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Topics - ValpoCory

Pages: [1]
1
Talk Zone / 6 Pitches
« on: February 01, 2018, 12:53:51 pm »
I think I could watch the first 6 pitches of the Bottom of the 7th inning of Game 5 of the 2017 World Series every day for the rest of my life and never get sick of it.  I've pretty much done it for 3 months.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWj-du7Zlp0

Can't think of a better way to spend 8 and a half minutes.  I'm a much happier person after each watching.

2
The Championship Season Game Zone 2017 / ALDS Game 1 -- Astros vs. Red Sox
« on: October 05, 2017, 11:07:29 am »
Reddick is back and batting 6th.  Gurriel is batting 7th with Marwin 8th

I like it.  Let's Fucking Go, Stros!!!

Lineup

3
Talk Zone / ALDS -- Astros vs. Red Sox
« on: October 03, 2017, 11:15:38 am »
No surprise here:

Quote
Houston Astros‏ @astros

AJ Hinch announces starters for the first two ALDS games.

Game 1 - Verlander
Game 2 - Keuchel

#EarnHistory

4
The Championship Season Game Zone 2017 / Astros at Massholes - 9/29/17
« on: September 29, 2017, 03:44:32 pm »
Still no Reddick.  Really would like to see him in a game this weekend, to work on timing if nothing else.

Lineup


Looks like Correa is going to end up around 13-15 plate appearances short of the 501 you need to qualify for the league leaders. 

He'd be 4th in the league in batting right now with a .315 avg., just 2 points behind Hosmer. 

5
The Championship Season Game Zone 2017 / Astros at Rangers - 9/27/17
« on: September 27, 2017, 10:36:15 am »
Guess who's back ... Tuve's back

Lineup

6
The Championship Season Game Zone 2017 / Astros at Rangers - 9/26/17
« on: September 26, 2017, 05:07:35 pm »
No Altuve. Stuck on 199 hits. And Josh Reddick is still out with his sore back.    Hoping for the best in both areas.

Lineup

7
Talk Zone / Anybody ok with Photoshop?
« on: September 16, 2017, 01:29:30 am »
First off, my apologies to the BBGs, for they could infer from this post that I think the Astros are going to win the AL West.  I understand they could say "Hold my beer" at any moment.

That being said, back in 2014, the Winter Olympics were in Sochi, and there was a mess up with the rings.

Some fucking Rangers fan, always looking to shit on the Astros, came up with this knock off.

Have any of you used Photoshop before?  Can you alter the picture to inverse the sizes, making the "Astros ring" big and the other 4 rings as small rings?   Would be a nice post on clinch day, if it comes.

Thank you!

8
Talk Zone / Astros Rotation down the stretch
« on: September 15, 2017, 05:06:25 pm »
Do you want the Red Sox to get to face Keuchel and/or Verlander in the regular season finale series, prepping them for the ALDS?  A.J. Hinch's lack of a sense of urgency has been addressed on this board and elsewhere.   He doesn't take advantage of off days the same way as other teams do.

There are 16 games left.  We all know Morton/Keuchel/Verlander are going this weekend.

Then there is a day off Monday followed by 13 straight game days.    On 4-days rest (what other managers call normal rest), Keuchel could pitch Thursday and Verlander Friday, and be ready to go on Tuesday and Wednesday in Arlington.  This will not only give you a potential 7th start from your two aces if needed on the season's final day, but it will also allow you to have a good chance to keep your Aces up your sleeve, not pitching either Keuchel and Verlander in Boston.

What will Hinch do? 

1) Take advantage of the off day to get Keuchel and Verlander to pitch in Arlington
2) Go with a 5 man rotation and pitching with an extra days rest
3) Go with a 6-man rotation as ESPN currently lists it, with Keuchel and Verlander not pitching again for a week.

9
Talk Zone / Rules Question about last night's 9th inning
« on: July 18, 2017, 09:29:32 am »
Last night, Alex Bregman came to bat with 2 outs in the 9th inning with the bases loaded in a tie game.   He hit a grounder deep in the hole at short and Jean Segura made a great play to get a 6-4 force on Brian McCann.

Now Brian McCann slowed up as he approached 2nd base to slide and stop at 2nd.   Should McCann have run full speed through 2nd base in that situation? Assuming doing so would have meant McCann beating the throw, Gurriel was crossing home with the winning run at that moment.

What are the things to consider?   Bregman might not have reached first base before McCann would have been 15 feet passed 2nd base or tagged out.    Obviously if McCann is tagged or declared out before Bregman reaches first, it's a 3rd out and the run doesn't score, but McCann likely could have turned towards 3rd base as he passed 2nd to establish a baseline.


10
Talk Zone / Good ESPN Article on the Astros
« on: April 05, 2017, 11:34:08 am »
Sorry if Cabrera'd.

ESPN: How to enjoy the Astros, the most-fun-to-watch team in baseball by David Schoenfield

11
Talk Zone / Team records after X innings question
« on: June 10, 2016, 02:00:12 pm »
Charlie Pallilo keeps mentioning on AM 790 that the Astros are something like 0-25 when trailing after 6 innings this year. 

I remember a few years ago I found a sortable site that told you a team's record when trailing/leading after 6, 7, 8 innings, etc.    But I can't find it now.   Does anyone know of a site with that type of information?  Thank you in advance.

12
The Bus Ride Discussion Forum / Astros #17 in Keith Law's 2016 Farm System Rankings
« on: February 10, 2016, 02:50:45 pm »
The Astros were #3 last year. 

Law just released his 2016 list.

1.       Atlanta Braves
2.       Los Angeles Dodgers
3.       Minnesota Twins
4.       Chicago Cubs
5.       Milwaukee Brewers
6.       Philadelphia Phillies
7.       Colorado Rockies
8.       Pittsburgh Pirates
9.       Texas Rangers
10.   Boston Red Sox
11.   Cleveland Indians
12.   Cincinnati Reds
13.   New York Yankees
14.   Tampa Bay Rays
15.   Washington Nationals
16.   New York Mets
17.   Houston Astros
18.   Oakland Athletics
19.   St. Louis Cardinals
20.   San Diego Padres
21.   San Francisco Giants
22.   Chicago White Sox
23.   Kansas City Royals
24.   Arizona Diamondbacks
25.   Toronto Blue Jays
26.   Detroit Tigers
27.   Baltimore Orioles
28.   Seattle Mariners
29.   Miami Marlins
30.   Los Angeles Angels


On the glass is half full side, Houston is 2nd best in the AL West.

13
Talk Zone / MMP Pennant for 1981 Astros Division Series team
« on: October 12, 2015, 10:40:49 am »
The 1981 NLDS is considered to be a postseason series.  Why don't the Astros have a flag for the 1981 team at Minute Maid Park?   Perhaps when they add a flag for the 2015 postseason team, they can finally add a 1981 flag for symmetry. 

14
Talk Zone / Altuve making another run at 200 hits
« on: August 20, 2015, 10:34:58 am »
Just last week, this looked like a pipe dream.  But 6 games and 13 hits later, he's back in the mix.  He's still not on pace to get there (projected 191 hits after Wednesday), but that number is a lot higher than it was last week.

Altuve has 143 hits now, so he needs 57 hits in the team's final 41 games.    In the last 41 team games, Altuve has 59 hits, playing in all 41 (he's played in 50 straight since his return from injury in June).

Unlikely still, but I wouldn't bet against him.  Go Stros.


P.S. And just to update ... Jose Altuve is 25 years, 106 days old.  He has 773 career hits.
When Craig Biggio was 25 years, 106 days old (March 30th, 1991), he had 293 career hits.



15
Talk Zone / AL Playoffs and Cord Cutters
« on: August 17, 2015, 05:15:10 pm »
For those that have cut the cable cord to go with Free TV signals and Sling TV for ESPN and TBS, you will get a lot of playoff baseball ... NL Playoff baseball.  There is an outside chance 1 or 2 AL games will make it to FOX, but only if no football programming is available.

Quote
"FOX, FS1 or MLB Network will air the first three ALDS games, and then FOX or FS1 the remaining two, if necessary. TBS will cover all NLDS games. ... The AL Championship Series, beginning on Oct. 16, will be telecast by FOX or FS1. The NL Championship Series, set to start on Oct. 17, will be telecast by TBS."


Thank goodness for Stream2Watch.

16
Talk Zone / Between 7 and 14 games over since when?
« on: July 31, 2015, 11:40:47 am »
On April 29th, the Astros won to go 7 games over .500 at 14-7.  In the 92 days and counting since then, the Astros have stayed between 7 and 14 games over .500.     They've bounced from one extreme to the other, but always stayed in that range. 8 times they almost went out of the range, but all 8 they stayed inside that.

April 29th -- Astros at 14-7, win against the Mariners to stay in the range
May 12th -- Astros at 20-13, win against the Giants to stay in the range
June 4th -- Astros at 34-20, lose against the Orioles and unfortunately stay in the range
June 12th -- Astros at 34-27, win against the Mariners to stay in the range
June 14th -- Astros at 35-28, win against the Mariners to stay in the range
July 4th -- Astros at 48-34, lose against the Red Sox and unfortunately stay in the range
July 17th -- Astros at 49-42, win against the Rangers to stay in the range
July 19th -- Astros at 50-43, win against the Rangers to stay in the range


The Astros are at 58-45 now.  Hopefully they bust through that 14 games over .500 ceiling soon.

17
Talk Zone / Astros Trivia
« on: July 31, 2015, 10:35:19 am »
Who can identify when this happened to our Astros concerning an epic 3 game set at Minute Maid Park?

1. The games were preceded by the Astros losing 2 games in Missouri.
2. All 3 games were against Albert Pujols and his red-colored team
3. In the first game, the Astros fell behind early, but came back and win
4. In the second game, the Astros fell behind early, but came back and win
5. In the third game, the Astros starting pitcher threw over 7 innings of shutout ball
6. In the third game, the Astros brought their closer in in the top of the 9th in a 0-0 game and he put up a 0.
7. In the bottom of the 9th inning of the third game, the Astros got runners on 1st and 2nd, and they hit a walk off 3 home run, with the batter throwing his helmet high in the air before touching home plate.  Astros win 3-0.  MMP goes crazy.


18
Talk Zone / Will Keuchel start at home against the Angels?
« on: July 21, 2015, 10:36:00 am »
Dallas Keuchel pitched on July 19th.   The Astros host the Angels on July 28-30th.  Keuchel is 9-0 with a 1.13 ERA at home.  The only way he won't pitch in that Angels series is if Hinch gives him an extra day off before each of his next two starts, leading to Scott Feldman getting that last key start against the Angels.

ESPN.com currently lists the Astros as doing exactly that. 

19
Talk Zone / Astrodome Adventure
« on: March 23, 2015, 10:46:49 am »
Pretty sweet adventure these two guys had when at the Rodeo in 2012.

http://imgur.com/a/vxGod


Sorry if Cabrera'd

20
Talk Zone / Astros in the Top Half in 2015?
« on: February 11, 2015, 01:14:14 pm »
ESPN.com's David Schoenfield thinks so.

Quote
15. Houston Astros

Big offseason moves: Hired A.J. Hinch as manager; signed SS Jed Lowrie and RHPs Luke Gregerson and Pat Neshek; acquired 3B Luis Valbuena and RHP Dan Straily from the Cubs for CF Dexter Fowler; acquired C Evan Gattis and RHP James Hoyt from the Braves for RHP Michael Foltynewicz, 3B Rio Ruiz and RHP Andrew Thurman; signed OF Colby Rasmus.

Most intriguing player: George Springer. I had him in this spot last year and put him here again. Breakout potential remains large. Note: Most fun player remains Jose Altuve.

Due for a better year: The bullpen. Gregerson and Neshek should help a pen that had the worst ERA in the majors and the second-most blown saves.

Due for a worse year: Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh are the logical candidates, although I like both pitchers to come close to their 2014 results.

I'm just the messenger: There's an obvious concern here: It's Altuve and a Costco warehouse of strikeouts. Springer, Chris Carter and Gattis may combine for 90 home runs and nearly 600 strikeouts, which could push the lineup into prolonged slumps of whiffs and scoreless innings.

The final word: I like the Astros more than most -- calling them the surprise team of 2015 -- and pointed out that they had the worst production in the majors last year at first base, third base and left field. So improvement at those positions will be vital. Yes, a lot is riding on Keuchel and McHugh to be very good again but I believe they will be. The Astros' plan is coming together, augmented with some free-agent signings, and they're going to be competitive for the first time in years.

Prediction: 83-79


21
The Bus Ride Discussion Forum / Keith Law ranks Houston 3rd best Minor League system
« on: January 28, 2015, 11:45:34 am »
Sorry if Cabrera'd:
http://chicagocubsonline.com/archives/2015/01/cubs-retain-no-1-spot-in-keith-laws-farm-system-ranking.php#.VMkf4S796K0

Keith Law’s 2015 Ranking of the Farm Systems

    Chicago Cubs
    Minnesota Twins
    Houston Astros
    New York Mets
    Boston Red Sox
    Atlanta Braves
    Pittsburgh Pirates
    Colorado Rockies
    Washington Nationals
    Los Angeles Dodgers
    Texas Rangers
    Chicago White Sox
    St. Louis Cardinals
    Arizona Diamondbacks
    Kansas City Royals
    Cleveland Indians
    Cincinnati Reds
    San Diego Padres
    Toronto Blue Jays
    New York Yankees
    Seattle Mariners
    Baltimore Orioles
    Tampa Bay Rays
    Miami Marlins
    Philadelphia Phillies
    Oakland Athletics
    Los Angeles Angels
    Milwaukee Brewers
    San Francisco Giants
    Detroit Tigers


Last year at this time:
Astros
Twins
Pirates
Cubs

Last July:
Cubs
Twins
Astros
Mets
Pirates.

