Houston Astros Baseball

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Lately I have been unable to update my page because I have been far too busy with Christmas and now I am moving. By Monday night I should be all done and ready to post regularly again. for those of few who still continue to check for updates, I appreciate it and I will have some new stuff for you very soon. In ht mean time, a few Astros Notes:

-Mark Prior signs with The Padres

-Astros sign Darin Erstad

-Astros ink Villarreal to a 2 yr deal.


Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!

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2007 Offense Vs 2008 Offense

2007 Starting Lineup

Pos./Player----AVG|OBP||OPS

2B)Biggio--------.251|.285||.666OPS[4SB/2CS]
CF)Burke--------.229|.304||.662OPS[9SB/3CS]
1B)Berkman----.278|.386||.896OPS[.510SLG]
LF)Lee-----------.303|.354||.882OPS [.528SLG]
3B)Ensberg-----.232|.323||.707OPS [.384SLG]
RF)Scott--------.255|.351||.855OPS [.504SLG]
SS)Everett------.232|.281||.599OPS [4SB/2CS]
C)Ausmus-------.235|.318||.642OPS


2008 Starting Lineup (Bill James Projections)

CF)Bourn-------.276|.350||.708OPS [68SB/14CS]
RF)Pence-------.306|.357||.895OPS [.538SLG]
1B)Berkman---.290|.408||.954OPS [.546SLG]
LF)Lee-------------.291|.354||.866OPS [.512SLG]
SS)Tejada------.301|.359||.838OPS [.479SLG]
3B)Wigginton---.269|.332||.786OPS [.454SLG]
2B)Matsui-------.294|.350||.785OPS [25SB/8CS]
C)Towles--------.293|.355||.817OPS [14SB/10CS]

+Bold Indicates and improvement offensively.

Although the 2007 lineup was anything but stable, and many changes where made on a day to day basis, I chose the probable starters going into 2007 to compare to 2008's probable starters. It's pretty clear that this "new" team has a chance to drastically improve a lackluster offense. The other tricky part is that there are several players on the "new" Astros that will have question marks as far as performance. Can Matsui get on base outside of Coors? Will Bourn and Towles live up to the hype. Bill James seems to think so. Granted there are limited at-bats to work with, but if Bourn can get on base and Towles can simply not be an automatic out, then we may have the best offense in the National League.

All these stats looks really good individually, but how will the individual improvements effect the whole team?

Team Chemistry is a term occasionally used to describe how a team gels together both on and off the field. With the removal of Everett and Ausmus, The Astros should have amazing team chemistry offensively. By this I mean each player will effect those around him as well as be effected by the batters surrounding him. A great example is Tejada. He came from a dismal team with a sub par offense. Tejada individually is an outstanding talent and being surrounded with other outstanding talents will only help him. He will get better pitches to see, he will get more at-bats, he won't be held responsible for being the lone run producer, ect.. All these things will then help him relax, find a groove, and focus on himself and not winning the game alone. This is also true of our other sluggers. Two years ago Lance had to be superman for us to get to playoffs, this will not be the case this year. Although his production is still very important we can still win with a less than stellar Lance.

Defensively, a stacked lineup like ours puts extreme pressure on the pitcher. He can no longer pitch "around" our power hitters. Along with that, there is a good chance that we will consistently be threatening to steal bases with one of our 3 speedsters. All this puts pressure on the pitcher and the defense. Along with making defenses perform better than they are, with more runners on base the field looks different to the batter. Matsui as an example, hits a large percentage of his hits to the right side of the infield. If Bourn is able to get on base, that pulls the first baseman closer to first base, as well as set the 2B and SS up for the double play. This means that before Bourn was on base the right side of the infield was covered, now there is a very large hole in that same spot. All these things added up will do two things:
1)Get you to the oppositions bullpen faster, and 2)Score more runs for your own team.

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Thoughts On Berkman's Comments

With the recent comments by Astros first baseman and hero Lance "Puma" Berkman I was pretty thrown back. Here we are in between a season which bid Astros greatest player and team leader goodbye, and I thought Berkman would finally mature and accept his role as team leader. These "outburst of frustration" lead me to beleive that he is more than a little concerned with the teams future chemistry. Team chemistry is a broad term that seems to make little difference when a team wins, but at the same time can accelerate in team into win steaks when accomplished, such as The Colorado Rockies.

