Farmer1906 said:

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Ford is a good dude and Tag kind of came off as an Internet tough guy. Regardless, I agreed with Tag's take. He wasn't blocked so much as he didn't perform when given an opportunity then declined in AAA.

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Agreed. Tag is a loser but he's right about Reed.

Wish we had better beat writers.

Apparently Joe Torre gave JV a good ass chewing before the All-Star game about his Juiced balls comments

That article is infuriating

Mr.Bond said:

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bearkatag15 said:

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McTaggart is on a AJ Reed rampage this morning. Straight up arguing with Robert Ford about Reed.

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What is there to argue? The dude f****** sucked at AAA

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I wouldn't say 30ish HR & 100+ RBIs last year "f-ing sucked" but the BA was low and the strikeouts were high and that was only exacerbated when he got called up.

I just don't think our organization is in a position to be patient with a guy in his situation but I wouldn't be shocked to see him become at least a contributing major leaguer. I would be shocked to see him become a stud. I'm surprise no one has asked him to pitch again.

Hopefully he took a bite himself.

Going to start reading this article

Frok said:

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I understand the frustration of holding players in the minors in order to extend control. That's what happened to Yordan this year.

But I have no sympathy for their complaint about free agency. Stupid stupid money was thrown out at Machado and Harper this past off-season yet they are still whining like something awful happened.

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I think it's fairly certain that free agency will be tied to age instead of years-of-service in the next CBA. A player automatically becomes a free agent by age 25 or 26.

of course the players have to realize...that means less money for older players, because clubs will be spending more on younger players

If a players Strike is likely in 2022, does that change anything in the Astros approach reguarding roster moves? I think we go all in Yankee/Dodger style these next 2.5 years.

Marvin said:

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WelchAg said:

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That article is infuriating

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I don't really have a problem with their frustrations, but it was the previous players (the ones they are attempting to honor) that reached that agreement. Don't blame the clubs for using the leverage you gave them. Other than that, I agree that holding young stars back just to control them longer is broken.

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If they didn't demand these ridiculous salaries, I could much more easily get behind their argument of holding younger players back for control. Until they concede that point, I absolutely support clubs holding players back as long as possible because these salaries are absurd. I also get bothered by how these guys dictate what they think there value is...that isn't how this works.

n_touch said:

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It is the last thing baseball needs and the players know this as well. They will only hurt themselves for years to come if they strike now.

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unfortunately, you never know when the next Tom Glavine-type will come along.

perhaps one interesting factor...the % of Latin players in MLB is rapidly approaching 30%. Generally speaking we don't hear them talk or complain much about the salary, free agency, and union stuff. They want to play baseball

Gap said:

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Bobby Petrino`s Neckbrace said:

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Joe Torre is barking up the wrong dang tree. I hope Verlander told him to go fck himself.

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Exactly. Verlander has no reason to take a lashing from Joe Torre or listen to Torre talk sh*t to him.

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After reading the Jayson Stark article I get the impression that MLB just wants JV to cool it a little on the conspiracy rhetoric. He did tell Cole that he got "chewed out," but I would guess it was more about saying the commissioner made it a goal to increase homers so he's guilty of juicing the balls.

The article, by the way, was basically arguing that if MLB wants to fix the balls they should seek out input from a guy that has thrown over 47k pitches in his career. Pretty much a call for kumbaya

We got company...

redline248 said:

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Going to start reading this article

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Please tell me what it says as I'm not going to purchase a subscription to read it

W said:

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reading that article...it is funny to hear players talk about competitive balance. You really can't have that without a salary cap

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The owners should propose the players pool be divided evenly based on games played (Lol).

RC_57 said:

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redline248 said:

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Going to start reading this article

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Please tell me what it says as I'm not going to purchase a subscription to read it

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If you download their app, you get 3 free articles a month.

Basically it says MLB should seek input from Verlander (and others) , since he has so much experience and has thrown every type of ball over the last 15 years.

I'm too young to have followed baseball that closely back then, what is the Tom Glavine thing you're talking about? Yes, I know he was a pitcher for the Braves who along with Maddux were frequently given 2 or 3 extra inches of strike zone.

Astros at #3

Glavine was the top player representative for the union during the 1994 strike. He was mister hardcore union guy from Massachusetts. Most baseball fans including Braves fans did not like him after that

I'm surprised that MadBum hasn't been traded yet. Given that he is a rental, his price drops the closer we get to the deadline.

I think Stroman/Boyd are better fits for the Astros due to their controllable year(s), but MadBum seems like an excellent value for some other team if they are giving up a borderline top 10 prospect in their organization. He is not likely to garner much more than Keuchel in free agency either.

Ag_07 said:

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And more Whitley is immature smoke and this doesn't sound very promising.

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• Unlike Gore, fellow high-end pitching prospect Forrest Whitley has failed to impress in 2019, Josh Norris of Baseball America observes. In addition to posting horrific numbers and battling injuries with the Astros' Triple-A affiliate this season, Whitley has shown serious immaturity and underwhelming stuff on the mound, evaluators have told Norris. The 21-year-old did enter the season as the youngest player in the Pacific Coast League, though, Norris points out.

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Any chance this is writers friendly to some teams trying to downgrade Whitley so Astros/their fans are more willing to trade him. Maybe even our guys putting stuff out here so WE aren't too upset if he gets packaged and shipped?

Based on other reports and results, it seems more likely that it's just an accurate report. Still time for Whitley to get his $h1t together, but it's definitely not encouraging.

Quote:

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a deal beginning with right-hander J.B. Bukauskas (No. 5 in Houston's system) and outfielder Seth Beer (No. 8) might make sense.

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Would yall do JB, Beer, and a throw in piece for Stroman?

Yes.

I think Boyd and Bauer fit the mold of the Stros/Strom's philosophy of elevated heaters and vertical breakers moreso than Stroman, but he's a bulldog. Have to think Luhnow is looking for someone with contract control potential too.

Is Stroman really that much better than Miley?..... im thinking playoff rotation here