When you plug Berkman into that line-up everything changes. I guarantee Lee will start tearing it up once Berkman gets back, Pence should improve as well.
To add to this... If Berkman and/or Oswalt miss extended time, which doesn't seem that unlikely given all the facts, this is a 50-something win team. I'll bet my virtual left nut on that.
This is a tremendously deficient team, offensively, even with an elite hitter like Berkman in the lineup and Lee hitting like Lee. Click the first link in my last post and sort by team OBP, SLG, runs scored, etc... from last season.
And I'm not a total and complete pessimist. I don't just say "the sky if falling" without looking at the facts. I consider myself a realist with maybe a hint of pessimism. Here is the most optimistic thing I can bring myself to say about this season: Because there is a significant element of luck in baseball, if Berkman and Oswalt stay relatively healthy and we get as lucky as we did last season, we may crack 70 wins. I don't think that will happen and there is absolutely zero statistical evidence to say it will, but it's not outside of the realm of possibility. It's just on the verge of it.
we all know this isn't a good team. but holy crap, can we just enjoy taking 2/3 in Chicago from the Cubs?
i did enjoy it. i thought there might be a bit more of a woo-hoo, go 'stros feel. instead i met captain spock's 10,000 reasons we won't win another game.
nooooo...you missed the memo. it's more important to throw him over the coals for the lyons acquisition than given him an ounce of credit for lindstrom.
Umm... it is more important to throw him over the coals for Lyons than credit for Lindstrom. Smart GMs have for years spent very little on middle-relief pitching, converting failed starters and underpaying "unsuccessful"(as in having a bloated ERA due to limited innings but have great stuff) FAs. It's pretty well documented that middle relief is the one area where pitcher stats fluctuate wildly from year to year, and one area where talent can be found cheaply and readily. In other words, a good GM is SUPPOSE TO find good relievers from the scrap heap. And normally you can find one or two every year just by blindly guessing. Because they throw so few innings a couple of 3-run homers could mean the difference between good and bad. So no, Wade gets very little credit for Lindstrom other than the fact that at least he didn't dish out Lyons money for him.
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I think people are getting to riled up by our bullpen spending. Okay yes Wade gave a risky unwarranted contract to a mediocre reliever, but people act as if everyone in our bullpen is getting paid a fortune. Almost everyone in that bullpen is getting paid the league minimum or just above. Stop over-reacting to one bad spending. Every club has one, we just have more than others. Our bull-pen is full of very cheap pitchers excluding Lyon.
The problem is those contracts add u. A Lyon here. A Matsui there. Throw a Feliz into the stew. Now you have the same money as a Berkman, Oswalt, or Lee. Which would you prefer?
Well if I can have 3 mediocre/above average players rather than dropping 18million+ a year on one player then I'll take the three. The type of spending that we have on Lee/Berkman/Oswalt is not what you want and is a reason for us completely sucking. You need a lineup full of above average hitters instead of 2-3 stellar ones. A roster where money is balanced out among the pitching staff and line-up is what we need. Something like the Twins, the only person getting paid a high amount is Mauer but the rest of them are all reasonably paid and very good hitters.
That's why you need a productive farm system. Fill the holes with average players making the league mininum rather than playing 20 million per year to fill those spots with veterans.
You're saying that it's okay that our front office suck more than others? I think that says more about how we just don't care anymore than anything else. For reference, Lyons would be the 2nd highest paid reliever on the Yankees behind Rivera. He'd be the 2nd highest paid reliever on the Red Sox behind Papelbon. He'd be paid more than any reliever on the Cards, and would come 3rd for the Phillies behind Lidge and Madsan. These teams, btw, are the last 4 WS winners. And two of them have almost unlimited budgets. Yet, they don't choose to spend that money on middle relief, because they're well-run teams.
I never said it was ok, I simply said that it's wiser to have three above average players than one super-star. You need a well balanced team not one with 2 stars and the rest glorified AAA players. Unfortunately I wouldn't consider Matsui an above average second basemen, nor Feliz a above average third basemen. But it's the concept of spreading the money around instead of using it all on a guy like Berkman/Oswalt/Lee that we need to realize. But
I don't know why people are so quick to jump on management when the season is just two weeks old tomorrow. Lyons has not been great but who has besides Keppinger and maybe Bourn. Matsui was a bad sign but the Astros needed a 2nd baseman. They were hoping he would be a reliable fielder and maybe provide speed he was never known for his bat even playing for Colorado. Pedro Feliz IMO has been our 3rd best bat this season. He isn't great at fielding but has some good pop in his bat for Minute Maid's left field wall. He is not going to be an everyday 3rd baseman he will split time with Blum.
