This team is about to mess around and blow the division if they aren't careful.

Seattle is about to play an unmotivated rangers team at home for 4 games

tjack16 said:

---

This team is about to mess around and blow the division if they aren't careful.

Seattle is about to play an unmotivated rangers team at home for 4 games

---

I'm not sure they're completely unmotivated...they still have a tiny chance to make a run. They're exactly 4 games back of Seattle so if we continue to slide they could catch the Mariners with a sweep and then it will really get interesting.

Personally I think they will split the 4 game series but we have to pull our heads out of our asses and start playing better, smarter, and with some fire. We look like we're playing out the string with a 10 game lead.

FrioAg 00 said:

---

What, a PERFECT GAME? I've never actually watched a PERFECT GAME.

I'm going to go turn it on and see if he can stay PERFECT.

---

I did this to Yu Darvish that time he almost no hit the Astros. Back then you could talk smack on the other team's thread without getting banned a month for posting a picture with nobody in it, as I did earlier this summer.

07ag said:

---

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

With the caveat that he hadn’t spoken to the Astros’ trainers yet, Joe Espada sounded optimistic about Jose Altuve. Espada said he’s “not concerned it’s an oblique”

— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) September 12, 2024

Side transplant, hell miss 3-4 years

---

in other words, its definitely an oblique injury

---

Nah, he's got 3 fractured ribs and a punctured lung.

tjack16 said:

---

I miss the days of 2017-2019 and 2022 where we could coast through September and not sweat the division because we took care of business in the early months

---

Phew, you aren't kidding. I did some quick BR research

9-1-2017: 80-53, 12 game lead over the second-place Angels
9-1-2018: 83-53, well only a 2.5 game lead over the 2nd place A's. As Will Ferrell once said in Zoolander, "I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!"
9-1-2019: 84-49, 9..5 game lead over the A's
9-1-2021: 78-55, 5 game lead over the A's
9-1-2022: 84-47, 11 game lead over the Mariners
9-1-2024: 75-62, 6 games lead over the Mariners


By the way, the White Sox were:
65-66 on September 1, 2022.
53-82 on September 1, 2023.
31-107 on September 1, 2024


Meanwhile, the Royals were:
53-79 on September 1, 2022
42-94 on September 1, 2023
75-63 on September 1, 2024

tjack16 said:

---

This team is about to mess around and blow the division if they aren't careful.

Seattle is about to play an unmotivated rangers team at home for 4 games

---

yep...and if you lose the division you don't make the playoffs.

Obviously a massive game this afternoon. Can't get swept at home by the A's with HB and Framber pitching in those games.

MaxPower said:

---

07ag said:

---

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

With the caveat that he hadn’t spoken to the Astros’ trainers yet, Joe Espada sounded optimistic about Jose Altuve. Espada said he’s “not concerned it’s an oblique”

— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) September 12, 2024

Side transplant, hell miss 3-4 years

---

in other words, its definitely an oblique injury

---

Nah, he's got 3 fractured ribs and a punctured lung.

---

so you're saying altuve is officially dead

gambochaman said:

---

also, I feel like every year after the day off when they do all their astros foundation gala stuff, the team plays like hot garbage for a long stretch

maybe they should save all that crap for after the season and let the players actually rest and refocus on off days

---

Its strategic, they strike while the iron is hot and people are focused on baseball. Especially in the middle of a division title run. They raise a ton of money for some pretty amazing causes. To my knowledge, the commitment the players make to these events is pretty minimal.

Also, this team is about to sack up and go on a nice run to win the division with ease and get a short rest before the playoffs. Speaking it into existence.

Full on R/L mode today.

pic.twitter.com/b1u8PVYHrr

— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) September 12, 2024

Kessinger and Bryan King up.

McCormick to IL and Hernandez optioned

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) September 12, 2024

Why kessinger... Why not an outfielder like cabbage

Mathguy64 said:

---

Heyward is about to get a lot of PT with Chas being out.

Hate to say it but he doesn't have it. His bat looks like he's swinging in water instead of air it's so slow.

I would be playing Gamel every day until Tucker can play in the field.

---

When the front office approach to filling talent gaps in season is to pick veterans off the DFA scrap heap who were performing worse than AAA call-ups because "experience" (I guess) you should expect quite more miss than significant contribution. Hayward doesn't look like an MLB player at the plate, but that's been pretty much the norm for most of our outfield (sans the part of the season Tucker actually played) as well as 1st base

So many below replacement performers in the lineup most days that if Yordan or one of the other top of the order hitters are not producing the offense is mostly garbage.

