ST Game No. 19: Houston Astros vs. St. Louis Cardinals
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:00 PM CDT
in Houston Astros Events
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PrintGrapefruit League record (more ceremonial than anything else): 10-7
Today's starters: LHP Wandy Rodriguez vs. RHP Kyle Lohse
Wesley Wright and Wilton Lopez are also scheduled to pitch today.
Lineups, courtesy of Alyson Footer and Brian McTaggart:
1) Cory Sullivan, CF
2) J.R. Towles, C
3) Hunter Pence, RF
4) Carlos Lee, LF
5) Geoff Blum, SS
6) Pedro Feliz, 3B
7) Chris Shelton, 1B
8) Jeff Keppinger, 2B
9) Wandy Rodriguez, P
This is the first game I've seen where Geoff Blum has played shortstop. Here's what Brad Mills said about it this morning:
I've got to see him play out there. I do know he's got good hands, a good arm and his experience and being able to position himself where he needs to be should help his range.
He mentioned that he wanted to see Maysonet and Keppinger at shortstop too, to get a feel for all his options. Depending on how Blum does, I wonder if this means Maysonet is inching closer to a roster spot.
Bernardo Fallas also has news that Josh Banks, Roy Corcoran and Brian Esposito were all sent to minor league camp. My money has all three destined for Round Rock this season.
Listen and watch the game here. If you are in the Houston area, you can watch the game on Fox Sport Houston or listen to it on 740 KTRH.
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Some trouble for Wandy early
The POW award has already gone to his head! Having trouble locating early. Runners on first and second with one out
Wandy’s command looks iffy. Is he grimacing up there or am I just imagining it in my paranoia about more incoming injuries?
Looks more like he’s mad about his control, not that he’s injured.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:13 PM CDT up reply actions
On the plus side, I haven’t seen him throw a curve ball yet. Maybe he’s working on something specific with his fastball.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:15 PM CDT up reply actions
Just realized that.
Still disappointed there’s no JD
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:19 PM CDT up reply actions
Nasty curve to Joe Mather
Looks like Wandy’s control problems are with the fastball. That’s what Freese hit into the cheap seats.
Another deep drive
Caught by Sullivan for the third out. A rough start for Wandy, and a ton of pitches thrown. Probably won’t last more than four innings now.
Wow
Towles shows some athleticism there with that double
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 12:23 PM CDT reply actions
Towles rips a double on the first pitch he saw
When do we start to get excited about the offense we might get from the catcher position this season?
now
I mean, the bar is set awfully low. But Towles looks primed to produce
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 12:27 PM CDT up reply actions
I like him in the two-hole too
He’s got enough speed to be interesting up there and has a history of good OBP in the minors.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:29 PM CDT up reply actions
Due to the amount of experience he has in the minors and the fact that he’s already taken his lumps at the major league level, I could see him coming up and surprising everyone with something like an .800 OPS season right away. Not the most likely outcome, of course, but possible.
In any case, it should be a notable upgrade over last year.
Oh man
Pence hit that ball on the screws, just happened to be right at David Freese. Two outs in the inning
yeah…announcers are blaming Feliz for the throw, but my reaction is that it looked like poor footwork by Keppinger. The Cards’ announcer may be right that guys have to get used to each other.
I think that's probably what happened
Plus, this particular infield hasn’t played together at all this spring
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:39 PM CDT up reply actions
Wandy strikes out Tyler Greene
And Towles just misses throwing out Lopez at second. Looks like Greene interfered with Towles’ throw.
He’s definitely looked good this spring offensively.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 12:44 PM CDT up reply actions
Blum showing surprising athleticism there
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 1:14 PM CDT reply actions
Great play by Blum
On a slow roller that was deflected by Wandy. He barehanded the ball and threw out the runner by a step. Two outs in the fourth
Bad throw by Towles on steal attempt
That’s the one downside to him behind the plate. He’s just an average guy defensively and teams might run on him more often.
It seems like a lot of our spring games have been like this
Down early, then battle back in the middle innings
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 1:23 PM CDT reply actions
Against the other teams scrubs…not a good sign for the regular season
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 1:25 PM CDT up reply actions
on defense that’s true (2d string defenders). but the Astros comebacks have been against accomplished pitchers on a number of occasions (like Papelbon yesterday). Lohse is still in this game.
The Yankees starter who took the loss the other day, Aceves, was apparently in close competition for the No. 5 slot, and fell out of favor because of the loss to the Astros. I was amused at one of his explanations—“the Astros have good hitters.” For all of us who have been expecting the worst from the Astros’ offense this year, it was an amusing thing to hear. In fairness to Aceves, Pence and Lee did the most damage to him, and they are good hitters.
Thanks for the updates gents...
I won’t ask if you have jobs…LOL. makes my day go a little better. I like the fight in the Astros this year, and it sounds from the earlier comments that Wandy was working on locating the fast ball, and then he got back to his bread and butter….I think he is a lot more mature this year, and the Astro’s IMO are fairing much better with the new manager.
