Happ steps up a notch

We are not talking about the Pittsburgh Pirates, this was the St. Louis Cardinals that J.A. Happ pitched a complete-game shutout against last night. In the process he probably exorcised a few demons, after his last start against the Redbirds, his second in an Astro uniform, went horribly wrong.

He may not be the calibre of pitcher that Roy Oswalt is, but Happ is a different type of pitcher, and since he's a lefty, every piece on him will undoubtedly refer to him as 'crafty' at least once. If you ignore his start at Busch Stadium, where he gave up seven earned runs in just one inning, his ERA in the other six starts is 1.81.

And Happ allowed just two hits to the Cardinals in nine innings of stellar work last night, giving the Astros a 3-0 win after a tough day against knuckleballer R.A. Dickey.

Here's a very intriguing piece by Alyson Footer, who talks about guys in the Philly clubhouse's reaction to Happ being traded to Houston. It was hardly a shock, as Happ's name was repeatedly talked about as the centre-piece of an Oswalt trade. Basically she says that the guys were not happy, and thought Happ was a future cornerstone in Philadelphia.

Wade is trying to rebuild a franchise, and he's looking for pieces to do that. Some are small and some are big. Some look small, but are actually very big, and Happ might be one of those. Early returns, and we are talking early returns, because there is still a long way to go, look very good. I'll make my judgements at the end of a full season (2011), because Happ may go the way of Brandon Backe for all we know.

A lot of people are saying that fans need to be cautious if they think the Astros can compete in 2011, but they aren't a million miles away from being a .500 team. Offensively they need more punch, but the free agent market is underwhelming, and apart from second base, which seems to be a dificult position to fill, there are not really any available slots on the field. The outfield is tied up- Johnson, Wallace and Castro have three positions down, so that leaves only the middle infield spots to improve our offense with.

The rotation has looked better and better as the season has worn on, and a full year of Myers, Happ, Rodriguez and Norris at their best, would send Houston a long way. Will they be hurt by lacking a real ace at the top of the rotation? Lyles might bring that, but 2012 will likely be his rookie year, and there is no-one else close to the Majors who you would label as a front of the rotation guy. Paulino could be a no.2, if he could stay healthy and pitch at a more consistent level, but he and Norris' stuff is still very raw and not fully developed. They have still got a ways to go as they learn to pitch at the big league level.

While he might never dazzle, and strike a whole load of guys out, you need pitchers like Happ, who will give you the chance to win 7 or 8 times out of 10. Tony LaRussa was very complimentary of Happ after the loss, which sees his team fall six games behind the Cincinnati Reds in the NL Central race, praising his command of the corners with all four pitches.

"He had everything working tonight," LaRussa said. "Everything he threw, nothing over the middle, changed speed, different breaks. It was an outstanding exhibition of pitching.

Tonight's game should be an absolute humdinger, as Wandy Rodriguez squares off against Chris Carpenter.

Both Jeff Keppinger and Matt Lindstrom are in Corpus Christi on re-hab assignments. Keppinger could be with the team by Tuesday, while Lindstrom will throw 20-25 pitches tonight and 1 IP for Corpus (or at least that is the plan).

I wouldn't dream of discussing American politics on here, as that is one quagmire I'd not want to step into, but when I saw this, about LaRussa and Pujols attending the Glenn Beck 'non-political' rally in DC, I thought, really? And LaRussa has expressed his support for the tough Arizona anti-immigration. Hmmm...you know, I wonder who might have been affected if, say those measures were in place across the whole of the US in say, 1996? Where was Albert Pujols from again? Jeez, give me a break you loonies. Ooops, sorry. No politics. Got it.

Myers levels series

Brett Myers tops Larry Dierker's record by starting the season with 27 straight performances of six or more innings. His ERA for the season dropped to 2.97, while he out-duelled Johan Santana, who has had trouble with run support all year. Coming into this game, the Mets lefty had an ERA of 2.97 and received run support of 2.96 runs a game.

In his last 11 starts he now has a 2.08 ERA, and the Astros have won 8 of those starts. It continued the run of quality starts, as Astros' pitchers have now recorded 17 quality starts in 18 games. Myers continues to be a revelation, and a real feather in the cap for Ed Wade, bumping his season's WAR up to 4.5 (on the baseball-ref scale).

They may be winning enough games, but the Astros are still struggling to score runs. They are winning games because their starters are red-hot. In their last 13 games, in which they are 8-5, they've averaged only 2.7 runs a game, and have been shutout once, scored one run twice, two runs twice, and three runs four times.

They have faced some good starters in that time period, and they have won a lot of close games. They have faced Santana twice, Roy Halladay, Anibel Sanchez, Cole Hamels, Chris Volstad, Mike Pelfry, Jon Niese, Pat Misch and R.A. Dickey. They have played 9 of those 13 games on the road, and have historically struggled on the 10 game roadtrips.

They will go into today's game hoping to take the series off the Mets before heading home to face the Cardinals (can we play spoiler in another division race?). Bud Norris will take on R.A. Dickey, 12.10 CT start at Citi Field.

Carlos Lee continues to be an enigma, and has a slash line of .297/.343/.525, driving in 25 runs in 26 games, hitting three home runs in the last five games. Lee drove in Bourn in the first inning, then drove in Bourn again with a 2-run home run in the fifth inning. Bourn has had a better last few games, but actually batted 2nd, behind Jason Bourgeois in the lineup.

Timmy from TCB might be angry that Wallace continues to sit against left handed pitchers, considering his minor league splits were far better against left-handed pitchers. Chris Johnson's splits against lefties (.290/.309/.371) are worse than against righties (.351/.384.548). A novel idea, since Wallace could presumably play third base, would be to play Wallace at third against lefties, leaving Johnson on the bench, and Lee at first.

You could see the logic behind playing Lee against Santana, as he increased to 14-42 batting .333 against the pitcher. And with the space in Citi Field, you need Bourgeois out in LF and not Lee.

Bourn's slash line, in a very small sample of seven games is .400/.455/.500, scoring seven runs and swiping five bases. His speed and defense is great, but he needs to contribute more as a lead-off hitter.

Astros beat Phillies 5-1, sweep four-game series

I can't remember a better series from the Astros since they swept the Cardinals to keep their playoff hopes alive in 2006. Firstly, on baseball-reference, a writer takes a cheap shot at the Phillies and then complains when he gets a backlash of rational points back. Here's a Philly perspective on the series loss, mentioning that the Phillies have scored two runs or less in seven of their last eight home games. They've scored 17 runs in their last eight games, and included in that was a 6-0 win against Washington last week.

It was just an incredible series for the Astros, not so for the Phillies. In fact Fan Graphs estimated that the Astros chances of sweeping the series was roughly 1%, while the series saw the Phillies probability of making the playoffs drop by 23%.

