IT'S ALL RIGHT THERE
How a familiar face could shed light on lengths Astros willing to go with Abreu
Jun 11, 2024, 2:18 pm
IT'S ALL RIGHT THERE
Coming off a soul crushing extra-innings loss on Monday night, the Astros now sit 7.5 games behind the Mariners in the AL West.
And despite Rafael Montero coming in and coughing up a 3-1 lead, he's not the one taking the majority of the blame for the loss. That blame is being directed at first baseman Jose Abreu and manager Joe Espada. Also, senior advisor to ownership and baseball operations Jeff Bagwell if you read our comment section.
Abreu went 0-4 in the loss, and had a big strikeout against Giants closer Camilo Doval in the ninth inning with two runners on base.
Espada was asked after the game why he didn't pinch hit for Abreu. Espada told The Athletic, “I have confidence in Abreu there, getting a good at-bat against Doval.” Espada also said he had a short bench and that impacted the decision.
As disappointing as the loss to the Giants was, fans are more upset about the reality of the 2024 season. This club finds all kinds of ways to lose. And the Astros aren't giving themselves their best chance to win with Abreu in the lineup regularly.
It's my belief, the longer the Astros give Abreu to prove he's a startable player, the less likely it is that Espada will be back in 2025.
So how long will this experiment go on? Some believe if Abreu hasn't turned things around by the end of June, the club will move on from him. Let's explore that option for a moment. If they keep running Abreu out there for the rest of the month, will the season even be salvageable by the time they make the switch?
To be fair, Jon Singleton's numbers have fallen off a cliff (2-23) since the return of Abreu. So it's not like Singleton is giving Espada a reason to play him. Which says a lot considering Abreu has one game with multiple hits since returning to the team.
Here's another option, they play Abreu for the rest of the season. This choice sounds terrifying, but would it really surprise anyone? This is the same team that insisted on playing Martin Maldonado over Yainer Diaz last season. And Maldy wasn't making Abreu money.
When the Astros had a better option on the roster, they still played Maldonado. One could argue Singleton is a better option than Abreu, but not by a big enough margin to justify eating Abreu's massive contract.
What really needs to happen is to play Joey Loperfido at first base and see what that looks like. Something the team has refused to do up to this point. Loperfido was playing first base every other day before being recalled to the big leagues. Since rejoining the Astros he has zero at-bats.
This is why I'm slowly starting to place more of the blame on Espada. Astros GM Dana Brown has said that Espada makes the lineups. Whether that's true or not, who knows, but Espada is going to be held accountable for the results.
At some point he has to realize, it's better to win or lose doing it your way. Dusty Baker, for better or worse, did it his way. He took heat for not playing Chas McCormick and Yainer Diaz enough, but he was willing to die on that hill.
And to that end, we have to point out that he's not the manager anymore, so going against the recommendations of the front office could be one of the reasons for that.
However, if the Astros keep playing like this, Espada will be looking for a new job regardless. He's a perfect scapegoat should the Astros decide to part ways with him.
If the fanbase sees that he's exploring every option (Loperfido, Mauricio Dubon, Diaz, Victor Caratini) on the roster at first base, and putting the best team on the field every night, they can at least accept that the team had a down year. It happens. But you have to try. If Loperfido's defense isn't up to snuff, like they believe, then you try something else.
Failing can be contagious
Let's put the fanbase aside for a moment. Have we already come to a point where this is hurting team morale? The Astros had some momentum going when they decided to bring back Abreu. One could argue he cost the team a win in his second game back because of his play at first base. We all remember that disaster of a series in Seattle, right?
When Abreu comes up to the plate, you expect for him to strikeout. That can rub off on a team, where they start to expect bad things to happen. Pitchers hang breaking balls, gold glove players like Dubon and Jeremy Pena make errors late in games. We're seeing all that stuff happen now.
The Maldy effect
So what happens next? Will the team handle Abreu like they did Maldy? Just keep playing him and ignore the results? Based on what we've seen, probably.
There are some differences in these two scenarios that make me think otherwise. The Astros were willing to ask Abreu to go work on his swing in Florida, knowing he could say no. And that was only after one month of abysmal hitting, in 2024 at least.
It seems Dana Brown knows there's a problem, but are they willing to do anything about it? Astros owner Jim Crane might be thinking the team made it to the ALCS with a bad Abreu last year, why make a change?
One reason would be, nobody is paying money to watch Abreu hit. They tolerate it so they can watch the rest of the team play. But if they keep putting this product on the field all summer, they're going to struggle to pack the ballpark. Especially when the temperature inside Minute Maid isn't much cooler than outside.
Maybe that will get Jim Crane's attention.
Despite a last-minute comeback attempt by Gonzaga on Saturday, the Cougars defeated the Bulldogs and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the sixth straight NCAA Tournament.
Houston will face the No.4 seed Purdue, who made it to the championship game last year.
The Boilermakers will be one of the toughest opponents the Cougars have faced thus far and will essentially have the home-court advantage with the game taking place in Indianapolis.
Despite the daunting matchup on paper, Houston is currently an -8.5 favorite to win this game. The Cougars should be able to handle Purdue so long as their offense stays hot and they continue to play defense at an elite level.
Keep the offense flowing
Houston guard LJ Cryer matched a career-high with 30 points against Gonzaga and has been the offensive focal point of this team.
This season, the Baylor transfer has averaged 15.6 points per game and has stepped up to be one of the unquestioned leaders of this team.
In addition to Cryer, the Cougars have Milos Uzan and Emanuel Sharp, who can carry the offensive load as they did during the Big 12 Tournament and against SIUE on Thursday.
J’Wan Roberts is another key factor for Houston’s success. The senior forward seems to have recovered from his ankle injury and has been a productive player since returning to the lineup.
Roberts leads the team in rebounds and is one of the most efficient scorers for the Cougars, averaging more than 50% from the field over his last five seasons.
Houston’s dynamic offense and elite defense makes this team one of the toughest to beat during the tournament.
Containing Purdue’s stars
The Boilermakers have two proficient scorers on their team, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Braden Smith, who each average over 15 points per game.
Kaufman-Renn scored 22 points in his previous game against McNeese State and has been one of Purdue’s best players for most of this year.
Roberts and Joseph Tuggler will likely be assigned to the junior forward to slow down his offense, forcing his teammates to step up.
Smith is Purdue’s second-leading scorer, averaging 16 points per game, and has the most assists and steals for the Boilermakers this season.
Both Uzan and Cyrer, who have been elite parameter defenders, will cover the Purdue guard and limit his production.
Containing both Kaufman-Renn and Smith will be Houston’s top priority and the key to come away victorious.
Play Cougar basketball
Head coach Kelvin Sampson has now made it to at least the Sweet 16 six consecutive times and has his team well-positioned to make another deep tournament run.
Since arriving in Houston, the 69-year-old coach has turned this program from an afterthought to one of the best basketball teams in the country year after year.
Sampson’s key to his success is instilling a defensive-first mentality into his team and getting the best effort out of his players.
This season is no different, as Houston has the number-one ranked defense in the nation and is holding their opponents to 58.4 points per game on average.
If the Cougars can create consistent offense and continue playing defense at an elite level, they should win this game with ease and advance to the Elite 8 for the first time in three years.
The Houston-Purdue game will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium on Friday at 9 pm. The winner will play either Kentucky or Tennessee in the next round.