Quick. Name a player on the 1999 Houston Astros team?……. Buzzz…. I’m guessing most of you were able to say one of the Killer B’s. Biggio, Berkman, Bagwell?
Is that Jeff Bagwell and his twin Jeffrey?
Now name as many players on the 2011 Astros as you can….. buzzz…. If you guessed Wandy Rodriguez, Hunter Pence, or Carlos Lee, Congratulations. If you guessed Michael Bourn or Brett Myers, your more than an average baseball fan. J.A. Happ? Bill Hall? You win. The point is, this team has a ton of players that most people have never heard of and have wound up on the Astros in random ways. That some average baseball fans may be able to name more of the 1999 team than the 2011 team doesn’t bode well for the upcoming season. Let’s meet some of the new Astros.
Projected Lineup:
- Michael Bourn (CF)
- Bill Hall (2B)
- Hunter Pence (RF)
- Carlos Lee (LF)
- Clint Barmes (SS)
- Chris Johnson (3B)
- Brett Wallace (1B)
- Humberto Quintero (C)
Projected Rotation:
- Wandy Rodriguez
- Brett Myers
- J.A. Happ
- Bud Norris
- Nelson Figueroa
Strengths:
Outfield: The Astros outfield is far and away the strength of this team. Hunter Pence, Michael Bourn and Carlos Lee may not be the most formidable threesome in the League but a look at the rest of the roster, and you get why this is the strength. Hunter Pence has yet to show the form of the top outfielder many thought he could be (Perhaps because he looks broken when he runs) but, he did hit 25 HR each of the past three years. Carlos Lee is not the basher he once was (2010: .246 Avg, .708 OPS) but, is a good bat to have in the lineup despite his contract (6 Years, $100M). Wow, look at this! We will link to that site more in the future.
J.A. Happ: Happ was the centerpiece of the Oswalt deal and has shown promise in his young ML career. He’s a poor man’s Cole Hamels and Cole Hamels is not that good. Happ may surprise us however as he posted a 3.75 ERA in 13 second half starts.
Weaknesses:
Young Major Leaguers: This team has some quality young Major League players but I’m not sold on their star power. Its an interesting mix of players in Houston and they don’t seem far off if they think these are the guys that can get them to a World Series. For my money, I would blow this team up further and prepare for 2012 and beyond because the young players they have now, may only be replacement quality. There are no stars in this young group but nonetheless could prove valuable as high end role players. If your future is at best described as “high end role players,” its time to think about something different.
Rotation: Bud Norris is not good (career 4.82 ERA) and Nelson Figueroa figures prominantly in their rotation plans despite having never logged 100 IP. Whoever is running this team is not very bright if those are the guys they think they can depend on.
I vote we let Watson run the Astros
Minute Maid Park: It sucks. Its dumb. Who thought a giant pole in center field was a good idea? Or a hill in deep center? Or those Crawford boxes that make left field a short porch? Who though that having an outfield wall that was not flat was smart? Stupid. Just STUPID. The building of this park should have been an alarm that this team was going downhill.
Storylines:
Bombs: Will the ownership break out the big dynamite and blow this team up? I don’t see them competing and they have some trade-able players. Lee’s contract may be a deterrent to some but, it seems like the type of thing the Mets love to do…. Wandy Rodriquez could be very good on a very good team and Hunter Pence could draw a large return.
Chris Johnson: No, the NFL back is not trying his Deion Sanders impression. Chris Johnson, the baseball player, is a promising young player for the ‘Stros. He hit .308, with 11 HR in 341 ABs in his rookie season. The kid can hit and he plays a good third base. I like his future with the Astros and this may be a name we need to learn.
Lyles Lies: Jordan Lyles is the Astros top pitching prospect. At only 20, and finishing up last year in AAA, Lyles may get a shot to make the rotation out of camp. With the team likely uncompetitive this year, expect Lyles to get a shot in early June. He won’t wow you with his stuff (89-93 right handed, good change, decent slider) but he is a pitcher’s pitcher and has advanced knowledge of the game for his age. He projects as a possible No. 2 and may help the ‘Stros this year.
Prediction:
74-88 5th Place, NL Central. The Astros had a decent 2010 for some unknown reason (maybe it was second half pitching). They went 38-30 after July 20th and return much of the same team. With a much better Brewers team, and the tough Reds and Cardinals, combined with the Cubs’ immense talent, the Astros play these guys a combined 76 times. Its tough to win playing that many good teams that many times. If ownership decides to move guys (like they did with Oswalt) this team could finish much worse.
Bold Predictions:
- Chris Johnson hits 25 home runs this year, while batting .285.
- Carlos Lee goes to the Mets for Jose Reyes, Oliver Perez, and this bat boy.
- Albert Pujols hits a ball farther in Minute Maid than he did off of Brad Lidge that one time.
- Jason Castro channels his inner Kirk Gibson and hits a homerun to win a playoff game. That was too bold. I take it back.
And Now for Something Completely Different:
Max and I will be in Canada on Monday and there’s a law that says no blogging about baseball while in Canada. So to make up for it, we will do two on Tuesday. We’re men of our word and plan to get through the 30 Teams in 30 Days. Damnit.
The Charlie Sheen interview. Dude took a page from the Brian Wilson handbook on this one but, I think he may actually be nuts.
I did two links above so… Something for the ladies. Kittens FOREVER!
Keep up with your current events. Isn’t it inappropriate conduct regardless of sex?
Do you have wisdom teeth?
As always, please email at offthebench@offthebenchbaseball.com or comment below
-Sean Morash
