6/5 - Today’s Astros Matchup - Game Open Thread
Recaps: I can’t say it any better than Shake:
That’s right. We got a shutout from Wandy (& Co.) ON THE ROAD, and got burned the next day w/ Roy on the mound.
Pigs are flying.
Wandy didn’t look awesome, but he did well with what he had. The un-sexy threesome of Chris Sampson, Doug “Choppin’” Brocail, and Jose Valverde closed it out (hey, Diehard Chris, I think he needs a new nickname).
Last night, former Astro Raul Chavez wore us out, driving in three of the Ass Pirates five runs home. Roy gave up 9 H in just 6 IP.
For the year, Roy’s Batting Average on Balls in Play (BABIP) against is .297, well above his career .258. His seasonal numbers have been creeping upward consistently, and even though I’d like to invoke the reversion to the mean doctrine here, there’s little evidence that his BABIP will inevitably decrease.
6/5 Preview: Got a meeting, so this’ll be quick 
It’s the last game of a nine game road trip, with the Stros posting a 2-6 record on the journey. We send Brandon Backe out against Paul Maholm. The two are posting very similar numbers on the year, with Maholm giving up a higher BABIP but issuing less walks than Backe. With Maholm a lefty, the RH heavy Astros should have an advantage, but we didn’t exactly pound Phil Dumatrait around in the first game of the series.
This skid has sent us to just two games about .500 and 7 in back of the Fuzzie Cubbies.
Posted under 2008 Season, Astros, Today's Astros Matchup
June 5th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I forget exactly when (about 2 starts ago, I think), but recently Backe pitched one hell of a game. He got into trouble in the 1st or 2nd inning, and then retired around 13-15 consecutive batters. That was just fun to watch, as his pitches were absolutely sick.
That said, if he comes anywhere close to a similar performance & our offense remembers that the goal is to get from the batter’s box to one of those pretty white pads instead of the dugout…..then we should be in good shape for the rubber game. Lord knows our offense improves having Brandon in the 9 hole. I’d be tempted to bat him 7, just for sport.
June 5th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
Can anyone justify our first round pick? With Smoak still on the board? I swear we took a catcher in the first round last year. Seriously… this is not helping my undying hatred for Ed Wade at all.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
Let my friend Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus speak for me:
In 2006, we took Max Sapp, who was also a questionable pick. Haven’t heard his name much? Putting up sub .675 OPSes in two seasons at Lexington will do that to a brother.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
@Shake: Yeah, he’s better than any catcher and Bourn for sure. Can compete with Matsui. So, yeah, hit him 7th, at least.
June 6th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Hey, our pick this year may not have any power. Or speed. Or much of any discernable talent… other than being a “contact hitter”… but it’s not like those kind of gems can be found in round 50!
(what’s that? Round 50 is littered with “contact hitters”? Well, shit!)