Hope they get hot for the next 3 weeks because it looks like a dog fight just to make the post season based on recent trends

linkdude said:

---

Gotta hope for a 2 game win streak going into JV day

Astros rotation for Angels series:
Fri: Yusei Kikuchi
Sat: Justin Verlander
Sun: Ronel Blanco

— Matt Kawahara (@matthewkawahara) September 12, 2024

---

Or a quick hook if he craps the bed again

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

Kessinger and Bryan King up.

McCormick to IL and Hernandez optioned

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) September 12, 2024

Why kessinger... Why not an outfielder like cabbage

---

So he can play 2B while Altuve recovers from his lobotomy.

But seriously this gives more flexibility while Altuve nurses his discomfort.

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

Kessinger and Bryan King up.

McCormick to IL and Hernandez optioned

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) September 12, 2024

Why kessinger... Why not an outfielder like cabbage

---

I would rather Myles Straw than Cabbage.

The only reason to carry an extra outfielder (on top of the current set) is to have replacements for all of the many OF we have to pinch hit for in late game situations.

Last night would have been really interesting if we had tied it and sent it to extras. I completely understood why Joe wanted to pinch hit for Heyward with Caratini, but we would have been out of OF (since Chas was presumably unavailable with his broken hand).

You would have had Gamel in CF, Yordan in LF, Dubon at SS, Whitconb at 2B, and a big old ? in RF. Caratini would have had to play OF or take the spot of one of these guys to do it for him. I suppose Yainer also could have moved to OF with Caratini behind the plate. But no matter how you slice it, it would have been ugly.

Joe is correct to be aggressive in pinch hitting for guys, but our lack of a RH bat in the OF mix (not counting Meyers who can't be allowed to hit close and late) is a real handicap.

Kessinger?! Just play with 8 and take the out. At least it won't cost you a GIDP from that worthless toothpick of a bat.

Astros should request the coed softball rule- walk the guy ahead of the girl and she gets a base too. Kessinger would be the girl.

Marvin said:

---

Kessinger?! Just play with 8 and take the out. At least it won't cost you a GIDP from that worthless toothpick of a bat.

---

So that brings up a question. With our proficiency at GIDP, if teams are allowed to intentionally walk hitters, hypothetically, could a team take a ghost out to skip a batter that is more likely to GIDP than to get a hit and RBI? Not sure any skipper would ever be brave enough (or stupid enough based on how it would likely impact the skipped player's mentality) to do it, but I have to think the analytics might suggest it might be the better option with some of our guys at the bottom of the lineup.

While they would never do it, that isn't much different than when pitchers used to bat. They would often be sent to the plate with the instruction to not swing, which made it all the funnier when occasionally a wild pitcher would walk his counterpart instead of obtain the essentially free strikeout.

But yeah, a position player might take it a bit more personally than a pitcher!

txags92 said:

---

Marvin said:

---

Kessinger?! Just play with 8 and take the out. At least it won't cost you a GIDP from that worthless toothpick of a bat.

---

So that brings up a question. With our proficiency at GIDP, if teams are allowed to intentionally walk hitters, hypothetically, could a team take a ghost out to skip a batter that is more likely to GIDP than to get a hit and RBI? Not sure any skipper would ever be brave enough (or stupid enough based on how it would likely impact the skipped player's mentality) to do it, but I have to think the analytics might suggest it might be the better option with some of our guys at the bottom of the lineup.

---

Is this a real question?

Farmer1906 said:

---

txags92 said:

---

Marvin said:

---

Kessinger?! Just play with 8 and take the out. At least it won't cost you a GIDP from that worthless toothpick of a bat.

---

So that brings up a question. With our proficiency at GIDP, if teams are allowed to intentionally walk hitters, hypothetically, could a team take a ghost out to skip a batter that is more likely to GIDP than to get a hit and RBI? Not sure any skipper would ever be brave enough (or stupid enough based on how it would likely impact the skipped player's mentality) to do it, but I have to think the analytics might suggest it might be the better option with some of our guys at the bottom of the lineup.

---

Is this a real question?

---

Not really. More of a thought exercise about what the analytics would say if it were a real option.

So is Chas gone for the playoffs? I assume so.

txags92 said:

---

Farmer1906 said:

---

txags92 said:

---

Marvin said:

---

Kessinger?! Just play with 8 and take the out. At least it won't cost you a GIDP from that worthless toothpick of a bat.

---

So that brings up a question. With our proficiency at GIDP, if teams are allowed to intentionally walk hitters, hypothetically, could a team take a ghost out to skip a batter that is more likely to GIDP than to get a hit and RBI? Not sure any skipper would ever be brave enough (or stupid enough based on how it would likely impact the skipped player's mentality) to do it, but I have to think the analytics might suggest it might be the better option with some of our guys at the bottom of the lineup.

---

Is this a real question?

---

Not really. More of a thought exercise about what the analytics would say if it were a real option.

---

Wouldn't it be better to just tell the hitter not to swing the bat and at least possibly still draw a BB?