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Speaker 1: What's up, everybody.

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Speaker 2: Welcome into another edition of Crush City Territory. I'm channel

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Speaker 2: the room joined by a special co host today, Adam Spolane,

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Speaker 2: a certified ball knower, a longtime sports radio personality, and

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Speaker 2: a former minor league baseball broadcaster. And before we get

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Speaker 2: into the astros, I want to heap some praise on

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Speaker 2: Adam real quick, to peel the curtain back a little bit.

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Speaker 2: Media jobs are a lot different, right, Like I'm a

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Speaker 2: beat writer, so I'm at the ballpark twenty four to seven.

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Speaker 2: I'm there every day. TV media, you know, they'll show

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Speaker 2: up every now and then and kind of are haphazard

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Speaker 2: and how they come to things, don't come to things whatever.

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Speaker 2: A lot of times most radio personalities you never see.

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Speaker 2: They're usually in their studios hosting their shows. They're doing

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Speaker 2: ad meetings, they're taking calls, they're on the road selling

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Speaker 2: ads and you know, just buy that byproduct. You never

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Speaker 2: really see them anywhere. And there's a lot of people

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Speaker 2: that then go on the radio try to talk about

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Speaker 2: the teams they cover without ever seeing them. Adam is

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Speaker 2: the complete antithesis of that. There is no one in

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Speaker 2: the Houston marketplace that works in radio that shows up

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Speaker 2: to more things than Adam Spolane, and he deserves a

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Speaker 2: ton of credit for that, deserves a ton of credit

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Speaker 2: for being on the ground, being the guys, asking a

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Speaker 2: ton of questions and has a lot of insight on

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Speaker 2: what's going on. So Adam, thank you for joining me.

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Speaker 2: I appreciate you taking some time to talk some astros

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Speaker 2: with us.

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Speaker 3: No, thank you for having me, and thank you for

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Speaker 3: the kind words today and back ten and a half

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Speaker 3: weeks ago after everything went down. I mean the keyword

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Speaker 3: now is was in the clubhouse all the time, not

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Speaker 3: really there anymore, but still watching and still following all

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Speaker 3: the coverage that you guys do and misseeing you guys

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Speaker 3: every day. So thank you for having me.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, no problem.

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Speaker 2: Real quick, before we get into the astros, let's talk

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Speaker 2: about the Colorado Rockies, because I think a lot of

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Speaker 2: I think a lot of fans are going to tune

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Speaker 2: in and wonder kind of who is this?

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Speaker 1: Why are you are on?

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Speaker 2: So take us through your baseball background real quick before

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Speaker 2: we get into the ashers. How you came up in

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Speaker 2: the mind leagues, some maybe some players, you saw, some

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Speaker 2: things you saw. Take us through kind of your baseball background.

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Speaker 3: So I started out working in the media here when

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Speaker 3: I was in college back in you know, the mid

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Speaker 3: two thousands, kind of doing what I was doing, you

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Speaker 3: know before, for sports radio six ten finished college at Indiana.

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Speaker 3: I was the first broadcaster basically that Indiana baseball ever had.

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Speaker 3: And this is in two thousand and eight when the

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Speaker 3: program really started to get pretty good. They went to

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Speaker 3: the NCAA Tournament in two thousand and nine, They had

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Speaker 3: a bunch of guys drafted on Day one of the

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Speaker 3: draft in two thousand and nine, and then a few

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Speaker 3: years later there in the College World Series. So like,

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Speaker 3: I kind of saw that program start getting to the

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Speaker 3: point where it is today where it's a decent Big

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Speaker 3: ten program.

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Speaker 1: Still, did you do in college Schwarber overlap.

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Speaker 3: No, So Schwarber was on the twenty thirteen twenty fourteen teams,

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Speaker 3: so I was gone, you know, two thousand and eight.

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Speaker 3: So we had Josh Fageli was a catcher I think

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Speaker 3: for the A's in the White Sox. He was a

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Speaker 3: day one pick. Eric Arnett was a first round pick

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Speaker 3: the Brewers in two thousand and nine. And then there

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Speaker 3: was a left handed pitcher, Matt Bayshore, who I think

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Speaker 3: was a he might have been a second round pick

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Speaker 3: by Minnesota. And so those are the guys that I

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Speaker 3: really got to see. And there are a couple other

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Speaker 3: guys that got drafted to off those teams. So I missed,

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Speaker 3: I missed the great team. I saw what was a

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Speaker 3: pretty good team. So then I finished college in O

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Speaker 3: eight and I started in broadcasting, and so I was

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Speaker 3: in independent ball for a year in Pensacola, Florida with

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Speaker 3: the Pensacola Pelicans, which is actually I believe or Joe

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Speaker 3: Espata is playing career ended.

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Speaker 2: Yes, he and I believe he and Carlos Mendoza both

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Speaker 2: the the current Mets manager.

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Speaker 1: They were both Pensacola Pelicans.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, so I'd never I've never had a chance to

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Speaker 3: bring that up with Joe before, but I always kind

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Speaker 3: of wanted to. It was an interesting time. The travel

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Speaker 3: there was awful. My first road trip was Pensacola to

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Speaker 3: sue Fall, South Dakota, and so we have to You

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Speaker 3: can't fly from You could fly from Pensacola, but it's expensive.

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Speaker 3: So we took a bus to Noora at like five

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Speaker 3: o'clock in the morning. Flew from New Orleans to Dallas,

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Speaker 3: Dallas to Omaha and then we drive from Omaha to

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Speaker 3: Sioux Falls. We finished that trip in Lincoln. We couldn't

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Speaker 3: The last game of that first road trip was a

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Speaker 3: two thirty game in Lincoln, but we had to wait

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Speaker 3: and leave the Monday morning because again it's cheaper, so

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Speaker 3: we had to stay. So we stayed kind of overnight

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Speaker 3: in Lincoln. But we had like a four am bus

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Speaker 3: to go to Omaha so that we could fly back

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Speaker 3: to fly back to Dallas, fly to New Orleans, take

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Speaker 3: a bus from New Orleans to Pensacola, play a game

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Speaker 3: that day. The bus was like three hours late picking

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Speaker 3: us up in New Orleans, so we get to the

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Speaker 3: park at like six point thirty for a seven thirty game.

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Speaker 3: So that that's kind of how things started for me.

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Speaker 3: Then wound up in the Rockies organization Casper Ghosts two

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Speaker 3: thousand and nine. That's where Nolan Ronado started his career.

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Speaker 3: He was with me for that year, Corey Dickerson. In

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Speaker 3: twenty ten, Trevor Storre already twenty eleven, the club moved

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Speaker 3: to Grand Junction. I moved with them and I was

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Speaker 3: there for seven more years. They had David Dahl was

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Speaker 3: an All Star. Eddie Butler was a first round pick

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Speaker 3: that I had, Ryan McMahon All Star, Carlos Estevis was

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Speaker 3: on the twenty thirteen team that made the playoffs. I

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Speaker 3: had Kyle Freeland, and then more recently, I had Ryan Feltner,

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Speaker 3: who I think is just going to be who has

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Speaker 3: a chance to be really good to stay healthy. So

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Speaker 3: that was twenty eighteen, my last year.

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Speaker 2: Those are a lot of Rockies and it kind of

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Speaker 2: puts into perspective kind of how rudderless the Rocky scene

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Speaker 2: when you name all of those very good players and

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Speaker 2: you look at what they have become.

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Speaker 3: They were a smart, well thought of organization when I

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Speaker 3: got there and even through the time when I left,

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Speaker 3: and it's kind of gone downhill a little bit in

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Speaker 3: the seven years since I've been gone.

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Speaker 2: That's pretty evident that not only has it gone downhill,

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Speaker 2: it has rolled downhill very quickly, and no one can

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Speaker 2: stop that downhill avalanche. No one tuned in to crush

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Speaker 2: Citty Territory to listen about the Colorado Rocky. They did

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Speaker 2: want to talk about the Houston Astros, who went to

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Speaker 2: Arlington this weekend and split four games. Adam with a

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Speaker 2: Texas Rangers team that quite frankly, I think looks like

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Speaker 2: a carbon copy of the Astros. H you know, I

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Speaker 2: think the Rangers have the deeper rotation. The Astros certainly

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Speaker 2: have the deeper bullpen. But these are two lineups that

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Speaker 2: have guys in them that have produced before and that

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Speaker 2: have track records of success that are just not hitting.

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Speaker 2: And it's too tough lineups to watch at the moment,

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Speaker 2: and it kind of bore out. I mean, it was

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Speaker 2: a compelling series four games, a lot of one run games,

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Speaker 2: a lot of big swings, a lot of big pitches

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Speaker 2: late in games to against that lineup. But overall, what

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Speaker 2: did you take away from that two and two series

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Speaker 2: that the Ashers played against the Rangers?

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Speaker 3: And both teams have important guys who are hurt right now,

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Speaker 3: too right, and so no Corey Seeger for the Rangers,

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Speaker 3: no jord On Alvarez for the Astros. I thought they

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Speaker 3: came off, like you said, pretty evenly matched. And I

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Speaker 3: think that it's a vision that seems like it's going

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Speaker 3: to be very evenly matched. I know, Seattle just swept

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Speaker 3: San Diego and so they've got a little bit of

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Speaker 3: an edge on everybody else right now. But it feels

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Speaker 3: like it's a division that is reminiscent of twenty three

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Speaker 3: when it came down to that last weekend, And that's

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Speaker 3: kind of how I feel it's going to go down

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Speaker 3: this season unless somebody breaks out or somebody makes some

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Speaker 3: sort of a move, which I don't know if that's

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Speaker 3: going to happen, unless Seattle continues on the rate that

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Speaker 3: they're at, which I don't necessarily see because we just

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Speaker 3: haven't seen that consistently from the Maritors before. I think

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Speaker 3: the thing that stood out to me just from an

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Speaker 3: astro standpoint was the mccolor start on Friday. Like it's

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Speaker 3: not a great start by any stretch, but the fact

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Speaker 3: that he was able to bounce back and get you

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Speaker 3: out and feel like he was making progress. I think

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Speaker 3: that moving forward, That's what I will take most out

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Speaker 3: of the last four games is just he was able

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Speaker 3: to recover, He looked okay, and he seems to be

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Speaker 3: in a pretty good place right now.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, let's talk about L's real quick.

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Speaker 4: It.

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Speaker 2: We're not gonna throw a party for getting twelve outs,

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Speaker 2: and Lance didn't want to throw a party after the

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Speaker 2: game in Arlington. He said he's obviously he wants to

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Speaker 2: get deeper into games, and he wants to kind of

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Speaker 2: become the pitcher that he was prior to all the injuries.

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Speaker 2: But make no mistake like that was what he did

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Speaker 2: on Friday night was a demonstrative step in the right

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Speaker 2: direction for him. It couldn't have gone any worse than

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Speaker 2: what he did against the Reds six days ago. And

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Speaker 2: then we and then obviously he had a bunch of

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Speaker 2: off the field stuff with the threats that.

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Speaker 1: Were aimed at him.

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Speaker 2: He had a lot going on in the six days

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Speaker 2: between the red start and the Rangers start, and to

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Speaker 2: go out there and again he threw a ton more strikes.

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Speaker 2: The misses were more competitive, the misses were close. The

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Speaker 2: swing and miss is still not there. He only got

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Speaker 2: seven whiffs on thirty eight swings. He talked about that

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Speaker 2: after the game. He's got to get a couple more

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Speaker 2: put He's got to get his put away stuff better.

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Speaker 1: When you look. I believe the rain fouled off.

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Speaker 2: Like seventeen or eighteen pitches, and of those seventeen or

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Speaker 2: eighteen foul balls, ten of them. Or his change up

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Speaker 2: or his slider, which are the two pitches that he

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Speaker 2: will go to to get punchouts.

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Speaker 1: And when he.

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Speaker 2: Doesn't have that kind of stuff, that's what leads to

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Speaker 2: longer at bats. It leads to, you know, the twenty

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Speaker 2: pitch innings and the unsustainable pitch count. He needed sixty

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Speaker 2: eight pitches to get his first nine outs on Friday.