"now you chunkin' in there.."
That’s the nice thing about spring game…they correspond nicely with lunch breaks :)
Either that, or I get wi-fi in my mom’s basement?
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 1:31 PM CDT up reply actions
Sammy Gervacio in to pitch
Wandy’s line (via McTaggart):
4 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 HR, 1 WP, 1 HBP
90 pitches, 57 strikes
Follows it up with a great diving play to his left
Announcers say Blum making a case for his Gold Glove today. Have to say he’s been impressive
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 1:38 PM CDT up reply actions
Spectacular play by Blum moving behind 2d base.
Went to his knees, popped up and threw out the batter.
must. not. get. too. excited.
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 1:37 PM CDT up reply actions
Well at least Mills will be
comfortable putting him in there as needed….
"now you chunkin' in there.."
Is Sammy gonna make the pen??
In your opinion. I haven’t seen him pitch, did read he has a rather unorthodox delivery…
"now you chunkin' in there.."
Certainly looks promising
Especially with Alberto Arias being possibly hurt worse than previously thought. He didn’t point at third base with the ball like he usually does today, but his delivery is definitely fun.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 1:43 PM CDT up reply actions
Lee is 3 for 3...
He gets a double on a risky effort at taking 2d base. Lee should have been out at 2d, but the throw in was off line.
Double by Carlos
After the centerfielder dove for the ball, Carlos barely beat the throw. Way to hustle El Bufalo.
If Mills can get Carlos hustling....
this maybe a good season yet….and after watching my bracket go to hell over the weekend….Anything is possible…right??/
"now you chunkin' in there.."
I like that nickname infinitely more than El Caballo
And I like calling him El Caballo!
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 1:45 PM CDT up reply actions
Ah, Millsy!
there it is again. General Mills may have an uphill battle
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 1:48 PM CDT reply actions
hahah awesome
he’s impressive on the mound.
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 1:54 PM CDT up reply actions
he truly is the king of the AAAA players
The Crawfish Boxes, Astros blogging at its finest.
by Evan Hochschild on Mar 22, 2010 1:58 PM CDT up reply actions
Van Ostrand has a pretty big upper body. Hasn’t translated to big power numbers in the minors, but I can tell why there’s power potential there.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 2:01 PM CDT up reply actions
Oh, my!
Barnes just shattered his bat in half! It turned into a routine play to the second baseman, but don’t they give the rookies real bats? That looked like it was made of balsa wood.
Lopez is an interesting case. He gets beat up in both the majors and minors, which makes you think he isn’t very good. But when you see him pitch, his stuff is good. You wonder if he is a guy who will one day just “click.”
The Astros are definitely giving him a look this spring
Though that could just be because he’s out of options
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 2:12 PM CDT up reply actions
From occasionally reading Vivaelbirdos.com, I know that some of the Cards’ fans want Jaime Garcia to be considered for the 5th starter. My recollection is that he is more likely to be a bullpen guy. His stuff looks good.
Yeah, he looked very efficient
I’m not sure whether he’d work better as a starter or a long reliever, but he’s definitely a guy to watch.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 2:31 PM CDT up reply actions
Don't blink, because you might have just missed the eighth inning
A ground out and a strikeout by Maysonet mean there are two outs in the bottom of the eighth
And yet, no rally is happening
Do they not realize this is spring training we’re talking about here! A winning streak is on the line
That's for the commentary, folks
I had to miss the game today.
Astros fan for life
by Joe in Birmingham on Mar 22, 2010 6:56 PM CDT reply actions
What happened to Sundays's game thread?
Astros fan for life
by Joe in Birmingham on Mar 22, 2010 6:59 PM CDT reply actions
They're in a box on the right sidebar
We moved them from the front page once the next game starts. That way you can get to all our great commentary more easily.
by David Coleman on Mar 22, 2010 9:10 PM CDT up reply actions
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3 game series vs Dodgers @ Dodger Stadium
| Fri 05/25 |
WP: Lucas Harrell (4 - 3)
SV: Brett Myers LP: Clayton Kershaw (4 - 2) |
3 - 1 win |
| Sat 05/26 |
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Houston Astros
Sunday, May 27, 2012, 3:10 PM CDT Partly cloudy. Winds blowing out to right field at 10-15 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 75. |
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NL Central Standings
| W | L | PCT | GB | STRK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cincinnati
|
26 | 20 | .565 | 0 | Won 1 |
|
St. Louis
|
25 | 22 | .531 | 1.5 | Lost 3 |
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Houston
|
22 | 24 | .478 | 4 | Lost 1 |
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Pittsburgh
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22 | 24 | .478 | 4 | Won 2 |
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Milwaukee
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19 | 27 | .413 | 7 | Lost 1 |
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Chicago
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15 | 31 | .326 | 11 | Lost 11 |
(updated 5.27.2012 at 1:03 AM CDT)
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