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A Brewster McCloud Review by Wayne R. Roberts

June 12, 2018

Brewster McCloud Soars Again
In the Astrodome, 1970.

A Brewster McCloud Review

By Wayne R. Roberts

Thank you, Wayne, for including me as a recipient of an e-mail that was really an Astrodome and Houston history column that cried out loudly for publication. ~ i.e., Welcome to The Pecan Park Eagle as another fine contributing author! ~ Bill McCurdy, Publisher.

I’ve been waiting for 12 years to get Brewster McCloud from Netflix but for some reason they haven’t carried it.  I was tipped that it is now available on Amazon in a new remastered DVD and ordered it.

In the event you haven’t seen it I’ll spare telling the plot of this surrealistic film made in Houston in 1970 by legendary director Robert Altman.  Never his most popular flick, it apparently was done immediately after MASH and uses many actors that appear  over ad over in Altman movies: Bud Cort, Sally Kellerman, Michael Murphy, John Schuck, and Stacey Keach and introduces Shelley Duvall who Altman discovered in early film preparation when she was a clerk in the Greenspoint Mall Foley’s.  It also includes Margaret Hamilton who was the wicked witch in, yes, The Wizard of Oz.

Not particularly politically correct (was Altman ever?), it is a must for those who lived in Houston at that time.  For me, the shots in Astroworld are breathtaking—made in the area in which I groundskept, though not when I was there.

Quickly, here’s what I took away in this first viewing in 20 years, in no particular order:

  • Houston skyline, whoa, was it different
  • The Medical Center sure was smaller
  • Chase scenes occur in the South Main, Loop 610, OST area and the cow pastures and fields are shocking
  • Brewster lives in the bomb shelter in the Dome
  • Incredible behind the scenes shots of the Dome
  • On the radio: Hudson & Harrigan and KILT news
  • 1970 Houston Chronicle
  • Drive along South Main includes Ye Olde College Inn
  • North Main includes the old M&M Cotton Exchange (now UH-Downtown)
  • Love Street/Allen’s Landing
  • Astroworld Hotel exterior and rooms
  • Astrodome gift shop, Domeskeller, The Countdown Cafeteria
  • Houston Zoo
  • Game shots of the Astros from the screen where you passed to go from the outfield bleachers to the Mezzanine (or tried to sneak through)
  • Weingarten’s in Montrose
  • Mecom Fountain
  • Pre rehab buildings along Montrose Blvd
  • Uncrowded freeways—many many driving scenes of downtown and SW Houston, OST-Fannin area chase scenes
  • Humble and Esso gas stations
  • Brays Bayou
  • Allen Parkway at early Tranquility Park (I think that’s its name)

For us old-timers, this is a must watch.

This is worth a more elaborate McCurdy report after you see it!

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

 

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Posted in Baseball, culture, History, Houston | 2 Comments »

Maxwell Kates: About Bobby Shantz

June 11, 2018

THE SLOW BOAT TO MISSOURI

Bobby Shantz’ Improbable Journey from Washington to St. Louis

Author Maxwell Kates

By Maxwell Kates

 

Bobby Shantz Throws the First Pitch.

It’s a well known fact that on April 10, 1962, Bobby Shantz threw the very first pitch in Houston major league history, a strike one curve to Lou Brock of the Chicago Cubs. It proved to be a 11-2 complete game victory for the diminutive southpaw, the first big league win in the State of Texas.

(Editorial Apology. And pass the “E” to me. As the knows-better editor here on the pertinent facts about the original opening day in the life of our Houston MLB franchise, I take responsibility for the scoring error reaching print originally as 5-0. I also want to thank Tom Hunter for what he does so well. And that is – pointing out the obvious and not so obvious publication errors in baseball history. We’ll try, as always, to do better in the future here at TPPE.)

Shantz recently remarked that he would have liked to have spent more time with the Colt .45s. In actual fact, he pitched only two additional games for Houston, a no-decision at the Polo Grounds on April 17 followed by a 2-1 loss to the Milwaukee Braves at Colt Stadium on April 27. Shantz was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for John Anderson and Carl Warwick on May 7, thereby ending his tenure both with the Houston Colt .45s and as a starting pitcher. What you may not know, Bobby Shantz was a gnat’s eyelash away from joining the Cardinals two seasons earlier.

