He’s a free agent at the end of the season so who knows what will happen but this signing has turned out to be one of Lunhow’s better free agent moves. I love watching the guy play, he seems to continue to get better as he adjusts to MLB life. He’ll be sadly missed if this is his last run with us but hopefully he’ll be an Astro for life! What a luxury having this man hit 6th for us for the majority of the time he’s been here...
At age 36 he’s having his best season and after today’s W he’s slashing .300/.373/.556 (.929 OPS) with a 162 G pace of: 37 HR, 104 R, 44 2B and most impressively for someone who used to never take a pitch/walk...a 66 BB to 88K ratio. That’s good for 7.3 WAR. I started thinking about the last time he struggled for an extended period like we’ve seen Correa, Bregman, Springer and currently Altuve and I couldn't remember it...so I looked at his splits and it's ridiculous how consistent he is across the board. Check these numbers out... Home: .294/.336/.509 2nd Half: .292/.335/.485 Vs. LHP Starters: .288/.333/.498 Day .297/.334/.518 High Leverage .301/.336/.473 Road: .293/.328/.457 1st Half: .294/.325/.472 Vs. RHP Starters: .296/.328/.478 Night .291/.331/.470 Low Leverage .288/.331/.466 And of course one of my favorite moments in Astros history...
Um this thread scared me... no appreciation threads until he is gone... Which is not until he retires.
I didn't know what to title it but I created it because he doesn't seem to get much national attention - a lot of this fan base as well I don't think appreciate how good and consistent he's been for us. Not many international players work out when given $40M+ deals but he's been more than worth it so I'm just happy he's been a part of this team and hope he doesn't get forgotten 20 years down the road by us Astros fans because without out him I don't think we'd have a ring right now. Anyhow, he's going to be turning 37 next year and I can't see us doling out the money it is going to take to keep him unless we let Springer walk...but yeah I'm not worried about that right now. Edit: If I could change the title I would change it to Yuli Gurriel's consistency.
Blum talks a lot about it but I also have no idea how he gets his hands around to square up, its crazy. The fact that he hits the ball so damn hard at times also. He's been great and has gotten better every year at 1st. I'd sign him to a 1 year if he'll take it at 37. Did anyone hear a trash can bang on that highlight? Yea didnt think so, I'd bet you couldn't hear yourself think in that ballpark. They can't ever take away those memories. Good stuff.
Yuli has always reminded me of Julio Franco with the way he attacks the ball and swings the bat. Also, Franco had some productive seasons into his 40s.
His ability to master 1B impressed the hell out of me. I like how he refuses to run to the bag and makes the pitcher always run.
I’ve been Astro’s fan since Yuli landed in Houston. Underrated a ton. At his age still providing good clutch bat, good glove, good endurance and no emotions at the plate. His last season in the Cuban league was hitting around 500. Will be a shame if Houston let him go as hi already stated his willingness to stay. A decent offer will keep him there. go Astros!!!
It's funny. When we signed Yuli, I always thought the biggest value we would get from the signing was attracting Lourdes. But then that didn't happen and Yuli ends up outplaying his contract anyway. It's been a treat getting to watch him play and hit. And the hair. Such spectacular hair.
How much should we factor in he doesn't have the wear & tear of a normal 36 year old MLB player? In other words, would giving him a 3 year extension be insane? He's not really a player that relies alot on his athleticism. On another note, I've wondered just how good Yuli would be if he came into the league in his young 20s? Could have he developed into an all-time great?
Gurriel is an extremely talented baseball player. By the time the Astros got him, he was already out of his prime. He was an absolute monster in his prime. His success in the US is more impressive when you consider that he did not play baseball for a long period of time....... spent very little time in the minors while also learning a completely new culture.... he then joins the Astros, starts to figure it out and gets hurt with an injury that is famous for sapping your power..... he comes back and in the last 3/4 of the year last year mashes and continues to hit. He has the fastest wrists I have seen on an Astros player ever....... faster than even Vinny Castilla. Off the top of my head the only guys with wrists like that were Sheffield, Bonds
Some guys just have a gift for putting the bat on the ball, he's a line drive machine. Alou seemed like he was squaring up everything in his 3 years, but he's the only other Astro I can think of.
Yeah.... Alou, Gurriel, DiMaggio, Williams..... a select group of guys were made to barrel baseballs..... you could hand them a bat at 60 and they would be hissing liners all over the field...... they couldn't always run well or use a glove well or really do anything else...... but with a blindfold on they would be hitting balls back up the middle.
Yordan is eventually heading towards exploratory surgery if you believe what the boys on Crawford are saying.
Fairly confident that if Yuli had come to the US at 23 or 24 he would be a hall of famer. He would have been an even better hitter than he is now and would have spent the last 12 years as a really good defensive 3B instead of an aging 1B.