Ok, lets see what the two teams have done so far all season, and what they did in the series. Philadelphia outscore their opponents 4.7 to 4.12 runs a game, while Houston are outscored 4.65 to 3.80. They were all pretty close games, but the Astros scored 3.75 R/G, while Philly scored a measly 1.75 runs a game.

Since June 1st the Astros are 41-35, scoring a half-decent 4.3 runs a game, allowing just 4.4 runs per game (somehow I thought it would be better than that, Astros must be winning a disproportionate amount of one run games). This is in fact the case. In those 76 games there have been 16 one run games and the Astros have won 10 of them.

The most impressive thing recently has unquestionably been our starting pitching. Since that 10-4 win against the Braves, we've played 16 games, and are 10-6 over those games. Our starting pitchers have recorded 15 quality starts in those 16 games, with Figueroa's start against the Mets 5 IP and 1 ER missing that arbitrary cut off. In that period the Astros' starters have a cumulative ERA of 2.15. That is very good.

So since Wesley Wright was cut from the rotation, every starter is getting the job done. We're not getting enough from the offense, as Hunter Pence, and especially Carlos Lee (who doubled and hit a solo shot yesterday) have carried the team in the last two weeks. Castro and Wallace are still learning on the field, and we don't get much from Manzella. Anderson Hernandez had a good game yesterday as did Angel Sanchez, and Bourn was 8-20 in the series, stealing four bases, while being involved in an extraordinary turn of events last night.

Reaching first base on a deflected ball by the pitcher, Bourn stole second, then advanced on a Hernandez infield single to third. The third baseman fielded the ball and threw to first, where the runner was safe, but Bourn continued on, rounding third, then scoring on Howard's throw back to the plate. Meep meep.

The Astros took the game 5-1, as Rodriguez battled through seven innings allowing just one run, while his teammates gave him an early lead off Kyle Kendrick. The Phillies made it easier for the Astros, as Jayson Werth tried to score on a Schneider fly ball, but was gunned down by Pence, and tagged out by Castro, bizarrely without diving. He didn't even try and touch home plate.

Rodriguez threw 112 pitches and did not have the best command, but he battled through, against a very tight strikezone by the home plate umpire, who missed some very glaring strikes, lowering his ERA to 3.87. In his last 12 starts, Wandy is 7-2 with a 1.79 ERA allowing a .212 opponents batting average. He did not allow a hit until the fifth inning, and allowed just one walk.

The Astros moved to 16-7 at Citizens Bank Park, and have seemingly got their strut back, a very good observation by mlb.com's Brian McTaggart. Alyson Footer meanwhile asks whether Bagwell will return as hitting coach in 2011, and I've got to think that the Astros as an organisation have to do everything they can to keep him for a few years.

Astros beat Phillies for fourth straight win

Bizarre, just absolutely bizarre. The Astros beat the Phillies again, with J.A. Happ 'out-duelling' Roy Halladay, with Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn hitting solo shots, while Humberto Quintero not only had a 2-out go-ahead RBI single, but also picked off Ben Francisco on another heads up play to end the seventh inning.

Once again though, the Phills sowed the seeds of their own destruction, especially with the Francisco play in the seventh, where he was taking a nap on third base, and missed the bag behind him. Utley failed to get the runner home with one out in the sixth, while Charlie Manuel brought in a pinch-hitter to replace Halladay, having only thrown 73 pitches.

It was clear early in the game that the Astros were swinging on first pitches because they felt that was the best pitch they would get off Halladay, who had pitched eighteen scoreless innings before Pence's solo shot. First time through the lineup four of the Astros hitters swung, and made an out on the first pitch they saw, usually a fastball. Next time through they were more patient, or rather Halladay's command wasn't as good. Johnson's single in the fifth came on 1-0, and Pence's home run on 2-0. Bourn's home run on a 1-1 pitch was a fastball on the inside corner, right in the lefty's wheelhouse.

Bizarre. Mills used three pitchers in the seventh, pulling Lopez after he allowed a hit, then using Byrdak and Melancon, before Brandon Lyon pitched the last two innings, striking out the side in the ninth.

Scanned through the Philadelphia game thread, and not happy bunnies there. "Also annoying about the Stros: they play every game against the Phillies like it's Game 7 of the World Series."

and "Well, that sucked." The Phillies are struggling to score runs at the moment, and they've managed just 16 runs in their last seven games, scoring most of those in a 6-0 victory over the Nationals last week.

The Astros meanwhile are now 15-7 at Citizens Bank Park, and are the only NL team to have a winning record against the Phillies since 2004. The game lasted 2 hours 27 minutes, a blessed relief after the 5 1/2 hour marathon yesterday.

The Phillies sat Howard against Happ, a lefty last night, so I wonder what they will do today, when Wandy Rodriguez faces Kyle Kendrick. The Astros currently have all five starters on a roll. Myers has a 2.23 ERA in his last 10 starts, the Astros have won Norris' last six starts, Happ has five quality starts in his six Houston outings, Figueroa has pitched well since joining the club, while Wandy has a 1.84 ERA in his past 11 starts, striking out 10 in his last start, despite losing to the Astros.

FanGraphs has this little piece on Nelson Figueroa, and includes praise for Ed Wade, shocking.

Kendrick is 1-1 with a 4.20 ERA in 2 starts and 3 games against the Astros. For his career he is 17-10 with a 4.59 ERA at Citizens Bank Park.

Other Astros news, they claimed Scott Downs on waivers (he's an infielder, 26), from the Giants after they claimed Cody Ross. He's a utility man, and will report to Round Rock, but probably not for long, as Geoff Blum seems likely to go back on the DL with elbow trouble.

After starting the season 13-3 on Winsday, the Astros had lost three straight on that hallowed day in August, before last night's win. We're now 14-6 on Wednesday (that's not counting Tuesday's game, which technically finished on Wednesday).

Sucks to be a Pirates fan, as it is disclosed that even with revenue sharing, the Pirates owners made around $30m in the 07-08 seasons rather than ploughing the cash back into the franchise. Ouch.

Serie

Astros win shocking 16-inning thriller

Forget the fact that this game should have been closed out in nine innings. Only a Jimmy Rollins solo-shot off the usually excellent Wilton Lopez sent this game to extras. Carlos Lee had given the Astros a 2-0 lead early on off Cole Hamels, before Bud Norris ran into some trouble in his sixth and final inning.

Norris battled through some iffy command, and at times was genuinely squeezed by the home plate umpire. Somehow Bud managed to get through the third and fourth innings, even though he failed to throw a first pitch strike to the eight hitters he faced in those two innings.

But the bizarre part of the game was yet to come. Forced into extras, the Astros got two scoreless from Fernando Abad, three from Mark Melancon and two from Jeff Fulchino, while Ryan Howard got himself tossed in the 14th, at a time when the Phillies had run out of position players. Charlie Manuel was then forced to put Raul Ibanez at first, and put Roy Oswalt, yes Roy Oswalt in left field, and he wasn't half bad.

