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Some things I learned from watching videos on the Astros website. I'm on mobile and couldn't figure out how to link them.

1. Jon Singleton apparently bulked up and added muscle in the offseason. Now weighs 250.

2. We have a new female trainer.

3. Tyler Heineman does magic tricks. I suggest his nickname be The Magic Man. And when he hits a dinger, I think it should be called a Homeruneman.

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Bulked up? He was already overweight

is the chick hot?

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Solid 7.5.

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Couldn't let this go unopposed... THAT's your definition of a 7.5?? You've either been married too long or have a serious judgement problem...

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Automatic 1 point deduction if the girl can kick my ass.

Alright back to baseball

Really good write up by Ken Rosenthal about Hinch and his journey as a manager, his outlook, and his relationship with Lunhow.

How AJ Hinch went from bust to one of the best as a manager

Few interesting tidbits from the article.

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"After '09, in the spring of '10, I think players accepted the move a bit more, but the results on the field just weren't good. I could see him improving as a manager that year, though. I think the game was so fast for him in the beginning, especially in the late innings."

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"He really relates," said Astros reliever Pat Neshek, who knew Hinch from their days together with the Padres. "He won't be like Tom Kelly in Minnesota: 'This is going to be the way it's done.' We work really hard. But he just relates. He's really good with his people skills."

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When the Astros hired Hinch, some perceived that he might end up a puppet of Jeff Luhnow, the Astros' analytically driven GM.

"Not even close," Hinch said.

Does Luhnow dictate decisions?

"Never."

"It offends me if people think I can be manipulated," Hinch said. "I'm not that way. I'm probably as stubborn as anybody. But that doesn't mean that I'm not a good listener."

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I know he gets a ton of flack on here and even I question a handful of the moves he makes, but I think he's a good manager and I think the combo of him and Lunhow together is a damn good one.

I like the guy, but there were some definite "WTF" moments. Overall, he's a good one.

Saw 12 new posts on here and assumed something good happened. Not posts about a chick who is meh

I do really like Hinch, but he absolutely makes boneheaded decisions.. mostly with the bullpen and deciding to sit players like Tucker when they're heating up. He also rubbed me the wrong way when he backed down from Bannister in the big scuttle.

It will be fun to watch the Hinch / Bannister rivalry thid year.

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Saw 12 new posts on here and assumed something good happened. Not posts about a chick who is meh

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I operate on the binary scale - chicks are either a 1 or 0. And this chick gets a 1 for me

But anyways, back to baseball - I agree that the combo of Hinch/Luhnow is a good fit. There have been some decisions that Hinch made, particularly late in games with the bullpen, that leave me scratching my head, but overall it appears the players really respect him and enjoy playing for him. And just look at what's happening to the Rockets right now - you cannot put a pricetag on chemistry in the clubhouse. It can make all the difference sometimes

I know we are all entitled to an opinion, but honestly, how do we know certain decisions are "boneheaded" or "questionable."


He has more information at his disposal that we can ever dream of having to make these decisions whether they pay off or not. He makes decisions in line with what the front office believes in along with himself that is more than likely back by data. I am not saying any person is 100%, but heavens to betsy he's been the Astros manager for 1 year and they made the playoffs in what was supposed to be a hit .500 at best type of year.

I think Hinch has done a fantastic job so far. The bullpen imploding was less on him and more on the FO not adding any legit arms at the deadline. Ken Giles came 5 months too late for the 2015 season.

Data can only take you so far.

Take the Rockets for example. You can use data and numbers to build a team but if you ignore the human aspect of things you're selling yourself short. That team is a mess because the human aspect or chemistry was ignored.

For example...Using pitchers who have no confidence over pitchers who've been mowing guys down is one example. The numbers may point to using the guy who's been shelled but you've got to take into account the human aspect and the fact that this guy's in a groove and this guy's not.

Hinch did a great job of this when managing the starters. Fiers in his no hitter and multiple times when Dallas looked him the eye and told him he was good and was left in. The numbers said they were ready to be pulled but he took into account their physical and mental state at the time and it worked.

I think he'll get it and the fact we no longer have Qualls to f s up I think we'll see an improvement.

