG winner, and one of the greatest pitchers and competitors the game has ever seen, is OK by me. DD