22
The Bus Ride Discussion Forum / MLB Future Power Rankings -- ESPN.com
« on: November 02, 2014, 07:29:43 pm »
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. St. Louis Cardinals
3. Boston Red Sox
4. Chicago Cubs.
12. Los Angeles Angels
14. Seattle Mariners
15. Texas Rangers
16. Houston Astros
19. Oakland Athletics

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/11779252/mlb-future-power-rankings-heading-2014-free-agency

Houston Astros
AL WEST FPR RANK: 4

The overview
The talent is being accumulated; now the greatest challenge for new manager A.J. Hinch is to help reconstruct a culture devoted to winning, after all the record-setting losing. -- Buster Olney

The dilemma
The Astros' bullpen ERA was the worst in baseball this season, and they'll need to improve that unit if they're going to take another step forward in 2015. There will be several solid veteran relievers available on the free-agent market, but the Astros must be ready to spend some money to get some quality options. -- Jim Bowden

New guys
Right-handed pitcher Michael Feliz was a bargain signing after he failed a PED test and lost an agreed-upon deal with Oakland, but he emerged two years ago as an interesting arm-strength guy who could throw strikes. In 2014, he had a real coming-out party, showing a plus slider and hard (but straight) fastball up to 97 mph, pitching in the MLB Futures Game ... where Joey Gallo took him deep.

. -- Keith Law

23
Talk Zone / 2015 MLB Draft Order
« on: September 29, 2014, 11:12:40 am »
Here it is:

1. Diamondbacks
2. Astros (for not coming to terms with 2014 No. 1 pick Brady Aiken)
3. Rockies
4. Rangers
5. Astros

And for some clarification on the protected picks ...    The rule usually is the first 10 picks in the draft are "protected" and teams in there only have to give up their 2nd best pick when signing free agents who've been made qualifying offers.  Well, in the case of the Astros, it will be their 3rd best pick, as both their first 2 picks are protected.   And this has caused the #11 pick that is held by the Reds to be protected as well. 


24
Talk Zone / Collin McHugh and Qualifying for ERA Leaderboard
« on: September 11, 2014, 11:16:12 am »
With the Astros now utilizing a 6-man rotation, it appears questionable that Collin McHugh will get 3 more starts.   Collin needs 20 more IP to Qualify for a Top 6 finish in the league in ERA.  That would give the Astros 2 pitchers in the Top 7 in ERA, joining the current #6 Dallas Keuchel.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/pitching/_/league/al/order/false

Do the Astros care at all about giving McHugh a chance to qualify for season leaderboards?  Will they somehow tweak the 6 man rotation to give Collin that 3rd start?

Here is the current starting pitcher plan: http://espn.go.com/mlb/team/schedule/_/name/hou/houston-astros
McHugh pitched on Tuesday 9/9.  He is scheduled to pitch only twice more.
Tuesday 9/16
Monday 9/22

Last game of the year is Sunday 9/28.

25
Talk Zone / Coolsport.tv
« on: April 04, 2014, 12:19:08 pm »
http://www.coolsport.tv/schedule-coolsport-tv.html

Search for Astros to see which stream to click on.


Has anyone ever used this site?  Any concerns with it? It seemed ok when I used it for one of the Astros-Yankees games.

Perhaps there is some place better out there for non-Comcast subscribers to watch the games.

26
Talk Zone / CSN Houston coming to I-35 corridor?
« on: February 13, 2014, 01:06:04 pm »
Fingers crossed that this is what that means.

Comcast to Acquire Time Warner Cable for $45.2 Billion

27
The Bus Ride Discussion Forum / From Worst to First ... Astros #1 in Keith Law's Farm System Rankings
« on: January 28, 2014, 10:25:28 am »
Sorry if Cabrera'd.

Link
Quote
Ranking all 30 farm systems
Astros come in at No. 1 in Keith Law's annual rankings of minor league talent

Thanks to some high draft picks the future is (finally) bright in Houston.
To kick off my look at the best prospects in the minor leagues this week, I've ranked all 30 MLB farm systems from top to bottom, considering only the players who are currently in their systems and who have not yet exhausted their rookie of the year eligibility. (I use the same criterion for the individual player rankings that will be posted over the next three days.)

Similar to last year, there are only a handful of systems that combine both a few high-impact or high-ceiling prospects and also have depth down to and past the end of their top 10 list. (My top 10 rankings by team will be released on Thursday and Friday.)

Many systems ranked in the teens boast a couple of very good prospects -- say, one or two guys who project as above-average regulars, and another two or three who might be everyday guys -- and then it's bench parts and relievers. Those players are good to have, as you'd much rather fill those spots with minimum-salaried players than have to reach out to free agency, but their asset value is much lower than the values of prospects who project as average or better.

One last point: Of my top 10 farm systems, only three are "large market" teams (although the proper term would be "high revenue"). Scouting and player development are still the best way to build a competitive major league team, and while some extra money in scouting helps, success in either area is far more a function of the people you employ than the money you throw at the players. Good organizations hire and retain good people, enact strong processes and then execute them -- even when fans or writers don't see the big picture.

1. Houston Astros

On the one hand, when you pick first overall every year, you should probably end up with a pretty good farm system, and the Astros' top five prospects are all first-round picks. On the other hand, the Astros have done everything they needed to do to restock what was a few years ago the worst system in the majors, like exceeding MLB's recommended signing bonuses for Lance McCullers Jr. and Rio Ruiz in 2012, or landing prospects like Jonathan Singleton, Domingo Santana and Asher Wojciechowski in trades.

Not sure if there is any more Astros info after that first paragraph, as the free content ends there.

Of course, to be fair, this is the guy who once had Brett Wallace at #20 and Mike Trout at #49 in his Top Prospects list.

28
Talk Zone / Grantland: The Art of Pitch Framing
« on: May 15, 2013, 02:37:31 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera'd.  Large section in there about the Astros.   If only there were an ex-Astro who was known to have superior receiving skills who could be Houston's next manager.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9275754/studying-art-pitch-framing-catchers-such-francisco-cervelli-chris-stewart-jose-molina-others

29
Talk Zone / Austin's Astros Radio Affiliate, etc.
« on: April 09, 2013, 09:30:41 am »
AM1300 KVET in Austin just gets worse and worse as an Astros affiliate.   I turn the station on on Saturday and they are playing Fox Sports radio national programming.  Last night, same thing.  No UT conflicts, no call in shows, and they refuse to air Astros games.  Yet they still claim to be an Astros radio affiliate.

And then the fucker Jim Crane has the audacity to drop this nugget about the Round Rock Express and the Austin market:

Quote
Astros owner Jim Crane told me he’d be interested in reacquiring the Triple-A affiliate for his franchise. “That’s a great spot for us,” Crane said. “It’s a great market. It’d be something we’d be happy to look at. If my phone rang, we’d definitely be interested.”

Bullshit.   If you cared about Austin, you wouldn't have completely shut out Austin Astros fans.   First, no TV in Austin.  Second, you take the games off of AM 740, a station that can usually be heard nice and clear at night here in Austin and move them to AM 790, which has no chance (meanwhile, AM 850 out of Denver and AM 1120 out of St. Louis come in fine at night, so I got to listen to the Rockies/Giants game in my car instead).  And third, the Austin Astros radio affiliate is a complete clusterfuck.   All 162 Rangers games are on AM 1260, and yet I believe none of the 7 Astros games have been on air in Austin.  And fourth, I haven't even seen an Astros game listed on firstrow.eu, so the blackout for not paying more money for the Astros is complete.  


I am a loyal Astros fan, and Crane has seriously fucked this up.  He's just completely out of touch with Astros fans.

30
The Bus Ride Discussion Forum / Gonzalo Senudo
« on: March 26, 2013, 01:56:30 am »
Quote
Houston traded OF Mike Kvasnicka to the Minnesota Twins for RHP Gonzalo Senudo, who went 2-0 with four saves in Triple-A last season

Sorry if Cabrera'd.  Link to the conversation if so, please. 

What are your impressions of Gonzalo Senudo?

31
Talk Zone / Race for the Vid -- Astros TV in Austin
« on: March 26, 2013, 01:41:17 am »
Just a quick poll here.  After how many missed games do you think Austin Time Warner Cable customers (or customers of any major carrier in the I-35 corridor) will be able to watch an Astros broadcast on CSN Houston?

As usual, guesses under 81 not accepted.

32
Talk Zone / Sports After Hurricanes
« on: November 02, 2012, 08:20:19 am »
I was listening to Mike and Mike this morning, and they were vehemently against the New York City Marathon proceeding as scheduled for this weekend, citing how inappropriate it is to take resources away from what matters, just so people can participate in a sporting event.  

Now they get it.

FYB

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/running_dialogue/2012/11/nyc-marathon-outrage

33
Talk Zone / Brad Ausmus to interview for Red Sox manager
« on: October 16, 2012, 09:38:52 am »
Sorry if Cabrera is also a candidate.

Quote
San Diego Padres special assistant Brad Ausmus also is next to interview on Wednesday, according to multiple reports.

http://espn.go.com/boston/mlb/story/_/id/8507352/tony-pena-interviews-boston-red-sox-managerial-opening

34
Talk Zone / Bob Brenly: Minute Maid Park "loudest he's ever heard"
« on: October 13, 2012, 01:02:24 am »
Referencing the 2005 NLCS Game 5.  It was interesting to hear a manager say that, considering he won a division title as a Giant and a freaking World Series as the manager of the Diamondbacks, not to mention those B Kim disasters in New York that sent the Yankees fans into a tizzy.

He's right by the way.  MMP in those 33 some odd minutes between the Berkman homer and the Pujols homer was the loudest building I've ever been in.  After Kent's home run the year before, it was insane too.

Still, somehow the buzzing Killer Bees sound could clearly be heard.  What a sound system.

35
Talk Zone / 4,000 wins as a National League team?
« on: October 03, 2012, 01:02:30 am »
Sorry if Cabrera'd, but the Astros win on Tuesday night was Houston's 3,999th victory as an NL franchise.   I will serve up a burnt offering of a baby bear to the BBGs in the morning.  FTC.

    Houston Astros (3803-3845 W-L, 1965 - 2012) - 1 Pennant and 9 Playoff Appearances
    Houston Colt .45's (196-288 W-L, 1962 - 1964)
    Overall (3999-4133 W-L, 1962 - 2012) - 1 Pennant and 9 Playoff Appearances

http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/HOU/

36
Talk Zone / Live Win Probability stats
« on: August 11, 2012, 10:22:08 pm »
You've all likely seen Win Probability Charts like this one:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/HOU/HOU201208100.shtml#wpa

For the 2010 and 2011 seasons, ESPN included a live Win Probability meter on their GameCast tool.  Saying the Rangers had a 96% chance of winning Game 6 after the first batter of the 9th inning, etc.  Theirs actually changed after every pitch.  But for 2012, they removed that feature.  Does anyone know of a website that has a live Win Probability stat feature?    Thanks in advance.

37
Talk Zone / Using Turnstile Count for Attendance
« on: May 22, 2012, 09:45:01 pm »
This has been discussed many times here this season, but I don't remember hearing a definitive answer as to why the Astros are choosing to use turnstile count for attendance this year.  Also, are the Astros the only team in baseball using the turnstile count for their attendance numbers?

From a BP article a couple weeks ago ...

Quote
First of all, let’s get the basics out of the way: the attendance numbers you see in the boxscore are not the number of people that passed through the turnstiles. When the front offices of the AL and NL merged in 1992, it was decided that “paid attendance” would be what was tracked; after all, that’s the figure that impacts revenues and revenue-sharing. The number counted as paid attendance does not include VIPs, comps, or media. Unlike the NFL, NHL, and NBA, Major League Baseball said that if revenue-sharing was part of paid attendance, clubs needed to report only the actual number of tickets sold.

From an LA Times articles 7 years ago ...

Quote
National League teams announced an actual turnstile count through 1992, MLB spokesman Rich Levin said. But the National League and American League have since consolidated business operations, and Major League Baseball defines attendance as "tickets sold," not "tickets used."

"It's because of revenue sharing," Levin said. "That's what we use in our official count." (Teams contribute 34% of the revenue they generate, including most ticket and concession revenue, into a pool to be redistributed among teams that generate the fewest dollars.)

Thanks in advance, and sorry if this has been answered before and I missed it.

38
Talk Zone / Leading after 8 innings stat?
« on: May 11, 2012, 09:02:51 pm »
Tonight, the Astros improved to 14-0 when leading after eight innings.  I'd like to see which other teams are undefeated in such games.  Does anyone know of a website that lists teams' records when leading after right innings? 

Thanks in advance.

39
Talk Zone / Jered Weaver's No-hitter
« on: May 03, 2012, 09:13:25 am »
Congrats to Jered Weaver on his no-hitter.   I did have a nit to pick was all the media saying Weaver had a perfect game going through 6, and announcing that "there goes the perfect game" when Weaver walked Josh Willingham in the 7th.    This article got it right, though.

http://espn.go.com/blog/los-angeles/angels/post/_/id/5515/chris-iannetta-has-a-close-call

40
Talk Zone / Lance Berkman rips Bud Selig about Astros "extortion"
« on: March 20, 2012, 04:33:45 pm »

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/7714711/st-louis-cardinals-lance-berkman-says-bud-selig-extorted-houston-astros-al-move

41
Talk Zone / ESPN.com: Ranking the Farm Systems
« on: February 08, 2012, 03:53:51 pm »
http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/hotstove11/story?id=7547640&_slug_=san-diego-padres-best-farm-system-baseball-mlb&action=upsell&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fmlb%2fhotstove11%2fstory%3fid%3d7547640%26_slug_%3dsan-diego-padres-best-farm-system-baseball-mlb

Anyone have Insider access to see where they rank the Astros?  Thanks in advance.

42
Talk Zone / David Schoenfield: Denying Jeff Bagwell would be a travesty
« on: January 03, 2012, 09:12:09 am »
Sorry if Cabrera'd.

Quote
In spring training of 1991, Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe wrote a glowing profile of Jeff Bagwell, suggesting that the Red Sox would one day lament the trade of Bagwell for 37-year-old relief pitcher Larry Andersen.

"Bagwell could be big one that got away," read the headline.

The story appeared in March. Bagwell had yet to play a regular-season game in the major leagues, but the picture was already clear: Red Sox general manager Lou Gorman had made a mistake of potential historic proportions.

"Jeff Bagwell owned New Britain," wrote Ryan. "He hit .333. He led the Eastern League in hits and doubles. Everybody said he was the best prospect in the league, maybe the best in all of Double-A. A year or so in Pawtucket, and then The Bigs."

Bill James raved about Bagwell, foreseeing him as a hitter capable of winning batting titles. "Gorman has heard it all," wrote Ryan, "and he is quite prepared to live with the consequences of the deal. 'In the seven years I've been here,' (Gorman) contends, 'I don't think any young player has come back to haunt me yet.'"

