a-rod an Astro?

[AggieJohn]

A-Rod an Astro?
July 20, 2006 02:09 PM

Could Alex Rodriguez be an Astros before the end of the month? I think so and here's how it happens.

Rodriguez does not appear to be long for New York. The booing for the 70 percent of the time he at the plate has the sharks in the water and even The Boss is wondering why A-Rod can't get the clutch hit.

So if the Yankees wanted to move him, they could fill a lot of holes that this team has thanks to injuries and a weak farm system.

If A-Rod was looking for a place to land where the pressure might not be to the level of hate he seems to have found in New York, maybe a place like say Houston would make sense. Maybe A-Rod would be just the bolt to stir the Astros who seems to still be floundering despite the additions of Roger Clemens and Aubrey Huff.

So here's the deal -- and this is going to hurt Corpus Christi -- but if I was running the Astros I'd run this deal up the flag pole and see what happened. Astros would trade pitcher Andy Pettitte, third baseman Huff and Corpus Christi Hooks outfielder Hunter Pence for Rodriguez.

For the Yankees, the deal bring a proven playoff pitching star in Pettitte back to New York, Huff will fill -- at least partially -- Rodriguez spot at third and in Pence, the Yankees would have the top prospect needed to maybe pry Bobby Abreu from Philadelphia without giving up their pirzed pitching prospect Phillip Hughes. While the Yankees would have only Abreu left when the dust cleared in 2007, they will have more money to fill in the gaps.

For the Astros, the deal may feel like they are getting ready to wave the white flag, but it also put them in great position if they don't get out of this funk to have great building blocks for 2007. At this point, Huff is only going to be around for another couple of months before someone overpays for him in free agency over the winter. Pettitte, who is in the final year of his contract, could return to Houston in 2007 for the right price. Losing star prospect Pence will hurt, but getting Rodriguez for basically Pence, Ben Zobrist and Mitch Talbot would be a deal they would make anytime.

What about A-Rod's money?

I'm glad you asked. Actually, the $25 million per season man doesn't cost that much for the Yankees. In fact, the Rangers pick up about $10 per season. So at $15 million, Rodriguez would be $3M cheaper than Jeff Bagwell is getting paid to sit at home this season.

With Rodriguez returning to short, the Astros could have an infield of Lance Berkman at first, Chris Burke at second, Rodriguez at short and probably coming off shoulder Morgan Ensberg at third. In the outfield, Preston Wilson in left or right, Willy Taveras in center and free agent to be signed in right unless Charlton Jimerson, Luke Scott or Jason Lane surprise. At catcher, unfortunately, the man with no stick, Brad Asumus will likely return, but minor leaguers Hector Gimenez (.274, 5 HRs in 47 games at Class AAA Round Rock) and Humberto Quintero (.294) might be ready.

On the mound, Roy Oswalt will again be the ace, and with the potential return of Pettitte, the beginning of the rotation will be fine. Brandon Backe, Wandy Rodriguez, Taylor Buchholz, Fernando Nieve, Jason Hirsh and Chris Sampson will fine okay in the 3rd-5th spots, but the Astros could also look for a bargain in free agency. Three of those six potential starters could find their way to a new and improved bullpen.

Sounds like a deal to me.

http://blogs.caller.com/sports_rant/archives/2006/07/arod_an_astro.html

[Emerson1]

I think the entire league at onepoint might be an astro.

[Fal44]

Originally posted by Emerson1
I think the entire league at onepoint might be an astro.

LMAO

[AggieJohn]

Originally posted by Emerson1
I think the entire league at onepoint might be an astro. i wish pupura would make moves that make you go, yes, you are moving in a positive direction.....shake up of same caliber talent is not a positive shake up 95% of the time

[SWMustang]

I thought the Astros made a lot of sense if the yankees were to trade Arod. We have some mediocre pitching we can trade. Even mediocre would help the yankees with that staff...

[sahen]

i dunno about that....ARod would be nice i guess but we could not get Pettite back and i think we will lose Roger after this year for sure, it could potentially backfire....

[AggieJohn]

Originally posted by sahen
i dunno about that....ARod would be nice i guess but we could not get Pettite back and i think we will lose Roger after this year for sure, it could potentially backfire.... have to agree

[AggieJohn]

J. R. Richard's Number should be retired, sign saying you believe so as well (http://www.petitiononline.com/richrd50/petition.html)

[wedo]

If they want Arod then why lot trade some guys from the farm club and Backe, Rodrigues. B/C Backe is always hurt and i can't remember the last time rodrigues didn't get rocked!!! All i know is that they need to do something b/c they are really stinking it up right now!!!

Im soo ready for football !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SWMustang]

come on wedo - say you've given up on them and they're dead and buried - the 'Stros need a spark. Do it for your team.

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by sahen
i dunno about that....ARod would be nice i guess but we could not get Pettite back and i think we will lose Roger after this year for sure, it could potentially backfire....

Pettitte is probably gone after this year anyway.

