fanatic [fuh-nat-ik] noun – a person with an extreme and uncritical enthusiasm or zeal

With the Astros recent seasons of struggles, there have been some questions raised on the Internets about “true fans”. Most of the questions have been posted on Twitter by other fans, but they should still be addressed, because my “true fan” status is at stake here, yo!

You can love your team, and still admit they suck.

What makes you a “true fan” of a team? Is it your loyalty? Is it your tattoo? Is it your positivity? What about your negativity? Do you go to most of the home games? Do you travel to see your favorite team play on the road? Have you been cheering for the same team since you were 5?

In my mind “true fan” can be defined in countless numbers of ways and all of the above scenarios can realistically come in to play. A “true fan” lives and dies with their team, whether they’re winning or losing. You still go to games and follow their every move. A “true fan” is positive, but is also realistic and knows when his/her team isn’t good and can say it. Yes, it’s great to be positive about your team and to talk them up, but seriously when your team is the worst team in baseball it’s OK to be negative.

Confession time, I have been known to poke fun at the Houston Nine on Twitter quite often. I’ve said they look like little leaguers (they do at times), I’ve called out certain ballplayers for their strikeouts and lack of batting (I’m looking at you Jordan Schafer), and I joke about their fielding when errors are made. Seriously, they’re in the big leagues they shouldn’t be running into each other on the field, but all kidding aside I’m still at most every home game (I missed 10) and I still hope that they win, or play well, every night. Does my poking fun make me less of a fan? I don’t think so.

Another question that has been raised is what the proper etiquette should be if a player follows you, the fan, on Twitter. Twitter is an amazing social media tool that I think all ballplayers should be a part of. I think it’s an outstanding way to stay connected and to interact with fans. Ballplayers are big boys and they should be able to handle criticism and negativity. If they can’t, well they shouldn’t be on Twitter.

As fans I think it’s important to support your team in the good times and the bad. Obviously you want your team to win, but when they’re losing you don’t just give up and stop root root rooting. As fans I also think it’s important to support your fellow fan. Who are we to judge what makes someone a “good” fan or a “bad” fan. We’re all cheering for the same team and hoping that they do well and in the end that’s fan enough for me!

Greis Perez (AmazingGreis), pronounced Grace, is a lifelong Astros fan and contributor for Aerys Sports. You can email her at amazing_greis@yahoo.com, or follow her on Twitter, @AmazingGreis, where she’s considered a #BadFan and professes her undying love for Justin Timberlake and all things sparkly!

I can get negative pretty quickly, but I can also usually find the positive in any situation. I’m sort of annoying that way. If you spent any amount of time with prior to this season, I would have explained to you the upside of last season’s pain in being an Astros fan, the sale of the team, a new General Manager, a marginally better farm system.

That was me before the season began.

Then the Astros came the drought. You know the one I’m talking about, right? The inability o finish games they lead, the inability to jumpstart ANY offense, the inability to capitalize on runners in scoring position, the pitching that gets worse as the season progresses…yes, it’s a drought. The worst sort of drought for a sports fan.

I admit that there have been nights that I just couldn’t watch the game. And apparently, I’m not the only one who is tired of watching this team lose. Even the players have expressed it.

Normally, I’m not a big Schafer fan, but in this instance, it was refreshing to see Jordan be honest and speak (or tweet rather) what most of the team is probably thinking and feeling. And for what it’s worth, the next night, the Astros found a way to beat the Braves and NOT get swept.

So where’s the silver lining with a  team that’s currently on pace to go 53-109? Three things – 1) another number one draft pick seems likely and Jeff Luhnow and Bobby Heck did us proud this time around, so I expect the same next year, 2) the minor league teams are doing remarkably well which means there is talent on its way, both in the near and distant future, and 3) September call ups aren’t that far away and an influx of players who aren’t mired under this blanket of losses might inject this club with enough enthusiasm that games become fun to watch again. *fingers crossed*

In the meantime, I’m still watching, with one eye open and one eye closed, praying for miracles and holding out until September.

