So the Astros lost because Chris Sale was Chris Sale and the Astros offense was the Astros offense, of late. Jonathan Villar has ping-pong paddles for hands and Avisail Garcia banged an oppo two-run homer. What can you do? Still, the Astros' postseason odds (according to FanGraphs) actually went up. In addition, the Astros' 6.1% chance of winning the World Series is the 2nd-highest in the AL and 5th-highest in baseball.
*Chris Sale became the first pitcher in MLB history to strike out 12+ batters in three consecutive starts since Pedro did it in 2001.
*Matty D to Matty DFA: Matt Dominguez was DFA'd to make room on the 40-Man for Correa.
Let's get to the hot links...
*Mike Elias reflected on the 2012 draft.
*Beyond the Box Score looks at the additions of Correa and Velasquez.
*Alex Bregman just wants to help the team win, in this New Orleans Advocate profile.
*Kyle Tucker, seven years younger than Preston, would really like to play on the same team as his brother.
*By picking Bregman, Tucker, Cameron and Eshelman, Yahoo declares the Astros the winners of the first day of the draft:
If things pencil out in the best way, this should be enough for Houston to forget its 2014 draft debacle...what the Astros pulled off on Day 1 of the draft was quite impressive and it could leave them in a good place for years to come.
*Jon Heyman:
Cameron might be the coup here, and it was made possible by the Astros' $17.29 million draft allotment. It isn't certain what Cameron will receive, but the Astros figure to have the financial firepower to get it done.
*Phil Rogers: Monday night was just the start of something big for the Astros
*Altuve didn't know who was more excited about Correa's debut: Altuve or Correa.
*Cleveland's director of scouting, Brad Grant, did not talk to the Astros in advance of selecting Brady Aiken with the 17th overall pick.
*Roy Oswalt is now an agent, and still has the tractor.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
