Another chance to put Oakland away
ALDS Game 4 Preview: A's vs. Astros
Oct 7, 2020, 11:11 pm
Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images
Astros George Springer
Although the Astros, who dropped ALDS Game 3 to the A's, won't finish the postseason a perfect 13-0 with sweeps of all four series, they are still in prime position to move on to the ALCS. They hold a 2-1 lead going into ALDS Game 4, needing just one more win to take the best-of-five. Here is what to look for in Thursday's matchup:
Game Facts
When: Thursday October 8th, 2:35 PM Central.
Where: Dodger Stadium - Los Angeles, California.
TV: TBS.
Streaming: Watch TBS App.
Pitching Matchup: Frankie Montas vs. TBD.
Series: HOU leads 2-1.
Series Schedule
| Date & Time | Pitching Matchup | Home Team | |
| Game 1 | Astros 10, A's 5 | Lance McCullers Jr. (ND) vs. Chris Bassitt (ND) | A's |
| Game 2 | Astros 5, A's 2 | Framber Valdez (W) vs. Sean Manaea (L) | A's |
| Game 3 | A's 9, Astros 7 | Jesús Luzardo (ND) vs. Jose Urquidy (ND) | Astros |
| Game 4 | Thu 10/8, 2:35 PM | Frankie Montas vs. TBD | Astros |
| Game 5* | Fri 10/9, 2:35 PM | TBD vs. TBD | A's |
All games played at Dodger Stadium.
* If necessary
Game Storylines
Who will start on the mound for Houston?
With all the home runs and scoring in the first three games of this series, both teams feel the effects of using so many bullpen arms in these games happening on consecutive days instead of the ALDS's typical off-days. In fact, it sets up a precarious situation for Houston, who are waiting until Thursday morning on an update on Zack Greinke's status before they decide on their starter. If Greinke can pitch, obviously that presents the Astros their best shot, and they will put him out there.
If not, they have a couple of choices, most likely either Luis Garcia or Cristian Javier, who are the most rested and have started games this season. Garcia, who was not on the ALWC roster but is on the ALDS roster, faced this the A's in his start on September 9th. He held them scoreless over five innings in that game, leaving in line for the win before Houston's bullpen would allow the winning runs for Oakland. Javier pitched a scoreless inning out of the pen on Monday in Game 1, so he could likely get through a few innings if he's going well. No matter who is on the mound to start the game, Dusty Baker will probably be taking things inning by inning, and possibly batter by batter, depending on how the momentum shifts during the game.
The Astros need to get Montas out early
On the other side, Oakland has decided on Frankie Montas to be on the bump. He did not start in the ALWC series, instead coming in for two innings in ALWC Game 3 after Mike Fiers could not complete two frames. During the regular season, Montas started three times against the Astros, with a mixed bag of results.
On August 8th, he held Houston scoreless over seven innings in a win. On the 29th of that month, the Astros chased him out after just 3.1 innings and five runs in a seven-inning doubleheader game, handing him a loss. Then, on September 8th, he squeaked out a win after five two-run innings, with his offense bailing him out with runs against Zack Greinke in another part of a doubleheader. Having put up 22 runs so far, it's not so much a matter of if, but when, Houston will get hot at the plate again with the ball flying out of Dodger Stadium. Hopefully for them, though, it comes early against Montas so they can get into a heavily-used Oakland bullpen sooner rather than later.
Be sure to check SportsMap after the final out for an in-depth recap of the game, and follow me on Twitter for updates and reactions throughout each playoff game: @ChrisCampise
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.