Astros @ Athletics August 9, 2015

[Mr. Happy]

Your lineups for today's matinee:

Astros

2BJose Altuve (R)
LFPreston Tucker (L)
SSCarlos Correa (R)
CFCarlos Gomez (R)
3BJed Lowrie (S)
RFColby Rasmus (L)
1BLuis Valbuena (L)
DHChris Carter (R)
CJason Castro (L)

HOU: Mike Fiers (R)  (5-9, 4.17)

Athletics

CF Billy Burns (S)
LF Coco Crisp (S)
RF Josh Reddick (L)
3B Danny Valencia (R)
DH Stephen Vogt (L)
2B Brett Lawrie (R)
1B Ike Davis (L)
C Josh Phegley (R)
SS Marcus Semien (R)

OAK: Chris Bassitt (R)  (1-4, 2.64)

[BudGirl]

about time!  here's to the next astros win!

[austro]

70 degrees is the hot day?

[Mr. Happy]

70 degrees is the hot day?

In Oakland, that's hot.

[BudGirl]

In Oakland, that's hot.

pansies.

[BudGirl]

Altuve - flied out to RF
Tucker - K
Correa BB and SB
Gomez K

[juliogotay]

Fiers retires 3 in order with the first 2 on Ks.  Good to see the Astros not in a hole after the first inning for a change.

[BudGirl]

burns k
crisp k
reddick 3u

0-0 end of 1

[BudGirl]

lowrie flied out to lf
rasmus 2b to lcf
valbuena k
Karter  .182 ba  lowered by an out to cf

that drumming drives me crazy

[austro]

Seems like they're 0-for-August wRISP.

[BudGirl]

Seems like they're 0-for-August wRISP.

they are today at least.  i think the stat i saw pre-game was .17? or something incredibly bad like that.

[BudGirl]

Valencia - Fiers' high school rival K
Vogt bb 6-4
Lawrie  fc
davis 6-3  (Correa made another great play)

end of 2, no score

[jbm]

I turned off the volume to rid myself of Ashby, but now they keep showing him, HRs and flexing.  Now I have to imagine the dialogue.

[BudGirl]

castro k (4th of the day so far)
altuve did not swing at the first pitch, 6-3
tucker k

the bat has a pretty strong beard.  doesn't really look like a boy.

[BudGirl]

phegley 6-3
semien pop up to 4
burns  groundball single to cf,  almost picked off being reviewed.
crisp  2-0 count

burns call out on the review.

end of 3 no score

i went to the grocery store this morning and neglected to buy any fruit.  for some reason i really want an orange now.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

I forgot to buy coffee.

[BudGirl]

i never forget to buy that since i don't drink it.

[BudGirl]

top of the 4th
correa  k on appeal - tough luck for carlos considering some of the check swings not called
gomez  5-3
lowrie  flied out to rf

still no score

[HudsonHawk]

I forgot to buy lube.

[BudGirl]

gonna be a rough night for you then.

[austro]

Bassitt making his case for the Cy Young. But it's going to be a crowded field since 50 or so other pitchers will get to face the Astros before season's end.

[BudGirl]

i want the boys to come home.

[austro]

Valencia again? Give me a fucking break.

[HudsonHawk]

Danny Valencia is the greatest hitter in the history of baseball.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

They named an orange after him.

[BudGirl]

crisp    diving catch by lowrie
reddick  4-3  nice grab by altuve
valencia  hr
vogt  single to rf  caught stealing, Melvin finally decided to challenge  call stands

end of 4 0-1 A's

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

You can see the second base bag move after the tag.

[BudGirl]

It did not take long for the call to be upheld.  nice caught stealing for castro.

[BudGirl]

Astros have had only 2 baserunners on the day, Rasmus with a hit and Correa with a walk

rasmus  k
valbuena  k rung up on appeal to 3rd. 
Karter  .181 (bassitt being looked at by the manager and trainer)  k

0-1 a's

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Knee?

[BudGirl]

lawrie pop up to rf, altuve and rasmus bump - gomez was close too.
davis  4-3
phegley  k

end of 5

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

The Astros sure face a lot of high strike out pitchers.

[BudGirl]

apparently they do better when they strike out.  i'll let someone else check that stat.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Dammit, I also forgot bread.

[pots]

This team was a lot better when they weren't supposed to win

[austro]

Wow, talk about forcing the action!

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

If it works, it works.

[BudGirl]

gotta be aggressive if you rarely have baserunners.

[HudsonHawk]

Wow, talk about forcing the action!

No shit he's out by 37 feet with a decent throw.

[austro]

If it works, it works.

They needed something to go right, and it finally did.

[jbm]

I'm not sure runners even look at Pettis anymore.