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 begged for the bleeding to stop the other day and with a win against the Brewers last night, the Astros have ended their 9 game losing streak. But will the winning thing stick? I don’t think it’s likely for a lot of reasons.

In my house we’ve been joking that the Astros losing streak was because the weeone was at camp, but truth be told, I think the win yesterday had less to do with my daughter’s return and more to do with the insanity of the first inning and the ejection of Zack Greinke. I’m sure you’ve heard the tale or seen the footage by now, but when Greinke and Jose Altuve raced to first, and Altuve was called safe, Greinke spiked the ball in the dirt and was ejected.

I am certain that ejection was responsible for breaking the Astros losing streak.

Now, I’ll give credit where credit is due – the Astros offense was better yesterday than it’s been in a while. They put up 13 hits and attacked the bases full on, giving themselves every possible opportunity to get across home plate  and we hadn’t seen that in a while. Jordan Schafer was 2-4, Altuve 3-4, JD Martinez 3-4, Jed Lowrie 2-4 and Scott Moore hit his 3rd homer in 8 games. The bats were definitely alive. Add to that the 2 stolen bases – one each from Schafer and Altuve and the 2 sac flies from Jason Castro, and you’ve got an offense. Wandy Rodriguez put up another solid starting performance, allowing only 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 5 in the 5.1 innings he spent on the bump.

But can the bandaid hold? With today’s series finale against the Brewers being the last game before the break for the All-Star Game, I’ve got to wonder if the turn in the tide yesterday was enough momentum to carry over to a second game? Add to that concern the fact that the Brewers will send Zack Greinke back to the mound today since he only threw 4 pitches yesterday. They’re trying to showcase him before the trade deadline and there was a decent crowd of scouts at Minute Maid Park yesterday who saw much less Greinke than they expected.

I applaud the Astros for taking advantage of yesterday’s events and riding the momentum they were handed in the first inning, but good baseball teams create their own momentum and that’s something this young club hasn’t figured out quite yet. So how long will the bandaid hold? Hopefully at least another 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.

So a road trip where you lose all 7 games is pretty damn painful. Add that other loss and the Houston Astros now find themselves on an 8 game skid. This completely sucks. The last thing you want as the season rolls into All-Star week is bad juju. And yet, all the Astros can find at the moment, is bad juju.

When the pitching is on, the offense stinks. When the offense is on…wait…the offense hasn’t been on lately.

I really can’t blame anything but a lack of offense for this loss-fest happening right now. I was hoping that the trade of Carlos Lee to the Miami Marlins would be seen as change enough to kickstart the team into doing something. After all, they lost their “power hitter.” Everyone should step it up then, right? Apparently not.

So the Houston Astros will return home tonight with their tails between their legs after being swept by the CUBS, yes, I screamed that, and the Pirates. *sigh* What’s a girl to do?

The bright light in this dismal road trip? A little managing by Brad Mills put a smile on my face. When Jordan Schafer had “behavioral issues” on the field during the 2nd inning of game 3 against the Pirates, Mills benched him. He didn’t like what Schafer was doing out there in center field and despite the fact that the move shorted the bench, he did it anyway. Bravo, Brad. I like this style of management. Reward performance, and bench the guys that aren’t following the plan.

Mills did put Schafer back in the game last night to pinch hit, but Schafer struck out (which would stop happening if he would change his walk-up music from “Call Me Maybe” and yes, I know they don’t get their music on the road, but the carryover affect of that song seems particularly lethal).

So the Houston nine play at home tonight, in rainbow should jerseys. Can they stop the bleeding? Damn, I hope so.

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.

Last night after Justin Maxwell hit his 8th home run for the Houston Astros I started thinking about how much this guy has accomplished without much in the way of playing time this season.

So far, JMax has appeared in just 58 games and had only 114 at bats. What’s he done with those opportunities? A lot. His .246 batting average is certainly  not one of a superstar, but given his playing time, I find it to be impressive. His dinger last night put him second on the club’s list of home runs for the 2012 season and his OPS of .836 is second only to Jed Lowrie, who also owns the Astros leader position for home runs.

