So Long Smitty

Dave Smith passed away this week of a heart attack, at just 53 years of age. He was the third of the pitchers of the Houston Astros from the 1980's to pass away in the recent past. The other two were Joe Niekro and Vern Ruhle. Smith was the closer on the Astros teams that made the playoffs in 1980 and in 1986. He was a very dependable reliever and a tough competitor, as well as a loved teammate by all accounts.

So long, Smitty!

Tech Over OU?

This weekend pits the Red Raiders of Texas Tech against the Sooners of Oklahoma University in a key game to determine the Big 12 representative in the BCS Championship game. A win by Tech would assure them of a place in the Big 12 Championship game against Missouri. A loss will leave three teams with one loss and will put the computers in charge of choosing a representative!

Though I think it is a tall order, GO Tech!

Glad For Brad!!!!

When Brad Lidge complete the save in game 5 of the World Series last night, I cold not help being very pleased for him. Three years ago I was sitting about ten feet from the confetti cannon that was going to be part of the celebration of the LCS victory over the Cardinals by the Houston Astros, that would put them, and me, into the World Series for the first time.

Brad Lidge was on the mound and he had been phenomenonal the whole season. There was unbelievable electricity in the air. Then Albert hit the majestic home run that sucked the air out of Minute Maid Park.

Lidge suffered through the '06 and '07 seasons with a lot of intense pressure on him by the Houston fans. He was traded in the off season last winter and did not had a blown save all season. And Wednesday night he exocised the demons of seasons past.

Way to go Brad.

Out of a Slumber!

The Philadelphia Phillies were sleepwalking through the first three games of the World Series, at least offensively. They were stranding runners on the bases and allowing the Tampa Bay Rays to hang around. I thought the series could go either way. But the Phils awakened last night to win 10-2, and take a 3 games to one lead. With Cole Hammels on the mound tonight, the Rays are really up against it!

Network Nightmare?

The executives at the networks are probably not very happy about the outcome of the American League Championship Series. No doubt they would rather have had the Red Sox in the World Series. But the previously lowly Tampa Bay Rays have upstaged the Sox and are going to play the Phillies. I am usually a National League fan, but this time around I want to see the youngsters in Tampa win the whole enchilada!

Television Schedules and the Playoffs

Since 1998 I have hated the staggered playoff schedule that has, until this year been limited to the first round of the baseball playoffs. That year the Astros played the Padres in the first round and lost to Kevin Brown. Because of the extra day off that was inserted between game one and game 2, Brown was able to come back earlier than he would in the traditional format.

Now they bigwigs of baseball have bowed to the TV gods again and allowed a break in the LCS schedule that should not be there! Tampa Bay is on a roll and should not have to take a day off, allowing extra rest for the Sox' pitchers!

It is infuriating!

Charley O!

Have you ever heard of Charles O. Finley? Unless you are an old baseball fan, probably you do not. He was the owner of the Kansas City A’s, which moved to Oakland, and he was quite a proponent of innovation and showmanship. I knew he was primarily responsible for the introduction of the designated hitter into the game, and for white shoes on the ball players of the 70’s. He instigated bright colors for his uniforms and came up with the idea of variations on the uniforms for day games, weekends, and holidays.

But in a book on baseball trivia that I recently received as a gift I found out a couple of things about Charley O. that made me say “Really, I never heard that before.” The first was that in home games at the A’s stadium, Finley hired a lady named Debbie Fields to present the umpires with her homemade cookies and a drink of water in the fifth inning. Debbie went on to establish her own success, with her Mrs. Fields’ line of baked goods!

The second was that in 1968, Finley had a batboy that had other talents. Stanley Burrell would entertain the players with his singing and dancing in the locker room before and after games. That talented young man is much better known today, as M.C. Hammer!

Bittersweet Day at the Ball Park!

Every trip to the ball park makes the day a good one. A couple of weeks ago my family attended the Thursday night game at Minute Maid Park in Houston, despite the fact that Hurricane Ike would be slamming into our area.