Robert Clayton Shantz was born on September 26, 1925 in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. After a tour of duty in the Second World War with service in the Philippines, Shantz in 1947 signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Athletics. He reached the varsity club in 1949 and in 1952, enjoyed the season of his career. Posting a record of 24-7, Shantz maintained a slash line of 152 strikeouts against 63 walks, 27 complete games, and a 2.48 earned run average. Not only did Shantz win the American League’s Most Valuable Player Award, he also starred in an RKO Pictures short entitled “Bobby Shantz.”

Bobby Shantz Movie Poster.

Injuries derailed Shantz’ progress until 1955, by which time the Athletics had moved to Kansas City. He was an impressive fielding pitcher per se, winning the first of eight consecutive Gold Glove Awards in 1957 as a member of the New York Yankees. Leading the junior circuit with an earned run average of 2.45, Shantz pitched in his first World Series, a losing effort to the Braves. He also pitched in the 1960 World Series, limiting the Pirates to one hit in his first five innings of relief work in the epic Game 7 before being responsible for three Pittsburgh runs in the bottom of the 8th. The Yankees tied it up in the top of the 9th before losing the World Series on Bill Mazeroski’s walk-off home run.

Shantz joined the defending World Champions in 1961 in a trade with the Washington Senators after they selected him first overall in the expansion draft. In slightly less than two years, he embarked on an odyssey from New York to Washington to Pittsburgh to Houston to St. Louis. This is when Shantz nearly went directly to the Cardinals from the Washington Senators.

That Old Man River Just Keeps Rolling Along.

Almost immediately, St. Louis general manager Vaughn P. ‘Bing’ Devine approached Ed Doherty, his counterpart in Washington, to express interest in Shantz. Devine wanted to use Shantz as a setup man for Lindy McDaniel. The Senators demanded 1st baseman Joe Cunningham in return, but when Devine refused to trade him, offered a package of three players instead.

Meanwhile, after being outscored in the World Series 60 runs to 27, Pittsburgh wanted to shore up their mid-relief as well. General manager Joe Brown envisioned Shantz as a potential set-up man for Elroy Face and offered the Senators a package of three players of his own. Washington’s manager was Mickey Vernon, a popular player and batting champion for the original Senators who served as a coach for Brown’s Pirates in 1960. Vernon was particularly impressed by power hitting 1st base prospect R C Stevens, who became a catalyst in any trade talk for Bobby Shantz. After including outfielder Harry Bright and pitcher Bennie Daniels, the deal became official – Shantz was going to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Bobby Shantz as a Pittsburgh Pirate, 1961.

Stevens hit 37 home runs while driving in 109 runs for the Pirates’ Pacific Coast League affiliate at Salt Lake City. Teammate Harry Bright, meanwhile, walloped 27 home runs with 119 RBI.  Neither one of them lived up to their potential as members of the Washington Senators. Stevens played in 33 games with no home runs and two RBI during his swan song in the major leagues. Bright offered two respectable seasons for Washington, batting .273 with 17 home runs and 67 RBI in 1962 before he was traded to Cincinnati after the season. Daniels, meanwhile, posted a record of 27-60 with an earned run average of 4.14 in parts of five seasons with the Senators.

Now, what about those three players the Cardinals were offering for Shantz?

Bobby Shantz as a St. Louis Cardinal.

The first of the players offered was Washington’s choice of pitcher Ron Kline or outfielder Walt Moryn. While Moryn had only one season left, Kline pitched respectably for another decade in the big leagues – five years, ironically enough, with the Washington Senators.

The second player was a choice of minor league prospects or veterans from Ed Bauta, Willard Schmidt, Dean Stone, John Glenn, or Ben Mateosky. It would be easy to see why Washington might not have been over the moon about any of them.

Not This John Glenn.

The third and final player was a 25 year old right-handed pitcher from Nebraska who split the 1960 season between the rotation and the bullpen. After posting a record of 3-5 in 1959, he went 3-6 with an earned run average of 5.61 in 1960. Clashing frequently with Cardinals’ manager and Houston resident Solly Hemus, it was easy to see why St. Louis was eager to trade this pitcher.