Meanwhile Bourn made a good play in centre field, Manzella made two highlight reel worthy plays in the 9th and 11th innings, while Quintero caught Rollins stealing third in the seventh that almost certainly saved a run.

This rant at Philly2Philly.com is worth a read (link courtesy of Astros County). We are referred to as the Houston (triple A) Astros, and it says it is a 'disgrace' to lose to us. It points out that the Phillies scored just four runs in 25 innings, ignoring the fact that Myers is scorching hot (2.29 ERA in his last 10 starts), while last night was the sixth time in a row the Astros have won with Norris on the mound.

As for the umpiring decision throwing Howard out of the game, Howard had two straight check swing calls that, on appeal, were ruled strikes by third base umpire Scott Barry. Howard got very angry after the first, and was probably warned, then did exactly the same thing after the second one, throwing his bat and helmet to the first base side. 1) That is showing up an umpire, and 2) arguing balls and strikes is an ejectionable offence. A check-swing strike is still a strike.

I'm guessing the Philly-nation is still riled up about the call on Monday when Bourn reached base on the bunt, another call involving Ryan Howard. And it must have been hard to lose on a night when they could have gained a place on the Braves, who lost to the Rockies 5-2 last night.

Bottom 16th and with the bases juiced, Chris Johnson grounded to short, Michaels was safe at second, Johnson safe at first and Pence scored to make it 3-2. Manzella then grounded into a force out to score Wallace. Fulchino then induced a grounder from Oswalt to end the game in the bottom of the inning. Game over.

And what a game too. It might be Wednesday today, but the Astros face Roy Halladay, with former Philly J.A. Happ taking the mound for the Astros. Halladay has a 15 inning scoreless streak going, so don't expect a win later today.

Quote of the day: Jayson Werth "I'm not sure what I just saw, I think I may go take a nap and think about it [then] act like none of that happened."

Saw that the statue of Selig was unveiled at Miller Park. Yes he did a lot for Milwaukee but I still think its rather bigoted to have a statue of himself as he's still Commissioner. Why not make it in marble, while we're at it? What an egotistical twerp.

Myers haunts Philly

Before we get onto last night's game, I'd like to point out, however unlikely, that the Phillies 2010 rotation could have looked like this: Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt and Brett Myers. That would be one for the ages, and yes it is implausible because the only reason they got Oswalt was because they made a boo-boo selling Cliff Lee.

I have also said on many occasions that Myers needed a fresh start and was not at all happy in Philadelphia. But he did not seem to unhappy at Citizens Bank Park, throwing a very good seven innings against a very good lineup. He looked to be on the hook for the loss, as a Hunter Pence sac-fly was all the Astros could muster off Joe Blanton, until Lee plated Jason Michaels and Michael Bourn in the 8th, and the Astros took the game 3-2, with Byrdak and Lyon closing the game out. Bourn had a solid 3-4 night stealing two bases and scoring two runs, and it was the perfect start to the series (Wilton Lopez pitched two innings the other night, and Mills will have to keep him for the big innings).

As Astros County points out, Joe Blanton's 70 game score was the highest an opposing pitcher has thrown, with the Astros winning the game since Ryan Dempster's 73 on April 18th, so a very good win. For those of you who have no idea what game score means, check out the glossary on b-r.

There was a bit of controversy before Lee's hit in the eighth though, and I think the Phillies have a legitimate complaint. Michaels reached on the single, then Bourn bunted. Running up the first base line he evaded the tag from Howard by swerving to his right onto the grass. It wasn't by much and he only just had his foot on the grass, and I don't know the ruling on that one. Lucky, I guess. Sanchez bunted them over, Pence struckout before Lee delivered what turned out to be the game-winning hit.

Bud Norris against Cole Hamels, and we'll see how far Bud has come in the past few weeks against a tough Philly lineup, 6.05 CT start.

Astros odds and ends

So things have piled up and up in the last week that I've been not posting, apologies, but my life got in the way as it often does. Firstly, the Astros are the most unwatcheable team according to some random arbitrary statistics muddled together, by someone. As Clack points out on TCB, you really need some measurement of close games and come from behind wins if you want to quantify how fun a team is to watch.

Talk of the Astros' future always seems to stir up a lot of emotions in people, and this TCB piece by David Coleman is no exception. I've been quite critical of Hunter Pence for most of this season, but as I was reminded, Pence doesn't stack up too badly against the league's other right-fielders, as his .346 wOBA ties him with Ludwick for sixth best among the twelve PA qualified NL RFers. And he takes a lot of flack for not getting enough walks, although his BB% is 6.2, tied last with Cody Ross. His K% is 16.8 the lowest of the group, so that is a bit of a bonus. Still the point is, Pence, with his current numbers will never be good enough to be a cornerstone of a good lineup. He could do well as a no. 5 or 6 hitter, but he'll only ever be 3 or 4 in a mediocre team. Which is what the Astros are.

It seems as though the Astros have nailed down quite a few positions with young players, Pence in RF, Bourn CF, Wallace 1B, Castro C, Johnson 3B, leaving only the middle infield positions and left field unsettled. That's not a lot to space to add some punch. Pence and Bourn still have not consistently delivered enough for the Astros, while Castro and Wallace are unknown quantities in the majors, while Johnson's 2010 seems to be an abberation (although we hope not).

Lee will plague the Astros for just two more years, and I'm all up for starting Corpus Christi's JD Martinez at AAA next season, giving Lee just 1/2 months in 2011 to turn his career around. If he fails at that, bench him and give our 2009 20th round draft pick the job. After having a .362 BA at Lexington, Martinez's slash line .329/.388/.467 is pretty-darn good, adjusting to the new league. His ISO (isolated power) is down to .139 where it was .239 in A ball. Still I like him hitting for average rather than power at this early stage.

Other names that are impressing in the minors (there are plenty, but I'm just plucking a few out), Ben Heath our 5th round pick has done well after being promoted to Lexington from Tri-City. .971 OPS in his first 12 games with the Legends. Our first round pick Mr DeShields is enjoying Greenville, where he's batted .310 in 7 games, hitting 5 doubles and stealing two bags.

The Astros roll into Philadelphia today, and you can get in the mood by reading two great pieces I found this morning, as Astros County and CrashBurn Alley host a crossover. I'd forgotten about Craig Biggio's 3-run homer off Billy Wagner in the top of the ninth against Philly in 2005, but it instantly came back to me. Bidge was such a class act, as, even though the home run was massive, he sprinted around the bases, and refused to celebrate and show up a former teammate. I miss his dirty helmet.

The Astros are averaging 5.4 runs in their last 26 games. Heck, I knew we have been better of late, but not that much better. Carlos Lee had a good start to August (but surprise surprise) has gone stone cold again (slash-line for first 11 G of Aug, .357/.438/.524, last 9 games .200/.222/.343). Hell yeah, eat your heart out Mendoza. As Chris Johnson cools off, it is Pence who is carrying us, as his solo home run made the difference against the Fish last night.