Last night we went again to see the Astros, our first time since the storm. It was a fun game, with the Astros winning over the Atlanta Braves on a home run in the bottom of the ninth by Darin Erstad. I even caught a ball off the bat of Chipper Jones during batting practice.

But once every season there is a bittersweet day at the ball park. It is on the day that you know it will be next April before you will get to go to a ball game again. That was how it was last night. By the time I got to the car, the Brewers had finished their game with a win, thus eliminating Houston from the post season(I knew that the Cubs, who had already clinched the division title, would lose a game against since the loss would make it unnecessary to come to Houston on Monday for a make-up game).

I will watch the playoffs and the World Series, but I won't get to see a game in person again till spring! Heavy sigh!

How Far Can the Astros Climb?

The Houston Astros are really hot! Tonight they won for the 11th time in 12 games and continue to climb closer to the leaders in he wild card race tot he playoffs. Randy Wolf gave up two runs in the first to the Pirates, but Lance Berkman hit a 3 run homer in the bottom half and the Astros continued to add on through out the game. The final score was 9-3.

I Love a Pitchers' Duel

I grew up in a time when baseball was dominated by pitching and defense. I still love to watch a 1-0, 2-1, or 3-2 game more than a 10-7 home run hitting contest. I got to see one last night at Minute Maid Park. Ian Snell of the Pirates and Alberto Arias were the starters. Snell had command of his slider and was throwing his fastball as high as 96 miles per hour. He really handcuffed the Astros for most of the night. Alberto Arias was making his first Major League appearance for Houston and was really hot for the first few innnings. He struck out five of the first six hitters and had another K in the third. He seemed be on the verge of running out of gas in the fifth, so he was pinch hit for by another September call-up from the the minor leagues. Mark Saccamanno was the pinch hitter, his first big league at bat, for Arias in the bottom of the fifth with one out. He drove the ball over the fence into the Astros bullpen in right center field. The 'Stros added two more runs in the inning and made them stand up for a 3-2 victory for Arias.

Arias and Saccamanno had memorable nights and I got to see a terrific pitchers' duel!

Roy O Throws a Gem!

Last night Roy Oswalt took the pitchers mound with a small split in a nail on his pitching hand. Because of the problem, he threw mostly fastballs, but he located them oh so well. He only gave up one hit, a sixth inning single, while completing the game. The Astros won, 2-0, on the strength of a two run homer by Hunter Pence. It was the Astros' ninth win in ten games!

Ad Space Direct

My daughter has put together a small consortium of blog sites that will allow advertisers to deal directly with the bloggers to place ads at reasonable prices and cut out the middle men expenses of dealing with a broker.

The blogs are carefully targeted and present the advertiser the opportunity to select the blog or blogs that match their advertising interests. Each of the blogs is maintained with a high level of writing and creative content.

Eight Must Be Enough!

Last night the Houston Astros lost to the Colorado Rockies 5-3. The game was unusual in that it was relatively low scoring and took only two and a hlf hours, which is much less than most games in Denver. And it broke the Astros win streak at eight, so I guess eight will have to be enough. I just hope they do not now go on a protracted losing streak. Perhaps they will not, as Roy Oswalt is pitching tonight.

Eight In A Row Is Fun!

The Houston Astros just won their eighth game in a row, tonight was 4-0 over the Cubs. It is fun to watch them when they are hitting the ball. The streak includes sweeps of Central Division rivals St. Louis and Chicago. The 'Stros are only a game behind the Cardinals right now. Since I work with a Cardinal fan, it would be nice to finish ahead of them!

Roy or Zambrano?

Back in March or April I entered into a friendly wager with my old friend MerryOne regarding who would win more games this season, Roy Oswalt for my beloved Astros or Carlos Zambrano of the loveable Cubs. Zambrano got off to a great start and Roy had a rough couple of months. Last night Oswalt got the win against the Cubs to get to his 13th win. Tonight Zambrano started for the Cubs, but he left the game in a tie so he will not get a win. I still have a chance to win our wager. If so, Merry will have to write an ode to the Astros. If not, I will have to do the odious thing for the Cubs.