Last year, his first time on the Hall of Fame ballot, Bagwell received 41.7 percent of the vote. As Hall of Fame chances go, that isn’t necessarily a distressing starting point. Jim Rice got 29.8 percent his first year; Gosse Gossage received 33.3 percent and Gary Carter 42.3 percent; Andre Dawson didn’t begin much higher, at 45.3 percent. Bert Blyleven notoriously started at just 17.8 percent. The writers would eventually vote all those players into the Hall.

The vote total, however, drew much outrage across the Internet, and understandably so. For a player of Bagwell's abilities and accomplishments to receive such a low vote total was ... well, something of historic precedent.

Using Baseball-Reference's ranking of players via its Wins Above Replacement statistic, Bagwell rates as one most dominant players since World War II. Here are the position players ranked No. 11 through No. 30 and how many years it took them to get voted into the Hall of Fame:

11. Joe Morgan, 103.5 WAR (1st)
12. Eddie Mathews, 98.3 WAR (5th)
13. Al Kaline, 91.0 (1st)
14. Cal Ripken, 89.9 (1st)
15. Albert Pujols, 89.1 (not eligible)
16. Wade Boggs, 89.0 (1st)
17. Carl Yastzremski, 88.7 (1st)
18. George Brett, 85.0 (1st)
19. Roberto Clemente, 83.8 (1st)
20. Chipper Jones, 82.9 (not eligible)
21. JEFF BAGWELL, 79.9 (41.7 percent)
22. Rod Carew, 79.1 (1st)
23. Ken Griffey Jr., 78.5 (not eligible)
24. Robin Yount, 76.9 (1st)
25. Frank Thomas, 75.9 (not eligible)
26. Pete Rose, 75.3 (not eligible)
27. Paul Molitor, 74.8 (1st)
28. Reggie Jackson, 74.6 (1st)
29. Jim Thome, 71.4 (not eligible)
30. Johnny Bench, 71.3 (1st)

Wins Above Replacement may not be a perfect statistic, but I don't think anyone can argue that the above list represents anything other than a list of the greatest players of the past 50-plus years. As you can see, other than Eddie Mathews, every eligible candidate cruised into Cooperstown in his first year of eligibility. Furthermore, the following players, all with a career WAR below 70.0, also made it in their first year: Brooks Robinson, Tony Gwynn, Eddie Murray, Willie McCovey, Ozzie Smith, Ernie Banks, Dave Winfield, Willie Stargell and Kirby Puckett.

And yet Bagwell couldn't receive 50 percent of the vote, which indicates one of two things:

1. A large percentage of voters just don't realize how great Bagwell was.
2. A large percentage of voters didn't vote for him because he had big muscles.

In 1990, the year Lou Gorman would trade him to the Astros, Bagwell played at Double-A New Britain (Conn.). While he did indeed hit .333 (second in the league) and lead the league with 34 doubles, he also hit just four home runs. This factoid has been cited as evidence that Bagwell must have turned himself into a slugger who mashed 449 career home runs with the help of steroids. After all, a year after hitting four home runs in Double-A, he hit 15 home runs for the Astros and won the National League Rookie of the Year Award. He would end up topping 30 home runs nine seasons in the major leagues.

You know how many home runs the 1990 New Britain Red Sox hit? Thirty-one. Bagwell was second on the team; Eric Wedge hit five. The team featured eight position players who would reach the majors, including future Red Sox shortstop John Valentin. He hit .218 with two home runs in 351 plate appearances. New Britain was an impossible place to hit. Ryan suggested because of that Bagwell wouldn't be intimidated by the Astrodome.

"It can't be worse in the gaps than New Britain," Ryan quotes Bagwell as saying. "The ball doesn't go anywhere down there."

The year before, New Britain had hit 42 home runs (Mo Vaughn hit just eight). They hit 34 in 1988. Bagwell -- who Ryan describes in the article as having "something approaching a hockey build" -- didn't lack power; he was just playing his minor league games in the Grand Canyon.

Bagwell has denied using steroids. He never tested positive once testing was initiated late in his career. He wasn't mentioned in the Mitchell report. He played 156 or more games in 10 of his 15 seasons. Other than his freakishly awesome 1994 season in which he hit .368 in the strike-shortened season, his career shows a rather normal curve of improvement, peak value and slow decline starting in his mid-30s.

But he had big muscles.

Since it would seem rather presumptuous to assume guilt without evidence, I'll assume the majority of voters somehow missed Bagwell's greatness, like they did with Mathews for a few years or with Blyleven for so long. These things happen, but fortunately usually correct themselves. Bagwell didn't reach the magic 3,000-hit barrier, he didn't even hit 500 home runs. Some of his value is tied into being an excellent baserunner and solid defensive first baseman, things that can be overlooked in Hall of Fame voting.

But I assume the voters will eventually come around and realize Bagwell is just one of 22 players with 1,500 RBIs and 1,500 runs scored since World War II (his 152 runs scored in 2000 are the most in one season since the 1930s). And of those 22, he ranks seventh in OPS and eighth in adjusted OPS (behind guys named Bonds, Mantle, Musial, Aaron, Mays, Ramirez and Robinson).

So, yes, Bagwell will eventually get elected to Cooperstown.

Because he wouldn't be denied admittance because he had big muscles.

Right?

43
Beer and Queso / Jim Rome Show removed from AM 610 after 14 years
« on: December 29, 2011, 01:05:34 am »
http://www.chron.com/sports/article/KILT-610-AM-will-end-Rome-s-14-year-run-with-2429495.php

Houstonians were Jonesing for some Texans talk, obviously.

44
Talk Zone / Report: Albert Pujols signs with Angels
« on: December 08, 2011, 09:07:42 am »
Sorry if Cabrera'd

45
Talk Zone / Barmes a Pirate
« on: November 21, 2011, 01:40:31 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera'd.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/7264758/clint-barmes-says-agreed-pittsburgh-pirates

This means the Astros get a compensatory draft pick, as Barmes is a Type B free agent and he signed before Wednesday.

"The Astros have until Nov. 23 to decide if they're going to offer salary arbitration to Barmes, who's a Type B free agent. He would have to sign with another team before Nov. 23 or reject the Astros' offer of arbitration in order for Hoston to get a compensatory pick in next year's First-Year Player Draft. He has until Dec. 7 to accept or reject arbitration. "

46
Talk Zone / Ron Washington's Game 7 Speech
« on: November 07, 2011, 01:39:59 pm »
I wonder who the rat was who leaked this ....

NSFW

http://vimeo.com/31675320

http://espn.go.com/dallas/mlb/story/_/id/7203322/texas-rangers-investigating-clubhouse-leak-ron-washington-game-7-pregame-speech

47
Talk Zone / Beltran dumps Boras
« on: November 01, 2011, 02:50:35 pm »
Source: Carlos Beltran switches agents

Sorry if Cabrera'd.

48
Talk Zone / Returning after having option declined
« on: November 01, 2011, 10:39:24 am »
It's that time of year again.  Players get their options declined, and the team softens the blow by saying that want them back for less money.  See Vlad Guerrero last year or Kelly Shoppach this year for instance, amongst dozens of examples.  

My question, does anyone know of any examples where a player's option was declined and yet said player came back and signed a contract with that team? To a lesser extent, anyone have an example of a player being denied arbitration and still signing with that team?

49
Talk Zone / Ranking the 42 Postseason walk-offs
« on: October 12, 2011, 12:57:27 am »
ESPN.com put this together, including 2 Astros ones in the Top 20.  Although they claim Burke hit his in the 17th inning.

One interesting note ... of the 42, only 3 came while the team was losing.  One of those my piece of shit Lenny D.  Another by Joe Carter of course.

And we all know the only pitcher to serve up two postseason walk-offs.

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post?id=17478


50
Game Zone 2011 Archive / Pirates @ Astros, 8/31
« on: August 31, 2011, 10:20:29 am »
Astros go for their first home sweep in almost a year.

Found this rather harsh (but valid) nugget in the Yahoo! Game Preview:
Quote
The Astros, meanwhile, can say with near certainty they know what they’re getting nearly every time J.A. Happ(notes) (4-15, 6.03) takes the mound - a loss.

51
Game Zone 2011 Archive / Astros at Rockies 8/24
« on: August 24, 2011, 02:34:09 pm »
Apparently, Wandy either wants to remain an Astro or wants to help out his new team.  The first four men he faced all scored.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/gametracker/live/MLB_20110824_HOU@COL

52
Talk Zone / Win and Save in same game?
« on: August 24, 2011, 01:02:37 pm »
Wesley Wright's inning of fun, per the GZ last night, got me thinking.

Say Wesley Wright is the pitcher of record when the good guys take the lead in the top of the 9th.   In the bottom half of the 9th, Wright then goes to RF before coming back in a batter later to pitch, in a save situation, to finish out the game.

Win and Save?

53
Game Zone 2011 Archive / Cubs @ Astros 8/17/11
« on: August 17, 2011, 01:11:24 pm »
http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/gametracker/live/MLB_20110817_CHC@HOU

1-2-3 for Norris in the first.  8 straight scoreless frames for Bud.

54
Game Zone 2011 Archive / Astros vs. Dickities, 8/1/11
« on: August 01, 2011, 03:48:40 pm »
1. Durango CF
2. Altuve 2B
3. Bourgeois RF
4. Lee 1B
5. Martinez LF
6. Barmes SS
7. Paredes 3B
8. Quintero C
9. Norris P

55
Talk Zone / Dell Diamond Employee Recommendations for Astros Fans
« on: July 11, 2011, 03:19:48 pm »
So I take my wife and kids (5 year old daughter, 1 year old son) to the Express/Co-Redbirds game last night.   Not only are the Rangers logos everywhere you look completely nauseating (including a Chick-Fil-A "K" sign on the scoreboard with a cow wearing a Rangers uniform), but now the employees are getting into it.  As I always have since the Express started in 2000, I wear Astros shirts to the games.   I get in line to buy some nachos, holding my son (also wearing an Astros shirt), and the lady taking my order looks at us and says, "Astros?  You need to go to The Railyard (team store) and buy some Rangers gear".  

WTF?  I was already rolling my eyes expecting her to say "Express gear".  But when she dropped Rangers on me, I felt like telling her to Fuck Off, but I gave her a "Not Sure If Serious" look, took a deep breath and told her I am an Astros fan for life and something like minor league baseball affiliation changes don't impact true fans.

The Dell Diamond is making it real difficult for Astros fans to come and enjoy a nice evening out.   This is a complete reversal from the way they treated the Astros-Express relationship in years past.  Even when the Astros were riding high, you had to be Sherlock fucking Holmes to find an Astros logo in that entire stadium, on some "Road to the Show" shirt in the team store.

56
Talk Zone / Awesome Augie Garrido rants
« on: April 29, 2011, 01:50:14 pm »
NSFW.  Sorry if Cabrera'd.

http://barkingcarnival.fantake.com/2011/04/28/id-just-come-visit-your-ass-in-the-hospital/#more-28771

57
Talk Zone / Another Reason to Hate the Cubs
« on: April 21, 2011, 02:55:29 pm »
Turns out the 1918 Cubs were the inspiration for the Black Sox.  Sorry if Cabrera'd.

Quote
1920 Court Document Suggests Black Sox Scandal Originated With Cubs

  (Chicago)  --  A court document suggests the Chicago Cubs gave the Chicago Black Sox the idea to intentionally lose the 1919 World Series.
   The Chicago History Museum posted the 1920 court document on its website.
   In the filing, White Sox pitcher Eddie Cicotte claims teammates heard talk that Cubs players were offered ten-thousand dollars to throw the 1918 World Series against the Boston Red Sox.
   He added he and his team agreed they would throw the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds if they got the money.
   According to the deposition, Cicotte said ten-thousand was left in his hotel room.
   Cicotte, who died in 1969 at age 84, was one of eight players permanently banned from professional baseball for allegedly throwing the 1919 World Series.

http://mystateline.com/fulltext-news/?nxd_id=246717


The Chicago History Museum link:
http://blog.chicagohistory.org/index.php/2011/04/did-the-cubs-lose-the-1918-ws-on-purpose/


The Clinching Game 6 in that series, where Boston scored on 1 play:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BOS/BOS191809110.shtml

"Reached on E9 (Line Drive); Mays Scores/unER/No RBI; Shean Scores/unER/No RBI; Whiteman to 1B"


CBSsports story:
Quote
 Whether any of this is true is unknown, but an author who wrote about the 1918 Series after examining the deposition and other material said not only was such a fix possible, it was understandable.

"They didn't make much money," said Sean Deveney, a reporter with The Sporting News whose book, The Original Curse, said a fix by the Cubs was likely. "They had the incentive to do something like that."

Both the Cubs and the Red Sox were upset that the teams' owners were not paying their fair share of the World Series receipts, Deveney said. Before one Series game in Boston, the two squads refused to come on the field until the owners paid them what they were promised.
http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/story/14971206/deposition-hints-cubs-might-have-thrown-1918-world-series

58
Talk Zone / Weekday Day Game Radio
« on: April 06, 2011, 03:01:23 pm »
Do any Astros redio affiliates air Astros weekday day games?

I was driving around in Austin today (early Wednesday afternoon) and heard the Rangers on two different affiliates, on AM 1260 KWNX Austin and AM 1660 KRZI Waco.  Obviously this is addition to their flagship station AM 1080 KRLD.

I've never heard the Astros weekday day games any affiliate, but just on the Flagship station in Houston AM 740.

Does anyone know if there is a station out there that airs such Astros games?

Affiliate List

59
Talk Zone / Astros Spring Training change?
« on: February 21, 2011, 10:28:46 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera'd. 

"Nats, Astros eying new Osceola County spring-training complex

The Washington Nationals and the Houston Astros are discussing a new joint spring-training complex with Osceola County officials, as a site near DisneyWorld is under consideration.

The complex, we're told, would be south of DisneyWord and in the very northwestern corner of Osceola County, an area served by I-4 and Florida Toll 429.

