Results tagged ‘ Wade ’
Winter meetings “Bah, Humbug”
After the signings of the winter meetings, we actually lost some ground. I don’t like how the front office cries broke when it comes to signing a starting pitcher, but then throws so much money at Brandon Lyon he would be a fool not to take it. I never wear rose colored glasses so I don’t see any improvements made to this team. Let’s take a look:
Feliz, who is basically a replacement for Tejada, has an average that hovers around .260. His power numbers have slid right along with Tejada’s the past two years. His defense is above average, so that gives him a slight edge and a special place in Alyson Footer’s heart. As far as back end relievers, you lose Valverde/Hawkins and replace them with Lyon/Lindstrom. I could never choose Lyon over Valverde…mainly because Valverde is a proven closer, and although he gives you the occasional cardiac arrest, he normally comes through in the end. Hawkins numbers were far superior to Lindstrom’s. Lindstrom missed 6 weeks due to elbow inflammation, but came back for Aug.-Sept. where he didn’t exactly overpower anyone. There you go…Matt Lindstrom is the risky pitcher this organization rolled the dice on. They really can’t help themselves, the temptation is too great for Wade the ego maniac. He’s already reading the headlines, “Ed Wade: Catching lightning in a bottle.” I say Wade needs to prepare himself for a disappointing season. First of all, Oswalt is certain to miss some time with his back or some other ailment. Secondly, Bud Norris is still learning the ropes and of course there is Moehler…who will continue to be Moehler with his +5 ERA and his anything but spectacular stuff. Last but not least, you have the #5 pitcher who if I were guessing would be Paulino or possibly Wright at this point. Wandy is the only one I feel fairly confident in right now.
With the addition of Feliz at 3rd base, I guess this makes Blum your 1.5 million dollar bench player. I like Mr. Clutch coming up to bat in the bottom of the ninth to win it, and I can’t think of anyone else I would want in that position.
Bottom line…this team is refusing to lock into any long term contracts, and that’s a good sign for the future. Not next year, but soon.
The End
Yes, it is over! It ended with a bang too…for New York anyway. 9 innings of shutout ball by Nelson Figueroa. I didn’t get to watch the last game of the season 
I was driving back from Cloudcroft, NM after spending some time in the Lincoln National Forest.
So I’m buzzing around the net and found this nugget on Astros.com. Here is a quote from one of the fan favorites:
“It’s turned into par for the course,” Astros first baseman Lance Berkman said.
Par for the course??!! Par for the course is a huge improvement over what this team has brought to the table. Par for the course is average…ho-hum if you will. This team has went from “par for the course” to downright horrific. Ok, so maybe he used the wrong phrase….I’ll back off the Puma. 
I’ll give credit where credit is due. Matsui stayed healthy for several months longer than I thought he would and frankly this really surprised me. I don’t know if it’s the perfect combination of wasabi and soy sauce that he’s been dipping his sushi in, but he’s been tattooing some balls out of here. I wonder if he has played well enough that another team might be willing to bite on his 5 million dollar contract. Nahh…I’m sure Wade wants to keep him now that the team could actually get rid of his injury prone ***.
Next blog entry I’ll discuss the questions I asked at the beginning of the season. Right now I’m dealing with a massive hangover from all the cheap Astros baseball I’ve had to endure.
Bottom line…I need some Top Shelf baseball next year. This is a reach, but let’s see if Old Man Drayton can heat it up at the winter meetings, etc.
The Coop Has Flown
First of all, let me say this; no one wants to kick a guy when he’s down (most people anyway.) So let me get the obligatory “it’s not personal, it’s business” out of the way. There. Now I can trash the guy.
I actually feel a little better about this season now. I have been tortured all year with this manager, and I don’t like pain. I’m not a masochist (but as a sadist, let me just say I’m glad they exist.) Seriously, most fans are relieved that he’s been relieved of his managerial duties. This took way too long. Then I couldn’t believe it….there were fans/media asking why they didn’t wait until the end of the season? “Never put off till tomorrow, what you can do today.” That’s what Grandma always said.
Wade has been discussing how the rest of the season will play out, and he has basically said that he won’t disrespect the potential free agent vets who may or may not be back with this ball club next season. This means he won’t be sending out the youngsters like CJ and Manzella to play as much as they should be. He said that we all get to wait until spring training to look at them. Great idea! It sure will be a lot easier for them there. WTF? I don’t like it. I’ve seen enough from the veterans this year, and do I have to say that I’m not real impressed? All of our sluggers are hitting mid to upper 20′s for home run totals. This is unacceptable. That was Pence’s total for last year, and probably this one too. Ahem, he’s not considered to be a big bopper. This potential power outage should be a major concern for all fans, players, media, and management going into ’10.
I came across this quote on twitter. It’s Geoff Blum on Dave Clark:
“He’s one of those guys who didn’t forget to take the ‘I forgot how hard it was to play pill.’”
I don’t know about you, but I think the wording in this quote bites. Who knows, maybe Tags didn’t jot it down correctly. I actually expect more from Blum. He is my candidate for player/manager, that’s right, the next Pete Rose (without the gambling issues.)
Bottom line…I don’t give a **** about which veterans need to showcase their talents for their next lucrative contract. Let the youngsters play.
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