Today Lance fallowed up his remarks with a interview with Chronicle's Jesus De Ortiz. In the interview Lance tried to not so much take back, but explain what he meant and place his words into context. He stood firm that on-field antics can only hurt both teams, contrasting Valverde's demeanor to that of Brad Lidge. However, to be fair Lidge hasn't had much reason to get excited lately. Several other teammates were not so quick to dismiss Valverde's actions as harmful and added that a little excitement would "pump" them up. in either case, Lance did agree that with Biggio gone someone will have to step up and fill the leadership void he has left. Also, it's worth mentioning that with Brocail, Oswalt, Woody, and Ausmus still on the team we haven't lost that important veteran leadership that will be extremely important to rookie manager Cooper.

On Lance, he may just be upset about losing Burke, but to say that "it feels like I've has been traded" is a little far for me. That lack of confidence can reflect in worth ethic and intensity on the field, something our young players need.

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Astros Sign Chad Paronto

HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros announced today that the club has signed right-handed pitcher Chad Paronto to a one-year contract with a Major League value of $500,000, plus incentives. The announcement was made by General Manager Ed Wade.

Paronto, 32, was 3-1 with a 3.57 ERA (16ER/40.1IP) in 41 appearances for Atlanta in 2007, including one save. A veteran of five big league seasons with Baltimore (2001), Cleveland (2002-03), and the Braves (2006-07), he is 6-11 lifetime with a 4.00 ERA (74ER/166.1IP) and one save in 165 career big league outings. Paronto also appeared in 65 games for Atlanta in 2006, finishing 2-3 with a 3.18 ERA (20ER/56.2IP).

"Chad provides us with another experienced bullpen arm to put into our mix," said Wade. "We believe that the off-season additions combined with the returning relievers give us a solid relief corps, something winning teams need. Chad did a good job for the Braves and we think he fits in well with us."

The Astros 40-man roster now stands at 35 players.

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Astros 2007 Off Season

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Astros Sign Cassel

HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros announced today that the club has signed right-handed pitcher Jack Cassel to a one-year contract with a Major League value of $400,000. The announcement was made by General Manager Ed Wade.




Cassel, 27, was 1-1 with a 3.97 ERA (10ER/22.2IP) in six games (four starts) for San Diego in 2007, which marked his first Major League season. He also made 27 appearances for Triple A Portland this year (including 24 starts) and finished 7-14 with a 3.91 ERA (68ER/156.2IP), including three complete games. Originally selected in the 25th round of the June 2000 Draft, Cassel earned his first Major League victory with six shutout innings on Sept. 17 vs. Pittsburgh.

Cassel was not tendered a contract by San Diego by the Dec. 12 deadline, making him an unrestricted free agent.

"Our scouts have liked Jack over the past couple of years," said Wade. "He pounds the strike zone with his sinker and competes well. The Padres gave him a Major League opportunity in 2007, and he did pretty well. We'll throw him into our starting pitching mix in Spring Training and allow him to compete."

With the addition of Cassel, the Astros 40-man roster currently stands at 34 players.

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Astros Land Valverde

HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros announced today that the club has acquired right-handed pitcher Jose Valverde from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for infielder Chris Burke and right-handed pitchers Juan Gutierrez and Chad Qualls. The announcement was made by General Manager Ed Wade.




"In Jose Valverde, we're adding an All-Star closer and one of the best stoppers in the game. He led the Majors in saves last year and most of them came in tight, one-run situations for a team that was in the thick of a pennant race. He's a huge addition to our pitching staff.

"We believe that Chad Qualls would have done a fine job for us on the back end, but acquiring a pitcher like Valverde, who has excelled in the ninth inning, made tremendous sense for us.

"We gave up a lot of talent in Qualls, Chris Burke and Juan Gutierrez, but adding Jose Valverde puts us another step closer to being a championship team."

Valverde, 28, was 1-4 with a 2.66 ERA (19ER/64.1IP) and a Major League-leading 47 saves for the Diamondbacks in 2007. His 47 saves also marked a career-high total, and he appeared on the National League All-Star team for the first time. The Arizona franchise-record 47 saves also ranked tied for 15th all-time in a single season, and Valverde also struck out 78 hitters in 64.1 innings while walking 26 and allowing 46 hits.