[BudGirl]

castro  k  10th of the day for the Astros
altuve  lined to cf for a single
tucker  popped out to davis in foul territory
correa  lined into cf.  went to second, altuve was going to 3rd and ended up scoring and correa at 2nd but gets to 3rd on wild pitch.
gomez  6-3

mid 6 1-1

[BudGirl]

semien popped out to shallow rf
burns  6-4
crisp  basehit up the middle
reddick  3u

end of 6, tied at 1

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

It's Jeff Juden. I remember he was a decent basketball player.

[jbm]

Not swinging at a crappy pitch with a full count. Maybe they're turning a corner.

[BudGirl]

lowrie flies out to lf
rasmus  3-1
valbuena  gets a walk
pitching change bassitt done
rodrigueZ now pitching
karter  .180  but he has 17 HRs.  drew a walk
castro  k

mid 7 tied at 1

[HudsonHawk]

It's Jeff Juden.

Did Juden ever play college basketball?

[BudGirl]

Not swinging at a crappy pitch with a full count. Maybe they're turning a corner.

don't get too optimistic.

[HudsonHawk]

don't get too optimistic.

Nope. Walks don't do you any good if you can't eventually put a ball in play.

[BudGirl]

valencia 4-3 (shift was on the left side of the field)
vogt  4-3 (shift to the right side now)
lawrie  2b down the left field line
fiers done, perez coming in
davis  made an out, i think it was 4-3

game tied.

[subnuclear]

Perez's windup is like a little dance.

[subnuclear]

I haven't watched most of the game, but it seems Fiers had a good day.

[HudsonHawk]

I haven't watched most of the game, but it seems Fiers had a good day.

Fiers looked really good.

[HudsonHawk]

Altuve with a rare walk to leadoff the 8th.

We could use a SB here

[HudsonHawk]

Wow. Altuve nailed at 2B. Wasn't even close.

I think I'd have waited for a strike though.

[austro]

They pay Ashby for this shit?

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Did Juden ever play college basketball?

Not according to Wikipedia. Drafted out of high school.

[HudsonHawk]

Well that inning fizzled quickly.

[BudGirl]

altuve  walk, caught stealing
tucker  k
correa  4-3

still tied at 1

[HudsonHawk]

Ugh. Leadoff walk. Harris not looking sharp.

[HudsonHawk]

Single puts runners on the corner, no outs.

[austro]

Fuck. Now we're in a world of hurt, 1st and 3rd with no outs.

[HudsonHawk]

Single, now 2-1 A's, two on still no outs.

That's it for Harris. He faced three hitters: walk, single, single.

[BudGirl]

harris pitching
phegley walk
semien single
burms, single (phegley scores)
harris being yanked

sipp pitching now
crisp  infield fly, popped out to valbuena
reddick  double down the left field line, semien scores
valencia-intentionally walked (bases loaded)
vogt  k
neshek pitching
lawrie  flied out to lf


end of 8 1-3

at least the roast I made is almost as good as my Grandma's.

[HudsonHawk]

Gotta get out of this only one run down.

[austro]

That's it for Harris. He faced three hitters: walk, single, single.

Things are going to get really ugly if we lose the offense *and* the bullpen at the same time.

[juliogotay]

Gotta get out of this only one run down.

And one looks like a ton right now.

[HudsonHawk]

Shift on for Reddick, so no double play.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Toronto is sure doing great with their recent acquisitions.

[HudsonHawk]

Double by Reddick, now 3-1, runners at 2b and 3b, one out. Valencia being walked to load the bases.

[austro]

Toronto is sure doing great with their recent acquisitions.

Yeah, I have to think that they and KC are the favorites for the AL title.

[HudsonHawk]

It's not just the 0 fer with RISP, it's the fact that they can't even make contact.

[HudsonHawk]

Sipp gets a strikeout on Vogt. Neshek in with the bases loaded and 2 out.

[BudGirl]

Sipp gets a strikeout on Vogt. Neshek in with the bases loaded and 2 out.

do you want to finish pbp, because i can go to the kitchen?

[HudsonHawk]

do you want to finish pbp, because i can go to the kitchen?

Just trying to keep people up. Geez, I get hammered for doing it, hammered for not.

By all means carry on.

[austro]

Oh, please, please, please bring in Abad.

[hostros7]

Boom goes the dynamite


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[austro]

Rasmus!!!!!!

[HudsonHawk]

I would post "Colby!!!", but BudGirl might burn the roast.

[austro]

It's a Christmas miracle!

[doyce7]

Don't wash that hair Colby

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Ride 'em cowboy! Yehaw!

[HudsonHawk]

There's a guy right behind home plate who had a huge grin on his face up until about 1 millisecond after Colby hit that ball.