It has to make you think that perhaps JMax isn’t getting his fair share of playing time. I mean, I’m wondering what his numbers would do if he started with more regularity and didn’t hit off the bench as often as he has.

When JMax does start, it’s usually against a left handed pitcher when Jordan Schafer rides the bench. So it only makes sense to compare him to Schafer. In 199 at bats, Schafer’s .246 batting average is no better than Maxwell’s, so where does Schafer shine that JMax doesn’t?

Looking at the stats above, I can’t really find a reason why Schafer starts ahead of Maxwell. The only true advantage Schafer has in these numbers is stolen bases and that he doesn’t strike out as much. But could we chalk that up to Maxwell hitting cold from the bench more often? Absolutely. And Maxwell has more RBI than Schafer, certainly a factor of his home run hitting, but something to consider.

I’d like to see JMax get more starts and if the rumors I heard this morning are true, then someone in the organization agrees. I hear that we’ll see JMax and Schafer platooning in Center for the time being. The one thing that would truly accomplish is seeing which of these two guys really should be the starter. And if all things turn up equal? It never hurts to have a starting lefty and a starting righty who can handily play in that big expanse of grass out there.

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.

As Bud Norris pitched seven shutout innings last night and the Houston Astros put on a little home run hit parade to beat the Cubs 8-4,  there was one thing I couldn’t get out of my head. This Houston Astros team isn’t afraid to get dirty.

This idea started festering in my head a couple of weeks ago when my mother commented during a game that Jordan Schafer’s nickname should be “Pigpen” because his uniform is always a mess. You know, that orange-brown streak of dirt you find covering the front of a uniform of any player who regularly steals bases? Yep, that’s what I’m talking about.

It’s not just that this team is stealing some bases, although collectively they’ve stolen 33 bags so far this year putting them a respectable 7th in steals in the majors and 5th in the National League. This team is a never-say-die group of guys who always think about how to get it back when the lead is stolen. And when they’re winning? Well, widening that lead is front of mind.

So as I watched the game last night, I was drawn to how many of those uniforms were dirty and it was a lot. Let’s not crazy, Carlos Lee’s uniform was clean as a whistle, but even with players we love to harass like Lee, there’s something in the air in the Astros clubhouse this season. It’s not something we can add up on a stat sheet or really quantify, but it’s just as real and still there.

If you haven’t been to a game in person this season, I encourage you to do it – not just because ticket sales expand the budget that GM Jeff Luhnow has to work with, but also because you’ll feel it. It’s palpable in the air during a game. (I should mention I get no benefit from you going to a game and I’m a horrible fan for saying this, but I prefer the stadium a little empty as it gives me more room.)

I was chatting with a friend the other day – she’s a Red Sox fan- when she mentioned that the Astros weren’t the worst team in baseball this year. I nodded and said, “That’s a reputation that will go away….with just a little more dirt.”

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.

Jed Lowrie's been spending a nice amount of time on base for the Astros.

I love when the Cubs come to Minute Maid Park. There’s a few things that I adore about it. First, the Cubs fans come out in droves. Generally that annoys me at a game, but this year in particular, the opportunity to watch Cubs fans cry at MMP is more than I can resist smiling at. Yep, I know, I’m a bit evil.

But the Cubs are the “Astros of last season” sitting in the bottom of the NL Central standings and that’s just a whole lot of fun for an Astros fan, right? Admit it…you love it too.

The match-ups for this series aren’t too shabby either. The timing in the starting rotations means we’ll see some fun baseball. But when push comes to shove, I expect the Astros to take 2 of these 3 games and really in my heart of hearts I think they should sweep this team of baby bears.

JA Happ’s coming in with momentum after his last start, the same for Cudly Studly Budly Norris and Wandy Rodriguez has to want to come out and prove that the hit parade by the Rangers last Friday was a fluke and he’s still the pitcher we all know he is. After all, at home, Wandy’s ERA is a very impressive 1.52. Come on, Wandy, we know you want to kick some ass this week.

