Post by Commissioner Erick on May 25, 2023 6:49:17 GMT -5
Houston Astros (39-51) @ Texas Rangers (49-42)
HOU: Jorge Ontiveros (3-9, 4.74)
TEX: Aaron Taylor (3-2, 4.66)
Astros 3 Key Stats
.920: Tim Elmore’s OPS: After a strong 2026, Elmore had a disappointing 2027, and has not been a full time player since. He hit .248 with a .274 OBP in 2027 largely as a pinch hitter and defensive replacement. In 2028 he only appeared in 28 games for Milwaukee, and moved on to Houston last year where he had a -0.8 WAR. It appeared that his career was on its last legs, but then Elmore produced a fantastic first half completely out of nowhere. He’s batting .328 with a .374 OBP and 16 homers. He’s turned around his career and earned an All-Star nod to boot.
18: Houston wins in 32 games: After a terrible start, Houston has played solid ball since June 1. They’ve won four of five in July and went 14-13 in June. The Astros had the fifth best OPS in June and also the fifth best ERA. Ichisake Ochiai had a huge June with a .323 average, five homers, and seven RBIs. Phantom Ontiveros only allowed two homers and had a 3.73 ERA in June. If the two players continue their good spells into July, Houston has a chance to kick off the second half with a win.
.637: Houston’s road OPS: Houston has a respectable home OPS of .749, but their road OPS would be the second worst AL OPS. The team simply can’t hit on the road. Only two teams have fewer road home runs, no team has fewer triples, and only the White Sox have fewer doubles. They only have a .229 average, which is bad, though there are other teams with worse marks, so it’s the lack of extra base pop that has doomed Houston away from Minute Maid Park. As a result, the club is a very solid 26-21 at home, but a putrid 13-30 on the road.
Rangers 3 Key Stats
22: Losses in 33 games: Texas was playing great baseball entering June. The started the month completing a four game sweep of Kansas City. They then had six more home games in a row against an admittedly tough schedule, but with a chance to really take charge of the AL West. Instead, they got swept by Baltimore, then Oakland, starting a brutal stretch where they went from six games up on Oakland to nine games back. The wild card is still in play, but despite the season records, Houston enters the contest with Texas playing much better baseball.
.640: Texas’ OPS against lefties: Texas amazingly has a .793 OPS against righties, tops in the AL, but their .640 OPS against lefties trails only the Angels and Tigers. The team is simply impotent against lefties, partly explaining the team’s record in June. The club actually hit for a healthy .765 OPS in the mark, but batted for a .475 OPS against lefties. With Jorge Ontiveros expected to take the hill, Texas needs to find a way to hit lefties today or they will suffer the consequences.
25: Dan O’Rourke Saves: O’Rourke has become one of the best Closers in baseball. Tops in the league in Saves, O’Rourke has done it with a terrific 1.73 ERA. It’s not a fluky season either—O’Rourke had a 1.79 ERA with 21 Saves in 2028. O’Rourke rarely yields homers and has 11 strikeouts per nine. Combined with a .228 BABIP against, and he’s been unhittable. The BABIP will probably come up some, but with good homer rates and strikeout rates throughout his career, he can survive a little regression and remain a top-tier closer.
Questions for the GMs:
For Neil Ehm, your team has played much better the last month or so. What changes did you make to turn things around?
Will you active Jean Carlos Carmona to your roster ahead of today’s game?
Texas is so bad against lefties, will you call up a lefty for your bullpen for today?
For Dave Lowtizki, your team has been brutal against lefties. Do you plan on making a move to change that for the second half?
You brought on Andre Stinson and Laurente Baffi. Why did you acquire the two arms?
Why did you bring aboard Heliot Ramos?
TRIVIA: Which two pitchers have produced at least 20 career WAR for Texas?
HOU: Jorge Ontiveros (3-9, 4.74)
TEX: Aaron Taylor (3-2, 4.66)
Astros 3 Key Stats
.920: Tim Elmore’s OPS: After a strong 2026, Elmore had a disappointing 2027, and has not been a full time player since. He hit .248 with a .274 OBP in 2027 largely as a pinch hitter and defensive replacement. In 2028 he only appeared in 28 games for Milwaukee, and moved on to Houston last year where he had a -0.8 WAR. It appeared that his career was on its last legs, but then Elmore produced a fantastic first half completely out of nowhere. He’s batting .328 with a .374 OBP and 16 homers. He’s turned around his career and earned an All-Star nod to boot.
18: Houston wins in 32 games: After a terrible start, Houston has played solid ball since June 1. They’ve won four of five in July and went 14-13 in June. The Astros had the fifth best OPS in June and also the fifth best ERA. Ichisake Ochiai had a huge June with a .323 average, five homers, and seven RBIs. Phantom Ontiveros only allowed two homers and had a 3.73 ERA in June. If the two players continue their good spells into July, Houston has a chance to kick off the second half with a win.
.637: Houston’s road OPS: Houston has a respectable home OPS of .749, but their road OPS would be the second worst AL OPS. The team simply can’t hit on the road. Only two teams have fewer road home runs, no team has fewer triples, and only the White Sox have fewer doubles. They only have a .229 average, which is bad, though there are other teams with worse marks, so it’s the lack of extra base pop that has doomed Houston away from Minute Maid Park. As a result, the club is a very solid 26-21 at home, but a putrid 13-30 on the road.
Rangers 3 Key Stats
22: Losses in 33 games: Texas was playing great baseball entering June. The started the month completing a four game sweep of Kansas City. They then had six more home games in a row against an admittedly tough schedule, but with a chance to really take charge of the AL West. Instead, they got swept by Baltimore, then Oakland, starting a brutal stretch where they went from six games up on Oakland to nine games back. The wild card is still in play, but despite the season records, Houston enters the contest with Texas playing much better baseball.
.640: Texas’ OPS against lefties: Texas amazingly has a .793 OPS against righties, tops in the AL, but their .640 OPS against lefties trails only the Angels and Tigers. The team is simply impotent against lefties, partly explaining the team’s record in June. The club actually hit for a healthy .765 OPS in the mark, but batted for a .475 OPS against lefties. With Jorge Ontiveros expected to take the hill, Texas needs to find a way to hit lefties today or they will suffer the consequences.
25: Dan O’Rourke Saves: O’Rourke has become one of the best Closers in baseball. Tops in the league in Saves, O’Rourke has done it with a terrific 1.73 ERA. It’s not a fluky season either—O’Rourke had a 1.79 ERA with 21 Saves in 2028. O’Rourke rarely yields homers and has 11 strikeouts per nine. Combined with a .228 BABIP against, and he’s been unhittable. The BABIP will probably come up some, but with good homer rates and strikeout rates throughout his career, he can survive a little regression and remain a top-tier closer.
Questions for the GMs:
For Neil Ehm, your team has played much better the last month or so. What changes did you make to turn things around?
Will you active Jean Carlos Carmona to your roster ahead of today’s game?
Texas is so bad against lefties, will you call up a lefty for your bullpen for today?
For Dave Lowtizki, your team has been brutal against lefties. Do you plan on making a move to change that for the second half?
You brought on Andre Stinson and Laurente Baffi. Why did you acquire the two arms?
Why did you bring aboard Heliot Ramos?
TRIVIA: Which two pitchers have produced at least 20 career WAR for Texas?
