Right-handed pitcher, Paul Clemens, is joining the Houston Astros in Seattle tonight as the team starts a three game series against the Mariners. Interestingly, this moves comes as the team places Josh Fields on the 15-day Disabled List with a right forearm strain.

Why’s that interesting, you may ask? Well, several of us on twitter the other night were wondering why Bo Porter keeps calling Xavier Cedeno to the mound. Yesterday he entered the game with a 108.00 ERA. No, that’s not a typo. He managed to pull together a decent outing, but he’s had some struggles in this early season.

Paul Clemens, 25, is set to join the Astros on the road in Seattle.

I don’t want to make generalities after only 6 games, but I was one of many fans who wondered, “Where’s Josh Fields?” At Spring Training Fields looked solid and I thought for certain we’d see a bit more of him by now. He’s only hit the mound twice but tossed a scoreless 2/3 of an inning so far this year. Mystery solved. The bullpen is indeed lighter than we had thought. The Astros will backdate the start of Fields time on the DL to April 4th.

Now Clemens will get his first shot at the majors. The 25 year old won his first start of the season for the AAA Oklahoma City Redhawks (5IP, 3ER, 0BB, 3SO). He had some reliable relief appearances for the Astros in four Spring Training games this year (1.69 ER, 5.1IP, 1ER) as well.

Clemens will wear #56.

Terri Schlather (AGirlintheSouth) is the tortured Senior Houston Astros Writer for Aerys Sports. You can email her at agirlinthesouth@gmail.com, or follow her ridiculous ramblings on sports, vodka and the weeone on twitter @agirlinthesouth.

There was much ado about pitching last night; conversations on twitter and message boards, fan reaction at the ballpark. For years I’ve said, it’s about the pitching. Good defensive pitching can make a mediocre offense a little less important. But if a team has subpar pitching, it takes a whole heck of a lot of amazingly impressive offense to make up for the sins of the guys on the bump.

The Astros starters have been reliable, not outstanding, but definitely reliable. The first 5+ innings of baseball haven’t been the site of anything tragic. In fact, they’ve been pretty darn good. Even when they’ve struggled and seen inflated pitch counts, Astros starters have battled their way through. If you look at the ERA of starters, throwing as starters, you can’t complain – Lucas Harrell (1.50), Philip Humber (1.59), Bud Norris (3.18), Brad Peacock (4.15) – as a group, the starters have a 2.63 ERA. It’s a stat where the Astros are not, in fact, the worst in baseball. They rank 8/30 clubs in starting pitching ERAs so far. Not bad.

If any real criticism can be made after ONLY FIVE games – and let’s all remember it’s only been 5 measly games – it’s more about the fact that a starter should come in throw six innings, but the starting rotation in Houston has only Lucas Harrell as a member of the 6 inning club. Last night, Bud Norris got pretty darn close, but still didn’t clear that hurdle. Bear in mind this is after FIVE games…there are 157 more to go and we need those shoulders and elbows to remain intact, so SPs only going 5 1/3, 5 2/3 isn’t a “real” concern, but something to ponder.

The biggest problem with the starters unable to go a full six is the the Houston bullpen has been terrible. Several people commented via social media last night that the team’s bullpen was stretched and that’s why Porter left Bud Norris in during the sixth after a homer, an error by Ronny Cedeno, two fly ball outs, a walk and a hit. That’s not why Porter left him in.

“Bud did a tremendous job. To me, tonight, he grew up,” were manager Bo Porter‘s words. “He did what a number one starter should do.” Porter told Norris he had earned the right to earn the win, resulting in Norris throwing 122 pitches in 5 2/3. Perhaps not his most efficient start, but not devastating by a long run.

The problem? The bullpen. Their ERA so far this season? 6.62 Yep, folks, that’s the problem. So you can go on twitter and whine about how long the starters are lasting. You can moan and groan about whether Brett Wallace is getting hits or Chris Carter is striking out again (although I admit I have fun with that last one), but when the umpire yells, “Play ball!” it’s going to come down to the guys on the mound. If they can’t their job done, then no amount of offense will save your team.

Jason Castro hit a three run homer last night in the Astros 6-3 loss to Oakland. Not even close to being enough to make up for pitching that wasn’t defensive. Justin Maxwell and J.D. Martinez were both 2/4 last night. No matter how productive that offense is on any given day, poor pitching can give a game away. And the Astros’ bullpen has been giving a lot away. Where do they land in baseball? 26 /30, so not the bottom of the barrel, but not anywhere they’d want to be.

