It's Friday again and that means the weekend is only a few hours away. You might be asking why a picture of the Phillie Phanatic is on an Astros post. He's awesome that's why! He's also one of the most iconic mascots in all of sports, and the Phillies need a little love after supposedly getting beat by a minor league team. If you have an interesting link to share feel free to post it in the comment section below.
Dumb thought of the week
Rob Dibble Thinks Stephen Strasburg Should 'Suck It Up' -- MLB FanHouse
This is the thinking which causes so many young pitchers to try and pitch through injuries, hurting their career and hurting their team. Dibble blames Strasburg for telling his manager that his arm hurts, saying, "stop crying, go out there and pitch, period."
Non-Baseball Blooper
Quakecon 2010: Attendee Blunder of the Year on Vimeo
This has absolutely nothing to do with baseball but it is quite possible the blunder of the year. Maybe even the decade.
More links after the jump
Astro Players
You Know He's Having a Pretty Good Year, Right? - Beyond the Box Score
Nice recognition of the solid season Kepp is having. We should also bring up the important distinction between replacement-level and league average. They are not one in the same and having a league-average second baseman isn't a bad thing for the next year or two.
Nelson Figueroa Is Still Good | FanGraphs Baseball
And you thought FanGraphs hated the Astros.
Rankings
BtB Power Rankings: Week 20 - Beyond the Box Score
One of the few times this year the Astros haven't been dead last in the BtBS power rankings.
MLB Power Rankings: On The Difficulty Of Playing For A Lousy Team - SBNation.com
Astros ranked 21st on SB Nations MLB Power Rankings
Interviews
These Questions 3: Kathryn Schulz - SweetSpot Blog - ESPN
A great interview related to what seems to be a fascinating novel. The second question should have all of us thinking Carlos Lee.
Offseason
The Baseball Analysts: Aging Players - Bargains for 2011?
Ineffeciency in the free agent market has shifted from locking up younger players to signing older players in the twilight years. Check out who tops the list.
Twitter / Josh Leventhal: Nationals not coming to Ri ...
Does this show that Express switching affiliations is just as much about territorial rights as it is about getting both teams under Ryan control?
Statistics
Defense and Slumps | FanGraphs Baseball
Friday - Jack Moore discusses the current view of defensive statistics and how they should be viewed.
The Best Team In Baseball? | FanGraphs Baseball
Dave Cameron discusses the best team in baseball according to WAR.
TCB Twitter Follow Friday
A happy birthday to Morgan Ensberg who turned 35 yesterday.
Twitter / Morgan Ensberg:
Thanks for the birthday wishes! I'm young now that I am out of baseball!