“Houston will have a new opening day second baseman for the first time since 2011, too.” Without looking, can you name that Astro? Spoiler Bill Hall Michael Bourn CF Angel Sanchez SS Hunter Pence RF Carlos Lee LF Bill Hall 2B Chris Johnson 3B Brett Wallace 1B Humberto Quintero C Brett Myers P
Opening day lineup 3B Bregman SS Pena 1B Abreu RF Tucker 2B Hensley DH Diaz CF McCormick LF Dubon C Maldonado I feel good about Hensley producing enough for Altuve's absence not to be a significant blow. Same with Diaz taking over for Brantley at DH. Dubon or Dirden for Yordan is the big blow until be returns. That's the one we need back ASAP.
Altuve is going to miss a third of the season, so this isn't a short term injury. If you could get Kemp for someone like Paraedes, would that be too much?
No Paredes wouldn't he too much. He clearly has been passed over on the bullpen depth chart and does not have a role on the team. I also heard in the offseason that he wants a trade to get a fresh start and opportunity. But I don't think Oakland trades one of their starting position players for a potential AAAA relief pitcher. They would want a guy like Corey Julks or Grae Kessinger added to the deal. Someone who could be a replacement level player on the roster for 3+ years at very little cost That's still not much, but considering the level of improvement Kemp brings it still may be better to let Hensley, Dubon, and Bannon cover 2B and just save the bullets.
He's listed as their starting 2B and #2 LF behind Seth Brown ( who is #2 1B and #2 RF behind J.J. Bleday who was optioned to minors) so Kemp definitely looks to be one of the top 9 position players for them.
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/te...questions-to-answer-minus-altuve-17848398.php […] Perhaps it portends a situation where Dubón faces lefthanded pitching and Hensley is in there against righties, but Baker has demonstrated during his tenure that he does not view numbers or splits as gospel. The Astros view Dubón as a better defender at second base, and given the premium they place on defense, that could tip the scales in his favor. Hensley might possess more offensive upside than Dubón, but he cannot match him in major league experience. […] Five men not named Altuve batted leadoff last season for the Astros: Dubón, Chas McCormick, Jeremy Peña, Kyle Tucker and Jose Siri. Siri is now a Tampa Bay Ray, and it’s difficult to envision Baker hitting either Dubón or McCormick leadoff for an extended period. Most of the time, Baker slotted them there only as stopgaps who didn't interfere with the rest of his lineup. Peña, Tucker and Alex Bregman are perhaps the three most ideal candidates to replace Altuve as Houston’s leadoff hitter. Baker has already insisted Michael Brantley will hit second when he’s healthy, so hitting Tucker — another lefthanded hitter — above him would run counter to Baker’s desire for balance. If the decision is between Peña and Bregman, it might come down to preference. Bregman is an on-base machine with one of the team’s best eyes. He is also a better, more established hitter than Peña. Ensuring one of the team’s best hitters gets the most at-bats in a game should be a priority. Bregman drove in 93 runs last season. Only Tucker and Yordan Alvarez chased in more. Keeping Bregman lower in the batting order might give him more chances with runners aboard, situations in which he excels. Peña is a free swinger with power to change the scoreboard with one swing. Sound familiar? Baker batted Peña leadoff eight times last season. Hitting him there in Altuve’s absence could allow Peña to see more fastballs, against which he hit .285 and slugged .467 last year. Peña led off Sunday in the first lineup since Altuve’s injury. Could that continue? “Possibly,” Baker said. […] Non-roster invitee Dixon Machado has started 72 major league games at second base and drawn rave reviews for his defense this spring. He also has a .577 OPS in 522 career big league plate appearances. His minor league numbers aren’t much better — just a .672 mark across 11 seasons. If the Astros want nothing more than a defensive insurance policy behind Dubón and Hensley, Machado makes sense, but it’s difficult to envision Houston carrying such a subpar offensive player for the entirety of Altuve’s absence. Using Hensley more at second base could deprive Baker of his backup first baseman. Perhaps it opens a spot for J.J. Matijevic or Bligh Madris to crack the opening-day roster. Both hit lefthanded, offering balance to a bench that needs it. Adding Justin Dirden could accomplish the same goal. Dirden hits lefthanded and is not on Houston’s 40-man roster, but he continued his breakout spring with a well-struck double Sunday afternoon. He is now 7-for-20 in Grapefruit League play with four walks and seven strikeouts. Dirden is solely an outfielder with just 32 games above Class AA, but he might hit his way onto the opening-day roster. When last week began, it seemed feasible for Dirden to crack it only if Alvarez and Brantley both started the season on the injured list. Now, it’s almost difficult to envision leaving Dirden off.
Tweaked ankle you can recover relatively easily from. Broken hand, not so much. Sucks still, but he'll be fine.
I'm thinking: Bregman 3B Pena SS Alvarez DH Abreu 1B Tucker RF McCormick LF Hensley 2B Meyers CF Maldonado C
"Like...what are you gonna do now? What do I mean? I mean...you pissed on my rug. And, now with Altuve...man...dude. This will not stand, man!"
I actually think he starts opening day. Maybe some rust but no IL or games missed. For Tucker either. Brantley on 10 day IL
Ok. This is enough. We have had our fair share of injuries. That’s it. No more please. Wrap them in bubble rap until the games count for something. Maybe we are getting all the bad juju out here at the beginning of the season. And to all the numbnuts that keep saying “that’s what you get for cheating”. Grow up. Stop being butt hurt that our boys wasted your boys in 2017 and 2022. Thinking it is ok that a player gets a broken bone simply confirms that you are an excuse for a human.