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Speaker 2: Now we should note that between him and Jeremy Pania,

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Speaker 2: they botched a tailor made double playball in the second inning.

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Speaker 2: If they complete that double play, it stands to reason

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Speaker 2: at him, he probably gives them five innings and maybe

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Speaker 2: doesn't allow a run either, because all the runs came

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Speaker 2: after that botch double play ball, which forced him to

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Speaker 2: throw seventeen extra pitches in that inning. So you can

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Speaker 2: play what it could have should all night. But I mean, honestly,

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Speaker 2: if they turn that double play, if mcculors makes a

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Speaker 2: little bit better throw, or if Jeremy Pania, a gold

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Speaker 2: glove shortstop, makes the catch on the throw he did make,

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Speaker 2: you're looking at, you know, a five innings. I think

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Speaker 2: the Astros will take that any day of the week

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Speaker 2: from Lance mc collors.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, and it's not just seventeen extra pitches. It's seventeen

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Speaker 3: extra like high stress pitches against what is a still

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Speaker 3: a pretty good lineup in kind of a hostile environment.

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Speaker 3: I think one thing you wrote this Friday about him

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Speaker 3: needing to basically, you know, find his identity again as

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Speaker 3: a pitcher, and you can tell he's still trying to

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Speaker 3: figure that out. And this is a guy who when

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Speaker 3: he first came up, he was four seeing curveball, mixing

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Speaker 3: a change up, and then in twenty one and twenty

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Speaker 3: two he's two seam slider to write ease, curveball, change up,

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Speaker 3: cutter to lefties, and you're still trying. You know, he's

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Speaker 3: different now and the slice throwing sliders now to left

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Speaker 3: handed hitters. That's not something that he really did before.

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Speaker 3: I think it was pitch forty four until he threw

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Speaker 3: a curveball on Friday. So he's still trying to like

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Speaker 3: figure out like what works best. Stuff lies, and he

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Speaker 3: can't just pick up where he left off. I think

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Speaker 3: that justin Verlander kind of ruined it for everyone. Where

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Speaker 3: Verlander missed two years and returns in his like basically

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Speaker 3: the same guy in winning scions. Like that's not normal,

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Speaker 3: Like it's gonna take him some time to like figure

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Speaker 3: out what works best, how his stuff plays. You know, he's,

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Speaker 3: like I said, the arm angle is different now than

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Speaker 3: it was when when he you know, got hurt in

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Speaker 3: twenty two. So it's going to be a process. It's

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Speaker 3: not something that's going you know that that's going to

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Speaker 3: happen overnight, but you just want to see like little steps,

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Speaker 3: and there are going to be starts like Cincinnati where

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Speaker 3: he takes like three steps backwards. It's going to happen.

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Speaker 3: But as long as his arm feels good, I think

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Speaker 3: that's really what matters more than anything else. At this point.

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Speaker 3: The velocity is still a little bit low, but I

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Speaker 3: figured that's going to come back up at some point.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, he did.

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Speaker 2: He did get up to about ninety three ninety three

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Speaker 2: and a half against the Ranger, which was a little

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Speaker 2: bit of a step up, but still, like I don't

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Speaker 2: think lanstonc. Collor is gonna be throwing ninety five at

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Speaker 2: any times. So I don't think that'll come back maybe ever.

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Speaker 2: And he knows that, and he's kind of rationalized with

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Speaker 2: that and reasoned with that, and he knows he's going

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Speaker 2: to have to be a little bit different. Like you

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Speaker 2: just mentioned, it took until pitch forty four to throw

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Speaker 2: a curve ball like this is not twenty four straight

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Speaker 2: curveballs lands m colors anymore, that's never happening again, right,

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Speaker 2: And that was even before the injury, because before the injury,

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Speaker 2: he had really that curveball had really become a show

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Speaker 2: pitch to lefties, like he had gone so heavy to

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Speaker 2: the change up, so heavy to the slider, and then

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Speaker 2: the two seam. You know, he even talked about what

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Speaker 2: he did in the against the Rangers. He backdoored the

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Speaker 2: two seam a little bit, so he was manipulating the

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Speaker 2: two seam in ways that he hadn't in the rehab

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Speaker 2: starts and maybe before his injury. So you're seeing he's

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Speaker 2: going to have to adapt and it's gonna be a

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Speaker 2: feeling out process. And I wrote this after his start

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Speaker 2: in Chicago, after the day after when he returned, that

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Speaker 2: it was going to take patience, and the Astros are

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Speaker 2: prepared to be patient. I think we'd be having a

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Speaker 2: little bit different conversation if he'd gone to Arlington and

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Speaker 2: gotten say, eight outs, I think we would be talking about,

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Speaker 2: you know, how how how long is that Patien's going

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Speaker 2: to last? But the way I look at it, you know,

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Speaker 2: there's no reason he shouldn't have gotten fifteen outs.

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Speaker 1: On Friday.

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Speaker 2: Again, if they turn a double play, then it's a

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Speaker 2: it's a different story. But again, all in all, the

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Speaker 2: Ashers will take that any day of the week from

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Speaker 2: Lance mccullor's, especially given the unknowns of what they thought

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Speaker 2: they were going to get from him. After nine hundred

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Speaker 2: and fifteen days, however, Adam his importance to this rotation

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Speaker 2: grew a ton on Sunday, and we'll talk about that

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Speaker 2: and how important Lance is now right after a message

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Speaker 2: from our friends of Hell Territory.

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Speaker 5: FT fam, let's talk about the HOF app. If you're

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Speaker 5: and comprehend. And I'm sitting next to a man who

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Speaker 5: knows how to place a parlay.

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Speaker 6: Yeah, and the biggest thing is breaking down a parlay.

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Speaker 6: With this Hall of Fame app, there's the situations that

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Speaker 1: Check it out.

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Speaker 5: Yeah, this is info that will help you Okay. With

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Speaker 5: FT listeners can get a seven day free trial and

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Speaker 2: So Adam, I don't think anyone was surprised on Sunday

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Speaker 2: afternoon when Joe Espada began his postgame press conference by

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Speaker 2: announcing what felt inevitable that Hayden was Nesky will undergo

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Speaker 2: Tommy John surgery in the next couple of days and

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Speaker 2: be out for the remainder of the twenty twenty five season,

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Speaker 2: for presumably parts of the twenty twenty sixth season. And

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Speaker 2: it's just another blow to a rotation that's already missing

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Speaker 2: Spencer Aarraghetti for at least the next month, that does

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Speaker 2: didn't have a ton of established depth coming into the season,

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Speaker 2: and certainly now that depth's gonna be tested.

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Speaker 1: We just talked about, you.

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Speaker 2: Know how much more important Lance mccullors becomes to this

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Speaker 2: rotation without Hayden was Nesky.

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Speaker 1: Obviously he's a big deal.

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Speaker 2: H mccullors, and we've just talked about the runway for

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Speaker 2: him is going to be long. They're gonna keep running

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Speaker 2: him out there, and they're gonna see if he can

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Speaker 2: build on what he did on on Friday in Arlington.

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Speaker 2: But in the wake of the Wiznsky news, Adam who

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Speaker 2: else kind of comes to minds as guys that have

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Speaker 2: to step up and kind of keep this thing stabilized.

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Speaker 3: It's gonna be the minor league guys. And I think

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Speaker 3: that's kind of the big question now is like do

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Speaker 3: you a do you trust those minor league guys to

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Speaker 3: be able to give you quality outings at this level,

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Speaker 3: especially if they go to a six man rotation, because

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Speaker 3: that stresses your bullpen a little bit. If like you're

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Speaker 3: bringing in these minor league guys and they can only

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Speaker 3: give you four innings and it's happening too often, so

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Speaker 3: that that's the first thing that comes into mind. The

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Speaker 3: second is, Okay, they might have to rely on these

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Speaker 3: minor league guys, but what happens like in August September

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Speaker 3: and these guys are starting to like really blow past

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Speaker 3: their inning limits or not not limits, but their their

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Speaker 3: career highs. And that's where things start to get a

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Speaker 3: little dangerous. And so I asked you this before we

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Speaker 3: got we started the show, like, did they have enough

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Speaker 3: depth to be able to a get them through that?

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Speaker 3: Because it's been interesting Dana Brown's first two years in

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Speaker 3: spring training, he said, we have enough starting pitching. I

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Speaker 3: like our starting pitching depth. And he did the same

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Speaker 3: thing this year. But what's happened in the first two years,

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Speaker 3: They've had to go out and get a starting pitcher

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Speaker 3: and they've had to overpay essentially for a starting pitcher.

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Speaker 3: Are they going to be in that same position this July?

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Speaker 3: Because it's hard. Inevitably, somebody else is probably gonna get hurt,

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Speaker 3: Like that's just how it works with starting pitchers. So

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Speaker 3: the idea that you know, they've already lost forty percent

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Speaker 3: of their starting rotation from opening day, are they going

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Speaker 3: to be able to keep everybody else healthy? That to

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Speaker 3: me is a bit of a question mark.

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Speaker 2: It is to me as well. And look, they will

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Speaker 2: get Spencer Araghetti back. He's still in the cast as

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Speaker 2: of right now. But if he can get the cast off,

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Speaker 2: I think they're optimistic he can get it off this

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Speaker 2: coming week and then he can start picking up a

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Speaker 2: baseball again once he starts. Once he picks up a baseball,

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Speaker 2: he's not gonna get on the mound and start throwing

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Speaker 2: bullpens right off the bat. It's gonna be a gradual

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Speaker 2: build up, but don't think it's gonna be a spring

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Speaker 2: training style build up.

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Speaker 1: So they can maybe get him back within a month

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Speaker 1: after the cast comes off.

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Speaker 2: But again there's a lot of unknowns with a guy

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Speaker 2: that just missed two months with a fractured finger on

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Speaker 2: his pitching hand. Like that's there's unknowns around that too.

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Speaker 2: As far as the minor leaguers go, you know, Colton

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Speaker 2: Gordon's gonna get another start on Monday against the Tampa

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Speaker 2: Bay Rays at Steinberner Field. I'm not sure what their

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Speaker 2: plan is for Ryan Gusto at this point.

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Speaker 1: He is.

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Speaker 2: He was in the bullpen this whole weekend in Arlington.

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Speaker 2: Came in Saturday's game after Ronel Blanco through thirty pitches

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Speaker 2: and did not look very good. Was spraying the ball everywhere,

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Speaker 2: walked a couple guys. He has not looked good in

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Speaker 2: his bullpen appearances, but has you know, he's he's held

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Speaker 2: his own as a starter, absent the start against Kansas

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Speaker 2: City where he didn't get out of the third inning.

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Speaker 1: So those two.

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Speaker 2: Guys are the main ones. And then you know, you

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Speaker 2: kind of look at Triple A. They've got aj blue

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Speaker 2: Ball who came up and made the spots start against

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Speaker 2: the Tigers, and he's on the forty man and he

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Speaker 2: can come up and provide some insurance if they need.

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Speaker 2: They've got MIGUELI Yoa who is striking out the world

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Speaker 2: in Triple A. Doesn't always know where the ball's going,

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Speaker 2: but can miss bats, and you know, has some command issues,

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Speaker 2: but again he's got pure stuff that can come up

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Speaker 2: and help. They've got Tyler Ivy down there, came out

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Speaker 2: of retirement after two years and is actually pitching very

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Speaker 2: well for Triple A sugar Land, a guy that's been

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Speaker 2: in the big leagues and done it before. But yeah, Adam,

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Speaker 2: they could be again in the market in July for

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Speaker 2: a starting pitcher, presuming that they're still in the hunt

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Speaker 2: and their buyers, Yeah, this could be another year where

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Speaker 2: they're looking for starting pitching. And you and I both

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Speaker 2: know that that's not going to be their foremost need

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Speaker 2: at the deadline, like they are going to need to

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Speaker 2: get a bat because this lineup is obviously a bat short,

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Speaker 2: maybe even two. But yeah, the Wiznsky. With losing was

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Speaker 2: Nesky for this season, it's gonna put a lot of

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Speaker 2: pressure on those guys we just mentioned. But I do wonder,

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Speaker 2: you know, for Hayden was Neski himself, what does this

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Speaker 2: mean for his future because this is a guy that

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Speaker 2: he is arbitration eligible this coming winter for the first time,

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Speaker 2: which means the Astros could non tender him and not

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Speaker 2: offer him a contract and release him. I don't think

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Speaker 2: that's the route they go for a couple of reasons.

