Looks like Tim Purpura had a news conference yesterday. And it looks like he told the assembled that the Astros have just figured out that OBP Is Good--especially with runners in scoring position.
I wonder why it took the organization this long to figure it out, when they've had a paragon of the virtue in Lance Berkman playing at the major league level since 2000, but never mind that.
We're not gonna argue.
At least with the premises.
Premise One:
Purpura and his staff spent a lot of time in the offseason dissecting what went badly for the Astros in the World Series. Their conclusion: The team didn't do well enough with its situational hitting."That's one area where we failed," Purpura said. "There's no doubt about it."
. . .
[H]e and his top lieutenants held a series of meetings in the offseason and talked about the problem. The question they weighed: "How do we become better situational hitters?"
OK. Yes, the importance of the AB sure is magnified when the ducks're on the pond. No question.
Alright, Premise Two:
"Purpura said they want the hitters in the organization to improve their on-base percentage, which means see more pitches, work the count better and take walks, among other things."
No arguments here, either. Gotta get on base. Just gotta.
Conclusion per someone called "Justice B Hill"
Bringing in Preston Wilson should help
Rastronomicals' Rebuttal
Wilson's OBP w/ RISP in 2005: .344
Houston's OBP w/ RISP in 2005: .348Wilson's OBP overall in 2005: .325
Houston's OBP overall in 2005 for nonpitchers: .329
Guess they made the decision to pick up Wilson before they rewrote the book. . . .