The 30 Team/30 Day Report Cards: Day 9- Houston Astros

We're staying in the National League Central today, as we are heading south from Chicago to the Lone Star State. Today's report card will be issued to the Houston Astros!

Houston Astros

Record: 76-86 (Fourth place in NL Central, 15 games behind Cincinnati)

Batting Leaders

Batting Average: Jeff Keppinger (.288)

Home Runs: Hunter Pence (25)

RBIs: Hunter Pence (91)

On-base Percentage: Jeff Keppinger (.351)

Pitching Leaders

Wins: Brett Myers (14)

Strikeouts: Brett Myers (180)

Innings Pitched: Brett Myers (223.2)

ERA: Brett Myers (3.14). Bullpen- Wilton Lopez (2.96)

WHIP: Roy Oswalt (1.11). Bullpen- Wilton Lopez (1.06)

Saves: Matt Lindstrom (23)

Highlight of the Season: On August 3, the Astros blasted the Cardinals in St. Louis by a score of 18-4. Shortstop Angel Sanchez did most of the damage at the plate for Houston, going 4-6 with six RBIs.

Lowlight of the Season: On July 29, the Astros traded long-time staff ace and fan favorite Roy Oswalt to the Philadelphia Phillies for Anthony Gose, Jonathan Villar and J.A. Happ. In Oswalt’s ten seasons with Houston, he would record a 143-82 record with a 3.24 ERA, including back-to-back 20-win seasons in 2004 and 2005. Unfortunately, Oswalt would fall just one win short of tying Joe Niekro for the franchise record in wins with 144. Also worthy of mentioning is the departure of Lance Berkman, another long-time fan favorite, to the New York Yankees in a trade on July 31.

The Lowdown:

The Astros, who entered the season with a hefty $92 million payroll, featured a largely mediocre cast once again. However, the road the Astros traveled to reach mediocrity in 2010 was a wild one, to say the least. The team battled back from a horrible first two months to reach that status, beginning the season at 17-34, before recording a 59-52 mark the rest of the way. The Astros’ turnaround was surprisingly fostered by their pitching, as the team featured some solid performances from their starting rotation and bullpen. The performance of their pitching staff easily made up for their lackluster, punch-less offense, which is very uncharacteristic for this team, considering they play in one of the more hitter-friendly parks in baseball.

The 2010 season would also mark a significant changing of the guard with the team, as two long-time cornerstones would be traded before the deadline to get rid their hefty contracts. Long-time staff ace Roy Oswalt would be traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on July 29, while long-time outfielder and first baseman Lance Berkman would be traded to the New York Yankees just two days later. These two represented the last vestiges of the Astros from their glory years of 2001-2005, that saw the team win one division title, two Wild Card championships and a National League Pennant in 2005. With their departure, the Astros are becoming a considerably younger team, ready to move forward in the coming years.

Offense:

The usually potent Astros offense was anything but that in 2010, finishing in the bottom five of ML B in runs (28^th), batting average (26^th), on-base percentage (29^th), slugging (29^th) and home runs (29^th). While you would expect the Astros to put up relatively decent power statistics playing half of their games in the homer-friendly Minute Maid Park, their lineup consisted mostly of aging, over-the-hill veterans along with hitters who just are not all that great. The star of Houston’s offense in 2010 was the 27-year-old right fielder Hunter Pence, who put up virtually identical numbers as last year. Pence hit exactly .282 with 25 home runs for the second year in a row, while driving in 19 more runners this year with 91 RBIs. Even though the Texas native’s on-base percentage was only .325, Pence looks to become the centerpiece of this offense for the next several seasons, especially as Carlos Lee’s numbers gradually decline.

Houston also featured a dash of speed at the top of their order in Michael Bourn. Even though the 27-year-old Houston native saw his hitting number s decline a bit this year, he still stole 52 bases, tops in the National League. Unfortunately, the rest of the lineup besides the aforementioned two were not tops in anything, as the Astros featured underachieving stars such as Carlos Lee and Lance Berkman. “El Caballo” saw his power totals dip for a third consecutive season, as he hit just .246 with 24 home runs and 89 RBIs. This is very concerning for the Astros, considering that the team paid him $19 million in 2010, which makes it very unlikely that the team can trade him.

However, they were able to part ways with long-time fan favorite Lance Berkman, as they traded him to the Yankees at the deadline. The Astros were very fortunate to be able to move him and his $14.5 million contract, because for all of the good that Berkman has done for the franchise over the years, he wasn’t doing the team much good in 2010. In 85 games with the club, Berkman hit only .245, with 13 home runs and 49 driven in, a far cry from his prodigious totals from as recently as 2006.

Overall, the lineup Houston trotted out to the field was very sub-par more often than not. Even a homer-friendly yard like Minute Maid Park could not save this lackluster offense.

