Nieve vs Morris

[IE]

First, some Astros news:

1 - Lance Berkman is still nursing his sore left hammy.

2 - Chris Burke, who has been on the DL with a dislocated shoulder since May 6th, will start a rehab assignment this weekend at Round Rock AAA. He is eligible to come off the DL on Monday. Then we can send that worthless ?Stupor? Joe McEwing back down.

3 - Brandon Backe is doing some light throwing on flat ground. So far, there?s no rumors that he?ll be needing surgery, but they will re-evaluate him around June 1, his 6 week mark on the DL. I would guess that even if he DOESN?T need surgery, he wouldn?t be back before the ASB - as he would need a good deal of rehab and at least a couple of minor league starts.

4 - Roger? No news. I am getting more and more convinced that he isn?t coming back for ANY team.

Fernando Nieve, RHP vs Matt Morris, RHP



this year: 1-1 in 5 GS and 1 in relief - 6 HR, 10 BB, 22 K over 29.2 IP with a 4.85 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and a .277 BAA

- had a decent game his last outing - NO homers and he stranded 9 guys over 5.1 innings

vs SF: 2/3 IP in relief - no hits, walks, runs

@ the Box: 0-0 in 2 GS and 2 in relief - 1 HR, 6 BB, 9 K over 12.2 IP - 3.55 ERA, 1.58 WHIP and a .275 BAA

vs Giants lineup: Matheny and Vizcaino are both 0 fer 1

???????????
Matt Morris, RHP

this year: 2-4 in 8 GS - 5 HR, 18 BB, 21 K over 45 IP - 6.20 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, .284 BAA

- he beat us back on April 13 in San Fran.

vs Houston: 10 - 10 in 27 GS and 3 in relief with 2 CG and 1 SO - 18 HR, 51 BB, 133 K over 178.1 IP with a 3.53 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and a .257 BAA

@ the Box: 5-5 in 10 GS and 1 in relief - 1 CG -8 HR,21 BB, 55 K over 66.1 IP with a 3.53 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and a .244 BAA

vs Astros lineup:

Opposing hitter AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS
Craig Biggio 70 17 5 0 1 5 3 13 .243 .284 .357 .641
Lance Berkman 58 20 3 0 2 9 6 12 .345 .418 .500 .918
Brad Ausmus 55 16 0 0 0 2 7 8 .291 .400 .291 .691
Adam Everett 31 9 1 1 0 1 2 4 .290 .333 .387 .720
Mike Lamb 17 6 1 0 3 4 2 2 .353 .421 .941 1.362
Mo Ensberg 15 3 0 0 0 0 1 4 .200 .250 .200 .450
Preston Wilson 11 2 0 0 0 1 0 3 .182 .250 .182 .432
O Palmeiro 10 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .100 .100 .100 .200
Jason Lane 7 2 0 0 1 2 1 0 .286 .375 .714 1.089
Willy Taveras 7 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .143 .250 .143 .393
Joe McEwing 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 .250 .250 .500
Eric Munson 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000 .000 .000


???????????

 

[IE]

The Houston Astros typically play very well at Minute Maid Park. Unless, of course, they're hosting the Giants, in which case losses are as common as Lance Berkman home runs.
The Giants are 19-5 in Houston since the Astros' downtown ballpark opened in 2000, the best record of any visiting team. The Astros are 13-32 (.289) in the 2000s vs. San Francisco, the lowest winning percentage against any National League team this decade.

Barry Bonds wasn't much of a factor in the first two games, but the Astros will catch somewhat of a break Wednesday, because the slugger is probably not going to start the finale. He'll likely be available to pinch-hit.

The Astros will be thinking less about Bonds and more about their dismal performance in the first two games, which resulted in the Giants outscoring them 24-4.

If there's a silver lining, perhaps it's that they're at least facing a pitcher they've seen many, many times before -- former St. Louis Cardinals hurler Matt Morris.

Still, considering Morris' past success, the Astros aren't taking too much comfort.

"It's always nice being familiar with a guy, but at the same time, Morris is a great pitcher," Morgan Ensberg said. "It's a double-edged sword. You definitely know the pitch you're going to get, but he does a good job of locating. It's going to be difficult for us.

"And we have not had two good games. We need to really be focused and make sure we get out of this. You want to make sure to turn these losing streaks around as soon as possible."