[sahen]

Originally posted by SWMustang
come on wedo - say you've given up on them and they're dead and buried - the 'Stros need a spark. Do it for your team. i have given up on them this year, u cant win a series against the cubs then u cant get to the playoffs....they dont have the spark that they have had the past 2 years...

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by sahen
i have given up on them this year, u cant win a series against the cubs then u cant get to the playoffs....they dont have the spark that they have had the past 2 years...

yea - you can only go to the well so many times. they're dead to me...

[sahen]

Originally posted by SWMustang
Pettitte is probably gone after this year anyway. i think Pettite likes Houston and will stay here if we want him and offer him enough money...

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by SWMustang
yea - you can only go to the well so many times. they're dead to me...

Incidentally - that was number 500!!! congrats to me!!!

[wedo]

Originally posted by SWMustang
come on wedo - say you've given up on them and they're dead and buried - the 'Stros need a spark. Do it for your team.

IM not givin up on them, went to a game two weeks ago when they played to Cardinals. Im just say the truth they are stinkin it up!! I just really like football better thats all !!!

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by wedo
IM not givin up on them, went to a game two weeks ago when they played to Cardinals. Im just say the truth they are stinkin it up!! I just really like football better thats all !!!

The astros can't win until people write them off. I really need you to do this for me.

[Bulldog_12]

I never have, and never will write them off. I didnt do it last year and wont do it this year. I still think they are gonna click. Its coming, just wait.

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by Bulldog_12
I never have, and never will write them off. I didnt do it last year and wont do it this year. I still think they are gonna click. Its coming, just wait.

I can't either - that's why I'm asking wedo to do it for me.

[sahen]

i guess my write off wasnt good enough for u...im one of the biggest astro fans there is out there but they r pretty much done this year, most of the time you only see a team make a run like the astros made the past 2 years once every 20-30 years, for the same team to do it twice, 2 years in a row is pretty unheard of...now they havent fallen far enough off of the wild card for a run at this time to be that big but if they keep playing like they are now they will be at that point by the time august or the middle of august gets here....they just arent playing good at all and it doesnt look like they are going to turn it around, i wouldnt be surprised if the mets sweep us this weekend to really put us out of the race....

[big daddy russ]

Stupid idea.

1. If they do this, Houston's bullpen is suddenly thinner than Nicholas Cage's hair. You have to have at least two great pitchers to make a serious run at a title. They'll have the Rocket for another three months. Then they'll have Oswalt. That's it. If we betray Andy, I doubt he's coming back.

2. We're not playing fantasy baseball. If I'm building a team, I won't trade away a player (Pettite) that will leave a gaping hole on the team that someone's going to exploit on the way to the playoffs.

3. Houston needs a spark, not necessarily a superstar. Who will that guy be? Will it be Huff? Will Houston trade for another guy, maybe an Aaron Rowand??? (Had to throw that plug in there-- he's my favorite player.) Or will that spark come from within the team like last year?

4. Stick with Huff for a while. He's a Texas boy and has never played for a winning MLB squad. Let him regrow his roots and then remind him of what it feels like to win. You do that, it'll be a lot easier to sign him than you might think.

5. You keep trading for the stars, you're building yourself up to be the Yankees of 2010. Well, except for the money to waste on free agents. You have no farm system, your cap figures are a mess, and in baseball it takes about four to five years to rebuild your pipeline of prospects.


Finally, someone said that some team out there is going to 'overpay' for Huff. Let's get something straight right now- Huff is one of the 20 best young hitters in the majors. He's only 29 or 30 and is still developing as a hitter. In the majors, a typical everyday player doesn't start to round out as a hitter until he's about 32 years old.

Furthermore, Huff is versatile in the field (can play 3B, 1B, or either of the corner OF positions-- has a cannon for an arm) and will be a .310/30/100-type of player for another seven or eight years. This means you have a core of three guys who can hit 35 HR and drive in 100 RBI any given year (Ensberg, Huff, and Berkman), one of the most clutch hitters in the game who has 20 HR potential (Chris Burke), and one of the fastest players in the bigs who's still working on his OBP (Taveras).

Houston's lineup is just fine. No glaring weaknesses right now (except maybe the bullpen) and they'll be competitive for a while. Don't screw it all up over A-Rod. Take a page out of the Spurs' book.

[big daddy russ]

And one more thing-- a 20 HR player is still considered a power hitter by major league scouts. We've been jaded by the longball era, but if you can drive 20 balls a year out of the park, you'll get a $4 or $5 million per contract (Eric Byrnes) in FA because some team out there needs a little power. If you can do that at a middle IF position (Chris Burke... and remember that Derek Jeter's 'only' a 20 HR player), you're a stud. Since he came up with the Astros, Houston could get a better deal on the kid that some team trying to pick him up in FA. I think both him and Ensberg make $500K a year, but they're due for some extensions.

[wedo]

Originally posted by SWMustang
The astros can't win until people write them off. I really need you to do this for me.