Bad Fans!

I was at Minute Maid Park last night for the Reds 2-1 defeat of the Astros. I love a low scoring game, so I enjoyed every pitch. I have been a fan of the Houston team since its inception and I can't quite get over how ignorant the fans in Houston can be at times. When Geoff Geary gave up a homer in the eighth inning last night, I was not pleased about it, but the fans booed the umpires, though the ball was clearly over the yellow line in left center and none of the Astros players were disputing the call.

While I am ranting about that nonsense, I get so irritated at the fans in Houston for doing the wave--so outdated, but to really demonstrate their ignorance of the game, they start the wave when the opponent is at bat! Makes me want to gag!

Heading Home From Shea!

The Astros managed a split in the four game series at Shea Stadium in New York. Their last game at the soon to be demolished ball park did not go too well, for the 'Stros, they lost 9-1. But now they head home to take on the Reds, which should allow them to stay above .500 for the season.

Eight In A Row!

My oldest nephew treated me to a game at Minute Maid Park today as a birthday present, I will be 60 on Monday! It was quite a game, the Astros came from behind to win over the San Francisco Giants, 7-3. Youngster David Newhan had two hits and made two great defensive plays. I was very ahppy for him.

Th win gave the Astros a four game sweep and extended their winning streak to eight games. A very pleasant way to spend an afternoon! Thanks, Jeff!

Strange Inning

I am sorry I did not get to see the ball game tonight between the Houston Astros and the San Francisco Giants. There was apparently a very strange inning that gave the Astros their third victory over the Giants in this four game series that will end tomorrow afternoon.

The 'Stros got only two hits in the inning in which they scored six times. They had three walks, one intentional, two errors and THREE hit batsmen! It must have been like a kick in the gut for the struggling Giants and pitcher Barry Zito!

Left Field Replacements!

My wife and I were at Minute Maid Park tonight for the game between the Astros and the San Francisco Giants. It was the first time that Ty Wigginton started in left field in place of the injured Carlos Lee. Ty had a bit of a bobble on a ball that was grounded into left between third and short. A run scored, and probably would have even if it had been fielded cleanly. And he did hit the cut off man and get an assist on a put out at second on the play!

More importantly, he drove in all three runs, including a homer, in the the 3-1 win for the Astros. Sounds a bit like Carlos Lee!

Costly Win

Brian Moehler pitched well again tonight for the Houston Astros in their game against the Cincinnati Reds. The 'Stros got only three runs, but won 3-1, moving to within 2 games of .500 for the season. But the win was costly with Carlos Lee getting hit by a pitch and having his finger broken. He had been on base 12 of 14 trips to the plate in the series and has driven in over 100 runs for Houston. He will be hard to replace in the batting order, though the defense should improve.

Roy Oswalt Owns the Reds!

Roy Oswalt owns the Cincinnati Reds. There can be no real explanation, but the fact that he has beaten the Reds 21 times and lost to the only once in his career leaves no doubt either! The Astros won the game last night, with Roy on the mound,7-4, though Oswalt only gave up one in his seven innings of work!

Brandon Is Stubborn

Brandon Backe is stubborn in his approach to hitters, especially to the dangerous hitters on the opposing teams. He does not wnat to throw them a fastball, so he nibbles with breaking pitches and offspeed pitches. Too often he walks them as he did yesterday in giving up EIGHT runs in one inning. If he does not walk them he builds up such a pitch count that he cannot stay in the game much past five innings. He needs to take a different approach and trust his stuff more than he apparently does!

Lightening in the Late Innings

Monday night we in the Houston/Galveston area were preparing for the arrival of Tropical Storm Edouard. At the same time the Astros and Cubs were playing a game in much worse weather than we saw when the tropical storm arrived! There was a 2 and a half hour rain delay that came in the sixth inning. Then in the eighth, there was a fierce lightening storm that caused the game to be stopped. The Astros won, 2-0.

