After an abbreviated winning road trip, the Astros wanted to go somewhere where everyone knows their name, but the trip home did not make anyone glad they came. Of the 6 games they have played on the homestand, the hometown nine lost 5. The friendly confines of the MMPUS have not been so friendly this year, resulting in a 9 -15 home record. Maybe we should take this series to the Queen City, the Pearl of the Ohio Valley.
Monday May 25 12:10 p.m. FSH-HD
Tuesday May 26 6:10 p.m. FSH
Wednesday May 27 6:10 p.m. FSH
While we are wondering whatever became of our Astros, the Cincinnati Reds have been hanging close to the NL Central leaders by posting a winning road record (13-8). They haven’t been so good at home (10-12). So they blew it up.
And then built the Great American Ballpark Don’t know what is so great about it. Is it really American? I’ll bet there are some parts from China. Or Taiwan. And every time I see that stadium name, all I can hear is the theme from the Great Space Coaster playing in my head until I want to scream.
Probable Pitching Matchups
Monday May 25 Wandy Rodriguez, LHP (5-2, 1.83) vs Aaron Harang, RHP (4-4, 3.19)
This game is a rematch between Rodriguez and Harang where Wandy pitched 7 innings of one run ball to earn the win. Wandy has been nothing short of super, uh, super, uh, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious this season, allowing no more than 3 earned runs in any game, even on the road. He seems to have learned how to bury his Road Wandy alternate personality, and only lets Home Wandy come out to play.
Harang has faced the Astros twice this season, resulting in one win and one loss. In his last start, he allowed 6 hits and 6 runs in only 5 innings, for his third loss this year. Matsui had 3 hits in that game, his only 3 hit game of the season. If you remove the 10 earned runs in 11 innings that the Astros have pinned on the Harangotan this year, his season ERA drops more than a full point from 3.19 to 2.05. Several Astros have excellent averages against the Harangotan; Pudge (.600), Blum (.588) and Matsui(.444) lead the pack.
Tuesday May 26 Roy Oswalt, RHP (1-2, 4.47) vs Micah Owings, RHP (3-5, 4.70)
Oh where, oh where has my little Roy gone? Oh where, oh where can he be? After two no-decisions against the Reds earlier this year, here’s hoping that the phrase “the third time is the charm” works it magic on Roy. In thirteen innings he has only given up one earned run to the Reds this season. To say he has had a lack of run support would be putting it mildly. Laynce Nix and Alex Gonzalez (.429 each) should be on Roy’s list of players to avoid if he wants to earn a win with this one.
Owings has not started against the Astros this year. In two starts before this season, he is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA. Lee, Pence and Tejada have had relative sucess against Owing, albeit in an extremely small sample size (5 or less ABs).
Wednesday May 27 Felipe Paulino, RHP (1-3, 6.90) vs Bronson Arroyo, RHP (6-3, 5.79)
Paulino has been jerked around too much by Cap’n Tinker, on that we can all agree. Like Roy, he has allowed only 1 run to the Reds in two starts, but got no-decisions in both. Paulino needs to pull out the Raid to use on Lance Nix who sports an .800 BA against him.
Arroyo is just one ugly SOB. That nasty ass mullet is a crime against humanity. I’d give fiddy bucks to watch him get shorn like an Australian sheep. Berkman and Matsui usually have their way with Arroyo, maybe he can be the Red Bull that gives an energy boost to their bats.
Who’s got a Bobo?
Houston
- Valverde has a strained baby cow.
- Backe is still up the canal.
- Blum and Brocail need new hamstrings.
- Geary needs fixing. That means you Budgirl.
- Boones’ heart is still achy breaky.
Cincinnati
- King Edward Encarnacion has a wristocracy.
- Nick Masset strained the obligatory oblique.
- Brandon Phillips fractured his fairy tales, otherwise known as his Tom Thumb.
- Volquez strained his bacque.
- Votto is doing his best impersonation of Dizzy Dean.
Nothing. Not one damn thing. Even on Memorial Day. Marge Schott is cheap. And dead.
Other Crap
This hotel internet connection is a piece of shit. I can’t count on my two hands the times I hit “Save Draft” just to go back to the main hotel page and have to rewrite everything all over again.
I am at a convention and saw this guy going up the opposite escalator while I was going down. The logo on his shirt just jumped out at me and I had to take a picture. You can come up with your own interpretation, but I figure it means: First one with his head in his ass, last one with his head out…
Follow along in the GameZone.