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Speaker 2: One because he's got two more years of team control

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Speaker 2: after that, so they could let him. They could pay him,

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Speaker 2: let him rehab for in the next year, and if

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Speaker 2: he comes back at the end of next year, great,

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Speaker 2: you have him for the next two years and his

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Speaker 2: first year are eligible. I can't imagine he's gonna be

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Speaker 2: making a meaningful amount of money. I'd imagine around two

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Speaker 2: two and a half maybe, And they've got a lot

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Speaker 2: of money coming off the books, so they're not gonna

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Speaker 2: be as worried about the luxury tax as they are

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Speaker 2: this year, but are you Are you.

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Speaker 1: In line with that? Do you think that he is

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Speaker 1: a non tender candidate at.

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Speaker 3: All or no, no, no. I I think that if

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Speaker 3: you are going to non tender a guy, an ARB one,

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Speaker 3: guy starting pitcher who you think is really good, then

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Speaker 3: you've got some serious issues like that, there's some financial

435
00:20:10,359 --> 00:20:12,600
Speaker 3: issues that you must be running into. So now you

436
00:20:12,760 --> 00:20:14,480
Speaker 3: have to you have to tender him. I mean, it's

437
00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:17,240
Speaker 3: very similar to Louis Garcia a couple of years ago,

438
00:20:17,440 --> 00:20:19,560
Speaker 3: when I believe, correct me if I'm wrong. I believe

439
00:20:19,600 --> 00:20:23,120
Speaker 3: Louis Garcia was either an ARB one or going into

440
00:20:23,160 --> 00:20:26,280
Speaker 3: his ARB two year when he had TJ and they

441
00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:29,720
Speaker 3: tendered him. So I think you have to tender was Nesky.

442
00:20:30,920 --> 00:20:33,439
Speaker 3: Like you said, you might lose next year, but you

443
00:20:33,480 --> 00:20:35,679
Speaker 3: still get the two more years after that. And so

444
00:20:35,880 --> 00:20:39,159
Speaker 3: if you think that he is and they obviously liked

445
00:20:39,240 --> 00:20:41,359
Speaker 3: him because he was part of the Kyle Tucker trade, so,

446
00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:43,520
Speaker 3: like you figure, there was something there that they liked.

447
00:20:43,800 --> 00:20:45,800
Speaker 3: So because of that, you have to offer him a

448
00:20:45,840 --> 00:20:48,720
Speaker 3: contract for next year and just keep keep him in

449
00:20:48,760 --> 00:20:50,639
Speaker 3: the organization for another three years.

450
00:20:50,840 --> 00:20:52,399
Speaker 2: Yeah, And I think the fact that he's in the

451
00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:54,600
Speaker 2: Kyle Tucker trade. I think that works in his favor

452
00:20:54,640 --> 00:20:57,240
Speaker 2: as well, because we have seen how Dana Brown has

453
00:20:57,320 --> 00:21:00,760
Speaker 2: treated one member of the Kyle Tucker trade, Cam Smith,

454
00:21:00,800 --> 00:21:03,240
Speaker 2: who had made the major league roster after having a

455
00:21:03,280 --> 00:21:04,600
Speaker 2: cup of coffee in the minor leagues.

456
00:21:05,480 --> 00:21:06,960
Speaker 1: I think it would optically.

457
00:21:06,560 --> 00:21:10,240
Speaker 2: Not look great if you cut ties with the guy

458
00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:12,639
Speaker 2: that was in the Tucker trade after six games he

459
00:21:12,680 --> 00:21:15,119
Speaker 2: appeared as an astro. The only reason I think it

460
00:21:15,200 --> 00:21:18,040
Speaker 2: could be a discussion is, I mean, we just talked

461
00:21:18,040 --> 00:21:20,399
Speaker 2: about not having pitching depth, but if you look what

462
00:21:20,440 --> 00:21:22,720
Speaker 2: they have coming back next year, presuming they lose fromber

463
00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:28,880
Speaker 2: Valdez to free agency, they still have Brown, Arraghetti, mccullors, Blanco, Garcia,

464
00:21:29,160 --> 00:21:33,679
Speaker 2: Xavier France. That's seven guys that have pitched substantial innings

465
00:21:33,680 --> 00:21:36,680
Speaker 2: at the major league level. That's not counting blue Ball Gordon,

466
00:21:36,840 --> 00:21:41,840
Speaker 2: Gusto Uloa and whatever other young pitching prospects make the

467
00:21:41,960 --> 00:21:44,080
Speaker 2: rise this year. So you can start to count that

468
00:21:44,119 --> 00:21:46,639
Speaker 2: they will have rotation depth next year and it's not

469
00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:47,560
Speaker 2: a place where they're going.

470
00:21:47,480 --> 00:21:49,560
Speaker 1: To be desperate to maybe get a guy.

471
00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:51,200
Speaker 2: That'd be the only thought in my head as to

472
00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:53,520
Speaker 2: maybe why they would consider not But Yeah, everything points

473
00:21:53,560 --> 00:21:56,920
Speaker 2: to Hayden Wasznsky, you know, coming back and getting tender

474
00:21:56,960 --> 00:21:59,760
Speaker 2: to contract just just brutal news. Though for a guy

475
00:21:59,840 --> 00:22:03,479
Speaker 2: that Adam. You've seen him, you've interviewed him, you've dealt

476
00:22:03,520 --> 00:22:06,320
Speaker 2: with him. Was very happy, it is very happy to

477
00:22:06,320 --> 00:22:08,040
Speaker 2: be back in Houston. Grew up here, went to sam

478
00:22:08,080 --> 00:22:11,920
Speaker 2: Houston State, grew up an Astros fan. Got pretty emotional

479
00:22:11,960 --> 00:22:14,520
Speaker 2: actually when he pitched his first home game at dyke

480
00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:16,480
Speaker 2: In Park, a place that he had when it was

481
00:22:16,480 --> 00:22:18,960
Speaker 2: still Minute Made Park when he went as a kid.

482
00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:22,000
Speaker 1: It's tough blow, tough blow for him. He even said.

483
00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:24,359
Speaker 2: We talked to him after the game today when it

484
00:22:24,400 --> 00:22:27,080
Speaker 2: had kind of been finalized, and he, I mean, he

485
00:22:27,080 --> 00:22:28,840
Speaker 2: held it together, but he said he was still kind

486
00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:30,840
Speaker 2: of in denial about the whole thing and doesn't really

487
00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:32,119
Speaker 2: think it's going to set in for a while.

488
00:22:32,560 --> 00:22:34,840
Speaker 3: No, it sucks for all these guys who have to

489
00:22:34,880 --> 00:22:37,120
Speaker 3: deal with an injury like that that's going to knock

490
00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:38,880
Speaker 3: you out for I mean, it's more than a year

491
00:22:39,240 --> 00:22:42,679
Speaker 3: that it takes off your career. And it's obviously a

492
00:22:42,680 --> 00:22:45,360
Speaker 3: physical grind, it's just a mental grind. And you you've

493
00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:48,680
Speaker 3: dealt with McClory's throughout this whole thing, Like you feel

494
00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:51,000
Speaker 3: terrible for him, Like these guys don't want to get hurt,

495
00:22:51,200 --> 00:22:53,240
Speaker 3: Like that's not the goal. Like they take care of

496
00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:56,080
Speaker 3: the they they take, they focus on take caring, taking

497
00:22:56,119 --> 00:22:58,320
Speaker 3: care of their arms, and like doing all that maintenance

498
00:22:58,359 --> 00:23:00,800
Speaker 3: that comes with it. And you can't what happens to

499
00:23:00,840 --> 00:23:03,560
Speaker 3: your ligaments, Like you just can't. And so you feel

500
00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:05,879
Speaker 3: bad for him. He seemed to just be really excited

501
00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:08,560
Speaker 3: to get not just to pitch at home, but like

502
00:23:08,600 --> 00:23:11,240
Speaker 3: to pitch for this organization which is very good at

503
00:23:11,280 --> 00:23:13,960
Speaker 3: figuring things out with pitchers and really turning a lot

504
00:23:13,960 --> 00:23:16,000
Speaker 3: of careers around. And so now he's almost got to

505
00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:18,600
Speaker 3: start from scratch at this point. So you feel bad

506
00:23:18,640 --> 00:23:21,680
Speaker 3: for him. But you mentioned the depth, and we can

507
00:23:21,800 --> 00:23:23,720
Speaker 3: sit here and say that they've got all this depth

508
00:23:23,760 --> 00:23:25,800
Speaker 3: that might be coming back next year, but you're a

509
00:23:25,840 --> 00:23:28,919
Speaker 3: bad week away from having no depth. And I mean

510
00:23:28,960 --> 00:23:31,160
Speaker 3: we saw a couple of years ago where they lost

511
00:23:31,320 --> 00:23:34,359
Speaker 3: Arkty and Garcia on back to back days. Yeah, you know,

512
00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:39,359
Speaker 3: Arkaty still hasn't pitched for them, and Arkety, you know,

513
00:23:39,600 --> 00:23:42,280
Speaker 3: missed four months, came back, got hurt again. So you

514
00:23:42,400 --> 00:23:44,880
Speaker 3: just never know when it comes with starting pictures. That's

515
00:23:44,880 --> 00:23:46,919
Speaker 3: why to me, you've got to have as many in

516
00:23:46,960 --> 00:23:49,920
Speaker 3: the organization as you possibly can, and I don't think

517
00:23:49,960 --> 00:23:51,000
Speaker 3: you can ever have too many.

518
00:23:51,400 --> 00:23:54,560
Speaker 2: And with this team, you're you're a batting practice incident

519
00:23:54,560 --> 00:23:58,800
Speaker 2: away too from losing. They lost two pictures Sean Dubin

520
00:23:58,880 --> 00:24:01,520
Speaker 2: rolled his ankle stepping on a baseball on the outfield

521
00:24:01,840 --> 00:24:04,520
Speaker 2: during batting price and triple A after Spencer Getty broke

522
00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:06,760
Speaker 2: his thumb in a batting precictent And so yeah, like

523
00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:09,200
Speaker 2: you mentioned, like and it's why we were talking about

524
00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:10,959
Speaker 2: this before the show. You know, we had had a

525
00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:13,480
Speaker 2: previous podcast where I kind of had to tell people, no,

526
00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:16,280
Speaker 2: they're not trading fromber Veldez at the deadline if they're

527
00:24:16,320 --> 00:24:20,680
Speaker 2: in it, because pitching depth depletes and pitching depth dries up.

528
00:24:20,800 --> 00:24:24,159
Speaker 2: And I don't think anyone realizes what a luxury it

529
00:24:24,240 --> 00:24:26,640
Speaker 2: is to have a guy like fromber Valdez and Hunter

530
00:24:26,640 --> 00:24:28,960
Speaker 2: Brown for that matter, who at this point you can

531
00:24:28,960 --> 00:24:31,000
Speaker 2: pencil in every time they go out there, they're gonna

532
00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:33,200
Speaker 2: get you into the sixth inning and most of the

533
00:24:33,320 --> 00:24:35,399
Speaker 2: days into the seventh. That is a luxury that not

534
00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:38,520
Speaker 2: a lot of teams have, and they should cherish that

535
00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:41,200
Speaker 2: and not try to mess around and get too cute

536
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:43,680
Speaker 2: by half and say, oh, we've got these guys pitching

537
00:24:43,680 --> 00:24:45,720
Speaker 2: well at the minor leagues. We can get some prospects

538
00:24:45,760 --> 00:24:48,520
Speaker 2: for Valdez and like still make the playoffs.

539
00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:50,240
Speaker 1: No, no, no, no, that's not how this works.

540
00:24:50,600 --> 00:24:52,680
Speaker 3: And most of these prospects tend to fail. Like there's

541
00:24:52,720 --> 00:24:55,119
Speaker 3: a reason why teams are okay giving up prospects. Sometimes

542
00:24:55,119 --> 00:24:57,840
Speaker 3: it's because they don't necessarily believe in them. And I

543
00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:01,960
Speaker 3: found the fromber Angst this season just kind of strange.