One more comment of note from Bo Porter since the strikeout count has been so high and noted both in historic and sarcastic context by everyone under the sun. Last night the Astros struck out only four times – that’s the lowest in a game so far (again ONLY  FIVE games). When asked his thoughts on the matter, Porter, being the guy we’ve all come to expect him to be, said, ”I couldn’t tell you how many it was yesterday or how many it was today. What I do know is that we lost the game.”

Terri Schlather (AGirlintheSouth) is the tortured Senior Houston Astros Writer for Aerys Sports. You can email her at agirlinthesouth@gmail.com, or follow her ridiculous ramblings on sports, vodka and the weeone on twitter @agirlinthesouth.

I woke up this morning wondering if it was all a dream. I mean, no one expected the Houston Astros to win against the Texas Rangers on Opening Night in baseball. I’d hoped for it though.

In case you hadn’t been paying attention to those morons, they’ve been whining about the Astros damaging “the integrity of the game” by slashing payroll, not to mention their repeated posts about Alex Rodriguez making more while injured and sitting on his rear than the entire Houston Astros payroll.  I think they can all shut it now.

The Astros strutted into the AL West last night. They did it with home runs, triples, impressive pitching and the attitude that no matter what the media says about them, they can beat anyone. And beat anyone, they did, as they took down the Texas Rangers 8-2.

The win was the franchise’s 4,000th. I was disappointed when that win didn’t come against the Cardinals at the end of last season, but I see now that the 4,000th win had bigger and brighter things to accomplish – it needed a National spotlight. That win needed to show that no matter what league Bud Selig decided to put the Astros into, they could still produce hits, runs and wins.

In the first at bat by a Houston Astros in the American League, Jose Altuve started things off right with a first-pitch single to left field. but Justin Maxwell owned the  night in many ways, making some great catches in center (one that probably wasn’t  catch at all), but coupled with his 2 triples – one driving the first 2 runs of the night home-, and his two runs secured his place as a leader on this young team. Interestingly, the other guy who stood out? Rick Ankiel who came off the bench to blast a pinch-hit, 3 run homer in his very first at bat as an Astro. The last guy to homer in his first club at bat? Yep, Justin Maxwell.

The offense was outstanding, but without good defensive pitching it means nothing. Hats off to Bud Norris who pitched 5 2/3 innings – 5H, 2R, 2ER, 3BB, 5K – 3.18. He struggled in the 6th inning, collecting  3 hits, 2 runs and a walk in that 2/3 of an inning alone. Before the 6th, Norris looked solid and used his slider to his advantage.

But behind Norris, Erik Bedard was ready close out the game. Since Bedard isn’t scheduled to start a game until Saturday, the Astros chose to use him in relief. It was a masterful decision as he pitched 3 1/3 innings, allowing only 1 hit and striking out 2. Bedard earned the save and Norris the win. A nice night of pitching from the Astros.

It would be easy to remind everyone that currently, the Astros lead the American League, but there are still 161 games of baseball to play. Last night showed, however, that anything is possible with this young club. These guys are walking – no running since Bo won’t let them walk – with a fire in their bellies. Bo Porter has ingrained in them that being a champion is a construction project, and that each day you’ve got to show up, put in the work on the project or the champion never gets built.

I don’t expect the Houston Astros to be champions this year…but it’s nice to see the progress on that construction site.

Terri Schlather (AGirlintheSouth) is the tortured Senior Houston Astros Writer for Aerys Sports. You can email her at agirlinthesouth@gmail.com, or follow her ridiculous ramblings on sports, vodka and the weeone on twitter @agirlinthesouth.

There’s nothing like Spring Training to make you believe that the Houston Astros have hope for a good 2013 season. To the untrained eye, this month has proven that the little engine actually can win ball games. After all, if you take a look at how the Astros are doing in the standings, you’ll be led astray – they’re playing .467 ball right now.

For the recent past, that’s an impressive number. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, sports fans…it’s Spring Training. Don’t get me wrong – I adore spring camp as much as any other baseball fan. In fact, I’m in Kissimmee right now just to spend time taking in a few games. But you can’t let the excitement of Spring take over. There are too many factors at play.

