FoxPerez
04-01-2011, 09:30 PM
From PlaymakerOnline.com (http://www.playmakeronline.com/)
To see the original page, click here: http://bit.ly/hPRoUI
What’s bad about the way the Houston Astros lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in their opener wasn’t how it happened, it’s how so many fans expected it to happen. Here’s what many of my friends said when it was over:
“Distastros.”
“Half our office called that finish when we were up 4-0. Ridiculous.”
“Can we just bypass baseball and get right to football?”
One game into the season and that’s how Astros fans are talking!
But who can blame them? (PLUG ALERT!) As I wrote about in our latest issue of Playmaker Magazine, the problem with Houston this year won’t be the starters but the bullpen. Brett Myers pitched just as well, if not better, than Roy Halladay today. Who would have guessed that. Myers gave up just one run in seven innings by just keeping the Phillies off balance. He didn’t get any strikeouts, but only allowed three hits. Brandon Lyon on the other hand, gave up six hits in the 9th inning. And every one of the batters was way ahead of his pitches. Nothing went the opposite way. They had a read on everything.
Houston’s offense was surprisingly patient against the often overpowering Halladay. He threw over 100 pitches in just six innings and despite hitting his spots, showed some vulnerability. Ironically, Myers was one of the two Astros players with more than one hit in the game. The other was shortstop Angel Sanchez, who started for the first time on opening day and is supposed to be a big question mark at the plate, but Houston not only started him, they had him bat 2nd in the lineup.
The most disappointing was Chris Johnson, who struck out three times and popped out with a runner on 3rd in his other at-bat. Carlos Lee, in a sad sign of what might come the rest of the season, also went 0-4 from the clean-up spot. Not so good considering that eight of Houston’s nine hits came ahead of him in the lineup.
Tomorrow’s pitching matchup features Wandy Rodriguez against Cliff Lee. After throwing 30 pitches today, Lyon might not be available if Houston finds a way to hold a lead late in this game as well. But that might be a blessing in disguise for most Astros fans.
For more Astros and Rangers coverage, check out PlaymakerOnline.com (http://www.playmakeronline.com/)
Playmaker Magazine: The Source for Sports in Texas
To see the original page, click here: http://bit.ly/hPRoUI
What’s bad about the way the Houston Astros lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in their opener wasn’t how it happened, it’s how so many fans expected it to happen. Here’s what many of my friends said when it was over:
“Distastros.”
“Half our office called that finish when we were up 4-0. Ridiculous.”
“Can we just bypass baseball and get right to football?”
One game into the season and that’s how Astros fans are talking!
But who can blame them? (PLUG ALERT!) As I wrote about in our latest issue of Playmaker Magazine, the problem with Houston this year won’t be the starters but the bullpen. Brett Myers pitched just as well, if not better, than Roy Halladay today. Who would have guessed that. Myers gave up just one run in seven innings by just keeping the Phillies off balance. He didn’t get any strikeouts, but only allowed three hits. Brandon Lyon on the other hand, gave up six hits in the 9th inning. And every one of the batters was way ahead of his pitches. Nothing went the opposite way. They had a read on everything.
Houston’s offense was surprisingly patient against the often overpowering Halladay. He threw over 100 pitches in just six innings and despite hitting his spots, showed some vulnerability. Ironically, Myers was one of the two Astros players with more than one hit in the game. The other was shortstop Angel Sanchez, who started for the first time on opening day and is supposed to be a big question mark at the plate, but Houston not only started him, they had him bat 2nd in the lineup.
The most disappointing was Chris Johnson, who struck out three times and popped out with a runner on 3rd in his other at-bat. Carlos Lee, in a sad sign of what might come the rest of the season, also went 0-4 from the clean-up spot. Not so good considering that eight of Houston’s nine hits came ahead of him in the lineup.
Tomorrow’s pitching matchup features Wandy Rodriguez against Cliff Lee. After throwing 30 pitches today, Lyon might not be available if Houston finds a way to hold a lead late in this game as well. But that might be a blessing in disguise for most Astros fans.
For more Astros and Rangers coverage, check out PlaymakerOnline.com (http://www.playmakeronline.com/)
Playmaker Magazine: The Source for Sports in Texas