Another Springer Dinger! 20 on the year.
First at-bat of the second half. 1-0 Astros at Seattle.
Springer as a lead-off hitter has been superb. Night-and-day difference.

That was a nice 7-3 win tonight. A lot of fine defensive plays. The Astros bullpen got the job done: No runs allowed.
Feliz, Giles, Gregerson and Devenski all pitched one scoreless frame after Fister pitched 5 innings (gave up 3 earned).

They didn't use all-star closer Will Harris tonight. He'll be fresh for tomorrow if needed.

Now the Astros are 4.5 games back of the Texas Rangers for first place in the AL West. It's looking more interesting.
The Athletics defeated the Blue Jays, 8-7, so only 1 game back of the Blue Jays for the 2nd AL wild-card spot as well.

McCullers versus Iwakuma at 3:10 PM later this afternoon (Houston time). I stayed up past midnight watching tonight's game.
It should be a good pitcher's duel. The Astros are trying to keep the wins coming. They are right there in the playoff race.

I'm just about to watch the Cubs versus Rangers game. The Astros game is still two hours away.
If the Rangers lose again the Astros will have a chance to move to within 3.5 games out of first place.

It's been nearly impossible to gain any ground for the longest time until recently.
Also the Rangers are 9-1 against the Astros in 10 games this year. They had a wide cushion.

The Texas Rangers haven't had a reason to worry or panic. They've been on easy street for a long time.

1-0 Mariners in the top of the 7th.
Hisashi Iwakuma just owns us...

The Astros only have 1 hit in this game, a double by Altuve.
But we have three innings left to find a way to pull this game out.

The Rangers already lost. The Blue Jays are trailing at the moment...

Huge opportunity for the Astros to pull to within 3.5 games out of 1st and maybe tied for the 2nd AL wild-card spot.

But man, Iwakuma looks brilliant every time I watch him pitch against the Astros.
I'm not sure how his ERA was over 4 entering today. He must not pitch "amazingly" against other teams.

So glad the Astros overpaid for that cuban guy

What a crowded mess of an infield

Wasted a double by Correa in the 7th inning. The Mariners are shifting their way to a victory today.
Everything on the infield that the Astros hit hard is fielded by a nice shift. There are no holes on the right side.

You would think somebody in our lineup would be smart enough to drop down a bunt or grounder to the left side.

That is usually how the Astros win a lot of games. They are known for over-shifting on defense.

We're being beaten today by our own strategy. My hats off to the Seattle Mariners today.
They are playing a solid game. Great pitching by Hisashi Iwakuma as well.

Our lineup needs some more firepower in it.
Yulieski Gurriel can't be called up fast enough.
A trade for Ryan Braun can't happen soon enough.

Third base will be available. We can move Luis Valbuena to first base if A.J. Reed continues to slump.
Yulieski Gurriel was signed to play. There is no doubt about that. Just how soon is the only question?
I think Alex Bregman could be traded. We always have the DH 80 % of the time to stick an extra bat.

Today's 1-0 loss at Seattle shows why the Astros need some more bats.
The middle of our lineup is still feast of famine: Not enough plate discipline.

I want to see Yulieski Gurriel in the Astros lineup before the month of July is over.
He reported to the Astros extended spring training today: He'll be in the minor leagues next week.

And rather than wait until the trading deadline in two weeks to make a big trade.
I would try to make it happen as soon as possible. Why wait? Our playoff hopes are hanging on a slim string.

Astros GM Jeff Luhnow just said that he expects Yulieski Gurriel to be Major League ready in three weeks.
So there you have it I guess. But until then we're still trotting out the same lineup. We need help right now.

I would have started Alex Bregman the past two games. What are we waiting for?
Literally he's going to waste at Triple-A right now. He owns AAA pitching.
Time to see what that talented kid can do against Major League pitching.

The Astros don't have the luxury to dance around and have a good time like other teams do.
They shot themselves in the foot by starting this season with a dismal 17-28 record.

Losing a game 1-0 like today really hurts. It just shows the sense of urgency that we desperately need.

If the Astros end up missing the playoffs in 2016 I'll blame the front office. Mostly, GM Jeff Luhnow.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Jul 16 2016 05:39pm

Carlos Gomez hit a grand slam. Jose Altuve homered earlier.

The Astros lead 8-0 in the bottom of the 7th.
Looks like they will win two out of three at Seattle.
I still think they should have swept this series though.

Seattle made many errors and were practically begging to lose every game.
That 1-0 loss yesterday still stings me. Too many wasted opportunities.

But oh well, a new winning streak can be had hopefully.
Still 4.5 games behind the Rangers in the AL West because they won today.

It's going to be a fun second half if the Astros can consistently score runs.
Some offensive upgrades will arrive soon so I'm looking forward to that.

Hmm. The Athletics and Blue Jays are tied 3-3 in the bottom of the 7th.
If the Athletics can sweep the Jays the Astros would be tied for that 2nd AL wild-card spot.

Back to that late game, West coast baseball. No sleeping time.
Fiers, Keuchel and Fister are scheduled to pitch at Oakland.
9:10 PM start times the next two games. I'll be up past midnight watching those games.

Pretty straight forward schedule the rest of July. Athletics (road), Angels, Yankees and Tigers (road).
And then the Astros open up the month of August with 7 huge home games: 4 with Blue Jays and 3 with Rangers.

In fact, 13 of the next 19 games for the Astros are at home. This is the time to make a push.

These next three weeks are going to be pretty huge in the playoff race.
By the time we get to mid August we'll know exactly where the Astros are.

Yulieski Gurriel will already be called up by then. Any big trade the Astros make will be helpful down the stretch as well.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Jul 17 2016 10:16pm