Baseball The Way It Never Was

Tag: Paul Goldschmidt

TWIWBL 2.0: Series I – Houston @ Homestead

For each set of games played, we’ll go in-depth for one series, and then have an issue of TWIWBL with news and notes from around the league.

For the opening round of games, it’s the Houston Colt 45’s visiting Pittsburgh to play the Homestead Grays.

Houston is a dark horse pick to make some noise in the league, but like so many teams, there are questions on the mound. Roy Oswalt was virtually unhittable in Spring Training, but the names Toad Ramsey and Ice Box Chamberlain don’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of many. But they should score some runs with Jim Wynn, Tony Gwynn, and George Brett setting the stage for Lance Berkman, Paul Goldschmidt, and Jeff Bagwell.

But Homestead may be one of the favorites with a lineup anchored by Pops Stargell and wunderkid Josh Gibson. The question is if Mike Epstein and Rick Reichardt–both of whom hit well in the Spring–can continue to contribute. The rotation looks good, with Corey Kluber, Carlos Zambrano, and Vean Gregg leading the way.

And then they actually play the games …

Andrew McCutchen opened the season for the Grays by taking Oswalt 388 feet to left for a HR in his first at-bat. Houston would tie it up in the top of the 3rd on a bloop single to right by Gwynn, but at that point it was clear both pitchers were on their game.

The top of the 5th saw back-to-back doubles by Grant “HR” Johnson and Jorge Posada, giving the Colt 45’s a 2-1 lead, but an inning later Epstein would tie the game with a groundout, scoring Stargell from 3rd.

A Kluber wild pitch would prove decisive, scoring Johnson from 3rd. That was it: Gwynn would score Craig Biggio, but Michael Jackson would slam the door in the 8th and Brad Lidge would earn the save, giving Houston an opening day 4-2 win.

Game 2 was close for 7 innings, as Ramsey and Gregg traded zeros, each allowing only 1 run. But Daniel Hudson relieved Gregg and was torched for 4 runs in 1 inning, The big blow was a 3 run HR from Berkman that traveled nearly 500 feet, and Houston went on to win 7-1.

Zambrano struggled through 3 innings, giving up 3 runs on 6 hits, with doubles by Goldschmidt and Wynn knocking in the runs. Stephen Strasburg had no such issues, throwing 6 shutout innings. Each team would add a run in the 8th, but Houston won again, 4-1.

At this point, the home fans were getting restless. At the least, they wanted to see the Grays score more than 1 run. Which they did–9 of them, in fact. The question is, would it be enough?

It didn’t seem so early on, as Houston scored 3 in the 1st and another Berkman HR in the 3rd put the Colt 45’s up 4-0. But in the bottom of the 4th, back-to-back doubles by Stargell and Roberto Clemente scored the Grays’ 1st run, and consecutive sacrifice flies brought the score to 4-3.

It stayed that way to the 7th, when Houston finally knocked Homestead starter Francisco Liriano out of the game, and a Wynn double made the score 5-3. Houston would add 6 more in the 8th, with a 3 run double by Bagwell and a 2 run HR by Wynn accounting for most of the damage.

The Grays would score 2 in the 8th and 4 on the 9th, with a bases-loaded triple by Davey Johnson the big hit, but it wasn’t enough, and Houston held on for the 11-9 win.

The Grays would finally get their 1st victory of the year in the series finale, winning 10-5 behind a strong start from Ray Brown. Stargell and Reichardt each hit HRs, and Clemente chipped in with 3 hits and 3 RBIs.

The strong start from Oswalt was expected, but those from Ramsey and Strasburg were a pleasant surprise for Houston, who were led by Berkman and Wynn, who combined for 11 RBI and 3 HRs. Wynn also stole 5 bases in the 5 games.

Clemente started the year red-hot with 9 hits and 5 RBI in the series, but really their issues were on the mound. The starters were mediocre, but the bullpen finished the 5 games with a 9.89 ERA.

Both teams emerged largely unscathed in the opening series: Houston’s game 5 starter, Bret Saberhagen, will miss about a week, with Dock Ellis or Scott Erickson likely to get the start when his turn in the rotation comes up again.

Spring Training Preview: Houston

  • There’s a lot to sort out here starting with the starting rotation, where the final 2 slots will go to someone from the group of Dock Ellis, Stubby Overmire, Bret Saberhagen, and Leon Day.
    • Saberhagen is leading the way in this group, and Scott Erickson has forced himself into the conversation as well. Day and Overmire are most likely to miss the roster cut based on performances so far.
      • Day has been horrible, earning a trip to AAA, along with Overmire.
      • The rotation is still a bit up for grabs. Stephen Strasbourg, Roy Oswalt, Ice Box Chamberlain, and Toad Ramsey are likely in, leaving Saberhagen, Ellis, and Erickson vying for the final spot and the long relief roles.
  • The bullpen is a bit more settled: Brad Lidge is set as the closer, but Spring performances will determine the exact roles for Trevor Hoffman, Tug McGraw, Mark Melancon, and Billy Wagner.
    • Melancon, Hoffman, and Andrew Chafin have been great, while Wagner has been hit extraordinarily hard.
      • Wagner and Dan Quisenberry are both on the verge of heading to AAA.
  • On the infield, only SS is set with Carlos Correa. Paul Goldschmidt and Jeff Bagwell are vying to start at 1B, DJ LeMahieu, Craig Biggio, and HR Johnson are in the mix at 2B, and George Brett, Morgan Ensberg, and Aramis Ramirez all have shot to start at 3B.
    • At 1B, Andres Galarraga has been the best of the bunch by a fair measure, with both Bagwell and especially Goldschmidt struggling.
      • Right now, there’s nothing to choose between Galarraga, Bagwell, and Goldschmidt.
    • Johnson’s forcing himself into the conversation somewhere as well, especially given Correa’s struggles at SS.
      • This is still true: Johnson is hitting everything thrown to him. The end result of this is Shawon Dunston likely not making the opening day roster.
      • 3B is pretty much settled: Brett is pounding the ball and both Ramirez and Ensberg are struggling.
  • The OF isn’t much clearer: the group of Luis Gonzalez, Larry Hisle, Gorman Thomas, and Casey Stengel look to have a slight edge, but any of Lance Berkman, Pete Hill, Felipe Alou, Jim Wynn, and Tony Gwynn could earn a starting position.
    • Wynn, Gwynn, and Stengel have been the standouts so far, with Wynn being perhaps Houston’s best hitter through 10 games. Hill, and especially Hisle, have struggled, with Hisle being sent to AAA in an effort to clear some roster space.
      • Alou and Hill are both struggling, and seem unlikely to make the roster. Hisle has been recalled, along with Lance Blankenship.
Near DefiniteLikelyPossibleLong Shot
Starting PitchersToad Ramsey
Roy Oswalt
Stephen Strasbourg
Ice Box Chamberlain
Scott Erickson
Dock Ellis
Bret Saberhagen
Middle RelieversMike Hartley
Tug McGraw
Andrew Chafin
Dan Quisenberry
Billy Wagner
SetupTervor Hoffman
Mark Melancon
CloserBrad Lidge
CJim O'RourkeJorge Posada
1BJeff Bagwell
Paul Goldschmidt
Andres Galarraga
2BHR JohnsonCraig Biggio
DJ LeMahieu
Lance Blankenship
3BGeorge BrettMorgan Ensberg
Aramis Ramirez
SSCarlos CorreaShawon Dunston
OFCasey Stengel
Jim Wynn
Tony Gwynn
Luis Gonzalez
Gorman Thomas
Lance Berkman
Pete Hill
Felipe Alou
Larry Hisle

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