Brandon Backe sighting...

Fat Elvis got..., well, fatter

iBrad said:

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Brandon Backe sighting...

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WTF??

Duck Patrol said:

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Fat Elvis got..., well, fatter

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Saw him last year at the SHO and he was in really good shape

Wait who is on the far right?

Pahdz said:

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Wait who is on the far right?

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Who's right? Are you talking about Geoff Blum? Or the picture of Bags on the wall? Or Phil Garner on the left?

Pahdz said:

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Wait who is on the far right?

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Geoff Blum!

Ag_07 said:

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Pahdz said:

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Wait who is on the far right?

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Blummer

You probably don't recognize him since he's only on 75% of the Astros TV broadcasts.

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Yeah, but when 100% of those TV broadcasts are on ROOT Sports the viewership diminishes pretty quickly

BACKE!!!!

F Yah

Mr.Bond said:

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Duck Patrol said:

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Fat Elvis got..., well, fatter

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Saw him last year at the SHO and he was in really good shape

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Maybe it's the angle?

I thought it was Blum but he looked fatter for some reason.

This is the worst time of year. Football is over and there's still 2 months until baseball. Well at least the Ags start in a few weeks.

*unamused face*

Opening Day is April 3rd. Yes, ST is baseball, but no, it's not REAL baseball.

True and after 2 weeks into it I'll become bored with ST baseball and it'll lose my interest.

But for now it's Astros baseball and I'll have it on the radio during the day as I work.

Always excited to hear about the going ons as ST gets kicked off.

For sure, I enjoy that about ST as well. I just know that I can't really watch until the regular season starts!

Duck Patrol said:

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For sure, I enjoy that about ST as well. I just know that I can't really watch until the regular season starts!

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You can start watching Aggie Baseball February 17th!

Amen to that! But their season might be over by the beginning of March!

You will have the World Baseball Classic starting in early March. You can watch some of your 'Stros in action.

I just want them healthy.

Astros Top 50 Prospects

Love it.

A few thoughts.

1. Francis Martes, RHP - I want to find out if he can help us make a run this year and I'm not talking about a Sept call up. If we have injuries in the rotation or some guys just plain suck, he needs to get the call sooner rather than later.

2. Kyle Tucker, OF - I hope he picks up where he left off last year. Hopefully, he'll start in double-A and move to triple-A midseason. I'd love for him to get a shot at the show mid-2018.

3. David Paulino, RHP He's a year older than Martes and I want in the same boat as Martes. If the opportunity arises, I want him to get a shot this year (after Martes). We need to improve our pitching to have a shot in Sept - Oct and calling guys up counts as much as a trade can.

4. Forrest Whitley, RHP - Only 1 year removed from HS. Let's hope he keeps getting better, develops more pitches, and gets to high A.

5. Derek Fisher, OF - I don't have a lot of hope. Time to **** or get off the pot, but we don't exactly have a lot of room on the big league club for OFers. I think I'd rather have Kemp or Teoscar. At worst a Sept call up. Maybe he'll surprise and be the last OFer on the team.

6. Franklin Perez, RHP - Haven't followed him much. Glad we have another high-end young arm.

7. Daz Cameron, OF - Not looking all that hot thus far. Hopefully, he rebounds and at a minimum improves his trade value.

8. James Hoyt, RHP - Worked 22 innings last year in the bigs. I don't know if he makes the big league club, but I think he can be a nice bullpen arm.

9. Teoscar Hernandez, OF - Like his upside more than Fisher. I think he could fight for the 5th OF position.


Also

I like having a lot of young SS with some potential. I know we have Correa and Bregman at the big league level, but these guys could end up being nice trade pieces and soften the blow if Correa ever leaves.

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12. Miguelangel Sierra, SS
Age: 19 (DOB 12/2/1997)

13. Jonathan Arauz, SS
Age: 18 (DOB 8/3/1998)

14. Anibal Sierra, 2B/SS
Age: 22 (DOB 2/15/1994)

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aggie1906 said:

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1. Francis Martes, RHP - I want to find out if he can help us make a run this year and I'm not talking about a Sept call up. If we have injuries in the rotation When LMJ goes down with an injury or some guys and when Fiers just plain suck, he needs to get the call sooner rather than later.

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FIFY

Most intriguing prospect to me right now is Ramon Laureano. Kid came out of nowhere and does nothing but continue to impress. He's likely a 4th OFer... maybe a fringey starter, but he's fun to follow. From all accounts I've read he plays the game the right way with extreme effort.

Haven't heard of him until now. Altuve was kind of the same way. Surprised the hell out of everyone, if I remember correctly.

Here's the blurb on him from the link.

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17. Ramon Laureano, OF
Age: 22 (DOB 7/15/1994)

Made a grand entrance to most prospect lists in 2016. Combined to hit .319 with 15 HR and 73 RBI in 417 AB between AA and AAA. Also stole 43 bases. Has the potential to be an outstanding fantasy baseball prospect.

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• Before they agreed to a minor league contract with catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, the Blue Jays showed interest in free agent Matt Wieters, relays Cafardo. Toronto already has an everyday catcher in Russell Martin, of course, and also possesses no shortage of first base/designated hitter types (though Cafardo doesn't specify whether Wieters was on Toronto's radar before or after it signed Kendrys Morales, Steve Pearce and Jose Bautista). With the Jays out of the picture, the Astros and the previously reported Rays remain possibilities for Wieters, who wanted a three-year deal at the outset of free agency, adds Cafardo. The Astros are another curious fit, however, with Brian McCann and Evan Gattis behind the plate not to mention the presences of first baseman Yulieski Gurriel and DH Carlos Beltran.

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We must be very confident we can move Gattis if we're still kicking the tires on Wieters.

Very interesting. I would've rather had Wieters than McCann...wonder what Luhnows angle is.