Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez is set to tie the all-time catching record tonight in Arlington. The Dallas Morning News and Houston Chronicle both have decent articles on Pudge’s career and his approach at Calton Fisk’s record of 2,226 games caught.
__________
Levine writes about the progress of Chris Johnson at Round Rock. (link)
__________
Pinwheel has a bad case of man-love for Hunter Pence. (link)
(where the only consistency is inconsistency)
Round and round and round he goes, where Kaz’ll bat, nobody knows…
Cooper said Matsui will get the nod as starter at second base when he returns. (Astros.com)
“He’s our regular second baseman,” …”We need him to play at a real high level. [If] he plays at a high level, we’re going to be pretty good with he and [Michael] Bourn at the top [of the order].”
But Cooper said Matsui will hit near the bottom of the order when he gets back. …
“It’s pretty hard to take Tejada out of that slot after all this time,” Cooper said. “He’s been really swinging the bat real well in the No. 2 hole. [Matsui] will have to play at a high level, though, for us to be really good.”
Does Cooper evens listens to the drivel that he is spouting?
[Should Matsui start when he returns? Talk about it in the TZ]
Which leads us to the curious case of Wandy and the mysterious battery mate.
_____
Catching Wandy
Over the last few months, Coop could not say enough of the all-Rodriguez battery:
Cooper credited the dynamic relationship between Rodriguez and catcher Ivan Rodriguez as one of the keys to the pitcher’s success. “I’ll tell you, the guy who’s squatting and catching for him has been a godsend for him,” Cooper said. “They really connect, and Wandy has been as good as any pitcher in the game right now. He is really throwing the ball well. “They’re speaking the same language, and it gives him confidence that the guy back there is putting down the right fingers.” (Astros.com)
Wandy was equally enthusiastic about the pairing:
“I’ve learned a lot from Pudge,” Wandy Rodriguez said. “He’s a very smart catcher. And with him I’m not afraid to throw any pitch at any count because I trust the way he calls games.” *** “I’ve learned to have more confidence in myself,” Wandy said. “He’s given me a lot of confidence this season. For a player of his caliber in the top category of players in history, he makes it easy to feel comfortable with him. “He’s like a friend, and that has given me more confidence.” (Chron.com)
Yet despite Wandy’s confidence in Pudge, in addition to his own comments on the benefits of the pairing, Coop decided have Quintero catch Wandy in his previous start against the Cubs (and may do so in his start today against the Rangers). When asked about the decision, Coop commented:
“[Wandy] and Pudge had worked together for 10 or 12 starts, and I just said a change might be what’s needed for awhile,” Cooper said. “I’m going to start it today and see what happens. It’s not something Pudge is really happy with but I understand that. He wants to be an everyday guy and he and Wandy have had a good run. (Tag’s Lines)
[Which of course was contrary to his “Why tinker with it?” approach that he took when defending his decision not to bat Bourn in the leadoff spot. NYCU] http://www.spikesnstars.com/2009/05/16/why-tinker-with-it%e2%80%9d/#more-3622
So which is it Coop, has Pudge suddenly lost the confidence of his young protégé in favor of Quintero, or do you simply not have a clue as to what the hell you are doing?
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting that the Co-ards have an eye on Tejada: (Link)
The Cardinals have expanded their search for an additional hitter to include Houston Astros shortstop Miguel Tejada. Tejada fits the profile of what the Cardinals are seeking — an offensive deterrent capable of playing multiple positions. The Astros are experiencing financial problems and could part with a player owed $13 million this season.
Are the Astros experiencing financial problems? Who knows. Ticket sales are down and there have been rumors since the off season that Wade was looking to move Tejada’s salary. That said, 4.5 games out of the division lead trading a team favorite to a division rival – not a friggin’ chance there buddy.
Houston 6, Pittsburgh 4
WP- Fulchino (1-1), S- Hawkins (8), LP- Jackson (1-1): Boxscore
McTaggart (Astros.com)
Game Zone
Don’t look now, but you 2009 Houston Astros have won three straight series moving them up to, um, last in the NL Central. “Big deal, they only beat the Pirates, D-backs and Pirates” you say? Well, yeah, but the Pirates swept The Mole in between their two series with the Good Guys and the D-backs just completed a 4-game sweep the Co-ards, so that’s gotta count for something, eh? (Well, no. The wwl says the Astros suck, so it must be so.)
In any event, Sunday was a good day for the Good Guys. Sunday was also a good day for the oft overlooked Barney Rubble (aka ‘Q’) and Russ Ortiz. Sunday was not a good day* for the Pirates.
*In fact, it was a bad week for the Pirates (Mole spanking notwithstanding). The Pirates pl
ayers are not happy about the about the trade of All Star center fielder Nate McClouth to the Atlanta Braves for a Larry Wayne Jones topless photograph (autographed) and a gross of Snuggies. “There ain’t a guy in here who ain’t [ticked] off about it” Roach #1 said. “They might be trying to hide it or whatever, but … hey…”. Anyway, I get it that they were mad and missed their boy… but… making his replacement McCutchen paint himself in whiteface and call himself ‘Nate’? That’s just stupid. Even Ted Dansen thinks that is stupid.
