Astros

Braves vs Astros- World Series Breakdown

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Atlanta Braves vs Houston Astros

The Houston Astros will take on the Atlanta Braves in the 117th World Series.  The Astros will be in their third World Series over the last five years, while the Braves are in the World Series for the first time since 1999.  The Braves took down the favorites of the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Atlanta has spent the entire postseason as the underdog and this will not change.  

Lineup

The Astros have the advantage over basically any team in baseball. Houston led the AL in batting average, on-base percentage, runs scored and hits.  Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker are the new faces of the Astros offense. Alvarez has been the star of the playoffs, hitting .441, with a .791 slug.  Altuve doesn’t have the flashiest numbers, but has scored 15 runs in ten playoff games.  Houston will likely have to sit Michael Brantley during their trips to Atlanta, unless they trust him or Tucker to handle center field. With Alvarez in the outfield the Astros will have to deal with a very large outfield in Truist Park, the fifth largest outfield in baseball.  Even in a national league park the Astros will still be able to put pressure on any pitching staff.  This lineup is just too loaded.

The Braves made a big push at the deadline to improve their outfield.  Adding Jorge Soler, Joc Pederson, Adam Duvall and NLCS MVP Eddie Rosario to a lineup that featured mainstays Ozzie Albies and Freddie Freeman.  Austin Riley has been the league’s most improved player in 2022, his progression was what kept the Braves in the hunt at the deadline.  The Braves have a lot of power, their lineup doesn’t have the major star power that the Astros have outside of Freddie Freeman.  Ozzie Albies and Adam Duvall were quietly at the top of most offensive categories The Braves can match the Houston star power with the great depth in the lineup and off the bench. 

Rotation

These playoffs have seen the advantage of having a strong starting rotation.  The Braves and Astros have both seen the most production from their starters during the playoffs.  The Astros have overcome the injury to Lance McCullers because of the production from Framber Valdez.  Valdez is effective versus power right handed bats because of his breaking ball.  The Astros will need to rely on Luis Garcia again in this series.  He came up huge for Houston in game 6 of the ALCS, going 5+ giving up no runs and sealing the series for Houston.  Valdez and Garcia will have to eat up innings for Houston, veteran Zach Grienke is still a major question mark and they likely will not travel down the Jake Odorizzi path again in this series.  If Houston can get dominance from their top two starters they can utilize a solid bullpen to hold down the powerful Braves lineup.  

The Atlanta rotation isn’t deep but it’s top three gives them an advantage over Houston, they currently have the best starter 3.27 ERA in the playoffs. Ian Anderson has to step up and be better than the Astros questionable potential starters.  Anderson will be slotted in the #3 role which means he will get the start in Atlanta, where he has much better numbers, holding opposing lineups to just a .207 BA against.  The Braves will likely put together a bullpen game for game four.  While Atlanta has some things to figure out after their top three, they still have the advantage in nearly every other matchup in this series.

Bullpen

The Astros have a system to get through their questionable rotation.  They want to get five innings in order to turn it over to their four bullpen arms Ryne Stanek, Phil Maton, Kendall Graveman and Ryan Pressly. Houston has relied on this system through the American League playoffs. The Stros have gotten a lot of swings and misses from opposing batters.  They are a heavy right handed bullpen which could end up being a problem against the power lefty bats of the Braves.  Houston may have the best overall reliever in this series in closer Ryan Pressly.  

The Braves got a lot out of their bullpen in the playoffs.  AJ Minter, Tyler Matzek and Will Smith have all been great in the playoffs.  Smith most notably has recouped from a tough stretch towards the end of the season.  In the postseason Will Smith has been dominant, picking up four saves and giving up no runs over his seven inning pitched. The Braves have seen cracks in Luke Jackson, their righty reliever that had a breakout 2022.  He gave up 5 runs in the NLCS and may need to be used sparingly in the World Series.  Luckily for Atlanta, they have veteran Jesse Chavez who can step up and handle the role of righty shutdown reliever. 

Conclusion

I loved the Braves over the Brewers, I thought they could compete with the Dodgers.  I think they have enough to take down the favorite Houston Astros.  The loss of Lance Mccullers was able to be masked in their series with the Boston Red Sox.  The Braves bring better pitching to this series and an offense that can match the Astros.  The Astros look of invincibility at home took a hit after their game two loss to Boston.  Veteran Charlie Morton and an experienced Atlanta offense will get them a victory in game one and a victory in the series. 

Pick: Atlanta Braves in 6

MLB Trade Deadline

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Best

Dodgers- Manny Machado, Brian Dozier

With Corey Seager out for the season the Dodgers needed to find a replacement at shortstop.  Playing Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez are better utilized in a play anywhere and everywhere role. Adding Manny Machado gave them a player with huge upside, while his defense is suspect he right away can be placed in the middle of the Dodgers order making an impact.  With the Diamondbacks hot on their heels in the National League West it was fair to assume that the Dodgers brass didn’t want to rely on the bats on Max Muncy and rejuvenated Matt Kemp.

The Dodgers also added more depth to their middle infield adding veteran second baseman Brian Dozier.  Dozier, whose name has come up around the deadline for what seems like the last century will finally be placed on a team that is ready and willing to do what it takes to compete for a championship.