Over relying on data gives you a struggling Tony Sipp and Chad Qualls coming despite better option available. And it costs us multiple times.

It would be great to always turn to your studs in the pen, but unfortunately, that's just not possible. You have to get everyone work and rest. If you have to stick your worst reliever in the game, doesn't it make sense to use him in situations where the data indicates the he'll have the most success?

While a certain reliever may not be the best option out of the pen for a given situation, that situation may the best option to get him work and get another guy rest. Keeping everyone in the pen fresh while trying to win is a difficult proposition and is going to lead to some head scratching moments.

If you don't want crappy relievers in the game, upgrade the talent. We took a huge step in the right direction this offseason and it'll make Hinch's job a little easier.

Why not take a look at Tim Lincecum for a bullpen role? He can't be expensive and LHP aren't a dime a dozen

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Why not take a look at Tim Lincecum for a bullpen role? He can't be expensive and LHP aren't a dime a dozen

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Lincecum is right handed

Sincere apologies........ I don't know what I was thinking........

Question still stands, why not invite him to camp with minor league contract

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Question still stands, why not invite him to camp with minor league contract

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I think he's got a showcase later this month hoping for a major league contract.

Screw it. Offer right now. We have plenty of cash to take a gamble. Of it pays off, we just solidified one of the best pitching staffs in the league. If not, we lose the cash we got from trading Conger.. no biggie.

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Question still stands, why not invite him to camp with minor league contract

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Meh, he hasn't been good in years.

I'm not worried about the BP. Plus I'm not sure we have room for him since whoever misses out on the rotation out of Feldman, Fister, and Fiers will be out there.

Let's play devils advocate about our own hype and expectations..

What player or players (position players) are most likely to regress from last year's performance?


Altuve - He is what he is. He could do slightly worse, or he could win another batting title. It's almost impossible to expect him to not perform to the level he's consistently set for himself. Very doubtful expectation of regression.

Springer - Injuries could definitely hold him back. I don't see him striking out MORE, and I don't see him hitting for less power unless he has a major injury. Very doubtful expectation of regression.

Correa - Theoretically, he could very well have a sophomore slump and be more like an average level shortstop. I'm having a hard time seeing it though. He's so fundamentally sound in every facet of the game. Slight expectation of regression.

Gomez - He kind of had an average to below average year based on his career body of work. But he could very well follow it up with an average season. I don't see him being worse than a league average center fielder. Slight expectation of regression.

Rasmus - He had a pretty normal year, nothing out of the ordinary for his career standards. His power could regress as pitchers and shifts focus on his pull aspect, but I don't think there is any way he regresses unless his standard is his playoff level play. Very doubtful expectation of regression.

Valbuena - He didn't have an overall good year at the plate. His power was massive early on, but it really fizzled later in the year. Still, I think he has the best chance to negatively regress out of anyone, as he's never been a player that was expected to be a multi-year solution at 3rd base in the league. He could just as easily play to the level of a replacement level player as he could maintain or add to last years performance. Average expectation of regression.

Castro - I could see him being a little worse defensively, though he's in his prime so it shouldn't happen just yet, but I don't see any way he can be any worse at the plate. Very doubtful expectation of regression.

Gattis - Another guy who didn't do enough last year to warrant much of an expectation of being worse, outside of injuries of course. He had one of the worst starts imaginable last year. I could see him hitting less RBI's for sure, and he could very well be a bench player if he isn't producing runs at the DH spot. Slight expectation of regression.

Singleton - He can't be worse. And if he's not better, he won't be here long enough to matter.

Marisnick / Tucker / Gonzalez - Marisnick could have less steals as he won't get as many starts, but outside of that, I don't see any chance any of these players don't play to last years level or better. Very doubtful level of regression.

What do yall think?

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Castro - but I don't see any way he can be any worse at the plate.

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Please don't egg him on. He did have a 2/3 game stretch including a game winning grand salami where he actually was productive.

But seriously I think your assessment is pretty spot on.

However, I could see Marwin regressing a bit. He was just so good off the bench and spot starting. He actually struggled to start the season (wasn't he down there on our list with the likes of Villar) and if he wouldn't have pulled it together we would've been screwed. He was so big for us.