Both teams have passed on offers by reps from Winter Haven, Fort Myers and Mesa to discuss moving spring operations to their cities. There's been talk of a new complex in Winter Haven located near (but not part of) a new LegoLand theme park, but the issue there is money: elected city and county reps want to see a team step up with some serious funding of a new facility, but there's no way either team will spend significantly on a complex. Fort Myers officials continue their quest to fill City of Palms Park, but the problems encountered by the Boston Red Sox would also be there for a new team: a ballpark in an iffy neighborhood with a training complex a mile away. And while there's some logic in the Astros seeking an Arizona home, the split nature of HoHoKam Park and Fitch Field is also seen as an impediment. (And for our dear readers who will inevitably suggest Al Lang Field as a destination for the teams, forget it: the lease between the Tampa Bay Rays and the city of St. Petersburg for Tropicana Field expressly forbids another team from training there.)

The Astros have three years left on their spring-training lease -- about the right time for a new complex to open, given how long it could take to procure a funding and design plan. Osceola County Stadium is the smallest spring-training facility in baseball, seating only 5,300. The Astros do not have exclusive use of the complex, either; for most of the year  the ballpark is leased for U.S. Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), Triple Crown and World Baseball Federation events; indeed, the USSSA is headquartered at the ballpark, as is the USSSA Hall of Fame and Sports Museum."

http://www.ballparkdigest.com/201102213574/major-league-baseball/features/nats-astros-eying-new-osceola-county-spring-training-complex

60
Talk Zone / Olney article about Astros
« on: August 15, 2010, 09:07:55 pm »
The free part ...

"Astros now have youthful hope

Roy Oswalt is gone, and so is Lance Berkman, and there is no hope for the Houston Astros to become a contender in 2010.

But there is hope in Houston in a way there hasn't been the past couple of seasons, when an aging team was dragged down by enormous contractual obligations. There is hope in the collection of young players whom Oswalt and Berkman left behind."


Link

Can anyone with access let us know if there is anything else to see here?

61
The Bus Ride Discussion Forum / "Willie Tevares" FAIL at Dell Diamond
« on: April 19, 2010, 01:15:35 pm »
So I'm at the Round Rock Express game yesterday, watching Berkman mash, and behind center field they have a nice new mesh fence covering with pictures and names of key Express players of the past.  Each player gets about a 10 foot wide by 6 foot tall rectangle.

The last one?   Well, "Willie Tevares".   What, Joolien Taveras didn't want any of that?

62
Talk Zone / Papa non-Grande
« on: April 07, 2010, 11:05:18 pm »
Tough start for Valverde in his first save opportunity with the Ticats:

http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/boxscore?gameId=300407107&teams=detroit-tigers-vs-kansas-city-royals


63
Talk Zone / Astros Player of the Decades ...
« on: April 07, 2010, 11:46:39 am »
http://houston.astros.mlb.com/hou/fan_forum/player_of_the_decade.jsp

Candidates for Astros player of the 2000s:

    *  Brad Ausmus
    * Jeff Bagwell
    * Craig Biggio
    * Roger Clemens
    * Morgan Ensberg
    * Jeff Kent
    * Carlos Lee
    * Brad Lidge
    * Roy Oswalt


Uuuh, Bueller?


Sorry if Cabrera'd

64
Talk Zone / K-Zone on FS-Houston?
« on: September 28, 2009, 11:02:50 pm »
Here in Austin they show both Astros and Rangers games.  I have never noticed the Astros broadcast ever use the K-Zone (FSN calls it something else), but the Rangers broadcast does it all the time.  Too much to a fault, but that's not the point.

I may have missed it or be confused, but will FS-Houston ever get a K-Zone?   Thanks.


65
Talk Zone / Drew Sutton called up to the Dickities
« on: July 01, 2009, 07:02:34 pm »
Another Baylor alum in the big leagues.  Sorry if Cabrera'd.

http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090701&content_id=5640960&vkey=news_cin&fext=.jsp&c_id=cin

ETA:  Nevermind,  Bus Ride:
http://www.spikesnstars.com/forums/index.php?topic=108874.0

66
Talk Zone / Back to the Future, Part II getting closer
« on: July 01, 2009, 02:23:07 pm »
We all remember the movie's prediction ... "Cubs beat Miami" in the 2015 World Series.   

2 obvious problems.  It's "Florida", not "Miami", and the Marlins play in the NL.

Tucked in here was this nugget:

"Once the stadium is completed, the team will be renamed the Miami Marlins."

1 down, 1 to go.


Sorry if Cabrera'd by a month or a year or two.

67
Talk Zone / Useless stat of the day
« on: June 29, 2009, 11:32:10 pm »
The Astros are now 2 games under .500 for the 6th time this year.  So far. they are 0-5 in their 5 attempts to get within a game of .500.

Here's to hoping they can get back to 1 game under for the first time since they were 1-2.

68
Talk Zone / Joe Buck rips Astros
« on: June 13, 2009, 05:13:55 pm »
No, the ass couldn't just say positive things about Fernando Nieve.  Instead, multiple times he opined about how stupid the Astros were to waive him, thinking "they had 5 starters better than this guy".  And then in an interview with Mets manager Jerry Manuel, he again tried to direct the question around how the Astros messed up.  Manuel was mature enough to ignore that and just focused on Nieve.

69
Talk Zone / Time Warner Cable -- Austin/Waco
« on: May 12, 2009, 09:01:43 am »
Has anyone heard whether the situation will return to the way it's been the last decade, where most Astros games are shown?   This year, I have never seen any baseball games on Channel 77 or 12 or 23 like in years past. 

Why are we seeing less Astros (and Rangers for that matter) games in 2009?

Sorry if this thread has been Cabrera'd.


70
Talk Zone / AE Grand Slam
« on: May 02, 2009, 05:32:59 pm »
Good for him.  Sorry if Cabrera'd.   Adam has the same number of RBI as Pence now, and just 2 behind Lance.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore?gid=290502106

71
Talk Zone / RIP Harry Kalas
« on: April 13, 2009, 01:24:28 pm »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4064793

Sorry if Cabrera'd.    Unbelievable. 

72
Talk Zone / 2009 Astros Radio Affiliate update
« on: February 18, 2009, 01:59:54 pm »
AM1300 The Zone has been carrying the Astros for free for a long time.  Program Manager Jon Madani initially said "no" to the Astros as far as renewing the free contract for 2009 and beyond.  However, the Astros have just recently come back with a financial offer to keep the 'Stros on the Zone. 

By this time next week, we'll know whether the Astros will be on the Zone.

Personally, I don't really care.  Only about 70 games in 2008 were aired in their entirety, but it is a great signal compared with ESPN Radio, which could air more game with their sister station available.

73
Talk Zone / Dickities sign Willy T
« on: December 27, 2008, 01:17:24 pm »
http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081227&content_id=3729066&vkey=news_cin&fext=.jsp&c_id=cin

Astros will get to see him 16 times in 2009.

74
Talk Zone / "The Brad Lidge of the NFL"
« on: November 16, 2008, 11:52:28 pm »
Did anyone else catch Al Michaels say that about Marion Barber in tonight's Cowboys game (referring to Barber's ability to close out games on fourth quarter drives)?

Interesting that Lidge has replaced Mariano Rivera as the default name the East Coast media thinks of when they think MLB closer.

75
Beer and Queso / Void Video -- Guinness
« on: November 11, 2008, 09:13:52 am »
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrSSSfYE2dQ

Greatness

76
Talk Zone / Screwing John Rocker
« on: October 10, 2008, 11:41:55 pm »
If he weren't such an ass, John Rocker might be better known as the record holder for most postseason IP while posting a 0.00 era.  But he is an ass, so TBS figured out a way to screw him tonight on their stat.

Since Rocker gave up 1 unearned run, TBS worded the stat ... most post season IP without giving up a Run [of any type].

Our boy Joe Niekro was atop the list.  Well, at least he was atop the list.

Papelbon now has 20.2 postseason IP with a 0.00 ERA, same as Rocker.

77
Talk Zone / McLane Baseball Stadium at Mich. St.
« on: September 30, 2008, 02:18:08 pm »
http://msuspartans.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/091208aaa.html

$4 million investment.  Sorry if Cabrera'd.

78
Talk Zone / Blown up hot dogs in Philly (ETA: BB related)
« on: September 25, 2008, 11:04:45 am »
Must have been a Philly Cheesesteak fan.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20080925_Phillies_Notes__Bomb_squad_blows_up_hot_dogs.html

79
Beer and Queso / Beer and steM fans
« on: September 24, 2008, 12:16:22 pm »
Pretty amazing head control.   (That's what she said)

http://www.yardbarker.com/mlb/articles/Fans_Have_Fun_with_a_Drunk_at_Shea/334738

80
Talk Zone / Oswalt to go on short rest
« on: September 23, 2008, 08:55:38 am »
Roy O to pitch Thursday on 3 days.  The BBGs prohibit me from talking about the rationale.  Sorry if Cabrera'd.

The Reds are sick of Oswalt.

81
Talk Zone / Good news for Limey
« on: September 11, 2008, 10:01:01 pm »
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/baseball/mlb/09/11/baseball.england.ap/index.html?cnn=yes

Originated in England, eh?

82
Talk Zone / Baseball Tonight minute
« on: September 11, 2008, 08:48:00 am »
Karl Ravech tries to talk about the Astros, but the other three predictably shoo off the Astros, saying they don't think the Astros can catch the Cardinals, Phillies, etc.  You know, the "there's just too many teams ahead of them" take.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/notebook?page=bbtn

83
Talk Zone / Mike Lamb to the Brewers
« on: September 05, 2008, 05:06:57 pm »
Good luck to him.  Individually, at least.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-brewers-lamb&prov=ap&type=lgns

Sorry if Cabrera'd.

84
Talk Zone / Jose Valverde
« on: September 03, 2008, 09:23:28 am »
Jose Valverde is incredible.  He's always had electric stuff, but he has stepped it up recently, even for his high standards.  His gutty performance over the last 25 games (12 saves) has shown me all I need to know.   He's someone I'm glad to have on my team.   

Not that it matters, but he may break the franchise record for saves in a season this year.  He's 5 away from what Wagner did in 2003 (44 saves).   Heck, if I have this correct, only twice ever has an Astros closer recorded 40 saves (Lidge with 42 in '05).


85
Talk Zone / DQ Jr.
« on: September 02, 2008, 02:21:24 pm »
Disorderly conduct.  Sorry if Cabrera's a jailbird.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-kobyclemens-arrested&prov=ap&type=lgns

86
Talk Zone / The Spotlight
« on: August 14, 2008, 04:20:37 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera's a High Five knock off, but who started the "spotlight" remote high five that a bunch of the Astros, especially Tejada, are doing?  Has anyone seen other clubs doing it?


87
Talk Zone / Mike Coolbaugh story, video
« on: July 22, 2008, 02:24:59 pm »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3498518&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab2pos1

Good story about Mike.  The Dell Diamond has a nice tribute to Mike in their Railyard store if you get a chance to stop by.

88
Talk Zone / Another reason to root for Lidge
« on: July 15, 2008, 09:31:29 am »
Anybody see Berkman as he finished his 2nd round of home runs last night?   He walked back to the NL area, and no one got up to greet him, congratulate him, etc.  One guy (Volquez I think) tried to offer his chair to Lance, but Puma waved him off.  It was starting to get embarrassing as the cameras were still on Lance.  That's when Brad Lidge walked up and congratulated Lance on his round and stood there with him. 

Yeah, it's something small, but I think it says something large about BL.   

On the other hand, Tejada's got to know to not leave his teammate hanging like that.

89
Talk Zone / Rangers and the .500 mark
« on: June 21, 2008, 12:17:52 am »
One of the weirder statistics I've heard this season:  the Rangers have played 18 games with a .500 record ... and are 3-15 in those games.  Several of my Ranger-fan friends have a running joke about this this year.

90
Talk Zone / More Austin Radio Nonsense
« on: June 04, 2008, 09:37:43 am »
I didn't think it was possible, but the Astros "affiliate" in Austin has figured out a way to air even less Astros baseball.  The embarrassment of an affiliate now appears to have changed their policy on weekday 6pm starts. 

Before current program management took over, they would cut off the 5th straight hour of local sports talk to air the 6pm Astros games in entirety.  Last night was the first such weekday 6pm start with the new PM, and they elected to air that 5th hour of talk and joined the Astros game in the 4th inning at 7pm.

91
Talk Zone / Astros-Yankees Tickets
« on: June 03, 2008, 07:52:21 am »
I apologize if Cabrera's a ticket holder, but there are now plenty of tickets available on Astros.com
http://mlb.mlb.com/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=hou

For Friday's game, best available ... 2 or 3 seats together shows TIER 2 CLUB SEATS: LOCATED 2ND LEVEL
SEATS ARE LOCATED ALONG 3RD BASELINE
4 seats together shows
   MEZZANINE: 2ND LEVEL AT END OF 1ST BASELINE TO 2ND BASELINE or VIEW DECK II.
 

92
Talk Zone / Unit ties DQ
« on: May 30, 2008, 07:51:19 am »
RJ now with 4,672 strike outs and 288 wins.

So far this year he has 56 strike outs and 4 wins, if you are wondering about him getting close enough to 5,000 or 300 to give it a shot next year.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/SO_p_career.shtml


ETA:  corrected, thanks.

93
Talk Zone / Wheels with the Save
« on: May 28, 2008, 02:59:16 pm »
http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/boxscore/MLB_20080528_TEX@TB

Good for him.  If Percival misses any time, he could see some more opportunities.

94
Talk Zone / Isringblowsen does it again
« on: May 15, 2008, 03:08:31 pm »
Cardinals lead 5-4 going to the Top of the 8th.

Pirates 8th
Jason Isringhausen pitching:
Doug Mientkiewicz:   Jason Isringhausen relieved Randy Flores, Ball, Ball, Ball, Mientkiewicz walked.
Ronny Paulino:   Foul, Ball, Strike looking, Foul, Paulino singled to left center, Mientkiewicz to second.
Chris Gomez:   Gomez safe at first on Isringhausen's throwing error, Mientkiewicz scored, Paulino to third, Gomez to second.
John Grabow:   Jason Bay hit for John Grabow.
Jason Bay:   Ball, Strike looking, Strike looking, Bay homered to left center, Paulino and Gomez scored.
Freddy Sanchez:   Ball, Foul, Ball, Ball, Strike looking, Sanchez grounded out to third.
Nate McLouth:   Ball, Ball, Ball, McLouth walked

Ouch.

