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The Astros are new to the American League and cannot be expected to master the differences between the leagues all at once. However, I would not have thought the designated hitter concept would baffle them so badly. With the DH, all that is demanded is that he can hit. It doesn't matter if he can't field, he doesn't have to be a speed burner, all that matters is...can he hit?
Houston DHs so far in 2013 have hit .197/.275/.347. That is a .622 OPS on a team which overall has a .675 OPS. The Astros designated hitters are actually dragging down the offensive averages for the guys with the gloves. Remove the 469 plate appearances made by Houston DHs and the team OPS rises to .720.
The Astros are new to the American League and cannot be expected to master the differences between the leagues all at once. However, I would not have thought the designated hitter concept would baffle them so badly. With the DH, all that is demanded is that he can hit. It doesn't matter if he can't field, he doesn't have to be a speed burner, all that matters is...can he hit?
Houston DHs so far in 2013 have hit .197/.275/.347. That is a .622 OPS on a team which overall has a .675 OPS. The Astros designated hitters are actually dragging down the offensive averages for the guys with the gloves. Remove the 469 plate appearances made by Houston DHs and the team OPS rises to .720.
We just haven't produced at that spot this year. Bo Porter has had so many lineups just to get the right guys in the right situations, all the while trying to get players plenty of playing time.
Regarding profitability, the big league club will eventually catch up, regardless of whatever accuracies or inaccuracies were in that article. The minor league system is the strongest in the league now with every one of Houston's affiliate teams either vying for or having clinched playoff berths. That's something. It speaks for the prospects the Astros currently have. After the conclusion of this regular season, we should start seeing steady improvement of the Astros, not only in individual talent, but also in team play. They have one more month of baseball to be played, so it's a matter of time to see where they'll be for next year's draft.
One thing for sure: Bo Porter and Jeff Luhnow will have a much better idea of where the players stand and what the positional needs will be going into the coming offseason as opposed to the last one. There's a lot of evaluating going on, but some of the more recent acquisitions are looking real good right now. The rebuilding still has a ways to go, but we're seeing progress with this team.
We'll have at least two things to address in the offseason, and that's the bullpen and getting the outfield settled. Another issue is the excessive strikeouts by Astros hitters, particularly Chris Carter. They'll need improvement. A few of the guys are being more patient at the plate. Catcher and the infield already are set. The starting rotation looks more promising by the day (Peacock's Friday outing notwithstanding).
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