Yankees- J.A. Happ, Zach Britton, Lance Lynn, Luke Voit

The New York Yankees had a few holes to fill going into the trade deadline.  Starting pitching was the biggest need.  They filled it without giving up their top tier prospects.  While J.A. Happ doesn’t have the sexy stats you may want to see in New York he does bring a valuable asset.  He can beat the Red Sox. Since 2015, Happ, a 35-year-old lefty, has one of the lowest ERAs at 1.78 among starters vs. the Red Sox. This season alone in two starts vs. the Red Sox Happ has allowed only one run in 10 2/3 innings pitched.  The Yankees were also able to add a veteran starter Lance Lynn who can eat up innings down the stretch allowing your dominate bullpen to get rest during the dog days of August.

The under publicized move to add Luke Voit can end up being an impact for the Yankees.  With the injury to Aaron Judge the Yankees will have a small void to fill for a few weeks.  Voit allows the Yankees to place power back in their lineup.  Will he be Aaron Judge? No that’s not fair but he can supply a right handed bat to platoon at DH and 1st base for the time being.  Oh… Zach Britton also joins a bullpen with Aroldis Chapman and Delin Betances.  That’s not to shabby.

Worst

Astros- Roberto Osuna

I am not a believer in getting involved in the personal issues of professional athletes, this one is hard to ignore.  Roberto Osuna is an extremely talented reliever with huge upside now and in the future but this seems like a buy low move from an organization that has openly stated they have zero tolerance against domestic abuse.  Osuna makes them stronger on the field but has a chance to cause some issues in the locker room.  Team leader Justin Verlander has already openly made a statement against the move which right away could cause a rift between new teammates.  I understand Osuna’s talent and every person should have a second chance in life if they truly regret what they have done but this move I cannot agree with.  The Astros are a classy organization with respectable players.  If any team can handle some controversy then it would be this team, but why bring it??

Mariners- Zach Duke, Sam Tuivailala, Adam Warren

Jerry Dipoto loves to make trades.  In fact a strongly believe that during his time off he plays fantasy mode on MLB the Show just so he can make more trades.  He reminds me of the guy in your fantasy football league that will offer you a trade every week that makes no sense for you or him.  He just can’t help himself.  When evaluating his moves I focused more on the actual moves made closer to the deadline.  The pickup of Denard Span and Alex Colome were very good but a little early for our rating system. Adding three arms to the bullpen was a sound strategy for a team looking to make a run right now, but it doesn’t really get you over the hump against the beasts of the east.  Juan Nicasio’s offseason signing has turned out to be a bust as he currently sits with an ERA way to close to six but Sam Tuivailala and Adam Warren are not two guys that are battle tested enough to fill in that need.  Zach Duke has been a consistent performer in his major league career but are you really going to trust him in the middle innings of a playoff game to get a big out….nope.  These moves have make the playoffs all over them but the Mariners were likely to do that anyway.  They don’t put them any closer to the World Series.

 

Surprising-

Brewers- Mike Moustakas, Jonathon Schoop

I am trying to understand the moves that the Brewers made during the deadline and I have come up with this…they are going to try and out slug everyone.  Continually their starting pitching has been questioned.  After the injury to Brent Suter all eyes were watching for what potential starting pitcher was going to be headed to Milwaukee.  Instead they added two players that bring the boom stick with them.  Adding Schoop and Moose to a lineup that already features one of the best home run hitters in the league, Jesus Aguilar, makes their lineup up one of the most vicious the NL has seen in years. I guess who needs starting pitching when you can potentially put up 12 runs a game.

Pirates- Chris Archer, Keone Kela

No much was expected of the 2018 Pittsburgh Pirates.  An offseason of change saw veteran franchise faces Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole moved in what seemed like the beginning of a rebuild in the steel city.  Sitting 3.5 games back in the NL Wildcard race and seeing their young stars emerge into the roles they had envisioned has inspired the front office to make moves that are not only bold but uncharacteristic of the organization. Picking up Keone Kela to match up with All- Star Felipe Vasquez as already a noteworthy move.  Then out of nowhere the blockbuster deal getting long time Ace Chris Archer from the Rays caught the entire league off guard.  The Pirates have decided they are very close to being a true contender for years to come and they proved it today.

 

Final thoughts

St. Louis needed to go young in the outfield.  Welcome to the majors Tyler O’Neil.

Tampa Bay may have the craftiest front office in all of baseball.  Austin Meadows can hit.

Braves bullpen got much better.  O’Day and Brach are going to help them win the East.

Poor Nationals

 

 

Good Job Astros

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Lost in the madness of the NCAA tournament this weekend was the front office of the Houston Astros extending American League MVP, Jose Altuve to an astounding 7-year 163.5M deal.

Altuve, 27, has now been cemented as the cornerstone of a franchise that took home it’s first ever world series title in 2017.  The Astros continue to make moves that will make them a powerhouse in the American League for the next 5 years. Fans of Houston were subjected to abysmal baseball, during a during a 3 year stretch 2011-2013 the Astros would lose over 100 games before they were able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

As the team began to develop so did the 5 foot star in the making.  Altuve is more then just the numbers, he is the leader of a team with a young core and a bright future.  His extension will lock up not only a great player but a leader of the organization. This contract could very well change the way that baseball evaluates its talent. Veteran DH of the Detroit Tigers Victor Martinez, teammate of Altuve onVenezuelan national team,  commented on the signing. “I hope teams learn a lesson about evaluating players, It’s not how tall you are. It’s your talent. It’s your heart.”

Altuve’s statistics got him the money, his leadership got him the years.  This is a move for the future, it is a move that shows Houston’s commitment to winning.  The Astros head into 2018 to defending their title, their front office has already won.