One more note - Pinella can't be faulted for not going all out in regards to his bullpen.

After Marmol, Howry, and Dempster all pitched multiple innings the night before, and Pinella had declared them off-limits before the game (RR), he still used Howry and Dempster again Wednesday night.

Marmol should be available for Traschel's Thursday start, but it'll be interesting to see if he uses Howry and Dempster yet again if needed - or continues to "worry about tomorrow, tomorrow" - particularly with four games this weekend.

Heh. Trachsel start means lots of Wood and Eyre out of the pen.

Trachsel start means lots of Wood and Eyre out of the pen.

Or Lou's in the hotel, watching the Weather Channel, and frantically cheering on Humberto (the storm, not Quintero).

Then again, with the roof, Humberto would have to be some kind of storm to make a difference, I reckon.

I was thinking more of the potential flooding angle. If it were to make a mess of the surrounding area, a roof won't matter.

this is the sorriest astros team i can remember since i was a little kid. sorry ass fielding, sorry ass running sorry ass managing.

it IS possible that humberto could be allison all over again because the stadium is below street level so youneverknow

but the cubs would just have to make the game up later so what for?

as for quintero, he's just another suckulous suck. on a team of lousy ballplayers

sigh

and gawd i hate trachsel games - 4 freaking hours long

as for quintero, he's just another suckulous suck

Helluva of an arm, though.

Gorgeous throw from his knees to nail Lee, and he almost got Theriot later, despite Theriot's getting a good jump due to the pitcher.

quintero DOES have a helluva arm

true. some people i know who watch the round rock AAA games told me he used to pick guys off first all the time.

too bad he is so lousy at calling games, framing pitches and hitting

and gawd i hate trachsel games - 4 freaking hours long

Good thing you're not a Red Sox fan then, because 80% of our games are 4 hours long.

and gawd i hate trachsel games

Something Astro and Cub fans can agree on.

I was thinking more of the potential flooding angle. If it were to make a mess of the surrounding area, a roof won't matter.

Y'know, considering I'm usually kind of a weather junkie, I'm ashamed to admit I haven't really followed Humberto's progress.

I'm ashamed to admit I haven't really followed Humberto's progress.

He just formed late Wednesday, so you haven't missed much.

red sox games are 4 hours long???!!!

uck

it's the *($&^@!v DH i tell you

i'd rather see the pitcher bunt/strike out then sit through 4 hour games. even our extra inning games dont usually run 4 hours

- and retro - i been waiting on humberto but we haven't had so much as a drop of rain tonight - i was sure it was gonna - the air smelled bad like it usually does before a TS but nothing. galveston is getting pounded and it's only 60 miles away.

actually i just checked weather.com and it looks like the storm is moving up the coast to port arthur instead of coming ashore. but i am not so sure of that - dogss are all restless like they got with bad weather.

and there has been too much rain/bad weather this year to go along with my lousy baseball team

sigh

red sox games are 4 hours long???!!!

uck

it's the *($&^@!v DH i tell you

That could just be peculiar to our team. What are the numbers on this overall between AL and NL? Anyone have that info handy?

I'd guess that AL games average just barely longer than NL contests. The real reasons for the Red Sox having such long games are mostly to do with a few slow pitchers (Daisuke, I'm looking at you), and all the batters in the lineup who take 4+ pitches average per AB.

If anyone knows where better breakdowns of Time of Game are available, I'd love to know. Because I'm guessing the Red Sox might have the longest average, although I'm sure the Yankees are close, either ahead or trailing.

To put up some concrete numbers for post 15, the lowest avg P/PA for one of the Sox starting 9 is 3.80.

I do remember some pretty amazing rains in Houston, from systems that didn't even have names. You find out which street is actually three feet higher than which adjacent street, something that is less than obvious in that flatter-than-flat city. I know for sure that a game in the Astrodome got cancelled because of rain and another game (I'm not quite sure) was played but in front of essentially no specatators, as no one could get there. In both cases, the issue was that the large flat parking lot that surrounded the Dome* was flooded. (* There were more insulting nicknames, some having to do with Judge Roy Hofheinz, but I can't remember.) I do suspect that downtown Houston drains a little better than that parking lot, although I suppose with enough rain, Buffalo Bayou could flood in downtown.

and gawd i hate trachsel games

Something Astro and Cub fans can agree on.

Don't forget us Mets fans!

We actually had success speeding him up one year (with Shea chanting in one game, in unison: PITCH. THE. BALL.), and he pitched a lot better. So, of course, he decided not to do that anymore.

To put up some concrete numbers for post 15, the lowest avg P/PA for one of the Sox starting 9 is 3.80.

I take it that's Lugo...

And that is extremely impressive, considering that since 1999 Chipper Jones -- he of the 15.2% walk rate -- has only seen 3.7 P/PA.

OCF -

yeh there is drainage problems all over houston - it WAS built on a swamp. and it was downtown and the medical center that got flooded so bad during allison.

sims bayou will flood before buffalo bayou which will flood before braes bayou

they redone all the streets/drainige over by the dome since you been here. as well as the southwest freeway (twice) and the west loop (3 times)

and you right about you never know exactly where it is gonna flood - even different houses on the same street are different.

