Since all the Astros expected to be on the major league club are leaving tonight to return to Texas for an exhibition game against Round Rock, today marked the last time our boys will be playing in the Sunshine State this spring. The exceptions being Fernando Nieve and Matt Albers, who are scheduled to pitch along side the Astros AA team against Detroit on Thursday. That being said, the Astros finished strong, beating the Yankees 12-2. Possible long relief man Brian Moehler started and looked to be on top of his game, giving up 2 runs on six hits in six innings of work. Our backstops did a good deal of damage, as Humberto Quintero and Eric Munson combined for five hits, five runs and 3 runs batted in. Luke Scott chipped in with a homerun in the fifth inning off of Yankee starter and former Washington National, Darrell Rasner.
I really don’t know what to say about the positive performances from Sampson last night, and Moehler tonight. Hopefully it’s a sign of good things to come, but it, like today’s game itself, should be put in proper perspective. While both men looked solid, Moehler is a career journeyman who at 36, is not an attractive candidate to insert in the starting rotation. As for Sampson, despite the struggles of Wandy, it is my opinion that Garner sees this as his year to break out, much to the detriment of Chris Sampson. However, with the rotation still up in the air, anything can happen.
House Keeping
The Astros made some moves prior to their Wednesday game with the Yankees. The biggest pieces of news seem to be:
-P Brandon Backe and C Hector Gimenez were placed on the 15 day DL
-Charlton Jimerson was granted a release from the team. He had been demoted to AA Corpus Christi, but asked to be released rather than sent down
-Eric Bruntlett and Eric Munson stand out as two of the more familiar Astros on the roster bubble. We expect Bruntlett to granted an outright release if he does not make the squad, and for Munson to stay in AAA if he doesn’t hang on as a C/1B
Everyone keep your fingers crossed that the rain stays away from Round Rock tomorrow night. Stephen and I have tickets 10 rows up on the third base line. Fairly even with third base. If anyone has any suggestions as to words of encouragement to give the boys, we would be happy for ya’ll to send them our way.
Now then, let’s take our tour bus to the Midwest…
AL Central:
Cleveland Indians
2006 Record: 78-84
-After injuring himself in his first start of last season, can C.C. Sabathia be the rock that their starting rotation needs in order to compete for the Division title?
-The Indians paid $14 million for free agent OF’s Trot Nixon and David Dellucci. Will these signings pay off for a team that devoted that much money to 32 and 33 year old players with zero upside?
-Will the additions of closer Joe Borowski and set up man Roberto Hernandez be enough to shore up a leaky Indian bullpen?
Chicago White Sox
2006 Record: 90-72
-Aging outfielder Scott Podsednik saw his numbers across the board decline in 2006. Will he be able to regain the form that helped the Sox win it all in ’05?
-Will Jermaine Dye and Mark Buehrle come through in their contract seasons?
-How will the team generate runs, other than by the home run, which accounted for 42 percent of their total runs scored? (source: SI)
Detroit Tigers
2006 Record: 95-67
-Injury prone regulars, Carlos Guillen, Magglio Ordonez and Placido Polanco need to stay healthy this year for the Tigers to contend in the deep AL Central. Will they?
-After throwing 186 innings in his rookie year and closing August and September with a 5.88 ERA, can Justin Verlander avoid the injury bug as well and build on his 17 win season?
-Will the combination of Gary Sheffield and Jim Leyland bring a title to the Motor City, like they did in Florida a decade ago?
Minnesota Twins
2006 Record: 96-66
-Who will step up for the Twinkies as a viable number two starter behind Johan Santana? Boof Bonser showed promise in short stints last season, and rookie Matt Garza can touch 100 mph with his fast-ball but can they find the consistency needed to produce?
-The entire starting lineup should be the same come opening day. How close do they come to reproducing a season in which they led the majors in hitting at a .287 clip?
-Can Michael Cuddyer break through this season, and join Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau as stars? With this pitching staff, the pressure will be on.
Kansas City Royals
2006 Record: 62-100
-Will the $13 million upgrade in payroll help the team improve? Along those same lines, can Gil Meche live up to his $55 million deal?
-SS Alex Gordon is one of the true phenoms of the game. How will he react to big league pitching?
-Zach Greinke is an ace in waiting. With Meche taking the brunt of the publicity, can he thrive outside of the limelight?
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