That’s right. Congratulate yourself if you guessed it was Bob Gibson.

Bob Gibson

Would Gibson have emerged as the eminent pitching superstar in a Washington uniform? We’ll never know for sure. For one thing, he would not have known the benefit of the all-star cast who behind him for the Cardinals. Secondly, it was only after Hemus was replaced as manager by Johnny Keane that Gibson was moved into the starting rotation permanently. By 1962, Gibson’s earned run average was lowered to 2.85 as he struck out 208 batters. Two years later, Gibson went 19-12 with a 3.01 earned run average, striking out 245 before pitching a complete game victory over the Yankees in Game 7 of the World Series. He was on his way to writing his own ticket to Cooperstown as a first ballot Hall of Famer.

Joining the Cardinals in May 1962, Shantz remained a Cardinal until June 1964 when he was traded to their archrivals, the Chicago Cubs. After ending the season with his hometown Phillies, he ended his 16 year career in the major leagues. Shantz still lives in the Philadelphia area and, at 92, he is the oldest living player ever to appear in a Houston Colt .45s uniform.

Bobby Shantz Today.

 

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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Posted in Baseball | 4 Comments »

Frank Mancuso Shows Up in “Mystery” Card

June 11, 2018

No matter how far they go back in time, or out in reach over the wide world of athletic competition, the new Houston Sports Hall of Fame will be impossibly pressed to find any two candidates more qualified to fit the requirements of any serious honor along these lines than Gus and Frank Mancuso.

gus mancuso

Gus Mancuso. Gus was born in Galveston (12/05/1905) and Frank was born in Houston (05/23/1918) in Houston. The Mancusos both grew up in Houston; both learned how to play baseball in Houston as future MLB quality catchers; both lived out their lives in Houston as contributing citizens (Gus was a longtime post-playing days sports reporter and Buffs game telecaster for Channel 13, Franks served as a City Council member for the east end for thirty years); both men died in Houston, Gus on 10/26/1984 at near age 79 and Frank on 08/04/2007 at 89 years; and both are buried at Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery, just across Griggs road to the south and the neighborhood we remember today as Pecan Park.

frank mancuso

Frank Mancuso. Both Mancusos were catchers with World Series experience. Gus played at the MLB level for 17 seasons (1928-1945), batting a career .265 and a high of .366 over 71 games in 1930. Frank played 4 big league seasons (1944-1937) with a .268 high for 1945. In 1944, Frank caught for the St. Louis Browns in their only appearance in a World Series. He batted .667 in the ’44 Series against the Cardinals.

The Mancusos lived for family and the future of our young people. Our good fortune at the McCurdy household at 6646 Japonica Street was to have lived only five doors away from the home of the mother of Gus and Frank Mancuso. She lived at the corner of Japonica and Flowers Street.

What a sweet lady she was! I don’t know how often they went shopping togehter. I just remember that our mom took the mother of Gus and Frank with her when she needed to go to the grocery store, any time that she both needed and wanted a ride.

What a sweetheart both those moms were. Many years later, Frank used to tell me stories of his childhood and how his mom had collected all kinds of cloth that she sewed into shirts for Gus and him. I can see my own mom doing the same thing, had she ever needed to do so.

Doing with little. Or doing without. They were both ways of life in Pecan Park, but we had plenty to eat. And meals were cooked at home each night. In the name of love. What else do you need?

Back to baseball. Partially.

Frank Mancuso spent much of his late career time in the early 1950s with the Houston Buffs. We street kids tried not to bother him whenever our paths happened to cross those of either brother. Most of my passing contact was with Frank, who was also quiet and smiling, always, or so it seems now, with a happy nod of the head to each of us that waved or smiled or acknowledged him in person as one of our local heroes.

When the time comes, and we are done with the “no-brainer” business of inducting all the famous Houston sports figures who have proudly worn # 34 in our city’s behalf, it will be time to consider the Houston figures who’ve given their heart, soul, and passion in our behalf as either apple core Houstonian athletes or as centurions of Houston Sports Glory.

