My real confidence that Smith isn't a flash in the pan is because the Cubs make all kinds of stupid decisions letting guys go. This will just be another feather in their cap of shame.

They traded Jon Garland for crap barely a year after drafting him #1
They traded Lee Smith at age 29 for effin tsip Calvin Schiraldi
They traded Rafael Palmeiro away at age 23 - along with Jamie Moyer - to get Curtis Wilkerson and Mitch Williams
And most famously, they traded Lou Brock for a sack of **** at age 25. In the middle of the season. To their biggest rival - the Cardinals - who he then won WORLD SERIES MVP that season for.

MaxPower said:

---

They also just traded Jackson Ferris and Zyhir Hope for a meh 1B in Michael Busch last year. Both look like potential cornerstone pieces in a loaded Dodgers system.

---

Good, about time the Dodgers caught a break!

Cheap RF'er and bullpen arm? Imagine the tomes OG Houston 1836 would write!

Just to be clear, I will be pitching.

— Joey Gallo (@JoeyGallo24) March 16, 2025

Posted here because MLB now but dammit we miss him so much.

Sell out for the out!

Braden Montgomery makes a remarkable diving catch 😲 pic.twitter.com/Yb2N1QPnuN

— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) March 16, 2025

RED AG 98 said:

---

Posted here because MLB now but dammit we miss him so much.

Sell out for the out!

Braden Montgomery makes a remarkable diving catch 😲 pic.twitter.com/Yb2N1QPnuN

— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) March 16, 2025

---

Poor kid having to waste the best years of his career in that dumpster fire of an organization

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

RED AG 98 said:

---

Posted here because MLB now but dammit we miss him so much.

Sell out for the out!

Braden Montgomery makes a remarkable diving catch 😲 pic.twitter.com/Yb2N1QPnuN

— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) March 16, 2025

---

Poor kid having to waste the best years of his career in that dumpster fire of an organization

---

Ideally he balls out and they trade him.

10 days away from opening day gents!!!

All I do is Nguyen said:

---

10 days away from opening day gents!!!

---

Hoping we are watching Astros opening weekend and Aggie basketball at the same time

tjack16 said:

---

All I do is Nguyen said:

---

10 days away from opening day gents!!!

---

Hoping we are watching Astros opening weekend and Aggie basketball at the same time

---

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

What I’m seeing at Astros camp: Where Chas McCormick stands, Jake Meyers’ voice and more - https://t.co/arqdbSbsJx

— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) March 17, 2025

---

Article from behind the pay wall

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. Cam Smith's spring production is forcing the Houston Astros to consider all of their options, but his sudden introduction to right field must prompt wonder where Chas McCormick stands within the organization's long-term plans.

McCormick is 4-for-24 in Grapefruit League games, though it is dangerous to obsess over spring training stats. Case in point: McCormick slashed .366/.426/.439 across 41 at-bats last spring before authoring the worst season of his brief major-league career.

"I'm looking beyond the stats when it comes to Mac," manager Joe Espada said on Saturday, emphasizing McCormick's .429 on-base percentage and nine walks over a .167 batting average.
"He's swinging at strikes. He's walking. He's hit some balls hard. That counts for me because if you do that through the course of the season, the results will be there. I'm pleased with the quality of his at-bats."
Espada said McCormick is "getting close to what we've seen in the past," specifically a breakout 2023 season in which McCormick posted a 132 OPS+ alongside 41 extra-base hits.

Repeating or even approaching those stats may make any conversation surrounding McCormick moot. It still seems far-fetched that Smith will break camp as Houston's everyday right fielder, too, but more intrigue may lie in his first couple of months of minor-league ball.
Even if Smith isn't on the Opening Day roster, this spring has showcased that he should make his major-league debut this season. Barring no injuries elsewhere, his clearest path to everyday playing time remains in right field.