Final Grade: D

Pitching:

Believe it or not, much of Houston’s strength resided in their pitching rotation. The Astros featured a front two in their rotation that many teams would still like to have, as Brett Myers and Wandy Rodriguez anchored the rotation. While their peripheral numbers do not jump out at you, their reliability does, as Myers threw 223.2 innings this year, and Rodriguez fell just shy of 200 innings at 195. Myers was slightly better than Rodriguez in the rotation this year, going 14-8, with a 3.14 ERA and 180 strikeouts, while Rodriguez was 11-12 with a 3.60 ERA and 178 strikeouts.

A solid number three starter was quickly added to the rotation once the deadline hit, as lefty J.A. Happ came over from the Phillies in the Roy Oswalt trade. The 28-year-old still put up decent numbers in his second full big-league season, recording a 3.75 ERA in 72 innings pitched with the team. Even though Happ will likely never duplicate the outstanding numbers that Oswalt put up in an Astros uniform, he will definitely be a great addition to their rotation, as he should be able to improve.

Houston’s bullpen unfortunately could not duplicate the relative success of the starting rotation, as they finished with a 4.49 ERA, 27^th in MLB. The team sorely misses Jose Valverde providing a stable option at the end of ballgames, as they went with two closers this season, Matt Lindstrom and Brandon Lyon. While Lyon was serviceable as a closer, recording 20 saves and an ERA of 3.12 in 79 appearances, Lindstrom left something to be desired closing games, recording a 4.39 ERA in 58 appearances. Righty Wilton Lopez did a great job in the set-up role for Houston, recording 14 holds, with a 1.06 WHIP and a 2.96 ERA in 68 games.

When compared to the rest of baseball, Houston’s pitching staff falls in the middle of the road, finishing 17^th in ERA (4.09), 23^rd in WHIP (1.39) and 20^th in “batting average against” (.261). However, they do deserve some credit for keeping the ball in the ballpark, finishing 21^st in home runs allowed with 140.

Final Grade: C

Wild Card: Quality Starts

Surprisingly enough, the Astros tied for third in baseball in quality starts with 95, as they were knotted up with the Rays and Giants in this category, two postseason teams. If there’s something the Astros can build on in the future, it’s their pitching.

Final Grade: A

Overall:

Houston wasn’t a very good team this year, but you can see how improving the minor leagues can return this team back to prominence. For years, they have featured one of the worst farm systems in the game, largely because of the negligence brought on by owner Drayton McLane and his “win-now” philosophy. Houston would exert all of their time and energy into improving the major-league team, mostly at the expense of the minor league system, which was simply ignored. Now that players like Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Lance Berkman, Roy Oswalt, Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte are all gone, the team is discovering how important it is to have some capable hands ready to be called up to replace these players. When you are unable to lure free agents to your team anymore, it’s time to find a different organizational model.

Final Grade: D+

Check back soon for the report card on the Milwaukee Brewers!

The 30 Day/30 Team Report Cards: Day 8- Houston Astros

Thank you for stopping by once again! We have completed the first full week of our report cards, and we still have 23 teams left! Today's team will be the Houston Astros. Since you already know the routine, let's go!

Houston Astros:
Record: 74-88 (Fifth place in the NL Central, 17 games behind St. Louis).

Batting Leaders:
Batting Average: Miguel Tejada (.313)
Home Runs: Carlos Lee (26)
RBIs: Carlos Lee (102)
On-base Percentage: Lance Berkman (.399)

Pitching Leaders:
Wins: Wandy Rodriguez (14)
ERA: Wandy Rodriguez (3.02). Bullpen- LaTroy Hawkins (2.13).
Strikeouts: Wandy Rodriguez (193)
Innings Pitched: Wandy Rodriguez (205.2)
WHIP: Wandy Rodriguez and Roy Oswalt (1.24)
Saves: Jose Valverde (25)

Highlight of the Season: Even though their season was already over by this point, sweeping the defending World Champion Phillies in a four-game series at home from September 4-7, is always nice.

Lowlight of the Season: Back-to-back losses in San Francisco on July 3 and 4, by scores of 13-0 and 9-0. What made those two losses look even worse is that the Giants were known for having one of the more anemic offenses in MLB.

The Lowdown:
The Houston Astros are quite perhaps the most oddly constructed team in baseball. They have not been able to build off of the success they obtained during their glory days from 2004-2006, and with the way things are going now, the team might go downhill pretty quickly if something is not done. Their lineup in '09 had a odd hodge-podge of highly-paid veterans and young talent, which collectively fell short of Astros fans' expectations. Compounding matters was their pitching rotation, which was downright awful. Also, when you take into account that their opening day payroll came in at a whopping $102 million according to USA Today, it makes this season look all the more disappointing. Pardon me for using this overused phrase, but it is true about this team: "Houston, we have a problem," and it begins with their offense.

Offense:
The Astros offense in 2009 could be best described as being "feast or famine." There was a clear division in the lineup between the haves and the have nots; Lance Berkman, Miguel Tejada, Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn represented the former, while Kaz Matsui, Jeff Keppinger, Ivan Rodriguez and Geoff Blum represented the latter. It was a bizarre concoction, one that resulted in a very inconsistent offense, with the top five guys making up the bulk of it. The Astros scored only 643 runs as a team, which was a pitiful 27th in MLB. Also, despite playing half of their games in one of the more notorious hitters' parks in the majors, they only hit 142 homers, which was 25th in MLB.