During the regular season, a team has a fairly consistent 25 man active roster and each team knows what it’s up against. Everyone knows what Bud Norris is capable of on the mound and although he could have an extreme day one way or another, there is some level of consistency with major league level players.

That isn’t always the case with the other guys…you know, the minor leaguers that get an invite to Spring Training with the big club? There are a lot of factors that can effect their play. For one, they’re nervous and trying like hell to impress, so depending on how they respond to pressure their play can improve or fall apart. Plus, some guys just aren’t quite ready to play at this level yet. They may be some day, but may need more time. Then there’s the minor leaguers on the other team – if your best hitters are up against a AA pitcher from the opposition…yep, they’re going to light him up.

So I can sit back and say what an amazing 5 homers the Astros hit yesterday and expect to see it again today, or I can take it for what it is…Spring Training.

Now I still stand by my previous comments about what this season holds. I don’t think this team is going to be as tragic as some national sportswriters keep saying. I think the little engine that could will prove, to some extent, that they can play ball. I’m not expecting a winning season or even a .500 season, but I think they’ll win more games than expected. I think they’ll surprise some people along the way, but I won’t be holding my breath for 5 homers a game. But if it happens, I’ll be happy to eat crow.

So take Spring Training for what it is – all the guys vying for a chance to play big league baseball, all of the players getting the creaks out and taking some risks, all of the players meshing as a team and getting to know each other, and all of the front office staff eyeing the abilities of each and every player trying to determine which pieces of the puzzle are the best fit for the coming season. I can tell you this, I have the utmost faith in new managerBo Porter right now, but I’m not envious of the hard decisions he and Jeff Luhnow have ahead.

Terri Schlather (AGirlintheSouth) is the tortured Senior Houston Astros Writer for Aerys Sports. You can email her at agirlinthesouth@gmail.com, or follow her ridiculous ramblings on sports, vodka and the weeone on twitter @agirlinthesouth.

The expectations for the Houston Astros this season are beyond low. Most national sportswriters are predicting another worst-in-baseball season and many are suggesting the team, now in the tougher American League West, will make a run at a record setting losing season.

I’m not completely sold.

I don’t think the 2013 Houston Astros are a foregone conclusion. Now, before you bust out the straight jacket and have me committed, hear me out. I don’t think anyone can possibly know what to expect of the Astros this season. Yes, if you look at the roster in attendance at Spring Training you’ll do a lot of  ”who?” and “really?” before you hit a name that you think has long term, big league potential. But there’s a factor that I believe will be more influential than a list of unknown’s on the roster – Bo Porter.

Bo Porter at Spring Training in Kissimmee, Florida

Don’t get me wrong, Bo Porter’s not the second coming, but I think he’s exactly what the doctor ordered for the Houston Astros. Remember last year as we all laughed and groaned and cried as the Astros made silly error after silly error, so much so that the .gifs of their antics were in the running for awards of worst plays on some fan sites?

Of course you remember all of that. What those behaviors and plays come down to is reactions. When the pressure is on, human beings react instinctively, they don’t think, rationalize, weigh the pros and cons and consequences of their actions – they just act. The past few seasons fans have witnessed some really poor actions on the field at Minute Maid Park. The ranting on twitter is comical – the base running errors, the throwing errors, the little league mentality of a major league team.

Not all the name calling has been fair, but some of it was certainly well earned. I expect to do less of that this season. I expect to see fewer silly errors. I hope to never say “little league” and “Astros” in the same sentence. What’s all this expectation and hope riding on? Bo Porter.

I’ll admit it, he charmed me a bit, with his jovial personality and nice-guy smile, Bo Porter knows how to win someone over. But more importantly, Porter’s got good things to say about his approach and why it will be different. I asked him a while back if he’d be addressing those fundamentals that so often failed to produce good reactions in the past few years.

“As a team, we will be prepared differently than they have been prepared in the past.” The way in which Porter conveys thoughts like that one make you just know he’s passionate and believes what he’s saying heart and soul. To listen to him explain the 5 P’s (Proper Preparation Produces Peak Performers) is akin to listening to a Southern Baptist preacher on Sunday morning.

Porter’s hand slaps the table for emphasis, he leans into his statement and enunciates every word. The man means business. And reports from Spring Training camp say he’s hands on, more so than any other manager has been.