Though Smith is a natural infielder who has played his entire professional career at third base, rival evaluators have questioned whether it will be his long-term home at the major-league level.
One opposing scout pointed to Smith's lack of agility and delayed reaction times as warning signs but stressed that developing both traits is possible for a prospect who is still just 22.
If Smith's offensive prowess outpaces that defensive development, the Astros could face a fascinating dilemma. Jose Altuve is already moving to left field, in part, to bolster an infield defense that deteriorated last season.
Rival evaluators are almost unanimous in believing Isaac Paredes would struggle mightily to handle second base, should the Astros explore moving him there for Smith. That setup would run counter to every move made to strengthen Houston's infield defense.

Paredes is under team control for two more seasons after this one, a stretch in which Houston presumably wants to keep him at third base. Christian Walker's presence makes moving Paredes to first impossible.
McCormick is only under club control through 2026, making just $3.4 million this season and does have minor-league options remaining. Either now or at the deadline, no better trade candidate may exist on Houston's roster, especially if McCormick authors something close to a rebound season offensively while Smith is forcing the club's hand by mashing in the minor leagues.

Clearing a path for Smith to play every day with a cheaper option than McCormick may be conducive for a club still mindful of its proximity to the luxury tax.
Few would mistake Jake Meyers for a loudmouth. He is among the most reserved members of the Astros' clubhouse, a genial man who sometimes won't speak above a whisper.
Step onto the outfield grass and Meyers' voice grows. A communication drill during the early days of full-squad workouts demonstrated how loud Meyers can get. His calls could be heard from an adjacent field with a piercing yell that may be more important than ever.

Meyers' mere presence is crucial for a club that appears ready to play Altuve in left field. Meyers is a reigning American League Gold Glove finalist and one of the sport's premier defenders, someone with enough speed and instincts to mask some of Altuve's inexperience.
Meyers believes his voice is more vital in that endeavor than any of those physical abilities. He never de-emphasized communication as a center fielder, but Altuve's arrival alongside him has made Meyers more aware of its importance.

"Other outfielders really, really appreciate when other guys are helping them make those reads," Meyers said.
"(Let's say there's) a ball in the air that I see wasn't hit well that maybe, to him, is right at him. That's a tough read to make, so I can help him make that read by just yelling at him, 'Ball's in.' You can kind of hear that and make that read as it's happening. I think it provides a lot of value and a lot of outfielders like that."

First-base coach Dave Clark and outfield coach Jason Bell are aiding Altuve's transition both on the back fields and in the dugout, but Meyers has morphed into something of an in-game sounding board for the nine-time All-Star second baseman.
The two men were in deep discussion after Altuve mistimed a jump on a fly ball against the St. Louis Cardinals. Meyers said Altuve's most common questions are about "feel things you accumulate over time," like how to pursue balls that split the gap or the best ways to gauge where other outfielders are during those plays.
"That's such a great question because he doesn't get the chance to have two years of reps to go out there," Meyers said. "Asking those questions has really sped up the process for him because he's gotten the feel for some of that stuff because he's aware of it way earlier than some other guys who have had three years of reps."

Meyers has that and more. His importance to Houston's season will increase if Altuve is the team's everyday left fielder, a setup in which Meyers thanks in part to his voice would be a godsend for an icon in transition.
"The work he's put into it and his mentality behind it has been really cool to watch," Meyers said. "He's caught on really quick and gotten into some situations in games that I think will really help prepare him for the season, so it's fun to see and fun to be a part of."


Yordan Alvarez isn't particular about any spot in the batting order, but would prefer permanence wherever his skipper slots him.
Espada hasn't settled on whether Alvarez will hit second or third in Houston's batting order. His decision may come down to one question: Is it more important for Alvarez to receive more total plate appearances in the two-hole or put him one spot lower with the potential for more at-bats with runners in scoring position?

"If you can get him hitting with runners in scoring position more often, now when that at-bat late in the game gets there and you are ahead, it doesn't really magnify the spot," Espada said Friday. "If you can put traffic on with him and he can get more spots with people on base a few times per game, that's exactly what we're trying to do."
Espada entered last season hellbent on hitting Alvarez second. Kyle Tucker's shin fracture and Alex Bregman's uneven season forced Espada to adjust. Alvarez hit third 93 times and second in 54 games. He took a career-high 635 plate appearances, though that is a byproduct of better health and not batting order position.