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Castro - but I don't see any way he can be any worse at the plate.

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Please don't egg him on. He did have a 2/3 game stretch including a game winning grand salami where he actually was productive.

But seriously I think your assessment is pretty spot on.

However, I could see Marwin regressing a bit. He was just so good off the bench and spot starting. He actually struggled to start the season (wasn't he down there on our list with the likes of Villar) and if he wouldn't have pulled it together we would've been screwed. He was so big for us.

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Maybe on Marwin, but other than his rookie year where he was acquired in the rule 5 and it was mandatory we keep in on the big club no matter his play, he has been as reliable as any backup infielder in the game. He does nothing spectacular, but he's always means 100% business and comes off as a complete professional. Could he be less consistent than last year? Sure. But consistent for him is at the level of a replacement level SS. I don't see him being worse than that.. but thats just me.

Agree

I may also be getting caught up in the fact that before last year he wasn't considered a valuable asset to the team. That was probably because before last year our team was crap and a utility guy was no use to a 100+ loss team.

He just seems to have really turned a corner last year and hopefully he wasn't just peaking around it.

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Agree

I may also be getting caught up in the fact that before last year he wasn't considered a valuable asset to the team. That was probably because before last year our team was crap and a utility guy was no use to a 100+ loss team.

He just seems to have really turned a corner last year and hopefully he wasn't just peaking around it.

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Agreed,

He is an absolute luxury for a team with arguably the best SS in the game. I bet there are 3-5 teams would start on day one of the season.

Correa's off season workouts Good article on Carlos' off season workouts in Santa Isabel where he grew up. You just gotta love this kid.

His parents did an excellent job raising him. When you see a guy like Carlos, you wonder what someone like Johnny could be with a similar attitude and work ethic.

Correa is going to be in the MVP conversation as early as this season. He's going to cost us a fortune at some point and it's going to be worth every penny.

Add Tucker to the list of candidates working at 1B. After playing 1B in college, he's had very little work there as a professional and I've read that was due to being awful. I guess it's worth it to give him another shot. Working Tucker at 1B and Gattis at first and catcher, once healthy, seems like we're trying to build a very versatile lineup. It might also be to increase the trade value of some guys should a guy like Reed step up and win the job at 1B. We could end up with a logjam of hitters on the big league club that are likely to be moved rather than sent back to the minors.

http://m.astros.mlb.com/news/article/165614774/astros-preston-tucker-trying-out-at-first-base

This is good, though. I along with many others on here last season were calling for Tucker to get some time in at first, but management would not budge last year. Looks like they are open to new things and willing to give it a shot

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Add Tucker to the list of candidates working at 1B. After playing 1B in college, he's had very little work there as a professional and I've read that was due to being awful. I guess it's worth it to give him another shot. Working Tucker at 1B and Gattis at first and catcher, once healthy, seems like we're trying to build a very versatile lineup. It might also be to increase the trade value of some guys should a guy like Reed step up and win the job at 1B. We could end up with a logjam of hitters on the big league club that are likely to be moved rather than sent back to the minors.

http://m.astros.mlb.com/news/article/165614774/astros-preston-tucker-trying-out-at-first-base

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After last years BS, they FINALLY do it.

There will be Astros baseball on ROOT this Friday

Does anyone know if audio feeds of ST games will be available on AtBat audio?

Single game pre sale on Thursday, btw.

I believe so

They have been the last few years.

Jim Callis take a look at our Top 30 prospects

1. Bregman
2. Reed
3. Martes
4. Tucker
5. Cameron
6. Moran
7. Paulino
8. Musgrove
9. Fischer
10. Feliz

Farm system ranks #10 in MLB and that's after losing Correa, McCullers, Appel, VV, and Santana to the big club or trade.

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Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools -- 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average and 70-80 is well above average.

Hit: Bregman (60)
Power: Reed (65)
Run: Derek Fisher (65)
Arm: Alfredo Gonzalez (65)
Defense: Cameron (60)
Fastball: Jandel Gustave (80)
Curveball: Martes (60)
Slider: Riley Ferrell (60)
Changeup: Chris Devenski (60)
Control: Musgrove (70)

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