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Note About the Mancuso Card Used Here. On the heels of Shaun Bejani’s recent appearance before the Larry Dierker Chapter of SABR to stir interest in supporting his grandfather Frank Mancuso and  great-uncle Gus Mancuso for future induction into the new Houston Sports Hall of Fame, I had a totally unrelated call from my cousin, Jim Hunt,  about a card he found among some old belongings as he worked on his own ancient baseball collections.

“Cousin Jim” knew nothing about the renewed interest in the Mancusos because of the new Houston sports hall, but he also happens to be a big Mancuso supporter, so, I’m sure he will back any serious effort to make that happen, when the time comes.

When the Time Comes. Therein lies the rub. Nothing bizarre about it. It’s just how it is. If the Gus and Frank Mancuso cases were totally dependent upon the availability of living testimony to their absolute worthiness of the honor, we are already past the time that those who played ball with either man could speak up in their behalf’s. And now it may take another ten to fifteen years for the local Hall to go through the next wave of “hot ticket” Houston names to get into the more historical group that now includes the Mancusos. By that time, and as my old friend, the late Arthur Richmond of the New York media, the Mets, and Yankees loved to say, the rest of us Mancuso in vita fans will have gone “Bye, Bye, Babylon!”

Best Hope. If someone could get to the HSHOF induction planning committee early enough to include, at least, one or two veteran choice inductee selections annually from the start, it could lay the groundwork for doing this thing right and making the inclusion of deceased, but no less deserving people available for eternal honors coming true during the lifetimes of their families and a few close friends. Perhaps, important catalytic people like Mike Acosta of the Astros and local Historian Mike Vance could help with this issue, if they are involved in the plan’s formulation. They are each historians of great ability and integrity, the kind of people we need involved in getting the Houston Hall off to a great start.

The Frank Mancuso Card Shown Here. I can’t be sure, but I could not reach him for confirmation or disclaimer prior to going to publication today, but I have a hunch that we may be looking at the work of an old friends and writing/working colleague of mine from back around the turn of the century.

Ronnie Joyner, a talented artist, writer, book producer, and musician may have done this card and the series it came from. It looks very similar to the work he did on a card series on the 1944 St. Louis Browns. Whenever I get an answer from Ronnie, I will post it here as an addendum to this original version of the column.

Meanwhile, enjoy what you see.

The card is a front-and-backer of Frank Mancuso, and obviously one that came out no earlier than late 1957 or early 1948, based on the backside data display – which is all about Frank’s four seasons (1944-1947) in the big leagues with both the Browns and Senators. “337” is the time reference number here. That’s the total number of big league games that Frank Mancuso played during his entire MLB career.

The card is listed as #101 in this series. We could not Google our way to any easy answers.

Thank you.

The Pecan Park Eagle

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Addendum #1: E-Mail Response from Artist Ronnie Joyner, Sun., 6/10/2018, 8:30 PM.

One New Mystery Replaces Another. This just in …. About 8:20 PM CDT, Sunday, 6/10/2018. …. The following e-mail from Ronnie Joyner explains the new short-lived mystery of the Washington Senator Frank Mancuso “one-of-a-kind card”. Looks like my intuition was working well on this one.

Now I’ve got a personal mystery on my hands:

How did my elder cousin Jim Hunt gets his hands on a copy of this “rare” custom-made card of Frank Mancuso? Jim Hunt did not personally know either Frank Mancuso or Ronnie Joyner, nor did I know of this custom card’s creation earlier than tonight’s Joyner e-mail to have somehow supplied my cousin with a copy years ago. It just had Ronnie’s style written all over it. That’s mostly what I had going for me in speculation.  That hunch, plus the material feel and look of the card did not appear as aged as any other card I’ve seen from the late 1940s.

The most logical explanation is that the Mancuso card may have been included with some things that Joyner sent to me years ago that then got passed on by me to my cousin Jim Hunt earlier without inventory or knowledge of the Mancuso card’s inclusion. So, for now, at least fifteen to twenty years later, it comes back to me from my also aging cousin as something that seems new to each of us. But really maybe isn’t.

Please forgive us. The Octogenarian Trail is not always the most level street to travel.

Ronnie Joyner’s Note. 