During the past week of Grapefruit League play, Espada has experimented with Alvarez hitting third and Paredes in the two-hole behind Altuve. The results have intrigued Espada, who hasn't committed to any order but acknowledged how natural that setup looks.
"I've been liking Paredes' at-bats in the two-spot … I like that and if I can continue to get that approach from Paredes, I like him in that two-spot," Espada said. "I will continue to tinker with that the next couple days, but I kind of like how those first three hitters are performing in that order."

Hitting behind the free-swinging Altuve forced Alvarez to adjust last season. At one point, Alvarez acknowledged feeling somewhat rushed when he arrived at home plate, especially after Altuve would author one of his league-leading 118 one-pitch plate appearances.
Last season, no batter in the sport saw more pitches per plate appearance than Paredes, who reached base at a .346 clip, is proficient at putting the ball in play and profiles as the most ideal two-hole hitter on Houston's roster.

Paredes' pull power attracted all of the attention when the Astros acquired him, but everything else in his offensive profile is perhaps more important for a lineup that "got away" from its identity last season.
Alvarez drove in a team-high 86 runs and took 153 at-bats with runners in scoring position last season. Meyers is among the Astros who took more a problem Espada may be looking to correct.

And people say this game isn’t realistic? pic.twitter.com/VvbUEd7Y7d

— Space City Sports (@LiveSCS) March 16, 2025

HOUSTON ASTROS BINGO - 2025 HOME EDITION

• Pick FOURTEEN (14) of the 100 numbered entries plus #1 (the free space) that you think will occur during the 2025 MLB season.
• Direct reply me your picks - or DM them to me. Copy/paste your choices
• Deadline to enter is 1 minute before Astros' first pitch on Thursday, March 27 at 310 PM CDT.
• I'll Google spreadsheet it and keep track all season.
• Fun for the whole family!

THE LIST

[ol]

Ranger fans continue to be insufferable and have no sense of humor while also being terrified of girls.(FREE SPACE)

Astros win Opening Day

Astros lose Opening Day

100+ win total

95-99 win total

90-94 win total

85-89 win total

80-84 win total

75-79 win total

< 75 win total

Astros have winning streak of 8+ (in season)

Astros have losing streak of 6+ (in season)

Astros end April in 1st place

Astros end May in 1st place

Astros end June in 1st place

Astros end July in 1st place

Astros end August in 1st place

Astros win AL West

Astros make the playoffs

Astros miss the playoffs

Yordan 35+ HR

Yordan hits .300 or better

Yordan 90+ RBI

Yordan makes the All-Star team

Yordan finishes top 3 for MVP

Yordan team lead OPS

Altuve team lead OPS

Altuve scores 90+ runs

Altuve .300+ AVG

Altuve makes the All-Star team

Pena 17+ HR

Pena 20+ SB

Pena makes the All-Star team

Diaz 25+ HR

Diaz 90+ RBI

Diaz team lead OPS

Diaz makes the All-Star team

Diaz grounds into 20+ double plays

Diaz grounds into 19 or fewer double plays

Cam Smith 15+ HR (in the majors)

Paredes 25+ HR

Paredes team lead OPS

Paredes make the All-Star team

Walker 25+ HR

Walker team lead OPS

Walker 90+ RBI

Walker makes the All-Star team

Anybody on the team besides Altuve has a 20 HR/20 SB or better season

Brendan Rodgers starts 100+ games

Jon Singleton steals a base

Jon Singleton hits a triple

Jon Singleton does a bat flip on a ball that gets caught by the other team

Jake Meyers goes crazy and hits .230 or better (min 250 AB)

Cooper Hummel, using brutal but non-lethal force, under the guise of a security exercise walks off with 15 VX poison gas rockets