544
00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:04,520
Speaker 3: It's like, this guy's really good and has been really

545
00:25:04,520 --> 00:25:06,960
Speaker 3: good and really reliable for a long time. Like that's

546
00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:10,119
Speaker 3: not suddenly going to change because he gives up some

547
00:25:10,160 --> 00:25:12,040
Speaker 3: weak base hits, you know, stuff like that. So I've

548
00:25:12,040 --> 00:25:14,240
Speaker 3: always found that to be weird. The other you know,

549
00:25:14,280 --> 00:25:18,160
Speaker 3: you mentioned Frember and Brown as reliable guys. I think

550
00:25:18,200 --> 00:25:21,400
Speaker 3: Blanco has kind of start to move into that reliable

551
00:25:21,440 --> 00:25:25,119
Speaker 3: guy conversation. Just like he's never going to be a

552
00:25:25,160 --> 00:25:28,879
Speaker 3: guy that like finishes with like the highest ra or

553
00:25:28,880 --> 00:25:32,520
Speaker 3: anything like that, but I feel like you can trust

554
00:25:32,560 --> 00:25:34,920
Speaker 3: that he's going to on most nights at least give

555
00:25:34,920 --> 00:25:37,439
Speaker 3: you six, and he's going to make every turn in

556
00:25:37,480 --> 00:25:40,040
Speaker 3: the rotation. And I think that that, especially on a

557
00:25:40,040 --> 00:25:42,240
Speaker 3: team that's lost as many starters as it has over

558
00:25:42,240 --> 00:25:44,439
Speaker 3: the last couple of years, I think something like that matters.

559
00:25:44,480 --> 00:25:46,960
Speaker 3: So it feels like he posts every single time.

560
00:25:47,240 --> 00:25:50,119
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I do agree, But you do look at

561
00:25:50,119 --> 00:25:53,080
Speaker 2: this year. Five of the five of his first six starts,

562
00:25:53,080 --> 00:25:54,480
Speaker 2: he failed to pitch unto the sixth inning.

563
00:25:54,760 --> 00:25:55,480
Speaker 3: Okay, I was wrong.

564
00:25:55,680 --> 00:25:58,879
Speaker 2: Now now in his last three starts, he's gone six innings,

565
00:25:58,960 --> 00:26:01,679
Speaker 2: eight innings, six innings. We actually talked about this on

566
00:26:01,680 --> 00:26:04,399
Speaker 2: one of our recent pods. Dana Brown and Joe Spot

567
00:26:04,440 --> 00:26:07,080
Speaker 2: have both said this. They didn't let Renald Blanco play

568
00:26:07,080 --> 00:26:09,440
Speaker 2: winter ball this past winter because he threw so much

569
00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:12,720
Speaker 2: last year, and as everybody knows, Renald Blanco was the

570
00:26:12,800 --> 00:26:15,160
Speaker 2: king of Dominican winter ball. It goes who went down

571
00:26:15,200 --> 00:26:18,160
Speaker 2: there and dominated for like five years straight. And Dana

572
00:26:18,200 --> 00:26:20,840
Speaker 2: Brown thinks it's because they didn't let him play winter

573
00:26:20,920 --> 00:26:23,119
Speaker 2: ball that he came to end of the season this

574
00:26:23,200 --> 00:26:27,159
Speaker 2: year a little lackluster, didn't start off maybe as crisp

575
00:26:27,240 --> 00:26:29,840
Speaker 2: as he had before. So maybe now that he's settling

576
00:26:29,880 --> 00:26:32,879
Speaker 2: in he's gone six innings, eight innings, six innings and

577
00:26:32,920 --> 00:26:35,480
Speaker 2: three straight starts. Yeah, you can start to move him

578
00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:37,840
Speaker 2: maybe into that reliable category, but I think I need

579
00:26:37,840 --> 00:26:40,000
Speaker 2: to see it a couple of more times. But again,

580
00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:44,480
Speaker 2: they have they should feel very comfortable about the top

581
00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:46,720
Speaker 2: three guys in their rotation. And one thing you said

582
00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:50,840
Speaker 2: about Fromer, and it got me thinking, how much do

583
00:26:50,880 --> 00:26:54,320
Speaker 2: you think the dominance that Hunter Brown is having this

584
00:26:54,440 --> 00:26:59,960
Speaker 2: year is maybe to Fromber's detriment because everyone's watching Hunter Brown.

585
00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:02,920
Speaker 2: I'll go out there and not give up anything every time.

586
00:27:02,920 --> 00:27:05,720
Speaker 2: He's got a one four era right now, and he

587
00:27:05,840 --> 00:27:08,520
Speaker 2: just goes out there and what he is doing is otherworldly.

588
00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:11,640
Speaker 2: And I think everyone may expect that from Fromber because

589
00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:15,040
Speaker 2: Fromber is and was the quote unquote ace of this team.

590
00:27:15,800 --> 00:27:17,640
Speaker 2: Fromber just does it a little bit differently, like he's

591
00:27:17,680 --> 00:27:19,680
Speaker 2: gonna give up hits. He's gonna give like there are

592
00:27:19,680 --> 00:27:22,560
Speaker 2: some days where he's really on and the curveball's disgusting

593
00:27:22,600 --> 00:27:25,560
Speaker 2: and he's missing a ton of bats. But inherently with

594
00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:28,879
Speaker 2: how he throws and he's a sinkerballer. His bread and

595
00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:32,720
Speaker 2: butter is getting ground balls, is getting put the ball

596
00:27:32,720 --> 00:27:35,920
Speaker 2: put in play. Sometimes sometimes balls have eyes they find

597
00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:38,680
Speaker 2: holes and and that happens. But that was kind of

598
00:27:38,720 --> 00:27:40,359
Speaker 2: interesting to me, just kind of a thought that like,

599
00:27:40,480 --> 00:27:45,240
Speaker 2: maybe is Hunter Brown's dominance maybe, like do fans see

600
00:27:45,280 --> 00:27:47,359
Speaker 2: that and expect that out of Fromer When they don't

601
00:27:47,359 --> 00:27:48,520
Speaker 2: get it, they think something's wrong.

602
00:27:48,800 --> 00:27:52,040
Speaker 3: Well, you look at the start today. He gives up

603
00:27:52,040 --> 00:27:54,080
Speaker 3: the runs and what was the third or fourth inning,

604
00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:57,399
Speaker 3: and that rally starts because they guess, you know, shoot

605
00:27:57,400 --> 00:27:58,960
Speaker 3: a couple of balls through the hall in the infield,

606
00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:01,640
Speaker 3: like you know that's going to happen. Sometimes with him,

607
00:28:01,680 --> 00:28:03,240
Speaker 3: it's like can you get the double play? Can he

608
00:28:03,760 --> 00:28:06,200
Speaker 3: keep his composure on the mount? I think sometimes Framber

609
00:28:06,280 --> 00:28:10,080
Speaker 3: can be a victim of expectations, Like you saw he

610
00:28:10,119 --> 00:28:13,480
Speaker 3: had the very long quality start streak in twenty two

611
00:28:13,960 --> 00:28:16,320
Speaker 3: and you're just and he was so good that postseason

612
00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:19,240
Speaker 3: that you're almost just expecting that, and that's just not

613
00:28:19,359 --> 00:28:21,360
Speaker 3: how it works, especially like you said, with a guy

614
00:28:21,359 --> 00:28:24,080
Speaker 3: who kind of pitches the way that he does. And

615
00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:27,040
Speaker 3: I think that from a fan standpoint, people probably remember

616
00:28:27,040 --> 00:28:30,200
Speaker 3: the Tiger series and they remember that he didn't pitch

617
00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:32,520
Speaker 3: real well in that Ranger series either, and so that

618
00:28:32,640 --> 00:28:34,960
Speaker 3: kind of sticks with fans a little bit so I

619
00:28:35,080 --> 00:28:37,760
Speaker 3: in a sense, I get it, but like at the

620
00:28:37,760 --> 00:28:42,040
Speaker 3: same time, he's been just absurdly good now for five

621
00:28:42,120 --> 00:28:46,040
Speaker 3: or six years, and this this era wouldn't be what

622
00:28:46,120 --> 00:28:49,920
Speaker 3: it was without what Framber Valdez did. Starting in twenty twenty.

623
00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:52,280
Speaker 2: He's going to get upwards of one hundred and seventy

624
00:28:52,320 --> 00:28:55,280
Speaker 2: million dollars. This winner for a reason, because there are

625
00:28:55,280 --> 00:28:58,240
Speaker 2: teams that would crawl over broken glass to have from

626
00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:01,040
Speaker 2: Ervaldez at the top of their contending teams that would

627
00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:03,720
Speaker 2: crawl over broken glass fromer Belt as a top for rotation,

628
00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:05,760
Speaker 2: we have real quick.

629
00:29:05,840 --> 00:29:07,440
Speaker 3: Hunter Brown is probably gonna get two hundred.

630
00:29:07,520 --> 00:29:11,160
Speaker 2: So he's gonna get, he may get, he may push

631
00:29:11,280 --> 00:29:14,560
Speaker 2: over two hundred. He is he is insane, man. He

632
00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:17,440
Speaker 2: is that that that game. I talked a lot about

633
00:29:17,480 --> 00:29:20,360
Speaker 2: the Grom Brown duel in the Last Pot, but like,

634
00:29:20,520 --> 00:29:22,080
Speaker 2: I don't know if you saw it the same way,

635
00:29:22,160 --> 00:29:24,960
Speaker 2: like Jacob de Grom's incredible, Like that was an incredible

636
00:29:24,960 --> 00:29:27,360
Speaker 2: game to watch beginning to end, But I don't know

637
00:29:27,400 --> 00:29:29,160
Speaker 2: how you came out of that game and didn't think

638
00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:32,000
Speaker 2: that Hunter Brown was the more dominant pitcher.

639
00:29:32,480 --> 00:29:34,680
Speaker 1: And in that game that night.

640
00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:37,560
Speaker 3: The thing that stuck out to me is why are

641
00:29:37,600 --> 00:29:40,520
Speaker 3: you throwing a cutter? Don't get beat on that pitch,

642
00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:43,600
Speaker 3: get beat on like your good stuff. So that that's

643
00:29:43,760 --> 00:29:46,240
Speaker 3: that's that's the lasting impression I had with that game

644
00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:47,840
Speaker 3: is like, don't throw the cutter.

645
00:29:47,640 --> 00:29:48,080
Speaker 1: In that spot.

646
00:29:48,240 --> 00:29:51,480
Speaker 3: Just sometimes sometimes these pitchers throw too many pitches and

647
00:29:51,520 --> 00:29:53,840
Speaker 3: they try and get too cute and get beaty.

648
00:29:54,240 --> 00:29:55,760
Speaker 1: Just blow, just blow ninety nine by him.

649
00:29:55,800 --> 00:29:59,400
Speaker 2: Like we've talked a lot of pitching, so we will

650
00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:04,080
Speaker 2: talk about the interesting state of this asher's offense. Right

651
00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:06,160
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652
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673
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Speaker 2: So the Astros won a game today with four hits.

674
00:31:11,320 --> 00:31:13,920
Speaker 2: Two of them left the ballpark, which was just good,

675
00:31:14,080 --> 00:31:16,880
Speaker 2: and the other two preceded one that left.

676
00:31:16,680 --> 00:31:19,160
Speaker 1: The ballpark, which is also good.