Hey Bill,

          First, thanks for writing! I have not forgot about sending you my 1957 Dodgers book and some info on my band’s CDs. I’m just behind on my correspondence! 
          About Frank’s Senators card, you’re right — I created that for Frank back in 1995 or thereabouts. There was no series — just a one-off of Frank. I thought the number “101” looked cooler than no number, so that’s why I did that. It was a quickie production.
          Frank asked me to make a card of him, and my own passion for the Senators inspired me to selfishly depict him in a Nats uniform. Once he saw it he politely said he loved it, but everyone down in his neck of the woods knew him as a Brownie — so could I do another one of him in a Browns uniform? So that’s what I did. Frank was the best.
          I’ll be in touch, Bill. Thanks!
Ronnie (Joyner)
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Addendum # 2: E-Mail from SABR Colleague Bill Hickman, Mon., 6/11/2018. 8:23 AM

Hi, Bill –

I have that card, and it’s autographed by Frank.  See below.
My notes say that it was created for the Washington Senators Historical Society sometime during the 1990’s. My guess is that I picked it up at one of their meetings.
                  Bill Hickman
Mancuso Sens Card SIgned

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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Posted in Baseball | 1 Comment »

Here He Comes ~ To Save The Day!

June 9, 2018

 

American League BA Leaders Thru 6/08/18 *

# Leaders to 6/09/18 Team G AB H BA
1 Mookie Betts Red Sox 48 184 66 .359
2 Jose Altuve Astros 65 264 90 .341
3 Juan Segura Mariners 60 253 86 .340
4 Andrelton Simmons Angels 59 215 71 .330
5 Nick Castellanos Tigers 62 252 83 .329
6 Michael Brantley Indians 51 207 67 .324
7 Manny Machado Orioles 62 240 76 .317
8 Matt Duffy Rays 47 187 59 .316
9 Eddie Rosario Twins 60 238 75 .315
10 J.D. Martinez Red Sox 60 229 72 .314

 * Astro Players in Bold Type. **

** (And his family name starts with an “A”)

We agree with a comment posted this past week by Wayne Chandler. In effect, we Astro fans all want one thing first when it comes to our wonderful Mr./Senor Jose Altuve. We want him to stay happy, healthy, and humble about his major contributing role in the ultimately highest levels of baseball success they have achieved in 2017 and continue to seek in 2018, with all the important help he’s getting from all our other club’s great players.

We would simply add a thought that we feel certain that Wayne Chandler and all other serious Astros fans might also be cool with as a no-brainer. ~ If Altuve can achieve all those basic groundings to the core reasons for his hitting success ~ and still also win another (4th) batting championship, to boot, we shall have no problem joining the crowd that wants to lead his cheers.

Go for it, Jose, but only as the bi-product of how your natural ability, attitude, life style, and understanding that school is never finished in the game of baseball ~ all of these things come together to help you achieve at levels that few others ever reach.

And best wishes to all of you Astros for a strong finish Saturday and Sunday in the home of the Texas Rangers.

 

********************

Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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Posted in Baseball | 1 Comment »

We Lost Red Schoendienst on Wednesday

June 8, 2018

Red Schoendienst and Bill McCurdy (L)
Cardinals Club Suite
Busch Stadium II
May 1998

We lost Red Schoendienst on Wednesday. At age 95, the arguably most intuitive baseball player in history has finally passed away, leaving the rest of us here to figure it out on our own from here on in.

And what is an intuitive ballplayer? In my book, he’s the guy who seems to possess an uncanny ability to know where the ball is coming or going on the next pitch. That capacity, plus knowing what to with it when the ball reaches you as either a hitter or a fielder, is the magical parlay that will separate many intuitive AAA guys from the other blessed few of their type who also possess the ability to use that information for carrying out a Hall of Fame career on offense.

intuitive fielder

Red Schoendienst retired from a 19 season career (1944-1963) as a second baseman that always makes most of us feel that he should have been as a St. Louis Cardinal total career guy.

That was not to be. The brief St. Louis tenure of Frank “Trader” Lane just couldn’t be stopped from trading away a franchise icon to kick off his new GM regime. Unable to get permission to deal away Stan Musial, an intercession that may have saved his life, Lane dealt Schoendienst to the New York Giants, who soon dealt Red to the Milwaukee Braves in time for him to be a difference-maker in their two-year rattle at the World Series in the late 1950s. Schoendienst then came back for three light duty seasons with the Cards before retiring and beginning his now much longer career as a Cardinals manager, coach, and lifelong elder statesman.

intuitive hitter

Finally, after first missing out on the Hall of Fame on the baseball writers’ frequent inability to value what their eyes have supposedly seen, the Veterans Committee voted sensibly in favor of Red Schoendienst’s 1989 induction into the Hall of Fame.