Since the start of July, he's hitting .324/.363/.545, and that's good enough for a .909 OPS in 43 games. Now this is the sort of production we need from Hunter over a full season, not just a month and a half. But for him to get his OBP where it needs to be (i.e. over .350), he has to hit for an average over .300, like in his rookie year.

I'm still reading from the AC answers here, and it notes that Norris has a 4.15 ERA after the all-star break. I've seen enough from Norris this season, especially in the last half-dozen starts that suggest that, if he could stay healthy, and learn how to pitch with a bit more guile, he could be a future no.2 starter. There are a lot of its and buts, but to compete in the next three years, we need a no.1 and 2 starter from the three of Lyles, Paulino and Norris. At least with our offensive production.

Two of the four matchups look very winnable Myers-Blanton and Rodriguez-Kendrick. Norris-Hamels shades towards the Phillies, and I'll give us little to no chance of beating Roy Halladay with J.A. Happ taking on his old teammates. Roy Oswalt pitched 7 innings of shutout last night, which was very good to see. Some might harbour ill-will towards him, but he was a servant to the club for a decade, and I wish him the best.

I'm a bit annoyed that Matt Lindstrom went on the DL when he did, because some of his performances have hurt us quite badly over the past two weeks, and those two losses really blew that momentum we had going into the Milwaukee series. If your hurt, you should be on the DL (I'm looking at you the 2004 Morgan Ensberg).

Last but not least, Nelson Figueroa deserves a pat on the back for another very good start, this time salvaging something from a difficult series at the something-something stadium in Florida, something.

It seems the Astros and Wandy are talking about the leftie's future, and there is talk of a multi-year extension. David talks about this briefly. I first posited this idea when Brett Myers deal was in the offing. A lot of Astros fans are ready to ship Wandy off in the winter if his value has gone up enough, and it depends whether he would like to move on in the trade market, or a year later in the FA pool. If Wade can lock him up through 2011, 2012 and 2013 for $24m (£15.49m) odd, I'm all for it. Good for Wandy as it is guaranteed money in his pocket. And who needs $24m? Still a lot of cash for anyone.

In other Astros news, it seems as if losing the Round Rock affiliate has irritated Drayton McLane and to make sure they didn't lose Corpus Christi in 2012, they signed an extension to 2016. Good job, Whataburger Field sounds like a wonderful place.

Lee finds form finally....in August

Carlos Lee has actually founds some form, but its August, and our season has been over for months. You don't mind If I save the applause for someone who actually deserves it. Lee managed three walks in April, five in May and 3three in June, but in the calender month of August has a slash line of .357/.438/.524.

Ross Ohlendorf pitched well for seven innings, as did Brett Myers, but the Astros got to Even Meek in the eighth, who coughed up a 3-run shot to Carlos Lee. Brett Wallace added an RBI single in the same inning, while Wilton Lopez pitched a scoreless inning before Lyon got the save, inducing a double-play to end the game.

Myers bumped up his WAR on the season to 3.8 (showing how his signing was a total steal for Ed Wade at $3.1m). Myers has been so consistent all year, having only one really awful start (the end of June against the Brewers when they knocked him for seven runs).
Still, his performances have gotten better and better as the year has progressed, owner of a 2.22 ERA in his last eight starts, owning a 4.4:1 K:BB ratio over that span. That includes a 68% strike rate and a .234 BAbib for hitters against him. Myers has pitched at least six innings in every start in 2010.

It seems to be 2011 day at the Chronicle with both Chip Bailey and Richard Justice speculating about whether the Astros can compete next season. Pitching will probably not be that much of an issue, with Happ, Rodriguez and Myers probably returning. The success of the rotation depends on how well guys like Paulino and Norris can go over a whole season. They both showed flashes this season, but they have both been injured at some point, and inconsistent at times. They've got the tools to be successful, but they are still learning pitch-craft.

The real bugbear will be the offense, and it is this stumbling block that makes me think we'll skirt around .500, but not contend next season. With Carlos Lee, Pence, Keppinger and Manzella in our lineup we will never score enough runs to compete. Johnson and Wallace hopefully have bright futures as above average offensive producers, but I really could not say how high Castro can go, while Bourn needs to get his OBP around .350 to add to his base-stealing ability and great defensive work.

Justice says this which makes me wince:
It now appears the 2011 rotation will have Brett Myers, Wandy Rodriguez, J.A. Happ, Bud Norris and Jordan Lyles.
Lyles will be 20 next year, and me and many others think he should play most of 2011 in AAA. Bring him to spring training certainly, but we need to nurture him a bit. Not coddle, but what is the rush for next year? There is no rush.

Personally I'd rather see J.D. Martinez told he's competing with Lee for the left-fielders spot next year, and bench Lee if he's not up for the challenge in 2011. Good old Carlos Lee and his -10.8 UZR (Ultimate Zone Rating). He's killed AA pitching in 28 starts after being promoted to Corpus Christi, a 2009 draftee.

In other Astros' news, it seems like the third round draft pick Austin Wates will sign before the deadline,  Ben Heath hit three home runs last night, while Jose Altuve hit a walk off grand slam last night.

Well that was a whack in the face

Bizarre. Wandy goes his first 21 starts and only has one no decision. He then gets two straight. And that was two very good pitching performances from our starters blemished by our bullpen and our offense. We didn't score enough runs in the last two games to give our bullpen enough leeway, but the games were not fun to watch, or at least the end of the games weren't.

We basically scored our two runs because of a Johnson sac-fly and the other on a Pence single only after Bourn had swiped second and taken third after a botched run-down. We had one more hit than stolen base, although Tommy Hanson pitched very well, continually working ahead in the count, locating his fastball well, and fooling a lot of the Astro hitters with his slider.

Brandon Lyon's outing was less than stellar, giving the Braves the lead before Brian McCann's grand-slam. Yet as someone said, shouldn't it have been more difficult for the Braves, since they had Martin Prado, Chipper Jones, Jason Heyward, and McCann missing from the starting lineup?

You do have to love Chris Johnson's numbers, as he has a 1.152 OPS since the all-star break including this line .432/.469/.693. Still not a lot of walks, but he has been batting at 7. I wonder how wise it is Brad Mills ratcheting him up the lineup. I like him at 6-7 because it means there is less pressure on him, although he will have to deal with pressure if he wants to be a middle of the order bat. Contrast his 1.6 WAR with Feliz's -2.1 WAR.

Bud Norris and Johnson, both 25 and products of our 2006 draft could have good futures at the club. Some have suggested a future closer's role for Norris in the near future, although I'm not opposed to that, he can stay where he is for the meantime. If he and Paulino could both stay healthy for all of 2011, even without an ace I would be happy with a rotation of Myers, Rodriguez, Happ, Paulino and Norris (leaving Lyles at AAA for 2011, then calling him up in September).

