Astros are just one win away from...

Still - just one win away... but really now, aren't the Astros always just one win away???

GO BRAVES!!!

 

If Houston does win tonight, I think they will have overcome a huge obstacle. Unforunately (for those of us who favor the Astros in this one) most of the time when a team has a series almost tucked away, then suddenly they have to win another game to win the series, it's an advantage to the opponent, especially when they have to go back to the opponent's home.

I haven't been an avid fan of the Houston Astros since I was a kid listening to their games on radio, when few games were televised (anyone remember the announcer Loel Passe ?) But if for nothing else, I like to see teams destroy the silly ideas fans get, like the poster above who said "aren't the Astros always just one win away???". It's "always" going to be that way because it has been in the past-- yeah, yeah ....

 

6 of those guys were already gone from the Astros before I became familiar with them. I definitely remember Jim Wynn, though, and I found a website not long ago which makes the case for him for the Hall of Fame. He was described by both Willie Mays and Hank Aaron as "pound for pound, the best homerun hitter in the league." He was 5'9", 170 pounds, and played in the hardest park in baseball in which to hit a homerun; yet he averaged 30 a year for a 7-year stretch. He also drew a lot of walks, setting a record of 148 in '69 and had speed. His career batting average was .250, but his on-base average puts him almost even with Kirby Puckett for 'OPS', on-base percentage + slugging average. The Hall of Fame campaign is actually a good one, but it is probably an impossible endeavor because he never led the league in homeruns, RBI's, total bases, et al, and his unimpressive batting average, and the fact that the Astros' teams he played on were mediocre (the only above-.500 finish was his last year with them, '72).

In fact, one thing the Astros of the late 60's and early 70's became noted for was trading still-young players who were developed to their prime by other teams, indicating there were problems in the club in handling the talent they had and that they should have been more competitive. Joe Morgan was a .260 hitter over 6 years with Houston, was traded to Cincinnati and became a perennial .300 hitter, the best 2nd basemen in the league, and had back-to-back MVP seasons in '75 and '76. Although I have not read it, I know Morgan wrote a book about his experiences in baseball and he says he was traded because he could not continue to play for manager Harry Walker, who he calls "the biggest fool in baseball." Other players they traded who went on to better things included Rusty Staub, Cesar Geronimo, Jerry Reuss, John Mayberry, Nate Colbert...

 

CAGE THE CARDINALS!!!

azwyld
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The Astros didn't just beat my Braves, they routed them. Congrats to the Astros - they deserve it!!!

Question: Who has the best chance in beating the Yankees in the World Series? That's who I'm rooting for in the NLCS.

 

You need to root for the Stros. You really really do!!! Them Yanks are always winnin' when it comes to baseball...come on give us texans a chance!!!

azwyld
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