I loved Red Schoendienst as a kid, but I didn’t get to meet him until I was invited to attend  a 1998 party for former St. Louis Browns in the then relatively new owner Bill DeWitt, Jr.’s Busch Stadium II suite they called “The Cardinals Club”. I was there as the guest of my Browns player friends.

Bill DeWitt, Jr.
Cardinals Owner

1998 was only two years into the DeWitt family ownership, but it was more importantly remembered (at the time) as the “Season of Sosa and Big Mac” — and the big national media  was all lost in their all out quest to show us fan readers how much the big record home run competition between those two guys was helping the baseball world forget and heal from all the bad things that still wounded the game from the 1994 labor strike and World Series cancellation.

I don’t recall anyone suggesting anything illegal was going on behind this sudden appearance of great home run power numbers. I wish I had asked Red Schoendienst that night what he thought of the power explosion in 1998, but I didn’t. And Red just smiled when Big Mac unloaded another monster shot into the left field upper deck stands during the game we watched that evening.

 

intuitive and wizened elder icon

Red was soft-spoken, but he expressed himself in whole thoughts. Baseball was the greatest game of them all. What other game gives you so much to think about at one time. I can’t go further than that with memories and hope to do justice with what Red actually said twenty years ago. Others who knew him well must do so now. I was just lucky to be there with him that night.

A big almost surprised smile broke out on Schoendienst’s face when I told him that our sandlot club (The Pecan Park Eagles) had delayed the resumption of our all day game when the 1950 All Star Game went 14 innings at Comiskey Park. We had to listen to the radio broadcast account — until we heard live that Red Schoendienst had put our favored NL club ahead, 4-3, with a homer off Ted Gray in the top of the 14th.

The lead held. The NL won. And the Eagles played on til the sun went down back here in Houston.

I got a pat on the back, a smile, and a “thanks for your support” comment from Red.

God Bless You, Red Schoendienst! ~ If “God Is Love” ~ and I believe that to be true ~ you are one of His brightest manifestations ~ and always will be!

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

 

 

 

 

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Posted in Baseball | 2 Comments »

Altuve Looking Ready to Rock and Roll

June 7, 2018

If he were a rocket, and we’re not talking basketball here; we’re talking about the obvious Cape Canaveral metaphors of baseball’s little big man, now standing on one of those common sight and site Florida launching pads, warming up, hissing and smoking on every lower side of its powerful frame. And so it is too with the compact figure of Jose Altuve in the batter’s box, as he waves a bat that actually, but figuratively smokes on its own, almost to the point of blurring away the impish smile on Jose’s always apparently innocent, but killer-diller champion hitter’s face.

2018 American League Batting Average Leaders

Through Games of 6/06/2018:

# Leaders to 6/07/18 Team G AB H BA
1 Mookie Betts Red Sox 48 184 66 .359
2 Juan Segura Mariners 58 245 83 .339
3 Nick Castellanos Tigers 60 243 81 .333
4 Jose Altuve Astros 63 256 85 .332
5 Andrelton Simmons Angels 59 215 71 .330
6 Michael Brantley Indians 50 203 66 .325
7 Manny Machado Orioles 60 232 75 .323
8 J.D. Martinez Red Sox 57 219 69 .315
9 Mike Trout Angels 63 222 69 .311
10 Eddie Rosario Twins 58 231 71 .307

Astro Players Shown Above in Bold Type.

In the past week, Jose Altuve has risen from 8th to 4th place in the American League batting average championship race – and the hitters ahead of him are beginning to thin or not play at all.

Altuve went 3 for 7 in his two games at home against Seattle. His 85 total hits lead the AL, surpassing the injured more limited time leader from the Red Sox, Mookie Betts, by 19 safeties.

