True, forgot about Harden signing but I still think someone will overpay for Sheets or he will price himself out of the Stros market which shouldn't take much.
Sounds about right. Shelling out big money for relievers is what you should do when you are a good team with expectations of making the playoffs. This team is doomed with Drayton, unless another Clemens/Pettitte situation comes along where great players (particularly pitchers) just happen to want to play in Houston.
Ortizonbaseball The Astros finish winter meetings with payroll flexibility - a bit - and two relievers - Lyon and Lindstrom. Up next, offense at third.
I really don't understand why they don't just make it an open competition between Johnson, Blum and Keppinger. I'd still like them to at least try to find a decent pitcher on the cheap, maybe that happens later on or they stick to what they have been saying that Starting Pitching wont be a priority.
I'm wishing they would have gone after Harden for 7.5 million rather than pay Brandon Lyon $5 million and have this so called payroll flexibility left over. At least that would give me some hope. Now the team has to rely on a bounce back from Roy, another solid year from Wandy, and get lucky with Norris/Paulino.
Wait -- they're spending $8M less on relievers than they were before making these deals. Did these guys put their slide rules down long enough to consider that?
I like it. Kid's 1/2 the price of Valverde, we'll get 2 picks when Val signs elsewhere, and Lyon's got some upside. So...Hawk and Val would've costed about 12-14MM. Lyons and Lindstrom combined are about 5.5MM. Of course there is the unknown of how these kids will fare, but it's a smart baseball move. Plus, no Tejada contract anymore....I'm liking where this is going.
Feliz is a solid signing. He is a gold glove type fielder with okay power. He is also a solid run producer which is needed at 3rd baseman. He doesn't walk a lot but for a 1 year deal, it's a solid signing because of his run producing. He was also the starting 3rd baseman of a World Series team. This tells me a lot of what the Astros think of Chris Johnson. Blum goes back to what his role should be as a utilty player. He could fill in for Matsui when he gets hurt.
Majewski was solid either 2 or 3 years ago. I like that move in hopes that he can regain form. And Feliz--GREAt signing filling a big hole! On a 1 year deal, he can easily be flipped for prospects at the deadline imo.. I'm a big fan
Great Signing, now go get a starting pitcher for us... Mr. ED WAYNE.. make us to believe you are Daryl Morely in baseball.
It would have cost about $13.5 million dollars to keep both LaTroy Hawkins and José Valverde if he would have accepted arbitration. For $10 million dollars, the Astros got two solid middle relievers and a starting 3rd baseman plus two draft picks when Valverde signs with another team. I am not the biggest Ed Wade fan and would have not gone three years on Lyon, but it was a solid winter meetings for Wade for the resources he had.
absolutely agree. best early offseason plan for an Astros GM since Hunsicker? I mean, we're coming out of this looking like we have a legit plan and direction for next season.. when was the last time we felt like that? Aside from "well, we're going to try and win..probably.. but we'll have to see how it goes and what happens in february and march"
.247avg .314OBP .367SLG $1.5 million .256avg .320OBP .387SLG Probably around $1 million .266avg .308OBP .386SLG $4.5 million Which player would you pick?
Lyon's 30 and has been in the majors for 9 years. I don't know that he has any "upside". He simply is what he is, which is a pretty decent closer.
One thing I would say about that analysis is that it uses his career stats. But looking at his career, he was bad to very bad in his first 4 years. He's been better in 3 of the last 4. So I'm not sure career stats are an ideal way to judge Lyon.
