Ordinarily I'm not so fatalistic when it comes to the 'Stros, but I can't help but think this is by far the best production we're ever going to see from Chris Johnson, and that we'll never see it again after this year. Sure is fun at the moment, though.
That is pretty much a guarantee. The question is where he'll be when things level off. If he's still posting an OPS north of .850 or even .800 with average defense, that would be great.
Wow, suddenly the Astros are fun to watch again. It looks like they are really playing hard and having fun. I wonder what has happened to them in the last week or so? Bagwell must really be good or something.
Starting pitching was the best in baseball over the last 10 games or so. That wasn't Bagwell for sure. As far as the offense, I'd attribute more to the poor pitching we faced out of the break and randomness. If we go into a slump, which is more than likely at some point, I wouldn't pin it on Bagwell, either. At this level, I don't think hitting coaches really have that much of an impact compared to say, pitching coaches.
Yeah; "by far" would be the key phrase there, I think. Even if his average only drops to .300, which I think is still optimistic, you're looking at something close to an average-at-best OBP, for example.
I was sort of kidding but I remember at least a couple recently where he got yanked quickly before the damage was done with other guys cleaning up his mess. He hasn't pitched very well this season. 1.720 WHIP coming into this game. .307/.849 AVG/OPS against, both well above his career averages.
Not saying it's Bagwell, but they've really been hitting the ball up the middle a lot the past 6 games. The # of pitchers they've hit or almost hit on line drives up the middle could be a change in approach by all the hitters. Shows they are staying back and working to make solid contact. Seems like we are getting deeper counts than most of the season too. Not saying they've fixed the problems that have plagued them this year, but it's a good sign nonetheless.