95
Game Zone 2008 Archive / Astros @ Giants, 5/15/2008
« on: May 15, 2008, 01:56:37 pm »
Houston
M. Bourn cf    .187    
K. Matsui 2b    .263    
H. Pence rf    .287    
L. Berkman 1b    .388    
C. Lee lf    .279    
G. Blum 3b    .217    
M. Loretta ss    .212    
J.R. Towles c    .157    
C. Sampson p    .077    
 
 San Francisco
     
F. Lewis lf    .287    
O. Vizquel ss       .385    
R. Winn rf        .283    
A. Rowand cf       .331    
J. Bowker 1b        .282    
R. Aurilia 3b    .245    
S. Holm c       .306    
E. Burriss 2b    .265    
T. Lincecum p    .286    

96
Talk Zone / Lamest Astros gift ever?
« on: May 15, 2008, 07:35:36 am »
http://yahoosports.teamfanshop.com/MLB_Baseball_Houston_Astros/Houston_Astros_Team_Rally_Monkey

97
Talk Zone / Pamela Anderson
« on: May 12, 2008, 09:47:02 am »
Nice Sixteen Candles moment.

"Anderson's presence, predictably, created quite a stir. Hunter Pence posed for a picture with her, while radio announcers Dave Raymond and Brett Dolan vacated the broadcast booth and raced to the field to get a closer view of the "Baywatch" Hall of Famer.

Raymond, who unapologetically admits he's admired Anderson for the better part of 15 years, scored an interview with the actress, which he played during the ninth inning of Saturday's game. He also asked Dolan to take a picture of the two of them, which Dolan was happy to do. Too bad the batteries of his camera died just as Anderson broke into her toothy smile.

"Do you think that's the biggest choke job of all time by a wing man?" Raymond wondered.

"I knew my batteries were low," Dolan grumbled. "But I thought I had enough for two pictures.""

per astros.com


98
Talk Zone / Qualls and Lidge
« on: April 28, 2008, 11:39:18 pm »
Those guys are dominating.  Qualls was nasty against Berkman tonight.  I wish those guys well ... when they are not playing Houston of course.

Lidge ... 0.00 ERA in 11 IP, 12 K, 6 saves, 0 blown saves
Qualls ... 0.00 ERA in 14.2 IP, 14 K, 1 save, 8 holds (tied with Ryan Franklin for most in majors)

99
Game Zone 2008 Archive / Astros at Snakes, 4/28/2008
« on: April 28, 2008, 07:07:14 pm »
Houston      Season Avg
K. Matsui 2b    .282    
M. Bourn cf    .195    
M. Tejada ss    .340    
L. Berkman 1b    .322    
C. Lee lf    .260    
H. Pence rf    .253    
M. Loretta 3b    .227    
J.R. Towles c    .200    
C. Sampson p    .000    
 
 Arizona     Season Avg
C. Young cf    .224    
E. Byrnes lf    .281    
O. Hudson 2b    .267    
C. Jackson 1b    .333    
M. Reynolds 3b    .253    
J. Upton rf    .333    
S. Drew ss    .269    
C. Snyder c    .214    
D. Haren p    .083    

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore?gid=280428129

100
Game Zone 2008 Archive / Astros at Dickities - 4/24/08
« on: April 24, 2008, 11:16:03 am »
Houston
     
H. Pence rf    .256    
D. Erstad cf    .290    
M. Tejada ss    .360    
L. Berkman 1b    .299    
G. Blum 3b    .233    
J. Cruz Jr. lf    .111    
M. Loretta 2b    .250    
J.R. Towles c    .222    
J. Cassel p    .000    
 
 Cincinnati
     
C. Patterson cf    .206    
J. Hairston Jr. ss    .545    
K. Griffey Jr. rf    .256    
B. Phillips 2b    .262    
A. Dunn lf    .222    
E. Encarnacion 3b    .270    
S. Hatteberg 1b    .148    
P. Bako c    .321    
J. Cueto p


101
Game Zone 2008 Archive / 4/3/08: HOU at SD (Game 4)
« on: April 03, 2008, 02:17:33 pm »
No Bourn.  Cheito batting 7th.

 Houston     Season Avg
H. Pence rf    .286    
M. Loretta 2b    .143    
L. Berkman 1b    .333    
C. Lee lf        .154    
M. Tejada ss    .273    
T. Wigginton 3b    .182    
J. Cruz Jr. cf    .000    
J.R. Towles c    .143    
S. Chacon p    .000    

 San Diego     Season Avg
S. Hairston cf    .250    
T. Iguchi 2b    .385    
A. Gonzalez 1b    .286    
K. Kouzmanoff 3b    .231    
P. McAnulty lf    .500    
K. Greene ss    .462    
J. Bard c    .500    
J. Gerut rf    .500    
R. Wolf p    .000    

102
Talk Zone / Monday Game Time
« on: March 29, 2008, 11:13:14 pm »
Sorry if I've been Cabrera'd, but I couldn't find it.

Anyone know the reason Monday's game got pushed back from 6pm to 9pm central?
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/scoreboard/20080331.html

ESPN still has the game at 6pm
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/teams/schedule?team=hou

103
Talk Zone / Matsui pic at Chron.com
« on: March 07, 2008, 10:29:34 am »
Sorry if Cabrera's a Brave.

http://www.chron.com/sports/

•  Astros' projected lineup


"Batting second, second baseman Kazuo Matsui. Matsui was signed as a free agent from the Rockies this winter. He's best known in Houston for tagging out Craig Biggio on his 3,000th hit."


Ummm, no.

On hits to right center, the 2nd baseman doesn't usually cover 2nd base.  Of course, knowing that would require a tee-ball level of baseball knowledge.  Ok, maybe coach-pitch.

104
Talk Zone / Troy Patton's left shoulder
« on: February 27, 2008, 10:45:31 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera's a Brave:

http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080227&content_id=2392017&vkey=spt2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal

105
Talk Zone / PING!
« on: February 22, 2008, 08:12:25 am »
It's that time again.  College Baseball's Opening Day.  With the rule changes, teams are not allowed to start games until today (usually some schools start playing games in late January).

It'll be good to see baseball while the Astros void is still here.

106
Talk Zone / Happy 50th Alan Trammell
« on: February 21, 2008, 09:11:30 am »
Before moving to Houston and Bags & Bidge becoming my favorite players, I always enjoyed watching Trammell play.   Weird that he's now 50 years old.  Time flies.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/t/trammal01.shtml

He sits nowhere near qualifying for the Hall of Fame, 18.2% (which was his best % in his 6 years of eligibility):
http://web.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers/voting_year.jsp?year=2008

Looks like veteran's committee will be his best chance.

107
Talk Zone / (void video) High School Musical, Biggio
« on: February 06, 2008, 07:22:43 am »
I'm sure some of you with kids have seen this, and apologies if Mickey's a Brave:

Back in June, Disney came to MMP to get a couple shots during the A's series, including a couple of our beloved Pigpen.
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLgsATu8BLA

108
Talk Zone / Walt Jocketty assisting the Dickities
« on: January 12, 2008, 10:49:57 pm »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3192342

109
Talk Zone / NYCU: Catchers
« on: January 05, 2008, 09:33:55 am »
We all know Towles is at this point predicted to be the main catcher in Houston in 2008.  But I had heard Ausmus was going to start Opening Day.  Footer says differently,

"Then Wade realized that was no kid -- that was his 2008 Opening Day starting catcher."

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080103&content_id=2338978&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

Oh yeah, and prav, that quote you listed in the NYCU ... Footer dragged that up from back in October.

"As a receiver, he's very good," Ausmus said. "He's probably one of the better receivers in the league. But just arriving to the big leagues, there's some things he has to learn. It comes with experience, and he doesn't have experience. Hopefully he'll speed up the learning process, in theory, with me around."

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071030&content_id=2288741&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

110
Talk Zone / A-Rod hires new agent
« on: December 18, 2007, 01:51:58 pm »
I'm sure Cabrera's a Brave, but just in case:

Still has Boras around though.

http://thebiglead.com/?p=3934

"the Major League Baseball Players Association said Boras is still listed as his agent, and that Oseary is not certified by the union to negotiate baseball contracts."

111
Talk Zone / Torrealba to the steM
« on: November 16, 2007, 02:12:06 pm »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3112042

Not sure why you would want out of Colorado, with all the momentum and excitement surrounding the Rockies.  I guess now he has a couple more million reasons to live.

112
Talk Zone / August 19, 2004
« on: November 08, 2007, 08:08:38 am »
Who knows how much this date still hurts the Phillies.

Bruntlett with the GWRBI, a 3-run go ahead home run in the 7th inning.  I always considered it one of EB's best hits as an Astro, along with the one in Washington.

Lidge with 1-2-3 9th for the save.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/PHI/PHI200408190.shtml

113
Talk Zone / Schilling signs with Boston
« on: November 06, 2007, 09:05:57 am »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3096549

114
Talk Zone / Pettitte declines option with Yankees
« on: November 05, 2007, 08:11:03 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera's a Brave.


""If Andy decides to play, I am confident we can reach an agreement with the Yankees within 24 hours. The only options, as Andy has stated, are the Yankees or retirement. "

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3096412

115
Talk Zone / Ticket price increase for Yanks/RedSox at MMP
« on: November 04, 2007, 02:08:07 pm »
Sorry if Cabrera's a Brave.

"You can use a lot of words to describe Drayton McLane. Dumb isn't one of them. If you want to see the Red Sox and Yankees at MMP next season, it's going to cost you more. McLane has raised ticket prices across the board for those series. Dugout boxes are being raised from $50 to $75, field boxes from $39 to $50, Crawford boxes from $34 to $50, etc."

http://blogs.chron.com/sportsjustice/archives/2007/11/ed_wade_asks_sc.html

116
Talk Zone / Willy T benched for Game 3
« on: October 27, 2007, 04:49:58 pm »
Cory Sullivan to start in CF and bat 8th.  Tulo moves up to 2nd in the order behind Kaz Matsui.

Of course Youkilis is not starting in the game.  Ellsbury Pedroia Ortiz Manny Lowell are their top 5 in the order tonight.

117
Talk Zone / World Series futility
« on: October 26, 2007, 09:02:38 am »
Willy Taveras has now started 6 World Series games ... and is 0-6.  I took a quick look, and for active players, I believe that's the most.

Going back through history, sweeps are pretty rare, only 17 of 102 from 1903-2006.  The Cubs were swept in 1932 and 1938, but it all of those hitters that played in both '32 and '38 also played in the 1935 Series where the Cubs won 2 games.

There is a good chance Willy T. has currently started the most World Series games in history without a single victory.  5 of those 6 games have been decided by 2 runs or less.



Russ Springer has been on the roster for 8 World Series games and is 0-8, but he only appeared in 4 of them and of course, started none of them.

118
Talk Zone / Separated at Birth: Dustin Pedroia
« on: October 25, 2007, 09:04:46 am »
For the last week, I have thought this guy looked like someone I had seen before:

DP:


Giovanni Ribisi



119
Talk Zone / teh-VAHR-es
« on: October 24, 2007, 07:16:26 pm »
Batting leadoff, playing Center Field, Willy teh-VAHR-es.

Nice going Red Sox PA guy.

120
Talk Zone / Deja Vu: Name the LCS
« on: October 18, 2007, 09:02:31 pm »
The team with Home Field in the LCS (call them the favorite) wins game 1 (over the underdog), but loses Game 2.   

Traveling to the other city, the favorite loses both Games 3 and 4 on the road but has their ace going in Game 5 against the other team's left handed Game 1 starter, with a matchup against arguably the underdog team's best pitcher, a young RHP, in Game 6 looming, but back at home.

The favorite takes a 2-1 lead in the top of the 3rd inning of Game 5 and holds it for a few innings.



121
Talk Zone / NYCU: One nit, picked
« on: October 11, 2007, 11:07:44 am »
"The Astros have won their division twice and went to the World Series in the last 6 years. They've had 5 winning seasons in the last 6 years."

In the last 6 seasons, the Astros have won zero division titles.  I assume you meant "went to the playoffs twice".

122
Talk Zone / DJ Casper's Cha-Cha Sliding
« on: October 06, 2007, 11:31:00 pm »
"Everybody clap your hands  <clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap>"

This has been on my mind all season, but how did this 7 year old song make the rotation in almost baseball game in the country.

You know Coors Field is new at this when they play Naughty by Nature's "Hip Hop Hooray" when one of their players gets a hit, and follows it up Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape" featuring Akon.  The crowd going "Weee-ooooo".  Not quite Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline".


123
Talk Zone / Don Nottebart RIP
« on: October 05, 2007, 08:01:19 am »
http://www.baseball-reference.com/n/nottedo01.shtml

Died yesterday.  He threw the first no-hitter in Houston franchise history.


124
Talk Zone / Encouraging song for work (non-bb)
« on: October 02, 2007, 04:39:05 pm »
For those that need some strength:

http://www.kvet.com/cc-common/mediaplayer/player.html?mps=Default&mid=http://a1135.g.akamai.net/f/1135/23782/1h/cchannel.download.akamai.com/23782/1048/richmedia/A_Song_For_Employees_Suffering_Mistreatment.wma?CCOMRRMID=7104331&CPROG=RICHMEDIA&MARKET=AUSTIN-TX&NG_FORMAT=country&NG_ID=kvet98fm&OR_NEWSFORMAT=&OWNER=1048&SERVER_NAME=www.kvet.com&SITE_ID=1048&STATION_ID=KVET-FM&TRACK=Employee_song

125
Talk Zone / NL Batting Race
« on: October 01, 2007, 10:26:11 pm »
Chipper Jones is in the clubhouse with .3372
Matt Holliday is 1 for 5 so far today and currently has a .3386.  He'll have to finish 1 for 8 or worse to fall behind Chipper.

Obviously the last thing on Matt's mind.

126
Talk Zone / Coach Gundy on Coors Light (non-bb)
« on: September 27, 2007, 11:37:06 am »
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1126119384?bclid=1125972053&bctid=1200296594

127
Talk Zone / Cap Anson: 3,081 or 3,418 hits?
« on: September 26, 2007, 09:07:13 am »
mlb.com uses 3,418.  astros.mlb.com uses 3,081.

http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/historical/player_stats.jsp?statType=1&statType=Overview&teamPosCode=all&HS=true&timeFrame=3&c_id=mlb&sitSplit=&venueID=&section1=null&Submit=Submit&timeSubFrame2=0&baseballScope=mlb&timeSubFrame=0&&sortByStat=H
7.   Cap Anson    3418


"Biggio, who will play his final game on Sunday, will end his career in 20th place, as Cap Anson is 19th with 3,081."
http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/gameday_recap.jsp?ymd=20070925&content_id=2229500&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

Now, I believe one is "modern day hit total" and one is "career hit hotal".