In 253 career Major League games, Valverde is 9-14 with a 3.29 ERA (95ER/260.0IP) and 98 saves. He has struck out 331 hitters in 260 innings while allowing only 194 hits. Valverde has pitched in five big leagues seasons from 2003-07, all with Arizona. Additionally, Valverde finished 14th in the 2007 National League Most Valuable Player with 19 points, and only Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy finished higher among pitchers in last season's MVP voting (Peavy totaled 97 points in the voting to finish seventh).

Burke, 27, hit .229 (73x319) with six home runs and 28 RBI in 111 games for Houston in 2007. In 359 career Major League games over four seasons with the Astros (2004-07), he has hit .249 (254x1020) with 20 home runs, 94 RBI, and 31 stolen bases. Burke's home run in the 18th inning of Game 4 of the 2005 NL Division Series ended the longest postseason game in Major League history and gave Houston an NLDS series win over Atlanta. He was Houston's first-round selection (10th overall) in the June 2001 draft.

Gutierrez, 24, was 1-1 with a 5.91 ERA (14ER/21.1IP) in seven games (three starts) for the Astros in 2007. In 26 games (25 starts) for Triple A Round Rock, he was 5-10 with a 4.15 ERA (72ER/156), striking out 108 and allowing 154 hits. He was originally signed by the club as a non-drafted free agent on Dec. 14, 2000.

Qualls, 29, went 6-5 with a 3.05 ERA (28ER/82.2IP) and five saves in 79 games for Houston in 2007. He has pitched in four seasons for the Astros from 2004-07, and he is 23-12 lifetime with a 3.39 ERA (107ER/284IP) and six saves. Since the beginning of the 2005 season, Qualls has pitched in 237 games, the most of any National League reliever.

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Tejada's Declining Range ?

With the recent Tejada trade I have heard many Astro fans as well as baseball personalities talking about Tejada's defense emphasizing his "poor range". There were discussions about moving him to 3B because of his poor range. I have always been a huge supporter of Everett with regards to his phenomenal defense and was worried that Tejada would give up more runs than he would create. So I went to work, this is what I found.

2007 MLB Zone Rating (In Order)

Vizquel....897
Tulo........866
Reyes......863
Greene....855
Furcal......851
Tejada.....843
Cabrera....833
Rollins.....824
Eckstein...812
Renteria...800
Jeter........765

*Everett 2006....905

Tejada rates 6th out of ALL 24 major league SS in zone rating. (min. # of innings required)

2007 MLB RZR (revised zone rating)

Vizquel.....886
Reyes.......871
Gonzales...862
Tulo..........861
Greene......848
Pena.........848
Tejada......830
Furcal.......823
Wilson......816
Renteria...815
Young.......809
Rollins......808
Cabrera.....807
Hardy........807
Jeter.........777 (Haha)

*Everett 2006....891

-Tejada placed 7th out of 25 major league SS.

-The difference between ZR and RZR is that RZR separates plays that were made out of zone into a different category[ooz].

Tejada ZR

2001.......848
2002.......830
2003.......817
2004.......861
2005.......819
2006.......824
2007.......843

I don't beleive that Tejada is given the credit he deserves. His arm is still a cannon and he obviously still has the ability to get people out. Overall, I do beleive that be removing Everett from the batting order and inserting Tejada we have the BEST lineup in the NL. By shear odds alone, we should score far more runs. The difference between Tejada and Everett on defense is a significant one, but that would be the case when you replace Adam with anyone but Vizquel. The runs created by Tejada will outweigh the runs he gives up on defense. Not to mention the added lineup chemistry and practically making it impossible for the opposing pitcher to pitch around the heart of this lineup. Was the trade a good one? Who knows. I was not so high on Albers, I believe that you should show some improvement in over 250 innings, which he has not. We knew Luke was gone, which is sad. Costanzo wasn't to high on my list based on his sky high K rate, which would only get worse in the pros. Not to mention that he can be replaced by a now non-tendered Dallas McPherson. Sarfate has potential to be an excellent bullpen arm if he can consistently locate, which has yet to be seen over an extended period of time. Patton is the name that hurts. He was bound to be in our 2008 rotation, and has all the makings of being a solid #3 lefty. Health concerns may have made this decision easier for Wade, who still has Paulino and Gutierrez to fall back on. Only time will tell how good this trade was, but on paper, the AStros will be better in 2008 because of it.

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