Yesterday, after trailing 6-0, the Astros took a 7-6 lead on a homer by Carlos Lee, in the seventh inning. But in the bottom of the inning there was more fierce lightening, a three run homer from Alfonso Soriano, leading to a Cubs victory, 11-7!

The Right End of the Broom

The Houston Astros completed a sweep of the New York Mets yesterday, winning 4-0. Randy Wolf, the new Astros' starter went five scoreless innings. The bullpen finished the game with four strong innings. Chris Sampson has suddenly become an integral part of the pen, really shutting down the opposition in the middle innings!

Two In a Row

The Houston Astros have won their last two games, both against the New York Mets, in dramatic fashion. Last night Mark Loretta hit a grand slam to break a tie and propel the Astros to the win. Tonight, Geoff Blum got a hit with the bases loaded in the ninth, scoring the two tying runs. Then in the tenth, Darin Erstad got a sacrifice fly to drive in the winning run. Nice weekend so far!

Moving Miggy

There was apparently a lot of trade talk before the deadline about the Miguel Tejada, the shortstop for the Houston Astros. I have mixed feelings about the possibility. First, I like what Miggy adds to the team, especially the intangibles. If the team were mine, I would ask him to play third, because I believe his defense is slipping at short and he would improve the defense at third.

On the on the other hand, the team is not going to win with the current pitching staff, so if I could get some significant young arms for Tejada I believe I would have made the move.

Who Wins in The Manny Trade?

Manny Ramirez got his wish and was traded from the Boston Red Sox today before the trading deadline. I was a bit surprised, because his antics in Boston are not that new, but this time he really got on the nerves of the front office and they made a big deal today. In the three team deal, Los Angeles, the Dodgers, received Manny. In return they sent two prospects to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who also received two prime prospects from the Red Sox. The Pirates sent their best player, Jason Bay, to the Red Sox.

The Dodgers will get a lot of offense from Manny and will probably be in the playoffs. The Pirates got four players for one, two of whom are very highly regarded! The Red Sox got rid of a problem child--who can really hit. But they may not reach the playoffs. The big winner in the deal seems to me to be the Tampa Bay Rays, who should pull away from Boston in the AL East race!

Wandy is Dunn In!

The Houston Astros most reliable pitcher of the years has, arguably, been left hander Wandy Rodriguez. But last night he gave up seven runs, including three homers to lefthanded hitters from the Reds, Adam Dunn hit two and Ken Griffey Jr. hit one that accounted for three of the runs for Cincinnati! The Astros made it a game late, but were too far behind and fell 9-5!

Moelher Pitches Well!

Brian Moehler pitched 8 and two thirds innings last night for the Houston Astros. I was really hoping he could finish it off, and in truth I think he could have. But in the ninth he gave up one run and had the tying run on deck so Cecil Cooper brought in young Wesley Wright to get the final out. It was a good win and a solid performance by Moehler. He is now 6-4 on the season.

Roy Is Back & So Am I!

My summer travels are over so I am back to pull for the Astros with my full attention. And that coincides with the return of Roy Oswalt from the disabled list. That should make my job much more palatable. Roy pitched five innings last night and was able to get the win over the Reds. That makes him 20 and 1 in his career against Cincinnati!

Wouldn't You Know It?

Just as the Astros begin to make a turn around from the dismal month long stretch by winning 3 in a row and seven of ten, Roy Oswalt goes down with a hip injury. They do not know yet how long the injury will affect him, so maybe this is just a blip, but the team can hardly swim without him healthy!

Back to the Ball Park!

It has been more than three weeks since I posted anything here about the Astros.I was gone for a week, then when I got home the team was in such a funk that it was hard to find anything to post. They lost 20 0f 24 games during the stretch.

I had not been to a game at Minute Maid in six weeks, until Saturday night. And what a game to return to active fandom. The game against the Red Sox ended up with an 11-10 victory for Houston. The stadium was full and the intensity was really high. I believe part of the reason for the energy was the number of Sox fans in attendance.