Chas McCormick gets traded

Framber Valdez gets traded

Victor Caratini gets traded

Framber 15+ wins

Framber makes the All-Star team

Hader 35+ saves

Hader makes the All-Star team

Hader strikes out 100+ batters

Hunter 14+ wins

Hunter makes the All-Star team

Araghetti 12+ wins

Araghetti strikes out 185+ batters

Lance McCullers starts an MLB game in 2025

Lance McCullers gets an MLB win in 2025

Cristian Javier makes 5+ starts in 2025

Bryan Abreu 30+ Holds

Bryan Abreu 100+ strikeouts

Bryan Areu makes the All-Star team

Rafael Montero's ERA is higher than 4.50

Rafael Montero's ERA is lower than 4.50

Kyle Tucker 25+ HR

Alex Bregman 25+ HR

Carlos Correa 20+ HR

George Springer 20+ HR

Justin Verlander wins 10+ games

Ryan Pressley 25+ saves

Ryan Pressly loses job as Cubs' closer not due to injury

Rangers miss the playoffs (again)

Rangers make the playoffs

Bruce Bochy gets fired

Bruce Bochy starts any press conference by saying "I'm getting too old for this *****"

Josh Jung misses 80+ games injured because he was auto-drafted onto my fantasy team

Angels lose 100 games

Sacramento A's (stadium capacity 14,014) outdraw 2024 Oakland A's at home (11,386 average)

A's win 75+ games

White Sox lose 115+ games

Dodgers win 108+ games

Dodgers win twice as many games as White Sox

Mike Trout plays 100 games or more

Mike Trout plays 99 games or fewer

Shohei goes 50-50 or more again

Aaron Judge hits 55+ HR

Aggie baseball team wins series at Disch-Falk in late April

Aggie baseball team loses series at Disch-Falk in late April

Aggie baseball team turns season around and makes at least the Super Regionals

Aggie baseball team does nothing of the sort

[/ol]

Yordan was not good in the 2 hole last year IIRC

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

Yordan was not good in the 2 hole last year IIRC

---

His performance was about the same, actually, but I do think you have to take a player's preference into consideration. If he doesn't like hitting behind Altuve, then bat him third. After the first inning, it's probably fine, but there were a lot of times when Alvarez was walking up to the plate as the second hitter having only seen the pitcher throw one or two pitches.

I am told that Astros #1 prospect Cam Smith has a “GOOD” chance of making the opening day roster, per source.

If he makes Houston’s roster, the at-bats will be there for him. He will be in the big leagues to play.

Cam Smith in spring training:
⚾️26 AB
⚾️.423 AVG
⚾️3 HR
⚾️9… pic.twitter.com/xyf4YyWdvO

— Will Kunkel (@WillKunkelFOX) March 17, 2025

Digging into Yordan's stats a little more, he was a pretty consistent hitter in innings 2+ whether he batted second or third.

However, isolating the first inning, he had a 27.8% strikeout rate when batting second versus 14% when batting third. He scored runs at the same rate, but had ten first inning RBIs from the three spot compared to just one batting second.

The sample sizes are somewhat small, but his first inning performance suggests he should bat third. The question is, would the extra ABs over the course of the season batting second outweigh his first inning struggles?

My guess is that it's Altuve-Paredes-Alvarez-Walker-Diaz-Pena the some combo of CF-RF-2B.

EastCoastAgNc said:

---

I am told that Astros #1 prospect Cam Smith has a “GOOD” chance of making the opening day roster, per source.

If he makes Houston’s roster, the at-bats will be there for him. He will be in the big leagues to play.

Cam Smith in spring training:
⚾️26 AB
⚾️.423 AVG
⚾️3 HR
⚾️9… pic.twitter.com/xyf4YyWdvO

— Will Kunkel (@WillKunkelFOX) March 17, 2025

---

As long as he actually gets substantial playing time then this is smart. If they call him up just to sit on the bench for weeks at a time then might as well keep him down.