Humberto won't even affect the stl games. The big fat high sitting over the midwest should push the storm's remains towards Georgia or Florida.

Watch it go a couple hundred miles past Atlanta, regrow, and turn around to slam DC next friday.

Humberto is now the more-intimidating sounding Hurricane Humberto - snuck in as a Cat. 1

Pinella was unavailable for comment.

Helluva of an arm, though.

Gorgeous throw from his knees to nail Lee,

That throw was a thing of beauty -- from his knees, the throw is perfectly over the 1B side of the bag, inches over the ground, an instant before Lee slid into it.

Dead solid perfect.

and humberto is DEFINITELY moving away - we didn't get so much as a drop of rain and dogss are sleeping peacefully like i am gonna be in a minute and looks like houston won't get more than the little bit of wind we got

Yeah, I'm looking at the NWS radar picture: northern eyewall over land, but east of Galveston Bay (and west of Beaumont/Port Arthur. The latter cities will get a lot more rain than Houston.

Which order the bayous flood in would depend on which part of the city got the most rain. I can remember an event when I was there in which Bray's Bayou was the worst case. The medical center would be Bray's Bayou.

they redone all the streets/drainige over by the dome since you been here. as well as the southwest freeway (twice) and the west loop (3 times)

I remember that the Southwest Freeway was sunk down into a trench below the neighborhoods, and that it was a lot of trouble when it rained.

The eastern turn means that High Island is where landfall is supposed to be now, according to the Weather Channel.

Of course, the Weather Channel is also already pumping up the soon-to-be-Tropical Storm Ingrid (currently known as "Tropical Depression #8") lurking in the Atlantic.

To put up some concrete numbers for post 15, the lowest avg P/PA for one of the Sox starting 9 is 3.80.

And to add further perspective, that P/PA would lead the Mariners starting 9.

How the heck did the Pirates win back-to-back series against the Cubs and Brewers? Are they trying to hand each other the division?

How the heck did the Pirates win back-to-back series against the Cubs and Brewers?

Nate McLouth has turned into the second coming of Andy Van Slyke. The dude is en fuego (272/363/544 and 12/1 SB/CS in 168 PA since August 1st). The power numbers are a bit of a jump from his minor league numbers, but this is really what I had hoped for from the guy when he originally came up. Too bad the Pirates ignore minor league numbers and age corrections when deciding who to put in the starting lineup. Thank goodness Chris Duffy got hurt and they traded Rajai Davis and Jason Bay is hurt as well, because it has forced Tracy to play McLouth every day.

Don't forget us Mets fans!

God forbid.

How the heck did the Pirates win back-to-back series against the Cubs and Brewers? Are they trying to hand each other the division?

You must be new here.

OCF

- unless most of the rain is north of the loop sims bayou always floods first

after allison tore up downtown they redid the SW freeway going through the montrose area - you know, after downtown before it gets to the intersection with 45 - and they sunk it down even more

when were you living here?


RUSS,

i think the pirates is the only Organization more effed up then my astros when it comes to young players and wasting them

and you stick with the team anyhow. you a stronger man then me that is fer SHER

Nate McLouth has turned into the second coming of Andy Van Slyke. The dude is en fuego (272/363/544 and 12/1 SB/CS in 168 PA since August 1st). The power numbers are a bit of a jump from his minor league numbers, but this is really what I had hoped for from the guy when he originally came up. Too bad the Pirates ignore minor league numbers and age corrections when deciding who to put in the starting lineup. Thank goodness Chris Duffy got hurt and they traded Rajai Davis and Jason Bay is hurt as well, because it has forced Tracy to play McLouth every day.

I watch almost every Pirates game, so I did see that McLouth is doing well. It's gratifying to me since I thought he was the best high level offensive prospect in the barren system before we drafted McCutchen and I've since had to watch Duffy be handed the job and fail spectacularly two years in a row.

I guess I hadn't realized how the rest of the lineup has turned into the Yankees. I knew that they hit well in August (.287/.353/.483, 45 HR) but they're hitting .310/.386/.462 in September now too. Wow.

I guess I hadn't realized how the rest of the lineup has turned into the Yankees. I knew that they hit well in August (.287/.353/.483, 45 HR) but they're hitting .310/.386/.462 in September now too.

The major candidates for credit are McLouth (see above), LaRoche's surge to where he was supposed to be (346/405/556 in August/Sept), and Jack Wilson's Ted Williams impression (407/546/657 in 128 PA in Aug/Sept is just batshit crazy).

... Jack Wilson's Ted Williams impression (407/546/657 in 128 PA in Aug/Sept is just batshit crazy).

What the hell? I think you have the OBP wrong, but still I had no idea Jack could ever have an ISO over .200 for two straight months...

I do have the OBP wrong... it's 407/461/657, which is more reasonable, but still GAH-riffic.