Jordan Schafer will still be sitting out and isn’t expected to play on Monday thanks to that lower leg strain, but Jose Altuve once again proved Sunday he can hit in any spot you stick him and did a fine job as the leadoff hitter. If Schafer was missed anywhere it was in centerfield where Justin Maxwell isn’t quite as quick (or used to Tal’s hill) defensively. That should only affect Monday and possibly Tuesday.

But on the other hand….let me tell ya’ story ’bout a man named Jed…yep, that SS is finding a nice groove at the plate (.273/.354/.461) and I look for him to continue to hit well and make the plays down the middle.

In the meantime, I’ll be waiting on JD Martinez to lose the “lost” look he’s been sporting at the plate and find his swing again. And I’ll be waiting for Brian Bogusevic to fix the little things that seem to be keeping him off-balance from time to time at the plate as well. If the Astros can get those two kicking it old school, I think the Astros will continue to be the scrappy little brother who just won’t give up.

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.

If your Monday is feeling a bit drab, I have just the cure. Take another peek at the Houston Astro’s Jordan Schafer as he hits his 2nd homer of the year and his first career Grand Slam during yesterday’s game against the Dodgers.

Click it....you know you want to see it again.

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 Astros baseball season has been in full swing for eleven days. It’s been eleven days of wins (4), losses (6), hits, strikeouts and everything in between. The boys from Houston have definitely kept the past eleven days very interesting and it’s been a lot of fun watching this young team play (except for the one game that wasn’t televised!) .

One thing that wasn’t so much fun? Watching the team struggle at the plate with the bases loaded. Through Sunday the Astros had come to the plate 11 times with the bases juiced and they failed to get a hit each of those 11 times. When games are being lost by one or two runs you can’t help but look back at all of those wasted opportunities and wonder “what if.”

On Monday night the tide began to turn. In the top of the sixth Jordan Schafer and Jed Lowrie both singled to start the inning and JD Martinez followed with a walk. Perfect, right? No outs, bases loaded and your clean-up hitter is approaching the plate, it’s the scenario fantasies are made of, unless you’re the Houston Astros and then it’s just scary given their recent bases loaded track record.

The scene began to look eerily familiar when Carlos Lee logged the team’s first out of the inning with a fly ball to center and Travis Buck (my baseball boyfriend) followed with a strike out swinging. Just like that there were two outs, the bases were still loaded and the Astros bases loaded hitless streak rose to 13.

They were down to their last out of the inning and the collective hope of all Astros fans lied in the hands of Chris Johnson. With a 1 – 2 count Johnson hits a line drive single to center scoring Schafer and Lowrie to tie the game at 2 and the curse of loaded bases was broken. Hallelujah!

If only the final score had been something to rejoice about as well.

Greis Perez (AmazingGreis), pronounced Grace, is a lifelong Astros fan and contributor for Aerys Sports. You can email her at amazing_greis@yahoo.com, or follow her on Twitter, @AmazingGreis, where she professes her undying love for Travis Buck (#MyBaseballBoyfriend), Justin Timberlake and all things sparkly!

It’s no secret around here that I have much love for Study Cuddly Budly. I listened to his 3 inning start of yesterday’s game against the Phillies and knew he looked great just by the results. But this morning MLB Network graced us all by airing the game at the absolute crack of dawn.

Rather than just hearing Bud Norris’ start, I got to watch it. I’ll tell you this, not only do these boys look good so far this season, they look like they’re having fun. Now, I admit, when you’re whipping a team 10-3 it’s going to be a little bit fun, but even early in the game when the score wasn’t so drastic, there was something in their faces.

I’ve said before that I think this season will be more about hear than talent. Not to say that this team doesn’t have talent, it does. But the way they approach each game and not letting losses (even if they start to pile up) get to them could be the key to whether this team hits that 63 wins mark this year. So to see them smiling and having fun during a Spring Training game? Fantastic.

I won’t bore you with box score details you can get anywhere, but the bats were hot especially Jordan Schafer and JD Martinez.

I promised you that this Spring Training was going to be fun. It’s only been 5 games, but so far it’s been incredibly true.

Tomorrow morning I’ll start my trek to Florida to get some eyes on the boys myself. Can’t wait.

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.