I was very proud of the 'Stros for not giving up when they went down by two runs late in the game. And I am glad the Houston fans did not leave then, but stayed around to witness the outstanding finish!

Welcome Home!

Getting back home feels fine, even if you don't get in till three in the morning. The Astros had a terrible road trip, winning only two wins in nine tries. They hardly hit the ball at all. But tonight they had eleven hits, 8 from bench players getting spot starts. They beat the Cardinals 6-1. Starting Brian Moehler did a really good job, even Astros killer Albert Pujols went hitless!

Four Runs In Four Days

The Houston Astros have only scored four runs in four days. That will not cut it, would not cut it even if the pitching staff was terrific. And the pitching staff is not terrific! The road trip that started out with a win at St. Louis has turned dismal. The 'Stros had climbed to within a game of the Cubs, but now find themselves six and a half back.

The club moves on to Pittsburgh after the sweep in Milwaukee. Doing some good work there is pretty important if the Astros are to contend throughout the summer.

On The Road Again

Starting another road trip with a nice win is a good way to keep the pressure on the Cubs, who are leading the Central Division. Of course, beating the Cardinals is always good, whenever it comes. The 'Stros got four runs in the first inning and breezed to an 8-2 victory. Tejada had a two run homer, Pence went five for five, lifitng his batting average to .311. Shawn Chacon had an effective game on the mound. All around, it was a good game for Houston.

Successful Road Trip!

The Houston Astros just returned home from a 10 game road trip was very successful. The won 7 of the 10 games while they were away, several of them in very exciting fashion. They come home to face the Chicago Cubs, who are leading the National League Central Division.

It should been interesting three game series, with two very hot teams. Lance Berkman this fitting .399, and is on an incredible streak. But Alfonso Soriano of the Cubs is at least as hot as he is, so it should a be an interesting matchup. Fortunately I will be able to be there for two of the three games.

Go Astros!

Fifth in a Row

The Houston Astros have won five games in a row, a season high. They are now two games over five hundred in the win/loss column. The game last night was won on a single in the ninth inning, meaning a win in their last at bat for the third time in a row.

Carlos Lee had the single to drive in the winning run. Lance Berkman continued his hot streak, going 2 for 3 with a homer and two walks. His batting average for the season has reached .361.

Berkman Ablaze!

Lance Berkman has always been a good hitter, but the past few days have been incredible. He had two games in which he had four hits, which is a pretty unusual feat in itself. He was eight for ten in those games. But last night he topped those games by going five for five, with four RBI and two stolen bases! He is, of course, a big reason why the Astros have won four in a row!

The Puma Pounces!

The Big Puma, aka Lance Berkman, of the Houston Astros had a marvelous day at the plate in the game against the Milwaukee Brewers Sunday. And that came on a day when the Brewers pitcher was their ace, Ben Sheets. Sheets has a 4 & 0 record and his era is under 2.00. But Berkman went 4 for 5 with a homer, two doubles, an infield single and a walk. The Astros battled from behind to win in twelve innings, on a walk off home run by Hunter Pence. Of course, Berkman was on base at the time!

TURN AROUND

The Houston Astros began their homestand tonight against the Milwaukee Brewers as if they were sleep walking. The first batter hit a routine ground ball to second that was misplayed for an error. Two batters later there was a two run homer. The Astros did not have a base runner. The Brewers added two more in the fourth on some more poor defensive plays. Then Hunter Pence hit a two run homer to cut the lead in half. In the sixth Matsui got an infield single, followed by home runs by Miguel Tejada, Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee. Pence added another homer in the bottom of the eighth and the Astros walked away with a win!

Viva Valverde

I was afraid that the emotions of being back in Arizona and facing his old team mates might make trouble for Jose Valverde, and for his new team, the Houston Astros. But last night put those concerns to rest. Valverde came in in the ninth with a 6-4 lead. He struck out the side, including Ed Byrnes to finish the game. It was an impressive performance, and it ended a three game skid for the "Stros." That means they will do no worse than split the games on the road trip!