All of this makes me smile at the thought process behind Bo Porter’s hiring. I already thought Jeff Luhnow was a pretty bright guy, but his best move thus far may just be the jovial and passionate manager that brings a background of not just baseball knowledge, but a hard core football love as well. When your team is made up of young guns and no names, I think the guy you want leading the pack is someone like Bo, a little bit southern charmer and a little bit old school strict  father. He’ll give you all the love you want, but you better have picked up your room and respected your mother that day. Yes, just what the doctor ordered, indeed.

So if you want to count out the Houston Astros, feel free, but I just can’t do it -not with Bo Porter at the helm.

Terri Schlather (AGirlintheSouth) is the tortured Senior Houston Astros Writer for Aerys Sports. You can email her at agirlinthesouth@gmail.com, or follow her ridiculous ramblings on sports, vodka and the weeone on twitter @agirlinthesouth.

Late last night news broke that the Houston Astros had named a new Manager and it would be Bo Porter, third base coach of the Washington Nationals. Per a tweet from Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle, front office personnel flew to Philadelphia yesterday, where the Nationals were playing to formally offer Porter the job.

Once again the Astros front office had big news flying through the air as most of us slept. They made it official during a 10am press conference at Minute Maid Park this morning. During his statement GM, Jeff Luhnow, stated about Porter, “He is openminded. He is smart and he knows baseball.”

Porter, who has been with the Nationals since 2011, was not the guy many of us had in mind for this position, but it’s only fair we give him his shot. The powers that be in the Astros front office did a fine job this year of making deals, stocking a desolate farm system, and proving that they have a master plan for returning the Houston nine to the glory the team once knew.

I’ll continue to have faith until they prove to me I shouldn’t.

In the meantime, Bo Porter and the Nationals are in a race for a championship and Luhnow asked that we all respect that and let him finish the job he has ahead of him. Not that Bo Porter would pick up his phone for me, I would love to ask him a handful of questions.

But for now, we have this: Bo Porter is a 40 year old who lives in Houston during the offseason, so he’s a hometown boy, of sorts. He played football at the University of Iowa until he was drafted in the 40th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 1993 draft as an outfielder. He made his major league debut, with the Cubs, in 1999, but would end up going to Oakland in the Rule 5 Draft in 2000. He played for the A’s for only 1 season before being claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers, again, staying there only one season. He played the rest of his career in the minors in the Atlanta Braves and Colorado Rockies systems until his career concluded.

Since leaving the playing field he’s done everything from hitting coach in the minors to third base coach in the majors. He’s been a managerial candidate for the Marlins and Pirates, but never got to grab the brass ring.

Fangraphs interviewed Porter back in July of this year, calling him a “Future Big League Manager.”  When asked what his managerial style would be, he said this -

“When people ask what kind of manager I’ll be, I always tell them, ‘Give me a roster and then I’ll tell you how I’m going to manage that ball club.’ You can say you’re going to be an aggressive manager and that we’re going to steal bases and hit-and-run, but if you have six guys in your lineup that can hit 25 home runs, it’s probably not a good idea to take too many chances of giving away outs. Conversely, if you have a team that doesn’t have a lot of power — but you do have guys who put the ball in play — you can put runners in motion.

“You want to take advantage of the ability that your players have. How you manage shouldn’t be etched in stone. You have to play to your strengths and at the same time you have to look at your opponent. If there are things the other team doesn’t do well, you want to put your players in a position to take advantage of that. A big part of this game is recognizing advantages, whether you do that with data or with your own eyes.”

As of yesterday, Porter’s wish came true. I’d say with one heck of a coaching opportunity ahead of him. Many would see the Houston Astros as the team they’d least like to lead, but I’d bet that Porter’s looking at it as the opportunity of a lifetime. He gets the chance to prove to the Marlins and the Pirates that they were wrong. That he can turn a team around.

Until he proves me wrong, I’ll give Mr. Porter the benefit of the doubt. I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do with a team that has the lowest payroll and highest loss rate in the majors. A team that has too many minor leaguers taking the field each night. A team that has a developing farm system that’s talent is a few years out from the show. Yes, he has one heck of a challenge in front of him, but it’s one hell of an opportunity.

Welcome to Houston, Bo.

Terri Schlather (AGirlintheSouth) is the tortured Senior Houston Astros Writer for Aerys Sports. You can email her at agirlinthesouth@gmail.com, or follow her ridiculous ramblings on sports, vodka and the weeone on twitter @agirlinthesouth.