677
00:31:19,680 --> 00:31:23,960
Speaker 2: But all in all, this weekend I think exacerbated a

678
00:31:24,000 --> 00:31:27,960
Speaker 2: lot of fans worries about this offense. A couple of

679
00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:30,720
Speaker 2: caveats needed to be said. They don't have Jordan Alvarez,

680
00:31:30,760 --> 00:31:33,800
Speaker 2: who is obviously a massive piece of this thing. The

681
00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:37,440
Speaker 2: Rangers have, as we just talked about, a very very

682
00:31:37,560 --> 00:31:40,760
Speaker 2: very deep and very good rotation. They rolled out de Grama,

683
00:31:40,840 --> 00:31:44,440
Speaker 2: Valdi and Molly, all of whom have sub two and

684
00:31:44,440 --> 00:31:47,640
Speaker 2: a half. The ra's Jack Lyder, who no hit them

685
00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:50,240
Speaker 2: for six and two thirds innings today, was at one

686
00:31:50,280 --> 00:31:52,720
Speaker 2: point the best pitching prospect in baseball. So it's not

687
00:31:52,880 --> 00:31:55,160
Speaker 2: as if they faced four, like rule five guys that

688
00:31:55,280 --> 00:31:58,720
Speaker 2: got called up from hy A last week. But Adam,

689
00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:02,240
Speaker 2: this is an offense that doesn't have any semblance of balance.

690
00:32:03,160 --> 00:32:06,360
Speaker 2: They've got guys at the top of the order, established

691
00:32:06,400 --> 00:32:09,080
Speaker 2: guys that are scuffling a little bit. We knew coming

692
00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:11,040
Speaker 2: in after the Kyle Tucker coming into the season. You

693
00:32:11,080 --> 00:32:13,600
Speaker 2: knew after they traded Kyle Tucker and let Alex Bregman walk,

694
00:32:13,920 --> 00:32:16,840
Speaker 2: this was probably going to be a shorter lineup, very

695
00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:20,040
Speaker 2: top heavy lineup, and it's bearing that out. But it

696
00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:24,760
Speaker 2: really gets exacerbated when Josel Tuves not producing, and when

697
00:32:24,880 --> 00:32:28,320
Speaker 2: Christian walker Is had had looked better this weekend, but

698
00:32:28,400 --> 00:32:30,600
Speaker 2: still the counting SATs overall are not good. What have

699
00:32:30,680 --> 00:32:33,200
Speaker 2: you made of the Ashers offense to the first forty five,

700
00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:34,479
Speaker 2: forty six games this season.

701
00:32:35,640 --> 00:32:39,320
Speaker 3: It's not very good. I thought it obviously, I thought

702
00:32:39,320 --> 00:32:42,080
Speaker 3: it would be better. But just the fact and I

703
00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:43,960
Speaker 3: know you've talked about this a lot, the fact that

704
00:32:44,000 --> 00:32:48,600
Speaker 3: they don't have any lefties at all. You have guys

705
00:32:48,640 --> 00:32:52,760
Speaker 3: who should probably be more platoon guys, especially in the

706
00:32:52,760 --> 00:32:57,600
Speaker 3: outfield at this point, and Aspada wants to use the

707
00:32:57,600 --> 00:33:01,040
Speaker 3: bench like Espata. We saw this all last year, like

708
00:33:01,440 --> 00:33:04,040
Speaker 3: opening day last year against the Yankees, like sixth inning,

709
00:33:04,120 --> 00:33:06,480
Speaker 3: he goes to his bench, and he can't do that

710
00:33:06,560 --> 00:33:09,400
Speaker 3: because they just can't gain a platoon advantage. And so

711
00:33:09,480 --> 00:33:11,440
Speaker 3: the fact that they have not done any they did

712
00:33:11,480 --> 00:33:14,240
Speaker 3: not do anything to address the bench going into twenty

713
00:33:14,240 --> 00:33:16,560
Speaker 3: twenty four. They didn't do anything to address the bench

714
00:33:16,600 --> 00:33:19,360
Speaker 3: going into this season. It just doesn't make a whole

715
00:33:19,360 --> 00:33:20,959
Speaker 3: lot of sense to me when you have a manager

716
00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:23,959
Speaker 3: who again wants to use go to his bench early

717
00:33:24,080 --> 00:33:26,120
Speaker 3: and often, so like they aren't doing a spot at

718
00:33:26,160 --> 00:33:28,440
Speaker 3: any favors there, and so you kind of just get

719
00:33:28,600 --> 00:33:30,520
Speaker 3: so you roll out a lineup that you think is

720
00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:33,720
Speaker 3: gonna work, and like you're just kind of stuck with

721
00:33:33,760 --> 00:33:37,520
Speaker 3: those guys, and you know, you saw Omar Lopez. You know,

722
00:33:37,560 --> 00:33:39,760
Speaker 3: they didn't play Jeremy Pinya today, so like they could

723
00:33:39,800 --> 00:33:42,000
Speaker 3: at least go to him off the bench. But I'm

724
00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:45,240
Speaker 3: guessing after Paina they would like to have had a

725
00:33:45,320 --> 00:33:48,880
Speaker 3: lefty to use for Mauricio Dubon right after, and they

726
00:33:48,960 --> 00:33:51,800
Speaker 3: just they just don't have that option. And so like

727
00:33:52,480 --> 00:33:55,080
Speaker 3: Chas McCormick has taken seven played appearances this month. He

728
00:33:55,200 --> 00:33:58,560
Speaker 3: started two games this month. Cesar Salazar has been up

729
00:33:58,600 --> 00:34:01,840
Speaker 3: for two weeks and has played. Yet I get you

730
00:34:01,880 --> 00:34:05,440
Speaker 3: bring Salazar up, so so Kartini can be, you know,

731
00:34:05,560 --> 00:34:08,800
Speaker 3: in the starting lineup, but you're still wasting a roster spot.

732
00:34:09,280 --> 00:34:11,279
Speaker 3: And so it feels like they just need to do

733
00:34:11,360 --> 00:34:14,799
Speaker 3: something to not be quite as you know they they

734
00:34:14,960 --> 00:34:17,560
Speaker 3: no no team in baseball has taken more bats against righties,

735
00:34:17,560 --> 00:34:19,279
Speaker 3: and no team in baseball has taking fewer at bats

736
00:34:19,320 --> 00:34:23,440
Speaker 3: against lefties, and like teams can prepare for that, you know,

737
00:34:23,520 --> 00:34:26,200
Speaker 3: teams can. I don't know if it's something that you've noticed,

738
00:34:26,200 --> 00:34:28,840
Speaker 3: but I do remember the Red Series. I think Andrew

739
00:34:28,840 --> 00:34:31,600
Speaker 3: Abbott was supposed to start them on the Sunday game

740
00:34:31,760 --> 00:34:34,040
Speaker 3: and then they move some some things around and they

741
00:34:34,080 --> 00:34:35,960
Speaker 3: switched it up and they had a righty start the

742
00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:39,040
Speaker 3: finale of that series. So like it just the Astros

743
00:34:39,080 --> 00:34:42,440
Speaker 3: become very easy to prepare against just because you know

744
00:34:42,520 --> 00:34:45,680
Speaker 3: you're only going to face right handed hitters, and like,

745
00:34:45,719 --> 00:34:48,040
Speaker 3: to me, you're just making the other team's job so

746
00:34:48,200 --> 00:34:50,560
Speaker 3: much easier when you do that. So I just think

747
00:34:50,600 --> 00:34:52,759
Speaker 3: they need to do something. You know, I don't know

748
00:34:52,800 --> 00:34:54,400
Speaker 3: if they have any I don't think they necessarily have

749
00:34:54,440 --> 00:34:58,160
Speaker 3: any options in Triple A. But go outside the organizations.

750
00:34:58,160 --> 00:35:00,919
Speaker 3: You just find a left handed hitter who can give

751
00:35:00,920 --> 00:35:04,200
Speaker 3: you competitive at bats and you know, professional at bats.

752
00:35:04,239 --> 00:35:06,840
Speaker 3: And right now they're just they are hurting themselves by

753
00:35:07,080 --> 00:35:09,600
Speaker 3: playing with twenty five when everybody else plays with twenty six.

754
00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:12,319
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I mean, and I've talked about this, and

755
00:35:12,360 --> 00:35:13,759
Speaker 2: when I wrote about it, I said the same thing.

756
00:35:13,840 --> 00:35:16,239
Speaker 2: It doesn't have to be a middle of the order

757
00:35:16,320 --> 00:35:18,279
Speaker 2: left handed bat. It has to be a guy that

758
00:35:18,880 --> 00:35:21,920
Speaker 2: can stand in the left handed batter's box give you

759
00:35:22,040 --> 00:35:25,520
Speaker 2: a competitive quality at that And like you said, put

760
00:35:25,560 --> 00:35:28,520
Speaker 2: the thought into the other manager's head that, like, hey,

761
00:35:28,520 --> 00:35:31,319
Speaker 2: if I go to this guy, Joe's probably gonna send

762
00:35:31,320 --> 00:35:34,839
Speaker 2: this left the up. Like think back to how they

763
00:35:34,960 --> 00:35:38,799
Speaker 2: won that game on Friday. First of all, like the

764
00:35:38,840 --> 00:35:41,759
Speaker 2: game on Friday exemplified everything that is wrong with this

765
00:35:41,840 --> 00:35:47,000
Speaker 2: roster construction. Nativaldi started the game. He allows the lowest

766
00:35:47,080 --> 00:35:50,640
Speaker 2: ops against right handed hitters of any starter in baseball,

767
00:35:51,160 --> 00:35:53,920
Speaker 2: and the Astros sent out eight right handed hitters and

768
00:35:53,960 --> 00:35:56,879
Speaker 2: a switch hitting backup catcher at Victor Carrattini, who hit

769
00:35:57,000 --> 00:36:00,960
Speaker 2: fifth that night. If Victor Carrottini is hitting in your lineup,

770
00:36:01,320 --> 00:36:04,080
Speaker 2: then there's no disrespect to Victor Krotini, but just kind

771
00:36:04,080 --> 00:36:07,440
Speaker 2: of demonstrates how limited the options are here. And the

772
00:36:07,480 --> 00:36:10,000
Speaker 2: only reason Joe hit him fifth was to get that

773
00:36:10,160 --> 00:36:13,759
Speaker 2: balance up there, to get more left handed bats against

774
00:36:13,840 --> 00:36:17,440
Speaker 2: Evaldi's left handed looks. So they chased nata Valdi out

775
00:36:17,440 --> 00:36:19,200
Speaker 2: of the game. Actually took some good at bats against him.

776
00:36:19,200 --> 00:36:21,560
Speaker 2: He was wild, but they took some good at bats,

777
00:36:21,640 --> 00:36:24,000
Speaker 2: laid off some chase stuff. They chased him out of

778
00:36:24,000 --> 00:36:27,040
Speaker 2: the game after five and two thirds innings. Bruce Bochi

779
00:36:27,239 --> 00:36:29,800
Speaker 2: goes to a left handed reliever out of his bullpen,

780
00:36:29,840 --> 00:36:31,799
Speaker 2: which I don't know why any manager would do it,

781
00:36:31,840 --> 00:36:35,480
Speaker 2: but why he did it. He turned Victor Carrattini around

782
00:36:35,560 --> 00:36:37,920
Speaker 2: to hit from the right side, where he's been worse

783
00:36:38,000 --> 00:36:42,640
Speaker 2: his whole career. Carottini flies out now because Bruce Boden,

784
00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:46,000
Speaker 2: the Rangers have a couple back end guys, Chris Martin

785
00:36:46,040 --> 00:36:49,080
Speaker 2: and Luke Jackson, who were hurting coming into the series.

786
00:36:49,080 --> 00:36:50,839
Speaker 2: They were going to be very careful on how.

787
00:36:50,760 --> 00:36:51,479
Speaker 1: They used them.

788
00:36:52,000 --> 00:36:55,720
Speaker 2: So because Boach was trying to protect those back end guys,

789
00:36:56,200 --> 00:36:59,040
Speaker 2: he came back out with Hoby Milner the lefty for

790
00:36:59,120 --> 00:37:02,920
Speaker 2: the sixth inning, facing Jake Myers, Jiner, Diaz, Cam Smith,

791
00:37:03,040 --> 00:37:07,880
Speaker 2: Zach Dezenzo. Jake Myers singled, Zach Dezenzo hit an absolute

792
00:37:08,000 --> 00:37:10,360
Speaker 2: missile to the wall. They got caught at the warning track.

793
00:37:10,880 --> 00:37:15,120
Speaker 2: Cam Smith singled. Bochi goes to a right hander, they

794
00:37:15,160 --> 00:37:17,359
Speaker 2: come in. That's what starts a six run inning. So look,

795
00:37:17,400 --> 00:37:20,000
Speaker 2: they finally got to face a right handed hit or

796
00:37:20,000 --> 00:37:23,320
Speaker 2: face a left handed reliever, and look, good things happen.

