Tag / Astros

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Astros All Time Leaders – Through 2015

astros-primaryWith 2 months until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. We continue today with the Houston Astros.

The Astros began life in 1962, joining the National League, along with the Mets, as the Colt 45’s and becoming the Astros 3 years later.  In 2013, they moved to the American League, becoming just the second team to switch leagues.  I’ve seen them play 40 times, including game 2 of the 2005 World Series.

Home Runs

Name Total
Lance Berkman 7
Carlos Lee 4
Morgan Ensberg 3
Mike Lamb 3

Hits

Name Total
Lance Berkman 30
Morgan Ensberg 19
Brad Ausmus 17

Runs

Name Total
Lance Berkman 15
Craig Biggio 11
Chris Burke 11

RBI

Name Total
Lance Berkman 26
Morgan Ensberg 12
Mike Lamb 10

Doubles

Name Total
Lance Berkman 7
Mike Lamb 6
Hunter Pence 5
Chris Carter 5

Triples Continue reading →

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#117 – Dustin Hermanson

dustinhermName: Dustin Hermanson

Rank: 117

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2005-2006

Dustin Hermanson signed with the White Sox as a free agent in December of 2004.  He started the 2005 season as the set-up man, but moved into the closer role when the incumbent, Shingo Takatsu, failed to perform.  As the White Sox cruised to a big lead in the AL Central, Hermanson put together the best season of his career, with a stellar 2.04 ERA and 34 saves.

Hermanson lost his closer position due to a back injury in September, when he was replaced by Bobby Jenks as the White Sox tried to keep their tenuous grasp on the AL Central lead.  As the White Sox cruised through the playoffs on their way to their first World Championship in 88 years, Hermanson sat on the sidelines.  He made his only post-season appearance in Game 3 of the World Series, throwing 1/3 of scoreless relief in the south sider’s 14 inning victory over the Astros.

When 2006 got underway, Hermanson’s back was still causing him issues.  He only appeared in 6 games for the White Sox, before spending most of the year on the disabled list.  Following the season, he became a free agent and never pitched in the major leagues again.

Hermanson’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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by jim

2015 BBWAA Award Predictions

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersThe Baseball Writers of America have announced the finalists for their awards for the just completed baseball season.  It is a good bet that few of my original predictions for the winners will be accurate.  Hopefully, these new predictions will be slightly better, especially since I’ll have a 33% chance of being right.

American League

Most Valuable Player: Lorenzo Cain, Josh Donaldson, Mike Trout

Mike Trout, who won last year’s award, was my pre-season selection to win again this year. While I think Josh Donaldson will get plenty of support, I’m going to stick with Trout to win.

Cy Young Award: Sonny Gray, Dallas Keuchel, David Price

Well, the one year I didn’t pick David Price as my pre-season pick, he makes his way into the top 3.  That said, I’m thinking Dallas Keuchel, of the upstart Astros, will take home the award.

Manager of the Year: Jeff Banister, A.J. Hinch, Paul Molitor

Once again, I didn’t make any predictions for this award prior to the season.  The three nominees all lead surprising teams into contention for most of the year.  My guess is A.J. Hinch wins the award for leading the Astros to the post-season for the first time since 2005.

Rookie of the Year: Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor, Miguel Sano

Another award I didn’t predict prior to the season.  This one should be a no-brainer, with Carlos Correa taking home the award.

National League

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by admin

#128 – Philip Humber

Phil-Humber-perfect-game-pictures-5

Name: Philip Humber

Rank: 128

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2011-2012

Philip Humber was selected off waivers from the A’s by the White Sox in January of 2011.  With Jake Peavy out due to injury, Humber got the opportunity to join the White Sox rotation out of spring training.  He was surprisingly successful, leading the White Sox to move to a 6 man rotation once Peavy returned from injury.  Despite spending some time on the DL after taking a line drive off the bat of Kosuke Fukudome in the face, Humber finished his first full season as a starting pitcher with a 9-9 record and a respectable 3.75 ERA.

Humber returned to the White Sox rotation to begin the 2012 season.  The high point of his season, not to mention career, came on April 21, as he threw the 21st perfect game in major league history, defeating the Mariners 4-0.  The unlikely no-no was his first career complete game.  Sadly, he fell apart after the perfect game, giving up 20 runs in 13 1/3 innings over his next 3 starts.  By July, he was out of the rotation.  At season’s end, he was put on waivers and selected by the Astros, ending his White Sox career.

Humber’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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All Time Playoff Team Records

baseballs3As the Cubs prepare for tonight’s NL wild card game against the Pirates, the first post-season appearance by a Chicago team since the inception of this blog, it’s time to take our first look at the team records for the 17 playoff contests I have attended.  These contests come from the 2000 ALDS, the 2003 NLDS and NLCS, all 3 rounds of the 2005 post-season, the 2007 NLDS, and both the ALDS and NLDS in 2008.

TeamName Won Loss Winning Pctg
Florida Marlins 3 0 1.000
Seattle Mariners 2 0 1.000
Los Angeles Dodgers 2 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 1 0 1.000
Chicago White Sox 5 4 0.556
Tampa Bay Rays 1 1 0.500
Los Angeles Angels 1 1 0.500
Atlanta Braves 1 1 0.500
Chicago Cubs 1 7 0.125
Houston Astros 0 1 0.000
Boston Red Sox 0 2 0.000
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2015 Predictions Revisited

baseballs2Six months ago, as the 2015 baseball season was scheduled to kick off at Wrigley Field, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what.  Now that the regular season has come to an end, it is time revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.

