Astros Crawfish Boil: November 1, 2022

It’s going to be Game Three, take two of the 2022 World Series tonight at Citizen’s Bank Park.

On Halloween night, we got the bad news. A delay can only hurt Houston, as it gives the very top of Philadelphia’s rotation an additional day of rest. Normally it wouldn’t elicit so much as a groan from the collective Astros faithful, as every pitcher on Houston’s roster is normally a cut above the rest of baseball’s. We’ve come to realize, however, that Justin Verlander’s World Series funk is painfully real. Likely headed to his third career Cy Young Award, he’s now collected a lifetime 0-6 record with a 6.07 ERA.

The unplanned extra day of rest will allow Phillies co-aces Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola time to start games four and five, instead of games five and six, as they had originally planned. Here’s some other Astros new from around the web.

Astros News

Game Three postponed due to rain.

Josh Reddick is going to play in Australia.

A different look at Jeremy Peña.

Martin Maldonado was forbidden from using his preferred bat in Game Two.

Verlander was caught flipping off Phillies fans on his way to the ballpark last night.

Other MLB News

Where could Jacob deGrom land in 2023? tl;dr — Mets are likeliest, Houston ranked seventh.

Will the Athletics change cities for the third time in their existence? They started out as the Philadelphia A’s, moved to Kansas City, then Oakland. It seems like they’re about to go to Las Vegas, along with other ex-Oakland franchises.

Justin Turner won the 2022 Roberto Clemente Award.

Could ball-and-strike challenges be far off?

Bleacher Report ranks baseball’s top 100.

Oops! All Astros: Bryant Salgado

Bryant Salgado is a six-foot-one, 205 lb. right-handed reliever from Rio Piedras, PR. Born on March 2, 2000, he was the 34th round pick of the San Diego Padres in 2019. After playing with Oregon State instead of signing, Houston took him in the 14th round in 2021, with the 418th overall choice for a $125K bonus. Only four times in 57 did the player taken 418th make the majors, led by Dick Tidrow (13.4 WAR).

Salgado appeared in five games for the Astros in 2021, one with the FCL Astros at the rookie level and four more at Low-A with the Fayetteville Woodpeckers. The 2022 campaign would see him ensconced with the Woodpeckers for the entire season.

Salgado pitched in 23 contests with Fayetteville, starting 13 times and coming out of the pen the other 10 times. On May 11, he pitched six innings in relief against the Carolina Mudcats, earning a 2-0 victory by whiffing five and allowing zero runs on one walk and two hits. On June 3, he struck out seven over a five-inning shutout start, walking one and giving up three hits in a 3-0 win over the Fredericksburg Nationals.

Salgado faced 399 batters in total, walking 42 and striking out 86 in 89 innings. He allowed opponents to slash .262/.347/.399 and racked up a 1.506 WHIP, picking up a 6-7 record and a 4.75 ERA. Opponents were successful in stealing a base on 10-of-14 attempts. Look for Salgado this season with the Asheville Tourists at the High-A level.