[BudGirl]

Just trying to keep people up. Geez, I get hammered for doing it, hammered for not.

By all means carry on.

i was ready to give it up, just wanted to make sure someone had it so someone else wouldn't get upset.

[BudGirl]

gomez single
lowrie single
rasmus HR
gonzalez phing for Valbuena flied out to lf
carter popped out
castro popped out

4-3 astros mid 9

[HudsonHawk]

i was ready to give it up, just wanted to make sure someone had it so someone else wouldn't get upset.

You can't quit now.

[BudGirl]

i was ready to give it up, just wanted to make sure someone had it so someone else wouldn't get upset.

and i assumed you would, so i was in the kitchen for the offensive on slaught. 

i also forgot you forgot to buy lube so you were taking things rough.

[BudGirl]

You can't quit now.

even i know that.  but at least my kitchen is clean.

[HudsonHawk]

Shitfuck. Correa lolly gagged that into a base runner.

[HudsonHawk]

Fuck. Runners at the corner, nobody out.

[BudGirl]

canha - single, barely
phegley - hit it through  the hole left by the shift.  runners on the corners.
semien -

i'm thinking i should go back to the kitchen

[austro]

Nothing is ever easy.

[HudsonHawk]

Why am I having déjà vu all over again?

[HudsonHawk]

Holy shit.  Passed ball but the runner from 3B can't score. But it puts the winning run in scoring position.

[BudGirl]

conger would have caught that.

[HudsonHawk]

Bases loaded, one out.

[BudGirl]

bases loaded, time for a double play.

[BudGirl]

thank god that was marisnick and not tucker.

[HudsonHawk]

That's what having Marisnick instead of Tucker in LF does for you n

[BudGirl]

That's what having Marisnick instead of Tucker in LF does for you n

but but he can't hit for shit.

[BudGirl]

canha - single, barely
phegley - hit it through  the hole left by the shift.  runners on the corners.
semien -

i'm thinking i should go back to the kitchen

semien k
burns - wild pitch runners on 2 & 3 - intentionally walked
crisp  flied to lf no one scores

game tied.
reddick  single off of gregerson -canha scores game tied bases still loaded
valencia  hit into lf

astros lose 5-4

[HudsonHawk]

but but he can't hit for shit.

That's why he's a defensive replacement.

And just like that, another infield single ties the game.

[austro]

You have got to be kidding me. And now fucking Valencia is coming up.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

I would have forced Jake to make the play at the plate.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

But what do I know. Son of a bitch.

[HudsonHawk]

There's that Valencia again.

Fuckshit. That's on Correa.

[austro]

Fuckshit. That's on Correa.

Yup. Hopefully he's a quick learner.

[BudGirl]

that sucked again.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Maybe Neshek and Gregerson should swap places.

[The Spleen]

Is it my imagination, or does this team look tighter than hell?

[HudsonHawk]

Is it my imagination, or does this team look tighter than hell?

Well, this was the last cream puff series of the year. They went 1-3. Now they get to the hard part of the schedule  I'm not optimistic.

[The Spleen]

They're in the same kind of trance they were in right before the All Star Break... but there's not another break coming to bail them out this time.

[HudsonHawk]

They're in the same kind of trance they were in right before the All Star Break... but there's not another break coming to bail them out this time.

They have 24 road games left. Assuming they go 3-21 in those games, they'd have to go 17-8 at home to stay above .500. I'm not optimistic.

[austro]

Is there a genuine closer prospect on the farm? Or do they have to go after somebody like Chapman in the offseason?

[The Spleen]

20 - 29 to stay over .500... and that might be too much to ask?

Holy fuck that would a lot of damage to the farm with only October tee times as a reward.
Kazmir still might make sense as a move for the future (as with Hamels to Texas), but that assumes the Astros have the inside track on signing him. If things go the way Hawk and others fear they will, their money may be no good to him...

[HudsonHawk]

20 - 29 to stay over .500... and that might be too much to ask?

Holy fuck that would a lot of damage to the farm with only October tee times as a reward.
Kazmir still might make sense as a move for the future (as with Hamels to Texas), but that assumes the Astros have the inside track on signing him. If things go the way Hawk and others fear they will, their money may be no good to him...

On the road, they have:

2 in SF
3 in NY
3 in Minn
3 in Oak
3 in LA
4 in TX
3 in Sea
3 in AZ

Do you see five wins in there?  I sure don't.

[juliogotay]

Is there a genuine closer prospect on the farm? Or do they have to go after somebody like Chapman in the offseason?

I think we're seeing why Luhnow was trying to get a fireballing closer at the deadline. Strikeouts eliminate some of this shit that happened in the 9th.