American League

East: Blue Jays

After a middling first half, the Blue Jays turned things around after the All Star break, especially after acquiring David Price and Troy Tulowitzki at the trade deadline, earning them their first division title since 1993.

Central: Indians

Well, I correctly predicted the end of the Tigers reign after four seasons, but I wrongly assumed that the Royals would regress after their World Series appearance last year.  Instead, they went and ran away with the AL Central crown while the Indians struggled to stay out of the cellar.

West: Angels

It came down to the final day, but the Rangers, who finished in last place in 2014, managed to hold off the Astros and the Angels to win the division.

Wild Cards: Tigers, Mariners

I completely missed the boat here, as both teams failed to live up to their pre-season expectations.  The Yankees return to the post-season and so do the surprise Astros.

AL Champion: Angels

Cy Young: Felix Hernandez

MVP: Mike Trout

Only one of these seems like a possible choice at this point, with Mike Trout the frontrunner for the MVP award.  The Cy Young award is up in the air at this point.

National League

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by admin

Looking Ahead To Next Year

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersMajor League Baseball released their tentative 2016 schedule earlier this week and, while the 2015 squad focuses on taking the second Wild Card slot, let’s take a look at what’s on tap for next summer for the North Siders.

The Cubs open the season on April 5 on the road against the Angels, the first time they will start the year in inter-league play.  The home slate kicks off the following Monday with a night game against the Reds.

This year’s inter-league slate is against the AL West, with the Rangers, Mariners, and Angels making trips to Wrigley Field, while the Cubs hit the road to visit the aforementioned Angels, A’s, and Astros.  The club also has a 2 and 2 series with the White Sox during the last week of July.

The Cubs finish the season on the road against the Pirates and Reds, which should make for a great pennant race if the team is once again in contention.

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Franchise Four – AL West

Major League Baseball is asking its fans to vote for the four most impactful players who best represent the history of each franchise.  The winners will be announced in July at the All Star Game in Cincinnati.  Today, I will give my Franchise Four picks for the American League West.

F4Astros

The Astros, around since 1962, have 2 obvious options, and both are from their World Series team in 2005: Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell.  After that, there is a bit of a drop off.  Nolan Ryan would seem to be a good pick for the third slot, having spent more years with the Astros than with any other team.  For the last slot, I’ll go with J. R. Richard, whose career was cut short due to a stroke, but still came to represent the franchise in the late 70s.

F4Angels

Despite existing since the 1961 season, the Angels have a complete lack of star power in their 8 nominees.  Garret Anderson?  Tim Salmon?  Brian Downing?  While fine players, none of them would be confused with an all time great.  Of the remaining 5, I will dump Jim Fregosi and take Chuck Finley, Nolan Ryan (again!), Vladamir Guerrero, and, despite being in only his 4th season, Mike Trout.

F4As

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by admin

#156 – Tony Pena

Tony_Pena_Sr._(1997_White_Sox)_3Name: Tony Pena

Rank: 156

Position: C

Year With White Sox: 1997

Former All-Star catcher Tony Pena signed with the White Sox as a free agent on January 10, 1997.  Pena served as a backup for starter Jorge Fabergas, appearing in 31 games but batting an anemic .164.  In August, after announcing that this would be his final season, he was traded to the Astros for a minor league pitcher.  “I really appreciate the way they have been treating me,” Pena said.  “They have been treating me with a lot of respect. . . . I thought the White Sox uniform would be the last uniform I was going to wear.”

Pena’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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Crosstown Competitors

cws-chiLast Saturday, Geovany Soto and Jeff Samardzija became the 25th and 26th people I’ve seen play in person for both the Cubs and the White Sox.  Here’s a look at those players, in alphabetical order.

DavidAardsma2David Aardsma

After posting a decent season with the Cubs in 2006, Aardsma was traded to the White Sox for Neal Cotts.  Aardsma lasted one season with the Sox, where he was unable to duplicate his success from the year before.

Jason Bere

Drafted by the White Sox in the 36th round in 1990, Bere debuted with the big league club in 1993, finishing 2nd in Rookie of the Year voting.  After an All Star selection in 1994, injuries marred the remainder of his tenure on the South Side, which ended in 1998.  He resurfaced with the Cubs in 2001 and had a decent season, but he went 1-10 in 2002 before being let go.

Neal Cotts

Acquired by the White Sox in the Billy Koch trade, he debuted with the team in 2003.  He was a key contributor in the bullpen during the 2005 championship season, and was the only relief pitcher to appear in all 3 rounds of the playoffs that season.  Following the 2006 season, he was traded to the Cubs for David Aardsma, and he spent the next 3 injury filled seasons on the North Side.

scott_eyre_autographScott Eyre

Joining the White Sox organization in a 1994 trade with the Rangers, he debuted with the big league team in 1997.  He split the next 4 seasons between the rotation and the bullpen, not to mention between Chicago and Charlotte, before being moved to the Blue Jays following the 2000 ALDS loss to the Mariners.  He joined the Cubs as a free agent for the 2006 season and enjoyed 2 seasons of relative success, before falling apart in 2008, when he was traded to the Phillies.

Kosuke Fukudome Continue reading →