Pitching matchup
HOU: RHP Fernando Nieve (1-1, 4.85 ERA)
Nieve threw 90 pitches in his win over the Rockies on May 12, allowing one run on six hits. He walked three and sturck out four. He was wild and didn't have a 1-2-3 inning, but manager Phil Garner was pleased with the rookie's approach. Garner said he was happy to see a glimpse of the velocity Nieve is capable of, and he's looking forward to Nieve displaying his slider, which is his strikeout pitch.

SF: RHP Matt Morris (2-4, 6.20 ERA)
Morris pitched fairly well in his last outing, but received only one run of support in a 5-1 loss to the Dodgers. The right-hander yielded eight hits over seven innings and is now on a six-game winless streak and has dropped his last three decisions. Pitching well? Yes. But Morris says he wants good results instead.

 

[IE]

Lidge was telegraphing his pitches


By RICHARD JUSTICE
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

Brad Lidge watched hours of video and received dozens of pieces of advice. And then Joe McEwing showed up from the minor leagues.

As conversations go, theirs might be the most important of the season for the Astros. OK, the second-most important one.

"Please, Roger, please," is roughly how the other one might be going.

If Uncle Drayton isn't saying these exact words to Roger Clemens, he's certainly thinking it as he watches his young pitchers come undone a day at a time.

Wandy Rodriguez became the latest, allowing six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings in a 14-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night at Minute Maid Park.

There was that one little moral victory. Barry Bonds didn't homer.

Back to more important matters.

While Lidge has been going through the worst stretch of his career, he was approached by McEwing last week.

"I told him I had his pitches a couple of years ago (while playing with the Mets)," McEwing said. "I just mentioned it in conversation. Listen, it didn't help me against him. He has good enough stuff to get by regardless."

Yes, but ...

All the tipoffs came when Lidge was pitching from the stretch. Earlier this season, he began throwing exclusively from the stretch.

Lidge's life suddenly got simpler. If hitters knew what was coming, he'd have to make perfect pitches to succeed.

"Everybody was laying off my slider, and I was always falling behind," Lidge said. "Guys weren't swinging at my sliders in the dirt like before, which made me wonder. Then I was trying to be (overly) careful with my fastball."

He has made two appearances since realizing he was putting his hands one place for a slider and another for a fastball.

In two innings, he has allowed no base runners and thrown just 22 pitches. He finally has looked like the Brad Lidge of old, the guy who was as reliable as any closer in the game the past two seasons.

Before that, he was a mess. He had allowed 10 base runners in his last three innings of work. He failed in four of his last eight save chances. He had blown as many saves in six weeks as he did all last season.

Amateur psychologists pointed to last October's troubles, especially Albert Pujols' home run in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series.

The problem with that theory is that Lidge wasn't acting like a guy who'd lost his nerve. He wasn't timid about throwing strikes. If anything, he was throwing too many.

He still had a 97 mph fastball and an 88 mph slider. He had stuff other pitchers would die to have.

Yet something was different. Hitters weren't swinging at the slider, forcing Lidge to throw more fastballs. He never had great command of his second pitch.

Funny thing is, at times Lidge offered clues himself.

"I guess I have to mix things up a little better," he said at one point.

He'd had other hints. Well, more than hints. Adam Everett got a tip from another National League hitter that Lidge was tipping his pitches. The closer's agent heard from a player.

When the Astros began looking at video of previous years, they found it. But Lidge is cautious about declaring the end of his troubles.

"I'm still going to walk people, and I'm still going to give up some home runs, but ... "

He won't finish that sentence. Yet. Garner, who removed Lidge from the closer's role last week, might soon hand the job back to him.

On the plane ride home from Los Angeles last week, after his worst outing of the season, Lidge and pitching coach Jim Hickey watched video almost the entire flight.

They found that Lidge needed to slow his shoulder and get his hand more behind the ball upon delivery. Doing so improves his control.

"I think he's over the hump," Hickey said. "I don't doubt some teams felt they had something on him. That being said, the bedrock of his problem is throwing his fastball for a strike.

"We have to keep working on that."

He won't fix that part of the problem overnight. But if hitters no longer know which pitch is coming, Lidge will be on the road to recovery.

"It really ticked me off because it took a month out of my career," Lidge said. "It was a horrible month."

He's probably not as angry as those words sound. He's probably relieved.

He can resume his career.