Astros Crawfish Boil: Friday, January 6, 2023

It’s your Friday Boil.

Houston Astros News

Reacting to the Latest Houston Astros Slander Piece From The Athletic (climbingtalshill.com)

What will the Houston Astros’ catcher situation look like in 2023? (chron.com)
I think the catcher situation should be fine, right? The article touches on Houston’s two top Triple-A options (Diaz & Lee), and trade options Gary Sanchez and Roberto Pérez.

New York Yankees Need More Offense To Close The Gap With The Houston Astros (Forbes.com)

Current Angels manager Phil Nevin once threatened to beat up former Astros hitting coach in the wake of the sign-stealing scandal (sportskeeda.com)

‘Mattress Mack’ drops $1.5 million on TCU to win college football championship game (ktla.com)
I guess from Mack’s point of view, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

MLB News

Carlos Correa signing: Mets still working on deal, but Scott Boras now talking to other teams, per report (cbssports)
Am I overthinking things when I ask, “Couldn’t they just sign him to a deal with a safety clause related to that specific injury?” I swear, never has so much been made out of a non-incident since Geraldo Rivera unearthed Al Capone’s vault.

Who Will Sign Trevor Bauer? 6 Potential Free Agent Landing Spots (si.com)
spoiler: Houston is number two

Yankees hire Omar Minaya in advisory role as front office refresh continues (cbssports.com)

New York Yankees fans thrilled with report DJ LeMahieu will be healthy in time for spring training: “DJ is about to go off” “We need this man” (sportskeeda.com)
Prediction: It won’t be enough

Jean Segura to Phillies fans: “Thank you Philadelphia...you will always have a place in my heart” (sportskeeda.com)

Giants place La Stella on release waivers (mlb.com)

Kimbrel ‘on board’ to embrace uncharted role (mlb.com)

This is MLB’s ultimate boom-or-bust rotation (MLB.com)

Oops! All Astros: Christian Mejias

Christian Mejias is a six-foot, 160 lb. right-handed pitcher from Valencia, VZ. Born on May 19, 1999, he was signed through free agency by the Houston Astros on June 15, 2016. From the time he signed through 2021, he worked his way up from the rookie levels to the Low-A Fayetteville Woodpeckers. The 2022 season would see Mejias start the year with the Woodpeckers.

On June 10, Mejias earned his second win of the season by striking out five over four shutout relief innings, allowing only three hits and zero walks in a 7-1 win over the Delmarva Shorebirds. Showcasing another “highlight” with Fayetteville seems impossible, as his next four appearances were at least as good. Those final five games yielded 28 whiffs and two earned runs in 23 ¹⁄₃ innings. He allowed only six walks and surrendered 10 hits over that time, holding the opposition to a .125/.205/.175 slashline while going 3-0 with a 0.77 ERA.

Well now, I would imagine that Houston’s headshop probably figured they had seen enough from Mejias at that low level. It was about time, too, seeing as how it was his seventh year as a professional. Promoted to the High-A Asheville Tourists, Mejias finished the year up in the South Atlantic League. On August 16, he struck out four over two shutout innings, allowing one hit in an 11-4 win against the Aberdeen IronBirds.

Aside from that outing, however, Mejias didn’t flash any of the great stuff he had shown while with the Birds. In 30 ¹⁄₃ innings for Asheville, he was 1-4 with an 8.01 ERA, a 1.747 WHIP, and a .290 opposing batting average. Just after the Astros sewed up their second World Series Title, Mejias was granted his walking papers.

Fear not, though. Mejias quickly found a new suitor in the Milwaukee Brewers, signing a deal on December 9. He’s currently assigned to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.