Houston Astros

The 2009 Houston Astros may find themselves in the baseball record book for worst spring training record in history.

After their recent 12-1 loss to the New York Mets, the Astros' Grapefruit League record fell to 1-16-3. They must reach at least six wins in order to catch the 1985 Pittsburgh Pirates, who finished 6-18 that spring.

Currently, the pitching has been somewhat respectable, but weak offensive production and terrible defense continue to be cancerous to the team. 

The Houston Astros can officially welcome future Hall-of-Fame catcher Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez to the active roster.

Rodriguez, the 1999 AL MVP, passed his physical in Orlando, finalizing the one-year, $1.5 million contract. ESPN.com reports the 14-time All-Star will make his spring debut for the Astros this Sunday.

Over the past couple of days, I've been involved in a lot of Yankee/Red Sox banter.

It started when I had dinner with some Red Sox fans last weekend, and has continued on into this week.

Last weekend, we got on the subject of where we all were when Aaron Boone hit the game winning home run in Game Seven of the 2003 ALCS against the Red Sox.

The rumors surrounding the Houston Astros interest in signing 14-time All-Star catcher Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez became a reality when the future Hall-of-Famer agreed to a one-year, $1.5 million deal on Monday, according to ESPN's baseball analyst Steve Phillips.

One of the oldest adages in baseball is “You must be strong up the middle.” The Astros are far from strong in several key positions, such as catcher, center field, and starting pitching.

Manager Cecil Cooper did a marvelous job the second half of last year getting the Astros into playoff contention, especially with Carlos Lee missing the final seven weeks. But Houston needs a couple of its starters, beyond bell cow Roy Oswalt, to turn in strong seasons.

With the Astros signing Ivan Rodriguez this morning, it appears as though GM Ed Wade believes that the group he has assembled could be good enough to compete.

The Houston Astros made a splash in free agency this week signing catcher Ivan Rodriguez to a one-year deal. Now don’t expect that all of Houston’s problems are solved and they have everything they need to reach the promised land. The move does however improve any chances Houston had at a division title or the wild card far more than anyone realizes.

You can now add nine for 15 with two homers to the numbers of the Houston Astros catchers this spring with the soon-to-be-official signing of Pudge Rodriguez.

Here’s the news from Astros.mlb.com: ”Ivan Rodriguez is expected to sign with the Astros, pending a physical exam that will be taken upon the completion of Puerto Rico’s participation in the World Baseball Classic.”

So let’s all hope Pudge doesn’t hurt himself in the classic.

Houston Astros right-hander Brandon Backe entered Spring Training with a chip on his shoulder. The 30-year-old Galveston native finished 9-14 with a 6.05 ERA in 31 starts last season. 

After undergoing career-threatening Tommy John surgery Sept. 7, 2006, Backe perservered through intensive rehabilitation and returned to the mound toward the end of the 2007 season.

Michael Bourn was acquired to be the leadoff hitter to replace legendary Craig Biggio. Ed Wade envisioned Bourn as the next "Killer B," a speedy youngster who could be a defensive gem in Minute Maid Park's cavernous center field and could be devastating as a top of the order threat both at the plate and on the base paths.

Bourn was devastating, but only to the Astros offense. In his first full year as a starter and first in Astros Red and Black, Bourn posted only a .229 average and a miserable .288 on-base percentage.