Alas I digress. Oh yeah, the Rise of Barney Rubble. In case you haven’t noticed, Q has been busting his butt behind the dish (Mike Cameron will attest to that) and is putting some nice at bats together as well. Russ Ortiz is starting to put together some solid innings in relief also. Which brings us to the game.
Roach #2 scored on a 1 out Jaramillo double in the top of the 2nd. Paulino got the next guy out with his 4th K of the game but then left with a strained groin (currently listed as day-to-to). Ortiz came on in relief, and proceeded to throw 4.1 scoreless innings giving the Pirates 1 run through 6. The Good guys, however, faired much better against Pirates starter Snell. Blum scored on a 2-out single by Keppinger in the 2nd, Kepp scored on a 1 out double by Q in the 5th and Pence scored on a single by Carlos in the 6th putting the Good Guys up 3-1.
Then things got a bit dicey (for the first time). Byrdak came in for Ortiz in the top of the 7th and proceeded to load up the bases with none out. Fulchino came in and allowed 2 runs to score (rbi groundout, single) tying the game, but with the bases loaded got Roach #1 to ground into a 3-2-3 DP to end the inning. Kata scored on a Miggy single in the bottom of the inning to put the ‘Stros up 4-3
Sampson threw a scoreless 8th and the Astros added some insurance in the form of a 2-strike 2-out opposite field single by Q (scoring Erstad) a ground rule double by Michaels scoring Berkman. End 8: PIT 3, HOU 6.
Things got dicey (again) in the 9th, but Hawkins was able to close it down (after giving up a run) with the tying run at the plate.
BALLGAME: HOU 6, PIT 4.
Up next:
Moehler takes the hill against Lilly and the FTCs. Read all about it from MRaup here.
To the extent that someone happens to write something stupid about the Astros (I know, writing on the Astros by the media is usually well informed, cogent and all around worthwhile reading), or writes / does something stupid in general, they’ll get a special mention here in the “Assclown of the Week” (also known as “The Justice”).
Here are the past weeks nominees:
Anthony Andro: Rangers haven’t been in the playoff hunt since when? (LINK): Fort Worth Star-Telegram writer Anthony Andro rags on the Good Guys.
Richard Justice: Huh? (LINK): Richard Justice doesn’t like Coop and has some suggestions about the Astros next manager.
Blah, blah, blah, Tony LaRussa… Knute Rockne, blah blah blah Bill Cowher, blah blah blah Tim Bogar, blah blah blah.
If I owned the Astros, I’d hire Sean Berry as manager today. *** He’s really smart and really passionate about the job. He’s one of the first to arrive every day and one of the last to leave. (If I see the current manager be out the door 30-45 minutes after a game again, my head will explode. At least act like you care, buddy. When someone asked Cecil Cooper last year what he liked about managing, he snapped, “The paycheck.” Great. Take your paycheck and your anger and go.)
Alex Rios: So you think The Mole has no class, eh? (YOU TUBE LINK). Alex Rios isn’t a fan of autographs.
And the winner of the inaugural Assclown of the Week award is…
Richard Justice for his mostly incoherent ramblings on Coop and managers. Congrats to Pinwheel for what is certainly to be the first of many Assclown of the Week awards to come. (In fairness Rios should have won this one, but it just didn’t feel right giving the inaugural award to anyone but Pinwheel…).
Remember, if you see something incredibly stupid out there but for whatever reason don’t feel like posting it in the TZ, just send me a PM and I’ll try to include it next week.
And he calls himself a Texan… (LINK) MMPUS cracks the top 10 in PeTA’s Top 10 Vegetarian-Friendly Ballparks for 2009 (coming in at #5). Shame on you, Drayton. SHAME!
Roy likes the Big Unit (Yahoo! Sports):
“As a guy who’s been around for a while now, 300 wins is a lot,” Oswalt said. “You got to have a lot of things go your way. He’s the type of pitcher that if you put him in a situation to where he can win, he’s going to win. He doesn’t beat himself. I think that’s the biggest thing about 300-win guys. They don’t beat themselves out on the mound. They seem to be aggressive the whole game and get deep into games.”
Does it or doesn’t it? (A Professor Throws Curveballs a Curve):
“There’s something physical about it and something illusory about it,” the Bucknell University professor Arthur Shapiro said. *** “They look like they jump or break or do all these funky things, but they don’t,” he said. “The idea that the bottom falls out isn’t so.” He added: “I’m not saying curveballs don’t curve. I emphasize that, yes, they curve. They just do so at a more gradual rate. Instead of making a sudden hook, they would form a really big circle.”
This Just In: The Mole has no class (LINK).
A day after being accused of “zero class” and “zero professionalism” by one of the Roach bros. for saying the Mets should be “embarrassed” for getting swept by the Pirates, The Mole responded: “If he said that, I don’t agree with him. I got class.”
The twenty-two million dollar man (ESPN):
Pirates’ Ohlendorf ain’t no Ausmus, but apparently is a pretty sharp cookie in his own right. For his Princeton senior thesis, the Operations Research and Financial Engineering major wrote a 126-pager on the June amateur draft. Specifically, he attempted to determine the value of draft picks. “So what” you ask? Coming in at #4 on the list was Phil Nevin, providing a net return on investment of $22,916,550.
Too bad the Astros only ROI in the deal was Mike Henneman…
