Astros Break Even in June
July 1, 2010 by Bill Gilbert · 1 Comment
The Houston Astros had their best month of the season in June with a 14-14 record. They were 11-2 against National League teams but only 3-12 in Interleague games against teams from the American League including the Yankees, Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays, three of the strongest teams in the league. The team averaged 4.4 runs per game in June while allowing 5.0 runs per game which suggests they were fortunate to win as many games as they lost.
The big change was the promotion of four players from Round Rock – catcher Jason Castro, third baseman Chris Johnson, outfielder Jason Bourgeois and shortstop Oswaldo Navarro. While they have made some rookie mistakes, they all appear capable of contributing at the major league level. Castro and Johnson have been installed as regulars and should be with the big club to stay.
The rules require each team to be represented on the All-Star team. It’s hard to build a case that any Astro player is deserving but one will be chosen, probably Michael Bourn or Roy Oswalt. Bourn leads the league in stolen bases and outfield assists.
The offense improved slightly in June but continues to be a major disappointment. The Astros rank last in the major leagues in home runs, walks, batting average, on-base percentage (.294) and slugging average. The table below based on on-base percentage plus slugging average (OPS) indicates that the four players expected to provide a major portion of the offense in the middle of the batting order performed better in June but remain well below expectations based on their career averages.
2010              June               Career Player               OPS               OPS               OPS ---------------     ------        ------ ------ Lance Berkman       .769               .792             .967 Carlos Lee          .668               .764             .847 Hunter Pence        .733               .731             .828 Pedro Feliz         .572           .649             .715
The pitching was somewhat disappointing in June. None of the starters had an ERA under 4.24 for the month and Roy Oswalt (5-10) and Wandy Rodriguez (5-10) became the only ten game losers in the major leagues. Bud Norris missed most of the month with an injury and an improving Felipe Paulino is now on the disabled list with a sore shoulder. These injuries expose the lack of depth in starting pitching as there does not appear to be any starting pitchers at Triple-A Round Rock that can help at the major league level.
The team was performing better at the end of the month, taking a series in Milwaukee. With only 2 games to go to reach the halfway point of the season, the Astros should be capable of a much better second half if the rookies continue to play well and the big hitters play up to expectations.
I’m not too familiar with the Astros’ minor league system. I know you said there isn’t much SP depth at AAA, but are there any signs of life down the road? Considering Oswalt is probably gone after this year, it seems like things might get worse before they get better for the Astros.