[juliogotay]

On the road, they have:

2 in SF
3 in NY
3 in Minn
3 in Oak
3 in LA
4 in TX
3 in Sea
3 in AZ

Do you see five wins in there?  I sure don't.

Sure I do. They will win 8-11 of those. I guarantee it.

[BudGirl]

On the road, they have:

2 in SF
3 in NY
3 in Minn
3 in Oak
3 in LA
4 in TX
3 in Sea
3 in AZ

Do you see five wins in there?  I sure don't.

Yes i do see five wins there. They are bad on the road but i have more faith than the rest of you.  ]

[HudsonHawk]

Sure I do. They will win 8-11 of those. I guarantee it.

If they win 9 of those (and I have no idea why you think they will), 17-8 at home gives them 87 wins and perhaps a shot at the second Wild Card. 

[JimR]

Maybe Neshek and Gregerson should swap places.

Gregerson did a helluva job. The is 100% Correa's loss. His being nonchalant cost us a game in Boston too. Sickening.

[Jacksonian]

Is there a genuine closer prospect on the farm? Or do they have to go after somebody like Chapman in the offseason?

When you field a team where 6 of the 9 hitters are under .240 this is what happens.  Gomez is hitting at Marisnick levels so he hasn't helped either.  Pitchers can't be perfect every outing.

[JimR]

Folks, this is not a closer issue or a pitching issue. We finally got clutch hitting today, and Mr. 20 Year Old Superstar fucked it up.

[HudsonHawk]

Gregerson did a helluva job. The is 100% Correa's loss. His being nonchalant cost us a game in Boston too. Sickening.

Gregerson was fine.  He got the easy ground ball that Correa screwed up, a single that should have been an out without the shift, A strikeout, a flyout, was a victim of Castro boxing a fastball, and then an infield single on a bad luck liner that bounced off his glove.  He essentially threw five outs that inning. 

[JimR]

Gregerson was fine.  He got the easy ground ball that Correa screwed up, a single that should have been an out without the shift, A strikeout, a flyout, was a victim of Castro boxing a fastball, and then an infield single on a bad luck liner that bounced off his glove.  He essentially threw five outs that inning.

If the ball does not hit him, game over. Correa's nonchalance lost the game.

[geezerdonk]

This can't be right. Every game Ashby and Blum say there isn't a play he can't make.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

If the ball does not him him, game over. Correa's nonchalance lost the game.

Sure Correa screwed up. Sometimes a team recovers from that kind of mistake sometimes a team doesn't. It's a team game their all to blame.

[JimR]

Sure Correa screwed up. Sometimes a team recovers from that kind of mistake sometimes a team doesn't. It's a team game their all to blame.

No. Not today. Gregerson pitched his ass off. We lost because Wunderkind did not charge a routine ground ball.

[HudsonHawk]

This can't be right. Every game Ashby and Blum say there isn't a play he can't make.

He *can* make that play. Today he lolly gagged and didn't make it. It was the difference in the 9th.

[The Spleen]

Correa's starting to slip a bit at the plate as well. That was covered up for a little while during that stretch when almost every hit that he managed to get ended up leaving the park...

[The Spleen]

And in other news, it's more than a little discouraging that even with the additions of Lowrie and Gomez this offense is still a tire fire...

[chuck]

The A's had 12 hits, the Astros 6. The Astros had 12 Ks, the A's 6.

But sure, blame one guy.

[HudsonHawk]

The A's had 12 hits, the Astros 6. The Astros had 12 Ks, the A's 6.

But sure, blame one guy.

To be fair, four of those hits came in the 9th, and three  of them should not have been hits.

[JimR]

The A's had 12 hits, the Astros 6. The Astros had 12 Ks, the A's 6.

But sure, blame one guy.

Chuck, give me some credit for knowing some baseball. Nothing that happened before the bottom of the ninth is relevant when you take the lead in the top. You must get every out they give you a chance to make! His nonchalance cost us a routine out! That was the ball game.

You can be contrarian and throw fucking stats at me all you want. I have both played and coached, and I have been in games like this. If Correra charges the ball and makes the play, we win.

[juliogotay]

He *can* make that play. Today he lolly gagged and didn't make it. It was the difference in the 9th.

And he immediately knew he screwed up. The look on his face.

[HudsonHawk]

And he immediately knew he screwed up. The look on his face.

Good. Hopefully he learned a lesson. He's still a tremendous player, but he can't make those lack of hustle mistakes. Got another game on Tuesday.

[geezerdonk]

While the opprobrium heaped on Correa is deserved, Harris' villainy should not be overlooked.

[HudsonHawk]

While the opprobrium heaped on Correa is deserved, Harris' villainy should not be overlooked.

Harris'  issues were not due to lack of effort.