With Altuve, it isn’t just the number of hist he puts up, or how far they go. It has everything to do in his case with how varied he is in their production. He can hit pitchers high or low – he can reach them up or down. He can slam the ball against or over the walls – or he can use his speed and alertness to beat out a swinging bunt as a single that would have been an easy grounder out of a less alert and less speedy runner. He can also spray them to the opposite field when a defense wants to give him the opportunity.

We’ll have to wait and see on this one, but let’s not be too surprised if our wonderful Jose Altuve is again leading the American League and, perhaps, the entire big leagues, with the highest batting average by the July All Star Break.

In the short-term, let’s just enjoy the Astros continuing to play (most of the time) the kind of baseball we fans waited over fifty years to see in the Bayou City.

It was worth the wait. So let’s not waste the opportunity.

As long as Astros baseball is hotter than our normal Houston summer weather, things will stay “cool” in our town – and Jose Altuve will be the coolest dude of them all.

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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Posted in Baseball | 1 Comment »

Quo Vadis, Dallas? We’ve No Time for “Regerts”!

June 6, 2018

Dear Astros,

What happens if you decide that there’s nothing you can do right now about the season-collapsing ineffectiveness of Dallas Keuchel as a starter in the 2018 starting pitcher rotation?

…. at least, for the rest of that period of your life you remain connected to the Houston Astros in a real position of authority or possible guidance.

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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Astro Relief? Round Up the Usual Suspects!

June 5, 2018

My apologies.

A lot of work that went into the content of this column was lost at publication by an accidental deletion, but that’s OK. This chart and what just happened in the last two games of the Red Sox Series here in Houston was the gist of it.

The Astros need to address the crack in the bullpen. Our starters are not likely to keep us from a title repeat, nor will our offense likely stop us from our second World Series, but …. that bullpen …. that bullpen we now have could cost us everything if the same guys keep showing up and failing to hold even multiple run leads in late innings. We have to take action to shore things up, by whatever ways are both practical and possible. My designated “suspects” for removal, assignment. sale, or trade are highlighted in bold type.

Yes, we know that Giles has 10 saves, but they were low pressure game saves. We think Giles has the kind of talent that will require “PTSD” treatment similar to the remedy that worked for Brad Lidge. It probably needs to happen elsewhere – and not as a member of the Astros.

2018: The Usual Suspects

Astros Relief Staff, June 4, 2018

# Suspect Age G W L IP ER H HR BB SO ERA
1 Joe Smith 34 21 2 1 18.0 11 14 3 6 18 5.50
2 Ken Giles 27 22 0 1 19.0 11 23 1 1 18 5.21
3 Will Harris 33 25 1 3 20.1 11 21 2 6 21 4.87
4 Tony Sipp 34 16 0 0 12.2 4 9 0 5 11 2.84
5 Brad Peacock 30 22 1 3 22.2 7 18 5 6 31 2.78
6 Chris Devenski 27 24 1 1 22.2 5 17 2 7 29 1.99
7 Hector Rondon 30 24 1 1 20.2 4 18 1 4 24 1.74
8 Collin McHugh 31 19 1 0 27.1 4 19 2 6 37 1.32

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Astros Pitching Continues to Dominate in May

June 5, 2018

Astros Pitching Continues to Dominate in May

The Houston Astros finished the month of May with a record of 36-22 in first place in the American League West Division, one game ahead of the Seattle Mariners. The month of May was a difficult one, opening against the New York Yankees and finishing with the Yankees and Boston Red Sox, the two strongest teams in the major leagues. Their record in May was 16-12 with 5 of the losses to the Yankees.

The Astros success this season has been largely due to their incredible starting pitching. None of the five pitchers in the starting rotation have missed a start and they have combined for an ERA of 2.54, by far the best in MLB. Three of the top four pitchers in the AL based on ERA are Astros, Justin Verlander (1.11), Gerrit Cole (2.05) and Charlie Morton (2.25). Cole pitched one of the best games ever by an Astro pitcher, a one-hitter with 16 strikeouts against Arizona.

The relief pitchers have suffered a few bumps but, overall, the bullpen’s ERA of 3.04 is the 4th best in the major leagues.