797
00:37:24,080 --> 00:37:27,240
Speaker 2: But the problem is, like you just said, no, manager

798
00:37:27,360 --> 00:37:30,560
Speaker 2: Bruce Bochi had to do that because of the constraints

799
00:37:30,600 --> 00:37:33,120
Speaker 2: with his bullpen. Some guys are hurt. He didn't want

800
00:37:33,160 --> 00:37:35,480
Speaker 2: to go to his lower, lower leverage guys and they

801
00:37:35,600 --> 00:37:38,960
Speaker 2: view Hoby Milner as a leverage lefty. But they're going

802
00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:41,319
Speaker 2: to be managers that just decide, you know what, like

803
00:37:41,600 --> 00:37:43,840
Speaker 2: if you've got to if you throw with your right hand,

804
00:37:44,160 --> 00:37:46,799
Speaker 2: you're coming in like I don't care what your stats are,

805
00:37:46,880 --> 00:37:48,520
Speaker 2: I don't care how well you're throwing, how not well

806
00:37:48,560 --> 00:37:50,920
Speaker 2: you're thrown you're coming in to face this lineup because

807
00:37:51,280 --> 00:37:54,000
Speaker 2: they are they have no recourse, They can't do anything

808
00:37:54,360 --> 00:37:56,359
Speaker 2: to create any sort of advantage.

809
00:37:56,480 --> 00:37:59,560
Speaker 1: Now, no, you go ahead, Well.

810
00:37:59,560 --> 00:38:03,200
Speaker 3: Even when Alvarez does come back right, teams just won't

811
00:38:03,239 --> 00:38:06,080
Speaker 3: pitch to him right and they'll say, you know what,

812
00:38:06,360 --> 00:38:08,399
Speaker 3: we're not even gonna mess with this guy. We're gonna

813
00:38:08,440 --> 00:38:10,480
Speaker 3: let our right handed relievers face all the right handers

814
00:38:10,480 --> 00:38:13,399
Speaker 3: that come after him. And that's where I think that

815
00:38:13,719 --> 00:38:16,839
Speaker 3: guys like Walker and and Pardes and some of these

816
00:38:16,880 --> 00:38:19,480
Speaker 3: other guys, they get hurt is because they don't get

817
00:38:19,480 --> 00:38:21,719
Speaker 3: to take those at bats against left handed believers. You know,

818
00:38:21,760 --> 00:38:23,359
Speaker 3: Alex Bradman got to take a lot of at bats

819
00:38:23,360 --> 00:38:25,879
Speaker 3: against left handed believers the last few years because he's

820
00:38:25,920 --> 00:38:28,680
Speaker 3: hitting either between or behind Tucker and Alvarez, and teams

821
00:38:28,680 --> 00:38:31,040
Speaker 3: are lining up lefties to face those two guys. That's

822
00:38:31,080 --> 00:38:32,919
Speaker 3: not gonna happen now. So you're just going to face

823
00:38:33,000 --> 00:38:36,080
Speaker 3: all these high leverage right handed relievers, and it's just

824
00:38:36,120 --> 00:38:38,680
Speaker 3: going to be really hard to stay rallies and hit

825
00:38:38,719 --> 00:38:40,319
Speaker 3: for power. Like you're gonna have to have some things

826
00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:44,040
Speaker 3: come together, so like making a team have to think,

827
00:38:44,160 --> 00:38:46,319
Speaker 3: making a team have to prepare for other you know,

828
00:38:46,360 --> 00:38:48,840
Speaker 3: for other options. It just makes a lot of sense.

829
00:38:49,000 --> 00:38:52,320
Speaker 3: And I don't know why more thought wasn't given to

830
00:38:52,440 --> 00:38:55,839
Speaker 3: that before the season started, like to not to not

831
00:38:55,920 --> 00:38:59,920
Speaker 3: have any lefties at all. It just it's just bizarre.

832
00:39:00,520 --> 00:39:02,439
Speaker 3: Can you imagine what Dusty Baker would have said.

833
00:39:03,200 --> 00:39:06,000
Speaker 1: I can't, I truly can't.

834
00:39:06,040 --> 00:39:07,680
Speaker 2: And what I do think he would say is not

835
00:39:07,760 --> 00:39:09,960
Speaker 2: safe for me to say on this on this recording.

836
00:39:10,520 --> 00:39:12,399
Speaker 2: I mean, and we've been over why they did this,

837
00:39:12,480 --> 00:39:16,880
Speaker 2: because Dana Brown wanted to reward guys in spring training

838
00:39:16,920 --> 00:39:20,959
Speaker 2: that quote unquote one jobs, and Zach Dezenzo and Cam

839
00:39:21,000 --> 00:39:25,880
Speaker 2: Smith both played their behinds off in spring training and

840
00:39:25,960 --> 00:39:29,160
Speaker 2: put up great numbers, and they played well enough to

841
00:39:29,239 --> 00:39:32,680
Speaker 2: earn roster spots. That Cam Smith was in the Kyle

842
00:39:32,719 --> 00:39:36,279
Speaker 2: Tucker trade cannot be overstated here. I think that they

843
00:39:36,360 --> 00:39:38,319
Speaker 2: wanted to prove a little bit of a point to,

844
00:39:38,719 --> 00:39:40,760
Speaker 2: you know, say, look what we got for Kyle Tucker.

845
00:39:40,840 --> 00:39:43,759
Speaker 2: And now Cam Smith is up in the big leagues

846
00:39:43,760 --> 00:39:46,319
Speaker 2: and has graduated from prospect status and has like a

847
00:39:46,360 --> 00:39:50,160
Speaker 2: seven hundred ops. I do wonder, Adam, like we're talking

848
00:39:50,200 --> 00:39:51,960
Speaker 2: about all this and like that this is a problem

849
00:39:52,000 --> 00:39:53,600
Speaker 2: and they're going to have to address it, and it's

850
00:39:53,640 --> 00:39:55,239
Speaker 2: going to get addressed, like they're going to get a

851
00:39:55,320 --> 00:39:58,560
Speaker 2: left handed hitter in here at some point when, even

852
00:39:58,560 --> 00:40:01,359
Speaker 2: when Jordan Alvarez comes back, I think there is now

853
00:40:01,400 --> 00:40:03,920
Speaker 2: too much growing pressure that they're going to have to

854
00:40:03,920 --> 00:40:08,520
Speaker 2: do something. We're probably not talking about this this in

855
00:40:08,560 --> 00:40:11,879
Speaker 2: depth though. If Jose al Tuve is like peak Jose

856
00:40:11,960 --> 00:40:14,960
Speaker 2: al Tuove and if Christian Walker is peak Christian Walker,

857
00:40:15,000 --> 00:40:17,279
Speaker 2: I feel like we've talked the Walker thing. We have

858
00:40:17,360 --> 00:40:21,240
Speaker 2: talked to death about. Let's talk about Jose al Tuovay.

859
00:40:21,880 --> 00:40:25,400
Speaker 2: What have you made of the start to his season.

860
00:40:26,760 --> 00:40:31,759
Speaker 3: He's thirty five, yes, and eventually the odd odds and

861
00:40:31,800 --> 00:40:34,000
Speaker 3: logic say that when you're thirty five you're going to

862
00:40:34,040 --> 00:40:36,359
Speaker 3: start to slow down. Now, this is a guy who

863
00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:38,880
Speaker 3: has defied all of that for twenty years. So I

864
00:40:38,920 --> 00:40:41,160
Speaker 3: don't want to sit here and say that he's cooked

865
00:40:41,160 --> 00:40:43,760
Speaker 3: when he'll probably wind up going on some long, ridiculous

866
00:40:43,800 --> 00:40:45,600
Speaker 3: hitting streak, you know, right after to make me look

867
00:40:45,640 --> 00:40:49,799
Speaker 3: like an idiot. But he's, you know, thirty five is

868
00:40:49,800 --> 00:40:51,279
Speaker 3: thirty five. There are a couple of things I was

869
00:40:51,280 --> 00:40:53,520
Speaker 3: looking through some of the numbers, and a couple of

870
00:40:53,520 --> 00:40:57,160
Speaker 3: things really stood out to me. He's chasing more than

871
00:40:57,440 --> 00:40:59,719
Speaker 3: you know, he ever has before, but it's not like

872
00:40:59,880 --> 00:41:02,400
Speaker 3: a lot more than he ever has before. But the

873
00:41:02,440 --> 00:41:05,640
Speaker 3: thing that he's not doing, he's not swinging at strikes.

874
00:41:06,120 --> 00:41:08,640
Speaker 3: And this is a guy for his career he swings

875
00:41:08,680 --> 00:41:10,759
Speaker 3: at two thirds of the strikes that are thrown to him.

876
00:41:11,040 --> 00:41:14,880
Speaker 3: That number is below sixty percent this season. You know,

877
00:41:14,920 --> 00:41:17,680
Speaker 3: the meatball pitches, This is a guy who swings at

878
00:41:17,680 --> 00:41:19,760
Speaker 3: those seventy five percent of the time, and he's swinging

879
00:41:19,760 --> 00:41:22,360
Speaker 3: at fifty eight percent of those this year. So the

880
00:41:22,400 --> 00:41:25,319
Speaker 3: fact that he's not like swinging it the pitches you're

881
00:41:25,360 --> 00:41:28,000
Speaker 3: supposed to swing at makes me think that he's just like,

882
00:41:28,840 --> 00:41:32,600
Speaker 3: you know, he's not right, Like there's something there that

883
00:41:32,640 --> 00:41:34,239
Speaker 3: he might just be in his own head with some

884
00:41:34,320 --> 00:41:36,960
Speaker 3: of this stuff. So that's what stood out to me.

885
00:41:37,000 --> 00:41:39,799
Speaker 3: And that and the fact that he has started all

886
00:41:39,840 --> 00:41:42,640
Speaker 3: but two games this year, like he's thirty five. Maybe

887
00:41:42,719 --> 00:41:44,360
Speaker 3: give him a little bit more time off. I know

888
00:41:44,400 --> 00:41:46,840
Speaker 3: he's DHD a couple of times here recently, including today,

889
00:41:47,239 --> 00:41:49,600
Speaker 3: but there's probably no reason for him to be playing

890
00:41:49,600 --> 00:41:51,560
Speaker 3: as much as he is, especially it's not like they're

891
00:41:51,560 --> 00:41:52,839
Speaker 3: in a twelve game hole like they.

892
00:41:52,719 --> 00:41:53,399
Speaker 1: Were last year.

893
00:41:54,040 --> 00:41:56,720
Speaker 2: You know, his ground ball rates about fifty six percent,

894
00:41:56,760 --> 00:41:58,880
Speaker 2: which I mean again, he's thirty five years old. He's

895
00:41:58,920 --> 00:42:02,239
Speaker 2: still got decent sprint speed. It's not what it used

896
00:42:02,239 --> 00:42:04,040
Speaker 2: to be. He's still athletic enough to get down the

897
00:42:04,040 --> 00:42:06,399
Speaker 2: line and can beat out an infield hit. But he's

898
00:42:06,440 --> 00:42:08,399
Speaker 2: not hitting the ball on a line. He's hitting too

899
00:42:08,400 --> 00:42:10,880
Speaker 2: many pop ups. And the weird thing is he's getting

900
00:42:10,920 --> 00:42:13,719
Speaker 2: the same amount of strikes, Like, he's seeing the same

901
00:42:13,760 --> 00:42:16,200
Speaker 2: amount of strikes as he usually sees. So it's not

902
00:42:16,239 --> 00:42:20,319
Speaker 2: like pitchers are necessary like avoiding him or making him

903
00:42:20,320 --> 00:42:22,480
Speaker 2: like go to the ou outer edges. Maybe because they

904
00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:24,600
Speaker 2: know that his bad ball skills are so good that

905
00:42:24,640 --> 00:42:26,440
Speaker 2: it doesn't matter where they pitch it. He can probably

906
00:42:26,440 --> 00:42:29,680
Speaker 2: get a bat on it. But yeah, it's at this point.