Remind me why we haven't DFA'd Pedro Feliz? I do not blame Wade for signing him. It was a decent gamble. But it did not come off. Feliz is not doing anything for us, except eating a roster spot that could be used to better effect.

Wandy was a little unlucky in his start as he pitched a blinder for four innings, then lost his control. If not for the Castro past ball, he might have got out of the first without allowing a run, then in the fifth he just lost control of his pitches. He then threw Tommy Hanson four straight fastballs, with the Braves pitcher hitting the fourth for a pretty fortuitous single. Wandy then threw Hanson five straight curveballs in his next at bat. Original play-calling for sure.

In his last nine starts Wandy is 6-1 with a 1.79 ERA, with a 59 K and 11 BB. 11 walks is pretty darn good in nine starts. Contrast this with his first 14 starts, 3-10 6.09 ERA, 52 Ks and 34 BB.

OremLK speculates about whether the Astros should sign Wandy to a contract extension. This a point I've been banging on about for the past week. I don't think Wandy will get the $$$s on the free agency market, and I think he'd be wise to sign a contract extension roughly worth what Myers signed last week.

Wandy is now 31, but he works off that spotted fastball and dandy curve, and he hasn't had a ton of injuries, so I don't see his numbers falling off a cliff over the next few years. I think it just looks wise to lock up Myers and Wandy from 2011-2013 to lead this transition of younger players, and have an anchor in there. You need a couple of veterans as a stabilising players, and when Lyles those sorts of guys are ready, they can be phased in. I think that is the way to do it.

I don't believe what I just saw moment of the game: Carlos Lee steals second base off Atlanta closer, former Astro and left handed pitcher Billy Wagner.

Odd day today: Brett Myers kicks off the Pittsburgh (yay) series, facing Ross Ohlendorf, who the Astros have owned.

Shine on you crazy diamonds

OK, the Astros scored six runs in one inning last night, and ten in the game. While ten is a rare event, lets see how often the Astros have scored six runs in a single inning. If you said once, you would be correct. This was Lance Berkman's grand slam two weeks ago (July 27th).

In fact the Astros are not as bad at putting up crooked numbers as I thought. They don't do it an awful lot, but hey-ho: for the following stats I have excluded last night's game.
Number of times the Astros have scored 6 runs in an inning:1
# of time Astros have scored 5 runs in an inning: 5
# of times Astros have scored 4 runs in an inning: 14
# number of times Astros have scored 6 runs in a game: 25

Now that's pretty awful, especially when you consider 1 of those 5 run innings, and three of the four run innings happened in the same game (18 run Cardinals win). The last one means that we have failed to score six runs in, oh 85 of 110 games this season, which is around 77%. Not good, especially not for your pitchers, who know that they won't have a very healthy lead, heaping more pressure on them. We just have not had many blowouts, and we only won this game by six (10-4). It also took until June 23rd-25th until we scored at least 6 runs in all three games of a series (against the Cardinals). Again, very bad.

Last night's game was good, in an unexpected way. It was unexpected in the sense that we got some luck. Like when Chris Johnson scored on his own RBI single. Or how Pence scored on Alex Gonzalez's error.
Or how Kyle Farnsworth was brought in and faced Keppinger with the game tied (again hitting in the 3 spot). Or how inexplicably Minor got thrown out by Pence at first on a single to right field (which would have plated a run). Bizarre. Bobby Cox will have given him a tongue-lashing for that one after the game.

Bud Norris, well.....he pitched well, but gave up two home runs. He is a work in progress, and he should get some props for hanging in there. David talks about his last start, so give that a read.

Nelson Figueroa will start in place of Wesley Wright.

Ugly Loss rounds off Ugly series

So for at least a series the Astros team collapses, and the Brewers do what we did to them a week ago, and sweep us out of Milwaukee. Blowing that first game was a real momentum killer for us. Had Lindstrom done the business, then the Astros might not have been so limp in the last two games. Yet, it is worth pointing out that the Brewers have a good offense, Wesley Wright is a poor starter and Yovani Gallardo is a good one.

Any pitcher can put together a good few innings, and perhaps even a few serviceable starts, but I am totally unconvinced that Wright can be a major league starter. His fastball is flat, and his breaking balls are not very good would be my succinct summary of him. He can't stretch out as a starter, the command on his fastball was reaching horrendous levels last night, and I still don't think Castro and Wright are on the same page with game-calling (hence Quintero was in the lineup five days earlier against leftie Randy Wolf). As I've been writing this, the Astros have optioned Wright to AAA, bringing up Mark Melancon.

The pitching may not be lousy/not very good over the past few days, but at leas the bats are still working. A 6.7 runs/game average over the past 11 games is ridiculous considering how bad we have been at points this season. Well we are equivocally giving 100% of the credit to the Great Jeff Bagwell. Fallas says something very briefly on the topic, and I'd probably say that there are so many factors in hitting, you could never nail down one and say, this is why he's hitting, this is why he isn't hitting, etc. Sometimes there is a thing that a batting coach can correct, say a glaring problem in a batters' mechanisms, but most of the times it is either subtle, or it is just in the head. Pence, Johnson, Sanchez and Keppinger all hitting over .300 over the past month must help too.

The Astros are starting to gear up on their draft picks coming up to the deadline. With DeShields gone,25th rounder Rodney Quintero seems to have signed and 3rd round Austin Wates is in Houston for contract negotations, and it depends how far over the Astros will/can go over slot to sign him. Seems like there is no chance Jacoby Jones will sign. Sorry.

Bad news as Atlanta is in town, but the Astros are 10-5 in their last 15 home games. Score. Mike Minor makes his major league debut against Bud Norris (Minor has been called up to fill in for Kris Medlen, whose injury looks pretty serious). Minor's stats look pretty good in AA/AAA this year, recording a 10.9 K/9. Here's a piece from the the Atlanta side on Minor's debut. Minor was the seventh pick by the Braves in last year's draft out of Vanderbilt. Wonder how long it will take the Astros' class of '09 to make it to the majors? Dallas Keuchel? J.D. Martinez?


Minor is a leftie, so expect Brad Mills to go by the book and stack the lineup with right-handed bats. I know it is convention, but I would like to see Mills do something different once in a while. Like when he puts in a leftie-pitcher to face a left-handed bat, even if that pitcher is Tim Byrdak. I'd rather he went with his gut rather than relying on a battered copy of Managing in the MLB for Dummies.

Tommy Hanson-Wandy Rodriguez should be an intriguing matchup on Wednesday, while we see Happ again on Tuesday, and have another chance to gauge where he slots in to our future plans.

