ASTROS REPORT MAY 5, 2003

BACK DOWN THE LADDER

After a good start the Astros have found themselves on a very disappointing slide. Since their 7-2 start Houston has gone 7-14 and have fallen to 4th in the division, 3.5 games back of 1st place. It is hard to pinpoint any one factor for this losing streak as all facets of the team have been struggling at some point. The Astros just haven’t been clicking on all cylinders like they were to start the season. However, this team has too much talent to slump like this for long and they have showed signs of coming out of it by winning their last 3 games in a sweep of the Marlins.

WEAK "START" TO GAMES

Probably the most concerning problem has been the starting pitching. Even to begin the season there were worries about the back-end of the rotation, but everyone expected Roy Oswalt and Wade Miller to be solid. However both have been less then stellar thus far. Miller has started out very slow with an ERA over 6 and a 0-3 record. Oswalt hasn’t been his dominant self and has a losing record as well, a mark of 2-3. Jeriome Robertson has struggled mightily and has been sent down to the minors. He was 1-3 with an ERA over 8. Kirk Saarloos, called up from AAA New Orleans, will take his place in the rotation. Brian Moehler has missed 2 starts and Scott Linebrink has filled in. Neither of them has pitched very well.

ROTATION"S LONE "STAR"

If you noticed, the only pitcher I didn’t mention as struggling was Tim Redding. Although Redding hasn’t been truly outstanding, he has been very solid. Redding is also the only Houston starter with a winning record. Hopefully Redding is finally putting it together and pitch consistently this season.

CARRYING THE BURDEN

With the starters struggling, the bullpen is having to shoulder a lot of responsibility. In far too many games this season the bullpen has had to pitch 4-5 innings of work. So far the relievers have held their own and have the second best bullpen ERA in the National League (Behind LA). However the relievers also have pitched the most innings of any team in the NL and if the starters do not start going deeper into games the bullpen could begin to wear down.

WHERE IS THE SUPPORT?

The starting pitching is not the only blame for the lack of quantity in the wins column. The highly vaunted offense has failed thus far to reach expectations. A big factor of this is Lance Berkman’s extended slump to start the season. He seemed to be coming out of it on May 1st against the Braves where he was 4/5 with a HR and 6 RBI. However he followed that up by going 0/7 in the next 2 games against Florida. The Stros need Berkman to step it up or their middle of the order fails to be the threat it should be. Another factor is the slump Craig Biggio is in. After starting off with 6 homers, wholes in his swing have become apparent and he is not getting on base very well. His average has fallen from .289 to .250. However, there is no reason the ring the bell of doom on Biggio quite yet. He is getting older so you can’t expect the world of him, but he is an intelligent baseball player with plenty of talent remaining, so he should be alright.

COMPLETELY UNCALLED FOR

With the team struggling the last thing they need is drama. Unfortunately that’s what they got in the form of Julio Lugo’s arrest on charges of hitting his wife. Lugo was arrested Wednesday night, April 30, after the Astros 11-1 loss to the Braves. He was charged with misdemeanor assault and released on $50,000 bail. The Astros designated Lugo for assignment and general manager Gerry Hunsicker has said that Lugo won’t be playing for Houston anymore. Houston has 10 days from the time of assignment (May 1st) to either trade or Lugo or release him to waivers.

MILESTONE FOR "BAGS"

On a more positive note Jeff Bagwell reached the milestone 2,000 hit mark April 26th against the Expos. Bagwell joins Biggio in the Astros 2,000+ club.

FIC LOCAL SPIN

With the club struggling many fans finger Jimy Williams with the blame. His somewhat erratic approach to managing has many quesioning his managing ability. A prime example of a Williams blunder was his decision to have Billy Wagner pitch a 3rd inning in Houston’s April 26th game against Montreal. Wagner proceeded to give up a game ending homerun that gave the Astros a 3-2 loss. Another bothersome characteristic to the local fans is Williams seemingly irrational lineup changes and obsession with resting players. Although resting players is not a bad idea in itself, it doesn’t make sense to rest almost all of your most productive players on the same night. Against Milwauke on April 17 Berkman was out with a sore elbow and Williams proceeded to rest Biggio and Kent as well. The Astros only managed 6 hits against the Brewers and lost 4-2. This lineup prompted an opposing fan to ask “Did the Stros manager mistake this for an exhibition game?” Needless to say, Jimy Williams is not very popular among Astros fans.

SMALL SHAKE-UP

GM Gerry Hunsicker commenting on the slide was quoted as saying "This team is a much better team than the results indicate. There are a lot of breakdowns in a lot of areas. I would suggest if there is not a turnaround here in the very near future, you can expect some changes to be made." Many people could interpret this quote and question Jimy Williams’ job security. However it is a bit too early to think that Astros management would make such a drastic change. They did however shake up the lineup a bit this week starting with Lugo being put on assignment.

"MINOR" IMPROVEMENTS

With the deduction of Lugo the Astros brought up David Matranga temporarily but he replaced the next day by Adam Everett. Everett is a light hitting short stop who was only batting .250 at AAA New Orleans. However he is great with the glove and the Astros don’t have much offense at short stop any way with Jose Vizcaino struggling at the plate. The Astros also option struggling number 3 starter Jeriome Robertson to AAA and brought up Kirk Saarloos who has been pitching very well in New Orleans. Lefty specialist Bruce Chen was put on assignment that same night and the Stros purchased the contract of lefthander Nathan Bland. Bland had been pitching well in New Orleans but he is nothing spectacular. The Astros have 10 days to waive, trade, or send Chen to the minors.

INJURIES

As mention above, Brian Moehler is on the15 day DL. He has mild tendonitis in his right flexor tendon of his elbow. He isn’t a fantasy option anyway and neither is his replacement Scott Linebrink.

ADD

Richard Hidalgo – Hidalgo has been hitting the ball well all season and is currently batting over .300. He is looking the best he has since his great 2000 season. If he can add a few more homeruns he will be a great fantasy option. He is even getting some steals.

Brad Lidge – Although Lidge is neither a starter nor closer he fits into the role of a dominant middle reliver who can help you in ERA, WHIP, and Ks. He even has 3 wins this year which is tied for most on the Astros pitching staff.

Tim Redding – As stated above Redding has been solid thus far. If he continues to pitch well and gets the strikepouts he is capable of then he is a viable option as a 4th or 5th pitcher on your fantasy team.

HOLD

Lance Berkman – As Berkman continues to struggle you may be tempted to trade him or even drop him. That is probably not a good idea since you can’t get nearly what he is worth in a trade right now and dropping him would be a sever loss. Be patient he has shown signs of coming out of this slump and has been batting better since coming back from his sore elbow.

Wade Miller – Miller is another struggling star that many might be dropping or trying to trade. Again this is probably not a good idea. Miller is solid fantasy pitcher and though he is often a slow starter he will turn it around and go on streaks of almost unhittable pitching. Look for him to turn it around this month.

DROP

Brad Ausmus – Ausmus’s hot streak seems to be over for the moment. It would probably be a good idea to drop him for whatever catcher is hot and a free agent. When your team lacks a solid catcher the best idea is to often just ride the hot hand and Ausmus isn’t it right now.