If you look at Cap's record:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/a/ansonca01.shtml, his 3,081st-to-last hit came sometime in the middle of the 1875 season.  I was surprised to see it fall during a season.

It's interesting that after all this time there are still two different lists.

128
Talk Zone / Do-Ray and Matt Cain
« on: September 25, 2007, 10:19:10 pm »
Did anyone else hear Do-Ray (I think it was Brett Dolan) declare "Matt Cain is no doubt the best pitcher ever [with his record]".  If he wins tonight (up 4-0 in the 4th), he'll be 8-16.

Yeah, his 3.68ish ERA is the best all-time with 8-16.  It's gotta be, right?    Oh wait, 90% of his listening audience were rolling their eyes.  If he worked for any other team besides the Astros, he might have gotten away with it.

129
Talk Zone / Biggio playing time question
« on: September 25, 2007, 08:58:17 pm »
I missed it if they announced it, but what is the schedule for Biggio and starts for the season's final 5 games?   I would guess he'll sit on Thursday, but tomorrow too?

"Something different? Because the Reds are not contending for the playoffs this year, manager Cecil Cooper said he may do some creative things to his lineup while the Astros are playing in Cincinnati this week.

Cooper didn't reveal what that might be, but he hinted he may be a bit unconventional Wednesday and maybe Thursday as well.

"We might get a little creative," he said. "Might do something else [Wednesday], something we've been thinking of, a little surprise."

Carlos Lee was spotted taking ground balls at first base during batting practice on Tuesday, so perhaps Cooper plans to shift his regulars around the diamond a bit."

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070925&content_id=2229503&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

130
Talk Zone / DQ and Cingular
« on: September 12, 2007, 08:45:28 pm »
Cabrera's probably a Brave, but at least Debbie feels as similarly as I do about Roger.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEd3pS1jXJ4

131
Talk Zone / Luke Scott goes Chone Figgins
« on: September 11, 2007, 11:00:01 pm »
... with the rare walk off RBI triple.

Correctly scored of course.

http://cbs.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/playbyplay/MLB_20070911_CHC@HOU

132
Talk Zone / 5 more years! 5 more years!
« on: September 11, 2007, 08:26:54 pm »
http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070911&content_id=2201951&vkey=news_cws&fext=.jsp&c_id=cws

133
Talk Zone / Great opportunity (non-BB)
« on: September 10, 2007, 01:13:10 pm »
http://www.ticketmaster.com/promo/bw4e2a

134
Talk Zone / Lee & Berkman
« on: August 24, 2007, 09:51:41 am »
Looking at their careers, their power numbers are similar.  In fact, on the baseball-reference Lance Berkman page, the most similar players to Lance are:

David Ortiz (907)
Kevin Mitchell (893)
Albert Pujols (887)
Carlos Lee (884)

So far, Lance is a career .301 with 249 HR and 834 RBI.  Berkman is signed for 3 + option = 4 more years after 2007.
Carlos Lee is a career .288 with 247 HR and 884 RBI. He is signed for 5 more years after 2007.

Both are 31 years old.

If Berkman and Lee both average 30 home runs over the next 4 seasons, they'll be around 370 career.  I would venture to guess that neither will hit 500 home runs in their career, and both will fall short of the Hall of Fame.

It shows you, that in addition to everything else he did, just how good a home run hitter Jeff Bagwell was, for after the first 13 years of their careers, Berkman and Lee would both be well short of Bagwell's home run total.  Assuming the 30 home run pace of course.

 

135
Talk Zone / Willy T to the DL
« on: August 16, 2007, 08:15:50 am »
Apologize if Cabrera's a Brave.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=AqaH2wkFGBx_Nn0jCk9RLjCFCLcF?slug=ap-rockies-taveras&prov=ap&type=lgns


136
Talk Zone / Off-day Biggio stats
« on: August 09, 2007, 09:01:52 am »
Barring a huge surge, Biggio is as high as he's going to get on the runs and hits leaderboards.  The main ones to watch of course are doubles and HBP.  666 and 288.

Runs -- 13th      
Started year 18th      
8   Cap Anson   1996
9   Stan Musial   1949
10   Lou Gehrig   1888
11   Tris Speaker   1882
12   Mel Ott   1859
13   Craig Biggio   1831

Hits -- 22nd      
Started year t-31st      
17   Robin Yount   3142
18   Tony Gwynn   3141
19   Dave Winfield   3110
20   Rickey Henderson   3055
21   Rod Carew   3053
22   Craig Biggio   3024

Doubles -- 6th      
Started year 9th      
1   Tris Speaker   792
2   Pete Rose   746
3   Stan Musial   725
4   Ty Cobb   724
5   George Brett   665
6   Craig Biggio   662

HBP -- 2nd      
Started year 2nd      
1   Hughie Jennings   287
2   Craig Biggio   285

At Bats -- 13th      
Started year 16th      
8   Dave Winfield   11003
9   Stan Musial   10972
10   Rickey Henderson   10961
11   Willie Mays   10881
12   Paul Molitor   10835
13   Craig Biggio   10744

Games Played -- 20th      
Started year 25th      
15   Al Kaline   2834
16   Rafael Palmeiro   2831
17   Harold Baines   2830
18   Eddie Collins   2826
19   Reggie Jackson   2820
20   Craig Biggio   2811

Walks -- 56th      
Started year 58th      
50   B. Downing/L. Whitaker   1197
52   Chili Davis   1194
53   Billy Hamilton   1187
54   Charlie Gehringer   1186
55   Donie Bush   1158
56   Craig Biggio   1156

Stolen Bases -- 61st      
Started year 61st      
54   Tris Speaker   432
55   Marquis Grissom   429
56   Bescher/Tiernan   428
58   C. Comiskey/F. Frisch   419
60   Jimmy Ryan   418
61   Craig Biggio   414

137
Talk Zone / Aww, look ... how cute
« on: August 08, 2007, 08:08:17 am »
Roger waited until they had the exact same ERA before getting ejected.

138
Talk Zone / Wheels ruffed up, takes the loss
« on: August 07, 2007, 09:57:57 pm »
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore;_ylt=As.Q_S70BStQ3_egMh5DjJS4u7YF?gid=270807106

D. Wheeler (L, 0-1)     1.1     4     3     3     0     2     0     7.36    

139
Talk Zone / Astros to face Teixeira 6 more times this year
« on: July 30, 2007, 11:29:50 am »
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7074846

140
Talk Zone / Rule change regarding games shortened by rain
« on: July 29, 2007, 05:38:42 pm »
OK, I have no idea what the rule change was.  I thought the days of the 7 inning game like Philly had on Friday or the 5-inning game like the Mets had today were over.  Obviously, I was wrong. 

http://cbs.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/recap/MLB_20070729_WAS@NYM

So if not this, what changed?




141
Talk Zone / Oswalt to go Saturday
« on: July 27, 2007, 11:09:50 am »
http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070726&content_id=2111698&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

Glad to see he's feeling better.   Sorry if Cabrera's a Brave.

Speaking of Braves, ESPN.com lists the Astros as missing Smoltz and Hudson in the upcoming series, although Smoltz would be on normal rest in the finale.

142
Talk Zone / Astros.com Lidge article
« on: July 24, 2007, 09:51:22 pm »
http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070724&content_id=2106982&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

Sorry if Cabrera's a Brave.

143
Talk Zone / This could get (really) old
« on: July 23, 2007, 10:33:26 pm »
Bonds hit HR #745 on May 8th.   He didn't hit three more until June 17th.

How quickly does the country think Bonds will take to hit three more now to get to #756?  Everyone was like "he was sitting in Milwaukee so he wouldn't do it there!".  I think some people out there have unreasonable expectations, and they are going to be disappointed when he doesn't hit #756 on this homestand.

144
Talk Zone / Aaron Harang goes 10.0 IP tonight
« on: July 23, 2007, 08:51:21 pm »
Haven't seen that in a while.  How long it has been will surely be told to us on many websites soon.


http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/live/MLB_20070723_MIL@CIN

145
Talk Zone / Buccos outscore Astros 8-6 in the series
« on: July 22, 2007, 02:47:17 pm »
yet the Astros win 2 of 3.  Man that (winning the series despite being outscored) has been rare for the 2007 Astros, especially on the road.

Good to see.


146
Game Zone 2007 Archive / Berkman in the 5 hole @ Cubs - 7/14/07
« on: July 14, 2007, 02:05:57 pm »
Lance is there obviously due to the lefty Lilly, which also explains no Luke or Lamb.   No Biggio today either.

Houston
C. Burke 2b    .235    
H. Pence cf    .341    
M. Loretta 1b    .317    
C. Lee lf    .299    
L. Berkman rf    .261    
M. Ensberg 3b    .210    
E. Bruntlett ss    .300    
B. Ausmus c    .249    
R. Oswalt p    .132
 
 Chi Cubs
 A. Soriano lf    .311    
C. Izturis ss    .242    
D. Lee 1b    .330    
A. Ramirez 3b    .307    
C. Floyd rf    .297    
M. DeRosa 2b    .293    
J. Jones cf    .233    
R. Bowen c    .220    
T. Lilly p    .132    

147
Game Zone 2007 Archive / Astros @ sbuC - 7/13/07
« on: July 13, 2007, 01:07:37 pm »
Houston
C. Biggio 2b     .259    
H. Pence cf    .342    
L. Berkman 1b    .263    
C. Lee lf    .297    
M. Loretta ss    .317    
M. Lamb 3b    .295    
L. Scott rf    .226    
E. Munson c    .250    
J. Jennings p    .091    
 
 Chi Cubs
     
A. Soriano lf    .309    
R. Theriot ss    .276    
D. Lee 1b    .330    
A. Ramirez 3b    .312    
C. Floyd rf    .292    
M. DeRosa 2b    .291    
J. Jones cf    .233    
G. Soto c    .000    
C. Zambrano p    .238    


Looking for another Biggio HBP this series.  3 more HBP and 5 more doubles and Bidge will have his last two significant milestones reached.

Did Craig have to make it that obvious that he pretty much chooses to get hit?  Once he got 3,000 out of the way, then the HBP started coming the next day.

148
Talk Zone / Stark article on Biggio's #3,000
« on: June 29, 2007, 12:02:52 am »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=2920433

149
Talk Zone / Bonds on Biggio
« on: June 28, 2007, 10:19:29 pm »
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2920310

Astros general manager Tim Purpura said the team plans to honor Biggio in August for reaching the mark. Barry Bonds is the next closest player to 3,000 hits. The San Francisco Giants slugger is 70 hits away and needs seven home runs to pass Hank Aaron on the career list.

"He's a great player," Bonds said of Biggio. "He's always been good, ever since I've watched him play. He's phenomenal. I would love the opportunity to play with him. Leadoff hitters don't come around that often."

150
Game Zone 2007 Archive / Rockies @ Biggio -- 6/28/07
« on: June 28, 2007, 05:39:27 pm »
 Colorado
W. Taveras cf    .312    
K. Matsui 2b    .305    
M. Holliday lf    .349    
T. Helton 1b    .318    
G. Atkins 3b    .247    
B. Hawpe rf    .294    
T. Tulowitzki ss    .271    
C. Iannetta c    .204    
A. Cook p    .250    
 
 Houston
C. Biggio 2b    .238    
H. Pence cf    .344    
L. Berkman rf    .261    
C. Lee lf    .293    
M. Loretta 3b    .322    
M. Lamb 1b    .299    
B. Ausmus c    .260    
E. Bruntlett ss    .286    
R. Oswalt p    .125    

151
Talk Zone / 2,996
« on: June 25, 2007, 12:48:07 am »
Bidge with 7 hits in 5 road games started on this trip. 

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070624&content_id=2047562&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

I just hope TWC in Austin doesn't screw us over and black out the Saturday night KNWS game. 

On my DVR it shows MLB Baseball on both Ch. 12 and 77, so it appears we're good in Austin.

Also, Cabrera's probably a Brave, but Bagwell is lobbying:

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070614&content_id=2025976&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

"
Bagwell is even toying with the idea of putting on a uniform one last time and witnessing the hit from the Astros' dugout, if he can successfully lobby the Commissioner's Office to allow for him to do so.

"I thought about that, whether or not I'd want to be in uniform again and be down there," he said. "Worse comes to worse, I'll hang out in the clubhouse before he gets it and just pop into the dugout when he gets back in.

"I still don't know if I want to be in uniform. I probably would have to get special permission to do that anyway. I don't know if that's what I want to do, but it would be something I would entertain. I would consider it."
"

152
Talk Zone / Tracking TPAs
« on: June 20, 2007, 10:40:54 am »
PENCE! has 196 total plate appearances.  The Astros have played 71 games this year, meaning only Astros with 221 or more TPAs (71*3.1 rounded up) qualify for the league leaders.

If PENCE! continues his 4.26 PA per game pace, he'll qualify in 20-21 more Astros games.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/batting?sort=avg&league=nl

153
Talk Zone / "caught stealing, pitcher to shortstop"
« on: June 19, 2007, 11:17:46 am »
What the hell is wrong with the Astros base runners recently?  Bagwell is rolling over in his proverbial baserunning grave.

Last night:
Top 3rd: Houston
- L. Berkman walked
- L. Berkman caught stealing, pitcher to shortstop

Mix in a pick off on Sunday
Bottom 6th: Houston
- C. Burke singled to left
- C. Burke picked off at first, pitcher to first

And on Saturday twice,
  Bottom 6th: Houston
- C. Lee singled to center
- C. Lee caught stealing, pitcher to first to shortstop

 Bottom 7th: Houston
- M. Loretta walked
- M. Loretta caught stealing, pitcher to first to second


The catcher never touched the ball on any of these.

154
Talk Zone / reverT
« on: June 19, 2007, 11:06:24 am »
How many more times will Garner send reverT out there in close game situations?