While the pitching has exceeded expectations, the hitting has not. A repeat of last year’s average of 5.53 runs scored per game was not likely but the Astros are averaging 4.96 runs per game while 5 teams, led by the Yankees at 5.64 are scoring over 5 runs per game. The Astros are one of the top 6 or 7 offensive teams in MLB but not at the top as they were in 2017.

The only Astro player who is having a career year is backup catcher, Max Stassi, .307, 5 home runs. Even reigning MVP, Jose Altuve struggled in May as his batting average dropped below .310 briefly before he had a record setting stretch of 10 hits in 10 at-bats raising his average back to the .330s. Altuve, (.338) and Stassi are the only two Astros hitting over .300. George Springer (11 HR) and Yuli Gurriel are batting in the .280s but the rest of the Astro batters are in the mid to low .200s. Springer had a game in May with 6 hits in 6 at-bats. Carlos Correa batted .188 in May, lowering his average to .261 for the season.

The Red Sox, Yankees and Astros have clearly established themselves as the three strongest MLB teams in the first one third of the season. This is not likely to change. The Astros pitching may not remain as strong as it has been for the rest of the season, but it should still be the best. The hitting is expected to improve in the summer months and this combination should be enough to hold off Seattle and the Los Angeles Angels to win the AL West Division.

Bill Gilbert

6/4/2018.

 

Addendum:

Astros Starting Pitcher Stats

Through June 4, 2018

Courtesy of Baseball Reference.Com

2018 Astro Starters G GS W L ERA IP ER H HR BB SO
Justin Verlander 13 13 7 2 1.24 87.1 12 46 5 17 104
Gerrit Cole 12 12 6 1 2.20 81.2 20 48 9 20 116
Charlie Morton 12 12 7 1 2.84 73.0 23 56 11 23 92
Lance McCullers, Jr. 12 12 7 3 3.89 69.1 30 54 6 27 72
Dallas Keuchel 12 12 3 7 3.65 74.0 30 70 9 21 60

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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AL Batting Average Race: June 3, 2018

June 4, 2018

American League Batting Average Championship

Contenders Through Sunday, June 3, 2018:

# Leaders to 6/03/18 Team G AB H BA
1 Mookie Betts Red Sox 48 184 66 .359
2 Andrelton Simmons Angels 57 211 71 .3365
3 Nick Castellanos Tigers 56 226 76 .3363
4 Juan Segura Mariners 56 236 78 .331
5 Jose Altuve Astros 61 249 82 .329
6 Manny Machado Orioles 58 226 74 .327
7 Michael Brantley Indians 48 195 63 .323
8 Eddie Rosario Twins 55 218 69 .317
9 J.D. Martinez Red Sox 57 219 69 .315
10 Matt Duffy Rays 43 172 53 .308

Are you old enough to remember when little daily information on the batting and pitching leadership races were available every morning in most large city sports pages? And you didn’t even have to “log in” or remember your password to make the data available to you. All you had to is find the sports pages section of the paper. The facts that it was summer — and that it was baseball season — would take care of the rest.

In spite of his measly 1 single in 5 trips to the plate, with 3 strike outs, in Sunday’s 9-3 Astros loss to the Red Sox in Houston, Jose Altuve is showing gradient improvement signs on most recent days of coming back to the force he was in 2017. — With 82 hits, so far, he’s already established himself as the total hits leader in the big leagues.

Today’s column is little more than an homage to the old-fashioned easy days of accurate, up-to-date, and easy access to daily change in the standings and batting average races.

If only for a moment, it seems like old times.

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Publisher Note. I wrote a column similar to this one a couple of days ago, but I’m almost certain that most of you never received my notice of it. The robotic humanoids that allegedly attempt to control the proliferation of spam on the Internet are becoming harder to please and — just as forever they’ve always been — they unavailable for discussion of the fact that The Pecan Park Eagle is not trying to sell anything, or supply anyone, with anything they don’t want, via a message that comes involuntarily to a mailbox that does not want it, or by some sneaky word-loaded sales pitch.

We only want these column notices going to people who wish to read articles from The Pecan Park Eagle. If that is not you, simply let me know and I personally will remove your name and address from the mailing list immediately.

Thanks,

Bill McCurdy, Publisher

 

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Bill McCurdy

Principal Writer, Editor, Publisher

The Pecan Park Eagle

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