mwm said:

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Chandler Rome

@Chandler_Rome
Asked if the Astros have considered going back to carrying three catchers to give him some flexibility to play Yainer Diaz and Martn Maldonado together, Dusty Baker said "Yainer has trouble with lefties. Everybody trying to help me manage, I don't really need it, thank you."

I'm reading between the lines, but it sounds to me that Dusty is taking some heat and is feeling the pressure.

I would think the players want to win and know they are not being given the chance to do so with the best lineups. How about a players-only meeting with the GM & Owner? Ever happen before?

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oh yes, Biggio and Bagwell would have gone to the owner by now...several times

Rangers swept

Rangers lose

Daaaaaaaaaaa Ranjers lose

Glad the Padres swept, but at some point the Stros are going to need to come through themselves instead of counting on other teams after every blown opportunity.

Rangers have a cakewalk series against CWS coming up, so the time would be now.

I hate relying on someone else to keep us close. But, I'll allow it.

and the Giants walk off the Red Sox

to maintain the 'stros 2-game lead for the final wildcard

Beau Holder said:

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Glad the Padres swept, but at some point the Stros are going to need to come through themselves instead of counting on other teams after every blown opportunity.

Rangers have a cakewalk series against CWS coming up, so the time would be now.

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At least Cease will throw against them

mwm said:

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I hate relying on someone else to keep us close. But, I'll allow it.

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Unfortunately we are also relying on Dusty to pull his head out of his ass so I'm not expecting much.

Very frustrating that we can't manage around our roster holes/injuries better.

The Orioles remind me of the 2015 Astros. A bunch of young, really good players that are starting to figure it all out and they play with energy. They're going to be a real problem in the AL for the foreseeable future.

Holy crap, the orioles are up 6-0 on the Yankees, severino still hasn't recorded an out. He's like Yankees Manoah

the Mariners (54-51) have the same problem the Angels (55-51) do

it's not the games-back in the wildcard that's the big issue...it's the number of teams in front of them

the American League has so many good teams...it's very difficult for any AL team to make a big move in the standings

(unless they play the Royals and A's for 2 weeks)

W said:

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and the Giants walk off the Red Sox

to maintain the 'stros 2-game lead for the final wildcard

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Man if you had said that second part 4 months ago you'd be laughed off this thread

What's so insane to me is that this entire season, literally dating back to opening day, Dusty has not ONCE constructed the best possible lineup with the guys that are available to him.

I understand injuries, giving guys scheduled rest days, etc. But to not have him put the 9 best options out there at the same time is just unacceptable from a manager.

It's not that hard. Tomorrow's lineup should include (not in this particular order):
1) Altuve 2B
2) Peña SS
3) Yordan LF
4) Tucker RF
5) Bregman 3B
6) Chas CF
7) Yainer C
8) Abreu 1B
9) Dubon/Julks DH (understand Julks is in a cold streak but he's hitting the ball hard and still better than Meyers/Kessinger/Maldy

I just want to see these guys all together in the lineup ONCE in the Cleveland series

Looking at the box score it's crazy how many guys we have with a sub .700 OPS (almost all grouped in the .660s).

Peña - .667
Abreu - .660
Dubon - .660
Julks - .666
and then you have
Maldy - .541

A few years ago we routinely had 7 guys playing with over .800 OPS. No walks to go with our 10 hits and 2 runs today.

See you all tomorrow.

Farmer1906 said:

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Meyers is playing as well or better than Dubon & Julks but he's a better defender.

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That's the other hilarious part. Guy gets hot? Rest his ass for the day.

Diaz and Meyers have a good day? Straight to the bench to play Maldonado and Dubon in OF of all places.

Hahahahhahahahhahahahaa

Dusty is serious

I just… I mean… WHAT?! https://t.co/br2MaHMFZU pic.twitter.com/U9JdFPpyQe

— Aidan Resnick (@AidanResnick) July 30, 2023

Dusty isn't mentally sound of he compares these two and doesn't see a significant difference.

Lmao he's just such an idiot.

Maldy has 242 ABs to Diaz's 215
8 HR vs. 13 HR
18 RBI vs. 31 RBI

Not to mention he's absolutely better than Maldy defensively this season

tremble said:

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Farmer1906 said:

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Meyers is playing as well or better than Dubon & Julks but he's a better defender.

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That's the other hilarious part. Guy gets hot? Rest his ass for the day.

Diaz and Meyers have a good day? Straight to the bench to play Maldonado and Dubon in OF of all places.

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This. Meyers went 3-3 yesterday and walked his other 2 ABs. Diaz went 2-5 with a HR and 3 RBIs. Both were on the bench today.
They aren't given the chance to "get hot." Diaz has been consistent even with his off-and-on playing time. Think back to how well Dubon was playing when Altuve was out early in the season. He had one of the highest averages in the AL. I'm torn on Meyers being an every day guy. Personally I view Meyers as trade bait for as long as we have him.