Even though I still considered Lance Berkman to be a major player in Houston's offense last season, he had an "off" year by his standards. While he did manage to draw 97 walks in 2009 (good for 8th in MLB), he hit only .274, which is puzzling considering that his career average is .299. His 25 home runs could also be considered below average; however, he tends to be a streaky power hitter. In 2006, he went deep a whopping 45 times, while two years later, he hit only 29 home runs despite playing in more games that year (152 in '06 compared to 159 in '08). However, his average stayed steady, as he hit over .300 in both years. Some people might speculate that he has peaked, and is on the downside of his career. Nonetheless, it should be interesting to watch him next year to see if this year was just a fluke, or a sign of things to come for him.

Obviously, what killed this team's offense was the lack of production from the "have-nots" that I mentioned. Keppinger, Matsui, Rodriguez and Blum all hit under .260, and all of them had on-base percentages of .330 or lower. Rodriguez had an especially pathetic .280 OBP, and one has to wonder if the end is near for the future Hall of Famer and former MVP award winner. However, he signed a two-year, $6 million dollar deal with the Nationals this past week, so both he and the Nats believe that he is not quite finished yet.

This team's offense is so strange and yet so bad at the same time. That is surprising, considering the amount of talent they have on their roster. This lineup could certainly do a lot better.
Final Grade: D+

Pitching:
Can you name the Astros' best starting pitcher in 2009? Nope, it wasn't Roy Oswalt. It was lefty Wandy Rodriguez! While he has not had the success or the track record of Oswalt, Rodriguez became the de facto ace of the staff last season, stepping up to win 14 games and recording a 3.02 ERA. Rodriguez went about achieving his success in a much different way than Oswalt usually does, too. Oswalt is a pure power pitcher who can get away with mistakes out over the plate, while Wandy is a more of a pitcher who usually has to hit his spots in order to be effective. His fastball can reach into the low to mid nineties, but it is not nearly as dominant as Oswalt's heater, which reaches into the high nineties. The Astros and their fans have to be pleased with his emergence, and they have to be looking forward to next year, hoping that he will continue to improve.

Roy Oswalt, much like Berkman in the lineup, had an off year of his own, finishing with an uncharacteristic 8-6 record, to go along with a 4.12 ERA. The ERA was nearly a full run over his career average of 3.23. Despite this, he still managed to record a solid 1.24 WHIP, which tied Rodriguez for the best on the staff. The weak 8-6 record despite making 30 starts this season can also be attributed to just plain bad luck, as he recorded a ridiculous 16 no-decisions this season. You can thank their inconsistent offense for that, or you can thank their bullpen.

Two people you cannot place any blame on in the 'pen would be LaTroy Hawkins and Jose Valverde. Hawkins worked primarily as the set-up man for Valverde, and he was lights-out, appearing in 65 games and recording a 2.13 ERA in that time frame. His efforts created the bridge to Valverde, who recorded 25 saves in 29 chances, while posting a 2.33 ERA. However, in a puzzling decision, the Astros decided not to bring back either of the two, letting them walk as free agents after the season.

Collectively, the staff finished with a 4.24 ERA, which was 24th in MLB. Opponents also hit .275 off of them, which was 26th in MLB. Plus, the staff gave up a staggering 770 runs, which was the eighth highest in MLB, and the fourth highest in the National League. The people outside of Rodriguez, Hawkins and Valverde just did not get the job done, plain and simple.
Final Grade: D

Wild Card: Youth
Youth was served in Houston in 2009, much like it was in Baltimore and Pittsburgh. Michael Bourn (26) and Hunter Pence (26) are giving Astros fans hope for the future, as they both put together brilliant seasons. Bourn was the speedster in the lineup, as he recorded 61 steals, which led the National League, and was good enough for second in MLB, trailing Boston's Jacoby Ellsbury by nine. He also hit a solid .285 as well, hitting primarily out of the lead-off spot.

Pence also put together a fine breakout season of his own, hitting 25 home runs and driving in 72 in 159 games, as he became a potent bat in Houston's lineup. He also recorded a .282 batting average to go with the home run and RBI totals.

On a team that is usually devoid of youth, Bourn and Pence each serve as youthful symbols to the Astros' future. Plus, they're both from Texas; Pence is from Fort Worth, while Bourn is a local boy from Houston. That has to count for something too, doesn't it?
Final Grade: B+

Overall:
This is one weird team. In one corner, you have Bourn and Pence, two young guys who are about to make a name for themselves in the National League. On the other hand though, you have a bunch of highly-paid veterans on the team who may not be around in a few years. It seems as if Houston has come to an organizational crossroads; they are going to have to go in one direction or the other. Do they need to blow it all up and go completely young, or do they need to keep increasing their payroll exponentially in order to bring home the city's first-ever World Series title? Owner Drayton McLane is something of a maverick, who gets very impatient when the team is not doing well, but with the way things look for them, he may have to swallow his pride and try to rebuild.
Final Grade: C-

Check back tomorrow for the report card on the San Diego Padres!