Jon Heyman from SI assesses the trade deadline, but fails to mention either Jonathan Villar, and then ignores the fact that Berkman was traded. He was traded right? Well, he mentioned that Berkman went to N.Y. Um....did we get anything back for him? Several people seem to think Jimmy Paredes has good upside, and I think the progress of Paredes and Villar will be interesting to watch in the coming years, and we can see how much Wade got in his two trades.

Astros drop third straight

Carlos Lee makes it onto Joe Posnanski's list for worst everyday player of 2010. Good work Carlos, good work. On the subject of the Astros offensive woes, OremLK talks about Hunter Pence and his future in the Astros organisation.

Hunter Pence has a great personality, he is bubbly, friendly and a fan favourite. Yet, he has been a massive part of the reason for our plight this season. He may reach 25 HR and 90 RBI, but that is not enough. His defensive capabilities have gone down, his OBP is a horrendous .319 for a middle-order bat, and I do not see him ever pushing higher than a .350 on-base percentage. That really is not good enough, and I see him being marginalised to no.6 when the Astros bring in younger players over the course of the next two or three seasons.

His splits have been better since July 1st, .314/.349/.479, but his HR rate is still one every 27 at bats, his walk rate, isolated power (ISO) and his ground-ball rate is far too high.

Another pretty dismal loss last season, as Randy Wolf won after being beaten by the Astros last week as the Brewers bullpen blew his lead (that was Wesley Wright pitching that night). Some dodgy defending in the first, then in the sixth Milwaukee scored two on four straight singles. Wesley Wright will face Yovanny Gallardo as they try to avoid a sweep this afternoon (1.05 CT).

I have no faith in a lineup that includes Pence, Lee, Feliz and Quintero (all with negative WARs this season). You are asking for a beat if you ask me. Feliz needs to be DFA'd now, its getting stupid, and call up someone like Bogusevich from AAA. Quintero adds nothing offensively, and I'd be tempted to bench Lee just to kick him up the backside a bit.

Lindstrom makes pig's ear of save opportunity

That was looking like a nice 5-2 win as the Astros went into the bottom of the ninth, after another fine performance by Wandy Rodriguez. Alas, Matt Lindstrom came in and the wheels fell off. Joe Inglett hit a 2-run home run, then Prince Fielder won the game with a 2-run single. Painful.

Possibly the Astros should have done more with the scoring opportunities they had during the game, but you expect to win a game when you hand your closer a three-run lead in the ninth.

Brett Myers-Randy Wolf tomorrow, hopefully the Astros can regain some of that momentum they had when they came into the Cardinals series.

Subber 10 talks about Methylhexanamine, the substance the three Astros minor leaguers (Jonathan Fixler, Marcos Cabral and Danny Meszaros) have been suspended for taking. The substance is found in nasal decongestants, but apparently a body-building product Jack3d is contaminated with it, although it does have similar properties to amphetamines. Are they cheaters, or just victims of circumstance. There is a lot of vilification going on already of the three, but perhaps they should receive the benefit of the doubt, at least for now.

While this season is important for seeing how J.A. Happ, Brett Wallace, Jason Castro and Chris Johnson fit in, it is equally important for Hunter Pence, Wandy Rodriguez and Michael Bourn as they show they can be integral parts of the Astros franchise for years to come.

Rodrgiuez now has a 1.85 ERA in his past eight starts, giving up one earned run or less in six of those starts. Pence too had a good July, as his splits are .315/.353/.477 since July 1st. However it isn't enough from Pence to be satisfied with 25 HR 80 RBI and say that's enough. A .319 OBP is just not middle of the order offensive performance.

The Jordan Lyles promotion to AAA Round Rock has got everyone in a stir, with many feeling like Ed Wade is pushing Lyles too far too fast. From what I've read from Orem and Subber on the subject, to be elite he has to add two ticks on his fastball, up from the 91-93 range to 93-95. His curveball was described as a 'hammer curve' but his secondary pitches, the changeup and cutter still need work. Remember he is only 19, and the last thing you want to do is to blow his arm out, considering he's already showing some signs of fatigue, and he will reach his highest amount of IP in the next four starts. A September callup might give Lyles some major league experience, but it might be too soon for him, and tire him unnecessarily.

On the subject of Round Rock, this piece suggests that with the Ryan-Greenberg group taking over the Rangers, the Austin outfit will drop its affiliation with the Astros and instead be the Rangers minor league outfit, since it is owned by the Ryan-Sanders group.

Chris Johnson: late bloomer?

I don't dislike statistics, but I dislike people who use statistics while ignoring everything else. Sabermetrics have come a long way, and things like WAR (Wins Above Replacement) will be common parlance in baseball circles in a year or two. Yet, a writer had his backside handed to him when discussing the Astros in purely statistical terms. Everyone would love to have a farm system loaded with blue-chippers, but you have to take gambles on fringe players like Johnson and hope they come good.

Someone made a good point that the 2006 draft is looking slightly better with the 4th and 5th round draft picks starting to come good (Johnson and Bud Norris). Johnson would certainly be called a fringe prospect coming into the 2010 season, yet the third baseman is on a month-plus long TEAR. We're talking about a small sample size, but since callups he has a 1.007 OPS.

Funny mini-story, as fan asks St. Louis Post-Dispatch writer how the Cardinals lost two of three to a team as bad as the Astros. The writer correctly pointed out that the Astros have a better record than the Cardinals since June 1st. Doesn't that seem like a long time ago?

Last night's game was quite a bummer. Not only did the Astros seven game winning streak come to an end, but they also lost for the first time on a Wednesday since late-April. Chris Carpenter is an excellent pitcher, and he's been very good against Houston in his career. He has also been unhittable at Busch Stadium this year, and has a miniscule 2.75 ERA in the friendly confines. Happ, well, that was an ugly three outs. Hopefully the offense will continue to motor into Milwaukee.

Tune in 3pm CT for Delino DeShields' press conference or something. No game today, Brewers series starts Friday.

Astros Run Streak to 7 with 18-4 Demolition of Cards

Its a pity it took what it did to get this team moving. For the first time this season, the Astros are putting everything together, defensively and offensively, and last night rolled to a seventh straight win.

They've scored 57 runs to their opponents 12 over their winning streak. But this is not an overnight thing. Since June 1st, they are 30-25, while their starting pitchers had the best combined ERA in the National League in July, compiling a 2.54 ERA.

So to add to our excellent pitching, we are scoring runs, and getting lots of hits with men on. It always helps when you are a gigantic 13-19 with RISP. The Astros got some help from some poor defense, especially a play where Miles made a good play, then airmailed his throw to second into right field, turning a potential double play into a run, and two men on.

Props to Angel Sanchez who had one of those J.R. Towles-esque games, going 4-6 with 6 RBI. But pretty much everyone got in on the act, as the Astros sent nine men to the plate in the 2nd, seven in the 6th, eight in the 7th and 10 in the 8th inning. Before Miles staunched the bleeding, the Cardinals had not recorded consecutive outs against the previous 25 hitters.

