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One win. That's what stood between me and nailing my predicted record for April. One lousy, Josh Fields-killin' win. Note: I'm saying Fields killed multiple wins that could have got me there, not that he should be killed. That's an important distinction.
What else did I say in April, that I mostly got wrong?
1. Houston will go 10-18 in the first month of the season.
3. Jarred Cosart will lead the team in strikeouts.
4. Dexter Fowler will score 20 runs.
7. Robbie Grossman will hit .280/.350/.400 in the two-hole.
8. Jonathan Villar will steal five bases.
9. Houston will win more one-run games than it loses.
10. Scott Feldman will not be great, but will have the lowest ERA on the staff.
If Fowler hadn't gotten sick, he would have totally scored the five runs he needed to get to 20. I blame his stomach for missing that one. Cosart, too, was only five Ks off the team lead while Villar missed five steals by just one. The ones I wasn't close on? Houston went 2-4 in one-run games. Grossman hit slightly worse than I predicted and Feldman was eclipsed in the ERA race by guys like Matt Albers and Doctor McWho.
Okay, was there anything I got correct?
5. Lucas Harrell will either be a rotation mainstay or off the team by the end of the month.
6. Jesse Crain won't pitch in an Astros game until May.
2. Matt Dominguez will lead the team in home runs for April.
Not too promising a start to the 2014 season, is it?
At any rate, here are my predictions for May.
1. The Astros will go 11-17 in May.
2. Chris Carter will get to 10 home runs.
3. Jason Castro will be the leading Astros All-Star vote-getter.
4. George Springer will hit his first home run (and then five more).
5. Matt Dominguez will be the first Astro to double-digit home runs.
6. Brett Oberholtzer will win his first game of the season.
7. Jesse Crain will still not be pitching by the end of the month.
8. Houston will make three non-injury related roster moves.
9. MVP of the month will be Dexter Fowler.
10. Pitcher of the Month will be Dallas Keuchel.
What are your predictions for May? Any of mine you agree with? Did I go out on enough of a limb here?