The Houston Astros finished with a 76-86 record in 2010 and I really don't see them getting any better this year, however no worse either. With no major additions to bolster their sub par offense, the only thing that will save them from losing more than last year will be the starting rotation.
The Houston Astros starters combined for 95 quality starts last season, the same as the World Series Champs (San Francisco Giants). That charge was led by the supremely underrated duo of Wandy Rodriguez and Brett Myers, who combined for 47 quality starts. Some say it's an overrated stat but to me it means they gave their team a chance to win 47 ball games... not bad. I don't expect either Myers or Rodriguez to dominate this year but I do expect them to continue doing what they do. J.A Happ enjoyed a change of scenery last year getting himself out of the giant shadow of the Phillies stud farm. Happ finished with a 6-4 record with a nice ERA and even threw a complete game shut out. Happ certainly doesn't over power hitters but is a solid lefty who'll continue to develop. Bud Norris (not a fake name, although a good one) finished with a 9-10 record with an ERA of 4.92, but had at least a strike out per inning. I think Norris will eventually be a solid number 2 starter and we can certainly expect an increase in his overall numbers in 2011. However Norris won't see any favors from his hitters as they failed miserably at scoring runs last year.
The Hitting department in Houston must have taken an extended break because they failed to even show up. The Astros combined for only 611 runs scored and as a team had a pathetic .303 OBP barely squeezing past the Mariners for second last in that category. The news wasn't all bad, we finally saw what all the hype was about with Hunter Pence. Pence finally put in a solid season and if he continues down that path should be better this year. Carlos Lee might be finally showing his age, dropping off considerably last season (especially in batting average). Perhaps Lee should call up big bad Vlad and get some tips? Houston's lead-off hitter Michael Bourn had another good season in the stolen bases department, swiping 52. The only problem is that Bourn needs to be getting on base more than his .331 career average. With young touted prospect Brett Wallace about to endure his first full season, hopefully he can infuse a bit more offense into this team, yet it likely won't be easy having next to know protection in the line-up and batting near the bottom of the order to start the season.
Prediction: 5th in the NL Central. The NL Central has some interesting things going on this year but the Astros aren't one of them. I think if they find some offense they could finish ahead of the Cubs but likely won't. However they will finish ahead of the Pirates... for now. It will be awhile before we start seeing the Astro's competing for a division title with only one prospect in Baseball America's top 100, the Astro's are not a threat at all.
Player To Watch: Bud Norris. I believe Bud Norris has the potential to take a great step forward this year. He had a jacked ERA last year but it's pretty typical for young players to hit a sophomore slump after a good first year showing. Besides his strikeout numbers were good and he gave up the least amount of hits on the staff. Norris can throw hard, is a bull-dog on the mound and he should enjoy a solid 2011 campaign.
No comments:
Post a Comment