After a brief abberation..

More hits, less runs, same Astros. The team recorded 10 hits compared to seven for the Cards, yet were outscored, 3-1. Starter Chris Sampson couldn't make it out of the fourth inning. After a thirteen run outburst on Saturday, the cold spell hit our bats once again.

Something has to give at this point. Hunter Pence has been up in the majors for a week, and he hasn't given all that much of a jolt to the offense. Save for his first homerun of his Astro career (which was a grand slam after all), he has done little to inspire a great deal of optimism. It's only been a week, but that was enough games to get what was desired out of him- a spark. None has been given, or at least the team hasn't responded to him.

My immediate, frustrated fan's opinion is that Mark Loretta needs to play almost everyday. He may be somewhat of a defensive liability, but the man can hit. No question. Sure, we may give Adam Everett the acclaim as a gold-glove caliber shortstop, but when the man struggles to hit above the Mendoza line, problems are afoot. There's probably a good reason why Phil has hesitated to make a Loretta-Everett switch. He seems to favor a Loretta for Ensberg scenario, but that takes a fairly potent bat out of the lineup at the same time.

Luke Scott has two hits in the past two days. He also had an RBI double on Friday. This is all after the clutch double in the finale against the Reds. Once again, small sample size, but his average is 40 points higher than it was coming into the last game against Cincinnati. A roll of the dice needs to be made. Something obviously has to be done, especially in light of the news that Roger Clemens will be donning Yankee pinstripes this year. So, since Rocket will not be blasting into town on his sliver stallion, why not give a less heralded former Red Sox a chance to make a difference.

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