His split stats tell you he sucks against both righties and lefties.  It also shows he has a 14.73 ERA in June, with a 2.45 WHIP and a .375 BAA.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/5705/splits;_ylt=ApVsOMdDaz5MfjytI9vupzeFCLcF

155
Talk Zone / Tim Lincecum
« on: June 13, 2007, 04:37:42 pm »
All the hype about that guy.  When not playing the Astros, he is now 1-1 with a 7.09 ERA over 33 innings.

He may still end up being dominant, but he's got some work to do.


156
Talk Zone / The Hold rule
« on: June 05, 2007, 11:19:33 pm »
Quick question about the hold rule.  I thought a hold is given to a pitcher who pitches in a save situation and leaves the game without giving up a lead, avoiding a blown save, like a 7th or 8th inning setup often gets.

Tonight, ESPN.com awarded Dave Borkowski with a hold.  He pitched in the 6th inning.  And of course, unlike the 7th inning or later, blown 6th inning leads do not count as blown saves.

http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/boxscore?gameId=270605127

157
Talk Zone / Paging Elias ...
« on: June 03, 2007, 01:36:53 pm »
The Astros starting lineup today contains 0 last names that start with the letter "B".  When was the last time that happened?

158
Talk Zone / Kristi Yamaguchi
« on: May 21, 2007, 10:38:39 pm »
To those who didn't see the game tonight, Kristi Yamaguchi was one of the ball dudes down the line at the game tonight.

Bill Brown has twice now referred to her as a gymnast, one time advising her to use the rail as a parallel bar.

Funny stuff, as JD knows she is an ice skater, mentioning her short program.

159
Talk Zone / Astros Relievers -- The first pitch
« on: May 17, 2007, 10:16:10 am »
Something I noticed when clicking links ...

In situations where Brad Lidge throws a first pitch strike, he has 14 Ks and 1 walk.
In situations where Brad Lidge throws a first pitch ball, he has 11 Ks and 8 walks.

In situations where Dan Wheeler throws a first pitch strike, he has 13 Ks and 0 walks.
In situations where Dan Wheeler throws a first pitch ball, he has 6 Ks and 5 walks.

In situations where Chad Qualls throws a first pitch strike, he has 14 Ks and 1 walk.
In situations where Chad Qualls throws a first pitch ball, he has 3 Ks and 6 walks.

Overall, first pitch strike leads to 41 Ks and 2 walks.   first pitch ball leads to 20 Ks and 19 walks.

I expected a large difference, but maybe not that large a difference.

Source: Yahoo! Sports

160
Talk Zone / Landis-Armstrong story on CNN.com -- Non-BB
« on: May 11, 2007, 09:20:08 am »
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/more/05/10/landis.armstrong.ap/index.html?cnn=yes

"he 2006 Tour de France champion said USADA general counsel Travis Tygart approached his attorney, Howard Jacobs, with a deal shortly after learning of Landis' positive doping test during the Tour.

...
Jacobs did not immediately return messages left at his office by The Associated Press, and Tygart held to USADA's restriction on commenting about ongoing cases.

"If Mr. Landis will waive the rule and allow me to comment, then I'll be happy to address his nonsense," Tygart said."

Nice non-comment. 

161
Game Zone 2007 Archive / Astros at Dickities - 5/10/07
« on: May 10, 2007, 10:44:01 am »
Houston
O. Palmeiro rf    .222    
M. Loretta ss    .385    
L. Berkman 1b    .288    
C. Lee lf    .287    
L. Scott cf    .261    
M. Lamb 3b    .353    
C. Burke 2b    .234    
B. Ausmus c    .284    
M. Albers p    .167    
   
 Cincinnati
R. Freel 3b    .261    
S. Hatteberg 1b    .298    
K. Griffey Jr. rf    .312    
B. Phillips 2b    .272    
A. Dunn lf    .270    
J. Hamilton cf    .277    
J. Castro ss    .115    
D. Ross c    .205    
A. Harang p    .133    


Albers (1-1, 3.32) vs. Harang (4-1, 4.78)

162
Talk Zone / Jason Hirsh
« on: May 09, 2007, 01:27:22 pm »
Dude has 90 pitches thru 3 IP today.  Thank goodness Milo isn't annoucing.  He'd be going nuts ..."he should be thru 6!!!"

http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/live/MLB_20070509_COL@STL

163
Talk Zone / Rain shortened game question
« on: May 02, 2007, 03:07:22 pm »
The Cubs-Pirates game that was suspended yesterday got me thinking.  It was a black and white case, suspended due to rule 4.12 (a)(5), which states,
"SUSPENDED GAMES.
(a) A game shall become a suspended game that must be completed at a future date if the game is terminated for any of the following reasons:
(5) Weather, if a regulation game is called while an inning is in progress and before the inning is completed, and the visiting team has scored one or more runs to take the lead, and the home team has not retaken the lead;

But I read on, and it appears that rain shortened finals only occur anymore when it happens in the "last scheduled game between the two teams during the championship season".  But rather they are all Suspended games that have to be completed.

Has this always been the case or is this new?

This game happened last year, which seems contradictory to the rule.  Texas played 5 more games in Boston last year.
http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/recap/MLB_20060512_TEX@BOS




According to rule 4.12 (b)(4)
A suspended game shall be resumed and completed as follows

(4) Any suspended game not completed prior to the last scheduled game between the two teams during the championship season shall become a called game. If such game becomes a called game and
     (i) has progressed far enough to become a regulation game, and one team is ahead, the team that is ahead shall be declared the winner;
     (ii) has progressed far enough to become a regulation game, and the score is tied, the game shall be declared a “tie game.” A tie game is to be replayed in its entirety, unless the league president determines that playing the rescheduled game is not necessary to affect the league championship;

164
Talk Zone / Fernando Vina on Baseball Tonight
« on: April 20, 2007, 09:45:54 am »
Man, that show is bad.  Fernando Vina was asked who he thinks in the best team in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Texas.  His answers ... the Pirates, Devil Rays, and Rangers. 

Peter Gammons said the Phillies and Marlins, but dropped a Rangers on us as the best team in Texas.  I turned off the TV.

Earlier, the only guy I usually like, Tim Kirkjian had his under .200 team with Berkman at .190.  Of course, he compiled that list yesterday during the day, for when he presented it, it was Pujols at .190 and Berkman at .213.

165
Talk Zone / Most JOYful Astros Win List -- Citizens Bank Park edition
« on: April 13, 2007, 11:56:19 pm »
A storied Astros Citizens Bank Park tradition has already been forged.  What is your favorite Citizens Bank Park moment?

The Astros are 9-1 all-time at the stadium, and all 9 have been incredible.

My favorite was the August 19th, 2004 game, where the Astros were down 7-2, but turned a triple play in the 5th and came back to win the game 12-10.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/PHI/PHI200408190.shtml

Bruntlett's made a career there.

166
Talk Zone / Tigers trying to go August 29th, 1989
« on: April 04, 2007, 03:14:59 pm »
The Tigers are trying their best Mark Portugal/Brian Meyer/Danny Darwin impression by blowing their own 9 run lead.

http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/live/MLB_20070404_TOR@DET

167
Talk Zone / Adam Everett in the 2 spot
« on: April 02, 2007, 04:03:04 pm »
per AM610

Biggio
Everett
Berkman
Lee
Ensberg
Scott
Burke
Ausmus
Oswalt

168
Talk Zone / Alyson Footer says Garner still mum on rotation
« on: April 02, 2007, 09:36:07 am »
This was dated two days ago, so he might not be mum anymore.  Any idea who will start Saturday for Houston?  Sampson or Roy O?

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070330&content_id=1871954&vkey=spt2007news&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

"Astros' Garner staying mum on Opening Day lineup, rotation"

169
Talk Zone / The Missile released by the D-Rays
« on: March 29, 2007, 04:26:20 pm »
Maybe back to Japan?

http://tampabay.devilrays.mlb.com/team/transactions.jsp?c_id=tb

170
Talk Zone / Who'd get the W if you were scoring?
« on: March 05, 2007, 10:27:59 am »
HOUSTON
Code:
 
                                  IP   H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR
J Rodriguez                        2   0   0   0   1   2   0
M Albers                           2   2   0   0   2   1   0
B Lidge                            1   0   0   0   0   1   0
C Sampson (W,1-0)              1 2-3   2   2   2   2   1   0
L Holdzkom                     1 1-3   1   0   0   1   2   0
T Miller                           1   0   0   0   0   1   0
 


The Link

They probably got it right (over LH and TM).  It just looks weird since Sampson was the worst pitcher of the day.

171
Talk Zone / Biggio Milestone
« on: February 12, 2007, 07:53:55 pm »
Quick, name the biggest milestone that Craig Biggio is chasing this year.

The Link

172
Talk Zone / Mets give oral to Ho
« on: February 09, 2007, 12:02:32 pm »
"Mets reach oral agreement with Park".

1-yr, $3 million

The Link

173
Talk Zone / Grand Slam LaRoche now a Pirate
« on: January 17, 2007, 07:03:59 pm »
The Link

Promising reliever Mike Gonzalez (2.37 ERA in 155.2IP) is now a Brave.

174
Talk Zone / Raul Chavez to the Yankees
« on: December 07, 2006, 11:31:05 am »
I apologize if already posted.

"The Yankees signed catcher Raul Chavez to a minor-league contract. He will compete with Wil Nieves to be the backup to Jorge Posada"

The Link

175
Talk Zone / Pujols feels he was snubbed for MVP
« on: November 29, 2006, 10:12:21 pm »
The Link

176
Talk Zone / Baseball Scoring Question -- Game 4
« on: October 27, 2006, 12:46:02 am »
In the Bottom of the 7th inning in Game 4, the Cardinals scored two runs.

According to ESPN, 1 of them is earned.

Pitchers IP  H  R ER BB SO HR PC-ST ERA
F Rodney 1.2 2 2 1 1 4 0 30-17 6.00

The Link

So the question: Why was 1 earned?

Of course, MLB rule 10.18 states, "In determining earned runs, the inning should be reconstructed without the errors (which include catcher?s interference) and passed balls, and the benefit of the doubt should always be given to the pitcher in determining which bases would have been reached by errorless play."

So after a leadoff double, a bunt happened.  Had no error occurred, then there would have been Eckstein on 3rd with 1 out.  

"For the purpose of determining earned runs, an intentional base on balls, regardless of the circumstances, shall be construed in exactly the same manner as any other base on balls."

Pujols was then intentionally walked.

And then Edmonds and Rolen struck out.  

The inning "would have" ended without a run scoring.

177
Talk Zone / Moneyball rules!
« on: October 06, 2006, 09:40:11 pm »
Go A's!  Go Moneyball.  The brilliant;y budgeted 62.3 million dollar payroll of the Oakland Athletics just shoved it in the face of the free spending 63.8 million dollar payrolled Minnesota Twins.

Take that!

178
Talk Zone / Biggio's Updated Career Rankings
« on: October 03, 2006, 11:06:38 am »
Here are Biggio's current rankings in some all-time categories:

Hits -- t-31st
Started year 43rd
26 Roberto Clemente 3000
27 Sam Rice 2987
28 Sam Crawford 2961
29 Frank Robinson 2943
30 Willie Keeler 2932
31 Craig Biggio/Beckley/Hornsby 2930

Runs -- 18th
Started year 24th
13 Frank Robinson 1829
14 Eddie Collins 1821
15 Carl Yastrzemski 1816
16 Ted Williams 1798
17 Paul Molitor 1782
18 Craig Biggio 1776


Doubles -- 9th
Started year 12th
4 Ty Cobb 724
5 George Brett 665
6 Nap Lajole 657
7 Carl Yastrzemski 646
8 Honus Wagner 640
9 Craig Biggio 637

Stolen Bases -- 61st
Started year t-62nd
54 Tris Speaker 432
55 Marquis Grissom 429
56 Bescher/Tiernan 428
58 C. Comiskey/F. Frisch 419
60 Jimmy Ryan 418
61 Craig Biggio 410

HBP -- 2nd
Started year 2nd
1 Hughie Jennings 287
2 Craig Biggio 282


At Bats -- 16th
Started year 28th
11 Willie Mays 10881
12 Paul Molitor 10835
13 Brooks Robinson 10654
14 Rafael Palmeiro 10472
15 Honus Wagner 10430
16 Craig Biggio 10359


Games Played -- 25th
Started year 37th
20 Frank Robinson 2808
21 Honus Wagner 2792
22 Tris Speaker 2789
23 Tony Perez 2777
24 Mel Ott 2730
25 Craig Biggio 2709


Walks -- 58th
Started year 63rd
52 Chili Davis 1194
53 Billy Hamilton 1187
54 Charlie Gehringer 1186
55 Donie Bush 1158
56 Max Bishop/Toby Harrah 1153
58 Craig Biggio 1137

179
Talk Zone / Co-Dodgers, anyone?
« on: October 02, 2006, 03:03:28 pm »
Big surprise, the Dodgers are taking their Wild Card berth with class, unlike the Co-ards.

The Link

The Padres are the division champs:

The Link

180
Talk Zone / Pedro Martinez out for season
« on: September 28, 2006, 11:08:27 pm »
The Link

181
Talk Zone / Brewers-Cardinals starting lineups
« on: September 28, 2006, 08:09:17 pm »
Eckstein is back.

Milwaukee
  AB R H RBI BB K LOB Season Avg  
T. Gwynn cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .276  
T. Graffanino 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .297  
P. Fielder 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273  
B. Hall ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .268  
G. Jenkins rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .265  
C. Hart lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .277  
D. Bell 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .269  
M. Rivera c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .264  
D. Davis p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .048  
 Totals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  
 
 St. Louis
  AB R H RBI BB K LOB Season Avg  
D. Eckstein ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .293  
S. Taguchi cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .269  
A. Pujols 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .331  
J. Encarnacion rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .276  
S. Rolen 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .294  
R. Belliard 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .244  
P. Wilson lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .259  
G. Bennett c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .226  
J. Marquis p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .179

The Link

182
Talk Zone / Astros finally back over .500.
« on: September 26, 2006, 11:13:17 pm »
Nicely done Stros.

183
Talk Zone / Mike freaking Cameron
« on: September 26, 2006, 11:12:09 pm »
A huge 2 out 2 run double to take the lead in St. Louis, 6-5.

This is two straight outings where Carpenter had a 5-2 lead turn into a 6-5 deficit.