Lost Weekend

The weekend was not kind to the Houston Astros. They lost two of three in St. Louis. They did not hit much and spent two days being angry at the Cardinals for a pitch thrown behind Brad Ausmus. It was not a good series.

Bats Alive!

The Astros have won the past five games in a row, and the biggest reason is that the bats have come to life. The thought going into the season was that the new line up was potent enough to make Houston competitive every game. The first two weeks of the season, there was little to cheer about offensively. Now the hitters are all contributing and the 'Stros are in the win column much more frequently. I hope it is not sporadic, but I have my fears, as there are so many young players in the mix!

First Win!

I went to see the Astros again last night. It was my fifth visit this season, if you include an exhibition against the Tigers prior to the regular season beginning. It was the fourth of five games in which one of the teams scored at least ten runs. And it was the first I had seen the Astros win. The final was 11-7, despite having blown a 4 run lead in the eighth inning. For the second night in a row Miguel Tejada had four hits and for the second time in three games, Kaz Matsui drove in the go ahead runs in the bottom of the eighth!

Kaz Makes Himself A New Home!

Kaz Matsui missed the first couple of weeks with his new team, the Houston Astros, because of some medical problems. He returned on Friday night, but did not really make himself a new home until Sunday afternoon. That is when he got a two out, two run single that produced a Houston win over the Colorado Rockies.

Welcome to Houston, Kaz!

Bad Games and a Bad Call

I went to the game at Minute Maid on Friday night, taking my oldest grandson. It was a nice night with him, but the game was a real stinker. The Rockies got six runs off starter Chris Sampson, who left the game in the first inning. The 'Stros put up four runs in the bottom of the frame, but the Astros' bull pen could not contain the Rockies. The final score was 11-5. That means in consectutive Friday games, I have witnessed the Astros lose twice by a combined 21-9!

Then last night I went to see the second game of the Rockies' series in Houston. It was a better contest, the Astros eventually lost 3-2. But we saw one of the worst calls by an umpire at a critical moment that we have seen in a while.

Geoff Blum was leading off the bottom of the seventh inning. He hit a line drive into deep right center. Ryan Spilborghs of Colorado made a valiant effort, and when he landed on the ground and rolled over, he held the ball aloft as though he caught it. The umpire ruled it a catch, though the ball had ricocheted off his glove and under his body where he gathered it in his grasp. Blum was standing on second, but was ordered off the field by the umpire. So was manager Cecil Cooper, after a lengthy and animated argument that did nothing to change the ruling. It may not have cost the Astros the victory, but it surely contributed.

Chacon Shines--Valverde Stinks!

This year's acquisitions by the Houston Astros were supposed to solidify the closer and improve the offense. Tonight indicates that at least the first of those did not work. Shawn Chacon pitched eight innings of shutout ball for the 'Stros. The Phillies had no extra base hits. In the ninth, Jose Valverde came in to close the game. He gave up a lead off homer, hit a batter and gave up a two run homer, tying things up. Brad Ausmus missed a pitch on a strike out, allowing the batter to reach first. The next batter doubled down the third base line. As has been his habit for as long as I have been watching, Ausmus did not block the plate and his swipe tag allowed the runner to score the game winner.

All those Brad Lidge haters may be wishing we could trade Valverde for him soon!

Rockets in Utah

The Houston Rockets lost to the Utah Jazz, quite badly, last night. That probably means a return trip to Utah to open the playoffs this weekend. That probably means another brief stay in the playoffs, especially since starting point guard Rafer Alston is out with an injury. Sigh!

Backe To Back Wins!

Brandon Backe was the winning pitcher for the Houston Astros yesterday. Today the 'Stros won their second game in a row for the first time this season. Wandy Rodriguez was got the win, with a save for Jose Valverde. J. R. Towles hit a two run homer and Michael Bourn hit a solo homer. Both are Houston area boys so we had two Houston connnections today! The record now stands at 5 and 8, with a trip to Philadelphia next on the schedule!