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I wasn’t sure about these Astros a few days ago, but now I’m excited

GameSetMatch — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:48:26 +0000

I like this team more by the inning. I like the defense and the starting pitching, and I think the back of the bullpen will be solid. I think when Puma gets back in there the lineup will be good enough.

And this Chris Johnson kid? He’s got a future, a bright one. Be still my beating heart. As for Manzella, he’s not yet the second Adam Everett, but he looks awfully good.

I wasn’t sure about the 2010 Astros when the season started, but now I’m excited. I promise you the Cardinals are looking at this team and thinking this division race suddenly is a lot more difficult than it looked two days ago.

Some of you will get your dobbers down over these two opening losses. Pshaw. You’re not able to see the big picture the way I am. You can only think an inning at a time. Don’t worry about it.

You’re lucky to have me here to review things and set you straight. Starting pitching wins. Defense wins. Now the Astros do need the stars to be stars. They need the Puma to get back out there, and they need Hunter Pence and Carlos Lee to have big years.

Click here to read the full article – By Richard Justice of Houston CHronicle

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Astros not interested in Smoltz

GameSetMatch — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:52:24 +0000

Don’t expect the Astros to pursue veteran pitcher John Smoltz.

Smoltz was said to have drawn interest of several teams according to a report by Foxsports.com, a list that included the Astros. And while the Astros have kicked around dozens of names from the list of free agents who have filed, sources indicate their interest in Smoltz just isn’t there.

Smoltz is open to starting or relieving and could serve in the closer’s role for a team in need of help at the back of the bullpen. Astros general manager Ed Wade said late on Tuesday that he wasn’t going to comment on Smoltz.

Click here to read the full article – By Brian McTaggart of MLB.com

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2009 season doesn’t pan out for Astros

GameSetMatch — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:24:13 +0000

Considering the Astros had the oldest Opening Day roster in the Major Leagues and didn’t add any impact players via free agency in the offseason, general manager Ed Wade knew a lot of things would have to go right for his team in 2009.

Wade couldn’t have envisioned injuries decimating his bullpen, team leaders Lance Berkman and Roy Oswalt having subpar seasons or even clubhouse dissension, which helped lead to the dismissal of manager Cecil Cooper with 13 games remaining in the regular season.

It all added up to the Astros’ second losing season in three years, something they hadn’t done since Drayton McLane bought the club in 1993.

“We knew a lot of things would have to go right, including Roy winning his normal 15, 17, 20 games and Lance having a big year and Carlos [Lee] having a big year,” Wade said. “Those types of things didn’t happen for us. It was a combination of a lot of different factors.”

Click here to read the full article – By Brian McTaggart of MLB.com

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Norris, Tejada help Astros stop slide

GameSetMatch — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:01:53 +0000

The scene inside the Astros’ clubhouse was understandably one of joy and relief.

Not only had the Astros just snapped a season-long nine-game losing streak that gave interim manager Dave Clark his first win, they made sure the St. Louis Cardinals postponed their National League Central-clinching celebration for at least one more day and for a different city.

As a remote-controlled car buzzed around the clubhouse floor and rookie pitcher Bud Norris searched frantically for the street clothes the veterans stashed away in a prank, the Astros soaked up a 3-0 win Wednesday night at Minute Maid Park.

Click here to read the full article – By Brian McTaggart of MLB.com

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Clark brings big presence to dugout

GameSetMatch — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:23:02 +0000

Dave Clark is a former Golden Gloves boxer, a first-round Draft pick and the brother of an NFL player. He spent 13 seasons in the Major Leagues, ending his career with the Astros in 1998, and managed six seasons in the Minor Leagues.

Most Astros fans and even the players didn’t know too much about Clark before Monday, when he was named Houston’s interim manager for rest of the regular season. Those who have played for him love him, and those he’s just getting to know have only good things to say so far.

“I think he’s going to be an excellent choice,” first baseman Lance Berkman said. “I think Clark’s got a presence about him you have to have if you’re going to manage the big league ballclub. I think guys respect him, and if anybody mouths off to him, he’ll punch them in the face because he’s a boxer.”

Click here to read the full article – By Brian McTaggart of MLB.com

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Michaels swinging hot bat in second half

GameSetMatch — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:49:14 +0000

Jason Michaels got so tired of seeing his subpar batting average displayed on stadium scoreboards around the league that he decided to quit looking and quit worrying and to just start to relax at the plate.

That batting average, which for much of the first half of the season was under .200, was sitting at .242 entering Wednesday’s game against the Reds. Michaels hit .176 in the first half of the season, but he was hitting .340 (17-for-50) following the All-Star break.

“I’m going up there with a good plan and sticking with it and actually trying to have good at-bats,” Michaels said. “That’s really the one thing. When you don’t play as much, you don’t get a chance to have repetition and make adjustments quicker. I think you can easily fall into over-adjusting and fall back in the same hole.”

Click here to read the full article – By Brian McTaggart of MLB.com

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Months after surgery, Boone in lineup

GameSetMatch — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 19:24:12 +0000

Barely five months removed from undergoing open-heart surgery during Spring Training, Aaron Boone was in the starting lineup Wednesday for the Astros against the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Wednesday.

“I’m kind of mellow now, but I’m sure when I take the field I’ll be excited,” Boone said more than two hours before first pitch.

Boone, who joined the team last weekend in Arizona after playing 11 games during a Minor League rehab assignment at Triple-A Round Rock and Double-A Corpus Christi, was starting at first base and batting seventh.

Click here to read the full article – By Brian McTaggart of MLB.com

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