I'm curious as to how the domed stadium interacts with an arm, but I think the hot/cold changes have some cause. I think the cumulative effect from going from Florida to New York still looms. Of course I could be way off base, and just a homer. I work with a guy that pitched collegiately in the North East. Said he could remember playing a double header in below freezing weather, and he sat in a van with the heater full blast for the whole first game, and still couldn't get his curve ball working. That was his out pitch, too.
The Astros have a #1 starter and a bunch of #4's.... That is why the Astros went so hard at Cole Hamels. The Astros want another top of the rotation starter to team with Dallas K under team control long term. It also makes perfect sense, the Astros are a FAR better team when they have another starter stepping up and pitching like a #1-2 starter.... we saw it with McCullers, with Kazmir (for a very brief time) and McHugh (for a short period of time). Honestly I think it is the difference between winning 85 games and 95 games. It has a trickle down effect that isn't measured by WAR, it gives the team confidence and allows the pen to be used differently. The offense is likely to improve greatly. There are some new names and more coming up, and at the deadline the Astros can more easily add a bat than front line starter. If the Indians struggle this season, don't be shocked to see the Astros go hard at Corey Kluber who is arbitration eligible for the first time next season.
I'd say if you're not an ace... there's a good chance you have the ability to be a #4-like starter (which will feature several games where you pitch like a #1 or #2, but other games where you won't). Right now, they're collectively pitching worse than average starting rotation production. That won't last.
Do share these 4 fairly terrible years before 2014. He pitched 47 innings over 2 years in the majors before 2014--not much of a sample size to be judged (not to mention a drastic change in pitching style/philosophy after that which has been discussed in the past)
I'm more concerned about our inability to beat inferior teams on the road. This was a huge bugaboo last year, so the sample size is much bigger than 6 games. I don't think we can afford to be 15 games under .500 on the road again this year. I expect us to play well at home, but you can't automatically count on being as good as last year.
I am concerned about McHugh, but I've been waiting for him to implode since Houston first acquired him. This last outing could be a fluke or weather related. But I'm not keen on the idea of Houston playoff hopes hinging on him being a viable #2 to Keuchel. Was hoping they would put their nuts on the table and go get a worthy 2nd ace this offseason, and they may do that at the deadline. I'm not worried about Keuchel. He may not put up another Cy Young season, but I feel he is pretty firmly established as one of the best pitchers in the league. I'm also not worried about Fiers or Feldman. They're not being counted on for much (unlike McHugh and McCullers), and their outings last week didn't change my outlook that they will be fine BoR guys. Fister is the only hope for picking up some slack if McHugh or McCullers bust. I was actually encouraged by his start last week. I'm a little worried about McCullers' ability to stay healthy, log innings, and avoid a sophomore slump. But I think there's an equal chance of those things as there is that he takes the next step and establishes himself as an ace. It's also worth mentioning that the early returns on Devenski, Musgrove, Paulino, and Martes mitigate some of the risk of the MoR and BoR guys busting. I'm not worried about the bullpen. Period. So yes, I am concerned about pitching. But no more than I was on opening day, and it mostly surrounds McHugh.
According to the Milwaukee guys, they can only heat up the park about 20-25 degrees above the outdoor temp. Thought that was interesting. They were commenting on how chilly it was in the booth yesterday.
Our staff has had noticeable trouble with location. So many walks and grooved pitches that end up over the fence. My gut tells me that some of this is just rust that will get hammered out as the season goes on, but this was not a fun week to watch the guys on the mound.
McCullers' situation is concerning. When he's deemed healthy, they should hold him back 2 extra weeks. Overall, our pitching should be top notch with Lance. The 3-5 starters should all have ERAs under 4. The bullpen shouldn't be any worse than last year and probably improves with Giles and Devenski. Not sold on McHugh just yet. The 19 wins were great, but his ERA jumped from 2.73 in 2014 to 3.89 last season. His abomination vs Yankees didn't help matters. If he can <3.50, awesome. He's a solid #3 and a good #4
Ha, your definition of "terrible" must be different than most others. He was put on waivers by the Rockies, who were one of the worst teams in MLB. He was terrible before turning it around with the Astros. Most baseball enthusiasts would agree he was terrible before joining the Astros.
Yep... And body heat from fans, heat given off from lighting, and the greenhouse effect from their glass windows takes care of the rest to get it comfortable enough for the fans/players. It's very similar to what happens in the mall of America in Minneapolis, which believe it or not, has no central heating system.
Again, point me to the 4 years of terrible that you claimed. You haven't. He pitched 47 innings in the majors, and his minors stats, while not world-beating, were fine. I didn't say his 47 innings were good. I just said that it was a very small sample in the majors, and not one to fully judge someone on.
Astros are likely to have pitcher injuries/suckage. If it happens to Keuchel, Astros season goes down in flames. Other guys, stuff is going to happen to some of them and Astros will have to deal with it just like most other teams. Astros have the benefit of likely having the best prospects to trade at deadline to fix things if need be.
Agree with this..... also, the Astros don't just have assets, they have money to spend. If there is a #1 pitcher available at the deadline that isn't a free agent for a few seasons, you can bet the Astros will be in on the bidding and likely get the pitcher if they really want him.
I read this as we have (1) very good starting pitcher and (4) more or less average ones. I agree we need at least one more guy who consistently can deliver an above average performance. Its possible someone we already have may emerge into this. While we have many exciting position players, pitching more than hitting separates the playoff teams from the others. One need look no further than the first six games this year to see what above average hitting with below average pitching will get you.