907
00:42:29,760 --> 00:42:31,319
Speaker 2: I do think he's in his own head a little bit.

908
00:42:31,719 --> 00:42:32,120
Speaker 6: He taught.

909
00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:34,319
Speaker 2: He did speak after the game on Saturday, and just

910
00:42:34,840 --> 00:42:36,560
Speaker 2: I mean he said everything. You would expect his al

911
00:42:36,600 --> 00:42:39,160
Speaker 2: two B to say that he's not quite there, that

912
00:42:39,360 --> 00:42:42,000
Speaker 2: the bats haven't been good enough, but he thinks, you know,

913
00:42:42,200 --> 00:42:44,000
Speaker 2: just he'll get a couple of hard hit balls and

914
00:42:44,040 --> 00:42:47,719
Speaker 2: he's ready to go. He's not usually the most insightful

915
00:42:47,760 --> 00:42:50,400
Speaker 2: as far as like what he's working through. He'll certainly

916
00:42:50,400 --> 00:42:52,319
Speaker 2: he owned it, he owned that he's not been playing well,

917
00:42:53,000 --> 00:42:56,080
Speaker 2: but you know, not real much an insight as like

918
00:42:56,120 --> 00:42:58,359
Speaker 2: to what he can do to fix it, as far

919
00:42:58,400 --> 00:42:59,920
Speaker 2: as what the astros can do to fix I add

920
00:42:59,920 --> 00:43:01,920
Speaker 2: a couple of people you know, ask why is he

921
00:43:01,960 --> 00:43:04,040
Speaker 2: still hitting second? Why is he still hitting up there?

922
00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:06,600
Speaker 2: Like I think Joe's hands are tied at this point, Like,

923
00:43:06,600 --> 00:43:08,680
Speaker 2: I don't know who who do you want to hit up?

924
00:43:09,280 --> 00:43:12,440
Speaker 2: They don't have a ton here guys like I know

925
00:43:12,560 --> 00:43:14,560
Speaker 2: Jake Myers has been a nice story for the first

926
00:43:14,560 --> 00:43:15,000
Speaker 2: couple months.

927
00:43:15,040 --> 00:43:16,480
Speaker 1: I don't think you want him hitting second.

928
00:43:16,960 --> 00:43:19,160
Speaker 2: I don't think you want many guys at the bottom

929
00:43:19,200 --> 00:43:21,719
Speaker 2: half of this lineup hitting at the top half. So

930
00:43:22,840 --> 00:43:25,120
Speaker 2: he does al twov like at some point they've got

931
00:43:25,160 --> 00:43:26,640
Speaker 2: to have faith that he's going to turn it around.

932
00:43:26,680 --> 00:43:29,400
Speaker 2: And like you said, this is why I sometimes hesitate

933
00:43:29,440 --> 00:43:31,640
Speaker 2: to talk about whos a L two ve because you

934
00:43:31,800 --> 00:43:33,919
Speaker 2: know as well as I do, that he is going

935
00:43:33,960 --> 00:43:37,640
Speaker 2: to on this upcoming ten game homestand he'll probably have

936
00:43:37,680 --> 00:43:40,120
Speaker 2: two hits every game and his average will be back

937
00:43:40,160 --> 00:43:40,600
Speaker 2: up to three.

938
00:43:40,560 --> 00:43:42,720
Speaker 1: Hundred, well all will all look.

939
00:43:42,640 --> 00:43:46,200
Speaker 2: Like chicken littles that were running and proclaiming his decline

940
00:43:46,200 --> 00:43:49,760
Speaker 2: too quick. But age does come for everyone, even justin Verlander,

941
00:43:49,840 --> 00:43:53,640
Speaker 2: like age comes for everyone, and I don't want to

942
00:43:53,760 --> 00:43:54,879
Speaker 2: use the D word yet.

943
00:43:54,880 --> 00:43:56,839
Speaker 1: I don't want to use decline yet, but.

944
00:43:57,800 --> 00:44:00,600
Speaker 2: It you know, he's even when you look at some

945
00:44:00,680 --> 00:44:05,759
Speaker 2: of his expected stuff, like it does. His savant page

946
00:44:05,800 --> 00:44:07,839
Speaker 2: right now is a lot of blue. It's a lot

947
00:44:07,880 --> 00:44:11,440
Speaker 2: of blue. And and you know, when you kind of

948
00:44:11,480 --> 00:44:13,359
Speaker 2: start to think about it, they have four more years

949
00:44:13,360 --> 00:44:16,480
Speaker 2: of this, like because I mean, so they better hope,

950
00:44:16,560 --> 00:44:18,319
Speaker 2: they better hope that this is just a funk of

951
00:44:18,360 --> 00:44:20,600
Speaker 2: a month that you know, he can find a way

952
00:44:20,640 --> 00:44:22,440
Speaker 2: to get it back because they've they've got him for

953
00:44:22,480 --> 00:44:24,799
Speaker 2: four more years. And look at Jose al Tuove could

954
00:44:24,800 --> 00:44:28,279
Speaker 2: retire tomorrow and his legacy here is forever cemented as

955
00:44:28,920 --> 00:44:30,799
Speaker 2: in my opinion, the greatest player to ever wear an

956
00:44:30,800 --> 00:44:34,279
Speaker 2: Astro's uniform. But they they have some real questions to

957
00:44:34,320 --> 00:44:37,319
Speaker 2: ask about him right now, because we're talking about the

958
00:44:37,320 --> 00:44:39,799
Speaker 2: imbalance and that's something that needs to be addressed. But

959
00:44:40,600 --> 00:44:43,480
Speaker 2: if he's not hitting, and if Jordan Alvarez comes back

960
00:44:43,480 --> 00:44:46,080
Speaker 2: and he's not producing, then it doesn't matter what balance

961
00:44:46,160 --> 00:44:47,920
Speaker 2: they bring to this thing, they're not going anywhere.

962
00:44:48,120 --> 00:44:51,560
Speaker 3: Well, it also hurts just from like a roster construction standpoint,

963
00:44:51,640 --> 00:44:54,520
Speaker 3: just because he's making more than any position player has

964
00:44:54,560 --> 00:44:57,120
Speaker 3: ever made for them, not just this year, but the

965
00:44:57,160 --> 00:44:59,960
Speaker 3: two that come after it, and so if he doesn't

966
00:45:00,120 --> 00:45:02,640
Speaker 3: produce it, it's hard to get other guys that are

967
00:45:02,640 --> 00:45:06,480
Speaker 3: going to be able to fill that void. So to me,

968
00:45:06,840 --> 00:45:09,919
Speaker 3: I think the big thing is, don't play him forty

969
00:45:09,920 --> 00:45:12,600
Speaker 3: four out of forty six games, like especially when he

970
00:45:12,680 --> 00:45:14,680
Speaker 3: when you consider that he is playing the outfield now,

971
00:45:14,719 --> 00:45:17,239
Speaker 3: and so that's gonna zap some of your energy. I

972
00:45:17,280 --> 00:45:19,600
Speaker 3: think they can afford. Especially you know, Decenzo has done

973
00:45:19,600 --> 00:45:21,400
Speaker 3: a night is He's played okay. You know, he's handled

974
00:45:21,440 --> 00:45:24,040
Speaker 3: himself pretty well up here so far this season. The

975
00:45:24,040 --> 00:45:26,760
Speaker 3: two guys at second base, you know, offensively it's not great,

976
00:45:26,760 --> 00:45:29,960
Speaker 3: but defensively they can more than hold their own. So

977
00:45:30,040 --> 00:45:31,600
Speaker 3: to me, I think that gives you just a little

978
00:45:31,600 --> 00:45:34,040
Speaker 3: bit more rope to give him some time off and

979
00:45:34,120 --> 00:45:36,280
Speaker 3: to say, hey, you know, he just had a hamstring

980
00:45:36,320 --> 00:45:38,960
Speaker 3: injury last week and he played seven straight games after

981
00:45:39,000 --> 00:45:41,680
Speaker 3: coming back from that. Like to me, that's an opportunity

982
00:45:41,719 --> 00:45:44,439
Speaker 3: to play him six out of seven days or maybe

983
00:45:44,520 --> 00:45:46,799
Speaker 3: five out of seven, you know, bring him off the

984
00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:49,000
Speaker 3: bench a couple, you know, try to get him off

985
00:45:49,000 --> 00:45:51,719
Speaker 3: his feet just a little bit, just because he's thirty five,

986
00:45:52,000 --> 00:45:56,200
Speaker 3: and you know, thirty five year olds don't necessarily do

987
00:45:56,280 --> 00:45:59,200
Speaker 3: great when they're having to play as much as he is.

988
00:45:59,239 --> 00:46:02,040
Speaker 3: And last year they played him one hundred and fifty

989
00:46:02,040 --> 00:46:04,279
Speaker 3: three games. They kind of had to because of the

990
00:46:04,320 --> 00:46:06,480
Speaker 3: hole that they dug, but I thought he faded towards

991
00:46:06,480 --> 00:46:08,759
Speaker 3: the end of last year, so they got to try

992
00:46:08,800 --> 00:46:12,239
Speaker 3: and get him to September and playing him forty four

993
00:46:12,280 --> 00:46:14,200
Speaker 3: out of forty six games. I don't think it's the

994
00:46:14,200 --> 00:46:15,040
Speaker 3: best way to do that.

995
00:46:16,120 --> 00:46:18,440
Speaker 2: It's one and Adam, you've been in or you've been

996
00:46:18,480 --> 00:46:22,120
Speaker 2: in enough clubhouses, you've been like on part of teams

997
00:46:22,160 --> 00:46:23,560
Speaker 2: to understand what I'm about to say.

998
00:46:23,600 --> 00:46:25,120
Speaker 1: It's one thing for us to say that.

999
00:46:25,880 --> 00:46:28,359
Speaker 2: It's another thing for a man, for a second year

1000
00:46:28,440 --> 00:46:31,080
Speaker 2: manager who has no Joe Spot has known Josel Twoba

1001
00:46:31,120 --> 00:46:33,680
Speaker 2: for a while, but still a second year manager to

1002
00:46:33,760 --> 00:46:38,240
Speaker 2: go to a surefire Hall of Famer and a franchise icon,

1003
00:46:39,000 --> 00:46:42,319
Speaker 2: and they've look they have already asked him to move positions,

1004
00:46:42,560 --> 00:46:45,040
Speaker 2: and he has been very graceful and said yes, I'll

1005
00:46:45,040 --> 00:46:48,120
Speaker 2: do it. Is as selfless a player as you will

1006
00:46:48,160 --> 00:46:51,720
Speaker 2: find of someone of his stature. It's a whole different

1007
00:46:51,760 --> 00:46:54,360
Speaker 2: story when you start taking it bats away from a

1008
00:46:54,360 --> 00:46:55,800
Speaker 2: guy that wants to get three thousands.

1009
00:46:55,840 --> 00:46:59,279
Speaker 3: Yes, now that's a that's a really good point. I

1010
00:46:59,320 --> 00:47:01,239
Speaker 3: think the leg you have to present it to him

1011
00:47:01,360 --> 00:47:03,359
Speaker 3: is just like tell him what the benefits are, though,

1012
00:47:03,920 --> 00:47:05,600
Speaker 3: Like if you tell him, hey, we think that this

1013
00:47:05,719 --> 00:47:08,560
Speaker 3: is going to make you better by sitting you once

1014
00:47:08,600 --> 00:47:10,920
Speaker 3: a week, then I think that he'll probably take to it.