The splurge included five doubles, a triple, two sac flys, five walks, but no home runs. What has got this stubborn lineup moving. They scored 18 runs, even with Lee and Feliz in there. Perhaps some of the guys have responded to Bagwell's instruction, or perhaps they have been shamed by the trades into action, or maybe they have finally come round after a season of poor starts. Having Chris Johnson in there everyday is helping our cause, outperforming everyone by a country mile. He has a .970 OPS since being called up (admittedly it is a small sample size and it should go down as the season progresses).

After a solid come from behind win, the Astros exploded against Jaime Garcia, and kept bounding away. In fact, until Aaron Miles pitched a scoreless ninth for the Redbirds, the Astros had scored against the previous 13 pitchers they faced.

The omens did not look that good for the Cardinals. Norris, in three previous starts in Busch Stadium had an ERA of 0.45, which probably took a hit last night, as he turned in a good/average start. The Astros took their sixth straight game at Busch Stadium, no mean feat considering the Redbirds are 37-16 at home, and improved their record against NL Central teams to 30-18.

Jonathan Villar, the owner of a .538 BA in his first three games for Lancaster after being involved in the Roy Oswalt trade. Delino DeShields will sign according to Brian McTaggert, and has agreed a deal in principle, but has yet to sign on paper. I guess his press conference will give something for the Astros press corps to do something in August.

J.A. Happ pitches for the Astros today (Wins-Day), and faces a tricky opponent in Chris Carpenter. Truly this will be a challenge as they look to keep two streaks, the one aforementioned, and our Wins-day streak alive.

Astros up to fourth, Cards down to second

First off the bat, make sure you catch Stephen Higdon's ESPN 97.5 interview, its the sort of measured analysis that Astros' fans should be heeding (and some national writers, rather than blasting us). There seems to be a lot of Ed Wade blasting going on by national media types. No it was not the haul we wanted. We added a few decent pieces, and we shed some payroll. It was more important in changing the direction of the franchise than finding some magic bullet, which would heal the franchise of all its' scars in one afternoon.

I am very happy with what we have added in Happ and Wallace, two good if not spectacular pieces. Nowadays nobody gives up prospects like Singleton and Cosart. They are just too fearful of them becoming the new Nolan Ryan (exaggeration, but you get my drift).

The last couple of games have demonstrated that we are not a terrible ballclub, as our sixth straight win, this time over the-then division leaders catapulted us over the Cubs (who lost 18-1 to the Brewers last night) into fourth place in the NL Central.

29-18 against NL Central teams and counting. 13 games off .500, lets see how close we can get to that in the 57 games left of the season. Show some people etc.

An impressive victory last night, as this was only the fifth time the Astros had won this season while trailing after seven innings. Brett Myers was not at his best, but neither was the Astros' defense. A good job by pretty much the entire lineup, with Lee and Keppinger at four and five getting some key hits, while the entire team drew five walks. Wallace went 1-3 with a walk and an RBI.

In other important news, Delino DeShields Sr. has said publicly that he is certain his son will sign for the Astros before the August 14 deadline. DeShields was drafted no. 8 in the June Amateur Draft. Hopefully he will be another feather in Bobby 'Toolsy' Heck's cap.

Bud Norris pitches for the Astros tonight against Jaime Garcia.

Around the majors: Jeremy Hellickson won his major league debut against the Twins as the Rays went ahead of the Yankees in the AL East. A-Rod went 0-5, and now will be called Mr. 599.

Astros Keep the Wolf From the Door

Stings to be worse than the Astros, doesn' it?

Yesterday's game went another step to showing the Astros are more like perennial underachievers than NL Central bottom feeders. Any comparison to the Orioles and the Pirates can be put on hold for now. The Astros will not be bagging Anthony Rendon next year when the draft rolls around.

Even without our ace and best middle-order bat, we just aren't that bad. Wesley Wright did what other teams pitchers have been doing to us this season, shutting the Brewers down for 5 innings (and at one point had a perfect game going) until a Braun single, and then a Corey Hart 2-run shot. This was erased with a Jason Michaels pinch-hit grand-slam, as the outfielder came through in another big spot, as he has every time he has been given the chance in the past month or more.

Wright, I'm still not sold on his transition to a starter. Quintero did a better job calling the pitches, but he does not have the command of the fastball to operate in the high 80s, and his breaking pitch is average. He needs a third pitch badly, as someone on TCB commented.

Randy Wolf stymied the Astros for six innings until he was pulled and the Brewers relievers failed to find the strikezone. The win took the Astros to 28-18 against the NL Central, which is a pretty good record considering we have done well against everyone but the Reds (3-7). This also means that we are terrible against non-division teams. We have a 3-12 record in Interleague, and a 14-29 record against the rest of the NL.

Meanwhile the win was our fifth straight, our best win streak of the season. Chris Johnson's 14-game hitting streak ended last night as the third baseman went 0-3 with a walk and a run scored.

The more I think about it the more signing Wandy on a contract extension past 2011 makes sense to me. It is wrapping up some more payroll, but we'd essentially be locking up both Wandy and Brett Myers for the money we were paying Oswalt. Myers will cost the Astros $7m in 2011, while arbitration will probably bump up Rodriguez's wage from $5.1m to around $6.5m.

The elephant in the room, almost literally, seems to be Carlos Lee, which we are totally stuck with. Apart from that everything else is on the up for the Astros. Apart from our attendances, which seem to be fictitiously bolstered so our 'official' attendances look quite good.

I definitely prefer Zachary Levine's measured analysis to Justice's megalo-maniacal rants.

Brett Myers-Jake Westbrook tonight as we face the Cardinals in St. Louis.

Astros' next aim, be best of the worst

Next please

As Ed Wade gets to work on a Brett Myers contract extension, and they will probably resolve the issues over 2013, the new look Houston Astros settle in to play. They may even reach third in the NL Central as the Brewers and Cubs keep shooting themselves in the foot (Carlos Gonzalez completed the cycle by hitting a walk-off home run against Chicago last night).

Gone are Kaz Matsui, Lance Berkman and Pedro Feliz from their everyday spots. New players have taken the spots of the injured Tommy Manzella, and Humberto Quintero. In are rookies and young 'uns. Brad Mills will not be forced to play Lee, and can bench him at his pleasure. Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn, still young and impressionable, should benefit from working with Jeff Bagwell, as will Manzella, about to start a three-week rehab stint (how much difference it will make has me sceptical).

The lineup looks slightly more balanced than it did in April, a disaster of a month for the Astros, starting the season 0-8. This season there has been no coherence, no stability, and season long slumps across the board. 3.64 runs a game is nowhere near enough. Its pitiful.

Dumping the two most enduring faces of the franchise was never going to be painless, and Ed Wade understands this. Much to his chagrin the market was not receptive to getting the price he wanted. He added pieces to the farm system, but he failed to get the two or three blue-chippers fans craved. Brett Wallace and J.A. Happ are good pieces. They will contribute over the next four or five years.