184
Talk Zone / John Smoltz goes 8 shutout frames, ready for Sunday
« on: September 26, 2006, 10:41:12 pm »
That could be a battle.  It's too far off to think about.

185
Talk Zone / 2006 NL Central vs. 1996 AL West
« on: September 26, 2006, 02:49:47 am »
I was comparing the Astros-Cardinals finish this year to the Rangers-Mariners finish in 1996, and I found some similarities.

The Rangers led by 6 games in the 2nd to last week of the season.  They went to Seattle and got swept in a 4 game series.  Mariners were just 2 back.  

The next night, the Rangers lost a close one and the Mariners cruised, gaining another game.  After a night where both teams won, the Rangers picked up a game to extend their lead back to 2 games, and the Mariners never recovered, finishing 4.5 back.

Besides the obvious parallels, I sort of have the same feelings. If their is one night this week that has the Astros losing and the Cardinals winning, then I think it's over.

I hope that history does not repeat itself here.

186
Talk Zone / Astros Magic Number falls to 10; 9 for a playoff
« on: September 26, 2006, 12:15:15 am »
Tonight, the Astros magic number fell 2 more spots to 10. Just six days ago it was 22.

Cardinals 80-75
Astros 78-78

If the Astros go 6-0 against the Buca and Braves to finish at 84-78, then the Cardinals must go 4-3 to tie them and 5-2 to beat them.

187
Talk Zone / Wade Miller throws 5 shutout innings
« on: September 25, 2006, 05:04:16 pm »
Good for him.  His ERA is down to 3.57.  Too bad the Cubs bully is horrendoues, blowing yet another lead.  Whitey misses out on his first victory of the season.

The Link

188
Talk Zone / Reds starter with a 4 1/3 IP victory
« on: September 22, 2006, 11:53:29 pm »
Aah yes, the rain shortened caveat to the rule that says a pitcher must go 5.

Rare to see it, even though it is a basic rule.

"Todd Coffey pitched out of a two-on, one-out threat in the fifth in relief of left-hander Chris Michalak (2-3), who got the victory under baseball's rules for rain-shortened games."

The Link

189
Talk Zone / Way to go Berkman
« on: September 21, 2006, 11:50:15 pm »
I'm sure there will be some 2nd guessing in St. Louis on the decision to pitch to Lance with 1st base open.

Go Stros.  Fun game to watch.

The Link

Not sure why they included the following in that recap:

"Biggio has 637 career doubles, three behind Honus Wagner for eighth on the career list. "

190
Talk Zone / Chris Carpenter's "slow start"
« on: September 21, 2006, 05:03:28 pm »
"Carpenter (15-6, 2.79 ERA) started the season slowly. In his first 15 starts, he was 6-4 with a 2.85 ERA. He's made 15 starts since Aug. 4, and is 9-2 with a 2.73 ERA."

The Link

Man he started slow.  A 2.85 ERA?  my goodness.  So much worse than his 2.73 ERA since.

191
Talk Zone / Biggio gets 8th 20+ homer season
« on: September 20, 2006, 05:12:14 pm »
Congrats to Craig.  In 8 of the last 14 seasons, Craig has hit at least 20 home runs.

He now has 11 more games this season and a whole 2007 season to hit 20 more home runs to get to 300 for his career.

Probably a pipe dream, but I expect him to finish 290+, so he may go for it.

192
Talk Zone / Andy Pettitte scratched from his start tonight
« on: September 19, 2006, 08:13:55 pm »
The Link

193
Talk Zone / McEwing over Hirsh?
« on: September 19, 2006, 12:04:12 am »
The Link

So Joe McEwing was named team MVP over Jason Hirsh?  JH got robbed.  He got PCL Pitcher of the Year.  The Express were a much worse team after he left.

194
Talk Zone / ESPN's Jerry Crasnick on Astros-Orioles
« on: September 15, 2006, 12:25:33 am »
"Another proposed deal would have sent Tejada to Houston for Roy Oswalt, Morgan Ensberg and Adam Everett. But when the Orioles wanted pitching prospect Jason Hirsh instead of Everett, the Astros said no. Houston also got cold feet when word spread that Baltimore might flip Oswalt to Texas. "

The Link

195
Talk Zone / A look at the final 29 games
« on: August 31, 2006, 04:38:14 pm »
During last night's TV broadcast, you saw a graphic predicting Clemens' last 6 starts.

Looking at how the schedule plays out, if you assume, like FSN did, that Clemens will pitch every 5th day when possible, you get the following:

Clemens, Oswalt, and Pettitte: 6 starts a piece.
That leaves 11 games for other starters, like Hirsh, Wandy, and Backe.

It also sets up Pettitte to pitch in a 1-game playoff on normal rest on the Monday following the Braves series.


The Astros are going to have to earn it, playing many current .500 or better teams (19 of 22 after today), unlike the Phillies (0 remaining).

 Code:
 Thu. 31   Milwaukee
Minute Maid Park   Pettitte

Sep. '06   OPPONENT   LOCATION   HOU PITCHER
Fri. 1   NY Mets
Minute Maid Park   Rodriguez

Sat. 2   NY Mets
Minute Maid Park   Hirsh

Sun. 3   NY Mets
Minute Maid Park   Oswalt

Mon. 4   at Philadelphia
Citizens Bank Park   Clemens

Tue. 5   at Philadelphia
Citizens Bank Park   Pettitte

Wed. 6   at Philadelphia
Citizens Bank Park   Rodriguez

Fri. 8   at Milwaukee
Miller Park    Oswalt
Sat. 9   at Milwaukee
Miller Park    Clemens
Sun. 10   at Milwaukee
Miller Park    Pettitte
Mon. 11   at St. Louis
Busch Stadium    Rodriguez
Tue. 12   at St. Louis
Busch Stadium    Hirsh
Wed. 13   at St. Louis
Busch Stadium    Oswalt
Fri. 15   Philadelphia
Minute Maid Park    Clemens
Sat. 16   Philadelphia
Minute Maid Park    Pettitte
Sun. 17   Philadelphia
Minute Maid Park    Hirsh/Rodriguez
Mon. 18   Cincinnati
Minute Maid Park    Oswalt
Tue. 19   Cincinnati
Minute Maid Park    Rodriguez/Hirsh
Wed. 20   Cincinnati
Minute Maid Park    Clemens
Thu. 21   St. Louis
Minute Maid Park    Pettitte
Fri. 22   St. Louis
Minute Maid Park    Hirsh/Rodriguez
Sat. 23   St. Louis
Minute Maid Park    Oswalt
Sun. 24   St. Louis
Minute Maid Park    Rodriguez/Hirsh
Tue. 26   at Pittsburgh
PNC Park    Clemens
Wed. 27   at Pittsburgh
PNC Park    Pettitte
Thu. 28   at Pittsburgh
PNC Park    Oswalt
Fri. 29   at Atlanta
Turner Field    Hirsh/Rodriguez
Sat. 30   at Atlanta
Turner Field    Rodriguez/Hirsh
Oct. '06   OPPONENT   LOCATION   HOU PITCHER
Sun. 1   at Atlanta
Turner Field    Clemens
 

196
Talk Zone / Phillies playing 32 games in 31 days
« on: August 31, 2006, 02:43:05 pm »
The Phillies have just finished playing the first 20 games of a brutal 32 games in 31 days stretch.  No days off in between August 10th and September 11th.  Here's hoping that they are a little tired when the Stros roll into town on Monday.

197
Talk Zone / Wheels
« on: August 31, 2006, 11:19:58 am »
How about that Dan Wheeler.

In the 2nd half of the season, he has a 0.00 ERA in 16.2 IP over 20 games, with 3 saves, 20 Ks, and 5 walks.

The Link

It was yet another Gerry Hunsicker masterpiece, getting Wheeler straight up for Adam Seuss in 2004.  His current 2.59 ERA is his worst season ERA since joining Houston.  Nice problem to have.

The Link

198
Talk Zone / Edit: Astros sign Roy Oswalt to 5-year contract extension
« on: August 29, 2006, 10:27:22 pm »
nm

199
Talk Zone / Another sign that the end is near
« on: August 29, 2006, 11:53:05 am »
Esteban Loaiza will most likely win the AL Pitcher of the Month award for August.

The Link
The Link

Apparently, just wearing the Green and Gold means you dominate in the 2nd half.  The A's are the best 2nd half team since 2000.

200
Talk Zone / Roy O reaches 10 wins again
« on: August 23, 2006, 04:40:26 pm »
Roy O has reached double-digits in wins six years in a row now (in all six of his big league seasons).

Remarkably, that hasn't been done by a Astro since Nolan Ryan did it 7 years in a row from 1980-1986.  Mike Scott never won 10 in 6 straight seasons.

Nice. Even though Roy O has had to battle his share of injuries, he still gets out there for at least 10 wins every year.

201
Talk Zone / September 2000
« on: August 23, 2006, 03:57:13 pm »
We all remember that month ....  OK, maybe not "all".  

It was one of the few times in recent history that the Astros were out of it in September.  Albeit just 6 back of Cincy after today if the lead holds, the Astros might be headed in the same direction ... playing some games that do not have playoff implications for themselves.

But September 2000 was the month Richard Hidalgo went crazy.  Crazy enough for the following Astros Opening Day program to have a cover story saying, "Aren't you glad the Astros didn't trade Hidalgo and Scott Elarton for Roger Clemens?"

Hidalgo batted a ridiculous .476-11-31 in 28 games, for an OPS of 1.504.  That month sure didn't hurt him towards the huge 4 year deal he signed that paid him $30 million.
The Link
The Link

So the question ... who will be this September's Richard Hidalgo?  Maybe not as good as Dalgy, but plays well above their 2006 established paces.

I wish Hidalgo could have lasted longer in the bigs.  Like alot of us, I liked him alot and wished him well even after he left the team.

202
Talk Zone / Congrats to Willy Taveras ...
« on: August 23, 2006, 02:58:28 pm »
... on setting the all-time Houston franchise hit streak.

26 games in a row.

203
Talk Zone / Dead Center Field Bombs at MMP
« on: August 16, 2006, 10:49:30 am »
After Jacque Jones' 445-foot bomb last night, JD said on the broadcast something to the effect of, "How many of those [type of home runs] have you seen hit here?"

I was at a game in 2000 I believe when some guy on the Montreal Expos hit a home run to dead center.  I think it was the seldom used backup infielder Andy Tracy.

Anyone recall that home run?

What others have been hit out to dead center?

204
Talk Zone / Obsession with "Winning Series"
« on: August 11, 2006, 03:31:43 pm »
Usually about this time of year I expect to hear Biggio monotonously descibe how important it is to just kepp winning series.  

That's expected.  

However, recently, many in the Astros TV and Radio crews have been beating this topic to death.  It is almost as if they would rather have the Astros win all three series in a homestand 2 games to 1 (6-3 homestand) than sweep the Pirates and Cubs, but drop 2 of 3 to the Padres (7-2).

Winning Series is nice, but in no way is it better than winning games.

On the last road trip, after winning the first two games in SD and Arizona, I lost count how many times I heard Raymond and Dolan say something like "you've already won the series," and then follow it up with a euphemism for "so losing today is ok".

You get the impression that they think the difference  between losing a series 1-2 and winning a series 2-1 is alot bigger than the difference between winning a series 2-1 and sweeping a series.

OK, off the soap box.

205
Talk Zone / Jason Hirsh to start Saturday
« on: August 09, 2006, 11:58:20 am »
I know, I know.  This is old news.  But here's the Footer article.

The Link

Who was sent down?

206
Talk Zone / Biggio and Home Runs
« on: August 09, 2006, 11:13:05 am »
Craig Biggio has now hit 15 or more home runs in 11 of the last 12 seasons.  The only outlier was his injury shortened 2000 season.

His career total is up to 275, a nice total.  ESPN.com lists his 2006 season pace now at 22 home runs.  If Bidge hits 22 this year, he would only be 18 home runs away from 300 heading into 2007.  


The Link

207
Talk Zone / Kenny Rosenthal still says Oswalt offered to O's
« on: August 01, 2006, 10:30:11 am »
Says Angelos nixed the Oswalt deal.

The Link

Orioles
It took effort to beat out the Red Sox for the top spot, it really did. It also has taken effort for the Orioles to produce eight straight losing seasons at the U.S. Mint at Camden Yards, with No. 9 on the way. But by golly, owner Peter Angelos has done it.

Astros right-hander Roy Oswalt, a perennial Cy Young candidate, wasn't enticing enough for Angelos to trade shortstop Miguel Tejada. Angels right-hander Ervin Santana, one of the game's top young pitchers, wasn't enticing enough, either. Angelos has it all figured out, you see. His team is plenty good already!

The Orioles' front office did its job, soliciting at least two quality offers for Tejada, and exploring potential deals in which Oswalt would have been flipped to the Rangers or Mets for additional players. But then Angelos got into the act, questioning this, questioning that, according to major-league sources.

Why accept Santana and a less established player, Class AAA shortstop Erick Aybar, for an All-Star such as Tejada? Why risk acquiring Oswalt when he could depart as a free agent after next season? Why take Astros shortstop Adam Everett when the Orioles already have a young shortstop, Brandon Fahey?

The answers:

*Because putting Santana in a future rotation with left-handers Erik Bedard and Adam Loewen and right-handers Daniel Cabrera and Hayden Penn might actually have given the Orioles a chance in the powerful A.L. East.

*Because a No. 1 starter is the game's most treasured commodity, and the Orioles could have traded Oswalt for a dizzying array of talent at next year's deadline if they were unable to sign him long-term.

*Because hey, you've got a chance to get ROY OSWALT ? and then turn him into an even bigger bonanza.

208
Talk Zone / Ken Rosenthal on Astros
« on: July 31, 2006, 04:56:34 pm »
The Link

Parts of this column are updates, but parts are old, like this:

"Oswalt, 28, is a free agent after the 2007 season. He is expected to seek a contract of at least five years. And his injury history and slight, 6-foot, 185-pound frame make him a long-term risk."

209
Talk Zone / -
« on: July 31, 2006, 03:42:59 pm »
Post deleted by ValpoCory

210
Talk Zone / Harold Reynolds fired by ESPN
« on: July 25, 2006, 11:37:42 am »
The Link

Probably been posted already, but just in case.

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