Fine !!! the Astros SUCK!!!!!!!!! They couldn't beat a Babe Ruthe team!!!! Heck they couldn't beat UT's women softball team!!!!

[Maroon87]

Originally posted by wedo
Heck they couldn't beat UT's women softball team!!!!

Better watch out...Phil will get mad!:p

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by wedo
Fine !!! the Astros SUCK!!!!!!!!! They couldn't beat a Babe Ruthe team!!!! Heck they couldn't beat UT's women softball team!!!!

thanks wedo - I needed that.

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by SWMustang
thanks wedo - I needed that.

What ya'll need is Randy Quaid's character from Major League
siiting behind the Astros dug-out for home games.

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by Sweetwater Red
What ya'll need is Randy Quaid's character from Major League
siiting behind the Astros dug-out for home games.

Vile Thing!
I think I loathe thee

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by SWMustang
Vile Thing!
I think I loathe thee

I bet he could get Lidge back on track. :D

[SWMustang]

Originally posted by Sweetwater Red
I bet he could get Lidge back on track. :D

I dunno. May take much more than that... He looks awful at times. If he could throw that slider for a strike he'd be pretty nasty. I think hitters are looking for the heater and if they pick up the slider they lay off.

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by SWMustang
I dunno. May take much more than that... He looks awful at times. If he could throw that slider for a strike he'd be pretty nasty. I think hitters are looking for the heater and if they pick up the slider they lay off.

Yeah, that's the worst thing that can happen to a pitcher...become
predictable.

[Bull Butter]

I may have half-believed this until I saw the source........John Allen.

Allen has a knack for creating ludicrous scenarios like this. He is also the one who wrote the infamous column during the 2005 HS baseball playoffs calling for the UIL to cancel the rest of the playoffs and hand the state title trophy to Moody. A funny thing happened on the way to state----THEY LOST! I don't know for sure, but I would venture to guess that a copy of that column found it's way to the San Antonio High School (was it Reagan or O'Connor?) that soon after eliminated the Trojans. Thanks a lot, John!

John Allen is a complete joke and needs to be run out of CC. Perhaps the Alice Echo-News needs a sports editor?

[Maroon87]

C'mon guys...you know the only way they turn it around is if the Chronicle puts an Astros tombstone on the front page.

On a related note, I bought the 2005 Astros season highlights DVD yesterday. I'm watching it tonight instead of watching the Stros get clubbed by the Mets. I need a pick me up...;)

[Maroon87]

Originally posted by Bull Butter
I may have half-believed this until I saw the source........John Allen.

Allen has a knack for creating ludicrous scenarios like this. He is also the one who wrote the infamous column during the 2005 HS baseball playoffs calling for the UIL to cancel the rest of the playoffs and hand the state title trophy to Moody. A funny thing happened on the way to state----THEY LOST! I don't know for sure, but I would venture to guess that a copy of that column found it's way to the San Antonio High School (was it Reagan or O'Connor?) that soon after eliminated the Trojans. Thanks a lot, John!

John Allen is a complete joke and needs to be run out of CC. Perhaps the Alice Echo-News needs a sports editor?

The Alice Echo lol...BTW it was Smithson Valley that beat Moody.

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by Bull Butter
I may have half-believed this until I saw the source........John Allen.

Allen has a knack for creating ludicrous scenarios like this. He is also the one who wrote the infamous column during the 2005 HS baseball playoffs calling for the UIL to cancel the rest of the playoffs and hand the state title trophy to Moody. A funny thing happened on the way to state----THEY LOST! I don't know for sure, but I would venture to guess that a copy of that column found it's way to the San Antonio High School (was it Reagan or O'Connor?) that soon after eliminated the Trojans. Thanks a lot, John!

John Allen is a complete joke and needs to be run out of CC. Perhaps the Alice Echo-News needs a sports editor?

I just read the first half of that article. Brian Cashman was on
Mike and Mike in the morning yesterday saying the exact opposite
about A-Rod and Steinbrenner ain't worried about him (A-rod).

[AggieJohn]

Originally posted by Bull Butter
I may have half-believed this until I saw the source........John Allen.

Allen has a knack for creating ludicrous scenarios like this. He is also the one who wrote the infamous column during the 2005 HS baseball playoffs calling for the UIL to cancel the rest of the playoffs and hand the state title trophy to Moody. A funny thing happened on the way to state----THEY LOST! I don't know for sure, but I would venture to guess that a copy of that column found it's way to the San Antonio High School (was it Reagan or O'Connor?) that soon after eliminated the Trojans. Thanks a lot, John!

John Allen is a complete joke and needs to be run out of CC. Perhaps the Alice Echo-News needs a sports editor?



i think he was on king size sports show this morning running his mouth, and stephen had to get off the air because the herd was bout to come on and couldn't cause this homer was running his trap

[big daddy russ]

Originally posted by Bull Butter
I may have half-believed this until I saw the source........John Allen.
I miss Richard Tijerina. Danged Austin American-Statesman.