And I think Wade has hit on something crucially important. Poor though the Astros offensive output has been over the last five years (2005-), what has really handicapped every GM at the start of the season is that we have always come into spring training looking to fill up two spots in the rotation. After Pettitte and Clemens' departure, it was Oswalt and four other guys. Brian Moehler is ok for a spot start, but he isn't a piece in a contender's team.

Look at 2007, Oswalt, Woody Williams, Chris Sampson, Matt Albers, Jason Jennings. Question marks? Lots. If an ace materialised out of thin air for 2011, we'd have a rotation that had a legitimate shot of having an ERA under 4. As it is the Astros front office along with Brad Mills will be tapping their fingernails on their desks and wondering when/if Bud Norris and Felipe Paulino can convert flashes of brilliance into consistent major league performances.

You were also wondering how long it would take me to write a post on the Astros' future without mentioning the great white hope Jordan Lyles. Still only 19, 2011 is still another year too early to think about bringing Lyles to the majors. 2012, with the trio of Rodriguez, Happ and Myers set, would leave a window for Lyles to enter the rotation.

This raising a point that Wandy enters his fourth and final arbitration year in 2011, leaving him free to leave as a free agent after the season. A lot of fans have called for Wade to move him this non-waiver trade deadline, simply because he has not lived up to his career year in 2009. The GM might explore possibilities for a move in the offseason, if Wandy's trade value has rebounded, but the window to sell high on the left hander might have already passed. If Rodriguez keeps producing the goods he has in his last seven starts, If I were Wade I would put feelers out for a contract extension 2011-2013, 3 years, $27m. The Astros will be on the hook for $6.5m odd for Wandy anyway next season.

Better him over the next three seasons than some Jake Westbrook you pick up via Free Agency.

In all this I have not talked much about the departures of Oswalt and Berkman. Maybe it will come into focus that they have left if the Yankees or Phillies taste success in the postseason, or when the numbers 17 and 44 are eventually hung next to 5 and 7 in Minute Maid Park's rafters. Drayton McLane loves faces of the franchise, as a selling point for the Astros. He did it with Biggio and Bagwell, he did it with Berkman and Oswalt, and now with our hyper-active Katy Perry-loving right fielder Hunter Pence.

Their bloated contracts were essential for keeping them in Houston, as their departures would have caused uproar. They might have worked out for the team had the farm system provided a team that could slot in around them, instead of pumping out drivel. Their departures mean Wade can start to shape the team the way he sees fit, without millstones grinding at his back, with the exception of one overly large left fielder in the shape of Carlos Lee.

This team will get younger, and hopefully better. No massive contracts, more toolsy outfielders, Bobby Heck style. If everything goes right, and Wade can add the odd decent piece in the offseason without many subtractions, then 2011 might bring the Astros an outside shot for .500, a mark they will only have made once in four years.

And maybe even a plaque in Cooperstown.

Lots of Ground to Cover

So the Lance Berkman deal to the Yankees was completed yesterday, and here is the summation by Baseball America. Jimmy Paredes is a second baseman with a lot of defensive issues, but he's got speed and scouts say power will come. His .312 OBP is slightly worrying, but at 21 he has time to correct those issues. Mike Melancone is a relief pitcher, who has a good fastball, but has been torched in small stints in the big leagues.

It is very sad to see Berkman go. Everyone loves Berkman, he is just one of those guys. Nights after bursting out for a grand slam, then reaching base five times in the same game, Berkman sat out Happ's debut, and off he goes to the Yankees. With an .808 OPS Lance was the Astros most productive middle-order hitter, when Pence and Lee have flopped all season.

Now the Astros have completely re-worked their lineup, looking transformed from opening day (I say this metaphorically, because Lance was out at that point of the season). I expect Carlos Lee's at bats to be limited as Mills gives someone like Bourgeois a couple of starts in left field.

So we're looking at a lineup like this: Bourn, Sanchez, Pence, Lee, Wallace, Keppinger, Johnson, Castro, pitcher. I'd expect Johnson to be moved up pretty soon, since after his callup he's killed the ball. His line since callups is .356/.382/.567, and a .949 OPS, and a pretty big .407 BABIP. Only four walks, but since he is batting 7th, do we need Johnson taking walks.

The Astros took their fourth win in a row, beating the Brewers in shutout fashion for the second night straight, Wandy Rodriguez following J.A. Happ with an eight inning shutout. So in his last seven starts he has a 1.91 ERA, 6-1 as a team and in his own personal record. Three of those starts he has not allowed an earned run. He runs his scoreless innings streak to 15 innings.

On Friday's game: Happ's debut could not have gone much better, but he had to battle in his six innings. There is plenty to like about Happ, but let us not get carried away. Although he was second in the RoY voting last year, he has had injuries this season, and although many peg him as a no.4 starter, I would not call it a stretch to say he could perform as a no. 2. And we already have most capable 2nd and 3rd starters in Myers and Wandy. It is at no. 1 and 5 we need help.

In Jordan Lyles 2012 we hope. Wade listened to offers for Brett Myers yesterday, and many will say we should have blown up this team and started from scratch. Firstly, the market has been underwhelming. See how the Cubs got properly fleeced in that trade, and while we're on the subject Ted Lilly got four years $40m on the free agency market. Myers probably would have hoped for that sort of money, maybe even more.

I'd agree we should have shifted Myers IF Wade wasn't going to sign him on the cheap on a multi-year contract. We now hear that negotiations are in the works, and the stickler is that Myers wants a guaranteed 2013, where Wade is offering an option. 3 years $30m would not seem a too high price for us. And people will say what's the point if we won't contend? Well we need some players so we don't get annihilated, and our crowds resemble those of the Marlins. Young players need some modicum of success, even if we won't contend.

Other quibbles will be that Berkman was dealt when he did not bring back much from the Yankees. We were not going to pick up Berkman's 2011 option, and the pr would have been ugly. McLane and Wade were trying to avoid what happened in spring training of 2006 which nearly cost the total goodwill of Jeff Bagwell towards the organisation.

The other disappointment is the return the Nationals got for Matt Capps, who heading off to the Twins. Would Matt Lindstrom have got the same return? Catcher Wilson Ramos may be expendable to Minnesota because of Joe Mauer, but still it is a nice return for Washington.

Around the majors: Laughably, since the acquisition of Oswalt, things have not gone well for the Phillies. Roy got rocked in his start against the Nationals, then Brad Lidge then allowed a walk-off three-run home run off Ryan Zimmerman. Berkman went 0-4 in his Yankees debut (he was facing Matt Garza).

Don't read any articles that read 'winners and losers in the trade deadline' unless you want to be made angry. Although the Boston Globe has us as winners, which is nice, as they probably understand the mountain Ed Wade is chipping away at. You can't run up Mount Everest, you take it one step at a time.