1015
00:47:11,520 --> 00:47:16,080
Speaker 3: Like now that's me saying it, you know, actually doing

1016
00:47:16,080 --> 00:47:18,680
Speaker 3: it and having Joe like go to him and saying that,

1017
00:47:18,680 --> 00:47:21,200
Speaker 3: that's a whole other story. But to me, if you

1018
00:47:21,280 --> 00:47:23,960
Speaker 3: present it in a way that you show him the benefits,

1019
00:47:24,080 --> 00:47:26,640
Speaker 3: I think it can work. But again, I don't know

1020
00:47:26,840 --> 00:47:29,640
Speaker 3: Jose Altuve well enough to know if he'll take to

1021
00:47:29,719 --> 00:47:32,839
Speaker 3: that sort of a thing just because it's hard, Like

1022
00:47:33,080 --> 00:47:35,440
Speaker 3: it's hard getting old. It's kind of hard, you know,

1023
00:47:36,120 --> 00:47:38,759
Speaker 3: seeing your own mortality flat before your eyes and you've

1024
00:47:38,800 --> 00:47:41,200
Speaker 3: been doing this at such a high level for such

1025
00:47:41,200 --> 00:47:44,279
Speaker 3: a long time. But I do think that it might

1026
00:47:44,360 --> 00:47:46,560
Speaker 3: help him to not play him nearly as much, And

1027
00:47:46,600 --> 00:47:48,920
Speaker 3: I just think you have to get that message across

1028
00:47:49,000 --> 00:47:52,319
Speaker 3: and I think that it only benefits everybody. And like

1029
00:47:52,360 --> 00:47:55,399
Speaker 3: you said, he's been incredibly selfless. I think that from

1030
00:47:55,440 --> 00:47:58,799
Speaker 3: a culture standpoint, they are what they are because of him,

1031
00:47:59,200 --> 00:48:01,640
Speaker 3: because he's been the best player for this entire stretch

1032
00:48:01,680 --> 00:48:04,160
Speaker 3: and you wouldn't know it just because of how he

1033
00:48:04,239 --> 00:48:08,160
Speaker 3: carries himself. But it's also like, hey, we think that

1034
00:48:08,239 --> 00:48:10,279
Speaker 3: this is If you tell him, hey, we think that

1035
00:48:10,320 --> 00:48:12,160
Speaker 3: this will help get you to three thousand, then maybe

1036
00:48:12,160 --> 00:48:13,000
Speaker 3: he's receptive to it.

1037
00:48:13,560 --> 00:48:16,040
Speaker 2: And again you just said he is as when we've

1038
00:48:16,040 --> 00:48:18,279
Speaker 2: talked about this ad nauseam. He is as selfless of

1039
00:48:18,280 --> 00:48:21,160
Speaker 2: a player as you will find. I say that, and

1040
00:48:21,200 --> 00:48:24,440
Speaker 2: I'm also going to say at his extension press conference,

1041
00:48:24,560 --> 00:48:28,080
Speaker 2: last winner Scott Boris made it a point to say,

1042
00:48:28,120 --> 00:48:31,680
Speaker 2: we structured this contract so he could get three thousand hits. Yeah,

1043
00:48:31,760 --> 00:48:35,040
Speaker 2: like three thousand hits is I'm not gonna say that's

1044
00:48:35,080 --> 00:48:38,160
Speaker 2: his foremost Like he is the team first guy. He

1045
00:48:38,200 --> 00:48:40,440
Speaker 2: wants to win World Series, he wants to win Penance,

1046
00:48:40,520 --> 00:48:44,040
Speaker 2: Like that is what I believe he prioritizes but don't

1047
00:48:44,200 --> 00:48:46,640
Speaker 2: anytime he says he's not thinking about three thousand hits

1048
00:48:46,719 --> 00:48:48,480
Speaker 2: or three thousand hits, it's too far away frohim to

1049
00:48:48,520 --> 00:48:48,960
Speaker 2: think about.

1050
00:48:50,040 --> 00:48:50,520
Speaker 1: He's lying.

1051
00:48:51,880 --> 00:48:55,040
Speaker 2: This is something that is he wants this, and I

1052
00:48:55,080 --> 00:48:58,239
Speaker 2: think it's going to be I think, yes, you're right.

1053
00:48:58,280 --> 00:49:00,200
Speaker 2: If they can find a way to sit Inhi down

1054
00:49:00,200 --> 00:49:02,399
Speaker 2: and be like, look, we've done the science, we've done

1055
00:49:02,400 --> 00:49:05,000
Speaker 2: the math, we've done the we've got all your measurements

1056
00:49:05,000 --> 00:49:06,719
Speaker 2: of when you set out days of when you don't

1057
00:49:06,760 --> 00:49:08,960
Speaker 2: sit out days, and they present it to him. I'm

1058
00:49:09,000 --> 00:49:11,239
Speaker 2: sure they could make a really compelling argument to him.

1059
00:49:11,840 --> 00:49:12,680
Speaker 1: But at the end of the.

1060
00:49:12,719 --> 00:49:16,880
Speaker 2: Day, I I think if it were me, if it

1061
00:49:16,880 --> 00:49:19,880
Speaker 2: were me, the way I would think is you're taking

1062
00:49:20,680 --> 00:49:24,799
Speaker 2: five chances away from me every week that I can

1063
00:49:24,880 --> 00:49:27,360
Speaker 2: maybe get a couple hits. And if I get to

1064
00:49:27,440 --> 00:49:29,960
Speaker 2: the last year of this contract and I'm at two

1065
00:49:30,520 --> 00:49:34,400
Speaker 2: nine hundred and sixty two hits and we're in the

1066
00:49:34,480 --> 00:49:37,439
Speaker 2: end of September and my contract's up, maybe I could

1067
00:49:37,440 --> 00:49:38,799
Speaker 2: have gotten him in these times you had me.

1068
00:49:38,880 --> 00:49:41,280
Speaker 1: So again, I don't envy jo Aspata.

1069
00:49:41,320 --> 00:49:44,480
Speaker 2: I don't envy Dana Brown because it's a conversation and again,

1070
00:49:44,520 --> 00:49:47,320
Speaker 2: I don't think they're there yet. I think we're talking

1071
00:49:47,360 --> 00:49:50,080
Speaker 2: pretty prematurely here. I don't think they're they're there of

1072
00:49:50,440 --> 00:49:52,800
Speaker 2: having to have this come to Jesus with him, because,

1073
00:49:53,000 --> 00:49:55,879
Speaker 2: like we said, like he could go to this minor

1074
00:49:55,960 --> 00:49:57,960
Speaker 2: league park they're about to play in for three games

1075
00:49:58,000 --> 00:50:01,839
Speaker 2: and hit seven hundred these three games and everything would

1076
00:50:01,880 --> 00:50:03,640
Speaker 2: be fine. And we're not talking about this anymore. But

1077
00:50:04,920 --> 00:50:09,719
Speaker 2: the level of the unproductive at bats recently has prompted

1078
00:50:10,000 --> 00:50:12,239
Speaker 2: such an interesting discussion with al Tube.

1079
00:50:14,280 --> 00:50:17,319
Speaker 3: And the funny thing is I hear Dusty in the

1080
00:50:17,320 --> 00:50:20,480
Speaker 3: background talking about how it takes older players longer to

1081
00:50:20,520 --> 00:50:24,239
Speaker 3: get going. He actually started the season really well. Yeah,

1082
00:50:24,280 --> 00:50:26,520
Speaker 3: the first thirteen or fourteen games he was great, and

1083
00:50:26,560 --> 00:50:28,920
Speaker 3: it's like the last thirty thirty one games he's got

1084
00:50:28,960 --> 00:50:31,880
Speaker 3: like a five hundred ohps. So that's that's kind of

1085
00:50:32,280 --> 00:50:35,040
Speaker 3: that's that's what makes me think that, Okay, he probably

1086
00:50:35,040 --> 00:50:36,960
Speaker 3: will wind up snapping out of this and you know,

1087
00:50:37,040 --> 00:50:39,120
Speaker 3: maybe he won't have the eight to fifty ops at

1088
00:50:39,120 --> 00:50:42,120
Speaker 3: the end of the year, but it'll be near the

1089
00:50:42,200 --> 00:50:45,359
Speaker 3: levels to where you would expect from a guy his

1090
00:50:45,440 --> 00:50:48,200
Speaker 3: age who has had the career that he's had. But

1091
00:50:48,680 --> 00:50:52,560
Speaker 3: it's been ugly and he is what I think. Last

1092
00:50:52,600 --> 00:50:55,520
Speaker 3: time I looked at Baseball Reference War had him at

1093
00:50:55,640 --> 00:50:58,760
Speaker 3: you know, negative point eight. That's not great at this point.

1094
00:50:58,840 --> 00:51:03,040
Speaker 3: So it's tough. That's that's the hard part with signing

1095
00:51:03,120 --> 00:51:05,120
Speaker 3: these guys as they get older, is that you've got

1096
00:51:05,120 --> 00:51:08,120
Speaker 3: to make some tough decisions with it. And they they

1097
00:51:08,160 --> 00:51:10,640
Speaker 3: have done things to avoid having to do that with

1098
00:51:10,760 --> 00:51:13,080
Speaker 3: Bregman and with Springer and correct like, they don't have

1099
00:51:13,080 --> 00:51:15,359
Speaker 3: to have those conversations with those guys, but they gotta

1100
00:51:15,360 --> 00:51:17,239
Speaker 3: have to have it with this guy at some point.

1101
00:51:18,200 --> 00:51:20,360
Speaker 2: It's one that I don't it's one that I'm not.

1102
00:51:20,719 --> 00:51:22,920
Speaker 2: I'm happy I don't have to have. I'm happy I

1103
00:51:22,920 --> 00:51:24,399
Speaker 2: don't have to be in that room. I'm sure you're

1104
00:51:24,440 --> 00:51:26,080
Speaker 2: happy you don't have to be in that room. We're

1105
00:51:26,120 --> 00:51:28,840
Speaker 2: just gonna be in this room talking about the Astros

1106
00:51:28,840 --> 00:51:29,840
Speaker 2: on Crush City territory.

1107
00:51:29,840 --> 00:51:30,680
Speaker 1: Adam. This was great.

1108
00:51:30,840 --> 00:51:32,879
Speaker 2: I appreciate you taking I told you I was gonna

1109
00:51:32,920 --> 00:51:34,480
Speaker 2: keep you for thirty minutes. I kept you for fifty

1110
00:51:34,480 --> 00:51:37,960
Speaker 2: one minutes. I apologize for that. I thank you very much.

1111
00:51:37,960 --> 00:51:40,520
Speaker 2: This was an enlightening conversation. I'm glad we I'm glad

1112
00:51:40,520 --> 00:51:42,480
Speaker 2: we got together, got glad, we got to chop it up.

1113
00:51:43,400 --> 00:51:46,520
Speaker 2: If you're interested in hearing more, please subscribe to the

1114
00:51:46,560 --> 00:51:49,560
Speaker 2: Crush City Territory YouTube channel. You can get a notifications

1115
00:51:49,600 --> 00:51:51,600
Speaker 2: every time we go live. Please rate and review us

1116
00:51:51,680 --> 00:51:55,560
Speaker 2: on Apple. You can follow me on x at Chandler

1117
00:51:55,640 --> 00:51:57,920
Speaker 2: Underscore Room. Adam, tell the people where they can follow

1118
00:51:57,960 --> 00:52:00,200
Speaker 2: you and see what you gotta see what you got going.

1119
00:52:00,760 --> 00:52:03,279
Speaker 3: Adam Spolane eighty A M S P O L A

1120
00:52:03,440 --> 00:52:04,880
Speaker 3: N E no spaces.

1121
00:52:04,719 --> 00:52:05,400
Speaker 1: Yep, there you go.

1122
00:52:05,480 --> 00:52:08,520
Speaker 2: Follow both of us and we will be back sometime

1123
00:52:08,560 --> 00:52:12,760
Speaker 2: this week. We have a special guest on Tuesday, remember

1124
00:52:12,800 --> 00:52:14,880
Speaker 2: the Astros traveling party that I think a lot of

1125
00:52:14,880 --> 00:52:17,480
Speaker 2: people will enjoy hearing from. And then Josh Reddick will

1126
00:52:17,520 --> 00:52:19,520
Speaker 2: be back on Wednesday. He went on a nine day

1127
00:52:19,560 --> 00:52:21,799
Speaker 2: cruise with his wife and kids, so I'm sure he's

1128
00:52:21,840 --> 00:52:25,279
Speaker 2: going to bring some interesting stories from the sea. But

1129
00:52:25,680 --> 00:52:28,759
Speaker 2: thanks Adam again for joining us, and we'll talk to

1130
00:52:28,800 --> 00:52:29,279
Speaker 2: you guys soon.

1131
00:52:29,360 --> 00:52:29,640
Speaker 4: Thanks